Comic Books

‘Yu-Gi-Oh!’ and Ghost Rider: How American comics influenced a legendary manga

Or, a poignant odd to Kazuki Takahashi.

November 2, 2023

Last year, we lost a legendary icon in the world of comics and manga. Kazuki Takahashi, creator of Yu-Gi-Oh! and an immensely talented artist and storyteller, lost his life doing one of the most honourable things a human being could ever do: being a hero, trying to save another life. Takahashi was a personal idol to me and countless others, with his manga and it’s popular trading card game bringing people together for over 20 years. So, in light of that and the man’s great love for horror, I would like to talk about my favourite Japanese franchise of all time — and how its creator’s love of western horror comics influenced his greatest work. And c’mon, you wanna see some cool stuff, right? Yeah you do.

Yu-Gi-Oh! actually draws a lot of potential influence from American media overall, with comic books in particular being an obvious one. While Takahashi was never all that outspoken about what influenced his work… there are two he was very much open about. Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure… and more notably for today’s discussion, Hellboy.

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Courtesy of Mike Mignola.

Yeah, American comics have actually been a big part of Yu-Gi-Oh!‘s DNA for a very long time. Even ignoring the very obvious factor of the ever-popular “HERO” archetype existing in general, Takahashi was a known fan of American comics, and ’90s comics in particular. As noted in an interview with Shonen Jump, Mike Mignola’s Hellboy was apparently his favourite. Hell, the two men even did an art exchange! (Editor’s note: see above.) Its not hard to see how it’s unique occult style and heavily stylized artwork featuring fantastical creatures of horror and whimsy could have had an influence on the early days of Yugi’s story. There aren’t many direct parallels in terms of plot, but the overall tones and vibes certainly have some synergy with each other. They’re both moody occult stories with hyper-stylized art and creature designs, and even a protagonist with a secret destiny where he’s unaware of being influenced by forced yet unknown to him. It’s a general template for a leading man for this kind of story, sure, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there wasn’t some direct connection/correlation.

Courtesy of Shonen Jump.

Another ’90s comic character that Takahashi had an undeniable awareness of was Todd McFarlane’s Spawn. In fact, there was a whole arc of the manga dedicated to it even. If you remember the monster card Zombyra The Dark, a random, pretty un-noteworthy card from the early game’s history, you may be interested to know he actually started as an in-universe fictional superhero named Zombire, who is very clearly inspired by Spawn’s aesthetics and at-the-time massive popularity. The manga featured a small time supporting character named Hanasaki, who was obsessed with this fictional hero, who… was pretty much a hyper-toned down, more overtly heroic version of Spawn. While the focus on the mini-arc isn’t about Zombire as a character (more so what the image of a hero means to Hanasaki), Yugi’s own transformations into a darker alter ego with magical power and amnesia are very similar to Al Simmons’ origins in a loose sense.

Courtesy of Shonen Jump.

However, there is actually another well-known comic character who I think shares a frankly, spooky number of similarities to Takahashi’s main character.

Stop me if you’ve heard this one…

A teenage boy discovers a mystical, ancient artifact of immense power that, by night, transforms him into a dark avenger of justice. He gains a mystical, amnesiac alter ego with a scary, demonic presence, and the power to exact poetic vengeance on those who would bring harm to the innocent. The boy and the spirit learn to act as one, uncovering mysteries of the past, and together help save the world from the return of an ancient, evil demonic force threatening the modern day world.

They also really like dressing up in leather and spikes.

That’s right, it’s Ghost Rider!

Courtesy of Marvel Comics.

The Danny Ketch version of Ghost Rider from the very early ’90s, specifically. Unlike his more well known counterpart Johnny Blaze, Howard Mackie’s Danny Ketch version of the Ghost Rider is actually what introduced most of the stuff people associate with the character. A more heroic persona seeking vengeance for wrongdoings was the entire modus operandi of the second (and best) flame-brained motorcycle man. Ketch and his dual identity with the mysterious spirit of vengeance is pretty much Takahashi’s Dark Yugi to a tee. The struggle between the host and the spirit inhabiting his body and where the moral line between the two lay, the eventual meeting of the minds that take place where they learn from each other’s best traits to become more whole as individuals, even the mysterious past of the spirit kept from the reader and characters alike through amnesia… both stories touch upon these elements as major themes for their respective dual-protagonists.

