#(where 2020 Koushiro is trYING TO SAVE TAICHI)

[o-w-quinlan]

Digimon Adventure: (2020) Final Thoughts

Considering I stopped reviewing this series episode by episode months ago, they’re more positive thoughts than you’d expect, though still not all that positive.

To summarize, this is an entertaining series with plenty of individual good aspects and great episodes that nevertheless leaves me cold as a whole. Much as I enjoyed following it week to week, I can’t say I recommend this series to anyone but hardcore Digimon fans, or hardcore fans of the wider “monster” genre.

Action

It felt appropriate to start with this, considering a focus on action was what the initial interviews promised, and they delivered in spades. It wasn’t perfect or too consistent, there were several times when the Digimon not evolving when they could just broke any tension the fights had, but this series had some of the best fights in any Digimon anime. Anything in the first 3 episodes, Greymon/MetalGreymon vs MetalTyranomon, SkullKnightmon vs Greymon and Garurumon, Mugendramon vs DoneDevimon, Mugendramon vs WarGreymon, Millenniumon vs the dragons, Omegamon vs Abbadomon Core… all of them among the best things the franchise has to offer in terms of action scenes, which after so many series where fights were solved by having a protagonist Digimon evolve and one-shotting the enemy, comes as a breath of fresh air (to be fair, this series also had a lot of that, but it had actual great fights to compensate).

Worldbuilding

Another thing promised in interviews was the use of Digimon from all over the franchise, and not only did they deliver, but they also included plenty of references to the “null canon” to enrich the experience for the most hardcore fans. The series made sure to constantly emphasize the savage nature of the Digital World, bringing back the Tamers worldbuilding of Digimon consuming weaker Digimon in hopes of achieving evolution. Along the way we saw a lot of allies fighting back against this status-quo, from things as overt as Leomon organizing a resistance or Petaldramon protecting weaker Digimon from the all-consuming Entmon, to less dramatic stuff like weak Digimon settling down to live together, or the mere presence of a restaurant where everyone can rest for a while of the hardships of their world.

The biggest flaw here was in how the series handled its antagonists. With very few exceptions, every single enemy Digimon in the series lacked dialog, whereas nearly every single ally Digimon could speak normally, and this disparity cheapened the whole thing, because instead of coming across as “this mentality is normal for this world”, it came across as just your normal “everyone lived together in harmony until the villains attacked”, which is very much not what the series was telling us.

Characterization

That brings us to the next point: the lack of personality for most villains. I joked elsewhere that Minotaurmon from episode 19 was the most compelling villain of the series, and that’s not completely a joke. Almost every single villain of the week was flat, plenty of the “main” villains were lacking in dialog (Algomon in the first few episodes, Nidhoggmon, Millenniumon) or turned mindless halfway through (Devimon, DarkKnightmon). Negamon/Abbadomon in the final episodes managed to benefit from this by being the embodiment of an “instinct”, but in general this meant a mook-of-the-week like Minotaurmon managed to be a highlight among the villains simply by having dialog and non-trivial desires.

But what of the protagonists? The popular opinion is that everyone is far blander than they were in the original series, and I agree. But rather than comparing it with the first series, let’s look at what it had to offer to us. Where in other Digimon series, the backstories and issues of the protagonists and their reactions to what’s going on around them make for most of the drama, in this series the drama comes from the villains trying to destroy everything, and for the most part that means the protagonists only need to be distinct and charming on their own, no necessity to create conflict between them. There is an overall character arc for all of them, though: accepting and interiorizing their new duties towards the world they had ended up stranded on, getting to know and love the Digital World. Was this well done? Not really.

Taichi and Takeru, for example, were so much the embodiment of the stock shonen hero that accepting their place in this new world didn’t really reveal anything about them we hadn’t already seen from their first few appearances.

Jou got stuck as an unfunny punchline 90% of the time, to the point of damaging his few “serious” moments in some of his focus episodes. His development of becoming assertive was compelling in theory, but it got muddled with so many unfunny and uncomfortable hotsprings jokes that the impact was lost.

Hikari started as an even more blatant plot-device “mysterious character” than she was in the original series, before unconvincingly changing to cheerful little girl afterwards (the whiplash between her in episode 33 and her in episode 34 was something else), and only really managing to settle into a compelling character in her last focus episode (58, defending the Digitamas from the Bakemon and SkullBaluchimon, which to be fair is a great episode and probably the best showcase for Hikari as a character in any product or continuity).

Koushiro was mostly fine, although we all remember the several times the series seemed to promise it might do something with him (his uneasiness when his family was mentioned, or that line about having to “face the darkness of his past” in the HerakleKabuterimon episode) that ended up being nothing.

Mimi is the fan-favorite, being charming in nearly all her appearances and having some of the best focus episodes, and it’s mostly deserved. If there’s anything I criticize from her, it’s that her focus episodes don’t really add up to anything.

Yamato was fine, started out as a stock shonen rival before becoming the single most chill “lone wolf” in any Digimon series, probably because of what I said before of the conflict between the protagonists no longer being the source of drama. He gets a slow development of caring only for his brother to starting to care for other Digimon for the sake of Sora and Gabumon to caring about the Digital World just as much as everyone else.

Sora was made fun of by a certain section of the fandom for having the worst focus episodes early on, and I agreed, but having finished the series I can’t get rid of the impression that her focus episodes, while perhaps not that good on their own, when taken as a whole explore her character the best of any other. Yeah, this mostly means exploring her compassion (these are not very multi-dimensional characters), but they deepen and deepen both her impact on the Digimon she saves and how she is impacted in turn by them, moving her away from saving others through her combat prowess to saving others by empathizing with the grief of another caring soul, and by the end I honestly ended up considering her my favorite character (despite none of her episodes making it to my list of favorites).

As for the Digimon… it’s following in the footsteps of other Digimon Adventure products by not really having much of interest for the Digimon themselves except for Tailmon.

Overall, for the most part the main characters were decent, but besides Mimi and ultimately also Sora, I don’t think they’re very memorable. All of them start out promising, but never really improved from that promising start (again, except for Sora).

Pacing

And now we get to the biggest problem of the series: Pacing. I’ve seen it stated elsewhere that this series was more episodic than most (any?) other Digimon series before it, and part of the backlash it got was from not being as serialized as fans expected it to be. This isn’t exactly true. From episode 16 (Eyesmon) to episode 24 (DoneDevimon), this series was as serialized as any other Digimon series has ever been, with nonstop escalation that demanded you keep watching it week after week. Then, from 25 to 35 (Angewomon) or 36 (BlitzGreymon), it pulled slightly back from that never-ending escalation, but was still pretty serialized. It was only afterwards that it became heavily episodic, and by that point it wasn’t expectations set up by previous series that hurt it in the eyes of the fandom, it was expectations set by this series itself in its first half.

Not that the episodes themselves were bad. Honestly, I found myself significantly more entertained by the episodic later half of the series than the serialized first half. Maybe it was because they didn’t feel the need to convince me they were the most exciting, tense thing I had ever seen when they were clearly not (hello, Mamemon episode), or maybe it was that there were more than just endless fights to them, but I normally ended up those episodes entertained and satisfied, whereas with a lot of episodes from Eyesmon to BlitzGreymon, I mostly just felt frustrated after watching them. I agree with the criticism that, when seen as a whole, breaking momentum so hard for so long after months of never-ending escalation wasn’t the right choice, but when seen week after week, I can’t see this change of approach as that bad of a thing.

Conclusion

I think that sums up the series for me. On a weekly basis, it’s pretty entertaining. It’s when seen as a whole that the problems really become clear. There’s been some speculation in the past few weeks of how much the current situation in the world might have impacted the series, but ultimately, I have to judge what actually happened, and I can’t help the impression that this series ultimately left me with nothing of substance after it was all said and done. Like, I enjoyed this more than, say, Appli Monsters, but Appli Monsters have things that stick with you after it’s over. Not so much here, unless you’re a hardcore fan that loves the Omegamon lore this added (which I am, btw; love that Omegamon lore). I don’t think I can recommend this series to anyone who isn’t a hardcore Digimon fan, or at least a hardcore fan of the wider “monster” genre.

One thing I’m grateful to this series for, though, it’s the commercial boost it has given the rest of the franchise. I’m not going to credit it for all the successes it currently has, after all the Card Game would have fell off by now if it wasn’t genuinely well-done and the Vital Bracelet happened because of years of the virtual pet division progressively building up its audience after it had nearly died off, but it’s undeniable they wouldn’t have sold as well without this anime advertising the franchise week after week. Next week, we’ll have the first episode of Digimon Ghost Game, the first time since 2001 that we have a Digimon series being immediately succeeded by another. If that isn’t a sign of how well the franchise is doing right now, I don’t know what is.

