A Tribute to Kazuki Takahashi
It is always a sad day to learn of the passing of one of your inspirations.
For those who have not heard, Kazuki Takahashi, age 60, creator of "Yu-Gi-Oh" has passed away. Though I know this message will likely not be read, I wish upon him and his family peace and comfort in the coming days.
It would be trite and dishonest of me to act as if his passing has affected me as personally as those who truly knew him. I am but a fanboy of his work, not family, friend, or even acquaintance. I cannot give any direct comfort or support to those who truly need it right now, nor am I naïve enough to suppose that this post will have any dramatic effect beyond the workings of some miracle. Yet despite this, I believe it is good to give gratitude to one who has given, and so, for what little it is worth, I give my thanks here.
Mr. Takahashi, you are someone who I aspire to be, a creator. You exercised your creativity not to create more division and strife in this world, but to create happiness and enjoyment to those who partook of your works. I was one of these. The media that came from your creations was a happy part of my childhood and the childhood of my siblings. It is still enjoyed by me and my siblings to this day. I remember watching the "Yu-Gi-Oh" anime and wanting to create my own version of the game, since neither my brother and I had any real decks at the time, so we improvised by using Skip-Bo cards for monster cards (they had an ATK value equal to their number X 100), and Uno cards for magic cards. Later we would get some real decks, and enjoy many an hour of duel-monsters, our games probably not quite following the official rules, but nevertheless being one of our favorite activities. I was a sore loser sometimes, but I learned, gradually, how to get over that, a thing, which, I also learned in part from the series and playing the game.
As I grew older, I became more interested in the story of Yu-Gi-OH, and, even more interested in the strategy of the game. Gone were the schoolyard rules of Yu-Gi-Oh, now I was an "expert!" At this time I discovered Yu-Gi-Oh card maker, and my siblings and I proceeded to waste many a blissful hour creating entire decks of joke and/or completely unbalanced fan cards. As I developed my writing talents, I eventually decided to try my hand at fanfiction, the "Yu-Gi-Oh Arc-V" series having inspired me to do so. My first story, "Venom's Quest" was a joke that I honestly didn't think many would notice, yet I found, to my delight, a sizeable audience who appreciated the humor. A later, more serious work, "Signs of Renewal" gave me the confidence to continue developing my writing talent as I discovered that, not only was I not as talentless as I had feared, but I truly enjoyed entertaining other people.
You are one of the people who helped me to discover this joy, a joy that I hope more people can share in, whether it be through creating their own works, or enjoying the works of creators like you. For all that you have created, and for all the joy that you have given to people like me, I extend my heartfelt gratitude.
Rest well, Kazuki Takahashi.