#(TAICHI *NEVER WENT ON DIGITAL WORLD ADVENTURE* IN *THIS* UNIVERSE AND *NEVER WENT THROUGH ALL THOSE EXPERIENCES*)

[raging-violets]

Rhuben’s Thoughts on Digimon Adventure Reboot

I’m putting this under a read more just in case those who don’t particularly care can skip over it, and those who don’t want to be spoiled won’t see anything.

First off: THE NOSTALGIA!! The Tai spin into the Digital World! I mean, just seeing Tai and Augumon in the opening made me smile so wide. (It also makes me wonder why they didn’t work with this style/design for Tri, but that’s neither here nor there at this point)

Tai has always been my favorite character, and yes I may have gotten a tad bit tired of the series overall seeming to focus on him over the years (which is silly because i mean he IS the leader of the DigiDestined), this really just hit me in the feels. I just kept thinking “I can’t wait until this is dubbed in English�� the whole time. And as a whole, I never get tired of Digimon content, but I think this was the best direction to go in after Digimon Adventure Tri (I still haven’t seen Last Kizuna, so I’m not really talking about it here) and how many more questions that seemed to bring up than answer - not to mention just how much it seemed to drag on.

Despite going into this already knowing what happens in Digimon Adventure, this whole first episode blew me away because it has so much of what we already know about the first season and it’s changed it up already. They’re not already at summer camp. The slow loading of Tai and Izzy’s crests as they prove their character traits that we already know and love. Just Tai and Izzy’s  budding friendship and how they relate to each other. Kari already seems so intuitive with everything that’s going on. SIde note: I know that it mentioned “lessons” for why Kari and Ms. Kamiya are in Shibuya, but I liked to think of it that while Kari may not be sick like she was in the original version, Tai’s “do your best” to her was well wishes for a check-up after an illness and it’s why she and her mom are out at the start of the show.

I really like the inclusion of the smart phones and social media in this being set in 2020. It adds so much more to this than I feel like they could have done if they didn’t include it this time around. I mean Izzy’s computer is a tablet that can flip around to a computer. And right smack dab in our faces was Tachikawa! AND it shows just how different the two are but still take cues from each other, knowing when to take the lead and when to back off (like Taichi admitting he’s bad with tech.)

The whole scene with the train and the “loading” crests as a way for Taichi and Izzy to show their character traits we all know and love as a means to kind of “prove” that they deserve their Digivices, and how Tai was already connected to Koromon was so cool to watch. It’s such a fresh take on what we already know done in a way that expands the Digimon universe we already have to come to learn about over the years. The music in that whole scene was great, too. It kind of reminded me of Super Smash Bros, but it really fit! I loved it!

The fact that they can talk through their digivices? That’s awesome!!

And the fact that  the Digital World Tai went into to fight the Digimon that was causing all of the issues with the trains was awesome. LIke, it really felt like he was battling a computer virus with the way it was projected on Izzy’s screen. I really liked that touch and how it fits in with the summary of them all going into the Digital World yet still trying to live their lives as normal kids. The opening shows that this won’t be the only version of the Digital World we see, but I was wondering if this was just the Digital World version of Tokyo and we’ll see other places like their camp, or File Island.

AND THAT DIGIVOLUTION! I was really hoping it wouldn’t just be the spin digivolving thing and I’m so glad it wasn’t. That animation from Augumon to Greymon was amazing. The animation and the colors for this whole thing is so eye catching.

This first episode was amazing. I felt like there were so many things they kept the same with Digimon Adventure, and there were things I could catch that made me feel like I was watching easter eggs from the series and the movies (like, come on, who didn’t liken this whole thing to the movie/our war game - and who else loves that episode two is called “War Game?”), and yet putting it in modern times made it feel different all at the same time. I can’t wait to see more of what they changed and what they kept the same, and how it’ll unfold week to week.

And, again, I can’t wait to have this dubbed in English!

I’m excited for more! I can’t wait. (This may also be the push I needed to get to work on my Digimon fanfic, too. haha).

