Okay. I’ve had this thought come to me several times so I want to share it with the fandom just to see the reaction on this idea.

What if Marik (Yami Malik) was actually the good side of Malik?

“But Terra, that’s not right! You called him Yami Malik just a second ago! And-”

Hear me out. 

Malik

• Has killed many people
• Lied countless times
• Tortured his Rare Hunters for failing him
• Stolen rare/priceless items
• Left out key bits of information out in an attempt to dupe his allies
• Kidnapped people
• Saw himself as faultless 
• Blamed anyone he could for his own wrongs
• Was a contributor to the Black Market
• Threatened his sister if she tried stopping him again
• Mind controlled dozens of people
• Cheated his way to the finals in Battle City
• Contracted Bakura into trying to destroy his body because if he couldn’t have it no one could so… Attempted assisted suicide  

Marik

• Killed one known person
• Tortured those who dueled him but allowed punishment to be returned, keeping it fair
• Did attempt to kill the rest of his family
• Refuses to give up control over the body he inhabits
• Only plays high stake games where the loser will most likely die
• Was actively willing to kill anyone who got in his way of revenge

That’s about it…  I’m sure there is more but honestly… Malik’s negative qualities are greater than Marik’s from what I have seen over the years.
Marik is polite and greets people cheerily. Sure, he plays hard but all of his games have always been fair. He goes in knowing he can die but he believes in himself so much that he doesn’t see himself as able to lose. He is the embodiment of overkill and thus is one tough cookie to beat.

Malik though, the supposed weak/lighter half, lied at every turn and cheated in every single duel he was ever part of and everyone who wasn’t him that lost was always punished for failing him.

Yes, he shows change in the very end but up until that very tipping point… He was clearly the dark/evil half.