Yu-Gi-Oh!: Bonds Beyond Time

Yu-Gi-Oh!: Bonds Beyond Time, known in Japan as Yu-Gi-Oh! The Movie: Super Fusion! Bonds That Transcended Time (劇場版 遊☆戯☆王 ～超融合！時空を越えた絆～) and also referred to as 'Yu-Gi-Oh! 3D or Yu-Gi-Oh! 10th', is a Japanese 3-D animated film based on the long running Yu-Gi-Oh! series. It celebrates the tenth anniversary of the NAS produced series, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters, and features the main characters from the franchise's three anime series, linking to the story of Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's. It was released in Japanese theaters on January 23, 2010. An English language version of the film containing 10 minutes of additional animation has been produced by 4Kids Entertainment for a theatrical release. The digital cinema developer and distributor, Cinedigm, ran the film in select U.S. stereoscopic 3D theaters on February 26 and 27, 2011 and again on March 5 and 6, 2011. Manga Entertainment released the film in select UK stereoscopic 3D cinemas on May 14 and 21, 2011, followed by a Blu-ray 3D and DVD release on July 25, 2011. Without a release of the film in France on BD/DVD, Canal J aired the film on July 5, 2011 at 5:30 PM on Latin America premiere April 5, 2012 at 5:30pm on Movie City Family.

Development
The film was first announced in July 2009. Teasers showcasing the three protagonists, Yugi, Jaden and Yusei and their monsters, were shown at the first episodes of the third season of Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's. It was revealed in the November issue of V-Jump magazine, that the animation would be a 3-D film. The main theme for the film is "makemagic" by Atsushi Tamura's band Jealkb. The film was released in Japan on January 23, 2010, with those who saw it receiving a promotional Malefic Red Eyes Black Dragon card.

During 4Kids's quarterly conference call in March 2010, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Alfred Khan mentioned they are "participating in a brand new Yu-Gi-Oh! 3D movie," implying that 4Kids will be producing an English language version of the film for a Western release. A trailer of the English version of the film was shown at San Diego Comic Con 2010, the official English title of the film - ''Yu-Gi-Oh! 3D: Bonds Beyond Time'', and a February 2011 U.S. release date in select 3-D theaters was announced, those who see it will receive a promotional Malefic Red Eyes Black Dragon card along with a mini-manga from Viz Media. Like the anime TV series localizations by 4Kids, the soundtrack was redone and cards were edited to not resemble their trading card game counterparts (the latter of which was not the case for the previous Yu-Gi-Oh! The Movie: Pyramid of Light). In addition, there was a preview of the film at the Yu-Gi-Oh! World Championship 2010 in Long Beach. Cinedigm ran the film in select U.S. stereoscopic 3D theaters on February 26 and 27, 2011 and again on March 5 and 6, 2011. The film featured 10 additional minutes of animation compared to the original Japanese release. The film received an encore screening in Japan which was held on February 20, 2011, which includes the additional animation in 2D. Manga Entertainment holds the license of the film in the United Kingdom, which was released in select stereoscopic 3D cinemas on May 14 & 21, 2011, followed by a Blu-ray 3D and DVD release on July 25, 2011, which contains both the English language and original Japanese versions, the first bilingual Yu-Gi-Oh! release since the short-lived uncut release of Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters.

Plot
The story takes place sometime during the beginning of the fourth season of Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, right before the events of the World Racing Grand Prix (WRGP) took place.

As Yusei Fudo ponders the current state of New Domino City, Jack Atlas and Crow Hogan come to cheer him up, with the idea of going for a ride on their Duel Runners. As they are riding, a mysterious Turbo Duelist called Paradox appears and challenges Yusei to a duel. However, when Yusei summons his Stardust Dragon, Paradox seals it inside a card and disappears with it. Yusei and his friends soon learn through computer research that Paradox has appeared during the era of Yugi Muto, using Stardust Dragon to cause a huge incident in the past, the effects of which cause New Domino City to start disappearing as time is altered. With the Signer's marks suddenly reacting, the Crimson Dragon appears, giving Yusei's Duel Runner the ability to travel through time.

Several years earlier, in Venice, Italy, Jaden Yuki (Judai Yuki in Japanese version) is attacked by powerful Malefic versions of stolen monster cards, including Yusei's Stardust Dragon. As Paradox prepares to finish off Jaden, Yusei and the Crimson Dragon arrive in his timeline and protect him. Jaden explains to Yusei how he had been pursuing Paradox who had stolen his friends' cards and is planning on messing up the timeline, agreeing to help Yusei chase after him. A few years earlier, Maximillion Pegasus is holding a duel tournament in Domino City, which Yugi Muto is attending with his grandpa. However, Paradox uses his newly acquired Malefic monsters to attack the event, killing Pegasus and Yugi's grandpa along with several bystanders, with only Yugi managing to survive. Yusei and Jaden arrive and take Yugi to half an hour before Paradox's attack, deducing that by killing Pegasus, Paradox would be able to end the existence of Duel Monsters, which would radically change the course of history.

As the group manage to scare off the bystanders, Paradox appears before them, explaining that he comes from a further future than Yusei's which is in ruin, believing the only way to fix it is to stop Duel Monsters from existing. Yusei, Yugi and Jaden disagree on the basis that their own timeline, and the people in it, will disappear as a result of the change in history. With Pegasus due to arrive in a short while, they challenge Paradox to a duel with the future at stake. Paradox activates his Malefic World and starts summoning his Malefic versions of the cards he has stolen from throughout time. Yusei, Yugi and Jaden work together to utilise their cards in order to protect themselves and beat back Paradox's monsters. As Paradox summons out one of his key monsters, Malefic Paradox Dragon, Yugi manages to destroy it, but then Paradox is able to summon out his ace monster, Malefic Truth Dragon. However, thanks to the group's combined teamwork, the group manage to reclaim Stardust Dragon and combine their strength to defeat Paradox, who disappears into the recesses of time, never to be seen again, but not before Paradox ponders the results of all of the events that he caused, and if it was really worth it. After the duel, Yusei, Jaden and Yugi say their goodbyes, hoping to meet again, before returning to their respective timelines, with Yusei's city back to normal.

Cast
The voice actors listed below reprised their characters from the series, with the exceptions of Yubel's English voice actress Cassandra Morris, who was unavailable to voice her character and Solomon "Grandpa" Muto's English voice actress Maddie Blaustein, who died a few years prior the film's voice recording.

Songs

 * Theme song
 * "makemagic"
 * Lyrics: haderu
 * Composition: Yoshihiro Saito (サイトウヨシヒロ)
 * Arrangement: Shōgo Ōnishi (大西省吾)
 * Artist: Jealkb

Box Office
The film debuted in the top 10 in the Japanese Box Office charts, earning over $1 million US dollars in its first week.