[STORY] F4-Programmer (Season 1: Duelist Kingdom) : #011

Episode 11: The Dueling Monkey (The Power of Friendship: Barbarians 1 & 2)

Yugi and the others are still searching for Mokuba, but he's nowhere to be found. Tristan says those thugs must have snatched him back to Pegasus' castle. Téa says now they have Yugi's Grandpa and Kaiba's brother, too. They turn to look at the Castle in the distance. Yugi is more determined than ever to win ten Star Chips so he can get in there, and Joey agrees. (Removed from the US version is a graphic showing how many Star Chips Yugi and Jounouchi each have.)

Then Joey notices some Duel Monsters cards on the ground, and bends down to pick them up, saying it's his lucky day. But Tristan tells him hands off, they're his—Tristan figures if someone like Joey can hold his own in this game, he'll probably be an expert at it. (Japanese Honda says he thinks the game is interesting, so he bought some cards and brought them with him.)

Joey picks up one of Tristan's cards, saying it looks familiar. Yugi says he's seen that card in Joey's deck, but Joey says it's not exactly the same, but he thinks he has something like it. He pulls out his own card, Swamp Battleguard (Barbarian #2), and says the two Battleguards look like long-lost brothers—but Tristan's Lava Battleguard (Barbarian #1) doesn't pack the same wallop as his. Tristan says his wallop is just fine! His Lava Battleguard has never let him down, and Joey should try it out sometime. Joey thanks him, and says it does say they work best together. (Japanese Jounouchi says it's better to have the set, and asks Honda to give him his card. When Honda protests, Jounouchi says it should be okay—Honda doesn't use it anyway, so it won't be any disadvantage to him. Honda finally says Jounouchi can borrow it for a while.) Téa says she sees a resemblance between Joey and Tristan and those muscleheads. Joey takes it as a compliment. (Japanese Anzu tells them they're acting like Idiot #1 and Idiot #2. Jounouchi yells at Yugi for laughing, and Yugi says, Sorry!)

Meanwhile, Mai is demolishing yet another player, and feeling pretty bored about it. Later, she watches the sunset and wonders why she can't enjoy wiping out hotshot duelists any more. The answer is a huge image of grinning Joey in the sky above her head. She can't believe such an amateur beat her, and she's determined to get even with him.

Rex Raptor shows up to challenge her, saying he's itching to finish that match they started on the boat. She says she already knocked him on his butt, and tells him to beat it. He informs her he was a finalist in the regionals, and already has five Star Chips, but she shows off her own eight. She's only lost once, she tells him, and once she finds that punk Joey, it's payback. He wonders how she could lose to Joey Wheeler, and she says she'd like to see him try. (Japanese Mai says she's already decided who she's going to duel next. Rex thinks it's Yugi, and says he can beat him.) That gives Mai an idea. She'll duel Rex, if he does something for her first.

Back in the meadow, the gang watch the other duelists wandering around, and Téa says it's nice to see some normal kids for a change. Tristan nudges Joey, asking him if any of these tykes are puny enough for him to take on, or does he want to go looking for some three-year-olds. Téa tells him to be nice—Joey's just biding his time until he finds a dueling monkey to challenge. (Japanese Anzu says these kids don't look very strong. One of them would be a good opponent for Jounouchi. Honda says he doesn't know, some of them look like they have potential. Anzu agrees, but says she can't think of anyone weaker than Jounouchi. Honda agrees, while Yugi snickers.) Joey's pretty steamed, but before he can get really worked up, Mai shows up. (Cut from the US version is this bit where Mai taunts the whole gang by saying that the way they stick together, were they ducks in a past life?)

Mai asks Joey if Yugi's still fighting all his battles for him. Everyone knows if Yugi hadn't been there to hold his hand, Joey wouldn't have beat her. Yugi says that isn't true, so Mai says she proposes that Joey step out of his shadow here and now. If Joey thinks he's so tough, let's see him play for himself. (Japanese Mai asks Yugi if he doesn't think Jounouchi is wasting his time—Yugi'd already be in Pegasus' castle if it weren't for Jounouchi. Yugi doesn't know what to say. Mai says she's not there to challenge Yugi—her target is Jounouchi.)

