Relationships come in all shapes and sizes, from platonic friendships to romantic partnerships and the Yu-Gi-Oh! series is great at highlighting both. Yu-Gi-Oh!, which began in 1996, is a trading card game based series that has spanned across dozens of media outlets including television and video games.

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While the monster fighting is the core of each series, the characters that are playing the games are the true focus. Since there are now six series of the show, this list is going to talk about the most discussed relationships from all series, not just the original, though some series, like the original and GX, are more prominent.

10 Rejected: Jack and Stephanie

Out of all of Jack’s fan club love interests, Stephanie (far right) is the weakest in terms of dueling and character development. Her main claim to Jack’s heart was that she was his waitress at Café la Green, which is Jack’s canonical favorite restaurant.

This relationship is drowned by two major factors. The first is that Jack and Stephanie never really interact outside of the café in a meaningful way. The second is that the other two fan club members, Carly and Mina, get much more screen time to be alongside Jack, since one was a signer and the other was Jack’s assistant. Stephanie could have been a better character and love interest, especially with that Fresh Blue Eyes deck she has in Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's World Championship 2011: Over the Nexus, yet she was squandered.

9 Accepted: Yugo and Rin

The relationship between childhood friends typically topples the relationship that are built up from a meeting point within the events of the series. Yu-Gi-Oh! has made sure this trend continues in each of its iterations. While their romantic relationship is not confirmed outright, there are moments of fluster on both ends that lend themselves toward that end.

Outside of romance, Yugo and Rin have a great friendship, settling their issues with duels and being supportive of each other throughout the series. Rin has taken on a caring, almost motherly support role for Yugo, which makes their relationship all the stronger.

8 Rejected: Yami and Tea

Tea and Yami’s relationship is strained because of her inability to initially comprehend the difference between the two versions of Yugi. She originally assumed that Yami was just the mature part of Yugi, but later accepts that the two are different people.

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Overall, her love for him is quite toxic. She actively put herself in harm's way to get Yami to switch with Yugi. Also, at the end of the series, she tries to follow Atem into the afterlife but is thankfully stopped by Joey. The two have a single date after Yami beats a dancer in a duel during Battle City, but it feels awkward since Yami spends a lot of time encouraging Yugi to date her. Speaking of which…

7 Accepted: Yugi and Tea

Yugi and Tea were the dream pairing for the series. They were long-time friends, and occasionally their emotions toward each other got deep. Their biggest issue was the fact that Yami was around mucking up the waters, at least in Tea’s eyes.

Yami was fully supportive of Yugi and Tea’s relationship, egging Yugi on to ask her out often. Tea shows jealousy of Rebecca Hawkins, Mai Valentine, and Vivian Wong, all of whom flirt with Yugi. While the two are never shown to end up together, they were clearly the endgame after Yami went on to the afterlife.

6 Rejected: Zane and Alexis

These top tier Obelisk Blues had a lot of fans assuming they were connected in a relationship since they spent the most time together. It is quickly learned that Alexis and Zane are close friends as Zane was helping her find out information on her missing brother.

As the series continued, she seemed to drift from Zane and into the Jaden’s group (more on that in a minute), but because of their established friendship, many assumed that the two would end up together. This would have been weird seeing as Alexis believed Zane to be a brother figure, replacing her missing brother during the first few arcs. Luckily, they stay just friends throughout.

5 Accepted: Jaden and Alexis

As much as Yugi and Tea were scripted to be in love, the same thing happened with Jaden and Alexis. This relationship was scripted slightly different as it was Alexis who first had feelings for Jaden, which is discussed several times throughout the series, even mentioned directly by her roommate Jasmine who asked if she was still “falling for that Slifer [Jaden].”

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The two face some tough breaks in their blooming relationship, especially in the later arcs as Jaden becomes obsessed with saving people instead of taking care of himself. The two grow close together again by the end, and as Alexis is going to confess her feelings, she stops herself, to the dismay of fans everywhere.

4 Rejected: Jaden and Blair

The first interactions of Jaden and Blair are weird as Blair is pretending to be a boy at the Duelist Academy. Initially joining the school to get closer to Zane, Blair shifts her attention to Jaden after he beats her in a duel. The two worked together closely after she joined the main cast in the third season.

Because of her need to be close to whoever she has a crush on, she regularly joined Jaden until Yubel took her out by making her sick. She later would team up with Jaden for half of a Tag-Team Duel before being replaced by Alexis. The show made the stalker behaviors of Blair seem quirky without giving her the redemption she could have had.

3 Accepted: Yusei and Aki

yusei holding aki's hands in yu-gi-oh 5'ds

There is a trend in these series if you hadn’t realized it, but the main female lead and the protagonist are unshockingly meant for each other. This is the case for Yusei and Aki. Starting on opposite sides of the battle, the two end up becoming much closer than they ever expected.

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The two play heroes to each other several times throughout the series, going on non-date dates, such as the rollerblading episode, and being called out by many supporting characters. The most heartbreaking thing about their relationship was the end as Aki was about to confess her love before leaving for Germany, but pulling back due to the potential heartbreak.

2 Rejected: Seto and Yugi

This is the one entry that may catch some flack, but the relationship between the two, notably their friendship, is not one that anyone should admire. The two work well as rivals, but Yugi’s insistence that the two are friends is unfounded and a reflection of the same tired shonen tropes we’ve all gotten used to.

Looking at the entire history, it is hard to see a friendship develop past rivals and acquaintances. It is hard to befriend someone who, after you beat them at a children’s card game, threatens to end his life during the rematch, yet this behavior is applauded by some fans. The two can stay rivals and nothing past that.

1 Accepted: Joey and Mai

Joey and Mai from Yu-Gi Oh!

Outside of Yugi and Tea, Joey and Mai’s relationship was the most developed in the series. The two start off as side characters to Yugi’s life, but easily earn their way to being important. They constantly shade each other in a loving way and by the end they give up a lot to make sure the other lives and thrives.

Case in point is the scene where Joey is crying over Mai’s bed when he thought he lost her, which is repaid during the Orichalcos duels as Mai cries over Joey’s fading body. The two grow closer and closer and make any other relationship in the series feel less earned due to the amount of time spent on theirs.

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