User blog comment:LunarSkyes/An Analysis of Gao Mikado: The Mighty Sun Fighter/@comment-1755882-20141008130825

I don't necessarily want Gao to lose for the sake of losing. Yusei's duels felt like they still had tension because Yusei would often be backed into a corner in his duels. There is none of that with Gao. He usually wins for no reason. If his opponent's came close, and we saw visible stress on Gao's part, that'd be fine, but we don't. (with the exception of the fight with Genma, but that fight has other issues) If we frequently saw Gao actually figuring out how to win, how to get out of the situation, that'd be fine, but we don't. We've seen it a few times, but the only time it hasn't come down to just topdecking was against Zanya.

Also, your own points about the Mighty Sun Fighter are undermined by the show. In Episode 20, Gao talked about how the Mighty Sun Fighter WASN'T supposed to protect and help people in need. Say whatever you will about what may have been intended, that is what came out.

And yeah, a Role Model is fine. But a good Role Model doesn't win effortlessly like Gao does. A good Role Model is faced with serious roadblocks and struggles to overcome them, but in the end does. A good Role Model has flaws, but overcomes them. Gao does not do this. His flaws are behind him (which I don't really count as we don't really see him improve) or insignificant. This results in him being an unattainable standard, which does not make for a good Role Model.