Favorite Episodes: 1 (Tokyo Digital Crisis), 6 (The Targeted Kingdom), 12 (Lilimon Blooms), 20 (The Seventh One Awakens), 32 (Soaring Hope), 42 (King of Inventors, Gerbemon), 49 (The God of Evil Descends, Millenniummon), 56 (The Gold Wolf of the Crescent Moon), 58 (Hikari, New Life)

[holyhikari]

Okay. Okay. It’s 2020, most of the world is shut down and the first episode of Digimon Adventure aired yesterday, missing a ‘Butter-Fly’ and with a colon to spare. Life sure is something. 

Gotta say I’m relieved. (For now, at least.) Sure, yeah, I got into the hype train for the reboot from the get-go and determined to just have fun, but. If I can picture all the ways something can go wrong — go BORING — down to excruciating details right from the first episode, why not? That’s what brains are for. So that’s what I did. 

Should have saved all that energy. 

I want to share with all of you my thoughts on this episode, break it down a little bit; how it made me feel, the few character introductions we got, the pace, the plot and its possibilities. 

As much as I want to approach this series keeping the idea of authenticity in mind, it is a reboot. They chose a certain set of (popular!) pre-existent characters to explore, to work with; a balance between creating and adapting. And I’m very interested in seeing how they’ll combine the core elements of Digimon Adventure with all there is unique to this generation of kids, teens and, you know it, adults who stuck around. 

Since all we’ve got is the introduction to the series, I’ll be contrasting TOKYO DIGITAL CRISIS to how the original Adventure kicked off back in 1999 with  ADRIFT? THE ISLAND OF ADVENTURE!

I did try to keep this as coherent and review-like as possible, but there’s a fair amount of fan-girling and it’s all seen through my very biased Adventure-stan-colored lens. Don’t say I didn’t warn ya. 

‘99 starts with an image of our planet, and  ‘20 starts almost the same. This time, though, we can see we aren’t alone. ‘The Digital World affecting the Earth’ is something that happens, I believe, in every Digimon reincarnation. In ‘99, it’s deeply affecting our climate. Now, the issue doesn’t seem so drastic that it’s able to reach influence organic matter and mess up many Nature’s cycles across the globe, but it’s still not looking so good for our kids. (It’s the first episode and Hikari and Yuuko almost get train-sandwiched, but I suppose that almost having your head chopped off, courtesy of Kuwagamon, isn’t lovely either.) 

Anyway. 

I think this Digital World/Network shot isn’t actually part of the episode? I think it’s part of the opening (I mean, not the OP sequence with the song, obviously), and that we’ll be seeing it before each episode starts. Still, it’s an interesting juxtaposition, isn’t it?

A Glorious World is upon us! I wasn’t actually expecting Butter-Fly or anything similar to it, don’t worry. I’m glad the new OP is its own thing! I want Digimon Adventure ‘20 to be as authentic as possible without losing the original’s heart. The song is nice enough. I don’t want to compare it to Butter-Fly, but I’m only human. Give me a few episodes. Gotta let go. 

The OP has way more Taichi than the others. No surprise there. He’s our goggle boy. (Still, since they went for a quick throwback to the original opening, it’s a shame only Taichi was shown falling down towards the Digital World). 

Everyone got a part, though. Shout out to Takeru and Hikari for being yet again the ominous, powerful baby-faced duo that is definitely up to something. 

It’s so interesting that, while the other crests are shown very clearly and surrounded by sparkles, Light and Hope are only shown briefly shining in their partners’ shadows. Why is Takeru so far away from us, why is this so sinister-looking. Hi, mysterious plot. Nice to meet you.

Wherever Hikari is by the end of the OP, it reminds me of Vamdemon’s castle. Maybe she feels connected to Tailmon and follows her somehow? Angemon wasn’t shown in the OP with the older six children’s partners, just Patamon. I wonder if they’ll try to make us grieve for Angemon a second time. It’d work with me. Either way, I imagine we’re in for another last-minute Patamon evolution when everything looks hopeless. 

This time, though, we’ve got Hikari from the beginning (yes, I am VERY excited about this, thank you for asking, THIS IS WHAT I DESERVE), and, while I think Patamon is more powerful in regular conditions (as in, Angemon can probably take Angewomon in a fight despite the level imbalance, but as soon as Hikari starts glowing you know who’s winning), he will now be sharing the spotlight with another Archangel evolution… as his friend or as his foe, considering that Tailmon might be a double agent of some sorts in the beginning. Welp. 

Anyway. Toei isn’t fooling around, in the OP we can see MetalGreymon in a very scary-looking, glitchy fashion that I’m LIVING for, WarGreymon’s silhouette and, good grief, there’s even a glimpse of Omegamon. Talk about too much information. Maybe chill out a little? (I say this, but the adults already know all of their evos, and the kids just want MOOOOOOORE monstahhhhhrrrrrrsss….which is fair.)

MetalGreymon looks dope here. The others, though, are only shown up to their Adult evolution, even Gabumon. I don’t think they will have only Gabumon and Agumon reaching their Mega forms, and then fusing into Omegamon while everyone else only gets as far as Perfect.  Again.

They wouldn’t do this to us. Right? Yeah, they would. Maybe we can have Holydramon/Ophanimon and Seraphimon later on, as a treat. Aaaaaand, depending on how many episodes — how many seasons — this new timeline gets, I’m not giving up hope just yet. Let me have Phoenixmon, Toei, you heartless thing. 

Moving on to the actual episode… The first non-Digimon character to show up is the true protagonist. Our queen is back. Our little Digivice thief, Miko herself.

Just you wait, you ain’t gonna be Hikari’s favorite cat-like creature for long. 

Speaking of Hikari, LOOK AT THIS WITTLE BABY GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2020 Taichi right off the bat was Taichi for me. He’s talking to Yuuko and yells “Hikariii~” so loudly Hikari hears it from where she stands, the short cutie. Their mom just hands down the phone for her without missing a beat so Taichi can comfort her through whatever she’s worrying about (her summer classes, probably). Such a sweet, natural little moment that flashes both characters out. I want more of that, please.

We’re then introduced to Koushiro! I’m not gonna lie, I cringed the first time I heard him speak. I thought the voice didn’t fit him very well. This impression faded quickly enough, though, and I’m already attached to his new voice. Later, I realized that part of the reason he sounded off to me was because of how nervous he seemed — around Taichi, of all people! In this version, they’re just meeting for the first time, so it’s very in-character for him. Guess I was kinda shocked seeing Koushiro not feeling at ease talking to Taichi. Poor thing is Anxious! And he’s overthinking about Summer Camp! And he’s happy Taichi is his neighbor! That certainly would’ve helped during the Vandemon arc back in ‘99. 

Koushiro gets a little bit over his awkwardness upon hearing the news regarding the cyber attack, something he’s curious about, and finally steps towards Taichi instead of away, which is spot on. These two fall into an easy camaraderie, as they SHOULD, and they head to the train station together, where Taichi decides to, I don’t know… run like crazy on the tracks until he gets to the rogue train where his family is and stop it with sheer force of will? Yeah! Sounds like him! 

And now to one of the most interesting parts of this adaption, is that they’re showing us the Crests early on and HOW they’re doing it. 

Taichi is able to meet Koromon because he’s being brave.

I mean, the first time, he was chosen because of his courage, too, but they all go in together. They’re taken. They’re washed off the Earth. And while Taichi had no idea he was going to be pulled into the Net, he chose to try to save Hikari and his mom (and, a few moments later, he chose to dive in towards Koromon). This time, it feels so much more personal. The screen switched back and forth between the Crest of Courage, Taichi and Hikari, who I believed called his name. The scene worked so well! (Following this pattern, Koushiro gets his Digivice when expressing curiosity, the will to pursue an explanation for what was happening!!!!)

On the other hand, it’s sort of bittersweet  they weren’t pulled in together. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad they didn’t try to introduce all of them AND the Digital World at the same time again. But… ‘99 established them as a ‘team’ within seconds. It’s interesting, though. I’m VERY curious to see how their bonding will go this time around!

Taichi and Koromon meeting was beautiful. I was worried the soundtrack wouldn’t even stand a chance against the masterpiece that is the original one, but the musing playing was so delicate, so majestic. I felt I was witnessing a precious moment. Also, Koromon’s ears twisting into how we represent the DNA while he was evolving was!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!SUCH A GOOD DETAIL!!!!!! 

It cracked me up when Koushiro said that what was happening was very surprising while not sounding surprised at all. I wonder how long the kid has been looking into the cyber attacks. Oh, and the Network is pretty. Prettier than I had anticipated, though not that different from Appmon’s style, I think? I can’t wait to get a look at the actual Digital World and see if it has that unique feeling and that odd, watercolor painting aesthetic. I hope I can trust the OP:

 Did you notice that Agumon giggled a few times? He looked at Taichi with such love, familiarity and devotion and like he knew something. It felt… right. My heart. My poor, poor heart. (I know this Agumon probably has met Taichi before inside of this very Universe, like the Hikarigaoka incident in the original version, but I like to think about Universe-hopping platonic soulmates.) 

