Yu-Gi-Oh!

{ Yu-Gi-Oh! (Japanese: 遊☆戯☆王, Hepburn: Yū Gi Ō, lit. 'Game King') is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kazuki Takahashi. It was serialized in Shueisha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump between September 1996 and March 2004, with its chapters collected in 38 tankōbon volumes. The series follows Yugi Mutou, a teenager who solves the ancient Millennium Puzzle. Yugi becomes host to a gambling alter-ego or spirit who solves his conflicts with various games. As the manga progresses, the focus largely shifts to the card game Duel Monsters (originally known as Magic & Wizards), where opposing players "duel" one another in mock battles of fantasy monsters. The manga series has spawned a media franchise that includes multiple spin-off manga, anime series, video games, and a real-world card game, the Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game, based on the fictional Duel Monsters game. The first anime series adaptation, simply titled Yu-Gi-Oh! and produced by Toei Animation, aired from April to October 1998, while the second one, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters, produced by NAS and animated by Gallop, aired from April 2000 to September 2004. Yu-Gi-Oh! has become one of the highest-grossing media franchises of all time. {