# The dagger on Bakura’s leg is the Millennium Rod
“Then I bet you weren’t expecting THIS.”
[SCREAMS OF HORROR]
“AHA!”
“Oh, okay.”
#So, when Kuzco gets turned into other animals, does Kaiba get turned into other monster cards, like UFO turtle and Fortress Whale since the big 5 got turned into cards?
“Don’t you say a word…”
[If you like these crossover redraws, consider buying me a coffee?]
Yuki Judai. One of the most nuanced characters in the entire franchise. I'd say no other Yugioh has had as stark a focus on its main character, to the point that many people even dislike how much screentime he gets. Which is fair, but ultimately it's what makes the study of GX a study of Judai.
There are many ways to analyze Judai and many things I'd like to say about him, but ultimately, there is one that must take precedence. One that I have not seen a single other person talk about.
Indeed, I am disgusted, appalled by the state of media literacy on this website, that this headcanon was allowed to spread uncontested, and I'm finally putting my foot down. I will no longer stand for this slander.
Of course, this post is about the JUDAI FISH PROPAGANDA.
Please do not harass any of these creators. I do not mean to start any drama with this post and otherwise respect these fans, despite their INCORRECT FISH OPINIONS
That's right, if you are out of the loop, I'm sorry to break this news to you about your favorite childhood media. Indeed, vast swaths of the fandom in the year 2026 are under the belief that Yuki Judai of Yugioh GX aka Jaden Yuki aka Shmaden Shmuki, is... a FISHING-LIKER.
Now, you may be thinking, "well everyone is entitled to their own fish opinions. As a fandom, we should be welcoming of all headcanons even if we don't agree with them. Fish can be very personal to some people."
Of course we all want a fandom that's inclusive and welcoming but I'm here to say it can't come at the cost of the COLD HARD FACTS. Because there is no room for FISH INTERPRETATION here.
This is not a Yusei milk situation. This is not another haha heehee moment where one minor character trait is turned into an inside joke and subsumed into the fandom conscious. There are REAL CONSEQUENCES to allowing Fisher Judai to spread rampant.
In this essay, I will show you how fisherman Judai is not only FALSE, but ANTITHETICAL to Judai's character arc, NAY, the entire theme of GX.
Let's get some things straight. Judai is not good at fishing.
In fact, Judai has never caught a fish in GX, despite the 6 or 7 times we see him fishing (depending on how you do the fish math). We only ever see him hook two things:
A tiny-ass crab
Edo's steak
And he still fails to catch either of them.
That's right, if you draw or write Judai catching a fish, you are CONTRADICTING CANON. This boy could not catch anything if his life depended on it (and it did, need I remind you our hero almost starved in the wilderness).
GX's portrayal of Judai being bad at fishing is just as indicative of his character as when it portrays him being bad at schoolwork, or being socially oblivious. It's crucial to Judai's character that he's not good at things outside of dueling.
Shou: I know Aniki is on the island! Because dueling and good health are his only redeeming features. He's helpless at everything else.
Kenzan: Are you mocking my Aniki, saurus?
Misawa: No, I think he's right.
Asuka: I can't really deny it.
We will return to this, but first I must address the obvious counterargument. You're thinking: "Well, you don't need to be good at something to enjoy it. Judai could absolutely suck at fishing but have fun doing it because he's just a fun-loving guy!"
Wrong. Remember that misinterpreting media is a sin and you will burn in hell.
Here is my second argument: Judai does not enjoy fishing. Let us actually look at Judai's attitude when fishing:
Anyone who has gone fishing or played a JRPG could have told you this. It's an activity that rewards patience, that appeals to people who can enjoy long periods of ennui and waiting. Of course Judai would think it's boring.
A common mistake I see when people characterize Judai is that he's an endless ray of positivity who loves and finds joy in everything. It reduces him to only his most conspicuous qualities, and he ends up feeling much flatter as a result. If you pay attention to Judai in canon, he actually has many instances of being annoyed or put off by something or someone, or being serious or nervous or pensive, or just generally experiencing the full range of human emotions.