Overall the sound work was fantastic, but this scene deserves a highlight. The noise of the Kuramon lookalike moving after evolving was genuinely disturbing. And look at how pretty this is:

Speaking of evolution, AGUMON EVOLVING INTO GREYMON WAS THE SHIT. I loved how straight-up FERAL it was, while still keeping the “Digital” part of “Digital Monster” very much present. It reminded me a bit of Hosoda’s Greymon (most amazing Greymon to this day!) in the Digimon Adventure Movie and, now that I think of it, of him fighting in some Tri. Reunion scenes. Scary Greymon is the best Greymon. Yes. I like it when the Digimon manage to disturb and scare me, okay? They aren’t called monsters for nothing. 

I mean we got to see his horn literally bursting out of his skin. This is low-key terrifying. 10/10.

BUT WHERE IS THE EVOLUTION THEME SONG

I am: deceased. Cause of death: Hikari’s soft smile when she realizes her big brother managed to help them. 

Alternatively, this first pic had killed me on the spot.

FINALLY, we get to see Yamato, and of course, he’s staring down dramatically at Taichi on top of Garurumon like the intense person he is. And, no big deal, there’s a cyber attack in a U.S military base and, uh, apparently the next episode is the 2020 version of Bokura no War Game?! 

I— WHAT?!

No pressure, am I right? I don’t know about you, but I’d rather be falling off a good ol’ cliff with my camping buddies. 

To be honest, if they intended to end it like this, it felt like this should’ve been a special episode. Maybe one-hour-long or so? Why……….HOW……….. They wanna go from the pilot straight to a Bokura no War game tribute?! The very movie that introduced Omegamon. I swear, if Omegamon’s debut is the SECOND episode, I’m gonna break. How is this gonna work. Well, at least they have us… intrigued? 

The ED is so Yamato-focused it’s almost weird that his voice actor isn’t the one singing lmao. That amount of Yamatoness got me by surprise. Some of the pics look like a PowerPoint presentation of CD cover ideas for his yet-to-exist (or not) band… and I say this lovingly, okay? I love him so much. 

This is my favorite one!

I lost count of how many times I listened to this song!! It also got me hooked up. What’s up with Takeru and how the writers took the whole Angel aesthetic to a whole new level?! Is he sick? Is he dying? Is this why Yamato is so sad and lonely throughout the ED?????? EVERYONE GO BEFRIEND HIM. I heard he’s a good friend.

Be right back, I’m gonna tattoo this pic to my face.

Bonus commentary!

I bet I wasn’t the only one looking for  random cameos whenever they showed us crowds. Didn’t find anyone we know, but I’m sure this will change. 02 characters cameos, I’m ready for you. 

Soooooooooo the Tachikawa own a tech company this time?? For all we know they own Japan. That’s scarier than the Diablomon-like virus giving Trump a headache. If so, Mimi is gonna be way more spoiled than before. Oh, dear.

I HOPE WE SEE MORE OF THESE PIXEL BABIES! That was a perfect Easter egg.

If none of these icons at the bottom is the Digimon Analyzer, then what’s the point of my entire existence? 

I can’t wait for next Saturday! Even if solely to yell “WHY??????” at my screen.  

I can’t thank you enough if you read this far!

[ahiddenpath]

Digimon Adventure 2020 Ep 11 Reaction

In which the kids have their own ideas about how to proceed, and it’s beautiful.

(Warning: I got excited and started cussing a lot.  Also, this ep is really good, and I’m really proud of this reaction, you should read it!).

I love it when the Chosen argue.

The kids arguing means that they have different ideas, different priorities.  The kids making a stand- Yamato prioritizing the mission, Sora and Jyou prioritizing the digimon who will die without help- means that they are exerting agency over the situation.  This is so refreshing after all of those “blindly follow the prophecy, without even having an actual, living being to explain things and provide prospective” episodes.  I mean, seriously, I was a second away from “Would you kindly” jokes.  (If you’ve never played the original Bioshock...  DO IT, OMG).

AND SORA!  FINALLY, SOME GOSH DANGED CHARACTERIZATION FOR SORA!  I am so happy for her!  Now, this is going to get highly subjective, but...  I detest “competency” as the main character trait for female characters.  And so far, what we know of Sora is that she’s: competent, active, brave, warm (so we’re told- we’re mostly left to infer this from her beautiful facial expressions, which I guess is fine, but I’d love to see it guiding her actions more, which we’re finally getting!), and supposedly well-liked at school (no proof of this, just Koushiro’s word).  Er- also, knives.  For some folks, this seems to be enough to celebrate, but it just...  Falls so flat for me.  

The idea of a “competent, active girl” suggests that most female characters aren’t competent and/or active, or that competency/being active are male traits (hence, Sora having these traits somehow makes her “tomboyish”).  In Adventure, Sora was always competent, active, and playing a guiding/decision-making role with Taichi and Yamato, while Koushiro provided intel for them.  I remember and liked that about her, but I love Adventure Sora for simultaneously accepting, struggling with, and resenting her caring, sisterly role for everyone.  The caretaker love and resentment cycle was so fucking real, dude.  Sora’s...  I’m gonna say it, she’s probably the most complex Adventure character, and when people reduce her to AcTiOn ToMbOy, I vomit in my mouth (even though she absolutely is competent and active!  It’s just that competency does not a personality make, and she had SO MUCH relatable, compelling stuff going on!!!!!  And also, “tomboy” in general implies that certain character traits are masculine, which is damaging for everyone, frankly). 

Anyway, here we see Sora standing up for her principles, which means saving these digimon who will die if left where they are.  There is no fighting, no name-calling, no posturing...  Just Sora saying: I care about these digimon, this is the right thing to, and therefore, I will do it.

ALSO I AM PROUD OF JYOU FOR BACKING SORA, and also showing his Adventure roots with an attempt at peace-keeping so ineffective that it was annoying, lol!  First, he is sad that Sora asked Yamato’s opinion, not his...  But when actually asked for his, he says “Er- I guess everyone has good points?” *sweat sweat*  THIS IS SO CLASSIC JYOU, I AM CRYING.  And then Gomamon is like, “What do you want?”  Ie, I don’t want a statement of validity for everyone else’s thoughts, I want your thoughts.  Gomamon is the best!

Then we jump to Gabumon and Yamato, walking off all lonesome-like.  Gabumon says, “Yamato, they can’t know what you’re thinking if you don’t tell them,” and honestly?  THAT’S A HELL OF A LINE FOR A KID SHOW.  Damn, Gabumon is great?  In the fortress siege ep, I thought that Gabumon explaining that Yamato is excluding the others to protect them was a little...  Too much.  Kids shows especially tend to error on the side of being too explainy, though, for the sake of their young audience (I laughed my ass off in Frozen when Olaf goes, “TrUe LoVe SaVeD hEr,” or something similar, because yes Olaf, we fucking got that, thanks, lol!).  This line was similar in intent (helping the audience understand an aloof character who is potentially unlikable on the surface), but damned if that ain’t some tea for real life.

AND JFC, WAS WEREGARURUMON ALWAYS SO FUCKING EXTRA?!  Wait, what am I saying, of course he was!  Hahaha!  I gotta say that these reboot perfect level evolutions aren’t feeling earned or impactful, just a kind of fun, “Oh hey, there you are” (and in this case, “Who does your nails, btw?”).  I’m hoping that we’ll see other content to make up for this, but so far, I’ve given up on the thought of being touched/impressed by evolutions in Digimon Adventure:.

AH SHIT!  BUT AT THE END!  Sora says, “Thanks for coming back!”  And Yams replies, “Eh, you were bait.”  And SORA!  SHE SEES THROUGH THIS BS!  SHE’S ALREADY REACHED GABUMON LEVEL OF SEEING  THROUGH THIS IMPOSSIBLE BOY’S GRUMPY FACADE!  “Well, we’ll leave it at that,” she says, with an understanding smile.  GOD!  THIS IS SO GOOD, I FINALLY SEE SORA IN FRONT OF ME, I’M CRYING, THIS IS 1,000% MORE SORA THAN HER OWN INTRO EP!!!!!!

