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The Best Episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters Season 1

Every episode of Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters Season 1 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters Season 1!

The Best Episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters Season 1

Bullies often target someone frail and weak—someone exactly like Yûgi Muto. He treasures his Millennium Puzzle, an ancient Egyptian artifact that was brought into his...

Seasons1

  1. Background image for Evil Spirit of the Ring
    8.9/10(91 votes)

    #1 - Evil Spirit of the Ring

    S1:E13

    Yugi's classmate Bakura, possessed by his Millennium Ring's dark powers, traps Yugi and his friends in a Shadow Game where they become the cards themselves!

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    Director:N/A
  2. Background image for Champion vs. Creator (1)
    8.8/10(78 votes)

    #2 - Champion vs. Creator (1)

    S1:E26

    Yugi and friends enter the castle to discover Kaiba ready to duel Pegasus with Mokuba’s soul hanging in the balance! The power of the Millennium Eye gives Pegasus the ability to read other people’s minds. Can Kaiba defeat an opponent who knows his moves even before he does?

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    Director:N/A
  3. Background image for Face Off (2)
    8.7/10(78 votes)

    #3 - Face Off (2)

    S1:E23

    Kaiba summons Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, the strongest monster in the game fused from three Blue-Eyes White Dragons! Yugi has lost all his powerful Duel Monsters, but a true duelist never gives up!

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    Director:N/A
    Writer:N/A
  4. Background image for Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium (3)
    8.7/10(74 votes)

    #4 - Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium (3)

    S1:E37

    Yugi has found a counter to Pegasus’s mind-reading ability: Yugi switches back and forth between his two souls! Yugi is able to destroy Pegasus’s Toon World, but the duel has just only begun. The next level of the deadly Shadow Game is about to start!

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  5. Background image for Face Off (3)
    8.6/10(78 votes)

    #5 - Face Off (3)

    S1:E24

    Yugi begins spinning a strategy to put Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon to rest, but he must decide whether to claim victory or spare Kaiba his life. Yugi’s heart is split in two!

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    Director:N/A
    Writer:N/A
  6. Background image for Champion vs. Creator (2)
    8.6/10(72 votes)

    #6 - Champion vs. Creator (2)

    S1:E27

    Kaiba is helpless against Pegasus’s Toon World deck and mind-reading abilities. As the duel ends, Pegasus imprisons Kaiba’s soul into a card, just like Grandpa and Mokuba! Yugi has had enough!

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    Director:N/A
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  8. Background image for Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium (1)
    8.6/10(77 votes)

    #7 - Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium (1)

    S1:E35

    Yugi prepares for the ultimate battle against Pegasus with the souls of Grandpa, Kaiba and Mokuba on the line. Meanwhile, Honda and Bakura infiltrate the castle to find the Kaiba brothers, but at this crucial moment, is Bakura turning back into his evil self again?

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  9. Background image for Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium (4)
    8.6/10(70 votes)

    #8 - Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium (4)

    S1:E38

    Yugi crumples in exhaustion under the crippling power of the Shadow Game. His friends yell desperate encouragement, but their voices cannot penetrate the sphere of darkness. Yugi’s chance at victory is slipping away, as is his life!

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  10. Background image for Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium (5)
    8.6/10(74 votes)

    #9 - Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium (5)

    S1:E39

    Pegasus summons Relinquished, a fearsome monster that can consume Yugi’s Duel Monsters! Yugi counters with… Kuriboh? The smallest, weakest creature in the game? Has Yugi given up, or does he have one last strategy to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat? The Shadow Game comes to a close!

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  11. Background image for Face Off (1)
    8.5/10(81 votes)

    #10 - Face Off (1)

    S1:E22

    Using the magic of the Millennium Eye, Pegasus traps Mokuba’s soul inside a card right before Kaiba’s eyes! In order to earn the right to challenge Pegasus, Kaiba must first beat Yugi and take his Star Chips. The rematch between Yugi and Kaiba is about to begin!

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    Director:N/A
    Writer:N/A
  12. Background image for Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium (2)
    8.5/10(75 votes)

    #11 - Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium (2)

    S1:E36

    Pegasus punishes Yugi using the same Toon Deck and mind-reading abilities he used on Kaiba. As Pegasus turns Yugi’s monsters against him, Yugi loses the will to battle. Will Pegasus capture Yugi’s soul into a card, just like Kaiba?

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    Director:N/A
  13. Background image for Best of Friends, Best of Duelists (2)
    8.4/10(74 votes)

    #12 - Best of Friends, Best of Duelists (2)

    S1:E34

    Yugi is shocked as Jonouchi uses the Time Wizard card on him, the very card he gave Jonouchi as a sign of friendship! However, as the two battle each other valiantly and one comes out the victor, they find confirmation of the strength of their friendship that surpasses any duel.

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    Director:N/A
  14. Background image for Duel Identity (2)
    8.3/10(72 votes)

    #13 - Duel Identity (2)

    S1:E30

    Mai has rebounded from her previous loss to Jonouchi to become a better duelist. Has Yugi learned from his loss to Kaiba, or is the emotional defeat still weighing on his heart? The answer is in the cards!

