Episode 14

Episode 15

Episode 16

Episode 17

It’s been a long time since I last did a Digimon Adventure tri. update. More than a year later according my last postoops! If you’ll forgive me for my tardiness since 2016 was a disaster for me to keep up-to-date with anime. I’m back now though! Mainly because I don’t have anything to blog this season and I’m itching to talk about the latest release of Digimon Adventure tri.: Soushitsu. For a quick impressions – I thoroughly enjoyed these past few episodes of Digimon (much more than the previous ones) and it’s probably my favorite to date. I loved the return to the Digital World (it brings back all the right feels) and the developing relationships between everyone that’s not just all sad and angst-y. Most of all, I appreciate how Toei is now providing more answers than questions, finally!

Now to the in-depth stuff… The latest 4 episodes of Digimon focuses on the return to the Digital World and after the major reset at the end of episode 13. I’m going to take this slow since there’s a lot that happened in these past 4 episodes and a lot of different plot lines going on at once. At the forefront, there’s a lot of nostalgia with all the Digimon getting reacquainted with their human partners. I loved seeing their reunion with the picnic scenes and how each first episode (of each movie) is always a little more lighthearted. Even though Sora was a bit on the outs with Yokomon being more standoff-ish, I thought it was a great throwback to the “good ol’ days” when the Digidestined used to actually camp outside and sleep on the ground. I didn’t realize how much I missed seeing them in this type of environment because it forces them to really focus on the issues at hand rather than being surrounded by everyday Tokyo. It was very reminiscent of the first episode of Digimon when they first landed in the middle of nowhere with these heads bouncing up and down – except now it’s the humans that recognize their partners; not the other way around. Even though Sora and Yokomon’s relationship was one of the core focuses this time, I didn’t feel like it was too forced or teenage angst-y (especially when Joe and Mimi’s episodes were so eye-rolling). There was a good amount of development and I thought that was satisfactory enough.

And of course, there’s also a lot of good shipping in this episode – which I’m 200% sure they’re just teasing us with at this point. There were a ton of good opportunities here for Digimon to clearly define the relationships within the group and yet, they don’t because they want to leave us hanging and hoping and watching… so I’m dying to see this all resolved by the end! It’s been obvious from the start that I’m on the Takaishi/Hikari ship. A lot of people seem to be eager to see that one sail. Then there’s Mimi and Koushiro that have a very one-sided, friendship-zoned relationship going on that makes for some laughs but also makes me pity Koushiro. The poor guy just blushes so hard each time. This is one ship that I’ve only recently jumped on because for the longest time (and even during the second movie), I was very adamant that Mimi and Joe were meant to be (especially in the original Digimon series). However, seeing how much Koushiro has a crush on Mimi (going as far as to run to the maid café) makes me wonder if they’re a better fit. Tai, Yamamoto and Sora have the most interesting love triangle that I think a lot of people have mixed feelings about, especially when the Tai/Sora ship sunk by the end of Digimon Adventure 02. As the prominent “main character”, it’s unusual for Tai not to be paired with the primary female (at least in the original Digimon) in the end. Toei still toys with us by bringing the two boys together to comfort her during her times of need and even at the end; but I wish there was more Yamamoto and Sora alone time so I could see what actually happened there. And lastly I want to address the most obvious relationship-building in these few episodes – Yamamoto and Tai <3 When I was a kid, I never cared about their love/hate relationship. In fact, I used to fast-forward all of Yamamoto’s puberty angst and Tai’s “dark side” moments to get to the “good stuff”. Now that I’m an adult, I appreciate the character development as part of the larger story (and also because the kids aren’t kids anymore), and it’s a lot more interesting to see how Tai and Yamamoto sort through their differences. One of the best friendships in the entire series is theirs so I loved seeing them take on Metalseadramon together and how it strengthens their bond as characters. I don’t typically ship bros together but Yamamoto and Tai are just as good as Gabumon and Yamamoto (and they are adorable!).