AND I AM DYING!  Yams says, “I have a brother, so I...  AM SO... DETERMINED TO END THIS AND PROTECT HIM.”  You butt face, EVERY KID HERE HAS A FAMILY, OMG, WHAT A FUCKING DORK!  I am absolutely dying!  Here Yamato is, tryin’a explain his tunnel vision and his DEEP DARK EMBARRASSING SECRET...  HE, A HUMAN, HAS A HUMAN FAMILY THAT HE LOVES.  It tells us a lot about Yamato, alright, but not what Yamato was actually trying to say (ie, I hate to admit it, but I am a huge softie for my brother)!  Instead, what we’re finding out is...  Yamato is forgetting everyone here has a beloved family that they also want to help, because HE LOVES HIS BROTHER SO MUCH!  

GOD, SUCH YAMATO.  SUCH PURE, UNDILUTED, 1,000% CONCENTRATED YAMA JAMMAS.  I FUCKING LOVE HIM.  WHAT A GOOMBA!

THIS EPISODE WAS SO DAMNED GOOD, my second fave so far after Mimi’s intro, and it had 0% to do with the action/plot/evolutions and 1,000% to do with these dumb kids being good, dumb kids, god I love them.

ALSO!  HERE WE ARE AT RUINS AGAIN WITH KOUSHIRO AND MIMI?!?!?!?!  AM I HAVING A STROKE?!?!?!?!?!  BUT THIS TIME IT’S EVEN WORSE BECAUSE TAICHI IS HERE!?!?!?!?!?!?  GOD, I AM SO FUCKING HAPPY.  WHAT HAVE I DONE TO DESERVE THIS BOUNTY?!?!?!?!?!?!

God, thank you, reboot.  Bless.

ETA:  I’m also hoping we swing back around to Leomon’s Resistance.  I mean, I assume we will...  And I also assume Leomon ain’t gonna fare so well, lol!  But seriously, I wonder what kind of intel Leomon can provide?  I’m loving that the Digital World has so much going on, its own groups and such.

[band-geek-727]

Daiken Week 2020: Day 1 - Kindness/Miracles

“You ever think it’s weird how close they are?”

Koushiro looked up from his laptop. “Who?”

Taichi pointed across the table where he, Yamato, Koushiro, and Jyou were studying, and into the Ichijouji’s living room where Daisuke, Ken, Takeru, and Iori were playing Mario Kart.

“Oh,” Koushiro said. “Well, they are younger than the rest of us. Certainly it’s easier to relate to someone closer to your own-“

“No, not all of them,” Taichi cut in. “Daisuke and Ken!”

A burst of laughter punctuated his statement. Daisuke and Ken seemed to be more interested in messing with each other than winning the race, pushing each other off the course and setting up elaborate traps with the power ups. All the while they jostled on the couch, trading playful shoves and taunts, totally comfortable getting in each other’s space. Takeru had taken advantage of their distraction to slide into first place, while Iori cruised along in fifth.

“You’ve seen it, right?” Taichi pressed. “Ever since Ken stopped being the Kaiser, those two have been inseparable.”

Koushiro brought one hand to his chin, squinting thoughtfully into the living room. “I have noticed that they seem to spend more time together than any of us…”

“And have you noticed how… how protective they are of each other? Daisuke flies off the handle if anyone says a bad word about Ken. That one time digimon showed up in the real world, he wouldn’t come with me and Hikari ‘cause he was so worried about Ken. And Ken is like… always at Daisuke’s side! It’s like they’ve got some weird psychic link.”

Koushiro glanced sidelong at him. “Well, they are Jogress partners…”

Taichi shook his head. “Not like the others. Hikari told me when Daisuke and Ken first Jogressed, they moved and spoke in sync for a while. Daisuke even said he could feel Ken’s heartbeat! None of the others mentioned anything like that.” He turned to Yamato. “And it definitely didn’t happen with us!”

Yamato didn’t look up from his textbook. “No one would want to feel your heartbeat, anyway.”

Taichi shoved Yamato. The blonde elbowed him in the side. The ensuing scuffle had Koushiro sighing heavily.

From across the table, Jyou let out a thoughtful hum. “I think it makes sense, if you think about their relationship as a whole.”

Taichi looked up from trying to put Yamato in a headlock. “What do you mean?”

Jyou tapped his pen against his notebook as he turned to face the others. “Well, think about how they met. They were on opposite sides of a conflict, at first. Ken needed to be stopped, obviously, but he was also clearly alone and vulnerable. He needed friends. And who reached out to him first?”

“Daisuke,” Taichi answered automatically, feeling a surge of pride for his protégé. “But that’s because he has the Crests of Friendship and Courage.”

Jyou nodded. “True, but it was also an act of kindness. No one supported Daisuke reaching out to Ken at first, and even Ken had a hard time forgiving himself. But Daisuke couldn’t leave Ken alone with that burden. And don’t you think it was brave of Ken to join the others after what he’d done, to face his mistakes and make up for them?”

Koushiro was watching Jyou intently. Even Yamato had abandoned his studying entirely.

Taichi shook his head. “I guess I never really thought about it like that…”

Jyou reached up to adjust his glasses. “Looking at everything they’ve gone through, their strengths – their Crests – aligned perfectly with each other to help them rise to meet their challenges together. I don’t know if it was fate, or if they would have become so close under any circumstances, but those two seem to complement each other especially well.”

“That makes sense,” Yamato said. “We’ve all given each other strength before. Remember when you saved Takeru at the diner, Jyou? It was your actions that helped me unlock my Crest in the first place.”

Jyou blushed as Koushiro reached for his laptop and opened up a new document. “Humans are community-oriented by nature,” he said, his fingers flying across the keyboard. “If the Digital World chose us to protect it, it would only be logical to equip us with weapons that were designed to utilize that nature as effectively as possible.”

Taichi frowned down at his half-finished assignment. He had always thought of the crests in such individual terms. The Crest of Courage was his, and the others belonged to their respective owners.

But there was more to it than that, wasn’t there? It took the eight of them working together to find and unlock the crests in the first place. The younger chosen had inherited those same crests when they entered the Digital World, and they’d proven time and again how they’d deserved to do so. Even the digimentals of the crests could be used by any of them, a fact the younger kids had discovered accidentally during one harrowing battle. Taichi remembered the pride he had felt at learning that his sister had been able to unlock the Digimental of Courage.

A shout from the living room caught his attention. He looked up in time to see Iori launch a blue shell onto the track, taking out Takeru for the win. Takeru burst out laughing while Daisuke groaned and draped himself dramatically over Ken.

Jyou was right, Taichi thought with a smile. They were always strongest when they came together as a group, when their strengths combined to meet any obstacle.

As long as they had each other, he thought, they could create miracles.

--

This is something that’s always interested me about Daisuke and Ken’s relationship. Extending a hand of friendship to Ken was an incredible act of kindness on Daisuke’s part, and for Ken, it took a great deal of courage to accept the friendship of the others and own up to his mistakes. There’s also the fact that Daisuke said the Crest of Kindness called out to him. And that even though Daisuke used the Digimental of Miracles, it was with Ken the whole time.

Instead of typing that up in an analysis post, I used it for this day’s prompt! I originally had a much different idea, one that referenced a series I’ve been working on for a long time where the younger chosen children activate each other’s digimentals. There is still a reference to that series here; in the first chapter, Hikari activates the digimental of courage.

Thanks for reading!

[noctisfishing]

Into the Future

Day 7 - Future

#noct writes taiora week 2020 [ 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 ]

@noctisfishing for Taiora/Digimon writings and more. :) @taioraweek for more Taiora love!

Setting: Adult AU (Last Evolution Kizuna-inspired) / Canon Divergent

Tags: Adventure, Romance

Other Characters: 01 Chosen Children and their Partners

Notes: I’m tagging this as a spoiler to be safe. This was inspired by the first scene of Kizuna. This fic turned out to be mostly a Sora show (something that was lacking in the actual movie) (not salty at all /s) BUT Sora deserves to be a star in my eyes, more importantly in Taichi’s. ;-;

This fic is also the longest but I wanted to end with a bang!! I hope you enjoy this. <3

~*~*~*~*~*~

"You look so grown up, Taichi."

Taichi stood in front of his mirror and had just buttoned up his dress shirt and straightened the cuffs when Agumon said those words from behind him. He had always liked to roll his sleeves towards his elbows for a more casual look, but tonight, he kept the sleeves long, and he even attempted to iron out the wrinkles of the shirt beforehand.

"I guess I do, huh?" Taichi asked in response.

The concept of growing up was so foreign to him. Even when he was on his way to graduating university, he wasn't sure if he wanted to jump into the life of an adult, in which he would work the typical five days a week, earn to make a living, and find less time to spend with his friends.

But tonight was a special occasion, after all. He needed to look the part at tonight's dinner with Sora, their Digimon, and both sets of their parents. 

Kneeling down in front of his dresser, he opened the top drawer, observing his pair of goggles and his old digivice - two items from his childhood that he treasured. Then his eyes fell onto a small box in between them.

In that box was his future. Out of all the choices he had to make, inside that box represented the one that he was certain of making by the end of the night. 

