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hikaritakaishi · 6 months ago

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Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning [My Movie Review]

♡ ! SPOILER ALERT! ♡

This review will contain spoilers of the movie, continue reading if you already saw the movie, or just don’t mind the spoiler! Enjoy & comment something if you want to share an opinion! ♡

After what seemed ages of waiting, Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning finally aired in Portugal, on May 16, 2024, several months after it’s national premiere in Japan, on October 27, 2023. I was worried that it wouldn't come to my country, but perhaps due to the huge acceptance of Digimon Adventure: LAST EVOLUTION KIZUNA, the distributor made the hearts of the DigiDestined from the most hidden corner of Europe warm again and brought us the sequel. Thank you remembering us once again! ♡

I really tried to keep my expectations as neutral as possible until the day I went to see the movie, which was pretty difficult, due to the fact that I was constantly being bombarded with online information about it, whether on Tumblr or Twitter, or through video recommendations on Youtube. I was so excited for the movie, that I had to control myself immensely not to go see the spoilers.

Initial considerations? I like it. In general. But let's go in parts!

This will be an analysis of what I consider to be the most important points of the movie and what caught my attention the most. A personal analysis, so don't take it too seriously if I don't talk about a certain point or a certain specific topic, I probably just missed that.

Firstly, I would like to comment on the initial dynamics of the movie.

Everything seems to happen much faster here than it did in Kizuna. Despite being two movies with practically the same time span, this one seemed to go by much faster. But it might just be me. [LAST EVOLUTION KIZUNA have 94 minutes, and The Beginning have 87 minutes total].

We're introduced to the key plot problem pretty quickly too.

People's digital devices are glitching, and the same message is repeating itself on all of them, not just on the phones and televisions, but on computers and large digital screens in cities all around the world. And this all around the world is very important, because it not only brings us closer to what will be the future of humanity and it’s increasing contact with the Digimon and the Digital World, but it opens the path we take since 2012 [time of the movie] until to the epilogue of 02 (which the production team and Toei animation seem to insist on wanting to keep canon, despite all the script inconsistencies it can cause, or how different from the initial profile of each character it may be).

“May everyone have friends, may everyone have a partner Digimon”

It's the message. Meanwhile, we are told that a suspicious and unknown Digitama appeared in the sky of Tokyo, right above the Tokyo Tower, and it’s been there for a while. Taichi and Koushiro are showned to be trying to help resolve this issue as professionals in the field of diplomacy and technology respectively, but without major progress.

I think it's important to highlight that they are the only two characters from the first season of Adventure who appear in this movie, and even so, without any direct speech or great relevance, beyond contextualization, and later Taichi as well again for the context of “space- time”, in that frame we see in the trailer of the movie with Hikari, which we later discover is located in Hikarigaoka, where Rui also lived when he had his first contact with Ukkomon.

The focus is on the characters from 02, or at least, it should have been. But as in Digimon Adventure Tri, this focus is overshadowed by the introduction of another new character in the story: Rui Owhada [or Lui, in Japanese pronunciation].

Rui [or Lui] is a much more charismatic character than Meiko was in Digimon Adventure Tri. There is no doubt about that.

Meiko was a somewhat empty character. A static character without great charisma. The only pleasant scenes she had were driven by the other characters around her (namely Mimi).

Rui doesn't. Rui is a character on his own. With a much more aggressive personality and a much more interesting past. The only issue here is the length of the movie: This movie is too short; too short for us to get attached to this character and actually be able feel empathy for everything we are shown about him. So short, that it's difficult to develop both this new character and the others around him, which, by the way, is a shame.

I mostly went to see the movie in hopes to see more from the 02 cast, and not because, again, of a random character they created for this new script. Just like what happened in Tri.

And this is important because notice that one of the most complex and best-built characters in the Adventure universe is literally the character with the most screen time: Takeru.

Analyzing Takeru's character as a whole is extremely time-consuming, because he was in every season, and practically involved in all the main events of the plot, either by himself or through the relationships he establishes throughout the plot, which feed the character's emotional charge. Which makes him a very complex character.

There's no time for that here. There is no time to establish a relationship between Rui and the other characters, nor to establish a relationship between Rui… and the audience.

Rui's childhood is very shocking and once again, Digimon brings a very strong narrative based on a complex and deep family plot.

We had already had examples in Adventure of family issues with Takeru and Yamato, Koushiro, and in 02 with Iori and also Ken. To a certain extent, even with Miyako. But here we reach a higher level of complexity... and violence (remember that the age to see the movie is over 12 years old. I can totally understand why).

Rui is physically abused and neglected by his mother, who leaves him out in the cold, starving when he makes a childish mistake or does something she doesn't like... when he is only four years old. His father has a very serious illness and depends on his wife to survive. Rui is then shown as a sorrowful child, lonely and without any support network. We've never had anything in the Digimon Adventure series so… raw. The aura of the movie is deeply heavy and dark.

The evolutions and battles in this movie are far from being the focus, which probably frustrated many people who went to see the movie for this more dynamic side of the anime.

It is a film with a moral content and even touches on the philosophical, about the bonds we create with others and their nature, about how we should relate to others and learn about them every day we have them in our lives.

It's about healthy communication, and how it's okay to correct the people around us, as long as it's made based with pure intentions. Because love is not omissive. Love corrects, love draws the other's attention for what really matters, in the form of love. In the form of companionship. Nothing physical or superficial is worth the price of a real bond.

The movie really grew with it’s audience. It is not, at all, a movie targeted for new fans of the franchise, or for those who know little about the Adventure series universe. It's for those who know the characters, for those who grew up with them. If you don't know the characters, you will miss details and conversations that are important to really understand the plot as a whole.

Daisuke and Ken look on Rui’s past with him. They see the arrival of Ukkomon in his life, who should’ve bring peace and comfort, but it is only the beginning of all his problems.

Let's take a break from the movie's plot to talk about the characters of 02.

I'm going to divide them into groups, because it seems like they individually… don't have much progress or very memorable scenes, honestly. It doesn't even make sense to separate them, in my opinion, and you'll understand why.

♡ Daisuke & Iori

There is not much to talk about them here. Daisuke and Iori are the flattest characters in the movie. Iori much more than Daisuke, let's be honest. Iori barely speaks, and has very few relevant scenes.

Daisuke works at a ramen restaurant, as he always wanted, where he gathers his friends to talk about the problems they are facing right at the beginning of the movie.

His personality is practically the same, Daisuke from 02 is the same Daisuke from The Beginning, and even the same character as in Kizuna, he is just taller here and wears different clothes. He still aspires to have his own ramen business and is extremely focused on his career goals. Which was predictable, given the way he talks about his dream in 02.

Daisuke's only two relevant scenes are seconds long: the first when he convinces Rui that the bond of friendship he and his Digimon partner share is much more than something superficial; it's something that comes from the heart, and that no object makes a difference between them, namely the Digivice, (something we also expected to hear from Daisuke in 02, which justifies my opinion that in the meantime... he remains the same).

The other is a scene that had enormous potential, but is cut short by a comical moment in which Miyako pops up.

Daisuke is talking to Ken seriously about Rui, and how he and his Digimon could understand each other better if they just communicate more effectively and directly, and Ken comments that Daisuke's more serious side is very pleasant and rarely appears. However, Miyako speaks up and dismisses the subject. Sadly.

We could have had a conversation here that could tell us more about Daisuke’s presente self and way he sees life now.

*sigh* Anyway.

Iori, again, doesn't speak much. Seems to only have intermediary interventions, and serves as a “pair” for Daisuke and Rui in the snowball fight that we see at the end of the movie. A very beautiful scene, don't get me wrong, but only if we see it from the perspective of Ken and Miyako, and Hikari and Takeru. I'll talk about that now.

♡ Ken & Miyako

Ken and Miyako are two characters who seem to grow more together than apart within the movie's plot. Which is natural, given that we know at the end of 02 that they become in fact a couple, and that they build a family together in the future. Here we see the first steps towards their future as a couple.

As expected, nothing explicit or direct is given to us about the nature of their relationship, but we can understand that there is progress, especially by the end of the movie, before the snowball fight, when Miyako tells Ken something that seems extremely vague, but actually means something.

“Let's do it together! " What? I don't think they are aware yet. Ken also seemed very confused about it.

“ Keep thinking Ken, we have to find another solution. “ We also see Miyako trying to support Ken at that moment when they have to make a decision about the future of Ukkomon and the world.

Here comes what I said above: Love cannot be omissive. We cannot expect the least from those we love. If we know the potential of the person we have by our side, we have to support them. If we see that they are trying to go further, we must support their journey and be a source of advice and rest. Alone we can go faster, but with the right company we can certainly go further.

And I think this is where the movie touches on something really important.

It is in these small moments that we see that they really want to tell the audience something beyond, but we need to have a fine power of perception.

No conversation or comment is random, everything contributes to the story. Digimon Adventure has always been made up of metaphors and subjectivities, it is necessary to know how to interpret and be attentive.

In the midst of that dilemma of whether or not to defeat Ukkomon that we talked about a moment ago in relation to Ken and Miyako, we have another moment that I consider important between Takeru and Hikari, which for those who don't know the characters, can take it as a normal conversation of two people who know each other well. Too well, even.

♡ Takeru & Hikari

Keeping in mind their journey, and everything they went through together, is the key to understand the nature of the relationship they share now. But before that:

Much like Ken and Miyako, Takeru and Hikari do not exist separately in the plot. It's ridiculously difficult to separate them. If you talk about one, you have to talk about the other.

At the beginning we see them together in the city when the electronic devices break down, and this dynamic continues throughout the entire movie.

They practically always walk side by side, Hikari takes the front seat in Takeru's car, and even when they are talking to Rui and trying to understand what happened to him in his past, they were a nucleus apart from the others. Nothing new, really. More of the same. But it's in that conversation I spoke about earlier that we understand something that is even part of the main moral of the movie: the way they now communicate with each other now, is different.

