Which Yu-Gi-Oh! Anime Rival Has The Best Signature Card?

Every Yu-Gi-Oh! protagonist needs a good rival. These characters usually butt heads with our hero throughout the story with contrasting ideals and goals. At times, rivals can just be strong competitors, while at other times, the rival is a full-blown villain. Of course, one thing that remains constant is that all Yu-Gi-Oh! rivals have a signature card they rely on the most.

For every Dark Magician, there is a Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Rival monsters are always physically stronger than the hero’s ace. They are a force that needs to be taken down. Of course, some rivals have better cards than others. So, which ones were actually good and which ones simply looked cool?

10

Blue-Eyes White Dragon – Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters

Seto Kaiba’s Prized Monsters

The Blue-Eyes White Dragon is one of the most iconic monsters. It belongs to Seto Kaiba, who possesses the only three copies in the anime’s world. While this card has plenty of nostalgia and some great support, the monster itself is not as powerful as it seems.

For starters, you need to tribute two monsters just to get it on the field. It also doesn’t have any native effects. Even so, it does have a less specific way of being Summoned that doesn’t revolve around leveling up. Still, it is the weakest of the rival monsters in the grand scheme of things.

9

D/D/D Doom King Armageddon – Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V

Declan Akaba’s Ace Monster?

D/D/D Doom King Armageddon is kind of an odd monster. It has all the necessary stats to be a rival monster, and it is wielded by Declan Akaba in Arc-V, yet this card rarely sees play in the anime, and in real life, it has only one printing as a common.

While it does have variants in the form of Super Doom King monsters, the judgment rests on what the base card can do. It can raise another monster’s attack by 800 while on the scales. It can suck the attack power of a fallen monster onto itself, and it has immunity to non-targeting Spells and Traps. This gives it some protection to make it a bit harder to get rid of.

8

Voidvelg Requiem – Yu-Gi-Oh! Go Rush

Zuwijo Zir Velgear’s Monster Of War

Voidvelg Requiem is another rival ace from the Rush Duel format and the series, Go Rush. Belonging to Zuwijo Zwil Velegar, this card keeps things simple but menacing for the type of duels it’s used in.

Once again, this Rush Duel card requires you to mill a card from the top of your deck. It can then gain 300 attack for every Dark monster on your side of the field. Due to the Rush Duel’s ruling, this caps at three. However, you can gain an additional 600 if your opponent has a Light monster on their side of the field. With a max of 4,000 attack, it’s a pretty big beating stick.

7

Multistrike Dragon Dragias – Yu-Gi-Oh! Sevens

Luke Kallister’s Rush Duel Exclusive Card

The best way to slow down the action in the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime is to slow down the format entirely, so you get weaker cards that are decent in the Rush Duel format, but don’t really appear in the TCG. Multistrike Dragon Dragias falls into this category.

The effect is simple. Dump a card from the top of your deck, and if you destroy a monster in battle, you can attack a second time. It’s nothing extraordinary by TCG standards, but it works for Rush Duels. It’s also a better deal than vanilla Blue-Eyes since you at least get a card in the grave and two attacks.

6

Armed Dragon LV5 – Yu-Gi-Oh! GX

Chazz Princeton’s Go-To Favorite

Armed Dragon LV5 has a killer effect, considering how easy it can be to bring out. Just have an Armed Dragon LV3 on your side of the field during your Standby Phase, and Armed Dragon LV5 can come out straight from the deck.

Despite a stronger version of this monster existing, this one is the favorite of Chazz Princeton, which appears the most. Its effect is also pretty good for the time, since it can destroy monsters in return for you discarding other monsters from your hand. You can also do this more than once per turn.

5

Number 32: Shark Drake – Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal

Reginald Shark Is A Starter Rival

Like Seto Kaiba or Jack Atlas, Reginald Shark is the first opposing force that Yuma faces in Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal. After being humbled, he loses Number 17: Leviathan Dragon and later gains Number 32: Shark Drake.

This XYZ card takes three level four monsters to make. In return, you get to attack, destroy a monster, then bring that monster back just so you can hit it again. It sounds OK until you realize you’re trading away three monsters for just one. Because it also Special Summons the destroyed monster back, it has a chance of giving your opponent a free On-Summon effect.

4

Red Dragon Archfiend – Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds

Jack Atlas’s Raging Ambition

With Synchro Summoning, Jack Atlas’s signature monster has an easy time getting on the field. It’s also a very aggressive monster. If your opponent tries to defend their life points by using defense position monsters, Red Dragon Archfiend can shut them all down by attacking just one.

The only downside is that it forces all your monsters to attack. So once you Summon it to the field, you need to commit to going on the offensive. Regardless, this is a killer monster with a design befitting Stardust Dragon’s rival.

3

Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon – Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal

Kite Tenjo Is The True Rival

Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon as an archetype is pretty good. As a monster, it is decent. It’s not too overpowered, but not as powerless as Blue-Eyes. It still needs two tributes, but if you use monsters with 2000 or more attack, bringing it out won’t consume your Normal Summon for the turn.

This rival card feels specifically built to counter Yuma’s Number Monsters. This is because banishing an XYZ monster gets rid of all its material. Even if you do get those monsters back, it can essentially shut down any effects they might have been able to activate.

2

Borreload Dragon – Yu-Gi-Oh! Vrains

Revolver Steals The Victory

Borreload Dragon may be a rival card, but it is overshadowed by other members of its archetype. At most, this Link Monster takes four different monsters to make. Three if at least one of them is a Link-2.

This card has 3,000 attack, which can let it beat over a large portion of monsters. It can even steal monsters to your side of the field for a whole turn. This includes other Link Monsters you want to use as material during the Main Phase 2. It’s not a bad card, but the cost is steep.

1

Cyber Dragon – Yu-Gi-Oh! GX

Zane Trusdale Is The Duelist To Beat

Jaden Yuki has multiple rivals throughout the series. Though one constant goal with very similar cards to Seto Kaiba is Zane Trusdale. This rival’s signature card is Cyber Dragon. Two Cyber Dragons make a Twin Cyber Dragon, and three copies get you Cyber End Dragon.

Cyber Dragon is one of the best rival cards, even if it doesn’t match the 3,000 attack threshold. You can Special Summon it out for free if your opponent has a monster and you don’t. This makes it easy for tribute fodder or as a way to get a 2,100 body on the board.