Y'all already know what time it is, it's time for Jack to yap about Joey Wheeler again. Today we're gonna focus on Joey, the Wild Gang and Hirutani in specific. But we aren't starting at chapter11. No, no we'll be starting at the first time we get a look at Joey's personal life. That happens to be right at the start of chapter5 before the full title card.
If you're unfamiliar, he and Yugi are on their way to their first class of the when Joey gingerly touches the bandage on his face while complaining about a recent streak of bad luck. When questioned what exactly happened to his face Joey hesitates. We can tell from both his dialog and those two speech bubbles that indicate his tone. This is the first time we've seen legitimate hesitation be expressed by him. And its specifically about an injury. He's unsure whether or not he should tell Yugi and whether or not he should tell the whole story.
Ultimately, he chooses a quick abridged version. Got in a fight. Got hit once in the face. He avoids saying why he got into the fight and with his goal of wanting to become a better person a person worthy of Yugi's friendship we can safely assume Joey didn't start this fight. Hell, in another translation he essentially just straight up tells Yugi he got jumped ("Yesterday I got surprised on the street by some punks..."). At this point in time the we've only ever seen Joey want to throw hands for Yugi's sake (chapter2) so even without the knowledge of just how hard Joey wants to turn over a new leaf, we have no reason to believe he'd randomly start shit on the streets.
It had to have been started by people who had a bone to pick with him. Because out in the dirty damp alleys and all the other worst parts of Domino he isn't Joey the recently retired bully and one of the, admittedly, local pervs. Out there he's Joey Wheeler, former Wild Gang member. It wasn't a strange encounter with some punks, it was his past actively and quickly catching up to him.
In an instant Joey's mood changes. His hesitation turned into a calm admission and that turned into glee. Cheerfully he tells--boasts even--Yugi how he won that fight, how he left them a lot more black and blue than they did him with that single hit they landed. He says it felt good.
In chapter 11 Honda explicitly says there was a time Joey lived to fight. Its one of the few things Joey knows for a fact he's good at. It was both an escape and and a participation in the violence he was constantly facing. Because there was a thrill to it.
A thrill that chapter5 Joey probably hasn't felt in a decent amount of time as we can safely assume he either left the gang during his last year of middle school or at some point during the summer before the manga starts. Since then the only times he's really gotten a chance to fight its either been one he couldn't win (Ushio's genuinely being a goddamn unit), one where he was too distracted (the Directors threat) or one that he couldn't actually participate in (Burger World convict).
So not only was he finally given a real fight, it was one where he didn't have to worry about appearances. Yugi wasn't here so he didn't have to worry about ruining the image the other had of him and Honda wasn't hear to make him walk away from an unnecessary brawl.
But, who exactly were those four? I can't get the thought out of my head that the weren't from some rival gang. I can't help but think they were W.G members either acting on their own in an attempt teach him a lesson for betraying them (after all you can't just leave a gang like that without consequence) or were sent directly by Hirutani to bring him to one of the W.G hideouts for a 'chat'. I find both options to be pretty likely.
Joey's moment of pride becomes over shadowed over a single sentiment. "I should never get hurt!" With a heavy emphasize on "never". During this time time we've already seen Joey hurt by Ushio and then the Director. We, later on anyways, know what type of man Joey's father is. We know his life was filled to the brim with violence. And with violence comes a whole lot of pain. But he should never be hurt. Every injury he gains is a failure on his part. Real men are untouchable, real men don't take pain but rather they dish it out.
It's a subtle hint to Joey's self loathing that he himself admits during Death-T.
The next time we see Joey geared up for a fight is in the sixth chapter while their class is setting up for the school festival when a senior named Goro insults their caravel set up (Calling it "rotten") and basically tells them to kick rocks. Something Joey doesn't take kindly too. It was Yugi's idea and he, for once, was able to show off a personal skill.
This is the first time we see Joey initiate a physical altercation. And he's excited. Why wouldn't he be? Just the other day he was reminded how good it felt. How it got his heart pumping, how each win stroked his ego and fed his pride.
He also says something kind of interesting, Lets look it in halves. After laughing he firsts says, "Theres always some moron who starts a fight at these things!" Not only does this tell us how Joey and Honda's middle school was like it also tells us exactly what he thought about them. They were moron. Its a school festival, there isn't a reason to be throwing insults and fists. It's meant to be fun. It's meant to be a break from their classes and a time to relax. They were their own little world that was so different from Joey's. From his homelife to his gang activities, times like these were probably far and few. For that only idiots would choose to disrupt that peace.