Anyone who has followed Takeru and Hikari throughout the series knows that the main “problem” in their relationship has always been direct communication.

Exposing things to others as they are is scary. And none of them were good at doing that.

Deliberating about feelings, exposing what disturbs us, what distresses us, what we think of a certain attitude of the other person. That was always Takeru and Hikari's problem and what hindered the possible evolution of their friendship, into a real love relationship.

In Tri we discover that Hikari starts to look at Takeru differently. And we know that Takeru has concrete feelings for Hikari (Said by the actor who plays Takeru's voice) And then? It's done? Things… are much more complicated than that.

They first need to accept the situation in question (And I tell you this as someone who also developed a romantic relationship with a childhood friend. It's not easy. Trust me. It's far from easy!)

And far from being quick.

It requires a lot of deliberation mostly. Just accepting the fact that we see that person we grew up with differently, someone who has always been part of our life, and we can lose them. Just because we developed feelings. Is scary. There's a lot to lose. It's all or nothing. Especially when one side has trauma associated with romantic relationships. (remembering that Takeru's parents are divorced) it's even worse.

What seems to exist between them in The Beginning was the result of a long process. But effective, it seems to me. Whatever decision they made, it went… pretty well.

Takeru is completely against defeating Ukkomon, from the moment he realizes that this could also imply the disappearance of his Digimon partner.

He probably saw the suffering Taichi and Yamato went through when Agumon and Gabumon disappeared and the suffering he would go through if he lose Patamon... again. And he is extremely vocal and firm in what he says and what he thinks about all of that. Impulsive really.

Until Hikari intervenes. Which cuts through his catastrophic reasoning. She asks him to think, opening up a new perspective on the situation.

Here we have a conversation between them that is quite lengthy (compared to the fast action standard of the rest of the movie) in which Hikari tries her best to make Takeru use reason and not emotion in his deliberation on the situation.

Takeru who, remember, whenever “darkness” or “sacrifice” is mentioned, leaves his rationality aside, becomes blind with pain because of his past traumas.

Hikari's role here is almost the same as Miyako’s in Ken's case: calling to earth and calming Takeru, always in an understanding way, because you can see that she knows where that feeling comes from and that position initially adopted by him (and it is something which she can almost predict would happen, by the speed with which she responds) but she knows that he is better than those triggers that make him impulsively speak based on emotion and neglect reason.

It's about getting to know each other. Knowing how to talk to our person about the most difficult topics. Because it is necessary to strengthen your union. Predict reactions, and be there to calm them down, because you may even know that the person is not to blame for the feelings and traumas they carry, but believe that they are bigger than them. And expect the same from the other side.

The way Miyako knew that Ken could find a solution, he just needed to think a little more. Hikari understood perfectly where Takeru's impulsive reaction came from, but she knew that if she appeal to his racional side he would be able to think of a better alternative to the problem, which he thought would be the end of the world.

That's why I separated this analysis into groups (although the first one isn't... substantial) and decided to analyze the characters together, because that's what this movie is about.

It's about who you are with your people, and the bond you share with them. In a world so individualized, so selfish and so distant (largely because of technology, which distances us from each other), I found it a very necessary message.

And the role of adults? With children and more painful lives?

It is to understand that children are also humans. Who also think, and feel, and understand things. Just like them. Adults tend to forget that they were once children themselves.

We already saw this topic being developed in Adventure 02, but seeing Rui as an adult, reaching to his mother in the past, and drawing her attention to the fact that she neglects her son, is something very touching. Sometimes, we just need a wake-up call, and we can change the future. Ours, and our future with others.

The DigiDestined of 02 encouraged Rui not to give up on someone he loved, Ukkomon, because after all, he only acted the way he acted because he thought it would make Rui happier, even though he failed. Several times.

Ukkomon basically gave Rui everything he thought he needed, everything he wanted. But this is not always ideal.

He acted with his partner's happiness in mind, and this blinded him to the risks he was putting him into. He idealized their entire relationship, and everyone's relationship with him. Instead of being, real. And real things are never perfect.

Rui wanted friends? He gave him friends. He even reprogrammed his parents. They became manufactured humans. And the movie is about reality and accepting it as imperfect as it is.

Do you know what that reminded me of? That whole fantasy created by Ukkomon of “perfect world where Rui is never sad and everything is wonderful?” The fantasies in which the characters from 02 cast were trapped in at the end of the series. That world created with the characters’ deepest desires.

Takeru wanted his family united. Iori wanted his father back and to be able to show him the Digital Word. Miyako wanted attention. Ken… wanted to redeem himself. Hikari wanted peace. It's exactly the same thing.

Think about it with me: For example, Takeru's parents could’ve stay together, they could never have divorced, but they would still have problems. They would argue, and there would be conflicts. Which doesn't mean that this wouldn't traumatize their children even more. Maybe the divorce was in fact the best option for all four of them.

Ken felt he deserved the same suffering he inflicted on others. Would that really be the answer to appease his soul?

But none of it was real.

Not even Hikari's utopia of a world constantly at peace is real. Not even the absence of siblings in Miyako's life would solve anything. Things are not black and white and really, what we want is not always what we need.

Rui just needed to talk to Ukkomon and be sincere.

Where is Mimi tho?!

I will end with a few quick notes that I think are worth highlighting: First, the music and animation in general. As expected, they are excellent.

Very well done visually, appealing scenes, and the last snowball fight scene is so simple… but so delightful.

Life is made up of beautiful moments as well as tragic moments, light and darkness.

Did you notice that part of the movie takes place in a much dark environment, and when the main action is resolved, the movie gains light? I believe that is not just because!

Visually it can be very strong because there is blood, there is violence, there are physical wounds, it conveys the affliction in a very literal way.

Another thing that was expected to happen, but that probably wasn't even thought of properly when the Epilogue of 02 was made, was the problematic of whether or not everyone deserves, has enough morals and ethics, to have a Digimon partner.

How do you maintain peace between humans when you give them free access to machines of war and mass destruction? How do we build the world we see bz the end of 02 where everyone lives in peace even under these circumstances? Which is the the role of the government?

We'll probably need one more movie to find out.

Honestly, I hope you enjoyed this short (not... that short in fact) and sincere review. If I were to give stars, I would give the film 4/5 stars.

It could’ve been better, sure, if there was at least another half hour of animation.

But I don't complain. Despite that, I liked it. I cried, I laughed, just like I cried and laughed when I saw Digimon in my childhood, and that's everything for me. I was surprised by the message of the movie and the way they chose to visually convey it to us. Either way, I hope there's one more movie. To finally conclude the arc of all these characters, and finally, reach the epilogue of 02 (but in a dignified way please).

♡ Thank you once again Digimon ♡

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tobiasdrake · 18 days ago

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Digimon Adventure 01x52 - The Holy Swordsman! HolyAngemon / Piedmon's Last Jest

Previously on Digimon Adventure: Yamato and Sora picked the worst time to go spelunking. Fortunately, Jou vanquished Sora's insecurities through reason and logic and Gabumon vanquished Yamato's with indignant toothmarks. They returned just in time to stop Taichi from getting himself killed, as tends to happen when he's left unsupervised.

Now, together, WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon stand against Piemon. Which you may think will go either very poorly or very well, depending on which spoileriffic episode title you read.

We open on the Chosen Children taking cover behind a ridge, sending the two Ultimates out into the fight.

Yamato: Get him, MetalGarurumon! Taichi: WarGreymon! This all ends after we defeat Piemon! Piemon: But can you defeat me? Ahahahahahaha!

Piemon is very amused by his terrible comeback. He forms a ring of fire over his head while he mocks the children. MetalGarurumon is less amused, however, and takes the obvious bait.

MetalGarurumon: We will defeat you!

MetalGarurumon rushes Piemon. Piemon tosses out the ring of fire he was flagrantly telegraphing, which MetalGarurumon flies straight into. It constricts around his midsection, burning him and bringing him to the ground.

WarGreymon: MetalGarurumon! Piemon: And this one's for you.

Piemon summons a large ball, which emerges from the ground under WarGreymon's feet. He tries, futilely, to balance on it for a couple seconds before slipping and falling on top of MetalGarurumon. Piemon laughs merrily at his jest.

(WarGreymon, you can fly.)

In the dub, Tai uses the establishing shot to lead us in and remind us of what's happening.

Tai: Now that we have two Mega Digimon, let's destroy Piedmon once and for all! Matt: Go get him, MetalGarurumon! Tai: Come on, WarGreymon! Take care of this clown! Piedmon: So... I'm a clown...? Then I'll act like one! CLOWN TRICK!!! (Piedmon forms the ring of fire) MetalGarurumon: I'll get him! (lunges) Piedmon: Try jumping through this hoop! (Fire ring takes down MetalGarurumon) WarGreymon: Whoa, are you okay!? Piedmon: Why don't you join us? We're having a ball! (Balancing ball appears under WarGreymon) Piedmon: Hahahaha! Bravo! Sorry if I caught you off-balance! Round and round he goes; Where he lands, nobody knows! Hahahahahaha!

Dub Piedmon is chewing all of the scenery and it's fun. XD

In the original, MetalGarurumon flew straight into a telegraphed attack because he was baited by the worst comeback in history. In the dub, he's acting on Yamato's plan of "Get him". They changed his motive, but retained the pure essence of dumbness permeating the doomed charge.

Piemon's attacks here don't have a name in the original, but the dub calls them Clown Trick. Which makes more sense than last episode, where Clown Trick was their name for his finishing move, Ending Snipe.

I was initially a little peeved that Tai didn't say "Let's finish this clown once and for all," but then it turned out he was saving it for his next line. Calling someone a clown is a child-friendly burn in the U.S. so you obviously can't pass that up.

