What a time to be alive! Yu-Gi-Oh! is back in our lives in a big way, trading out television screens and trading cards to revel in the world of sneakers. Although the ring of the show's theme song is quite irreplaceable, it's hard not to leap at the chance to sport a pair of Duel Monsters-themed sneakers – making the adidas ADI2000 "Yugi's World" perfect.
I'll be the first to admit that I spent a few too many hours glued to a TV screen watching back-to-back episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters as a kid.
Watching the dramatic stories of Yugi, Kaiba, Tristan, and co unfold against a backdrop of fantastical monsters was as captivating as it got – as great as Pokémon was and is, the darker edge and angst of Yu-Gi-Oh! made it impossible for me not to put it in pole position.
Of course, with an addition to the show naturally comes an addition to its trading cards. Thanks to the power of the anime's marketing machine, I soon amassed a huge collection boasting favorites such as Dark Magician (and Dark Magician Girl), Summoned Skull, Red Eyes Black Dragon, Blue Eyes White Dragon, Legendary Six Samurai - Shi-En, and more.
Anyway, enough of nerding out – when it became clear that adidas would be stepping feet-first into Yugi's world, fans across the world were delighted.
For the first release of the ongoing collaboration, the ADI2000 and an offering of slides themed around some of the show's most iconic cards hit the market. As great as they were, they left a hunger for more.
Fortunately enough, a second pair of ADI2000s is set to land in Japan via CONFIRMED later today. Dubbed "Yugi's World," the pair contrasts the first, switching its white coloring out for a black render with gold, pink, and purple details.
We can only hope that this drop spells more to come. It's time to duel!