Mai challenges Joey to fight the duelist she's arranged for him. Rex steps up, saying that he's dueling for Mai. Joey thinks Rex doesn't look so tough, but Téa reminds him that Rex placed second in the regionals. (Japanese Jounouchi asks Ryuuzaki if he's Mai's servant, and says he envies him. Anzu tells Jounouchi he's an idiot, and warns him not to accept.) Joey says it's his fight, but Téa asks him what he's trying to prove, and Tristan agrees, urging him to pick his battles.

Rex grins, thinking he can't believe Mai offered to duel him just for stomping this "amateurus rex." And Mai thinks that Joey had Yugi's help when he beat her, so having Rex do her dirty work is the perfect revenge. She tells them that if little Yugi does any of his backseat dueling, Joey will automatically be disqualified, and the duel will go to Rex. This is Joey's big chance to prove himself, she says. Or will he back out? (Japanese Mai thinks that she wants revenge on Jounouchi, but it doesn't feel right to duel him herself. But if she beats Ryuuzaki, who is better than Jounouchi, then maybe the duel she had with Jounouchi can be washed away. This shot of Anzu and Jounouchi from over Mai's shoulder is cut from the US version.)

(Anzu glares at Mai, thinking Mai's doing this because of her duel with Jounouchi, but Jounouchi won with Yugi's help. Then, Mai says there's a condition. Outsiders can't give advice, otherwise, it's not a real duel. What does Jounouchi think?)

Téa says, of course he is! (Japanese Anzu sputters, "That... that's...") But Joey puts out a hand to hold her back, and says that's how he wants it—just him and Rex. It may cost him all his Star Chips, but he doesn't deserve to keep them if the only reason he's winning is because of Yugi. All his life, he says, people are trying to help him because they think he can't help himself. He doesn't need to be babied this time. (Japanese Jounouchi accepts Mai's condition. Then he says, he must be really foolish—if he loses his Star Chips, he won't be able to stay on the island. But he wants to win with his own abilities. He doesn't want to hold Yugi back.)

Tristan thinks Joey's lost it. He says Joey can believe whatever he wants, but he won't stand there and watch him throw his chips away. He tells Mai that little Joey won't be coming out to play today. Maybe once he grows up, they can arrange a playdate. (Japanese Honda asks Jounouchi what he's thinking—he only came in eighth in a local competition! Then he tells Mai, sorry, Jounouchi didn't mean it.)

Joey loses it, and as the gang watch in horror, Tristan ends up on the ground. (Japanese Jounouchi yells at Honda to mind his own business, and the sound of a punch is heard.) "What did you shove me for?" Tristan asks. (Japanese Honda asks Jounouchi what's wrong with him.) Joey says he's tired of everyone thinking they have to come to his rescue. Yugi says that's not how it is—friends look out for each other. Joey tells him to keep out of it, and just let him do what he has to do. (Japanese Jounouchi says Mai is right—if he weren't there, Yugi would already be... Yugi protests that he doesn't think of it that way. But Jounouchi says, if he can't win a duel on his own, he'd rather lose.)

Tristan stands up, telling Joey to go ahead and do what he has to do—even if it means losing the chance to help his sister. Joey thinks of Serenity, telling his sister he'll make her proud.

Téa tells them to cool off, but Tristan walks away in disgust, saying if Mr. Macho wants to lose, he can do it by himself. Still determined, Joey accepts Rex and Mai's challenge, telling Yugi he wants him to keep out of this one. Reluctantly, Yugi agrees.

A dueling arena rises out of the ground, and the players take their stations, as Téa tells Joey they believe in him, and not to forget what he's fighting for. Joey thinks he's got that part down—it's who he's fighting that's making him sweat. (Japanese Anzu tells Jounouchi, "Gambatte," or "Do your best." Jounouchi thinks, now that he thinks about the condtion, it makes him very nervous.) Mai reminds Rex of their deal—beat Joey, and he gets to duel her. Joey accuses Rex of being Mai's attack dog, but Rex says at least he's no dueling monkey, which makes Joey burst into flames. (Japanese Mai tells Ryuuzaki he has to beat Jounouchi in order to win his prize. Jounouchi asks what the prize is, but Ryuuzaki says he's not telling.)

Joey bets two Star Chips—all he has. Rex is happy to accept that bet, saying he bets Joey isn't even prepared for the fields they'll be playing on. (Japanese Ryuuzaki says his field is wilderness, while Jounouchi's is mountains.) Joey thinks, he still has a hard time telling one field from another, let alone using them in any strategic way. His best bet is going to be to hit Rex hard and fast with his Baby Dragon–Time Wizard combo. It worked on Mai, and he hopes it will do the trick again. (Japanese Jounouchi thinks, Ryuuzaki is a strong duelist with his dinosaur deck. But Jounouchi has the trump cards that won over Mai.)

