So I finished ZEXAL recently, and wow...that series was pretty darn good. Easily my favorite of the Yu-Gi-Oh! series. I originally started watching it as a joke, having previously only seen the original and GX, and considering all how it was regarded by the masses and the introduction of what was at the time the relatively new XYZ mechanic, I planned to watch one or two episodes.
Then I kept watching, and after realizing that Yuma and the story were a lot easier to take seriously in Japanese (if only because of his nasally, high-pitched voice in the dub), I got into it, and it only got better as it went. It had the best main girl (surprisingly, as she doesn't duel but still manages to contribute quite a bit). Actually, all of the female characters in this show are better than I expected, since, at least as for as YGO and GX are concerned, the series isn't the best at developing three dimensional female characters. Here, though, they're pretty well done for Yu-Gi-Oh! standards (and that leaks into Arc-V as well, so far). On that, Kotori's role as main girl and cheer leader is interesting here. Unlike Tea/Anzu, who was a friend who very obviously was romantic interest in character form who basically only cheered on the sidelines (though she did contribute at points), Kotori's relationship with Yuma is actually pretty endearing and, like Kotori, is three dimensional. She cares about him to the extent that, on more than one occasion, she is the key to his victory. She's smart and brave, and probably most importantly, she knows Yuma better than he knows himself. Rather than just being on the sideline during duels (which, physically, she is), she plays a similar role to Astral, just without the dueling tips. And she fights, but that's something else entirely. I originally didn't really care for most of the "main friend crew", namely Catherine, "Flip" Tokunosuke, and "Caswell" Todoroki, often being annoyed when they tagged along, wishing it was just Kotori and possibly Bronk, too, but then the last season happened.
They tried to pass Yuma off as an annoying loudmouth (hence why he has a nonsensical catchphrase) but failed, instead making him a character whose pain I actually felt and one that I wanted to win. Oddly, they also try to push the notion that Yuma isn't all too great a duelist on his own and that he needs Astral to win, like Yugi Muto if he were newer to dueling, but interestingly, he wins most duels at least mostly, if not completely on his own. Though as the series progresses, there might be slight implications that the show is aware of this.
Granted, once I got to ZEXAL II I put the show on hiatus for a while due to fear of filler, but surprisingly ZEXAL as a whole had very little filler and, in II, it was used for the establishment of the villains (and character development, which works very well due to what happens mid-late season). I also thought it could be unfittingly silly at times, such as the blowback from taking damage being far more frequent than before ,Yuma's compulsory need to lift himself off the ground whenever he draws (he gets better), and various poses that are taken. But the story was interesting and it did well to invest you in the characters, taking some aspects from it's older brothers but ultimately being pretty original. It does twists pretty well as well, and it doesn't really coddle the viewer in the way that I would expect a show of that target audience to. Also, apparently the creator of director of ZEXAL was a fan of Kill la Kill and/or Gurren Lagann, because it very clearly takes influence from them (definitely for the better).
Though, I will say this: if you're going to watch ZEXAL, I recommend watching it in Japanese. Having Sean Schemmel (the voice of Goku) as the new Joey character is pretty amazing, and the voices are pretty solid (with the name changes being relatively tame...at times: Kotori Mizuki -> Tori Meadows, Tetsu -> Bronk, Kamishiro "Shark" Ryouga -> Reginald Kastle), but the problem comes with...Yuma. He's a legitimately good character, but I can completely understand if that high-pitched dub voice perverts whatever feelings you have for him into boiling hate. I'm not the type that'll push subs onto people, mainly because I like subs and dubs equally, but here...you're stepping into dangerous territory. That and the Japanese openings are fantastic:
And the last ending theme (which is definitely spoilers if you haven't gotten there yet) hits harder after each episode. That, and I don't know how they handle death in the dub. Also, Yuma's catchphrase in the dub is "I'm feeling the flow!" (and the gem "Get set to get decked"), from the nonsensical phrase "Kattobingu da, ore!" The most appropriate translation I've seen in subs, and the one I think works best, is "I'll bring it to 'em", since it can (and has) been very easily adapted into sentences.