So, round 1 to Piemon. Time to regroup and figure out a plan for round 2.

Koushiro: He's toying with us. Taichi-san! Taichi: Hang back for now. Yamato: Agreed. Let's gauge the situation first.

How sick do you think Koushiro is hearing that? Taichi was telling him that all last episode and was nearly beaten to death for it. Fortunately, Taichi seems to have forgotten that he was on death's door between episodes so he's all good now.

Maybe MetalGarurumon brought him back to life too.

Piemon: I think it's time I struck the final blow. TRUMP SWORD!!! Taichi: Careful! We don't know where they might come from!

At the end of last episode, the boys vaporized this attack with a combined assault. But Piemon's got more where that came from, and this time he makes it trickier. The swords separate and flicker out of visibility to make it--

MetalGarurumon: Sensor Catch! WarGreymon, left by 45 degrees! WarGreymon: Got it.

Oh, never mind then. With MetalGarurumon backing him, WarGreymon easily deflects the first incoming sword with his Dramon Killer.

MetalGarurumon: Next, to the right! WarGreymon: Whuh!?

WarGreymon whips around in time to deflect not just one but all three of the other swords, flanking him to try and capitalize off the first's distraction.

(Clever trick. Clever clown trick, if you will. Ahaha ha ha.... Oh no, where did this sword come from?)

MetalGarurumon: I'll handle the rest.

The four swords regroup for their next pass. Firing blue beams from his snout, MetalGarurumon vaporizes them all.

In the dub, Izzy's exchange with Tai and Matt is less argumentative.

Izzy: He thinks this is just a big game! Tai: Well, I'm tired of playing around! Matt: Let's not be hasty. He wants us to make a mistake.

Here, it's Tai getting impatient and Matt coolly telling him to chill. In the original, it's Koushiro getting impatient with both Taichi and Yamato presenting a united front on where we go next.

You know. Because. Taichi and Yamato being united is kind of the big thing going on right now.

Piedmon: What's the matter? Don't want to play with Uncle Piedmon anymore? TRUMP SWORD!!! Tai: Be careful of the swords! Hey, wait... Some of those swords aren't real! MetalGarurumon: WarGreymon, I'm picking up the real swords on my sensors. Over to your right! WarGreymon: Cover me! (WarGreymon deflects the first sword. Then, without a word from MetalGarurumon, whips around and deflects the other three.) Piedmon: (triumphant) WAHA!!! MetalGarurumon: METAL WOLF SNOUT!!! (vaporizes the other swords)

Metal Wolf Snout. XD They are absolutely taking the piss with that one. I swear the dub is written like an Abridged Parody sometimes.

This fight is completely different. First off, the dub interprets the swords suddenly disappearing to mean that there are a bunch of extra illusory swords floating around alongside the four real ones.

I'm not going to bag on them for that. That's a cool idea and it still plays into the idea that MetalGarurumon's sensors will be the key factor in winning this exchange.

But... then the action kinda goes to shit. I don't like that they took out MetalGarurumon's precise instructions as well as him redirecting WarGreymon's attention to deflect the other three swords.

It's a small moment but super important for the theme of Yamato's arc. Remember "There are some things only you can do"? Both Yamato and recently Jou have been about it lately.

We saw WarGreymon face down Trump Sword on his own last episode, and he got decimated by it. He simply can't keep his attention on all of the swords at once. This moment is here to demonstrate how MetalGarurumon's unique abilities can push WarGreymon through an encounter that he can't win with his own strengths.

This is thematically important choreography.

From here, the boys go on the offensive.

MetalGarurumon: That attack won't work anymore!

WarGreymon nails Piemon with Gaia Force, sending him flying.

Taichi: We've got the upper hand! No more waiting around, Koushiro! Everyone, evolve and attack him together! Koushiro: Here we go, team. SUPER EVOLUTION!!! Tentomon: Let's go! Gomamon: Count me in! Andromon: Wait!

Andromon cuts in, warning the others. Piemon is up to something.

In the dub:

MetalGarurumon: Looks like the joke's on you, Piedmon. (WarGreymon hits Piedmon with Terra Force) Tai: Alright! Nice shot! Izzy, have everyone DIgivolve and attack! Izzy: You heard him, guys! Now it's our turn! Tentomon: I'm in! Gomamon: Me too! Andromon: Caution!

Taichi calls out Koushiro here because he and Koushiro have been having it out since last episode over keeping Tentomon in reserve. Koushiro's been chomping at the bit to get in this fight, so Taichi singles him out to say, "Okay, finally, now you can jump in."

The dub version of this is absurdly redundant. Tai tells Izzy to tell the team to evolve and fight, rather than just... telling the team to evolve and fight. They're all right there next to him; No need for a middleman.

In any case, Piemon's up to something. He holds out a simple white cloth.

Jou: What the? Is he waving the white flag to surrender? Sora: That pose... Is he saying there's no trick involved?

Calling Piemon out as setting up a magic trick, Sora seems to have hit the nail on the head. Piemon slowly turns the cloth back and forth, revealing it to be a plain white cloth with nothing on either side.

Taichi: Is he going to pull out a pigeon next? WarGreymon: PLAYTIME IS OVER!!! Piemon: Is it, now?

WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon rush Piemon. He tosses the cloth out in response. It expands in the air, growing into a large sheet that blankets the both of them. After a short crackle of pink energy, the sheet falls flat on the ground.

Taichi: WARGREYMON!!! Yamato: METALGARURUMON!!!

The boys run out onto the field to check the now-flat sheet. Piemon tosses another cloth, taking them as well. As before, it blankets the two boys and crackles with pink energy. Then it too goes flat.

Hikari: ONII-CHAN!!! Takeru: WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM!?!? Piemon: Allow me to show you!

Piemon lifts the two sheets and throws them into the air. The boys and their Digimon are gone! It's magic! What a performance!

Oh, shit, this is bad for us.

In the dub:

Joe: A white flag? Maybe he's trying to surrender to us. Sora: I don't trust him. I think he's got another trick up his sleeve. Tai: Hey, why don't you make yourself disappear? WarGreymon: PLAYTIME IS OVER!!! Piedmon: But I'm just getting started! (Digimon get cloth'd) Tai: WARGREYMON!!! Matt: METALGARURUMON!!! (The boys run out there and get cloth'd) Kari: What happened!? T.K.: I don't know.... Piedmon: (revealing) TA-DAAAAAAAA!!! Thanks for coming; Next show's at 7:30. You've been a GREAT crowd! Goodnight!

"Why don't you make yourself disappear!?" XD That one got me.

Also super love Piedmon's expanded last line. He's doing a fantastic job this episode.

On the original's side of things, I like the casual and unimpressed "Is it, now?" retort to WarGreymon over the more indignant response in the dub.

Now for the burning question: What exactly happened to Taichi, Yamato, and their Partners?

Jou: THEY VANISHED!!! Tentomon: WHAT'S GOING ON HERE!?!? Koushiro: (furious) WHERE DID YOU SEND TAICHI-SAN AND THE OTHERS!?!? Piemon: They're still right here, are they not?

Piemon feigns ignorance over Koushiro's accusation, then holds out his hand to show them what he means. As he opens his hand, he reveals a pair of keychains in the image of Taichi and Yamato.

Piemon: Look. And these ones too. Look!

Holding out his other hand, he reveals keychains of WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon.

Sora: H-He's turned them into dolls! Piemon: That's right. To reward them for trying so hard, I've made them part of my collection. Ahahahahahaha! So, who wants to go next?

What a dick! So, on a scale of 1 to Oh Shit, losing both of our Ultimates in the fight against the strongest Dark Master rates about a 13.

Yamato and Taichi's dramatic reunion after Yamato finally accepted himself and self-actualized made such a difference in this battle. XD

I jest. If Yamato hadn't come back, then Taichi and Agumon would have died last episode. Just because they didn't strike the final blow, that doesn't mean their reunion didn't matter.

Piemon may have had the keychain trick in his back pocket this whole time, but it was only Yamato joining the fight that pushed him hard enough to use it and sent us on to this next stage.

In the dub:

Joe: HE MADE THEM ALL DISAPPEAR!!! Tentomon: Well, at least he didn't saw them in half. Izzy: What did you do to Tai and Matt, Piedmon!? Piedmon: I hold the keys to their existence. And I need a place to put them, so I made a couple of keychains. (Piedmon reveals Tai and Matt) Piedmon: I think I'll hang these two on my backpack. (reveals the other two) Sora: What kind of sicko turns people into keychains!? Piedmon: I'm not a sicko! I'm a collector and these new items have such sentimental value to me. Ha! Haha! DAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Now, who wants to be next!?

Dub Piedmon is a lot more menacing here, rather than the playful tone that Piemon strikes. They also use his final declaration, "Who wants to be next!?" as the cliffhanger for the first commercial break. Good timing.

Cut to the fire cave. ...fire cave? Yes, that's right, the fire cave.

It's a cave that fire shoots out of. Alternating between horizontal flames and vertical flames pouring out of two separate holes. Gennai approaches, piloting that Mekanorimon from the flashback.

(...that was a Metal Empire goon that he temporarily hijacked. How are they friends now? There is an offscreen redemption arc that I need to see.)

Gennai: Centarumon, is this it? Centarumon: Oh! You managed to come? Yes, that's right. This is the Wall of Fire from the prophecy written in File Island's ancient ruins. (Gennai opens the hatch to see for himself) Gennai: But could it really have come through these flames? Centarumon: That's what the prophecy said. Gennai: Unbelievable!

Ominous! Obvious firewall pun aside, something has breached said firewall.

We, uh, need to revisit Centarumon's name for a second, because the situation there's a bit fuckier than I previously understood when I was doing his original episode.