Judai spends a lot of time in seasons 1-2 being upbeat and joyful not because he loves everything, but because he loves dueling, and because GX is a show made to sell children's card games, most of its runtime centers around dueling. When it comes to other things, he tends to actually be pretty disinterested and complain that he'd rather be dueling, such as being forced to play tennis or, as seen above, fishing.
I know most of this fandom don't give a fuck about card games but I can't stress enough that Judai's love of dueling is THE MOST IMPORTANT part of his character. Try me. Nothing else has the encompassing impact that his relationship with dueling does. From start to end, in both plot episodes and filler, it's the throughline that ties together all of GX. All of the other aspects of his character, the themes of heroism and responsibility, his childishness and traumatic awakening into adulthood, the way he connects with and inspires other characters, all of it exists through the lens of his relationship with dueling. His literal catchphrase is "(Gotcha!) That was a fun duel!"
"Ummmm what does this have to do with fishing--" IT HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH FISHING
You think you are expanding on Judai's character with your WHIMSICAL fishing headcanons, fun hobbies to show he has a rounded life outside of dueling. But you are missing the crucial information that Judai DOES NOT have a rounded life outside of dueling. That's why Shou says Judai couldn't have left the island; because nobody can conceive of a Judai who isn't a duelist.
The same thing happens when Judai loses dueling for the second time, when dueling becomes inextricable from the feeling of being in life-or-death situations. Without dueling, without the core that makes him who he is, Judai is lost. He doesn't know what to do. He has nothing to do.
That's why we see him fishing: because he has nothing else.
Tell me, is this the face of a guy who is enjoying himself? Checkmate, pro-fishers.
"I don't think this proves anything about what Judai thinks about fishing.🙄Maybe he would be having a better time fishing if he wasn't being plagued by the war trauma." <-- the words of a fool... a CLOWN
Yes, Judai's aloof behavior is also explained by the insane trauma he went through in season 3. But it's interesting that Judai's actual thoughts and feelings about what happened to him are kept deliberately opaque to us. We see him alone, staring into space, but we don't hear his internal thoughts. We can only theorize what's going through Judai's head -- and it's interesting how people will arrive at different interpretations.
But crucially, when the writers do pull back the curtain on Judai's internal state, the lens is always his relationship with dueling. We do not see Judai talk or think about the things he did or that happened to him, other than to say how dueling has changed him and changed for him. And ultimately, the series culminates in a deus ex machina that transports Judai across time and space to reclaim dueling and thus reclaim himself.
Judai: Back then, every duel I fought set my heart racing. Like you said... At some point, I forgot that excitement.
Judai: Since then, I've been through a lot of stuff. I've learned that life isn't always fun and games. Things can be hard and painful, too... Dueling taught me that.
Judai: Yugi, I won't forget the greatest present you've given to me ... The thing you're giving back to me. The thing I lost without realizing. The thing I mustn't forget, no matter how much I grow up. No matter what happens, I'll never forget...
Judai: This feeling of enjoying a duel with all my heart!
There is still more to dive into about themes of season 4 though.
There are several times in season 4 where we see Judai lying in bed or lying down on some grass or generally just in a state of listlessness. These scenes are equivalent to the scenes of him fishing by himself. They are meant to highlight his isolation, his aimlessness, his lack of joy or liveliness.
The real villain of season 4 is not Darkness -- it's stagnation.
Asuka, Shou, Ryou, Manjoume, and Chronos all have their episodes that deal with being stuck in place, before taking a step forward to chase after their futures. Fear of the future, inaction, and stagnation are what Darkness represents, as his victims give up and resign themselves to a nightmare that never changes.
Darkness: Humanity has grown tired... Tired of searching for potential in a future they cannot see. The students of this school are no exception. Deep in their hearts, they fear to enter this dangerous world.
Darkness: They do not wish to believe in their own power, nor to face the outside world's dangers. Their feelings stained their cards black, giving me power. All thou art doing is leading humans toward this ruinous world.
Ultimately, Judai is trapped in the deepest stagnation. He sits around, lacks the motivation to do things, lacks the ability or imagination to create a better future for himself.
