Martin Empire

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The Martin Empire (マルタン帝国, Marutan Teikoku^?) is a fictional group of villains in the anime series Yu-Gi-Oh! GX (Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters GX in Japan) appearing between episodes 106-present.

The Martin Empire's members serve as the main antagonists of the series' third season.

Contents 1 History 2 Members 2.1 Martin Kanou 2.2 Professor Cobra 2.3 Three Masked Knights 3 Notes 4 References

[edit] History

While performing military services in a war-ravaged country, Professor Cobra came upon an infant who he believed saved his life by drawing his attention away from an area which was suddenly detonated. He adopted the child, Rick, and came to regard him as the "angel" in his otherwise torturous life. Years later, chasing after Duel Monsters cards given to him by Cobra as a present swept up in the wind, Rick was run over by an oncoming vehicle.^[1] Following the tragedy, Cobra was again sent on a mission to another country to research an unspecified target, but the plane he and his companions were traveling aboard crashed, with Cobra emerging the only survivor. Nonetheless, he was successful in locating his target, a severed hand which entered into a pact with him to resurrect Rick from the dead.

From the onset of the third year, Cobra calls for an exhibition match between Jaden Yuki (Judai Yuki) and Johan Andersen at Duel Academy (Duel Academia). Unbeknowst to the two combatants, they are fitted with special wristwatches known as Dis-Belts (デスベルト, Desuberuto^?), designed to measure emotions, intensity, concentration, and decision making during Duels. Their true function, however, is to sap Duel Energy from those that wear them following the end of a Duel, regardless of whether one defeats his opponent or not.^[2] This gathered energy is then transferred to a chamber within Cobra's hideout, the lab where Wheeler (SAL) was trained, to fuel Rick's revival.

To jumpstart his project, Cobra declares that students of all dormitories must participate in Disclosure Duels (ディスクロージャーデュエル, Desukurōjādyueru^?, "Dis-Duels" for short),¹ competitions wherein duelists are to carry Dis-Belts as means of assessing their fighting spirit.^[3] If a Dis-Belt judges that a certain duelist lacks said fighting spirit, he or she will be demoted, and furthermore expelled if motivation does not improve. As a result of the Dis-Duels, a large number of students are injured and hospitalized after having their Duel Energy absorbed.^[4]

Eventually, Cobra's intentions begin drawing concern from Academy staff, and Jaden and co. set out to stop him. Tracking him to the lab in the jungle, the group is exposed to various sorts of traps and defenses installed to prevent its advance. Jaden would go on to face and defeat Cobra, though the creature in the Dis-Duel energy tank that Cobra had been working alongside ultimately amassed enough strength to hurl Duel Academy into an alternate dimension—a desert plane with three suns and resident Duel Monster spirits. Preying on the loneliness of Martin Kanou, the creature takes control of the boy's body and begins targeting the school's students and faculty, transforming many into zombie slaves to recruit more partners,^[5] and sets his sights on obtaining the Sacred Beast Cards.

[edit] Members

[edit] Martin Kanou

Martin Kanou (加納マルタン, Kanō Marutan^?) is a new student entering Ra Yellow in the third year. In the Japanese version, Martin is voiced by Asako Yoshida.

Martin is Vice-Chancellor Bonaparte's (Napoleon) son, raised by the man's ex-wife. He constantly finds himself crossing paths with Blair Flannigan (Rei Saotome). After Professor Cobra's defeat, he is possessed by the entity within the severed arm Cobra nurtured, and declares himself king of the newly-formed Martin Empire.

Martin plays an Exodia deck. Using cards such as Mad Reloader and Break the Seal, Martin is able to quickly retrieve the individual pieces of Exodia from his deck and declare an automatic victory.

[edit] Professor Cobra

Professor Cobra (プロフェッサー・コブラ, Purofessā Kobura^?) is a professor hailing from West Academy (West School). In the Japanese version, Cobra is voiced by Masaya Takatsuka.

Cobra enters Duel Academy in the third year. In a desperate attempt to raise his son from the dead, he pits students against one another in Dis-Duels. He is tricked into believing that Rick never died upon losing to Jaden in a Duel, and seemingly falls to his death after stepping off the dueling platform.

Cobra plays a Venom deck, themed on the distribution of "Venom Counters" through his Reptile-type monsters (such as Venom Snake and Venom Boa) to an opponent's monsters as means of weakening and ultimately destroying them. Several of his monsters are based on the nāga, a serpent-like race in Hindu and Buddhist mythology. One of these creatures, Cobra's signature card Venominaga the Deity of Venomous Serpents, is able to circulate poison in the opponent's body upon inflicting damage, declaring an automatic victory for its owner within three turns.

[edit] Three Masked Knights

The Three Masked Knights (仮面の三騎士, Kamen no Sankishi^?) are group of hungry students consisting of Harada, Yamanaka, and Teraoka.

Coming across Martin in the library, they are seduced by promises of power to join him in his cause. Through the magic of a Polymerization card, each of them is fused with a Duel Monster spirit which robs him of his free will. The Three Masked Knights simultaneously duel Johan, O'Brien, and Jim, serving as decoys while Martin makes his way to the area where the Sacred Beasts were sealed. They are returned to normal after being defeated.

1. Emotionless Mask (「無表情」仮面, Muhyōjō Kamen^?) (voiced by Yūki Fujiwara)
2. Laughter Mask (「笑い」仮面, Warai Kamen^?) (voiced by Daisuke Nakamura)
3. Angry Mask (「怒り」仮面, Ikari Kamen^?) (voiced by Kōichi Yokota)

The Three Masked Knights play decks reflecting the expressions on their masks. Emotionless Mask's strategy relies on the activation of several cards from his hand interacting with Silence's Pain in his Graveyard, Laughter Mask's on the synergy between Fool Clown and Laugh Bomber, and Angry Mask's on the Direct Damage and resurrection abilities of Anchor Knight of Anger.

[edit] Notes