Duel Masters Anime

Duel Masters is a franchise based on a manga, anime and a trading card game. There have been many different anime adaptions, the original anime Duel Masters follows the original storyline of the manga and so does its sequel Duel Masters Charge.

However the English Adaption of the anime has many changes compared to the Japansese versions as it is not a proper translation of the the Japanese anime. there was a American only anime called Duel Masters 1.5 that followed the original anime, and only the first half of Charge was aired under the name Duel Masters 2.0.

There are also many future seasons of the anime, such as the alternate reality CGI franchise which contains Zero Duel Masters, Duel Masters Zero, Duel Masters Cross and Duel Masters Cross Shock. There has also been a movie and spin off series called Duel Masters Flash. Duel Masters Cross, and Cross Shock slightly follow the manga Duel Masters FE the sequel to the original.

Plot
The anime is about a boy named Shobu Kirifuda who plays a game called "Duel Masters" which revolves around 5 civilization's (Fire, Water, Light, Darkness, Nature). In the early manga, he plays Magic: The Gathering.

In Duel Masters, there are 2 very worlds that are featured. There is the real world in which the main characters live, as well as the creature world in which the civilizations are at war against each other. By using a fictional martial art called "kaijudo" (Duel of Truth in the Japanese version) the players can bring the monsters to life and appear in their duels.

In Duel Masters, the young duelist Shobu Kirifuda battles his way to stardom, in an attempt to follow in his fathers footsteps and become a kaijudo master, aided by his mentor Knight, and his friends Rekuta, Sayuki and Mimi he battles against many strong adversaries such as the Reaper duelist Kokujo, leader of the White Soldiers, Hakuoh as well as the Master of the Temple.

In the American exclusive Duel Masters 1.5, Shobu battles the evil organisation P.L.O.O.P. and their plans to use monsters from the Creature World in order to take over Earth.

In Duel Masters Charge, 1 year after Duel Masters Shobu and his friends Rekuda, Mimi, Hakuoh and Boy George enter the Duel Masters Battle Arena to battle the Black Soldiers a group of duelists wishing to defeat Hakuoh, later in the season the group battles against the villainous Zakira and the brainwashed Hakuoh.

In Zero Duel Masters, Duel Masters Zero, Duel Masters Cross and Cross Shock, Shobu and his friends battle against the same enemies such as Zakira and Kokujo in an alternate reality.

Episodes

 * Duel Masters: Episode Listing - Season 1
 * Duel Masters Sacred Lands: Episode Listing - Season 1.5
 * Duel Masters Charge: Episode Listing
 * Zero Duel Masters: Episode Listing
 * Duel Masters Zero: Episode Listing
 * Duel Masters Cross: Episode Listing
 * Duel Masters Cross Shock: Episode Listing
 * Duel Masters Flash: Episode Listing

Season 1
Protagonists
 * Shobu Kirifuda
 * Rekuta Kadoko
 * Sayuki
 * Knight
 * Shori Kirifuda
 * Mai Kirifuda
 * Mimi Tasogare

Antagonists
 * Kyoshiro Kokujo

Members of the Temple
 * Hakuoh
 * White Soldiers
 * The Master
 * Kintaro
 * Fritz

Temple Guardians
 * Mikuni (1)
 * Benny Haha (3)
 * Makoto Aizen (4)

Duel Masters Charge

 * Dr. Root
 * Boy George
 * P.L.O.O.P.
 * Black Soldiers
 * Peeskwhy
 * Qumbeech
 * Jack
 * Kimera
 * Chimeras

Zero Duel Masters

 * Zakira
 * Yumama
 * Extreme Bucketman
 * Yesman
 * Ubabel

Duel Masters Zero

 * Professor Machi - A character introduced in Duel Masters Zero who is the current antagonist. He invited Shobu and his friends to a tournament on an uncharted island, but it was really a trap. After kidnapping Dr. Root, he forces Shobu, Mimi, and George to duel his associates.
 * Ultimate Master Darcy - A character introduced in Duel Masters Zero who is the current Duel Master Champion of the world. Darcy was once an apprentice to Professor Machi. Zakira is challenged by Darcy in one of the final episodes.
 * Jura - Originally appears in Zero Duel Masters as Shobu's newest rival. He starts out as a subordinate of Professor Machi, but in Duel Masters Cross, he joins Shobu and the others in their struggle against Zakira.
 * Rich.
 * Shizuka
 * Toto

Duel Masters Cross

 * Myoga - He is one of Shobu's friends and he has a crush on Mimi. He generally plays a nature deck based on samurai creatures.

Duel Masters Flash
Protaginists
 * Teru
 * Kokoro
 * Chishio
 * Pako
 * Pakoneko
 * Rei
 * Gensiro
 * Kasumi
 * Papa
 * Mama
 * Hayate

Antagonists
 * Hawk
 * Swan
 * Owl
 * Tenkuro
 * Jinkuro
 * Chikage

Manga Only

 * Derek - He is only shown in the limited edition manga as Mimi's boyfriend. He is also a ninja arts specialist.
 * NAC (ナック) - NAC (pronounce "Nakku" in Japanese) is a manga only character. This character is loosely based on Satoshi Nakamura (中村聡, Nakamura Satoshi?), a Japanese card game player who became one of the top Magic: The Gathering players in Asia. He was involved in the making of "Duel Masters", assisting Dai Matsumoto (the manga author's nickname) as a technical advisor (the manga's plot is based around Magic: The Gathering). He has appeared in the manga both as NAC and as a more realistic cameo of himself known as "Nakamura-san". According to one of Dai Matsumoto's omake sections in the manga, NAC was also involved in the development of the Duel Masters card game.

