Seven days, that's how long it took for Yugioh to shift into its first spinoff. From it, we got a very divisive sequel: Yugioh Generation Next, or should I say Yugioh Gx. While the series does have a strong fanbase behind it, others have described it as being one of the worst entries in the franchise, and then some are here for the memes. With all of these factors combined, Gx is a bit of a mess, a mess I've got lots of complicated feelings about. Feelings I hope to convey now.
Note
Like with all the series, I've been reviewing the anime sub instead of dub. I will admit that Gx suffered the most from its dub, given the final season was completely cut from the series. Also, keep in mind I will be critical of the show. Still, take this with a grain of salt since I think Gx is the halfway point of the series I've watched. It's not the worst, in my opinion, but it's not the best either.
Story
Ten years after DM, Seto Kaiba, in his infinite wisdom, has decided to teach the newest generation of duelists at an island called Duel Academy. This is the story of how a young boy named Jaden Yuki soon attends said school as he defeats various evil entities with his friends.
Cast
Might as well say it right here and now Gx might have the biggest cast in all of Yugioh with its recurring main cast. If we're talking about just Jaden's leading ensemble throughout the entire series, we have Syrus, Chumley, Alexis, Atticus, Chazz, Hassleberry, Blair, and Bastion in no particular order. While having a big cast isn't necessarily a bad trait (in fact, it's par for the course when it comes to most shonen anime), I don't think Gx was able to handle its big cast very well in the grand scheme of things.
And I wouldn't be so opposed to this if it weren't for one simple fact: they're all duelists. Not only are they duelists, but duelists who are trying to be the best. Other series like Zexal and DM don't have that problem since their main cast isn't professional duelists. That combined with GX's often large-scale arcs, Gx could have handled their cast better.
With that out of the way, I will admit that Gx has a lot of memorable characters, with our main character Jaden Yuki being a great example. Jaden's fun and bright attitude made him the perfect poster boy for Yugioh's new era and are probably why Gx has one of the stronger fandoms of the list. Also, much like protagonists before and after him, Jaden's deck almost speaks for himself.
The iconic Elemental Hero/Neo Spacian deck shows Jaden's innate harmony and heroic personality. A personality tested in the latter half of the story when he enters the other world. Through these tragedies, his heart became blackened, becoming depressed and aggressive through dueling. Which makes his rise back to normalcy all the more triumphant by the series end.
Other than that, we've got other characters. Cyrus was a welcome best friend whose development was fine but too minor. Chazz is one of the greatest rivals in the franchise for his slow ability to learn and come back greater after his many defeats. His increasing pettiness, character development, and motivation in the Darkness arc are inspiring as he wants to try and make his mark in life with his skill.
Alexis remains one of the most badass female characters, but I think a lot more could have to get done with her, given that someone who gets characterized as a strong female eventually gets turned into a damsel in distress. Zane is another interesting rival who's respectable nature, sensei-like coolness, and professionalism made him a quick standout of the series. His further descent into Kaiser and temporary death also does a lot to add to his character. Though I wish his fate were more permanent. Aster is a lovable stuck-up rich kid with an awesome heart of gold. Jesse was probably the most prominent ally Jaden has ever had, and some other characters like Axel, Adrain, Jim, and others were also interesting.
Overall, Gx has one of the more memorable casts to me, but if their potential had been fully realized with the nature of the anime, then we really could've gotten something special. I think that Gx's big length did give everyone at least a couple of scenes to shine. The idea of duel Academy was a novel one, and I will admit it did leave to many memorable side characters. At least someone you will be able to relate to, so I think there is that.
Presentation
Considering that Gx is the last series before they used CGI, Gx has a very interesting art style. Matching its preference for the hero archetype Gx has a mix of anime and comic book style that makes many monsters chiseled and powerful. Though this weird art style can make certain monsters look like over-designed monstrosities.
Duel Academy feels like a well-developed area with at least some kind of life to it through the various filler episodes with all of its secret locations, duelists, and events. Having all of the characters wear school uniforms based on the Egyptian God cards was a nice touch that adds a sense of progression for the few characters who change colors. This doesn't have the most fluid animation, but it's serviceable.
Gx has a couple of excellent tracks as well. Jaden and the supreme kings are badass themes that give me a lot of memories every time. In case of openings and endings, I think Gx has one of the most solid of the franchise, with Borderline Battle, Teardrop, and Precious Time Glory Days being the standouts. They carry severe emotional weight, and I think they reflect the series change of tone well. Let's get into the various story arcs with that out of the way.
Seven Stars Arc
You might as well rip the band-aid by saying that this arc is the literal definition of decent. It's a good way of introducing various characters in concept. The filler can range from boring enough to be instantly forgettable, so good it's bad or genuinely interesting, like Jaden's fight against Dmitri after he stole Yugi's deck. Around the second half of the series, we had the introduction of the Shadow Riders, who are all amazingly bland.
