Add to List

take the scenario from Terminator + tons of mindless violence + card games on motorcycles (that are surprisingly good) + a badass protagonist: Welcome to 5ds!
5ds revitalized the game when it needed it most. Konami created new types of cards (synchros) and introduced them through an anime so good that people actually got over the fact that Konami was creating new rules again (The same tactic was repeated quite successfully with Arc V and completely failed with Zexal). The duels suddenly became A LOT faster and more enjoyable and the game that was going downhill until then suddenly stepped up.
For starters FINALLY we're through with 'school children protagonists'. Yusei was already 18 when the show started, had already trouble with cops and was basically living in a giant scrapyard/post-apocalyptic city. Literally from the first minutes of the anime all you can say is 'wow, is this really yugioh?!'. Obviously the super-added levels of violence meant that 4kids butchered the anime even more than usual in the dub, making it utterly unwatchable, but that's hardly the original's fault.
And staying on the 'violence makes good' theme, lets talk about emotional violence as well. Aki, the show's female lead is quite clearly a girl with a LOT of problems and torn between her loyalties, from the start to the end. On the one hand she wants to go with the protagonist... Mostly because she just fancies him, on the other she wants to stay with her boss, who she also fancies (kinda, and also kinda sees him as a fatherly figure, honestly it's a pretty interesting subplot). And the main reason she can't choose is that in 5ds, there is no clearly evil character. Obviously the protagonist is good, but there is no character you can clearly call an 'one-sided villain', including her boss. On one hand that makes for a much more mature plot, on other it doesn't allow for the sheer evil badassness that Vector was (read my zexal II review). In fact even the last main villain of the anime, the big bad behind it all, STILL isn't evil. Misguided maybe, yes, but he only had the best of intentions (you know, unlike the motherfu%$ing Vector and the others).
The protagonist, Yusei, best of all, never jokes, almost never smiles and is in fact from start to finish dead serious about everything. The fact that he can outrun security (constantly), beat the crap out of everyone (no, I don't mean in a card game, I mean literally, beat the crap out of people), build 2 whole motorcycles from scrap and understand physics (without ever going to school mind you) makes him a total boss. After him comes Jack Atlas, the second male lead, who gets almost equal screentime, and is a fan-favourite due to his dueling style and unparalleled ego. He makes for an amazing antagonist and surprisingly well-written character (and is in fact the only character in the anime to get more chicks than Yusei). Lets be honest here, EVERYONE who has seen 5ds was hyped every time that 'Red Demon's Dragon' was summoned. (Come on, you can even recite the summoning chant)
The plot starts from post-apocalyptic future, goes to 'suck my Aztec d$%^' and ends up Terminator (down to the last detail). While pretty light on twists there are a few that really make for interesting story (for example who the final opponents of the second and final Arcs were). Most of the anime is delightfully dark, with purple and dark blue being the primarly used colors. (As far as I can remember you almost never see the sun in the first Arcs).
When it comes to animation and OSTes 5ds was way above the antagonism. In fact when it came out, I quite honestly thought it had the best OST in anime after Bleach (Fairy Tail hadn't come out yet). The animation has a unique dark style to it that really makes the anime enjoyable and you asking for more.
It doesn't matter if you didn't like yugioh in general, at least the first 8-9 episodes of this one are a must-watch.

When looking at a series, is it better to start strong but end weak or start weak but end strong? I believe a strong finish is better than a strong start because while it won't hook people immediately, it will allow for people to have something to look forward to while watching. The problem with 5D's is that it follows the latter, being a disappointment after the first season, which ends at the end of the dark signer arc. The unfortunate truth behind this is that the director for the fortune cup arc left to work on Symphogear, leaving behind notes for the dark signer arc. The new director followed these notes, but once the dark signer arc finished, he unfortunately screwed up a lot of things. If I could rate the seasons seperately, I'd give the first season a 9 and the second season a 5. So let's delve into some of the best and worst yugioh has to offer.