Minor Characters

 * Toru Kamiya‎
 * Jamira
 * Takeshi Saroyama - Tsuyoshi's tall and muscular litte brother.
 * Tsuyoshi Saroyama - A squirrel-faced short boy on stilts and older brother of Takeshi Saroyama.
 * Red Afro - The leader of an afro-themed dojo. In the episode "Frotime," Mimi had to duel him in order to reclaim her tournament pass. She managed to defeat him.
 * Master Yuki - The leader of a dojo for baby duelists. In the episode "Frotime," Boy George had to duel him to reclaim his tournament pass. Master Yuki defeated him, but lost in their rematch. He later appeared in the finals of the tournament where he lost to Yumama.
 * Joe Sayonji
 * To-Ban-Jan
 * Geena Burnett
 * Kenny Mock
 * Lars Lindstrom
 * Aussie
 * Miss Betsy
 * Pops
 * Frank
 * Stu and Tom

Versions by country
The American and Latin American versions of Duel Masters added several things not in the original version included to make it more of a comedy to separate it from other card battling shows on the market. Added to American version were jokes about typical anime conventions, such as split-screens and a missing father-figure (in this case, Shobu's father Shori). Frequent references are made throughout the show to pop culture phenomenon, such as when one of the characters, Kiyoshiro Kokujo, says "I am dark...I am the night...I am Bat-oh wait, wrong show.". As such, they recur as running gags during the course of the show. Another common form of humor found in the show is its breaking of the fourth wall. The characters will constantly say things like, "Looks like it's time for a fade-out,", "I hope the writers do better next week."," Why is the camera too close on my face?" or "You know, I like it when they use this scene." While the storyline is technically dramatic, most episodes are punctuated by a comedic storyline mixed in with the serious storyline. Duel Masters also has promotional gimmicks which depart greatly from the traditional fantasy embraced in Magic: The Gathering.

Differences Between Japanese and English Versions
The "Sacred Lands"/"P.L.O.O.P." storyline is not based on the manga and was created specifically for the American market. The Japanese version has a separate second season entitled "Duel Masters Charge", which is based on the manga. Duel Masters Charge was eventually produced for the American market as "Duel Masters 2.0", although only the 1st half of the season was aired.

As a whole, the Japanese version is more serious than the American version. While the Japanese version seems to rely more on visual and situational humor, the American version tends to use much more verbal humor. Also, while the Japanese version is mostly a traditional card-game show with much humor, the American version is a flat-out parody of the genre. In fact, the American version is not a true translation, but is instead a "parody dub". The American version also has different music and sound effects than that of the original Japanese version.

Eventually, a Japanese third season premiered in Japan entitled "Shinseiki Duel Masters Flash", followed by "Zero Duel Masters" and "Duel Masters Zero" (separate from "Zero Duel Masters"). "Duel Masters Cross" was the 6th season shown, lasting 100 episodes. Currently as of 2010 the 7th season, "Duel Masters Cross Shock" is airing in Japan. However, the American version of the anime has ended, and future seasons after "Sacred Lands"/"P.L.O.O.P." will not be translated.

Duel Masters Facts

 * The name "Duel Masters" is often believed to be a pun on "Duel Monsters" (the name used in the second series anime and English manga for a card game (also known as Magic & Wizards - that name is a pun off of "Magic: The Gathering") in the Yu-Gi-Oh! manga and anime series.) It actually takes its name from Magic: The Gathering, which had Duel Masters as its codename early in development. Yu-Gi-Oh! is even briefly referred to, when Shobu speaks of "Yugi Muto" that one show with the "Egyptian guy with spiky hair".


 * The first English-language season of the TV series was produced by Plastic Cow Productions. The second season that was created for the American market was produced by Elastic Media Corp. The third season was produced by Howling Cat Productions (featuring some of the former Saban Entertainment VA's, such as Brian Beacock, Philece Sampler, and Wendee Lee. In the UK, Duel Masters airs on Toonami and used to air on five. In the US and Australia, it aired on Cartoon Network.


 * The titles of the TCG expansion sets are named in parody of other TCGs with obtuse titles. Many of the TCG sets were also named by competitions on the Duel Masters website.


 * Japanese dialogue also plays a part in duels. A player declares "ikuzo" to challenge another player. The challenged then chooses to accept with "koi". "Hai" literally means "yes" in Japanese. "Ike" is a command to attack, and "Todome Da" is similar to calling "checkmate" and end the battle.


 * In the Anime, the characters often made many statements much like that of Yu-gi-oh's constant statements. For example, many times in Yu-gi-oh, Yugi would utter the phrase "Believe in the heart of your cards," in which Shobu said the same exact words.