In general, the idea of the Shadow Riders gets quickly shafted aside when Jaden manages to beat like 6/8 of them with ease, but some of the duels are pretty fun. Kagemaru is bland as all hell, and the sacred beasts conceptually aren't interesting cards compared to the Egyptian Gods and are used better in later arcs. The only real ground-shaking thing in this arc is probably the last duel with Zane. Not only is it well-choreographed, but shines home on GX's central theme while at the same time giving us the most memorable draw in the entire series.
Society of Light
During this sophomore smackdown, we have instantly more interesting everything. Aster is a cool pseudo antagonist/ally to Jaden as he gets his more famous cards like Neos and Mvp Glow Moss. Zane's character's downward spiral as Kaiser creates one of the coolest wild cards we've ever had in the series.
And of course, Sartorius is probably definitely a step up when it comes to Kagemaru. However, I think the other major problem sucks the fun out of this arc for all of the series major improvements. Like I said before, Sartorius is incredibly interesting as an antagonist. The idea of a fast-growing cult that prides itself on a pre-established destiny that lets life play out as this boring, stale environment is a powerful statement that feeds into Gx's themes.
But because of Gx's incredible amount of filler, the threat level of Sartorius feels way too far off given how much of an immediate presence he is. Say what you will about Zexal, but the filler there, at least with the numbers and Yuma's development, we always knew we were going somewhere with each episode.
After Jaden gets beaten by Aster and gets his Neo Spacian cards, it takes him five episodes to get his rematch with him. Most of Jaden's friends get immediately inducted into the Society of Light. Still, we have to wade through multiple episodes before he gets a move on defeating these guys and rescuing his so-called friends.
On top of that, the cast problem remains while the mind control plotline is an easy way to handle the extended cast of Gx; I do think that the arc didn't do them justice. As mind-controlled cronies, the cast, I never really got the chance to fully recover, decompress, or even revenge on the Society of Light besides Chazz. This especially sucks for people like Bastion, who becomes a joke for the rest of the series despite being the most intelligent duelist of the cast.
Overall, this arc was relatively enjoyable, with an awesome climax and defeat of a conceptually awesome villain. The idea of being unsafe and free is something exceptional. Though I think another underappreciated detail of this series is something I praise Gx for.
Considering this was the first spinoff series, it would have been so easy to have this be a 158-episode-long advertisement for the original duel monsters. I'm surprised how little the original series gets mentioned. I'm excellent, with the most direct cameos being one-off mentions and short little arcs. This is supposed to be a new series, so the shadow of the original shouldn't bog it down any further.
Dimension World
Now we get to the apex of all of Gx. The introduction of Jesse, Jim, and Axel are awesome characters who made the most of their screen time for what they had—and having the whole marcel and Cobra polylines being the intense warm for what was coming next. With Jesse gone, it's now up to all of Jaden's friends and allies to scrounge up every bit of courage they have to face a world unlike any other.
Right off the bat, they get introduced to a nightmare world where losing the duel means losing your life. Jaden tries to play the game like usual, but the series immediately shows why this can't work by killing off most of Jaden's immediate cast unceremoniously! This works in the arc's favor somewhat as Jaden takes this setback so hard he gives in to the Supreme King's identity wholeheartedly. This, combined with the fact that he probably only went to Duel Academy as this bizarre form of therapy for what happened in his youth with Yubel, becomes heartbreaking.
After a short time skip, we get introduced to the Supreme King, the living embodiment of darkness in this crazy world. They can revive Jaden once again using everything they have, all of Jaden's new allies storm, and through-hardened sacrifice. Deciding to take responsibility for all of his actions, Jaden accepts the Supreme king once again to put a stop to Yubel finally. And keep in mind I've gone through this section without even going into Yubel's frankly awesome character.
Yubel is one of the best Yugioh villains that this series has ever brought through their multifaceted possessions, schemes, and sadomasochistic behavior. She perfectly fits the dark tone of the series by making every prior antagonist this season look like a miniboss compared to her. The ending duel is heartbreaking for many dub watchers; it is the final scene of the series. The only real problem of the said arc is probably that everyone outside the main cast has extraordinary moments and that individual cast members should have died.
Darkness
With the craziness of Yubel finally behind them, all the Darkness arc is the series to close everything off finally. Jaden's new dark and proactive nature is both cool and saddening. Overall I think the various short arcs that entirely gave the development we've always needed. Darkness himself is not the most compelling or well-built villain; what he represents is undoubtedly horrifying.
As we grow up, we all have inner darkness inside us or more darkness known to us in the world. But as Jaden reminds us in his duel with Darkness, he realizes that as long as we hold on to the faithful memories of our past, we'll be just fine. After that, we get two very emotional duels showing Jaden's uncertain but bright future ahead of him as the series closes off open-ended.
Epilogue
While I have problems with GX, I appreciate the idea. If 5D's were about having a bright future, GX is more of a coming-of-age tale. Life is concise, with little of it getting spent as kids. That's more apparent as the world gets even harsher. But if we remember the good times when the bad times do come, we'll be just fine. Because I think growing up is all about learning how far you've come. I hope you've liked this review, and I hope you've seen how far I'll come as a creator in the future.