The story for the first season is structured pretty well. There is little to no filler and you can feel the progression. At the start, Yusei just wants to get back the card that symbolizes his bonds, Stardust Dragon, but then he gets stuck in Godwin's plan and becomes a signer. While the plot doesn't stand out, it also doesn't falter, allowing for strong character development. The second season has a convoluted plot where all the problems are solved because of Yusei suddenly becoming overpowered. It just sucks when the solution to every plot related problem winds up being Yusei. Another major issue is how there are 6 signer dragons when the original plot wanted 5. It felt like they wanted to give a character signer status just so he could stay with the main cast instead of a legitimate reason. It all just felt like so much of the original intent spiraled down into a cesspool of absurdity.
The art and sound are pretty spot on, with the soundtrack containing some of the best vocal pieces in the yugioh franchise with songs like CROSS GAME and Clear Mind. The structural and artistic design of each D-wheel definitely shows each character's personality. The duel disks are designed to look like their respective D-wheels, as the motorcycles are a hybrid of transportation and a dueling machine.
The biggest divide between the seasons is how the characters are handled. The first season had some of the best character development, delving deep into what makes each character and how they all overcome their mental and physical barriers to become stronger and better people. Overcoming the darkness in your heart is a prevalent theme within the dark signer arc, and it made the development even better. Unfortunately, the second season throws much of the development out the window and streamlines every character's personalities and emotions. There could have been so much more done with the characters introduced in the second season to make them meaningful and not just a bland sideshow.
I heavily enjoyed the first season, and it became one of my favorite parts of yugioh. It's a engrossing and fulfilling experience that you should experience. The second season, however I didn't enjoy so much. I did manage to watch through it all, and it was about the same as Zexal 1. I recommend only watching the first season while completely ignoring the second season, unless if you want to laugh at the problems it has. Remember kids, you can turn off the monitor whenever you want.

5D's, my favorite show of all time. This show is a beautiful work of art, with some of the most real characters I have ever experienced. However, between Dark Signers and Pre-WRPG there is a huge shift, however I personally adore season 2 for there depiction of the main threat of the series, Yliaster.
-Art-
The art is beautiful, and the monsters are some of the most beautiful we've gotten yet. The Signer Dragon's complexity could make them hard to look at if your use to the original, but once adjusted they are some of the best designed monsters in the franchise. The Earthbound Immortals could be considered simple, and they are simplified black versions of the Nazca Line the represent with a different color line vairty across them, but they somehow manage to still look amazingly badass. The Machine Emperors are just sheer eye candy to anyone a fan of machines in general, and the characters still have gravity-defying hair, making certain characters(ESPICALLY APORIA) a pain to draw.
-Sound-
The Voice Acting is sheer beautiful, from the sexy voices of Yusei Fudo and Aporia to just the plain awesome voice work that is given to Lucciano. However the music is where it really shines. Almost all OSTs are amazing, including Yusei's theme, Lucciano/Skiel's theme, Light and Dark, Placido's theme and many MANY others. However the openings, endings and inserts are where they just BOMB IT. 5D's and GX are the only shows were I love every single opening and ending, and my god, do they not disappoint. Future Colors, Cross Game, Start, Last Train, Going my Way!!, Believe in Nexus, Freedom, -OZONE-, Close to You and Kizuna are the best songs in the entire franchise by far, and we have the all holy insert song sung by freaking Masaaki Endoh known as Clear Mind.
-Characters-
I will admit I have a crush on Placido to the point where it's kinda scary and sad, but the characters feel so real. Yusei and Jack are by far the best Yugi/Kaiba duo yet, and the entire major rest of the list excluding the characters from Secruity and Satellite are amazing. Rua, Ruka, and Lucciano are by far the best children characters in this franchise along with Arc-V's Sora, and damn does Z-One troll everyone. There's even a character exclusive to the spinoff Bonds Beyond Time who gets mentioned, and well, just watch the freaking show.