Suddenly, Taichi’s phone beeped on his table. Even as he stood a few feet from it, he was able to recognize Koushiro's name on the backlit screen.

Taichi already knew what Koushiro’s text message said before picking up his phone to read it:

“A Digital Gate is opening up. Need reinforcements.”

It was a group text sent to all of the Chosen. Taichi knew that Koushiro was always on alert, having his computer hardware readily available to monitor readings between the Digital World and the Real World. 

But Taichi didn’t have time to think who else was available or too busy to make it; all he knew to do was to call Sora, who was probably already at the restaurant with their parents.

“Taichi,” she had answered after the first ring.

“Sora. Looks like dinner’s gonna have to wait,” he said, turning to Agumon who stood by waiting for Taichi to move.

The alarm echoed from Sora’s end. “I’ve gotta go,” she shouted over the alarm. “They’re telling everyone to find cover or leave the area. I’ll make sure our parents are safe and I’ll head out soon.”

“Okay, I love you.”

“I love you, too. Be safe.”

Once he hung up, Taichi grabbed the small box and placed it in his pocket. On his way out with Agumon, he hooked his bluetooth earpiece and pushed its button to turn on.

“Taichi,” Koushiro said from his ear piece. “You on your way?”

“It’s about damn time,” Yamato grunted. 

“What?! Dinner’s not happening?” Mimi yelled from one end.

“This isn’t the time to be asking about that, Mimi!” Jou shouted.

Taichi began his sprint down the street with Agumon quickly following beside him. Even as the other Chosen were bickering in his ear, he trusted that none of them mentioned his plan out loud, especially if Sora happened to be listening in.

“Takeru and Hikari are already closest to the electromagnetic readings on the map,” Koushiro added. “Everyone else, stay alert.”

“Right!” they all said in unison.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Sora stood watch at the front of the restaurant on the street corner. A light breeze blowing against the skirt of her modest lace and chiffon dress drenched in blue. Piyomon was at her side as Sora urged her and Taichi’s parents to head into the restaurant and stay furthest from the windows. She had been listening in on the action from the others in her earpiece, and she knew that she and Piyomon would have to be ready to fight at any moment.

It was only a few blocks away from her that Okuwamon had appeared. She heard Mimi cheering for Togemon after she had jumped into the air and threw a Mach Jab against Okuwamon.

The ground rumbled slightly, and it followed with a shout from Jou - Ikkakumon had just been thrown against a few parked cars.

The Chosen worked to improve their Digimon’s fighting styles since high school, especially after the final fight with Ordinemon had caused the most damage to their city. Mainly with the help of Koushiro, the Digimon learned to maneuver through the streets while using their defensive tactics to fight against rogue Digimon that came through the Digital Gates at any given time. 

Focused on the battle that she could only hear through her earpiece, Sora waited for any sign of how Taichi was doing. However, she was interrupted by a woman that grabbed either of her shoulders, screaming her head off in a panic.

“HEELLPP!” the woman cried, causing Sora to feel as though she jumped out of her skin.

“Sora!” Piyomon cried.

Sora shook off her fright immediately and grabbed hold of the woman’s arms in return.

“Ma’am, are you okay?” Sora asked, staring into the woman’s eyes to try to get her to focus and calm down.

“It’s coming! It’s coming!!”

Another rumble on the ground, more violent than before, and Sora and the women held each other to keep each other from falling. But as Sora looked up, she saw it. 

The large silver insect Digimon had crashed into a building two blocks away, which Greymon had ultimately pushed him into.

“Taichi! I told you not to be so reckless!” Koushiro shouted.

“We’re trying not to be!” Taichi groaned.

Sora was torn between feeling relieved at the sound of Taichi’s voice and fighting the urge to scold him more than Koushiro had just done. But, she had to stay calm.

“Get into the restaurant,” Sora told the woman, patting her in comfort. Appearing to have calmed down, the woman nodded with tears in her eyes and ran through the doors behind Sora.

“Ah! Another gate’s opening up!” Koushiro announced. “Just down the street! We need to get it there now!”

Sora stood alert as she watched Okuwamon recover and fly up and away from Greymon. Its screech echoed into the air, and its wings made a loud buzz as it swirled before heading into a new direction. Sora reached for her smartphone in her pocket with her fingers tight around its edges. 

“Wait! Where’s it going?” Takeru asked.

“Angewomon, stop him!” Hikari cried. “He’s going the wrong way!”

Okuwamon sped through the street between the tall buildings, right in Sora’s direction.

“Now, Piyomon!” 

In a bright flash of white light, Piyomon glowed as she evolved into her larger bird-like form, spreading her wings with flames burning away to reveal her orange talons.

And with that, Birdramon appeared, launching toward Okuwamon to block him from going further, then she was thrusted backward in the air as Okuwamon crashed against her.

Sora ducked and held her hands over her head for cover as a huge gust of wind from the impact nearly knocked her off her feet.

“Sora!” Hikari called to her when the wind died down, running towards her as she stood up. “Are you okay?”  

“Sora?” she heard Taichi in her earpiece. “Glad you could join the party. I’m sure you’re dazzling in whatever you’re wearing tonight.”

“Save the sweet talk for later,” Koushiro interjected. “We’ve got to get Okuwamon to the gate!”

Sora exchanged embarrassed smiles with Hikari before returning to face the battle, where Birdramon had released herself from Okuwamon’s grasp, making the opening for Angemon to throw his Hand of Fate against Okuwamon and further down the street.

“Awesome!” Takeru shouted.

“Your turn, Angewomon!” Hikari yelled, as Angewomon flew out of the way for Angewomon to shoot her Celestial Arrow.

“They’re heading toward the gate!” said Jou with panic in his voice.

“We’re on it!” Yamato said in response. “Taichi and I are headed that way!”

“Sora, hop on,” Birdramon told her, and Sora and Hikari jumped onto her Digimon’s back. As they followed Angewomon and Angewomon carrying Okuwamon toward the gate, Sora noticed the large flat screen monitors on the buildings turning on, all showing the local news video feed of the large ball of flashing colors in the middle of an empty street, its lights flickering and sparks flying all around it.

The Digital Gate was not too far up ahead. Sora looked beyond Okuwamon and spotted Garurumon and Greymon, and Yamato riding his motorcycle with Taichi sitting right behind him.

“You two - pin him down right when he gets there!” Taichi instructed his and Yamato’s partners, both which Sora heard growled in agreement.

Sora believed in them to finish this fight.

~*~*~*~*~*~

“The gate is closing soon!” Koushiro announced. “Try not to get too close to it!”

Taichi and Yamato jumped off of the bike as soon as they parked near the gate.

“How soon, Koushiro?” Taichi asked.

“Twenty seconds!”

Taichi looked to Yamato and exchanged a nod, but a loud buzz reached their ears. They turned toward the gate and noticed the top was glowing brighter, with sparks of light crackling faster and brighter-

“Look out!!” Yamato exclaimed, and Taichi jumped in the opposite direction from him as a bolt of lightning shattered the asphalt where they had just stood.

“That’s not supposed to happen!” Koushiro cried. “You two’d better get out of there - this gate is the most unstable one I’ve seen!” 

“Taichi! Taichi!” Sora shouted. “Are you alright?”

“Sora, I’m alright-”

“Aaagghh!” Angewomon yelled as she crashed against the ground. Taichi got back on his feet and saw that Okuwamon had broken free of the angel Digimons’ grasp and was flying further away from the gate.

But not before Garurumon pounced on top of Okuwamon, pinning him down a few yards away from his final destination.

“Ten seconds!”

Okuwamon had lunged forward his attack which threw Garurumon back, but appeared caught by surprise when Angemon and Togemon double teamed him with their punches.

“Five seconds!”

They still weren’t at the gate. Greymon’s Nova Blast would easily force the rogue Digimon into the gate, but Taichi knew that they had already done enough damage to the city as it happened.

“Four!”

Garurumon was on the ground, and so was Angewomon. Ikakkumon was too far away.

“Three!”

Okuwamon was strong, pushing back against Angemon and Togemon - strong enough to force them all to fall backward against the ground.

“Two!”

A loud shriek was heard from behind him, but what happened next seemed to happen in slow motion. Like a burst of flames Birdramon flew by, with her large claws clenching into Okuwamon and flying him right into the gate. Right above Birdramon, he caught sight of Sora’s blue dress and her fiery red hair blowing against the wind. She turned around, as though she knew that he was watching, and she flashed a smile.

He had never been more ready to see what the future held for him.

At the moment Koushiro should have finished his countdown, Birdramon had released her claws and soared higher above, and the light of the Digital Gate had begun to consume Okuwamon.

But the ground began to rumble. Violently.