[izzyizumi]

Taishirou Fic Notes: REPEAT?_

(For Chapters/Parts 1+2) Under the cut!... (... There’ll be spoilers for the entirety of the fic) (This is a preliminary draft/outline until I can make it neater ? looking yeah pfft) (Also see the original fic outline for more earlier elaboration)

-- Chapters 1+2 --

- These chapters are somewhat partly self explanatory; the ‘prologue’ of sorts that set everything up. I think they were the third/fourth or so pieces that I wrote / outlined for this thing? (After the couple of chapters towards the very end...) - This entire idea spawned when I was thinking of Taishiro AU ideas [including previous ones I’ve had] and basically going ‘what’s a Koushiro AU I hadn’t thought of yet??’ - Somehow my mind went ‘ARCHAEOLOGIST ..... KOUSHIRO’ ??? ‘PLUS TIMELOOPS / KAGEDAZE TAISHIRO AU’ ??? PLUS ‘COLLEGE AU’ ???? - Essentially I was thinking of careers Koushiro could have in the real world that would a) be suitable for him b) satisfy his thirst for Knowledge [while also relating to how Knowledge is used in the timeloops] c) would take him a while to complete, but be very worthwile to him in the end d) would have some mystery / intrigue involved, especially when connecting to the Digital World e) would keep him close to Taichi [because he relates tech with it, and is involved in higher education / etc., eventually it could lead to him still becoming a researcher like in the canon epilogue in the end, or in other spinoff AU thoughts... also Taichi having a law-related career that keeps him close to Koushiro] ... etc. etc. - then my mind went ‘OH THAT’S A GOOD IDEA I CAN ALSO RELATE IT TO ‘THAT THING’ YEAH’ (i.e. THE WELL the well where HE FINDS HIS CREST) - however in the back of my mind I was probably also thinking of a super-cute old Cardcaptor Sakura series 1 episode / moment in which then still mostly newly introduced “rival” to Sakura, Syaoran Li, watches Fujitaka Kinomoto’s archaeology presentation. Syaoran grows more and more interested the point he’s internally [and externally, but ‘hiding’ it (well ? from Fujitaka, badly otherwise)] cheering over it when Fujitaka offers to show him more archaeology related things in the future - only to immediately find out next Fujitaka is Sakura Kinomoto’s father [hahaaaa]. Of course Syaoran x Sakura becomes the canon couple in the end anyhow [hahaaaaa. sorry Syaoran ilu but you were pretty amusing back then and also v. tsun in that ‘fail’ kind of way] (some of his early tsun expressions kinda remind me of Adventure Taichi too??) (...Our War Game Taichi even kind of ??) - So my mind might have subconsciously been ‘combining’ all those things (along with an image in my head of photographer Koushiro from Tri studying things in the Digital World) and basically turning that implied Syaoran/Sakura + Archaeology things [if indirectly] into Taishiro + Archaeology AU yes - (also I was following CCS’s new Clear Card Arc at the time in both manga form first and then anime form, so ... yes it was at the back of my mind) - The first lines that basically spurred on this AU were the opening rambles / summary but more notably what immediately came to mind was Koushiro’s “Oh, I’M adopted.” - line, in response to Taichi’s dumb question literally HE WROTE HIMSELF (Koushiro - unfortunately - never has a scene in-show where he actually talks about it with the other Chosen, not even in an 02 era cd drama where he was literally visiting his biological parents’ graves and right after on the way home runs into the other Adventure Chosen sans Taichi and Yamato - and he STILL doesn’t even bring his biological parents up at all, not even that he was just visiting them like ‘oh, I was just on my way back from...’ - so essentially this is him saying it right off the bat and startling Taichi indirectly with it while he’s at it.) - It also prevents having to take forever to set that particular reveal up ... while at the same time taking forever to set that reveal up in Adventure universe and with more impact otherwise hahaaa. (CRY) - So, these two chapters are the setup. - You may notice there’s a feeling of ‘something’s definitely not quite right here’ or ‘something’s up’ all through these parts, the writing style (I basically kind of... mentally storyboard, then translate that into an outline, then storyboard again, then attempt to write anything etc. etc.), (but also the kind of ‘limited’ writing style, too) and basically the entire fic. That’s the timeloops effect lingering in the background, impacting events / feelings / actions, etc. Even the slightest things like Koushiro’s expressions as he regards Taichi, the tiniest movements he makes, or Taichi’s mind running a little (A LOT) more wildly than usual. - When Taichi first hears Koushiro’s ‘(smooth) voice drifting through the open door’, that’s basically the timeloops effect slamming into him right from the get-go. His mind is running wildly subconsciously too like ‘WHAT? WHAT?? WHAT???’ because he’s so confused / startled / scared / basically majorly freaked out to the point of a feeling of dread / horror etc. l-lolll poor Taichi I’M SORRY I love you really (this is also the KageDaze inspired effect because poor Hibiya there, too, [the boy] is basically this through most of the song) [specific dialogue notes] -  ‘ok, he's not really a "kid", he's a fellow adult, but Taichi's mind seems to insist on calling him that, for some reason....’ and all of the ‘his age’ bits etc. - Taichi’s mind is subconsciously relating Koushiro’s actual age to him (‘he’s younger than you think!!! you KNEW HIM IN SCHOOL!!! BEFORE!!!’) except he’s not fully realizing, of course. - short-cut spiky red hair and pure black eyes ('why are you staring so intently at his eyes, idiot!!') Again, timeloops effect slamming. Taichi’s recognizing Koushiro’s features right away and what stands out the most are his hair [dark red] and his eyes [somehow pure black (...lol fandom injoke?)]. This also relates in ch. 4, “Bridge” - when young Taichi notices Koushiro’s red hair ‘stands out the most’ in the light, and Koushiro’s (eyes are) staring right at him (because that young Koushiro’s becoming aware of the loops and freaked out / feeling dread crashing into him, himself). (also other similar parts of the fic) This also relates to novels Koushiro knowing he ‘stands out like a sore thumb’ in class (and how that line relates later with the Izumis / his adoption, as well.) - social sciences? Psychology? Health in general? Science itself? ARCHAEOLOGY??! Basically Koushiro is a freaking genuis [timeloops.... effect] [but also natural hhhh-ha] and subconsciously-or-not relating his career to as many ‘Knowledge’-gathering fields as possible, yeah. SLOW DOWN KOUSHIRO - and he's talking so animatedly and precisely and smartly because again, Child of Knowledge / timeloops. (He’d probably be an amazing professional teacher too negl) (and also how do both his seiyuu/voice actors sound so good HOW). Ok but for real, this is also simultaneously Koushiro’s ‘professional mode’ and / or his ‘mask’ so to speak. He’s enjoying it too, mostly, but... at the same time, it’s like going through the motions.... Koushiro ;A;/ - Taichi keeps staring at him, how is he so... pretty - ('wait what?!') ('but he kind of is, in that way where he has this glow about him-') Timeloops effect reminding him yes, Taichi, you are definitely attracted to Koushiro Izumi (maybe a bit too much) Koushiro’s ‘glow’ is basically him becoming animated / excited whenever he talks about Knowledge-related topics he’s particularly interested in! (But also kind of like... his inner... glow ehehhh....) - The presenter (Izumi?) turns around and stares at him directly, sharply, (kindly?) with those black eyes and says semi-brightly despite the situation he's in, in front of this room full of dumb college kids like Taichi himself - "Oh, I'M adopted." Dun dun dunnnn (hey, Taichi, did you REALLY get Koushiro’s last name/name or-) (...he didn’t) Now Koushiro’s directly focusing his attentions on Taichi, subconsciously recognizing him while he’s at it. He’s staring ‘kindly’ because of the warm feelings his subconscious / past self has towards Taichi; while also out of genuine kindness / intrigue from this universes’ Koushiro himself. Koushiro’s definitely feeling that ‘pull’ but at the same time warning bells are going off like crazy in his head too, and maybe subconsciously freaking him out too (although he’s a little more logical about it than Taichi, maybe... ...? or trying to not panic before he finishes this thing anyway) - After the presentation is over, the kid is gathering up his things outside the room, and fixing his slightly moved tie all neatly, and Taichi approaches him awkwardly from behind. THE TRUE MEETING and basically they’re both subconsciously knowing they were going to have to talk here but .... - "Izumi" turns to stare at him, more intently, now. "It's all right. ...?" (He was a little confused as to why this cool looking kid [??] bothered apologizing to him for that, but he accepts it...) Koushiro’s staring intently because he’s so hyper-focused subconsciously, but also because he likes giving his full attention where it matters in general, too. Also ‘cool looking kid’ is Taichi’s mind thinking maybe that’s how Koushiro might see him, basically. (TAICHI PLS....) (ok but he also added the ‘??’ because he realizes... yeah TAICHI PLS) (Koushiro was a bit surprised this boy actually did think to apologize, but....) - Koushiro smiles slightly. Actually smiles. KOUSHIRO’S SMILES ARE VERY IMPORTANT IN THIS FIC OK Koushiro smiles so impassioned-ly at the start of everything (especially in this verse, where he rarely gets the chance to smile AT ALL it doesn’t help that this Koushiro didn’t go to the Digital World, didn’t make any close friends, DIDN’T MEET TENTOMON OR TAICHI and etc....) - so that when this Koushiro smiles genuinely, it’s SUPER IMPORTANT, OK - "Are you interested? I'm afraid the next dig is already scheduled very soon, but..." "Wait, you're leaving, soon-?!" ('Shut up, you idiot!!') Koushiro is looking at him oddly now - Taichi’s mind is going even more wild with the warning bells and basically yelling ‘SOMETHING’S DEFINITELY WRONG HERE DON’T LET HIM GO IF YOU LET HIM GO HE’S GOING TO UP AND LEAVE AND YOU’LL NEVER SEE HIM AGAIN !!!!!’ (Also his mind running wild kind of parallels Ep 21′s inspirations too??) (don’t forget Taichi hasn’t had a lot of his ‘character development’ here as well) Koushiro’s looking at him oddly because he’s having a similar feeling but trying to figure out what the heck is up with this and ... this boy... ? - Koushiro is about ready to have to leave again, and Taichi thinks as fast as he can. Taichi’s not ... as known for his thinking deeply in canon when he’s younger (lol) (well, um, pre...? SkullGreymon ? anyhow maybe w-wah) and considering WARNING BELLS he’s basically thinking of the ‘last resort’ type thing he can say / ask / (yell?) / etc. (or - BAM, TIMELINE OVER BAD END). - "W-Wait, which area are you in-?" Koushiro turns with a raised eyebrow and another slight smile. Koushiro’s raising his eyebrow / smiling because he’s basically internally thinking ‘...This one, hmm ..... ‘ - He lives in fucking Odaiba. Literally a block away from Taichi. ('SHIIIIIIIIIIT') ('TAICHI YOU ARE AN IDIOT') ... oh. (yeah) (TIMELOOOOOOPS EFFEEEEEECT) (TAICHI YOU ARE AN IDIOT) -- Chapter 2 -- (kind of) - He doesn't know how it happens, but in some other universe somewhere, he probably ends up not walking Koushiro home and regretting it for the rest of his life when Koushiro just ups and leaves on an archaeology dig somewhere and Taichi never sees him again - ('Seriously, stop thinking!!') So yeah, that part about ‘YOU’LL NEVER SEE HIM AGAIN’ ?? [Taichi(+Koushiro) avoided the BAD END ?? ?] [to be continued]

