Unveiling Yu-Gi-Oh's Ultimate Villain: Why Yugi's Victory Was Just the Beginning

Yugi, the main character of Yu-Gi-Oh!, typically triumphs over the series' main antagonists personally, but it would have been more fitting for another duelist to defeat the ultimate villain, Marik. This duelist would have prevailed over Marik if it weren't for his supernatural abilities.

Marik serves as the primary antagonist in the Battle City Tournament, which is considered Yu-Gi-Oh!'s most significant arc. He leads a group called the Rare Hunters, whose aim is to acquire the 3 Egyptian God cards. Throughout the arc, Marik's dark alter ego, Yami Marik, emerges and engages his opponents in shadow games that inflict real harm with every move. After defeating Mai and ensnaring her in the Shadow Realm, Yugi's friend Joey makes it his mission to bring Marik down and rescue his captured comrade.

Yu-Gi-Oh!'s Best Villain Marik Should Have Lost to Joey

Joey and Marik engage in a fierce duel during the semifinals of the Battle City tournament. Despite Joey's inexperience with the intense damage inflicted in the Shadow Game, he persists and even endures an attack from Marik's formidable card, the Winged Dragon of Ra. Against all odds, Joey survives until the final turn of the game with Marik's dwindling life points and no monsters for protection. Seizing the opportunity, Joey draws a monster and prepares to launch a decisive attack on Marik, potentially winning the duel. However, the accumulated toll of the relentless damage he has suffered incapacitates Joey, causing him to collapse before delivering the final blow. Consequently, he forfeits the duel not due to his skill as a duelist, but due to Marik's shadow game abilities.

This outcome proves particularly frustrating for Joey, given the constant belittlement he endures throughout the series. Unlike Yugi and Kaiba, who have profound connections to the Egyptian magic central to Yu-Gi-Oh!'s narrative, Joey lacks such ties. As a result, Marik consistently dismisses him as a mere obstacle to be defeated on his path towards challenging the Pharaoh. This makes the momentary glimpse of Joey's potential victory all the more satisfying, as it would have disproved Marik's arrogance. Ending the season with an exhilarating duel between Joey and Yugi would have been immensely enjoyable for viewers.

Joey Only Lost To Marik Due To A Plot Device

Joey's inability to defeat Marik in the end seems more like a contrived plot move to ensure Yugi's victory in the finals. While this did result in a thrilling duel where Yugi had to overcome the ultimate evil Marik had become, it unfortunately overshadowed Joey, a character who never received the recognition he deserved. To rectify this, it would have been more fitting for Yu-Gi-Oh! to let Joey carry out his final attack and emerge victorious against the anime's biggest villain instead of Yugi.