“Koushiro! What’s happening?” Taichi heard Yamato ask. He couldn’t see where everyone had gone, and he had fallen against the asphalt.

Taichi couldn’t get up.

“The gate is closing - but it’s creating seismic waves!” 

“You mean, an earthquake?!” Jou asked.

“Take cover!”

He wasn’t sure if he hit his head, but his vision blurred, and the sound of rumbling had grown faint.

“Taichi!” he heard a growl from a far. Greymon? He wasn’t sure, but the next thing he saw was his eyesight fading, and darkness looming like a shadow casting over him.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Sora was back on the ground, covering a small child as Birdramon hovered with her wings spread out above. They heard a scream during the earthquake, where a small child was too scared to move away from a lamppost that was threatening to break loose. Birdramon has swooped down in time for Sora to embrace the child in her arms until the earthquake stopped.

“Are you alright?” Sora asked the child, who stared up at her with a frightened look in his eyes. But he nodded at her, and he seemed to cheer up after she gave him a smile.

“Akemi-kun!” came a frantic shout. A woman rushed over to her son and scooped her up in his arms, sobbing. “Thank you,” she added tearfully to Sora and Birdramon.

“Of course,” said Sora, looking up at Birdramon to share a smile.

“Sora, Sora!” she heard in her ear suddenly.

“Koushiro,” she answered, putting her finger up to adjust her earpiece.

“Get over to the gate’s location, quick! Taichi’s not responding!” 

Sora gasped and looked up at the large monitors that others were already watching. The Digital Gate was no longer there, but Sora saw her friends crowding around Greymon, who had just risen from a pile of rubble. Underneath him, she could make out Taichi’s brown hair, with his hand laying back, unmoving.

She immediately turned to Birdramon, who must’ve recognized the horrified look on Sora’s face. She lowered to the ground, allowing Sora to jump onto her back, and together they flew towards the site.

Sora’s mind seemed to race as quickly as Birdramon’s speed of flying. She tried not to think about the worst, but as she thought about her life, the career path she finally decided to choose, she hoped to the gods above that Taichi was okay.

She couldn’t imagine her future without him.

As Sora had suspected from the live video feed, she and Birdramon arrived to discover that Taichi was unconscious. Sora rushed to Taichi’s side just as Greymon had devolved back into Agumon, and looked on at Taichi worriedly.

“Taichi, baka…” she began, hearing the crack in her own voice. “How many times did we tell you not to be so reckless?” She ran her fingers gently through his hair before cupping her palm on his cheek.

And then, she felt Taichi’s hand against hers, and she watched his eyes flutter open.

“Hi, there,” he said softly as his lips curled into a smile. “You really are dazzling tonight, Sora.”

“How could you be smiling at a time like this?” Sora’s eyes welled into tears. “Can you move?”

“Can I move…?” As though he was wondering aloud, Taichi carefully moved his head from side to side, and then he removed his hand from hers and rotated his wrist. She watched his other arm fidgeting next to him. “I think that’s a ‘yes’.”

“What... are you doing?” Sora couldn’t fathom why he was being so casual after the likelihood of suffering head trauma. “Taichi, are you hurt at all?”

For some reason, Taichi let out a chuckle. “Depends on your answer, Sora.”

That was when Sora noticed his fidgeting arm, with which he lifted his hand, revealing a small opened box that revealed a diamond ring.

A gasp escaped her lips.

“Taichi…”

Sora covered her mouth with her hands, finding no words to express her emotion, but she let her tears stream down her cheeks.

Taichi sat up, then got into a kneeling position. “I was going to do this in front of our parents…”

“I’m sure they’re watching right now,” Biyomon interjected, and Sora turned around with Taichi to see that the large building monitors had the two of them in the spotlight.

And behind them, the Chosen Children with their Rookie partners, all looking on in excitement.

“Well, I didn’t think I’d make a big show out of this… but, you are my star, Sora. You are the only future I’ve always been so sure about. So… will you marry me?”

Sora felt her heart swelling with happiness. Staring back into his hopeful brown eyes, she only had one answer to give:

“Yes, Taichi!”

She flung her arms around him, nearly toppling him over and crashing her lips against his. She could feel the hum of his laughter as he kissed her back. Behind them, their friends erupted into cheers. Mimi and Palmon began to sob while Gomamon and Patamon shouted with glee.

They broke off the kiss only for Taichi to slide the ring onto her ring finger. Sora noticed his tears of joy streaming down which only made her cry even more.

~*~*~*~*~*~

What happened next was no surprise to anyone: a handful of reporters arrived at the scene hoping to catch an interview with the Chosen Children. The Digimon loved posing for the cameras every single time. It became routine for Yamato, Mimi, and Taichi to handle the interviews on the scene - and sometimes, Koushiro spoke to news anchors through video conferencing - but the others, including Sora, didn’t mind answering questions whenever they asked.

This time, while Mimi chatted freely about Togemon to a few reporters, others found it most interesting to interview Sora, especially after Birdramon’s valiant efforts, but mainly because of her new ring. She spoke to them with grace and poise as she normally did, although she knew her cheeks must have been bright red with Taichi and Agumon cheering her and Piyomon on from beyond the camera.

None of the Chosen had ever thought the general public would change their tune on Digimon. Sora wanted to get used to public relations for her career, but she still had her moments of shyness in front of a live camera.

Both Sora’s and Taichi’s parents ended up meeting them at the site to congratulate them on their engagement. Feeling guilty, Sora offered for her and Taichi to join them for dinner, but all four parents urged them to go home and rest, and that they could have a proper dinner celebration another time.

The Chosen and their partners went their separate ways, and Sora asked to stay over at Taichi’s small apartment for the night. Sometimes they shared his bed, and sometimes he let Sora sleep on the mattress while he slept on the floor; but there were some nights like that night when Agumon and Piyomon fell asleep back-to-back, leaving both Taichi and Sora to get used to sleeping on the carpet.

Taichi had been wanting to move out of his studio apartment, and he knew that he had to make that want into a reality now.

Both he and Sora sat against the side of his bed, listening to the two Digimon snoring softly behind them. Sora nestled her head in the crook of his neck and he put his arm around her as she held out the back of her right hand, admiring the sparkle of the diamond. Marrying her was another want that he was ecstatic for her to accept, as much as he was relieved.

Neither Sora nor Taichi knew what was to come. They didn’t know whether a new Digital Gate would appear and where, or if another earthquake would follow. They didn’t know how long they’d be able to see their Digimon partners, given the few times they’ve had to say goodbye, each time believing that it was their last. Sora didn’t know how her career track would work out, and Taichi was still undecided.

But they knew they would always have each other, tonight, tomorrow, and into the future.

[o-w-quinlan]

Digimon Adventure 2020, episode 23 reaction (and over-analysis)

It’s... weird. Half of it is a battle scene that is clearly just marking time for the actual relevant one next episode, and the other half is emphasizing the importance of the B-Team, except it’s just “I must save my friends”, instead of anything more revealing about their characterization. All in all, it’s episode 17, but not as good.

Let’s start with the battle with Devimon/NeoDevimon, since that’s basically most of the episode. It starts with Devimon surprising them by being capable of attacking at a distance without them noticing where the attacks are coming from. It’s appropiately menacing, although it starts to feel too static very fast. After 2 episodes of high-octane action with great tactics from the digimon, this fell a bit flat. After that, he evolves, and the dynamics of the fight are almost exactly the same, except instead of the interesting “action at a distance because of miasma” attack, it’s just NeoDevimon moving fast enough that he looks like he is teleporting (shown in the episode by having NeoDevimon be in one place in a shot and then in another place in the next one). All in all, it was sort of forgettable, which would be understandable because obviously they can’t maintain the high level of the previous 3 ones due to budget constraints and other things, but it still felt weird that they would choose to have their less frenetic episode be a full-episode fight scene.

Devimon himself was interesting, though. He once again refers to Poyomon as “his old friend” and states he wants to share his pain with them. While I don’t expect this to be explored for him, I do think it’ll be expanded upon by future villains. The ominous crystal (that, confirming a theory I had discarded as wishful thinking, turned out to be MOON MILLENNIUMMON OF ALL DIGIMON!) ends up seemingly controlling Devimon, distorting his voice, making him go through a painful looking evolution (and Taichi notes something has changed, something apart from just evolving). When DarkKnightmon later shows up (he’s alive!) and recovers the crystal before making NeoDevimon evolve again, you realize the villain dynamics may be far different from what we had expected until now. Devimon was not the big bad, or even the boss of the previous digimon, but just another pawn of MoonMillenniummon, no more relevant than SkullKnightmon.