[witchelny]

Piecing Together Adventure tri.’s Plot, Pt. 1

So, the past few days I’ve been marinating on the release of Kyousei/Coexistence. A lot of very cool people with more coherent thoughts than myself have already posted their wonderful analyses of Coexistence by itself, so I decided not to go that route. Instead, I’m rewatching Digimon Adventure tri. from the beginning and analyzing the OVA episodes based on the context we’ve been given in the most recent OVA.

To do this, I’ve decided to analyze Adventure tri. from a very character-focused perspective, as I believe that is how the series was most likely developed. There are at least four different “sides” involved in the central conflict, as well as individual character motivations for everyone involved. This style of writing is likely what has caused Adventure tri.’s incredibly complicated (and, as some have criticized, overwrought) plotline.

Here’s an outline of the main four “sides” I’ll be focusing on:

The Chosen Children, including Meiko & their ally Daigo Homeostasis, with both Gennai & Huckmon serving its purpose Yggdrasil, represented by Alphamon Maki, who gets her own category because her sole motivation (so far) seems to be getting Tapirmon back & her actions have influenced much of the plot

I’m starting off with a rewatch of Part 1: Reunion.

Reunion starts off with the vague and conceptual introduction of Demiurge. Other people in the fandom have discussed the concept of Demiurge in more depth, because it’s a very complex idea with ties to Platonism, Neoplatonism, and Gnoticism, and is interpreted differently by various schools of thought. In short, however, the Demiurge is consistently thought of as a “second God” or the “mind of God,” a being that fashioned the universe out of chaos but is unaware of the higher being (”the One”) that created it. Adventure tri. also proposes that Demiurge is unaware of Idea, in which the capitalized term “Idea” refers to Plato’s Theory of Forms - the concept that non-physical forms, or the Idea of something, are the most accurate reality.

I’m still not entirely sure how to apply this theory to Adventure tri. A few thoughts: perhaps the “Idea, the true form of the world,” as mentioned by the narrator, refers to the fact that humanity’s dreams & wishes that created the Digital World, are the “true form” of the Digital World. Additionally, one could see either Homeostasis or Yggdrasil as the Demiurge or “second god” that fashioned the Digital World out of chaos. I don’t feel confident suggesting any of the above thoughts are supported by the narrative, but I am hoping we get some more insight in Our Future.

In Reunion, one of the first scenes with which we are presented is the scene in which Alphamon defeats the 02 kids. In the context of Coexistence, we now know that Alphamon is fighting for Yggdrasil and opposes Homeostasis, which - in my opinion - suggests to me that the 02 kids had already had some contact with Gennai or Homeostasis that skewed their mission in Homeostasis’ favor. After all, the Chosen had no reason to distrust Gennai up until that point; they perceived him as an ally. Consequently, I have reason to believe the 02 kids were being manipulated by Gennai and/or Homeostasis to fight on their side up until their defeat and possible capture at the hands of Alphamon.

Following this scene, the main plot continues in the background of seemingly mundane, slice-of-life antics. Reunion’s focus on Taichi & Yamato, however, serves as a sort of vehicle to present each Chosen child’s individual motivations and conflicts. Taichi & Yamato, as usual, are pitted against one another because their soccer game & band concert are scheduled on the same day around the same time, and it forces the other kids to show where their loyalties lie. Sora can’t choose between the two; Koushiro is busy with his fancy job at an American firm, even going so far as to lie to Sora on the phone about what he’s doing; Mimi is in America, but is willing to drop everything to go to Japan and see her friends; Jou is focusing on school and his girlfriend; Takeru acts loyal to Yamato but is using his brother’s concert for a date; and Hikari is the first and only person in the crew to notice Kuwagamon and the distortions, true to her typical sixth-sense perceptiveness.

As a result, I think the central conflict, and then the resolution of said conflict, between Taichi and Yamato in Reunion is absolutely necessary in order to establish the power dynamics among the Chosen Children and also to 1) showcase how each of them have changed individually and 2) depict what motivates them throughout the rest of the OVA.

Likewise, Taichi’s hesitance about reclaiming his leadership role is foreshadowed by his inability to hand in a career planning form at school. Daigo repeatedly chides Taichi on not having his form turned in, but Taichi has no idea what to do, or which path he even wants to take in the future. That indecisiveness follows him later in Reunion when he begins to have second thoughts about leading the Chosen Children and battling Alphamon.

Now, onto the main plot. There are a few things I noticed throughout Reunion, including:

Huckmon is watching as Kuwagamon emerges from the first distortion. I honestly can’t remember where the Virus originated or if it was explaining in canon because it’s been awhile since I watched Adventure tri., but for now I’m posing the theory that Homeostasis created the Virus in order to target Meicoomon. If that is true, then Huckmon is likely watching to ensure the plan is executed smoothly.

I have noticed this before and other people have pointed it out, but when Maki is sitting in her office, she has a program open on her computer that is tracking the locations of all 12 Chosen, including the 02 kids. The 02 kids, however, have “unknown” written next to their statuses and locations.

There seems to have been some kind of mass amnesia. A common complaint about the absence of the 02 kids is that the original 8 never even think to mention that they are missing, but I’m wondering if this was purposeful. Additionally, no one in the world seems to remember Digimon existing, with the news even referring to them as “unidentified creatures.”