Courtesy of Marvel (L) and Shonen Jump (R).

The parallels here are…frankly a bit too insane of a coincidence, in my eye. In the Death-T and Duelist Kingdom arcs, Yugi struggles because the spirit of the puzzle has been taking him over, and the brutality of it’s methods start to eat away at him. The spirit of the puzzle, Dark Yugi, in turn learns that he needs to work with his host, not wrestle control from him, to pass his judgment unfettered by moral guidelines. Yugi and his counterpart’s entire narrative dynamic is to balance each other, Yugi’s humanity and Dark Yugi’s courage.

This struggle is eerily similar to the journey that Danny and Ghost Rider have to go through to start to become a well oiled unit. They share a body, and even their thoughts and memories. Ghost Rider himself is even an amnesiac spirit from the past seeking answers to who he truly is, just like Dark Yugi. Though unlike Yugi and his alter ego at first, Ghost Rider does have his reservations about his takeover of Danny until the two start to share more with each other, after which they start to have a much more harmonious relationship, again, like Yugi and Dark Yugi. Danny’s humanity, like Yugi’s, is key to holstering the darker and brutal aspects of his alter ego and allow them both to be their best selves. Ironically enough, Danny and the Rider merging themselves further into a unified being is eerily similar to what the English dub of the Yu-Gi-Oh! would do, often implying that Yugi and his alter ego were merging personalities a degree. (It’s something I always personally liked but its not exactly conducive to my point here, being a dub only implication.)

Courtesy of Marvel (L) and Shonen Jump (R).

And, of course, there’s the infamous penance stare introduced by Mackie’s run. It’s a mystical ability which inflicts a karmic punishment upon those who harm the innocent by making them feel the suffering of every person they ever wronged — not dissimilar to the penalty games of early Yu-Gi-Oh!, which were also similarly poetic comeuppance.

Mind you, the parallels here could just be an insane level of coincidence… but, are they though? Like I’ve pointed out here plenty, Takahashi was a known fan of American comics, and especially seemed to love these kind of occultish horror heroes. So, honestly, if Spawn and Hellboy can be obvious influences on Yu-Gi-Oh!, why not Ghost Rider? The time period lines up pretty cleanly, with the Mackie run of the character starting in 1990 and ending in 1996, which so happened to be the same year the original Yu-Gi-Oh! manga began serialization in Japan. Sure, Takahashi never mentioned that book by name, but he never mentioned Kaiji the Gambler as a major influence either and… I mean, c’mon, as some other people have pointed out in that particular case, some things are just kinda obvious. The guy loved American comics, occult heroes… it would be weirder to me if he hadn’t read some Ghostie here or there.

Courtesy of Marvel Comics.

Is it 100% confirmed? No, this really is just a lot of my personal speculation, so don’t take anything said here about that possible connection as more than that: a possible connection. But it’s fun to speculate and draw comparisons.

Comics and manga often seem like they’re at odds in the public arena these days, but I think Takahashi’s clear love for American comics shows that these things do not have to be the bitter rivals they’re often portrayed as. Comics are comics, whether they’re from the East or West, and Takahashi’s manga was all about people from all walks of life coming together and finding common ground. We’re all linked by a shared love of this medium, and I believe it’s important to recognize how much comics and manga serve to strengthen the other, not just through competition, but through a unified love of each other’s strengths. Yu-Gi-Oh! and Takahashi taught me the importance of always seeing the best in everybody and trying to find common ground. I think the man’s work speaks for itself in that regard:

From 2004’s final installment of the Yu-Gi-Oh! original manga. Courtesy of Shonen Jump.

Now all that’s left is to give Yugi a sick hellfire motorcycle, and have him shoot concentrated terror and guilt directly into Marik’s eyeballs until he vomits and convulses on the floor, feeling the pain of everybody he’s ever wronged all at once.

Or, y’know, whatever.