Akira manages to drive Playmaker into a corner. However, Playmaker fights back with everything he got, performing multiple Link Summons in a row in order to turn the battle around. Akira and Playmaker then proceed to duke it out with their ace monsters.
This episode contains the following tropes:
- All According to Plan: Subverted. Though Kitamura, for unknown reasons, had plans to use the data from the data bank against SOL Technologies' higher-ups and earn himself a promotion, it all falls apart for him after Playmaker acquires the data, to his dismay.
- Back from the Dead: Though said to have died seven years prior, Dr. Kogami elaborates to Revolver that he resurrected from the dead solely to bring an end to the entirety of the network world.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Subverted. Playmaker Summoning Security Gardna to the Main Monster Zone pointed to by Acute Cerberus's upper Link Arrow would've costed him the Duel by the effect of Gergonne's End, if it weren't for Security Gardna's effect damage negation effect.
- Honor Before Reason: Akira questions Playmaker why the latter didn't finish off the former by directly attacking with Firewall Dragon. Playmaker compares Tindangle Hound and Tindangle Angel to Akira and Blue Angel, respectively, in that they have the power to protect each other, thus shouldn't remain in the Graveyard, and finally warns them not to tread in the same path as he did.
- Idiot Ball: Akira gets it bad in his last turn when he sacrifices his tokens and Playmaker's Security Gardna to deal 4500 damage to win the duel... except Security Gardna's effect makes sure that Playmaker doesn't take effect damage that turn. If Akira had read its effect, he wouldn't have lost his token and would've maintained the effect of Euler's Circuit, which prevents Playmaker from attacking. Downplayed in that, even if he hadn't, Yusaku would still have had the means to win the duel due to Firewall Dragon's effect. note
- No-Sell:
- Playmaker stops Akira from finishing off the former with the latter's Acute Cerberus, using Doppler Phase Coating which forces the Battle Phase to end when the Monster equipped with said card leaves the field (in this case, via Playmaker's Cynet Backdoor).
- The effect of Security Gardna also prevented Playmaker from taking damage by the effect of Gergonne's End, which would've costed him the Duel otherwise.
- The Reveal: Not only is it discovered that Dr. Kogami was the mastermind of the Lost Incident/Hanoi Project and a former researcher SOL Technologies, it is also said that he died seven years prior. On the other hand, the Hanoi Project's purpose remains unknown.
- Saying Too Much: As Kitamura rants about the fact that Playmaker acquired data from SOL Technologies' data bank, two of his subordinates overhear him from outside.
- Wham Line: The revelation that Dr. Kogami was the mastermind of the Lost Incident/Hanoi Project.
