Atticus Rhodes

Atticus Rhodes, known as Fubuki Tenjouin (天上院吹雪, Tenjōin Fubuki^?) in the original Japanese language version, is a fictional character in the Yu-Gi-Oh! GX anime and manga series. His given name means "blizzard" in Japanese, from which he derives his self-appointed title, "Blizzard Prince" in the original version of the series.^[1] His signature is written as "Fubuki 10 Join".^[2] In the English version, Atticus is voiced by Jason Anthony Griffith, while Kouji Yusa takes the role in the Japanese version. The missing brother of Alexis Rhodes, Atticus' disappearance is a driving force in his sister's determination during the first season of the series.

Character design

Atticus' design incorporates multiple layers of clothing and a wide range of expressions. Depicted here is the duelist in full Nightshroud regalia from front and rear alongside views of his head and mask from different angles.

Atticus' character design was overseen by Kenichi Hara.^[3] His usual outfit consists of the standard Obelisk Blue uniform, flowing out the costume's lower back. His brown hair is sporadically arranged, with a large portion trailing the upper part of the nape of his neck. He carries an Academy-issued Duel Disk on his left hand. As Nightshroud, Atticus wears a tight-fitting overcoat with raised shoulders and waistline and gold and green trimmings. His dark dragon mask, similar to that worn by his signature monster Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon, is completely black with the exception of blue eye-pieces and a red stone in the center of the forehead. In this incarnation, the bangs closest to his face are postitioned in front of the mask.

Biography

In the timeline of the Yu-Gi-Oh! GX anime, Atticus and several other Obelisk Blue duelists from Duel Academy were to attend a duel exam. In reality, they were being lured into the abandoned Obelisk Blue dormitory by Lyman Banner for ulterior purposes. (In the English version, they visit the Shadow Realm.) Although the fate of the other students was never revealed, Atticus himself was transformed over time by the leader of the Shadow Riders, Kagemaru into Nightshroud (Darkness (ダークネス, Dākunesu^?) in the original Japanese language version), to assist him in reviving the Sacred Beasts. Alexis Rhodes devotes much of her time thereafter to seeking her missing brother. In his Duel with Jaden Yuki, Atticus, as Nightshroud, took Jaden's friends prisoner and forced him to take part in a Shadow Duel wherein the loser has his soul sealed in a card. Jaden prevailed, and Atticus was released from the dark power that controlled him. Placed in the medical ward, Atticus offered help by giving Jaden the other half of the Shadow Charm pendant for his Duel with Camula, and eventually came to his sister's aid during her Duel with Titan. Atticus promptly reverts to his old self after the Shadow Rider fiasco. Frequently showing up dressed in a Hawaiian shirt and strumming a ukelele, he is incredibly optimistic most of the time, but is seen as an idiot of sorts by his sister. He is an accomplished surfer, and is popular among women, a fact which leads Chazz Princeton to seek his advice on love-related topics.^[4] Atticus' antics are a constant source of irritation for Alexis, as he tries without end to set her up with duelists or get her to go into show business with him in a band called "Bro-Bro and Sissy" (in the original version of the series, he instead urges her to join him under the stage name, "Asuryn," whilst he recruits more followers for his "Bucky" fanclub to rival his friend, Ryo Marufuji).^[5] In the English version, Atticus also distributes and subtracts "stars" from others based on their actions as a means of expressing his mood at any given time, while his original series counterpart instead gives out "strong beating points". Because Atticus was absent during the previous term, he repeats the studies of his second year alongside his sister. He is among the few Obelisk Blue students who do not come under the influence of the Society of Light. Following Zane's "rebirth," Atticus duels him using Nightshroud's deck instead of his own to remind him of the horrors gained in taking a dark path as a duelist when he attends the GX tournament.^[6] In doing so, however, Nightshroud's lingering influence once again exerts control over him, but dissipates after he loses, with Zane informing him that there is no darkness in his heart, and that he merely wishes to achieve victory through force. In the third season, Atticus accompanies Jaden & company through the alternative dimension, where he is sacrificed along with Alexis, Chazz, Tyranno by Brron. But he later returns alive after Jaden's duel against Yubel. In the fourth season Jaden challenges him to a rematch using Nightshroud's deck, which Jaden hopes to use in order to get some answers about the incident at the Abandoned Dorm and the origins of Nightshroud. Jaden succeeds; as it turns out, Kagemaru wasn't responsible for Atticus' transformation into Nightshroud, but a student named Yuskuke Fujiwara, an Obelisk Blue, close friends of Atticus, and fellow victim of the Abandoned Dorm. Before the incident at the Dorm, Atticus found Yusuke attempting to conjure up Nightshroud in the dueling ring underneath the Abandoned Dorm, hoping to gain ultimate power and immortality by becoming its host. When Atticus interrupted the ritual, however, Yusuke brought the both of them to the world of darkness, ignoring Atticus' pleas not to continue but giving him Nightshroud's mask, feeling it was no longer necessary. When he became one of the lost students, Atticus was forced to use Nightshroud's power in order to survive. In the manga, Atticus is a star duelist residing in the United States. Other characters see his dueling record over the internet, and Atticus is neither seen nor heard in person. In the Japanese version, Fubuki gives himself the title "Fubu-King," much to his sister's chagrin.

Deck

Atticus plays an Idol deck, which reflects his love of stardom, and revolves around various strategies involving Beast-Warrior monsters. He gains a continuous advantage with Spotlight, powering up his Panther Warrior, and supporting it further with cards such as Path to Destiny and Stray Lambs. His signature card, Ultimate Stage Costume, provides his monsters with an extreme augmentation in terms of strength, but cannot be used for offensive purposes. On occasion, Atticus has employed Nightshroud's Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon deck.

References