All of the other Chosen children around the world still exist. At one point when Takeru is on the phone with Yamato, the camera shows his laptop screen, which shows him interacting with other global Chosen through some kind of custom social network.

A common behavior in Infected Digimon, a behavior that’s reflected by Meicoomon, is that they only directly engage in battle if threatened. The Kuwagamon, for example, does not directly attack Taichi; instead, it lays waste to Odaiba until it realizes that Taichi is following it and intends on stopping it, then turns to attack him. Similarly, Meicoomon has demonstrated multiple times that she won’t display aggressive behavior unless threatened; this actually happens later in Reunion when Alphamon appears, and Meicoomon glows for a second, having an impulsive reaction to the looming threat.

Before confronting Kuwagamon, Taichi calls Hikari and tells her nothing is wrong, making the executive decision to face Kuwagamon by himself. Taichi also seems to have accepted the fact that without Agumon present, he is powerless to stop Kuwagamon. Foreshadowing for his sacrificial behavior in Coexistence, perhaps?

Kuwagamon almost wins the fight against Garurumon at the Haneda Airport, but Alphamon’s hand reaches through a distortion and pulls him away. Could it be that Homeostasis sent the Virus, and Alphamon, on behalf of Yggdrasil, is doing everything he can to get in Homeostasis’ path? At this point, Alphamon seems to have no interest in fighting the Chosen, but it is also before the Chosen Children ally themselves with Meiko and Meicoomon.

One of the most interesting tidbits in Reunion, to me, is this:

Maki and Daigo have been getting their information from Gennai. This means that, unbeknownst to them, the National Data Processing Bureau and likely the Chosen Children have, up to this point, had the information given to them skewed in order to further Homeostasis’s agenda. This is all really interesting to me, because it suggests that something insidious has been going on from the very beginning. The Agents (with a capital “A,” referring to Gennai’s race of human-like beings living in the Digital World) created the Chosen Digimon partners in order to protect their world from the Dark Masters and Apocalymon; however, did they create the original five’s Digimon partners, too? Has every team of Chosen been manufactured by Homeostasis and the Agents in order to serve their purposes and keep the Digital World “balanced”? Gennai’s influence in the Bureau is definitely something I’m going to keep an eye on throughout this rewatch.

As a side note to this, I am reminded of Maki’s appearance at the end of Pt. 3, when she confronts Gennai on the cliffside. I think it is most likely that Gennai contacted Maki first and is manipulating her to do underhanded things under the guise of promising her that she’ll get Tapirmon back.

Besides that, Koushiro also gives us a pretty nifty outline of what has been going on in Odaiba for the past year during the team meeting under the bridge. He says,

About a year ago, normal portals to the Digital World closed

Their Digivices began malfunctioning

There has been significant radio disturbance in Odaiba, followed by mystery blackouts

Wireless networks went down, causing poor cell phone reception

New spatial distortions have been occurring, allowing Digimon to pass through the distortions in space to the human world

All Digimon emerging from the distortions up until this point have all had some kind of “new mutation,” the Virus

Koushiro concludes that everything he listed above has been the result of these spatial distortions, which are negatively impacting electronics and allowing random portals to and from the Digital World to appear. He also goes on the modify Taichi’s goggles, allowing him to detect distortions by observing data flow and spotting areas in which mass data has gathered densely together, causing a distortion.

Something else that is interesting to me is that everything is occurring in Odaiba, specifically. Did the distortions start happening in Odaiba first before Meiko & Meicoomon moved in, or did Meicoomon lure the distortions away from Tottori and to Odaiba? In any case, Meiko & Meicoomon seem aware of the fact they’re being followed, because Meicoomon doesn’t even flinch when Alphamon appears in front of her; in fact, she readies herself for a fight. Alphamon also does not seem to care that Meiko is in the line of fire as he is blasting at Meicoomon. This suggests to me that Yggdrasil does not care if the children get in the way. Yggdrasil & Alphamon had no hand in assembling the teams of Chosen, and they also have no qualms about eradicating the children as long as the end goal is achieved.

