Yu-Gi-Oh!: 10 Saddest Things About Seto Kaiba

For most of the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime, Seto Kaiba is the very definition of an anti-hero. He’s not entirely evil and shows kindness numerous times throughout the series’ five seasons, mainly towards his brother, Mokuba. However, he’s also rude, condescending, cynical, annoyingly stubborn, and sometimes plain cruel.

Kaiba is a complex character, one that provides the series’ with a figure that’s as easy to root for as it is to loathe. Much of his defensive attitude comes from his tough childhood and a sense of competitiveness deeply rooted within him. And while his behavior is at times inexcusable, fans do get to understand where his pain comes from.

10 He Doesn’t Let Anyone In

Kaiba is deeply distrustful of others. He plainly dislikes making friends, considering it a waste of time and energy. His individualistic attitude prevents him from enjoying some of the simpler and most fulfilling things in life, and what’s worse, he doesn’t even realize the importance of forming close bonds.

Kaiba’s sole meaningful relationship is with his brother. However, he shows no interest in any other relationship, emotional or physical. He’s still quite young when the anime ends and has a lot of time ahead to change and mature. But if the anime is any indication, his stubborn and selfish ways will only grow over time.

9 He’s Overprotective Of His Brother

Speaking of the younger Kaiba, Mokuba, like Serenity Wheeler, proves to be quite vulnerable. Considering he’s still a child, most of his faults can be explained by his young age and inexperience. However, and for all the responsibility that Seto bestows on him, Mokuba continuously shows himself to be incapable of making it on his own.

This instantly puts Seto in the position of care-taker, one that he doesn’t seem to enjoy. Countless times, Seto is lured into danger to save Mokuba, and there comes a time when the same plot point becomes tiresome. One would think that, after being put in harm’s way so many times, the brothers could have figured out some kind of system that works.

8 He Has Enemies All Around

Kaiba is constantly the target of vendettas from people he or his adoptive father wronged in the past. The “Enter the Shadow Realm” arc centers on the Big Five, a group of disgraced former Kaiba Corp executives hellbent on getting revenge on him, commanded by his previously unknown step-brother, Noah, who also wants to beat him.

In season four, Alister holds a grudge against him for Gozaburo’s supposed involvement in the disappearance of Alister’s younger brother. And in season five, Zigfried von Schroeder, one of his main business rivals, also wants to bring him down. In short, Kaiba is surrounded by enemies, which makes it hard for him to know who he can trust.

7 Everyone Judges Without Knowing Him

Because of his fearsome and intimidating reputation, people often make assumptions about Kaiba without really knowing him. Sure, they are often right in thinking that Kaiba is a pampered, egotistical rich boy with a God complex, but there’s so much more to him than meets the eye.

Alister, for example, judges and blames Kaiba for his stepfather’s mistakes without even taking the time to consider that Seto might also be a victim of Gozaburo. It’s true that Kaiba does a lot to actually confirm people’s suspicions of him but that doesn’t mean it’s okay for others to make unfounded assumptions.

6 He Sees Everything As A Competition

Kaiba’s main goal during most of the anime is to beat Yugi Muto and reclaim his title as the King of Games. He’s obsessed with power and building the best deck in the game, which is why he shameless and passionately pursues the Egyptian God Cards in his blind quest for dominance.

Kaiba sees life as a game, a huge chessboard where people are chess pieces to move and manipulate. This cold way of seeing the world contributors to his success in the business world but also leaves him completely vulnerable when he loses one of his challenges. There is no middle ground with Kaiba. He either wins everything or doesn’t win at all.

5 He Has No Real Friends

Kaiba’s cynical view of the world prevents him from having any real friends. And while he states that he neither wants nor needs them, he often shows a slight degree of jealousy at Yugi’s strong support system which might explain why he always goes against the group, especially Joey. In a way, it wouldn’t be crazy to say that Kaiba considers Yugi to be both his closest friend and biggest rival.

Kaiba’s lack of friendly connection certainly makes his life a lot sadder and empty. He may have a fortune at his disposal, but with no one to share it with, things must get really lonely for the CEO and owner of Kaiba Corp.

4 His Stepfather Hates Him

Gozaburo Kaiba resents Seto so much that he escaped into the virtual world where he hoped to launch an attack against his former stepson. Gozaburo is a cruel and truly evil man who cares about nothing and no one but himself. And Seto, knowing full-well what kind of man his stepfather is, grows up resenting him.

It’s rather sad that Kaiba is adopted by someone who wants to give him neither respect nor love. A caring father-son dynamic was never in the cards for them.

3 His Hard Childhood

Kaiba and Mokuba become orphans at quite a young age. They’re sent to an orphanage, where they stay for a while, protecting each other and staying together most of the time. Once Gozaburo visits the orphanage, Kaiba challenges him to a chess game and wins, forcing the tycoon to adopt both Seto and Mokuba.

Initially, Gozaburo had only wanted to use Kaiba’s body as a vessel for Noah’s mind. When this doesn’t work, and once the tycoon discovers Seto’s potential, he begins training the child, subjecting him to a cruel tutelage that only makes Kaiba become even colder and more ruthless.

2 He Denies His Own Past

Despite everything he sees during his journey with the Pharaoh, Kaiba refuses to admit his own connection to the past. A professional skeptic, Kaiba doesn’t believe in the Millennium Articles or the secrets of the ancient Egyptian past. Instead, he claims everything is either a hallucination or a high-budgeted hologram projection.

Kaiba’s unwillingness to connect to his own past shows a disturbing lack of self-awareness on Seto’s part. It also proves how close-minded he really is, and how little vision he has about both the past and the future.

1 He’s Always Second Best

Kaiba never manages to recover his title as the best duellist in the world after Yugi defeats him in the first episode. Not even Kaiba’s Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon and Obelisk the Tormentor are enough to beat Yugi. Time and again, the spiky-haired boy defeats Kaiba, most memorably at the Battle City semi-finals.

For someone as prideful and competitive as Kaiba, his status as the world’s second-best player must be a tough pill to swallow. And even with all his many accomplishments, Kaiba certainly spends the rest of his life in a mindless pursuit to beat Yugi, which might be one of the saddest things, ever.

About The Author

David Caballero
(798 Articles Published)

David is a twenty-eight-year-old Mexican writer and reader. Having studied Marketing in school, he spent three years working a nine-to-five desk job before deciding to pursue a writing career. He now works as a Senior Writer in ScreenRant and does some more freelancing job, talking about the entertainment business he so loves. Currently, he’s also writing his second novel while actively working to get his first one published.

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