-Enjoyment-
I have never enjoyed a show this much. Every episode, even the filler, was good in some way. My personal favorite episodes are 105-110(the Placido VS Yusei mini-arc as I like to call it). But just, watch it.
-Overall-
This franchise is amazing, and this series is a treat from beyond heaven. If you like anime in general, WATCH YU-GI-OH! 5D'S RIGHT NOW.

CHILDREN’S CARD GAMES ON MOTORCYCLES!!!!
Ok, now that everyone has gotten that out of their system we can enter the world of high speed action that is Yugioh 5d’s
The third series of the Yugioh Franchise is marked by breaking away from many of the tropes that had plagued the other two, in particular the previous series Yugioh Gx. Rather than being built upon a tournament or school structure system, 5d’s manages to create its own almost post futuristic world. The setting of this world is the best developed in all of Yugioh history.
Our cast for this series is slightly different from the usual Yugioh cast. Yusei is not our average Yugioh protagonist. Not only is he older, but his maturity is shown to us time and time again. This is a shounen protagonist who is smart, cool and collected. He forges his own destiny, building his own motorcycle out of the scraps available to him. Jack Atlas takes the rival slot for the series. He starts off as the basic Kaiba clone for the series, arrogant and prideful. In a wise move they manage to develop him in such a way that makes him one of the more beloved characters of the series. Akiza becomes one of the most developed female characters in Yugioh history. Not only does she have a tragic past but she also is a strong duelist capable of putting Yusei and the like in their place. The uneasy bonds that these three share make up the core of Yugioh 5d’s.
The plot still follows the regular card game format. Expect a couple tournament arcs with one time characters. Expect highly situational random dues ex machina card draws at the last minute that will never see print. Expect people to not stay dead for long. This is what the Yugioh franchise is about, and for what it’s worth, 5d’s manages to pull it off for the most part. Villains have personal connections to their opponents to make them more than just fights to save the world but also character battles. The Synchro mechanic introduced in 5d’s proves to be interesting and fun (Synchro Chants are addictive) but in general the card designs in 5d’s are some of the best in all Yugioh history which make for some very entertaining duels. There is also a lot less random opponent of the week, and more plot oriented episodes. There are some really genuinely shocking moments in this series.
If this was all there was to 5d’s (up to episode 64) I probably would be able to give it an 8/10. A good reinvention of the Yugioh franchise. Unfortunately Yugioh 5d’s continued past the first season for almost 100 episodes. They start the second season with near 20 episodes of filler. Once they start engaging the actual plot of the second season, you realize that maybe the filler was the more humanitarian option. Character assassination doesn’t begin to describe what occurs in Season 2 of Yugioh 5d’s. The number of editorial changes and plot holes quickly begins to pile up, leaving no doubt that the writers are making this up as they go along. Towards the end of Season 2 they manage to recover a bit with some rather epic duels, but the damage has already been done.
The animation is what you would expect of an ongoing series with more than 150 episodes under its belt. There are some episodes that kick it out of the park with stellar animation. There are some few rather rare moments where the animation completely backfires and a dramatic moment is defused. It should be noted that I am not a fan of the 3D animation used in anime, especially inserted in regular animation. It interrupts the flow of the series at best. At worst it looks totally silly. Luckily 5d’s manages to keep the 3D animation to a minimum, not over using it. It is easy to overlook these few random moments.
The soundtrack of the series is one of the most enjoyable elements of Yugioh 5d’s. A lot of the character theme’s are so intense and gripping that they can make even the most simple of duels seem like the world cup. Every moment is dripping with drama because of the awesome soundtrack. This is one part of the series that never takes a dip. Later in the series they add insert songs by Masaaki Endoh who also does a couple of opening themes, all of which are filled with so much energy and charge.
In total, Yugioh 5d’s can be inconsistent. It started off strong, and when it wants to be good the series can been very enjoyable, but when it is weak it can be disastrous and the last half of the series is filled with weak plot elements. If you are a Yugioh fan than this is something you must watch, but for everyone else there is better series to watch.
Riding Duel Acceleration!!!