The A-Team... wasn’t quite as interesting this episode. We get some more dynamics between Yamato and Takeru: Yamato tells Takeru to hide, Takeru obeys until he realizes his brother is in serious danger, he tries to do something, when miraculously he succeeds Yamato congratulates him with no explicit lingering worry. Since this time around Takeru was not as suicidal as last episode, it’s a nice enough dynamic. What fell flat was Poyomon evolving to Tokomon and dissolving the miasma. Takeru screaming for the villain to stop before a miracle happens was already done, and much better, on episode 20. We never got to see much of Poyomon, so his evolution didn’t really ellicit any reaction (not even shock, since we’ve already seen a lot of miraculous stuff surrounding the Holy Digimon this season). About the only interesting things with Tokomon this episode were his smile when seeing NeoDevimon slowly vanish (”that’s for torturing me, you big meanie!”), and him being blown away from Takeru’s arms (the best bit of comedy in the episode). Taichi got.. er... observational skills, athletic skills and a burst of determination that felt vastly underwhelming compared to what he did 2 episodes ago.

As far as the B-Team goes, we saw Mimi be the first one to take action when being told what Calamaramon’s plan may be, Koushiro getting an internal monologue about how he believes he is helping his friends, and Jou and Ikkakumon getting humiliated for comedy (Kabuterimon was similarly defeated while attempting a rescue, but it wasn’t as focused on). All in all, functional stuff. Honestly, I was more drawn to the brief scenes with the ship crew trying to remain calm while realizing they were about to crash into the city (which was Singapore, not Tokyo as I thought last week). The tension there felt thicker than in the rest of the episode.

Other notes for this episode:

I was very weirded out when Devimon’s mouth didn’t move whenever he spoke, specially since he did move his lips at other points. Made him feel off, alien, which is great for this series.

Someone as big as MetalGreymon trying to hide behind the ruins of the castle was a bit silly.

We saw intereference in the communications between the Chosen Children through the digivice. Perhaps this is because of the massive ammount of data moving from the human world to the digital world?

We got the consecutive evolution sequences back. Can’t say I’ve missed them. Can’t say I’ll miss them if they never appear again after this episode.

Whoever is piloting that boat must be the GOAT to be capable of steering it that fast.

Sagittarious Mode appeared for only a second, just for one attack, after a massive burst of the Power of Feelings with a Holy Digimon at his side. It’s a great justification for why Alteros Mode didn’t appear last episode.

DarkKnightmon does not attack the Chosen Children, even though we know he is perfectly capable of fighting a fresh MetalGreymon and WereGarurumon without any issue, let alone exhausted ones. The Holy Digimon, even when in Baby form, are dangerous enough even one of the most powerful and skilled villains yet would rather run away.

No, Koushiro, I beg of you, please don’t enable the belief that “natural lines” are the norm in Digimon. Please.

All in all, a functional episode that raises a couple interesting questions. Next week we are going to see a new Ultimate form for Devimon (which looks very silly to me), Taichi getting corrupted by Darkness, MetalGreymon maybe evolving to Mugendramon, Tokomon most likely evolving to Patamon and perhaps even WarGreymon as a cliffhanger. Exciting stuff.

[o-w-quinlan]

Digimon Adventure 2020, episode 22 reaction (and over-analysis)

Of all the things that could happen, I did not expect Yamato to get less intense when Takeru was around and in constant danger.

The episode was full of great fights and some great characterization for Gabumon. The problem is that the emotional core of it all is Takeru, and he simply doesn’t work for me here. It’s one thing to be brave, it’s another thing to actually run in the direction of the dude that’s trying to kill you until you’re literally climbing him (and for some reason this dude doesn’t try to kill you while you’re literally standing on his weapon). Later on he tells his brother that seeing him and the digimon fighting to save Tokyo inspired him to be brave, but this falls flat because not only have we never seen him not be brave, but this is the very first episode where he behaves like an actual character (instead of “sad little boy to motivate Yamato”, or cryptic psychic Deus-ex-Machina from last episode), and it feels like way too soon for such an scene to be adequate. His psychic connection to the Holy Digimon is better executed here than last episode, at least, since he actually addresses it.

It sort of feels like they’re leaning very hard on Takeru-as-audience-surrogate. He’s fearless because that’s what kids watching this would want to think they’d be like, and he states he’s inspired by Yamato’s group and the digimon because that’s presumably the effect the showmakers want to make on their audience. He has no recollection of anything that happened between the feather appearing on his apartment and Yamato waking him up, because of course nothing would have happened to him that the audience didn’t see.

Yamato himself is... weird. Much like last episode, he seems very calm about Takeru being in the line of danger now, which, after 19 episodes where his main motivation was preventing even the slightest chance of Takeru being in danger (to the point there had to be character development for him to worry about anything else), feels very out-of-character. The moment he tells Takeru that he would have done anything to keep him away from it all if he had been able to is pretty sweet, though.

Outside of all of that, though, the episode is very good. SkullKnightmon’s fight with Greymon and Garurumon is excellent, among the best fights in the franchise, as he proceeds to both overpower and outskill the two main digimon, always with another trick up his sleeve. It loses a bit of steam after his evolution, but even then it’s still top tier for this show, with the protagonists trying everything in an attempt to defeat him, only managing to buy some time (but that’s enough). Speaking of our villains, both of them are pretty good here, with Devimon’s cryptic words taking a more personal edge when he refers to Poyomon as his old friend, to which he offers a kind of salvation, and SkullKnightmon actually speaking (I was beginning to worry he wouldn’t), and seeming to treat Devimon as more of an equal rather than his boss. Calamaramon... exists.

Gabumon is the other protagonist of this episode, and his characterization is mostly excellent, because of course Yamato’s partner would want to protect Takeru after seeing everything Yamato has done to keep him out of danger (when he wasn’t a regular part of the show, I mean). His power-up was based on his own determination and feelings, rather than Yamato’s, which is very rare for this franchise, and it was done well enough. Curiously, the mode change was still unable to truly defeat DarkKnightmon, only briefly clashing equally before running out of energy, at which point they’re saved by Poyomon being born (because Holy Digimon are so powerful in this season that even their birth is powerful). Speaking of which, I hope Eldoradimon is okay, because they just destroyed the castle on top of him.

As far as the B-Team goes (and they are the b-team, no point pretending otherwise), we get more characterization for Mimi, with her knowing Tokyo’s streets very well, and her driver commenting on how her grandfather is like that too. Jou doesn’t get anything new, though at least the comedy done with him here doesn’t humiliate him but rather emphasizes his desperation to arrive at the meeting. Calamaramon is sending data to Devimon (much like Eyesmon absorbed data from the human world to the digital world), and is hacking onto the navigation programs of an entire fleet to send it crashing into Tokyo. Seriously, if we get yet another countdown to Tokyo’s destruction, I’m going to be mad.

Other notes:

More emphasis on Koushiro as the most important character outside the Taichi/Yamato team, with the “previously on” section referring to the B-team as “Koushiro and the others”.

Agumon implies he gains courage from knowing Taichi is by his side. After the previous episode, it’s very easy to see why.

Takeru is first in line when moving through the enemy base. It’s very weird to see the one with no partner digimon at the front, even though he “knows” the way.

Gabumon uses hand-to-hand moves to defend Takeru from the Chikurimon, rather than his own Petit Fire. Reminded me of WereGarurumon.

There’s a deeply silly scene where they’re seemingly climbing up a wall and they looks as if they were sticking to the wall like Spiderman. It’s either that, or they’re crawling for no reason at all and the camera just turned 90° because why not.

More eye-motif for the villains. Hopefully this prevents any of the 7 Great Demon Lords from being the final villains, because dear lord, they are just as over-used as the Royal Knights.

Generally speaking, a very fun episode that for me fails at what should have been the very emotional core of it all. Next week we see NeoDevimon in all his glory.

[o-w-quinlan]

Digimon Adventure 2020, episode 19 reaction (and over-analysis)

Now that’s a massive improvement over last week. A few things managed to ruin the action scenes for me (all of them), but character-wise and plot-wise? It’s as good as almost anything else in this season.

This episode is definitely a Yamato episode, and he shines brighter than in any other before (except maybe the Garudamon episode). Now away from Sora and Jou, it’s clear how much interacting with them (or, well, Sora) has changed him, his previous single-minded goal of saving the Holy Digimon to make sure Takeru is safe giving way to genuine worry for the other digimon he has met along the way. The brief moment at the end where he turns to see how Leomon is doing while Taichi celebrates their victory speaks volumes about him, as well as the previous moment where he and Taichi come to an agreement about their battle without saying a word. He’s of course always done everything he can to save the others, and he’s always trusted Taichi, but this more than anything shows that he’s willing to communicate with Taichi (rather than do his thing and trust the other boy to know what to do), a consequence of their heart-to-heart during the fight with Orochimon. There’s a brief moment at the start of the episode, where Taichi and Koushiro are speaking, and suddenly Yamato gasps in surprise. The thing is, it’s too late for him to be surprised that Koushiro is talking with them, so it seems he has just realized something. What is it? Maybe he’s surprised at how relieved he is that the others are fine?

