These Yu-Gi-Oh cards are actually all the same!

[roxxasfromer]

I think it was both an easy way to make more cards and to create lore for a specific set of cards combining spell, trap, and monster cards

[ausdorian]

I really think is a reference to the old RPGs who had stronger monsters that were just recolors

[nightangelx]

I always assumed it was the same card but at a different time in it's life. Kind of like pokemon evolutions

[trinketmage]

At least half of these examples are intentional visual story telling. Invader of the Throne was impersonating Protector of the Throne, and Goddess of the Third Eye is Witch of the Black Forest after getting an anime power boost.

[TheMorbidHobo]

Some did seem to be counterparts, but most were likely just design budget restrictions.

[cheechandme]

Princess of tsurugi and queens double were the first 2 i remember as a kid being like woah these cards are related and then started noticing more and always thought it was so awesome. Love this channel so much and was waiting for you guys to talk about this! Keep up the great content guys!

[zelos]

Elementary, dear Watson. One’s the normal, one’s the shiny.

[gregoryowain]

Twin-headed Thunder Dragon and Two-Mouth Darkruler were the ones that really got me as a kid. Especially as they looked nothing like Thunder Dragon.

[Charles.]

When I was a kid, I used to put all the cars together like they were a big family😂

[msrodrigues]

If you didn't value her as <protector of the throne>, then you can't complain when she goes <invader of the throne>

[VJP]

They’re a special series of monsters specifically selected to be ‘recolored counterparts’ of monsters that came before them
There’s exactly 100 of them (and so 200 cards total like this) and they’re all in sequential order in the official card database
So this was a systematic thing they decided to do early on for a specific number of monsters rather than an impulse to occasionally randomly recycle designs

[christopherpelech]

The weird thing is most of them are totally new illustrations with new poses. It probably makes it a bit quicker to drain but not that quicker/cheaper. Such a weird choice

[Masterchief]

Not to mention the times they straight up just did a #1 and #2 for a monster

[-AGC-]

Man, I wish I had copies of these cards for custom skateboard projects

[wolfhurricane]

Basic Insect and Invader From Another Dimension.

[melvinshine]

It was probably a time saving measure and a reference to how rpgs often just palette swap some enemies, especially back in the day.

[messynate]

twin headed thunder dragon confused me as a kid. in the show it literally had two heads and i would study this card so hard

[huntermitchell]

Ngl I 100% never realized Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon and Two-Mouthed Darkruler were the same card until this moment.

[filiplucic]

This was probably done to add more monsters to the oldest video games, since you could save a lot of storage by just re-coloring an existing model

[blake]

Thunder kid ❌️
Kaminarikozou✅️

I don't think I've ever seen the card with the name "thunder kid" because I've never owned it, and every game I've played that included it only had the Japanese name in English. Though I did know subconsciously that it did translate to "thunder kid." What a deep memory unlocked.