DAWN OF THE DUEL

YU-GI-OH! GOES BACK TO THE BEGINNING

BY DUSTIN PORRAS

The Yu-Gi-Oh! Japanese manga was first published in Shonen Jump in 1996, and the first iteration of its official card game followed shortly after in 1998. After Pokémon’s sensational English debut in the late ‘90s — and with similar series like Digimon also taking root — it became clear that there was high demand in the U.S. for anime franchises that encompassed TV series, video games and trading cards. The stage was set for Yu-Gi-Oh! to become a primary player in the TCG space.

And indeed it did.

Now over 25 years old, Yu-Gi-Oh! has enjoyed the success of eight TV series, two feature-length movies, and more than two decades’ worth of competitive worldwide play. Over that run, no less than 400,000 Yu-Gi-Oh! cards have hit PSA’s grading room floor, placing it second only to Pokémon in terms of TCG submission volume.

And it’s not mere nostalgia driving the ever-growing popularity. It’s a vibrant, exciting community of fans that’s constantly evolving and growing with each new release. But on April 21, 2023, nostalgia will hit us all like a brick: Konami is set to release the first of several products commemorating the Yu-Gi-Oh! trading card game’s 25-year history, the Legendary Collection: 25th Anniversary Edition.

Like previous Legendary Collections, this collector’s box includes reprinted booster packs from Yu-Gi-Oh!’s most iconic era, as well as some extra surprises.

Your Cheat Sheet to the Grade-Worthy Treasures

Legend of Blue-Eyes

White Dragon

The first North American set was released in March 2002, which launched the English Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game (TCG), a revised version of the Japanese Official Card Game (OCG) that preceded it. Legend of Blue-Eyes White Dragon (LOB) contains the very first English printings of signature cards used by the primary TV series characters, such as Yugi’s Dark Magician and Exodia the Forbidden One, Joey’s Red-Eyes Black Dragon, and others. Since the English TV series premiered September 2001, U.S. audiences were given six months to become familiar with the characters and game mechanics prior to actually purchasing the cards themselves. This risky but ultimately successful rollout primed viewers to be converted into players as soon as the TCG became available.

LOB created the standards for what collectors came to expect from Yu-Gi-Oh! sets in the classic era. It introduced rarity tiers that are still present in today’s expansions: Rare, Super Rare, Ultra Rare and Secret Rare. Each rarity can be easily identified by their corresponding foil treatments, and typically contain less subjects as the rarity increases. In the case of LOB, the coveted Secret Rares were Tri-Horned Dragon and Gaia the Dragon Champion, each sporting a signature diagonal line foil pattern. LOB also introduced the game’s primary card types: monster, Magic, and Trap. To ease players into this new game, LOB’s cards had rudimentary, uncomplicated effects and most of the monsters had low attack and defense stats. Considering the current age of Link Summons, Pendulum Monsters and other complex mechanics, LOB encapsulates Yu-GiOh!’s humble beginnings.

Along with Secret Rares, the primary chase cards in the set are those that have ties to the series’ main characters, perhaps the most desirable being the eponymous Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Not only was this card a favorite of series antagonist Seto Kaiba, it also happened to be included in the very first starter deck (Starter Deck: Kaiba), making it among the first cards that many players actually used in their decks. For these reasons and more, Blue-Eyes White Dragon remains among the most nostalgic and high-valued cards in YuGi-Oh! history. In 2020, a 1st-Edition LOB PSA 10 copy sold for a record-breaking $85,100.

One Pack Per Box

Metal Raiders

As the second Yu-Gi-Oh! expansion, Metal Raiders (MRD) delivered even more iconic cards, many of which collectors were already familiar with from the TV series. Black Skull Dragon, Summoned Skull, and Time Wizard represent some of the standout monsters. As far as Magic and Trap Cards, this set introduced Change of Heart, Heavy Storm, Magic Jammer, and Mirror Force, incredibly useful cards that allowed for more robust gameplay to emerge. With a whopping 144 cards, MRD is the largest expansion in the classic Yu-Gi-Oh! era, but in spite of this, the attack/defense stats of this set’s monsters were still usually low, and card effects remained short and relatively simplistic.

Following the model of LOB, Metal Raiders included two Secret Rare inserts: Gate Guardian and Thousand Dragon. 1st-Edition PSA-graded examples of these monsters, and those mentioned above, have sold for between $3,000 and $5,000 on the secondary market. While the playability of many of the cards from this era has declined due to their modest mechanics, their collectibility has only strengthened over time.

