Power Bond – Yu-Gi-Oh! Throwback Thursday (2005)

WarlockBlitz

For this Throwback Thursday, we throwback to last week’s theme because Danger! is brand new. Power Bond Fusion Summons a Fusion monster by using materials from your hand or field and then doubling the original attack of that monster. Power Bond is meant for Cyber Dragons but could technically be used in some other decks like El Shaddoll Shekhinaga or Invoked Mechaba. No matter what Machine Fusion Monster you Fusion Summon with Power Bond, you will be taking Damage equal to the attack gain during the End Phase. So it’s not free, could easily be stopped, and then you would still take damage. However, it might be worth a single slot in the main deck if only to surprise the opponent with a huge monster. Power Bond is at least versatile and a better option than regular Polymerization in some ways, but that isn’t saying much. And neither will I. 

Score: 3.25/5     Art: 4/5

Crunch$G

We did Cyber Dragons last week, and there were a ton of Throwback Thursday options for that, so it looks like we will look at another Throwback for that archetype, Power Bond.

Power Bond is a Normal Spell that when activated lets you Fusion Summon a Machine Fusion from your hand or field as material and the Fusion Monster gains ATK equal to its original ATK. This can be scary on something like Cyber Twin Dragon, Cyber End Dragon, or Chimeratech Rampage Dragon. With Twin Dragon, you can get a 5600 ATK body that can attack twice. With Rampage Dragon, you got a 4200 ATK body that will likely pop Spells and Traps your opponent has and can get up to three attacks. With Cyber End Dragon, you got an 8000 ATK piercer. Sounds insane, so that is why Power Bond has a downside. During the End Phase of the turn, you lose Life Points equal to the ATK the monster gained off this effect. So with Rampage you take 2100 damage, Twin Dragon deals 2800 damage, and Cyber End will deal 4000 damage. This can hurt hard and lose you the duel if you don’t win in time. Power Bond is a solid card that if you use, be sure you are able to go all in and win soon, cause that massive damage can come back to bite you. It will get a searcher soon, but that searcher isn’t amazing sadly. It’ll be a 1 of in a competitive Cyber Dragon deck maybe, but that doesn’t make it bad, just again you have to go all in when using this.

Advanced Rating: 3.5/5

Art: 3.5/5 We will make Cyber End Dragon faster, better, stronger…

Alex
Searcy

Power Bond fits Throwback for last week in Cyber week (that’s what made me choose this) and the fact we’ve never looked at this, even though it’s 13 years old.  Super throwback today, no?  This review (in true Ex Minion of Darkness style) could literally be about as short as ‘Today, there are FAR many, less costly ways of bringing out a Fusion, especially Machine ones’ but let’s look and compare just a bit instead of just going down that road.

Overload Fusion, Future Fusion, Super/Ultra Polymerization, there are a lot of ways to go about these things, and while none of them give the built in Limiter Removal that Power Bond does, they don’t give you the burn that Power Bond does either.  Limiter (which is currently Limited) does certainly open up some OTK possibilities.  Something like Cyber End (just to name ONE) would be a 16000 attack trampler.  Just something to think about.  

Cyber Twin would be an 11200 attack double attacker.  (Remember, both those math figures have Power Bond and Limiter Removal) and you’d be dealt 4000 and 2800 Damage, respectively, which is obviously what turned people off from this card to begin with.  I guess it speaks to what a card does (or doesn’t do) or is/isn’t worth playing if the card pool is smaller and people still aren’t using it.  You can’t even combo the burn from this card with Barrel Behind the Door.

Nevertheless my rating:  2.75/5

Art:  4/5  It does look like bonding, welding, of sorts