And you know what symbolizes that stagnation?
That's right: FISHING.
FISHING IS THE VILLAIN OF SEASON 4.
Fishing in GX symbolizes boredom, stagnation, and often isolation. The opposite of that -- and what has always pulled Judai out of it -- is dueling, duel spirits, and people. This is what defeats Darkness.
Judai: As long as we have faith in our cards, we'll never be alone. The allies we've fought with, those who cheered us on... We're connected by a bond that can never be severed. Because that's the power hidden inside just one card! It must be there! You must remember all those people you fought, using that card!
Judai: Maybe at the start, it was just some ordinary card... But it's become infused with memories of the joy and sorrow, anger and frustration, you felt every time you fought. It's the reminder of how hard you've worked! That's what it means to have a bond. So believe in your card... Remember the faces of those you used that card to fight!
...
Judai: Thank you, my deck. You are the sum of all the bonds I've built.
That's right... the real dueling was the friends we made along the way.
The evolution of Judai's relationship with dueling is that he goes from thinking dueling is fun, to thinking dueling is a means of exerting power (and therefore also taking responsibility), to finally synthesizing the understanding that dueling is passion, emotion, and human connection. Judai wasn't just having fun through season 1-2, he was communicating with people. You cannot take responsibility for others if you don't care for them. In season 3, his descent into becoming the Supreme King is because he keeps trying to duel on his own, which ultimately leads to his friends being taken from him, leaving him truly alone. But you can never duel on your own, because fundamentally, dueling connects people.
This is why Darkness must infect the cards in order to exert its control. Infecting cards severs people from each other and turns them toward apathy and nihilism. What awakens Manjoume, Shou, and Asuka from their nightmare is their cards and their relationships. Manjoume chooses to keep dueling even if he loses. Shou challenges his opponent to a duel with a smile on his face. And Asuka confronts her students, and encourages them to love dueling.
This is the CARD GAME ANIME. Not the FISHING ANIME.
Dueling is the antithesis of fishing. FISHING IS DARKNESS. DUELING IS FRIENDSHIP.
I hope I have proven once and for all these three key arguments: Judai is not good at fishing. He doesn't like fishing. And for Judai to like fishing, it would go against the entire foundation of GX, for all of its themes and symbols to crumple to dust and become meaningless.
Join me in a better place, with better media analysis... join the side of Anti-Fish Judai.
But Pico, you may be asking. There's one crucial thing you have failed to answer:
Why? Why fishing, out of anything else? Why would they show Judai fishing multiple times if he didn't have some sentiment for it?
The answer is simple:
Judai does not ever fish in season 1. We only start seeing him fish in season 2. Why?
It's because of Kenzan.
Everything falls into place when you realize Kenzan is the one who likes fishing. Kenzan is the only character we see catch a fish.
Kenzan knows how to cook fish and prepare fish. He even came to Duel Academy packing equipment for cooking.
Never mind Kenzan's insane fish cleaning methods.
Kenzan is the one who likes fishing, and when he moves into the Red Dorm, he's the one who instigates Judai and Shou to start fishing. Most of the when we see Judai fishing, it's actually because he's with Kenzan and Shou, and it's because they want to catch fish to EAT, because they're tired of the food served at the red dorm. Judai fishes not because he likes FISHING, but because he likes HIS FRIENDS (and food). The ONLY CONTEXT in which it is permissible for Judai to be fishing and not depressed is with Kenzan.
And if you need further proof, look no further than Kenzan's Tag Force bio:
Do you see, now? Do you see what the Fisher Judai headcanon has led to? They are taking Kenzan's character traits and giving them to Judai, who does not need more character traits he has a whole show's worth of them.
WELL??? DO YOU HATE KENZAN???? DO YOU SUPPORT KENZAN ERASURE????
I rest my case. If you love Tyranno Kenzan, join me on the side of Anti-Fish Yuki Judai. Spread the word. Tag it in your fics. In fact, I hope we can gather every year to reflect on error of our ways, on this very special day.
Yes, I hereby declare April 1st to be Anti-Fish Judai Day
And for the French among us: Happy Poisson d'Avril
