Cardfight!! Vanguard: Link Joker-hen

Attack, Battler of the Twin Brush, Polaris!

He withstood that attack?!

Now it's my turn!

Repel the darkness with the brilliance of your proud soul!

Crossride!

Blazing Lion, Platina Ezel!

And then, Ultimate Break!

Let your souls soar! Spirit Unite Platinum!

The VF Circuit final stage has come to an end!

With Aichi Sendou's victory, Team Q4 becomes the champions!

You did it, Brother!

That was great, Aichi!

Oh, it was brilliant!

Q4 won against these formidable opponents.

And their ace is Aichi Sendou!

It was so very exciting!

Thank you!

There are now hundreds of millions of people

playing card games all over the world.

They've become a normal part of our daily lives.

Cardfight! Vanguard.

That's the card game that's receiving the most attention right now.

Some months after winning the VF Asia Circuit, an international Vanguard tournament,

I became a high school student...

...at Miyaji Academy.

Morning, Aichi.

Good morning, Misaki.

Are you getting used to the school?

No... I mean, yes, kind of...

In other words, what happens in various locations around the world

is no longer just confined to those areas,

but is becoming connected on a global scale.

This is what we call the age of globalization.

In this age of globalization, what used to be common knowledge no longer applies.

Um... How will you survive, Aichi Sendou?!

Yes?

Sendou, as a young man living in this age of globalization, how would you like to get by?

U-Um...

Uh...

What's he so nervous about?

It's probably just an act.

I think this is the first time he's spoken since transferring to this high school.

What's the problem, Sendou?

I... I, uh...

I guess I'd like to take good care of my hobby.

Hobby? What is it?

Um... it's, uh...

Cardfight, for example...

Cardfights?

And that's how you live your life?

No, n-never mind.

Cardfighting is his hobby?

Does he think that'll help him survive the age of globalization?

Jeez, he already looks like a little kid. He doesn't have to act like one!

You could say he's pathetic on a global level!

Quiet!

Our goal here at Miyaji Academy

is to cultivate young people so that they thrive in the age of globalization.

Certainly, the object of your devotion seems to be popular these days,

but don't you think focusing on academics would be a better use of your time, Sendou?

S-Sorry...

Th-That didn't go well...

Boring dude...

Stand Up the High School!

Sendou, you haven't decided what club you're going to join yet, have you?

You have heard that it's mandatory for all students here to be in a club, right?

Ah... yes... uh...

Is there something that you like to do?

My hobby is...

Ah! That's right, you said before.

"Cardfight," I think? What is that?

Um, well...

It's a game where you fight each other with cards.

If you'd like...

We don't have a Cardfight club...

Ah, I-I see...

I'm going home.

Make sure you decide on your club this week, Sendou!

Oh, Ishida?

I haven't gotten your club application.

Oh, leave me alone...

Hey! You should listen when someone's talking to you!

Sheesh...

Jeez...

Everything's as boring as always!

And everybody here is so darn serious...

It's like, there isn't anything you can really be passionate about here...

What was his name... Aichi Sendou?

That guy...

I bet that kid never has any fun...

What's with him?

It's like, the second school let out, his whole demeanor changed.

Has he got somethin' going?

Maybe he's actually an elite athlete with some sports club...

Or maybe outside of school, he's a gang leader...

Yeah, right...

Hello!

Card Capital? What is this?

Welcome!

What is this shop?!

Call!

This is...

This is a trading card game shop.

Trading card?

Um... it's, uh... Cardfight, for example...

There he is!

It's really been a long time!

He's talkin' to little kids?!

Yeah. We've come to research the card-playing population in Japan,

since Japan still has the most Vanguard fighters.

You might be right.

So, how's Mitsusada doing?

He's doing well!

He's making awesome strides.

Well, not like us, though...

Oh? Remind me, who lost to him last time?

More importantly, I wanna meet a Japanese maid while I'm here!

There you go again with that!

Wow! That's Singapore's Team Genius!

What's the problem? Everybody looks forward to their own thing.

They're Aichi's rivals!

W-What the heck?!

Those guys aren't Japanese!

What's up, Sendou?

You're like a totally different person here than at school!

And you're buddies with some guys from another country?

Talk about global!

Anyway, how'd you get like this?

U-Um, here...

What is this?

Cardfight.

Cardfight?

It's Vanguard.

Don't tell me you've never heard of it?

You fight each other with cards.

It's a card game that's really popular worldwide.

Vanguard?

Worldwide?

That's right.

A lot of countries hold international tournaments, too.

You really don't know about it?

It's common knowledge!

Common knowledge, you say?

Oh, boy, you're a goner.

Girls aren't gonna go for a know-nothing like you.

What was that?!

M-Me?!

So this is Vanguard?

Uh huh. You use this deck to battle.

Um... Do you want to try it?

F-Fine. I'll play along once.

This is a new trial deck.

Would you like to try it out?

Y-Yeah...

The VF Circuit champion has a challenger!

This guy's a tough opponent!

Have you finished reading the rulebook?

Yeah. I can do this.

Then I'll explain the rules as we go along.

Can I go first?

Yeah, sure...

This guy is nothing like he is at school!

I put a grade 0 card facedown in the Vanguard circle

and the deck goes here.

Got it.

I draw five cards from my deck.

If there are any cards in your hand you don't like, you can redraw them once.

You should try to have a lineup of grade 1, 2, and 3 cards in your hand.

How's your hand, Ishida?

No prob.

Then let's get started.

Try to picture it...

Picture it?

Right now, we're weak astral bodies that have appeared on the planet Cray,

a world much like our own.

You say this is the planet Cray?

On this world, we've been given two powers.

The first is the ability to summon units, the creatures that live on this planet.

Call!

You summon units

from the five cards that you drew from the deck.

Each card has a grade and an ability score on it.

And the other ability is riding,

where your astral body possesses a unit.

The unit that we ride is called a Vanguard.

Vanguard?

So the game starts with us as Vanguards, standing on the planet Cray.

We turn over the facedown card at the same time,

and say "Stand up, Vanguard!"

Stand up, Vanguard!

Stand up, Vanguard!

Angelic Liberator!

Stone Bullet Eradicator, Houki!

So we're both standing on the planet Cray as Vanguards.

I'm starting, so I get to move first.

First, I draw from the deck.