Anyway, the episode also shines when dealing with the main plot. The perspective of “average” digimon regarding the conflict between the Holy Digimon (and Chosen Children) and the Forces of Evil, how both Leomon and Minotaurmon believe their side will bring forth new evolutions that will forever change the fate of the Digital World, does more at characterizing the enemy in this season than anything before it. This is further reinforced by Devimon’s allies: Calamaramon, Velgrmon, SkullKnightmon, Bullmon. All digimon that evolve through non-standard methods (Spirit Evolution, Digi-Xros, Armor Evolution). It’ll be interesting to see where the show takes this desire to go beyond regular evolution in both its protagonists and antagonists. Leomon was also pretty good here. For the first time since they arrived, neither Taichi nor Yamato have to be in charge, Leomon immediately assuming the role of leader, providing information and making the plans (incredibly simple ones, but at least they’re there).

It’s a bit of a shame that the action scenes are so lacking. I’m aware that mooks shooting at the protagonists with the worst possible aim is a convention in action series, but not only is it a terrible convention, but the Troopmon in this episode were so prominent and so obvious at it that I simply can’t overlook it. Any sense of urgency in the scenes involving them simply shatters. For the big fight scene, I was just constantly wondering why Garurumon didn’t evolve to WereGarurumon and solved everything (MetalGreymon would have been too big). I’m aware that Leomon wouldn’t have been able to show off if that happened, but it is the job of the writers to come up with a situation for him to do so believably, and they failed here. Also, having both evolution sequences play in their entirety hurt the pacing of the episode.

Of course, I can’t ignore the twist at the end. It was entirely predictable, but also very well done. Yamato’s look of horror as he watches his brother, trying to process how something like this could happen, is among the best moments of the season so far. It’s interesting that Devimon only wants to capture Takeru, rather than kill him like the other Chosen Children, and the shot of the captured Angemon in the end both benefits the storyline of saving the Holy Digimon and establishes a connection between him and Takeru for the viewers who haven’t watched the original show.

Other notes:

This is clearly Yamato’s episode, but Taichi is also pretty good here. Constantly taking lead when talking with others (since it’s clear Yamato won’t), his desperation at communicating with his disappeared friends rapidly giving way to reassuring Koushiro when they finally talk, his bringing up Ogremon, making clear that he still thinks of their fallen rival, the way both him and Yamato have internalized that they must rescue the Holy Digimon, even after saving Tokyo...

While I’m at it with Taichi, it’s a bit funny that, when rescued by the resistance, he went with the classically heroic digimon while Yamato went with the edgy ninja bird.

Speaking of them, it’s a shame none of the resistance got lines, except for Leomon. Also, Falcomon riding Peckmon was funny.

Bullmon = Wormmon with the Digimental of Hope. I don’t expect the show to acknowledge this connection to Takeru’s Crest, but still, interesting choice.

This episode makes very clear that Koushiro is Taichi’s closest friend in the group. He’s the first name he calls, the only one he talks with, and neither Sora nor Mimi try to say anything during the call. Speaking of Koushiro, he takes lead here, assessing their current situation and coming up with goals once asked.

Jou trying to report everything to the police is funny, but it also shows that he’s the only one of the 4 that didn’t need to take a few minutes to process that they were finally back home. Stupid, but proactive.

Yuuko is a disaster of a mother, isn’t she? Didn’t even bother asking Sora if she had seen Taichi. At least we got confirmation that Sora knows Taichi’s family. Anyway, Taichi didn’t ask his friends to check on his family either so maybe the whole Yagami household is just like that.

Music was very good throughout the episode.

The Digimon Analyzer is only there to showcase how weird Koushiro is, right? Like, seriously kiddo, why are you wondering if you can use your friend’s paws as a kitchen?

Generally, I liked this episode and like the direction it seems the series is going, but I’m very worried the next few episodes are going to be the Yamato & Takeru (but really just Yamato) Show at the expense of everyone else. The summaries for the next 3 episodes sure made it sound like that. Well, we’ll see when we get there.

[ahiddenpath]

Digimon Adventure 2020 Ep 15 Reaction

May the “Let it Go” jokes commence.

(Let it Jyooouuuuuuuuuu!  Let it Jyou!  Can’t run away no more!)

WHERE DO I START WITH THIS EPISODE!  Even though it was like 70% slip and scream, there was so much?!

FIRST OF ALL, I AM ABSOLUTELY 1,000,000% HERE FOR KOU-CHAN’S DIGIMON ENCYCLOPEDIA SEGMENT!  It’s RECURRING!!!!!  I get to hear his cute l’il chipmunk voice at the start of every ep now!  WHAT A GIFT!

And the Gomamon entry was perfection.  First of all, Koushiro called his fur beautiful, which, preach.  Second, GOMAMON’S FISH ARE HIS FOLLOWERS.  They are so loyal that they are always ready to ride!  (Those fish are actually our digital avatars.  We are the fish.  We are ride or die for Gomamon).

Then, things get interesting right away with what I think is the first actual Chosen injury (unless you count Jyou cutting himself while cutting veggies at summer camp).  Part of me is chuckling that a snowbeam is what caused actual damage, after watching these kids walk unscathed through laser beams and rockets, or bounce around like pachinko balls while their partners take a beating.  On the other hand, poor Sora!  On the other other hand- how many hands do I have- it’s exciting/refreshing to see that there are actual consequences/dangers here, and the kiddos aren’t indestructible crash dummies.

So Yamato takes up the task of watching over Sora and removing her from enemy digimon and asks Jyou to handle/distract the attacking group of Mammon and his Yukidarumon posse.  Um, logically, I feel like sending the perfect level digimon to fight the perfect level digimon would have made more sense, but I assume Yamato’s logic is that Garurumon is the fastest, and has the best chance of getting Sora help ASAP.  Poor Sora!

So the slip and scream segment commences, but meanwhile- and perhaps more interestingly- Taichi and Koushiro wander a desert, and Mimi brings a herd of Kiwimon stampeding down on them because they were cute and she wanted to ride one.  As they run for their lives, Koushiro helpfully points out that they are, at least, running in the right direction!

This is the exact flavor of tomfoolery I’ve been hoping for from Team Chaos all along.  So satisfying!!!

Meanwhile, they find a cave with a weird breeze.  And even though they know which way to go, and the Kiwimon don’t seem to be a problem anymore...  They...  They veer off course to check out the weird cave.  Just... because it’s weird!  How do you expect us to not investigate this cave breeze?!  Absolute chaos icons.

So we swap back to Jyou, who is... *check notes*  Yes, still slipping and screaming.  Eventually, they run out of surface on which to slip and halt at a cliff edge.  Jyou begins to panic, seeing no way to escape.  And, in a moment reminiscent of Kabuterimon and Koushiro in the last ep, Ikkakumon encourages Jyou to make a plan and not give up.

Jyou looks at the cracking ice beneath Mammon’s feet.  Internally, I scream, “JYOU, NO.”  Alas, Jyou responds, “JYOU, YES!” and asks Ikkakumon to shoot the weak spot.  Aloud, I scream, “JYOU, NO!!!!”

They all fall off the cliff, because of course they do.  It’s Jyou, and he’s actually quite responsive to praise and encouragement, which means that Gomamon can talk him up pretty easily...!  But, uh, encouragement doesn’t necessarily make Jyou’s ideas good.  Is it weird how much I enjoyed this moment?

So, the great thing about Jyou is that he’s so freaking scared, like all the time.  The other kids tend to be absolute bastions of calm and courage and “no prob, we got dis!”  So seeing someone struggle in the dangerous Digital World environment, but still try his best and carry the day when needed, is just amazing.  Personally, I think that the Reboot has leaned too hard on Jyou as comic relief/always scared/but wants to be taken super seriously and respected, and yet...  Seeing him always, always do what he has to do, even while being scared out of his mind, and not always really...  Up to the task...  It’s really nice.  

I’m still waiting for that just-right ratio of fail to win, but I’m warming up to Reboot Jyou more, with Gomamon’s incredible support.

So once again, the day is saved, and Sora is thawed out.  Whew!

BUT THEN WE PAN BACK TO TEAM CHAOS, AND...  They’ve wandered back into what looks like earth through their weird cave!  

Whelp, sorry, Team Sora.  You’re just... gonna have to fix everything in the Digital World by yourselves now!  Good luck, peace!

Man, this was a fun ep!  I think there was too much slip and scream, and while I love seeing Jyou deliver when he’s scared, Zudomon’s appearance didn’t elicit much of a reaction from me.  But let’s be real...  We’re here for Gomamon and Jyou, always having each other’s backs.