The next thing Joey shouts out is, "And I wouldn't miss it for the world!" Despite finding those who start scraping to be idiotic, he looks clearly looks forward to when it happens (it always does). Why? It gives him a good excuse to throw down. He isn't doing anything wrong. They're doing it too. In fact they started it. Except in this case, Joey is technically the one starting it. Goro had been an asshole but there hadn't even been a full argument yet. Anzu didn't get a chance to snap back at Goro's rudeness because of Joey's interruption.
That fight with what could have been Wild Gang members had him itching for another. He's telling Goro was the one starting it so he could later deny he was slipping. Slipping back into old habits. So he could pretend that his progress wasn't beginning to crumble. Of course, he ends up not being able to go through with it as his foot gets caught in the barrel allowing Goro to punch him. (Another injury, another failure.)
Chapter8, the first chapter of the second volume is the next time we see Joey get physical. Yeah, the shoe chapter is the one were we actually get to see Joey's fighting skills. He, Honda and Yugi end up getting jumped for Joey's brand new shoes. The two former bullies are ready to go give the (GROWN ASS MEN) a piece of their minds with Yugi coming along for the ride.
When find the three men at an arcade we're given a glimpse into Joey's mentality. He believes if you're going to fight, fight head on. To sneak up on your opponent is an act of cowardice (,a belief that isn't a one time thing as we end up seeing at the Death-T laser gamer). He's telling these men he thinks they're nothing but cowards. A second later without any hesitation Joey grabs the closest man by hist shirt and slamming his fist into his nose.
Strikingly, there isn't any real emotion on Joey's face. There isn't rage. He's simply there. Theres nothing remarkable about what he's doing. Like he's done it thousands of times before. The first time we see Joey land a hit on someone and its a grown man who's nose he breaks with that one punch.
(Honda also gives a man a bloody nose in the background but he does so through bashing his forehead against the mans nose three separate times.) Joey still lacks any emotion. He isn't surprised its broken and he doesn't care that he's the reason its broken. In fact, when we finally see some emotion during this encounter it's while he kicks the man square in the face. Blood is absolutely gushing down this guys face as Joey angerly yells about his socks now having holes in them.
Two of the three men are now injured, Honda and Joey have made how they feel clear. Their point is made, you stole from the wrong people. They could just badger them about the shoes now considering the third has yet to intervene (probably out of self preservation). But where's the fun in that?
Instead they continue the assault. Because when they set out to go find the men they specifically wanted revenge. And you don't get that by stopping when they're already down now do you? They wanted to more than just batter them up a bit. Revenge is best served bloody after all, an idea Hirutani seems to share in chapter12.
Joey hits the same man a third time as Honda gets the only one who hadn't been injured yet. The blonde kicks this dude so hard with basically his bare foot (considering one of the wholes are so big almost the entirety of the top half of his foot is exposed) that he knocks a tooth out. This is our first time seeing Joey fight and it tells us exactly what we need to know. Joey Wheeler is strong and someone you should think twice about before challenging.
We know also have an idea of how he left those three from earlier...ouch..
Now we're finally at our beloved chapter11. The introduction of the Wild Gang. We start off with Honda losing his mind over Joey's absence. In the version I first he's worried because Joey's apparently "got superhuman health" (which is real as hell, it's almost scary when the friend who's never sick catches something) but in the VIZ version he's shouting about needing to "solve this mystery". He also gives us an interesting tidbit about Joey
He's never skipped a class during their short time at Domino High (as its been about two maybe three weeks into their first year). Even while they were bullies Joey was reaching for the chance to prove he wasn't just a delinquent. He may suck at his classes but he's there. Even if he ends up being late to a period he's still there. He's trying goddamn it and what Yugi had done during the Ushio incident showed him he wanted to do more. He didn't just want to keep a clear record this year he wanted to be better. He wanted to be a good person (the person his sister knew).
Not only that but he was making progress! Progress he almost lost at the festival preparations and progress he was now currently throwing out the window.
Anzu, Yugi and Honda set out after school to try and find Joey but to no avail. Honda tells the other two to home before the sun goes and tells them he'll keep looking. Despite telling them he's going to keep looking he says they shouldn't worry and he'll be back tomorrow. But Joey's been missing for two days now. Honda told Yugi and Anzu to go home so they aren't outside in the dark but its still early enough into the evening that kids are still playing in the park without a single care in the world, and Joey could be at school the next day if Honda looks during and after the sun sets. Suddenly it feels like Honda's in some sort of loop that the two childhood friends aren't.
Finally, we're introduced to the Wild Gang.