The last relationship that I didn’t mention was Himekawa Maki and Nishijima Daigo’s. And I’m talking about them in an entirely different scope because while I like where Toei is going with this, I don’t like how it feels so “tacked-on” to the larger Digimon Adventure storyline. I would love to hear what people think of this “original Digidestined” history thrown in because I’m not exactly sure what to make of it yet. After many many months of confusion, we finally have some answers as to who Maki and Daigo are – they’re old friends that made up 2 out of the 5 very OG Digidestined before Tai and Co. were transported to the Digital World. The short montage at the beginning of episode 14 showed – in silent movie mode – just how Maki lost her Digimon after Megadramon scarified itself in order to save the Digidestined and prevent the Dark Masters from taking over the Digital World. As a result, we see the birth of the Four Harmonious Sovereign Digimon which includes Ebonwumon, Azulongmon, Zhuqiaomon and Biahumon. This is the part that truly ties in the original story and journey of the Digital World and it might come off as confusing if you haven’t seen the prequels. Not to mention that there’s no actual dialogue to explain anything that’s going on so I highly recommend people refresh their memories of the past if you’re lost at this point. From Daigo’s POV, the audience finally gets some answers as to what Maki has been up to all this time and it’s her determination to see Tapirmon again that motivates her do everything she’s been doing. Maki has always been somewhat sketchy since the school festival episodes and I’m satisfied that we finally know what she’s been up to. That doesn’t make it any better, for the viewers or herself because as soon as she sees Tapirmon again, he doesn’t even remember her. That doesn’t surprise me because none of the other Digimon recognized their partners but it’s that look in her eyes that really got to me. D*mn, she be scary! Daigo is also lost in limbo now and Hackmon – finally gets a name! He works for Homeostasis and his name is Hackmon. That’s all we really know at this point.

And if that wasn’t all enough to take in – we get MORE sh*t happening to the Digidestined while we’re back in the Digital World. I thoroughly enjoyed this part because we finally see the Digimon fighting but also the return of the Dark Masters! And we finally see who is behind all the chaos going on – it’s not Ichijouji Ken (which a lot of people guessed) – it’s in fact Gennai (Hirata Hiroaki). Crazy! Gennai is supposed to be the person who guides the Digidestined down the proper path and now he’s trying to destroy it all in the name of Yggdrasil (which by the way, is supposed to be a God-tree in Norse cosmology – not a villain). While I liked seeing Toei bring back the Dark Masters with the reset, it’s a shame that they’re just following the orders of Gennai without any freewill of their own. One of my favorite arcs in the original series was seeing the Digidestined defeat the Dark Masters one by one through the efforts of friendship and love and I thought they’d repeat the same thing here. However with all the Digimon capable of mega-digivolving now, the Dark Masters aren’t very challenging and they die off fairly easily. On the other hand, along with the reset, we get a good flashback of all the old places the Digidestined visited and not only does it make me feel old but the feels are so real!

The last piece that I want to mention is the mysterious Meicoomon and Meiko. After seeing so many episodes of their struggles as Digimon and human partners, I just can’t empathize with them anymore. I know Meiko is trying and she tries very hard to reach out to Meicoomon but she also hides a lot from her newfound friends which makes it even MORE difficult for people to help her. Meicoomon is more than just a handful of problems on her own. Possibly because she’s unable to control the virus she emits but also because she doesn’t really do anything other than cry and run away a lot. I don’t want people to think I’m evil for not being more sympathetic towards them but I fail to see why Meicoomon is so critical to the story and to me, she’s just not as lovable as the rest. We’re all wondering what makes Meicoomon so special and this question that will be answered next time though with its focus on Meiko and Hikari! Finally! We’ll see Gatomon’s mega form, Ophanimon as well. And of course, as an FYI – the next movie will be released sometime in 2017 with unknown dates at this time.

Bottom Line – @RCCherrie: This is probably my favorite release of #DigimonAdventureTri to date. I loved revisiting the Digital World and all the returning characters. The bromance between Yamamoto and Taichi is too good. Plus the awkward shipping triangle. But one of the cutest moments so far… when Gabumon blushes…

 

ED2 Sequence

ED2: 「」 () by ()

14 Comments

  1. Just a few things, let’s see…

    – It’s actually MetalSeadramon, not Mega, lol. MegaSeadramon is the previous Perfect / Ultimate level form of the species. Though on the Dark Masters, Gennai also seemed to imply that MetalSeadramon and Mugendramon / Machinedramon were simply reborn, like any Digimon normally does when they die, while explaining how one exception is if a Digimon dies in the real world, but if that’s the case, why not bring back the other two Dark Masters? Unless they’re being saved for the next 1-2 episodes, Pinnochimon / Puppetmon and Piedmon also died in the Digital World, so no reason why they couldn’t be brought back.

    – Same here on Mimi and Joe, especially given Our War Game had that heart-shaped box of chocolates left in Mimi’s mail by Joe.

    – In terms of the flashback at the beginning, IIRC, they mention that Maki’s Megadramon was “sacrificed” in that battle (with the way he seemed to be used to further empower the attacks of the other four Sovereigns against the Dark Masters). I wonder if, had it not died, it could have possibly have become Huanglongmon, the fifth Sovereign at the “center”, and thus the leader, of the other four Sovereigns, and also, in overall Digimon lore anyway, is one of the only Digimon to have been able to unify with Huanglong Ore, which gets refined into Chrondigizoit Metal, which itself would be refined into what we now know as Chrome Digizoid armor, the armor worn by WarGreymon, MetalGarurumon, MetalSeadramon, makes up Mugendramon / Machinedramon, and such.