The duel begins. Yugi tells Téa to cheer Joey on, while he goes to see about something.

Joey's in luck, having drawn both Baby Dragon and Time Wizard in his opening hand. He giggles happily, but then he notices that Yugi's gone, too. He wonders where Yugi went, but shrugs it off, thinking, wait till Yugi sees what Joey did all by himself. He plays Baby Dragon (700 DEF) in defense mode, thinking he's got it in the bag, but Rex plays Two-Headed King Rex (1600 ATK) and attacks, destroying Baby Dragon before Joey has a chance to play his combo. Téa calls out encouragement, saying everybody makes mistakes, but Mai says Joey's big mistake was in agreeing to the duel in the first place.

With Joey's Baby Dragon crushed, Rex says, his Two-Headed King Rex can terrorize the field for the rest of the match.

Joey plays Leogun (1750 ATK), a lion monster, and attacks, not realizing that Two-Headed King Rex is powered up to 2080 points by the wilderness field bonus. Joey's monster is destroyed, and he's down to 1670 life points. Joey says he's still got plenty to serve up—assuming he's got this field power bonus thing figured out. He plays Axe Raider (1700 ATK), which gets boosted to 2210, and destroys the Two-Headed King Rex, taking Rex down to 1870 life points.

Rex Raptor comes right back with Sword Arm of Dragon (Sword Dragon) (1750 ATK, boosted to 2275) and destroys Axe Raider, taking Joey down to 1605 life points.

Joey's lost three monsters in three turns. Even with the field power bonus, he thinks, he can't beat Rex. Téa tries to urge him on, telling him they're all right behind him, but he can't help feeling abandoned by Yugi and Tristan. (Japanese Anzu asks Jounouchi what he's doing, and tells him to pay attention!)

Meanwhile, Tristan's sitting at the edge of a stream, splashing some cold water on his face, and calling Joey a nimrod and a big dumb jerk, when Yugi finds him. Tristan asks what Yugi is doing there—he should be helping Joey. Yugi says Joey made it pretty clear he didn't want Yugi's help on this one, and since Tristan left, Yugi thought maybe he should, too. Tristan protests that, without Yugi's coaching, Joey won't last two minutes with Rex. He doesn't care what Joey says—Yugi has to go back there and help him. But Yugi says he can't do that. Joey has to fight this duel on his own, and Yugi has to let him. (Japanese Yugi says, since he can't give advice, it doesn't matter if he's there. Honda says it does matter—although Yugi has to keep his promise, he should be there to show his friendship. Yugi says he won't talk to Jounouchi until the duel is finished.)

Tristan grabs Yugi by the collar, but Yugi stands his ground, reminding Tristan that if Yugi goes back on his promise and helps Joey, Joey will be disqualified. They have to believe in Joey, so Joey will believe in himself. Tristan turns away, saying maybe he doesn't think Joey can win. Yugi says it's not about winning—it's about Joey learning to be a strong big brother for his sister. Even though Joey doesn't need their help, he needs their support. (Japanese Yugi says that Jounouchi wants to win this duel on his own, and he thinks it will be better for Shizuka, too. Tristan turns away, saying, "But then...." Yugi continues, saying that Jounouchi worried a lot before accepting this challenge. Honda can show his friendship for Jounouchi best by being there for him. Jounouchi will understand his feelings.)

Joey tries to pull himself together, reminding himself that his little sister is counting on him. There has to be something in this hand he can play.... (Japanese Jounouchi wonders where Yugi went. then he shakes his head, thinking that he's so dependent, always thinking about Yugi. He has to rely on himself, for Shizuka. But he hasn't got any cards that can beat Ryuuzaki's dinosaurs.) Then he notices his Time Wizard. Too bad he doesn't have his Baby Dragon to play it with any more, but he thinks it couldn't hurt to put it out on the field, anyway. He sets Time Wizard face down (he plays it in the magic and trap zone, even though it's a monster card), announcing it as he does so. Mai thinks, that's the card Joey used to beat her. (Japanese Jounouchi doesn't say what card he's setting, but Mai thinks that it must be Time Magician.) She should warn Rex, and calls out to him to watch that Time Wizard. (Japanese Mai calls out to Ryuuzaki, but he's already thinking that the card must be Time Magician.) But Rex isn't worried—without Yugi's help, he says, that chump doesn't even know how to use it. He thinks Joey will play a monster next, and he'll be in for the prehistoric pounding of his life! Mai thinks maybe Rex is right. Joey only beat her Harpie Ladies because Yugi coached him.