They all go to the same school, Rintama, its their territory and the way Honda describes the school it seems like even before they entered it had a reputation (which is probably why they chose to of there). And it plants the idea that just maybe Honda's been keeping a tab or two on the school.
We know Joey's only with the gang right now because Hirutani threatened to hurt all his classmates.
An effective threat due to Joey's loyal nature. An especially effective threat now that Joey has more than just Honda he cares about there.
Now, remember Joey's offscreen fight between chapters4 and 5? The one I said was Joey's past catching up to him? This is a reason why. To force Joey back into the fold they first had to actually find the guy. Send some lackies to follow him around and initiate a fight to ensure he hadn't gone soft.
(Notice how the monologuer describes Joey to be a jerk? Just what was he like during his actual gang days?)
After stewing in his thoughts and actions Joey couldn't take it anymore and punches the guy who hit Yugi across the room.
Something that Hirutani smiles at. THIS is the Joey he wanted back. The determined and angry Joey. Not the one who sits silently like some sort of husk (if you think about it, that was our first glimpse at a Joey shut down not his duel with Rex).
Joey ends up losing the 1v4 (as Hirutani was only watching) when the biggest of the present gang gets behind Joey and brings his fists down against the back of his head. Funny how he lost because of his whole real men fight face to face thing he has going on. If it weren't for that he probably would have been a lot more conscious of the space behind him. (Also taking a moment to point out three different people end up holding Joey down which is wild considering they had the biggest dude there as one of the three, they were taking any chances)
Depending on your translation Hirutani either orders the gang to take Joey to the Execution Grounds or the fucking Torture Chamber. BOTH are insane my goodness.
Now we're going to do a LOT of translation comparisons. In both versions that i have Hirutani comments on how Joey's tied up. In one version he says
while in the VIZ translation he says "I like this view, Jounouchi." (In both versions Joey compares the gang to baboons though in the VIZ version he includes Hirutani in the insult.) You would think he'd more directly mock Joey, laugh at him for getting into this predicament.
In both versions Hirutani compares Joey to his former self for a second time. But theres a notable different in what he says afterward. The alternate version has him say "I always hated that we think the same way" implying that he too thinks his lackies are fools. That this isn't the first time Joey put words to his thoughts. However, in the VIZ version he says that since middle school Joey was "Always acting like you were my equal" which implies a different type of familiarity. Not it isn't that Joey said what Hirutani was thinking, now it was that Joey stood beside him.
Despite saying Joey acted as though he were an equal he talks about them as a unit. He says we not me and you (or 'you and i' to be grammatically correct but). He says together nothing could stop them, he says there were high school gangs afraid of "us". That they had people working for them. The other translation has him say pretty much the same thing there with the addition of referring to it as the time they "were partners".
In that translation he then contradicts himself by calling Joey an a former underling. That he was an underling he forgot to educate. VIZ has him say that he never managed to teach Joey that he was the boss. That Joey would "always be second in command." Theres an implication that he'll specifically always be Hirutani's second in command which gets proven later on.
In both versions Joey says he's noted down their faces but in one he taunts the gang, telling them he doesn't remember a lick of their supposed lesson and that they'll have to try harder. He take a different approach in the VIZ translation. A more personal approach. He tells them he knows how many times each of them hit him (how many times he had fucked up and left his guard down) alongside the fact he knows their faces.
He then says something directly to Hirutani. "You know I hold a grudge." You know. You've seen it. You know what I've got a reason to hold a grudge. You know I don't let it go until I've evened the score. (That's what we saw back in chapter8). "I'm going to pay you back double!" You. You're the reason for this so I won't bother with your underlings, I'll be coming straight for you. He isn't keeping track of the hits to get back at the ones who delt the blows, no, he's going to take that amount and double it just for Hirutani.
One implies Joey had screamed throughout the entire tasing while the other implies he had been speaking--attempting to taunt even as he was electrocuted. In the alternate translation the one handling the taser is confident that that's all he'll be doing and in the other translation he asks if that was the end of t. In both he's taken off guard at being ordered to continue. They were just gonna teach him a lesson..
VIZ has Hirutani repeat himself and the other has him exlaim to
If Joey can't handle his lesson then he doesn't get the privilege to truly rejoin the Wild Gang.
The next time we see Hirutani and the gang is all the way down the road in chapter48, the yo-yo one part one. Bless. Pretty quickly onto the mysterious Yo-Yo gangs attack Joey realized it was a planned one. Just after he comes to that conclusion Hirutani reveals himself saying, "Now you can't make a move...How does it feel, Jounouchi?" Once again he has Joey immobile and he's enjoying it just the same as before.