Huckmon is also at the scene, observing, when Alphamon appears. However, upon recognizing Alphamon, Huckmon’s eyes widen and he promptly teleports away. I find this interesting when looking back at it now that I have seen Coexistence; Huckmon clearly noticed Yggdrasil making a move and left to avoid getting involved in the battle.

The last thing I’m going to mention before not-so-gracefully concluding this first analysis is that Meiko’s Digivice changes throughout the series. I have noticed some people pointing out how Meiko’s Digivice is definitely black and sparking purple lightning in Coexistence. However, this was not the case right off the bat.

As you can see, Meiko started off with a perfectly normal Digivice. The transformation occurs later in the OVA. Could this be a result of the reboot? Or perhaps, Meicoomon slipping further into despair and terror?

I have to admit I’m not excited about rewatching Pt. 2 because it was probably my least favorite of Adventure tri. so far. But I’ll try to get that done + finish my analysis of it soon. Stay tuned!

[alisonmanic]

So I was at Kitacon this weekend 18th to 20th August. I was happy to find out that an article I’d written for the con book made it in! (as pictured above). Now that the con is over and I’m home. Here is exactly what I wrote: It feels like only yesterday I would sit and watch the first Digimon (Digimon Adventure (Season 1) on CITV.  But Digimon did not start with the Animation. It started on the 26th June 1997 with the release of the Digimon V-Pet in Japan. Yup that's right, Digimon is now officialy 20 years old. Feeling old yet? I am lol as I was 14 at the time! You could raise Digimon like Agumon or even Devimon in the very first V-Pet. Ah if only I had been able to keep my original V-Pets and Digivices. Still, I have been very fortunate to get some of my collection back over the years and have recently ordered the 20th Anniversary from Japan. Digimon Adventure first started in Japan on the 6th of March 1999 and ran for 54 episodes into March 2000. The English dub started to air in America in August 99 to June 2000. We were introduced to the 'original' Chosen Children (Digidestined dub). I have keen memories of writing down the evolution lines while I was watching the dub and this drove me to start my own Digimon website (Digital Starlight) in 2001. Although it is no longer updated, the site still lives. Most of my favourite Digimon and cosplay have come from Adventure. I have cosplayed Vamdemon/Myotismon, Tailmon/Gatomon and Hikari Yagami/Kari Kamiya. I would one day like to cosplay Wizarmon/Wizardmon and PicoDevimon/DemiDevimon. Digimon Adventure Zero Two (02) first started in Japan on the 2nd April 2000 and ran for 50 episodes into March 2001. The dub started in America in August 2000 and ran to May 2001. The Chosen Children expanded a lot, we got new types of evolution (Jogress/DNA and Armour). I would like to cosplay the Digimon Kaiser at some point and was rather disappointed when there were no United Kingdom Chosen in the Digimon World Tour. Also it marked the return of my favourite Digimon villan – Vamdemon/Myotismon. It was towards the end of Season 2 that I was introduced into Real Media clips from Japan that took ages to download on 56k dial up! Digimon Tamers first started in Japan on the 1st April 2001 and ran for 51 episodes into March 2002. The dub started in America in September 2001 and ran to June 2002. We met new Digimon Tamers and their partners and this series was darker than the previous two. Digimon died and were not reborn like previous seasons. This was not expected and depression was tackled in youngsters. Afterall Juri/Jeri's Digimon Leomon died and sent her spiralling. For some, Tamers wasn't popular and for some they loved it. I'm more in the middle ground. Digimon Frontier first started in Japan on the 7th April 2002 and ran for 50 episodes into March 2003. The dub started in America in September 2002 and ran to March 2003. Digimon Frontier never aired in the UK and a friend in Australia ended up taping me the episodes from TV and sending me the VHS'! Digimon Frontier was very different. There were no Digimon partners, the children Spirit Evolved into their Digimon forms. Frontier was considered as 'the end' at one point. People did not like it didn't have partners or the drawn out Royal Knights story line. By  the time Frontier ended in Japan. There was no new Digimon show ready to take it's place. There was a hiatus, only broken by a Japanese Movie Digital Monster X-Evolution in January 2005. No humans, just a pure story about Digimon that got