So. Officially, his name is ケンタルモン Kentarumon. The intent here is clearly "Centaurmon". But. That's not. The correct spelling of Centaurmon. It should be ケンタウルモン Kentaurumon. In the process of turning this Romanized Greek word into Japanese, they missed a letter.

Wikimon calls him Centalmon while the dub goes for Centarumon, both for the same purpose. They replace the hard K with a soft C as is appropriate for the word "centaur" but leave the end misspelled. I'm siding with the dub on this one because the "Centaru" does a better job of looking like a misspelled "centaur" than "Cental" does.

The dub returns from commercial here to a bit more lighthearted tone than the original.

Centarumon: LOOK AT ALL THIS FIRE!!! This is terrible; I didn't bring a single marshmallow! Gennai: Centarumon, I came as fast as I could. Centarumon: Oh, Gennai! I'm glad you made it. Gennai: Is this it? Centarumon: Yes, this is the mystical wall of fire the ancient prophecy on File Island describes. Gennai: Really? What do you say we barbecue? (Gennai opens the hatch to see for himself) Gennai: Incredible! Is it really true that he had to make it across these flames? Centarumon: I know it sounds crazy, Gennai. But that's what the prophecy says. Gennai: Unbelievable!

This scene's a little dry, so the dub adds some levity. This has the effect of removing the ominous tone of the original, however. They're having a serious conversation about something bad that's about to happen, setting the stage for our final adversary.

The more casual tone fails to capture that vague sense of foreboding. We don't know what they're talking about but they're super friendly about it, like they're chatting about a friend's achievement.

"Oh, yeah, Tai jumped right through the electric fence without hesitation." "That's CRAZY!"

Neither of them seem too perturbed by the idea of something coming through here.

Back at the fight, Piemon has clipped his new keychains to his coat. They aren't attached to anything but instead awkwardly clipped to the fabric itself. The kids beat a hasty retreat.

Piemon: Hahahaha! Andromon: HIDE IN THAT CAVE!!!

The children run for a small cave entrance under the roots of one of the darkness realm's dead trees. However, Sora realizes that Andromon is not among them and turns back.

Sora: ANDROMON!!! Andromon: I'll hold him off. Sora: But-- Andromon: SPIRAL SWORD!!!

Before she can argue further, Andromon whips around and launches his Spiral Sword at Piemon. Piemon deflects the projectile with his sword, then closes distance.

For a short time, Andromon's metal armor allows him to deflect and parry Piemon's strikes.

Jou-senpai grabs Sora by the arm, forcing her to retreat.

Jou: RUN, SORA-KUN!!! DON'T LET ANDROMON'S GESTURE GO TO WASTE!!! Sora: (anguished) AUGH!!!

For Andromon, things are going well. He even manages to go on the offensive between blows, missing two punches but landing a solid hit with his third and pushing Piemon back. This buys him an opening to fire his Gatling Missiles,

For a moment, it seems as if they hit Piemon dead-on. But then Andromon sees the edges of the cloth coming down around him.

In the dub:

Piedmon: Huhuhahahaha HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Andromon: Get into that cave! (Sora realizes) Sora: ANDROMON!!! Andromon: Don't worry! I'll hold him off! LIGHTNING BLADE!!! (Andromon and Piedmon briefly fight) Sora: (anguished) Andromon! Joe: (pulling Sora) We've got to get out of here, Sora! Andromon's buying us more time! Sora: (wailing) WAAAAAUGH!!!

In the original, it's a little ambiguous as to what happened when the missiles landed. We didn't see Piemon get away, but the way he suddenly enshrouds Andromon in his disappearing cloth from an unseen location seems to imply an answer. He probably did that shonen anime thing where the dust clears and the bad guy's eerily not there because he dodged so hyper-fast you didn't notice.

But it's also possible he took the hit and tanked it with his Ultimate 'mon strength.

The dub has Piedmon grunt in pain when the missiles hit, indicating that not only did he tank the attack but that it hurt him. Still won the fight thanks to the cloth, though.

Inside the cave, the children find things are not so safe as they may have hoped.

Their path comes to the edge of an overhang above a great cavern. The path gives way in this massive room, with the only exit being a similar overhang across the ravine. Curtains are hung along the cavern's walls, with only a pair of trapezes offering a means of passage.

Tentomon: W-What is this place? Sora: It looks like a circus ring. Koushiro: It seems the path continues up ahead. Jou: But how do we get over there!?

Tentomon flies across, gesturing at the trapezes.

Tentomon: You'll have to swing across using these. Hurry up! Tailmon: Hikari, hold on tight! Hikari: Mhm!

Hikari holds onto Tailmon while the latter uses her natural agility to cross the trapezes. They make it across with ease. Tailmon deposits Hikari on the opposite cliff, then goes back for the others.

Takeru makes the jump to the first trapeze by himself. Jumping off at the midpoint, he grabs onto Tailmon's paws and she delivers him safely to the other side. Patamon flies across to join him.

Sora goes next, with Piyomon unhelpfully clinging to her back. Then Jou and Koushiro throw Gomamon to Tailmon, since the poor little sea mammal can't jump himself. Then, the last two on the ledge, Jou loads Koushiro up on the first trapeze to--

Piemon: You won't make it.

Piemon enters, holding Andromon's keychain in front of him.

Jou: ANDROMON!?!? Koushiro, GO!!!

Piemon casts one of his disappearing cloths, but in the moment before it takes him, Jou-senpai gives Koushiro a hard shove on the trapeze. Then he's gone.

Koushiro: (tears in his eyes) JOU-SAN!!!

It's for nothing. A second cloth wraps around Koushiro on the trapeze. By the time it reaches Tailmon, Koushiro is gone too. Tentomon furiously charges at Piemon.

Tentomon: WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO KOUSHIRO-HAN!?!? GYAH!!!

Predictably, Piemon takes him too.

Piemon: (singsong) Look, I ca~ught it, I ca~ught it! It's u~useless to run!

In the dub:

Tentomon: What kind of place is this!? Sora: It looks like a giant circus tent! Izzy: Whatever it is, I don't like it. Hey, there's a way out across this canyon! Joe: My only question is, how do we get to it!? Tentomon: (flying across) The only way is to use these swings like a trapeze artist. But don't look down! There's no net! Gatomon: Kari, hold me tight and don't let go! (Gatomon takes Kari across) Tentomon: Not so easy to fly, is it? (T.K. goes next; Gatomon grabs him) Gatomon: What do you carry in that backpack!? Bricks!? (Gatomon delivers T.K.; Sora's turn) Sora: Ow! Gatomon, you've gotta trim your claws! (Joe and Izzy launch Gatomon) Joe: Away you go! (Joe prepares to send Izzy) Piedmon: Don't you want to take your friend along? Joe: ANDROMON!?!? GO, IZZY!!! (Joe pushes Izzy and gets taken) Izzy: DAAAUGH!!! JOE!!! (The cloth takes Izzy next) Tentomon: Don't worry, Izzy! I'll save you! (Tentomon rushes in and gets taken) Piedmon: Now you see them and now you don't! They're dropping like flies.

The dub adds in some quips to break up the silence when the kids make the trapeze jump. Apart from that, it's mostly the same.

As a villainous boast, I like Piemon's entrance line asserting bluntly, "You won't make it." There's something bone-chilling about a monster stating matter-of-fact that it's too late to run and then immediately proving it when you try. 10 out of 10 on the horror movie scale.

Meanwhile, the playful taunt of "Don't you want to take your friend?" in the dub is also a great entrance line. Tonally, they're very different, but they're both solid "Oh shit he's here" announcements.

Meanwhile, there's one last person who's finally ready to join this party.

Mimi's nakama doesn't get to "But how did we get up here?" their way onto the big bowl-shaped platform at the top of Spiral Mountain or fly on Birdramon's talons. No, they have to fucking climb with ropes.

We join Mimi with Lilimon shoving her butt to try and help her climb.

Lilimon: Nnggh... Yegh... You're too heavy... I can't push you up! Mimi: Liar! I'm not that fat, am I?

It seems Mimi has amassed a small army of Gekomon and Otamamon now, not just the pair. Some have made it to the top and are working at pulling up the ropes, but many more cling to ropes around her.

Gekomon: Mimi! It looks like the fight's already started geko! Mimi: There's so many of us! Isn't there someone in our nakama who can fly!?

As Mimi exclaims that question, the shadow of Unimon passes over her and the many hanging Gekomon and Otamamon.

In the dub:

Lillymon: Ugh! Mimi, I'm getting exhausted! Mimi: Really? That's strange; I feel fresh as a daisy. Gekomon: Mimi, get up here! It looks like the battle's started! Mimi: Oh, it's just my luck! I finally bring all the reinforcements and all they want to do is hang around!

This is a goofy scene in both versions, with the Lilimon exchange having punchlines predicated in Mimi's vanity in the original and her ditzy screwball tendencies in the dub.

But for the second part, the dub's gag doesn't really engage with the scene. She riffs on the animation, with Unimon's passing shadow now entirely divorced from the context of the scene.

Back in the trapeze room, Piemon inspects his new keychains.

A pair of sparkles under his eyes reveals that Koushiro's keychain is locked in the crying expression he had when he was taken.

Piemon: My my, you're still crying even after becoming a doll? You must be lonely without the rest of your nakama. Just wait; You'll all be together soon.

Skipping the trapezes, Piemon leaps across the gorge in a single bound. He pursues the Children into what appears to be a building interior, with brick walls and wooden floors. He calls out into the building, his voice and his footsteps echoing through.

Piemon: I told you it's useless to try and escape. Why not accept your fate and come quietly?

The children don't answer. They're hiding beneath the floor, silently waiting for him to pass.

Piemon: (receding footsteps) That's strange. Maybe they're over here.... Sora: (whispers) I think he's gone to another room--AHHHH!!!

