It has been well over two decades since Yu-Gi-Oh made its debut, and the franchise is still a household one after all of these years. From its trading cards to its TV shows, the fantastical series still keeps a grip on old-school fans while it brings in new blood. Of course, as new fans expand the community, the fandom shifts as you’d expect. But right now, it seems the base is buzzing big time after Yu-Gi-Oh was graced with a hilarious anime meme.
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And what is it about? Well, it has to do with Yu-Gi-Oh laying out the foundations for one of anime’s biggest genres these days. The original anime is definitely an isekai, and the revelation is blowing minds online.
As you can see above, the meme exploded after the user NerdFactorYGO pointed out how the series aligned with isekai tentpoles. This meant the anime needed a fitting name since isekai series have some… wild titles. So of course, Yu-Gi-Oh went with “An Ancient Pharaoh Got Reincarnated Into This World and Is Now Killing People with Card Games.”
Obviously, the name is funny enough, but fans are geeking out over Yu-Gi-Oh‘s ties to isekai. Some fans refuse to count the original series as such, but others admit Yami fits the bill. After all, an isekai story is primarily defined by a character reincarnating or visiting a world that is different than their own. For Yami, he does this through Yugi. The pharaoh might not have a body of his own, but his access to Yugi allows him to explore a world very different from his own. So if we look at Yami as the protagonist, things start to work out.
Of course, Yu-Gi-Oh has not kept up the isekai theme, but it is not the only series from its time to lean into the now-massive genre. Digimon Adventure and even Spirited Away are considered part of the isekai family. As the genre grew in popularity, series like Sword Art Online and Mushoku Tensei have climbed the ranks. And now, Yu-Gi-Oh fans can call the series part of that family if they’d like.
What do you think of this isekai makeover? Are you a fan of the anime genre or…? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB.