rather confusing at times. Then it was back to waiting until... Digimon Savers/Digimon Data Squad. Diginon Savers first started in Japan on the 2nd April 2006 and ran for 48 Episodes until March 2007. The dub, Digimon Data Squad, started in October 2007 and ran to November 2008. Data Squad was aired on an obscure channel called Kix at the time. Digimon Savers followed another new route with 'DATS – Digital Accident Tactics Squad' and the Humans partnered with Digimon were for the most part teenagers (Minus Ikuto/Keenan who was younger). Once again, this season was a little darker as it was shown how Digimon can be 'corrupted' with huamn thoughts' and even went so far to have a Nazi-esq evil human called Kurata who wanted to destroy all Digimon! We were also introduced to Yggdrasil (King Drasil) the god of the Digital World...and once again at set of Royal Knights. Some good..some not so good. Once again, we had another hiatus and paved the way to... Digimon Xros Wars/Digimon Fusion. Digimon Xros ran for 79 episodes in total and was in three different parts. It ran in Japan from 6th July 2010 to March 2012. The dub has only covered the first 54 episodes, Part 3 having not been dubbed. The dub Digimon Fusion started in America in September 2013 and ran to August 2015. Part 1 is just known as  Digimon Xros Wars and was 30 Episodes long. Digimon did not evolve as normal at first as they had to Xros using multiple Digimon to create Xrossed up Digimon (I.e Shoutmon X2, X3 X4 etc). Digimon levels as we knew them were thrown out of the window and things were somewhat war like. Part 2 is known as  Digimon Xros Wars The Evil Death Generals and the Seven Kingdom and covered Episodes 31 to 54. Bagramon had won and turned the Digital World into his own image and placed several of his Death Generals into the seven single zones. The Chosen having to fight each to re-take back over the Digital World. Part 3 originally wasn't meant to happen and was more of an off shoot of Digimon Xros. It is known as The Boy Hunters Who Leapt Through Time. While it had Taiki/Mikey and Yuu from Parts 1 and 2 it also featured a new set of Characters. Episodes 55 to 79 were covered and are generally considered 'they don't exist' by some fans. Hunters went so far as crossing over with the other Digimon series and bringing in the 'Goggle boys and several other chosen/Tamers cast members' fan service like...which honestly...didn't do it for me. Once again, we had another hiatus and paved the way to something that many Digimon fans were very excited for... Digimon Adventure tri. This is currently still ongoing, with Part 5 Symbiosis of Part 6 airing on 30th September 2017! Tri Part 1: Reunion  was released on the 21st November 2015. Part 2: Determination on 12th March 2016, Part 3 Confession on 24th September 2016 and Part 4 Loss on 25th February 2017. Each Episode was released the same day, subbed, in America and other places (sadly not UK) on Crunchyroll. The original eight chosen are back...with a new addition of Meiko and her partner Meicoomon! The Zero Two children (Minus Hikari and Takeru) are 'currently unknown' status. Digimon are getting infected, the infection is making them very strong and attacking the human world. The Chosen, 3 years older after the events of Zero Two, start to take the burden and responsibility of still being Chosen with the attacks happening in the real world. Part 1: Reunion Dub (Japanese Audio and Subs available as well) was released in the UK on DVD and Blu-Ray on 22nd May 2017. Part 2 Determination dub is due out in America on 15th August 2017. At the same time, we currently have... Digimon Universe: Appli Monsters. It started to air in Japan on 1st October 2016 and is still airing. There is currently no dub. It introduces another new casting characters and Digimon are known as Appmon. So far as writing this, there are no 'old school' Digimon. A being known as Leviathan is wanting to turn all Appmon evil and our heroes must stop him! I actually need to catch up on Applimon! It does feel strange that Digimon has, pardon the expression, evolved so much over the years. Not only does it have animation, it has several manga. My favourte of these manga being Digimon Adventure V-Tamer 01. A different Taichi Yagami and his partner Zeromaru the V-Dramon must save the Digital World from Demon and his 'child' Arkadimon. There were also English Adaptations of Season 1 to 3 of the anime with Tokyopop. Digimon is still going strong over 20 years. I hope you have enjoyed the little overview of Digimon and here is to another 20 years! Now the Adventure Evolves. ~Vande~