See? Hirutani had been saying he wanted Joey as his second in command. Joey's a good fighter, we know that and he knows it more. He'd need Joey on his side to continue the gangs expansion but its clear that isn't his only motive. It's clear he's obsessed. Joey won't be a low ranked member, no how could he be? He oughtta be right beside him. His number2. In the other version he even says that when Joey's his right hand "things will be just like they used to be". Joey is running from the past and Hirutani is desperately clinging to it.
Joey's response to Hirutani's 'offer' is "I don't think I'd like it in your cage" (in relation to his monkey themed insults for Hirutani and the Wild Gang). When Hirutani has the gang hang Yugi by the puzzle (this chapter started with Joey fucking around with a Yo-Yo inbetween classes..) he tells Joey to swear to join the gang--swear his loyalty to him--or "watch this kid die". In the VIZ translation he doesn't even acknowledge Yugi is Joey's friend. He's some guy who was just in his way. The teen may have gotten the upper hand the last time they met but he couldn't handle a physical fight, surely. That meant he had no qualification to be considered Joey's friend with only enough importance to be used as a wager.
Thats why it shocks him when Joey stares directly into his eyes and huffs out, "Hirutani... Whaddya mean, I can't move...?" Why the hell would Joey be willing to go through such lengths for some chump?
And Joey goes through the net without a care what would happen to him Hirutani orders the gang to use more force. He knows Joey's handled much worse (with his stunt the last time he had the blonde in his clutches he probably only made that tolerance stronger, which would have been great if Joey would just behave and return to him).
To make Joey risking so much for Yugi worse, the blonde has the gull to say he isn't a real friend. As though they hadn't ruled the streets together. Like they weren't the perfect team.
The Wild gang follows Yami to one of the roofs but before Hirutani can further order the other members Joey does not attack from behind but rather calls out his name. In an instant Hirutani's focus shifts soley to Joey as the Domino High student declares its time they settle things for good. However in the other translation he says
which directly transitions into Hirutani talking about their past friendship.
About how this was a key factor in their former relationship. In the alternate translation Hirutani states that this was like their first meeting, implying that they both were making names for themselves as delinquents leading to hearing eachothers names and wanting to know who was better. Here he directly says that they "were equals" for that first fight (and that first fight only in Hirutani's mind.
In the VIZ translation Hirutani says he's heard Joey say "Lets settle this once and for all" before. Here he only implies that their first meeting involved them fighting to determine who was the top dog. But here he doesn't say those days were good memories now. He talks like they're still a team. He calls refers to their relationship as "out beautiful friendship." before revealing to the reader that them duking it was common. It was just what they did. They weren't just evenly matched they'd fight until their collapsed. The way he says it makes it seems as though no one ever won those fights. They always ended the same way.
Apparently somewhere along the line Hirutani change, at least, that's what Joey chooses to believe. Back during the intial incident at the warehouse during chapter11 Hirutani did say he always thought of Joey as beneath him. Because a second in command is in that position because he's the second strongest. Hirutani has been pretty clear about seeing himself as the one person Joey Wheeler followed orders from.
In both versions Joey says that he wont be holding back in their final battle. And both suggest that back then, when they were friends (because to Joey those days were long gone), Joey took Hirutani as more of a sparring partner rather than a threat. That at least once he's held back against the other.
In both translations after Joey knocks out two of Hirutani's teeth, he calls him out for not landing a single hit on him yet. They might have been of equal strength at some point but it was becoming evident that Joey had long surpassed the Wild Gang leader. This is confirmed by Hirutani resulting to literally throwing glass into Joey's eyes
Safe to say, Hirutani knew he wasn't going to win this fight fairly considering he only got a hit in after Joey was blinded--unable to see with shards in his eyes. The Rintama student attempts makes his way behind Joey with a large shard of glass in hand. Every time Hirutani fails getting Joey back into the Wild gang he ends up decided the second best option is a dead Joey Wheeler--if I can't have you then no one can and all that.
Just before Hirutani can get close enough to kill Joey he steps on the rest of the glass he had thrown. He gave himself the advantage by taking Joeys sight but failed to fully think his plan through. If he had, he would have figured there'd be presence alerting glass behind Joey. Then again, it could have also been his arrogance that made him believe it wouldn't have mattered if he avoided the left over shards or not. Either way his trump card ended up his ruin.
Joey continues to show off his strength by punching Hirutani so hard he almost falls right off the roof, just barely catching himself in time. Joey ends it by hitting his fingers with his yo-yo, leaving Hirutani to crash into the ground.