Without warning, Piemon's sword thrusts down through the floor, splitting the air right between Sora and Hikari. The girls shriek, flinching away from the attack.

Piemon: HEY, I FOUND YOU!!!

He conjures his other swords to stab down through the floor as well, scattering the children who are forced to try and dodge in their tight confines. Hikari, terrified, buries herself in Sora's arms.

Piemon: Try this! (more stabs) Hikari: IT'S OVER!!! Sora: NO, IT'S NOT!!! Piemon: (jovially) It might be.

Nobody asked your opinion. XD

In the dub, Piedmon doesn't comment on Koushiro's tears. Additionally, as usual, the sound design misses some details. His echoing footfalls setting the isolating tone of the scene are gone, as is the eerie silence punctuated by a lack of music. He steps silently and the usual "We're in danger" BGM plays.

Piedmon: (mocking) "Hello, my name is Izzy and I'm very smart. Although I didn't know how to stop me and my friends from being made into keychains!" Wahahahaha, I love a good puppet show! (Piedmon jumps across) Piedmon: Ah, so you want to play hide and go seek? Mm, okay, I love a good game! Now, let's see... if I were a little pest, where would I hide? ...maybe you're in this room over here.... Sora: (whispers) I think we're out of danger for now--WHOA!!! (She is stabbingly wrong) Piedmon: PEEK-A-BOO!!! (More stabbing) Sora: RUN FOR IT!!! Piedmon: OLLY OLLY OXEN FREE!!! (stab stab)

Aww, they cut the funny exchange between Hikari, Sora, and Piemon.

"Olly olly oxen free" is an old phrase used during children's games like hide and seek, back in the day before children were banished indoors by a changing society that no longer welcomes them in public. It indicates that the game is over and you can come out now.

Piemon raises his sword for another strike. Thankfully, he's not the only one offering unsolicited opinions at this time.

Angewomon: HOLY ARROOOOOOOW!!!

(I love that she makes a finger gun when she shoots Holy Arrow. I never noticed that before. It's a consequence of using the joint where her thumb connects with her hand to steady the arrow while she aims it, I think, but the result is fantastic.)

Angewomon's arrow strikes the blade, shooting the sword out of Piemon's hand.

Piemon: What the--!? Angewomon: Run, Hikari! Garudamon: Hurry, Sora! Hikari: Angewomon! Sora: Garudamon!

Standing there excitedly shouting their names is neither running nor hurrying. Let's see some hustle, ladies. A man is trying to stab you. :P

Garudamon and Angewomon engage Piemon to try and buy time. Garudamon hits him dead on with her Shadow Wing, which he casually tanks. He does, however, move when Garudamon tries to crush him with her talon. She buries herself in the weak floorboards, and he lays down one of his disappearing cloths on her from there.

With Garudamon out of the picture, Piemon turns his attention to Angewomon. His Trump Swords pin her to the wall by her wings, and he collects her from there.

(Speaking of small details I just noticed, the Trump Swords have different handles. In the shot of Angewomon getting pinned, you can see a heart, a diamond, and a club. Presumably the other one is a spade. That's neat.)

The dub does a great job with the surprise Celestial Arrow too, though they might have overlooked that the arrow doesn't hit Piemon directly. That's a very tiny thing; It's interesting to me that they change his reaction of shock and surprise to a pain grunt.

Piedmon: NGGHH! Angewomon: RUN, KARI!!! Garudamon: Hurry, Sora! Kari: It's Angewomon! Sora: Garudamon!

From there, the fight plays out with no extra dialogue or censorship.

Sora, Hikari, and Takeru emerge from the floor in another style of building entirely. They crawl out from under a huge floor tile in time to hear Angewomon's final scream echo down the halls.

Sora: Takeru-kun! Takeru: W-What? Sora: Take Hikari-chan and get out of here. Takeru: Eh!? But what about you? Sora: Listen to me very carefully. There's no question at this point that Garudamon and Angewomon have both been made into dolls. You are the only one who can protect Hikari-chan now. Do you understand?

She's right. They have two Digimon left: Gomamon and Patamon, and Gomamon's Partner is already gone so he can't evolve. Takeru is the last Chosen Child standing with the ability to fight.

Takeru: But Sora, you-- Sora: Don't worry about me. Do you understand? Takeru: (reluctantly) ...yeah. Sora: No matter what happens, you have to get out of here. Takeru: (more confidently) Got it. I'll make sure to keep Hikari-chan safe.

Sora turns Takeru around and gives him a push to get him going.

Sora: Now, hurry up and go! Takeru: Let's go, Hikari-chan!

The youngest children make their retreat, leaving Sora to face Piemon alone.

In the dub:

Sora: T.K., come here. T.K.: What is it? Sora: I want you to take Kari and get out of here! T.K.: But what about you? Sora: Listen to me, there isn't much time. Piedmon has the rest of our friends and if he gets us, we're doomed. T.K., please, you're the only one who can protect Kari. You have to be brave. Now get going! T.K.: I won't leave you! Sora: Don't worry about me; I'll be fine! T.K.: (reluctantly) ...alright. Sora: No matter what happens, just keep running. T.K.: Okay, Sora. I promise I'll do whatever I can to protect Kari. (Sora turns T.K. around and gets him moving.) Sora: Right. Hurry, go! T.K.: Come on, Kari! Let's go!

"If he gets us, we're doomed" is a terrible line but setting that aside.

In the original, there is no question that Sora is going to sacrifice herself. She lets that hang over the conversation, engaging with Takeru with the expectation that he's strong enough to face that reality.

She's still clearly acting with intent to protect the youngest among them, but she talks to him as one of their nakama.

Dub Sora lies to T.K., adding in the false reassurance that she'll be okay so that he doesn't have to think about her fate. She also adds in the line, "You have to be brave," which isn't something that Takeru needs to be told. He faced down an angry puppet with a magnum revolver and won. His bravery is already well-established.

Sora's conversation with T.K. has the vibe of a parent's last words to their helpless child in a disaster film or something before they die. You have to be strong now, keep your sister safe, I'll meet up with you later (lies), get going and don't look back. Which, as an interpretation of Sora and how she interacts with younger children, is a vibe that works pretty well.

But it comes at the cost of once again downplaying T.K.'s strength and conviction in a scene that's partially about his strength and emotional fortitude. This late in the game, he doesn't need to be lied to and puffed up. He knows what the stakes are and what's about to happen to Sora, and he can make the hard choice.

While Takeru, Hikari, and Patamon go on ahead, Gomamon makes a few short hopes to try and keep up, then stops. He looks back at Sora.

Gomamon: Sora! I'll fight with you. Sora: Don't be stupid. You can't even evolve, so what can you do here?

Harsh. Uh, he can summon infinite fish out of seemingly thin air even without a clear source of water. I'm not saying that's going to be enough against Piemon. but I'd give it better odds than your proficiency at soccer and adequacy at floral arrangement.

Maybe if we throw enough fish at PIemon, some of them will manage to swim away with his swords. He'll probably summon new ones but it will feel like we're doing something!

Gomamon: Sora! Sora: If you get made into a doll here, how will you face Jou-senpai and the others later, knowing that they risked their lives to protect you!? Now get out of here! HURRY!!!

Reluctantly, Gomamon turns back around to go. But it's too late. Piemon bursts through the floor, holding up Angewomon and Garudamon's keychains.

Piemon: Hahahahahahaha! Did you not have time to run away? Well, it's only a matter of time before you become dolls anyway. Gomamon: THAT WON'T HAPPEN!!!

Suddenly, Gomamon lunges for Piemon's coat, snatching Yamato's keychain away.

(Maybe if you attached them to something sturdier than coat fabric, this wouldn't have happened to you.)

Gomamon: SORA, CATCH!!! Sora: (catch) TAKERU-KUN!!!

Gomamon throws the keychain to Sora. Sora prepares to throw it at the same time Piemon prepares a vanishing cloth. In a difference of microseconds, Sora wins the quick-draw and sends the keychain onward an instant before he takes her.

(That shuts me up for shit-talking her athleticism. Her sport doesn't even let you throw things like that! That's raw ability.)

This should be a meaningless gesture. Takeru and Hikari went around and a corner a moment ago so Sora should not have line-of-sight on them anymore. Fortunately, because a plot hole has opened up to warp time and space, Takeru and Hikari are now straight ahead down the path trying to open a huge door. Takeru can not only see what she's doing but receive the keychain in his hands.

(Did the creators change their minds mid-scene and forget to alter Takeru and Hikari's escape path?)

In the dub:

Gomamon: Sora, I wanna stay and fight with you! Sora: Don't be ridiculous! You can't even Digivolve without Joe so go before Piedmon gets here! Gomamon: But Sora-- Sora: Gomamon, Joe risked his neck to protect us and if Piedmon turns you into a doll, his sacrifice will mean nothing! Now please help T.K. and Kari; There's not much time! NOW GO!!! (Piedmon arrives) Piedmon: WAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Look, I only need five more keychains for my collection and then I'll have the whole set! Gomamon: NOT IF I CAN HELP IT!!! (Gomamon swipes Matt's keychain) Gomamon: SORA!!! Sora: (catch) T.K., CATCH!!!

XD Piedmon excitedly sharing his new keychains like a neurodivergent kid info-dumping about his hobby, to one of the "keychains" he's trying to collect. Perfect. Perfectly written, perfect delivery, 10 out of 10. Hahahahaha.

With Sora gone, Piemon turns his attention to Takeru and Hikari.

Piemon: Now, where do you think you're going?

Piemon asks, and the camera slowly pans down to show Gomamon beneath his boot. It's unclear if he's talking to Gomamon or to the kids, but he isn't wrong either way.

They don't answer him. They push the huge door until finally it opens, releasing them back outside. Unfortunately, all that awaits out there is a balcony overlooking the realm of darkness far below. They're up in the observatory now.