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    Director:N/A
  15. Background image for Double Trouble Duel (3)
    8.2/10(80 votes)

    #14 - Double Trouble Duel (3)

    S1:E21

    Yugi and Jonouchi each unleash their strongest monster, Summoned Skull and Red-Eyes B. Dragon, but their strength pales in comparison to the tremendous power of Gate Guardian. Individually, our heroes have no chance, but they will unleash the greatest power of all: teamwork!

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  16. Background image for Keith's Machinations (2)
    8.2/10(71 votes)

    #15 - Keith's Machinations (2)

    S1:E32

    After Bandit Keith’s Machine deck forces Jonouchi to take the defensive, Jonouchi mimics Keith’s battle strategy to metalicize his Red-Eyes B. Dragon! Is victory assured, or does the cheater Bandit Keith literally have one last card up his sleeve?

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    Director:N/A
  17. Background image for Best of Friends, Best of Duelists (1)
    8.2/10(74 votes)

    #16 - Best of Friends, Best of Duelists (1)

    S1:E33

    With his pride in his strength as a duelist on the line, Jonouchi challenges Yugi for the right to face Pegasus. In a battle between friends, a fierce match ensues between the two people who know each other’s strategies and cards as they struggle to keep their thoughts of past loyalties at the back of their minds.

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    Director:N/A
  18. Background image for Aftermath
    8.1/10(77 votes)

    #17 - Aftermath

    S1:E40

    The Pegasus Saga comes to an end, but a new journey is about to begin! Yugi meets a mysterious Egyptian named Shadi who enters Yugi’s mind with the Millennium Key. What are these Millennium Items, and do they hold the answer to the mystery behind the Shadow Games?

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    Director:N/A
    Writer:N/A
  19. Background image for Double Trouble Duel (1)
    8.0/10(83 votes)

    #18 - Double Trouble Duel (1)

    S1:E19

    Trapped in the labyrinth cave, Yugi and friends find an alternate exit, but the door is guarded by Pegasus’s Labyrinth Brothers. Yugi and Jonouchi will no longer be battling solo; they band together in a team battle against the Labyrinth Brothers! The battle for all the Star Chips and entrance to Pegasus’s castle is on the line!

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    Director:N/A
  20. Background image for Duel Identity (1)
    8.0/10(73 votes)

    #19 - Duel Identity (1)

    S1:E29

    Under Pegasus’s weighty glare, Yugi is distracted from his duel with Mai. After making foolish tactical errors and allowing Mai to gain a huge advantage with her Harpie's Pet Dragon, will Yugi gather his focus or succumb to the intense pressure?

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    Director:N/A
  21. Background image for Duel with a Ghoul
    7.9/10(88 votes)

    #20 - Duel with a Ghoul

    S1:E9

    Yugi must duel a magical doppelganger of Kaiba, created from the greed and power lust Yugi wiped from Kaiba's soul.

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    Director:Katsumi Ono
  22. Background image for The Light at the End of the Tunnel
    7.9/10(81 votes)

    #21 - The Light at the End of the Tunnel

    S1:E14

    Pegasus's hired duelist Panik cheats Mai of all her star chips, and Yugi vows to defeat him and win them back. But when Panik's Castle of Dark Illusions enshrouds his monsters in a black mist, how can Yugi defeat an enemy he cannot see?

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    Director:N/A
  23. Background image for Arena of Lost Souls (1)
    7.9/10(77 votes)

    #22 - Arena of Lost Souls (1)

    S1:E17

    The #1 American duelist Bandit Keith's gang kidnaps Joey to a secret cave with a Graveyard playing field. As Yugi and friends search for him, Joey faces Bandit Keith's zombie monsters which become stronger as they return from the grave.

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  24. Background image for Arena of Lost Souls (2)
    7.9/10(78 votes)

    #23 - Arena of Lost Souls (2)

    S1:E18

    Joey's last ditch effort, his lucky Time Wizard card, fails against Bandit Keith's zombie monsters. But as his lucky streak comes to an end, will his improving skills as a duelist and his love for his sister inspire him to victory?

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    Director:N/A
  25. Background image for Double Trouble Duel (2)
    7.9/10(82 votes)

    #24 - Double Trouble Duel (2)

    S1:E20

    Yugi and Jonouchi pool their strengths and manage to fend off their opponents’ monsters, but things are about to change as the Labyrinth Brothers summon the almighty Gate Guardian, a monster that reflects all attacks! Is Jonouchi helping Yugi in this duel, or his lack of experience sealing their fate for defeat?

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  26. Background image for Give Up the Ghost
    7.8/10(83 votes)

    #25 - Give Up the Ghost

    S1:E10

    Yugi defeats the Blue Eyes White Dragon, but there are two more waiting in the wings! Will the real Kaiba reach Yugi in time to help beat this impersonator?

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Season 1 Ratings Summary

"Evil Spirit of the Ring" is the best rated episode of "Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters" season 1. It scored 8.9/10 based on 91 votes. Directed by N/A and written by Junki Takegami, it aired on 7/11/2000. This episode is rated 0.1 points higher than the second-best, "Champion vs. Creator (1)".