Thus far, this is probably my favorite episode in the series (though "Seto Kaiba versus the World" does give it a serious run for its money), and I'm probably not exaggerating when I say that this is by far the most tightly-paced episode in the series. In retrospect, that might be why I like it so much - one of the most annoying flaws of YGOTAS is Littlekuriboh's tendency to wander away into a bunch of random jokes and references, only to hit a dead end realize several minutes later and realize that he's stumbled way off course. Cue the inevitably clumsy scramble back into the episode's main plot (for a particularly egregious example, see the last couple minutes of "So Long, and Thanks for All the Card Games", which is otherwise actually another one of my faves).
There's none of that in this episode. The plot structure of the Clip Show, as generations of writers before knew, is nigh-impossible to screw up. Thus, no jokes overstay their welcome, and no Running Gag is stretched too long - the rapid-fire flashbacks are perfectly timed, often consisting of no more than two or three lines. It's the sort of humor that does require a bit of effort to keep up with, but it's highly rewarding for those who can do so.
As Littlekuriboh put it: "Did I just abridge my own series?". Yes, yes you did. And in doing so, you reminded us of why we were so attracted to the concept of The Abridged Series in the first place.
Also, no characters acting excessively Jerkass-ish for the sake of unoriginal sadist humor. Points for that.
If I had to nitpick, I would like to mention that the episode dropped the pacing ball a bit around the Flashback to Episode 3. Thankfully, it picked it right back up again and never dropped it again with the immortal words, "I'm the Goddamn Kaibaman".
A Tale of Two Tournies...
Thus far, this is probably my favorite episode in the series (though "Seto Kaiba versus the World" does give it a serious run for its money), and I'm probably not exaggerating when I say that this is by far the most tightly-paced episode in the series. In retrospect, that might be why I like it so much - one of the most annoying flaws of YGOTAS is Littlekuriboh's tendency to wander away into a bunch of random jokes and references, only to hit a dead end realize several minutes later and realize that he's stumbled way off course. Cue the inevitably clumsy scramble back into the episode's main plot (for a particularly egregious example, see the last couple minutes of "So Long, and Thanks for All the Card Games", which is otherwise actually another one of my faves).
There's none of that in this episode. The plot structure of the Clip Show, as generations of writers before knew, is nigh-impossible to screw up. Thus, no jokes overstay their welcome, and no Running Gag is stretched too long - the rapid-fire flashbacks are perfectly timed, often consisting of no more than two or three lines. It's the sort of humor that does require a bit of effort to keep up with, but it's highly rewarding for those who can do so.
As Littlekuriboh put it: "Did I just abridge my own series?". Yes, yes you did. And in doing so, you reminded us of why we were so attracted to the concept of The Abridged Series in the first place.
Also, no characters acting excessively Jerkass-ish for the sake of unoriginal sadist humor. Points for that.
If I had to nitpick, I would like to mention that the episode dropped the pacing ball a bit around the Flashback to Episode 3. Thankfully, it picked it right back up again and never dropped it again with the immortal words, "I'm the Goddamn Kaibaman".