Patamon: Oh no! Takeru: It's a dead end! Hikari: What now!? Piemon: Ahahahahahaha!

Piemon laughs us all the way to the commercial break.

The dub riffs off Piedmon having Gomamon underfoot.

Piedmon: In order to succeed, sometimes you have to step on people along the way! Wahahaha! (T.K. and Kari get the door open) T.K.: Quick, let's run! (Balcony) Kari: We just ran out of room! T.K.: This isn't the escape plan I had in mind.... Patamon: Now, what!? T.K.: Can we jump? Kari: It's too far! Piedmon: Nahahahahahaha! Welcome to the dead end! Come be a keychain like your friend.

"Can we jump?" Yes, T.K. Don't worry, the jagged rocks will break our fall. Among other things.

Piedmon is having so much fun right now. XD

We return from commercial to Takeru and Hikari trying to make plans.

Hikari: W-What do we do? Takeru: We have to go down. Hikari: It's too high! I won't make it down without falling. Takeru: But we can't climb up.... Patamon: Hey, Takeru? What's that?

Patamon calls Takeru's attention to a woven basket with a lid sitting in the center of the balcony.

Takeru: What is that?

Takeru approaches the basket, pulling off the lid to reveal a rope coiled up inside of it.

Takeru: Ah! It's a rope! We can use this to get down!

Unfortunately, the rope has other plans. Of its own volition, it uncoils from the basket and ascends into the sky, climbing up into the dark clouds above.

Both Kids: Wha--!? Patamon: Ah! Takeru: What is this!? Hikari: How far is it going to go? Takeru: It keeps going up....

Finally, the rope seems to reach its destination, affixing to somewhere beyond the clouds and holding tight.

So. You know. That seems super untrustworthy but desperate times and all....

The dub skips the commercial break and keeps the scene right on going.

Kari: We can't just sit here! T.K.: We've got no choice; We have to climb down! Kari: It's too high, T.K.! If we slip, we're goners! T.K.: Kari, we're going to have to try! Patamon: Look, T.K.! Where'd that basket come from? T.K.: Who put that there!?

Uh, that basket has been sitting on the balcony since they got out here. Though we don't know exactly what it is, we see it a couple times in wide shots of the balcony. Its origins are not the mystery; Its contents are.

The dub accidentally invented a mysterious benefactor whose identity will never be revealed because the basket was here the whole time.

T.K.: A rope! We can use it to climb down the side of the mountain. (Rope ascends) T.K.: Uwah!? Patamon: Whoa! I didn't know you were a snake charmer, T.K. Kari: Do you think we should climb it? T.K.: I dunno. Mom always said never to take candy or rope from strangers.

That is a weird thing for her to specify. Sound advice, but still weird. XD

Tonally, these quips don't vibe well. This is the height of tension. We could die sort-of in the next ten seconds.

Takeru tests the rope to see if it will hold.

Takeru: It's fine. The rope is holding steady. Alright, climb up, Hikari-chan. Hikari: But.... Takeru: Don't worry. Just climb. Hikari: (reluctantly) Okay....

Hikari takes the rope and begins to climb, with Takeru following up after. They only make it part of the way before Piemon blows open the doors, and our very last Digimon steps up to fight.

Patamon: I'll hold off Piemon!

Takeru's face says everything you need to know about this plan.

In the dub, T.K. backtracks over his awkward comical naysaying a second ago.

T.K.: (thinking) What am I thinking? We have to climb it! Sora told me to be brave no matter how scared I get. T.K.: (frightened) Looks dangerous; You go first. Kari: (disappointed) Oh. (Kari starts climbing) T.K.: That's it, Kari! Pretend you're in gym class! (T.K. climbs up after her) T.K.: LISTEN!!!

...nothing happens after T.K. shouts listen. We hang silently on them for a moment, then cut from there to Piedmon slowly approaching the doors. It takes about ten seconds between T.K. saying that and Piedmon blowing off the door.

So unless he could somehow hear Piedmon's soft, barely audible footsteps through the very heavy door from halfway up the rope, I have absolutely no idea what he wanted Kari to listen to.

Piedmon: OPEN!!! (Piedmon blows the door off) Piedmon: I must quit this. It costs me a fortune in new doors! Patamon: Keep climbing! I'll distract him!

So, yeah, the dub of this scene sucks. T.K. lets Kari go up first because he's too scared to do it himself. That sucks. I think they're trying to do the "(eyeroll) My hero, how brave" gag, but either way, it's pretty much the peak of the dub disempowering Takeru.

The reason Takeru sends Hikari up first is pretty clearly so that she can be the first to reach safety. He's doing what Andromon, Jou, Koushiro, and Sora all did before him: Sending someone else ahead first. So that if only one of them makes it out, it will be Hikari.

Evolving, Angemon throws himself into melee with Piemon.

Angemon's always been fantastic at hitting above his weight class, able to hang with the Perfects in fights with Vamdemon and his goons, and he shows it again here. He parries Piemon's sword strikes with his Holy Rod before taking a hit to the side and backing off. That's when things happen quickly.

Piemon tries to follow up by throwing a sword into Angemon's face. Angemon ducks under the blade and counters, coming in and slamming the tip of his Holy Rod into Piemon's forehead to knock him off-balance.

Before Piemon can recover, Angemon closes distance. Piemon jumps to try and escape, but Angemon swings his rod and slams the side of it into Piemon's gut. The hit takes the wind out of him, sending him stumbling for a second before he falls on his back.

Takeru: Now, Angemon!

With Piemon on his back, Angemon takes the opportunity to back off and prepare his signature attack, Heaven's Knuckle. But, before it can hit, Piemon puts up an energy shield and pushes the attack back, repelling it back into Angemon himself.

Hikari: Angemon!

The dub censors a bit of this fighting. Piemon landing a hit on Angemon and Angemon thocking Piemon in the forehead are both cut. After Angemon's parries, they cut to the sword toss, then cut the scenes together to segue straight into Angemon hitting Piemon in the gut.

Credit where it's due, the splicing's pretty good. It comes through like it's one fluid motion; Angemon ducks under the sword and then swings his rod and hits Piemon's gut. If you didn't know another move was supposed to be between these two, it'd be easy to miss that they did anything. Still, I'm left once again wondering what makes certain hits acceptable but others not.

T.K.: You get him, Angemon! Piedmon: CLOWN TRICK!!! (Piedmon repels Hand of Fate) Kari: Angemon, no!

So I guess this, too, is Clown Trick. What a versatile attack.

Kinda surprised the vanishing cloth isn't Clown Trick, now that I think about it.

Once Piemon's retaken control of the fight, he puts a hard stop to it.

He's got another bolt of energy waiting when Angemon lands, hitting him dead center and throwing him from the balcony. As Angemon falls, Piemon's Trump Swords pass through at once, clipping his wings.

Takeru: ANGEMON!!!

Leaving some feathers behind, Angemon falls from the observatory, hitting the ground far below. His Holy Rod clatters to the ground beside him.

Takeru: (crying) ANGEMOOOOOON!!! Hikari: Takeru-kun! Takeru: Hikari-chan!? Takeru: (thinking) I have to pull it together, or I'll scare Hikari-chan. Takeru: Angemon will be fine, so keep climbing! Hikari: Okay....

Hikari starts climbing again, but it's too late now. One of Piemon's Trump Swords slashes the rope over her head. There is no escape now.

Hikari: AHHHH!!! Takeru: Hikari! Piemon: I told you, there's nowhere you can run to. Hahahahahaha!

Panning down, we see that Piemon has begun to climb the rope after them. They can't go forward and Piemon is behind. There truly is nowhere left to go.

In the dub, Piedmon calls his Trump Sword attack when the blades hit Angemon.

T.K.: DON'T GIVE UP!!! (Angemon falls) T.K.: ANGEMON, NO!!! Kari: I'm scared! T.K.: It's okay! T.K.: (thinking) Great, now Kari's afraid. I can't let her see that I am too. I've got to be brave! T.K.: Angemon will be fine, but you've got to keep on climbing! Don't let that joker Piedmon scare you! Kari: Okay.... (Sword slashes the rope) Kari: AHHHH!!! Piedmon: You've reached the end of your rope! Ahahahahaha!

Sorry, T.K., but I think that joker Piedmon is doing a pretty good job of scaring her. Boy practically asked for this to happen.

Since coming out onto the balcony, the quips have been pretty bleh, but I liked Piedmon's rope quip.

Piemon climbs the rope, closing in on the two helpless children.

Angemon lifts his face out of the dirt, straining weakly.

Angemon: Takeru....

But it's too late for Takeru. Piemon grabs him by the ankle, pulling him downward on the rope.

Takeru: Augh! Piemon: See, I've caught you! Hikari: Takeru-kun!

Hikari turns around, grabbing onto Takeru's wrist to keep him from falling.

Takeru: Let go of my hand! He'll get you too, Hikari-chan! Hikari: No, I'll never let go! Piemon: Hehehehe... THEN FALL TOGETHER!!!

Piemon releases Takeru's leg and swings his blade, severing the rope behind the pair. With no magic rope above and no magic rope below, Takeru and Hikari scream and plummet to their doom, with Hikari still hanging onto Takeru's wrist.

Angemon: TAKERU!!! HIKARI!!! Piemon: NYAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

Then Hikari loses her grip and they fall separately.

In the dub:

Angemon: T.K...! (Piedmon grabs T.K.'s leg) T.K.: NO!!! Piedmon: Sorry if I gave you a wedgie! Kari: Let go of him! (Kari grabs T.K.'s wrist) T.K.: Let go, Kari! Or he'll get you too! Kari: No, I won't let you go, T.K.! Piedmon: Sounds like you two are falling for each other! (slash) Angemon: T.K.!!! KARI!!! Piedmon: Ahahahahahahaha!