Joey then plays Rock Ogre (1200 DEF) in defense. Rex Raptor counters with Megazowler (1800 ATK, raised to 2340 by the field power bonus), and destroys Rock Ogre. Next, Joey plays Flame Swordsman (1800 ATK, also raised to 2340 by the field power bonus), and attacks Rex's Megazowler. The two monsters battle—and Rex's monster is destroyed, to Rex's great surprise, taking Rex down to 1330 life points. How could a swordsman could beat a dinosaur? Joey's just as surprised. Mai thinks there's no way Joey could have known that dinosaurs are especially vulnerable to fire. She thinks Joey lucked out on that one. (The US Flame Swordsman is given a purple background, which is the color of a Fusion Monster. The real Flame Swordsman is in fact a Fusion Monster, but it isn't played as one in the show. In the Japanese episode, the card has a normal yellow background.)

Joey laughs, saying it looks like he found the secret to beating Rex's dinos. Rex plays Sword Arm of Dragon in defense mode, and Flame Swordsman destroys it, along with the next two monsters Rex puts out on the field. (The two monsters appear to be Crawling Dragon #2 and Uraby, which is what they are in the manga, although they're not named in the anime.)

Téa cheers, but Rex says it's far from over. One card won't win this for him. So Joey plays his Swamp Battleguard (1800 ATK, raised to 2340 by the field power bonus). Rex says he has a beast that will wipe that smirk off Joey's face permanently, and draws, smiling at the card in his hand. He plays Serpent Night Dragon (2350 ATK), telling Joey that this rare card is awarded to the elite few who reach the finals of the regional championships. Serpent Night Dragon destroys Flame Swordsman. Joey's lost his best monster, and doesn't know what to do. There's not a monster in his deck that can save him now. Then he draws Tristan's Lava Battleguard (1550 ATK), and thinks that Tristan always shows up somehow. (In the Japanese version, Honda is partially visible through the card Jounouchi is holding. In the US version, this is changed so that the card covers Tristan's face.)

Joey flashes back to a time when he was defending a little kid against a gang of punks. Just as the punks were about to gang up on Joey, Tristan showed up and joined the fight. Afterwards, Tristan told Joey he should have called him, and offered Joey a hand up, but Joey slapped his hand away, asking Tristan what he was doing there. Joey told Tristan he could have taken those guys, and walked away, saying he didn't need to be babied.

Now, as Joey looks at Tristan's card, it finally hits him. Tristan's always been looking out for him, not because Joey needs help, but because he's a true friend. Just then, Tristan and Yugi show up, and Tristan tells Joey they're there for him. (Japanese Honda says, "That idiot can't do anything without me.") So, Tristan asks, is Joey going to take that card of his for a test drive?

Joey says, you got it! and plays Tristan's Lava Battleguard. Tristan thinks it's cool that his card is on the field. Rex says, what a touching reunion, and tells his Serpent Night Dragon to attack the green one—Swamp Battleguard. But the attack fails, and Serpent Night Dragon is destroyed! How was his dragon's attack repelled? Then Tristan realizes—the red one blocked for the green one. Joey says Tristan's card was there, just when he needed it the most, and Yugi agrees—those two monsters are like best friends, so when they're together on the field, they help power each other up. Just like how Tristan and Joey watch out for each other in real life. Tristan turns to Joey on he playing field, saying that's what being a buddy is all about. Joey tells him thanks for everything, and Tristan gives him thumbs up.

What a team! Yugi says. Not only did they take out Rex's monster, they made a nice dent in his life points, too. Rex is down to 840. Tristan says, and now that they're together again..., and Joey finishes, there's not a monster Rex has that can stop them. (Japanese Jounouchi says he'd better counterattack while he can, and Honda adds, they'll fight together!)

But Rex Raptor thinks that they'd better celebrate while they can, because their party's about to be crashed. He laughs, as the silhouette of a huge dragon rises behind him.

To Be Continued