JinzoDark, Level 6, [Machine/Effect]
ATK: 2400, DEF: 1500
BPT-011, Secret Rare (2003 Tin Variant)
"As long as this card remains face-up on the field, all Trap Cards cannot be activated. The effects of all face-up Trap Cards are also negated."
Unless you haven't paid attention to any of my previous card reviews, you should have noticed that one certain card comes up in almost every review. This is that card, and I am finally reviewing it.
Jinzo is one of the most loved and the most reviled cards in the game of Yu-Gi-Oh! His effect is the kind that you wish all your monsters could have, and it is single-handedly responsible for cutting the number of traps in the average tournament deck by half. When trap usage goes down, Jinzo disappears, but as soon as people dare to start running trap heavy decks again, he returns in full force.
On top of Jinzo's very strong effect, he is a Dark Machine with 2400 ATK as a Level 6 Tribute and searchable defense. This is absolutely flawless. I challenge you to find any other card in the game that possesses this many ideal and exploitable attributes. He is in the class of the broken cards, like Harpie's Feather Duster and Mirror Force, which can be integrated seamlessly into ANY deck. Even when not run in the main deck, Jinzo is often a side deck favorite, set aside for times when traps become pesky.
Jinzo has a few notable combos. Like Machine King, he fits great into a Machine deck and can exploit, among other cards, Limiter Removal. There is also a recent card called Amplifier, which can only be equipped to Jinzo. Giving Jinzo Amplifier allows you to negate and forbid the activation of only your opponent's traps. However, it compensates for the power by making Jinzo die if the Amplifier is destroyed. Because of this, Amplifier doesn't see much play, and Jinzo decks must be minimally reliant on traps. The advent of Sorcerer of Dark Magic solves the problem in a more elegant manner.
Unfortunately, all of this makes Jinzo a prime target to become a casualty of the next tournament ban list revision, even though he has seen less play as of late simply because people are tired of him (which I will never quite understand). Mass destruction and negation effects are being stripped from the game, and Jinzo is mass negation of the most severe kind.
Short of being banned, however, Jinzo will likely remain a permanent part of the metagame. Though he may occasionally wax and wane in popularity, all of his attractive attributes together cannot be ignored. I give Jinzo a perfect 10/10 rating for any deck which is not heavily trap reliant. Some people say Jinzo isn't a duel-winning card, but he's turned so many matches around for me that I must heartily disagree. He's not always going to save you, but he has the ability to do so in many circumstances, especially in casual play where trap counts are often flamboyant. This is one of my most favorite cards, period.