As T.K. and Kari fall, the dub finally takes their second commercial break.

Piedmon, don't ship it. They're eight.

I mean. People do ship it. It's one of Adventure's most popular ships. I think it might be the most popular, at least since 02 took Tai/Sora out behind the sports shed and gave it the Old Yeller. But wait until one of the shows where they're older!

As Takeru and Hikari fall to their doom, Takeru suddenly notices his new fashion accessory.

Takeru: AHHHHHH!!! Takeru: (thinking) It's hopeless!

The Yamato keychain clipped to his backpack jingles as he falls. He opens his eyes, turning his head to see where the sound is coming from. Unclipping Yamato, he holds his brother in his hand and examines him.

Takeru: (thinking) Onii-chan....

Takeru hears the sound of his brother's harmonica, and Yamato's voice. It's unclear if he's imagining what Yamato would say to him in this situation, or if the keychain is communicating with him in some way.

Yamato: Takeru. Don't lose hope. Takeru: Onii-chan! Yamato: As my little brother, you can't give up no matter what. You have to muster all of your strength, until the very end. Takeru: I won't give up! Until the end, I'll never give up! If we die, then this world and our world will die out with us! THAT'S WHY WE CAN'T GIVE UP!!! ANGEMON!!!

Over in the dub, as usual, they don't pick up on the little details buried in sound effects. Rather than the jingling of Yamato's keychain, they write in their own reason for T.K. to suddenly notice it.

T.K.: (thinking) I'm sorry I let you down, Matt! ...wait a second! (T.K. grabs the keychain off his backpack) T.K.: (thinking) Matt! What would he say? Matt: T.K.! Don't ever give up. T.K.: ...Matt!? Matt: You can do it, T.K. I have faith in you. But it won't help if you don't have faith in yourself. No matter what happens, you have to fight to the very end. T.K.: I promise you, Matt! I'll never give up the fight! Kari: AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! T.K.: If I don't do it, then this world and our world will be destroyed! I have to do it for Matt, for Angemon, for everybody!

I see the way you carefully talked around the phrase "If we die" but it works. I also love how they opted to have Kari scream for four straight seconds rather than find a way to pad the dialogue out, since they had too many lip flaps to pace it the same way as the original.

Though I am a little irked at the line, "I have faith in you but it won't help if you don't have faith in yourself." Filthy rich coming from Matt when, historically, the problem was always Matt's faith in him, not his own faith in himself. More deflection, I guess.

In any case, I hope that pep talk was real because it shows remarkable character growth and pays off Yamato's cave revelations in a big way. Whether it is or not, Takeru refuses to surrender even in the face of the impossible. And finally, at long last, the Crest of Hope shines.

Angemon: (reinvigorated) TAKERU!!!

Takeru's hope fills Angemon with power, and it's time for the very last new evolution sequence of the first Adventure. Angemon CHO-SHINKAAAAAA!!!

HolyAngemon catches Takeru and Hikari in his arms.

Takeru: Angemon Super-Evolved!

HolyAngemon says nothing in reply. He smiles down at Takeru, then ferries the children safely to the ground below. Time for the rundown.

HolyAngemon is a Perfect-stage Vaccine-type Archangel Digimon. From what I can tell, HolyAngemon was created for the anime. Specifically, the earliest appearance for him that I can find is the anime's tie-in Digivice V-Pet, released in July of 1999 and featuring evolution chains for all seven original Partner Digimon going up to Perfect.

Which is right around the time the kids were invading Nanomon's pyramid and finishing off the Etemon arc. Japan does not give a fuck about spoilers. "We're going into the arc where everyone gets Perfect evolutions. Buy this toy to find out early what they all are! If you don't buy it, don't worry, we'll put them all in the new closing credits."

He wouldn't make his first appearance in the regular V-Pet series until Virus Busters, released one week after this episode debuted, nor in the TCG until November of 1999 when the kids were fighting Vamdemon's Odaiba siege in Tokyo. So he's in a kind of a funny place where the TCG got to him before the anime did but the anime kinda got to him before the TCG.

Narrator: HolyAngemon. On his left arm is his Beam Shield. On his right, the holy sword Excalibur. An archangel Digimon with eight glittering wings. His special attack is Heaven's Gate.

If you're hoping for more information on what "Beam Shield" means, I have none. Those words are in English. That's just what it's called. I guess it blocks beams? He has Excalibur, though, so that's pretty neat. It's a laser sword that comes out of a wrist-mounted beam emitter.

So Excalibur is a beam, but the Beam Shield is not a beam. It's a hard chunk of material that's more of a pauldron than a shield.

I have no idea what's going on with this Digimon.

In the dub, he's called MagnaAngemon. Because... Angemon is fine but Holy is forbidden, I guess. Same reason Holy Arrow had to become Celestial Arrow. The word "magna" is Latin for "great" or "large".

This makes both of their names funny. The redundancy of "holy angel" implies that his prior form has secretly been Insufficiently Holy Angemon this whole time so y'know maybe he should work on that. Meanwhile, in America: "Big Angemon. The biggest."

T.K.: Angemon! I knew you could Digivolve! (MagnaAngemon sets T.K. and Kari down) MagnaAngemon: (rundown) I am MagnaAngemon. I have eight shining wings and a Beam Shield. I wield the mighty sword Excalibur and my devastating attack is the Gate of Destiny.

Between "Hand of Fate" and "Gate of Destiny", it seems the team has settled on predestination as their go-to swap-out for Heaven.

With the children safe, HolyAngemon turns to confront Piemon.

Piemon: What.

Piemon angrily throws a vanishing cloth to capture HolyAngemon.

HolyAngemon: Take the sword of judgment!

Excalibur slices through the cloth. Because it is cloth and Excalibur is a sword.

(This is what the others were missing: Sharp edges. Always bring a pocket knife on survival excursions, kids. ...super embarrassing for WarGreymon, though.)

With his second swing, HolyAngemon slashes Piemon's midsection, cutting all the keychains free and sending Piemon hurtling to the ground below.

In the dub:

Piedmon: Chew on this! (cloth throw) MagnaAngemon: I'm not hungry. (MagnaAngemon slashes the keychains free) MagnaAngemon: I guess my sword trumps yours.

"Chew on this!" "I'm not hungry!" is a pretty weak replacement for a line as raw as "Take the sword of judgment!"

But then he comes back with the Trump Sword burn and that's fantastic.

As an aside, I love what the dub does with MagnaAngemon's voice. HolyAngemon's voice sounds about the same as Angemon's in the original, but a bit sharper and more commanding. MagnaAngemon's voice gets a lot deeper and has an eerie calm about it. Additionally, his words sound artificially synthesized and his lines echo, as if they were coming through a speaker in an empty cave or something.

It all comes together to give MagnaAngemon a profound "Booming Voice of God" resonance in his line deliveries.

Watching Piemon fall, HolyAngemon does not follow up. He prioritizes healing the party instead.

HolyAngemon brings the keychains down to ground, then calls Holy Disinfection. His wings shimmer with rainbow energy, shining a healing light on the keychains that purges them of this strange status ailment.

Taichi: Guys... We're back to normal!

OH GOD THEY WERE CONSCIOUS DURING ALL THAT. Well, that's fucking horrifying.

Again avoiding the H word, the dub calls this Magna Antidote.

MagnaAngemon: Now to bring our friends back to normal. MAGNA ANTIDOTE!!! (MagnaAngemon heals everyone) Tai: Wow! What a weird dream! I had an incredible urge to carry some keys.

Time for some team reunions.

Takeru, Hikari, Yamato, and Taichi run to each other, both pairs of siblings cheerfully embracing one another.

Takeru & Hikari: ONII-CHAN!!! Taichi: HIKARI!!! Yamato: TAKERU!!! Thank you! You were amazing. Takeru: Only because my big brother was there to cheer me on! Yamato: (confused) Eh?

I think Yamato's confusion confirms that Takeru was imagining what he'd want Yamato to say to him. He was having a one-sided conversation with a conscious Yamato doll, who only saw Takeru suddenly burst out with a surge of confidence.

Tentomon, meanwhile, gushes over HolyAngemon.

Tentomon: WHOA!!! When did you evolve!? You look so cool-- Piemon: Haha, is that right? Tentomon: EE-YEE-YEE-YEEP!!!

Angemon whips around in the direction that voice came from, while Tentomon falls to the ground in a flailing panic. This isn't over yet.

In the dub:

Tai & Matt: KARI!!! / T.K.!!! Kari & T.K.: TAI!!! / MATT!!! Matt: You did a great job, T.K. T.K.: If it wasn't for your advice, I don't think I would have been able to do it! Matt: Huh? Tentomon: Wow! When did Angemon digivolve!? You look great! Turn around, let me see! MagnaAngemon: Very well. (MagnaAngemon turns to the side looking worried. A second later, Tentomon flails and falls to the ground.) Tentomon: AUGH!!!

The animation doesn't line up with the joke the dub's trying to make here. But the idea of the gag seems to be that MagnaAngemon turned around at Tentomon's behest, inadvertently swatting Tentomon with his wings and knocking him to the ground.

Piemon, furious, storms towards the children.

Piemon: I had planned on mercifully keeping you as my dolls instead of killing you, BUT YOU'RE SO DETERMINED TO DIE!!! SO BE IT!!! I'LL GIVE YOU WHAT YOU WANT!!! DAHHHHHH!!!

I mean. He says that but "mercifully keeping them as dolls" was Plan B after murdering them all one-by-one failed. I don't think Taichi's barely conscious near-corpse at the end of last episode appreciated Piemon's mercy very much.

Piemon raises his hand, and the ground erupts all around them. Countless strange little gremlin Digimon emerge, filling the sky and the terrain around them.