    – It’s nice to finally hear Hackmon’s name actually mentioned for those who haven’t been into Digimon as long as others. Otherwise, in the overall Digimon lore anyway, Hackmon is one of the few Child / Rookie level Digimon who is far stronger than his level suggests; achieving power equal to a Perfect / Ultimate level Digimon through lots of harsh training from his master – the Royal Knight, Gankoomon – and who Digivolves into Jesmon, the thirteenth Royal Knight (a literal Jesus reference with the name) and who also happened to be the one seen at the end of the previous episode fighting Alphamon for some reason.

    – Gennai was also revealed at the end of the previous episode. His situation is probably one of the biggest mysteries right now. I mean, as far as we know, he didn’t die at all, so it’s not like there is any sort of Mortal Kombat’s Raiden situation where, while being restored, he got corrupted.

    – I agree on Meicoomon. All we know is the general idea that Meicoomon is somehow vital for whatever forces are behind Gennai and/or Yggdrasil, but not even little hints here or there to keep us invested in Meiko and Meicoomon’s situation.

    – Unfortunately, I have doubts on Ophanimon being used, as much as I would like to see her in Adventure. It will probably end up being Magnadramon again. As Hououmon / Phoenixmon is said to be the head of all bird Digimon, Magnadramon is said to be the head of all beast Digimon.

    – I hope for the chance that Agumon and Gabumon are able to become VictoryGreymon and ZeedGarurumon, two Digimon (subspecies of WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon respectively) who are literally meant to be able to destroy Yggdrasil itself if necessary, and not having to rely on becoming Omegamon / Omnimon all the time.

    HalfDemonInuyasha
    1. Based on the poster of the next installment, I think it is not Magnadramon but Ophanimon(Falldown Mode). I am not very well informed of the digiverse but Ophanimon(Falldown Mode) is apparently the berserk version of Ophanimon so I am expecting Kari to fall into anger or something.

      Flappy
    2. I fixed the Metalseadramon in my post =) thanks.
      Gennai’s involvement has always been in a positive light and we never really find out if he’s human or just a computer figure (at least, to my knowledge or memory. I don’t know if my memory is just failing me now). I certainly think he’s a corrupted “file” if that’s the right word and someone is just using his figure to get what they want.
      Ophanimon is on the new key visual of the 5th movie so I’d be disappointed if she didn’t play a part =X Of course, Meicoomon is also on it as well so maybe we’ll finally get some answers there (or we’ll have to because of that cliffhanger) – not that I’m terribly invested in that relationship as you said.

      1. >Oh, hey! Let’s look at the new Tri poster!
        >Hikari on the poster.

        Excellent! This is exactly what I’ve been waiting for–

        >Ophanimon Falldown Mode

        FUCK

        This makes me so sad. Ophanimon Falldown Mode is created when Ophanimon loses all hope due to all of the sin in the world. Hikari mentioned that Plotmon is probably a lot happier because of the reboot because she did not have to go through Myotismon’s abuse, lose her best friend, and wait forever to find Hikari. This is just heartbreaking.

        Nikki
  2. This was my least favorite entry and confirmed to me that Tri is just no good / lacks depth. I still love its pure existence though just because of the nostalgia. Certainly, some tidbits were cute but overall, it was lackluster. I was never that much of a huge fan of the Adventure series anyway. I preferred Tamers and Frontier over the original.

    tanz
    1. No, they didn’t retcon it as Takeru and Hikari both still have their D3 Digivices, but it’s probably because they want the focus to be on the original cast coupled with Season 02 just not being as overall good as 01 (how it created some plotholes that contradicted some of 01, the extreme suddenness of Yamato / Sora, etc.)

      HalfDemonInuyasha
    2. There were some mentions a few episodes back of the other Digidestined (worldwide) that have disappeared or been missing. I’m pretty sure they popped up on Maki’s screen a few times while the camera panned so the answer is – no one knows right now but S02 was canon so maybe they’ll show up in the end? >_>

  3. As a kid, I was obviously drawn to the monsters and the battles, but as an adult, I was able to realize what really kept me invested were the kids, and their struggles, and their impressive character development (for a 90’s MON show), and I’m happy to say that the writers are certainly in tune with that idea with each of these movies so far. It’s still about fun campy monster battles but these are kids growing up, who WE watched growing up, and it’s beautiful to watch. I’ve always loved these characters and these movies just make me love them more.

    sosbrigade1991

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