Spell Ruler

Yu-Gi-Oh!’s next expansion was originally titled Magic Ruler in reference to the abundant Magic Cards found in the set. However, with the release of Magician’s Force in 2003, Magic Cards were renamed to Spell Cards in an effort to avoid confusion — and possible legal issues — with the popular Magic: The Gathering TCG. As a result, Magic Ruler (MRL) was renamed to Spell Ruler (SRL). As the name suggests, this expansion was based heavily around exciting new Magic/Spell Cards, such as Delinquent Duo, Painful Choice, and Snatch Steal, all game-changing cards that have since been moved onto Yu-Gi-Oh!’s Forbidden List for their immense power. This set also introduced the “Toon” archetype, which took pre-existing monsters and gave them a cartoonish makeover, creating new monsters, like Toon Summoned Skull, which had entirely new abilities.

The star of this set in terms of secondary market value is undoubtedly Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon, the Toon counterpart to Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and one of the set’s Secret Rares. Another powerhouse was Relinquished, a Ritual Monster that was used in the climactic final battle of Yu-Gi-Oh!’s first season and was also made available in a deck (Starter Deck: Pegasus) dedicated to the series’ main antagonist.

One Pack Per Box

Pharaoh’s Servant

The same way Magic/Spell Ruler specialized in new Magic/Spell Cards, Pharaoh’s Servant (PSV) leaned heavily into Traps. A total of 42 new Trap Cards were introduced in this set including notable favorites like Call of the Haunted, Magical Hats, and Imperial Order, the latter of which turned the game upside down with its oppressive effect of negating all Magic/Spell Cards on the field. When paired with Jinzo — which stops Trap Cards — players now had the ability to control the board in ways they never had before. Although Imperial Order has since been added to the Yu-Gi-Oh! Forbidden List, banning it from competitive play, Jinzo remains a staple of decks across the world. Thanks to its status as a Secret Rare, it has also boasted an extremely high value on the secondary market, seeing sales of over $8,000 for 1st-Edition copies. Other Pharaoh’s Servant gems include Ultra Rares such as Buster Blader and ThousandEyes Restrict.

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ONE PACK PER BOX Dark Crisis

2003's Dark Crisis delivered even more timeless cards that collectors will be hoping to pull from its 25th Anniversary reissue. Upon this set's release, the card on the top of everyone's list was Exodia Necross, a monster whose epic illustration was rightfully chosen as the set's cover art. This remixed version of Exodia fascinated fans when it debuted, and it still commands secondary market values of over $2,000 to this day. Other soughtafter hits include the Secret Rare Vampire Lord, as well as monsters that were featured in key moments from the Virtual World arc of the Yu-Gi-Oh! TV series, like Mirage Knight and Shinato, King of a Higher Plane.

ONE PACK PER BOX Invasion of Chaos

The final expansion included in the 25th Anniversary Yu-Gi-Oh! products is 2004’s Invasion of Chaos. It’s impossible to discuss this set without bringing up the two “Chaos Monsters” Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning and Chaos Emperor Dragon - Envoy of the End. Both of these monsters had a commanding presence in the game for their destructive power, which could, in some cases, effectively end the duel in a single turn. For their reputation in the TCG, and the cool factor of their artwork, both cards went on to achieve popularity for those looking to grade the best from Yu-Gi-Oh!’s classic era. In addition to these two titans, Invasion of Chaos also contains Dark Magician of Chaos, a favorite of series' protagonist Yugi.

While the Yu-Gi-Oh! 25th Anniversary products serve as an effective snapshot of its most iconic era, there are certain expansions from 2002 to 2005 that were curiously omitted. Labyrinth of Nightmare, Legacy of Darkness, Magician's Force and others were not included in these special products. However, it’s not unreasonable to hold out hope that these expansions will be reprinted at some point in the future, especially considering Konami’s willingness to indulge in nostalgia.

Bonus Inserts

Naturally, the stars of the 25th Anniversary products are the classic booster packs, but there are other inserts that collectors will be itching to submit to PSA upon release. Each Legendary Collection will contain Ultra Rares of the three Egyptian God cards, as well as Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Dark Magician, and RedEyes Black Dragon. If that weren’t enough, each box will also contain one mystery “Quarter Century Secret Rare,” which will be one of the six Ultra Rare subjects. With so much packed into this anniversary, it will be a treat walking down memory lane as collectors uncover gradable gems.