Tentomon: GYAH!!! They're coming out everywhere! What are these creatures!?

To answer his question, those swarming creatures are the rather bluntly named Evilmon, an Adult-stage Virus-type Imp Digimon. They're from the Sega Saturn V-Pet, the same one that debuted Angewomon and LadyDevimon.

Narrator: Evilmon. A darkness-type Digimon that loves to fight. Their special attack is Nightmare Shock.

And there's like a hundred of them so. Y'know. Have fun with that.

The dub names them Vilemon. Uh, okay. Evilmon may be a bit on the nose but Vilemon isn't that much better.

Piedmon: So, those DigiDestined think the Dark Masters are that easily defeated, hmm? Hahahahaha! Well, guess again! You're not the only ones with an army of friends that can help you! TA-DA!!! (Piedmon summons the Vilemon swarm) Piedmon: This is more fun than a barrel of flying monkeys! Piedmon: (rundown) DigiDestined, meet the Vilemon! Their Nightmare Shock will give you a rude awakening!

Very different vibe with Piedmon. Piemon is losing his shit right now, ranting furiously and vengefully about how he's going to slaughter them all. Piedmon, on the other hand, remains cool and collected, and is still making merry jokes.

He also isn't talking directly to them, courtesy of the reframing from last scene, so they only seem to become aware that he's still around when the Vilemon swarm moves in around them.

Speaking of which, the swarm of Evilmon surrounds the children. There are so many of them.

Jou: We're surrounded! Koushiro: There's nowhere left we can run. Takeru: But we aren't going to lose! Yamato: Yeah! We're turning this around! Taichi: That's right! As long as the Chosen Children and Digimon stand united, these little freaks-- Mimi: WAIT!!! DON'T FORGET ABOUT ME!!!

Mimi charges into the fray atop a gleaming white Unimon, leading her army straight into the carnage.

Sora: (shocked) Mimi-chan! Lilimon: Thank goodness! We made it in time!

Ogremon makes the first move, swiping away three Evilmon with his club.

Ogremon: I hate enemies that swarm. EVERYONE, THIS IS WHAT WE'VE BEEN WAITING FOR!!! HAHA!!! Taichi: ALRIGHT, TEAM!!! IT'S THE FINAL BATTLE!!! Digimon: YEAH!!!

It is not the final battle.

Together, Mimi's army and the Partner Digimon pour into the Evilmon horde. MetalGarurumon begins the battle, scattering a group with a stomp.

Elecmon shocks a cluster of Evilmon, incapacitating them long enough for Unimon to fire his Holy Shot, an exploding ball of energy shot from his mouth, into the crowd. The successful combo attack prompts Mimi and Sora to high five each other.

Mimi & Sora: YES!!!

Ogremon slams his Haouken into another trio of Evilmon.

Jou and Koushiro watch from behind a rock with their Partner Digimon, while Mimi's army continues to work together surprisingly well. The Gekomon and Otamamon lure in a trio of Evilmon and retreat, right into Yukidarumon, Meramon, and Andromon.

The latter of whom is not part of Mimi's army but he counts now.

In the dub:

Joe: We're surrounded! Izzy: Oh no! We can't escape! T.K.: Come on, toughen up! Matt: I'm with you, T.K.! Tai: Our only chance is if we all combine our powers together! But the problem is, we're still missing some of our friends.... Mimi: Wait for me! (Mimi rides in on Unimon, leading her army) Mimi: Sorry we're late! Sora: It's Mimi! Lillymon: Are we too late for the party?

Tai's line here is totally different. In the original, he is all set and ready to try and do this with the seven of them. Taichi's not thinking about Mimi here because. Like. She left a while ago and he's made peace with that. He has no reason to be thinking of her now. He's thinking only with the resources they have on-hand, and he's got his game face on. He's ready to fight.

In the dub, Tai doesn't think they can win this and queues up Mimi's cavalry charge by implying that her impending return is their only hope now.

(Ogremon swats three Vilemon) Ogremon: PUMMEL WHACK!!! Nice slice! I guess I'm gonna have to work on my swing, huh? Hehehe! Tai: Alright, gang! Give them the full Digimon attack!

During the combo attack, Elecmon and Unimon call their attacks as Super Thunderstrike and Horn Blaster respectively.

Sora & Mimi: (high five) NICE SHOT!!!

Ogremon's Haouken is also, as usual, renamed Pummel Whack.

Not to be left out, Tentomon and Gomamon quickly evolve and then Super-Evolve so that Zudomon and AtlurKabuterimon can join the fray.

Zudomon obliterates a group of Evilmon with his Hammer Spark. Piemon chooses that moment to get in the thick of it, casting out his Trump Sword - only for AtlurKabuterimon to see him coming and blast his swords out of the air with a shot of Horn Buster.

This is followed by the goofiest-ass shot of Jou, Sora, Mimi, and Koushiro rising from the scenery doing V for Victory poses. XD

With the army engaging the Evilmon, the Partners move in together on Piemon. It's time for the Chosen Children's most powerful technique: dogpiling on an asshole's face.

Lilimon gets the first shot off with her Flower Cannon. Piemon deflects her shot, then tosses his vanishing cloth. But that's not happening this time; Angewomon's Holy Arrow tears through the cloth and narrowly misses a hit on Piemon, who sidesteps quickly.

He can't dodge everything, though. As he's evading the Holy Arrow, Garudamon lets off her Shadow Wing, which hits him dead on and sends him flying from the blast.

Piemon: DOWAAAUGH!!!

Piemon's face in the instant before the Shadow Wing hits him is priceless. A picture truly is worth a thousand words.

Up in the sky, HolyAngemon calls Heaven's Gate. He carves a circle in reality using Excalibur, which opens up into a huge golden door.

Taichi: What is that? Takeru: Ah! It's opening!

As Heaven's Gate opens, the hordes of Evilmon are pulled inside of it. HolyAngemon explains.

HolyAngemon: Evil things are drawn inside the Gate, where they will be consigned to oblivion. Piemon: Eh!? WHAT!? WarGreymon: Let's wrap this up. MetalGarurumon: Yeah!

WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon hit Piemon together, blasting him with a simultaneous Gaia Force and Double Tomahawk. The blast throws him into Heaven's Gate with the rest of his forces, which closes and seals around him as soon as he's inside.

(Y'know, given that he spent most of the episode chasing the kids around with an Instant Kill move, it's fitting that Piemon himself falls victim to an Instant Kill in the end. Ultimately, HolyAngemon collected him.)

Then, explaining what "consign to oblivion" means, the Gate disintegrates into pixel dust as if it were a dying Digimon. A wave of golden dust ushers outward from the disintegrating dust, washing over the Dark Masters' platform and down into the Digital World below. As it goes, the stripe of Piemon's darkness realm recedes from Spiral Mountain.

The dub explains Gate of Destiny like this.

MagnaAngemon: GATE OF DESTINY!!! (The gate pulls in all the Vilemon) Tai, Matt, T.K., and Kari: Wow! Piedmon: Huh!? WarGreymon: Hey! Remember us?

They...

Do not.

Explain Gate of Destiny. At all. They remove all dialogue referencing the gate beyond a simple "Wow" and leave it completely ambiguous as to what the fuck happened to the show's penultimate villain.

Weird choice, guys.

With the very last Dark Master finally defeated, the Chosen Children take a moment to savor their victory. Their long ordeal is finally over.

Taichi: (smiling) It's over. Yamato: Yeah... Both: Huh?

Taichi and Yamato turn and notice Mimi's army cheering their victory and waving to the children. This is their big moment too. Taichi and Mimi wave back, but Taichi's a little confused.

Taichi: Eh? Ogremon is here? Why and how? Mimi: Oh, yeah, you don't know what happened. You see.... Koushiro: Huh? A message from Gennai-san.

Once Mimi's caught Taichi up on the events of her sub-arc, the group gathers around Koushiro's laptop.

Sora: Might be a congratulatory email. Taichi: (griping) Oh, what is it now? Koushiro: (reading) Nonsense! Taichi: (annoyed) What did he write? Koushiro: Our true enemy is not the Dark Masters. Taichi: HUH!?!?

That gets Taichi's attention. He whips around, shocked.

Koushiro: Our true enemy is a creature whose very existence creates the distortions in the world. The Dark Masters merely drew their power from those distortions. Taichi: Then... who's our real enemy--WHOA!!!

Suddenly, the ground beneath the children's feet shakes violently.

Lilimon: What's happening!?

A fissure opens in the ground between Lilimon and Angewomon, forcing them to fly from their positions. A spray of red energy pours out of Piemon's observatory, and the sky turns as black as it was before. The episode closes on the ominous implication that something worse is about to happen.

In the dub:

Izzy: The last remnants of Spiral Mountain are disappearing! The Dark Masters' control over the Digital World is finally gone! Tai: Good riddance!

The final commercial break comes here and we return on the shot of Mimi's army waving. In the process, Matt's line and his and Tai's sudden surprised faces are cut.

Digimon: BYE!!! / TAKE CARE OF YOURSELVES!!! HOPE TO SEE YOU AGAIN!!! Tai: You know, I'm starting to think we have a strange looking group of friends. Mimi: They might not have the best fashion sense but they're the best friends we've ever had! Izzy: Hmm... We have email from Gennai. Sora: What's it say, Izzy? Tai: Not now! I need a nap! Izzy: It's coming in now. Tai: Is he congratulating us? Izzy: Gennai says here that the Dark Masters aren't the real enemies. Tai: HUH!?!? Izzy: It says here that the real enemy is an evil force whose very existence warps the Digital World and created the Dark Masters. So according to this, I don't think we're out of the woods quite yet! Tai: Wait a sec! If it's not the Dark Masters, then who do we fight next--wh-WHOA YAHHHH!!! (Earthquakes) Angewomon & Lillymon: What!? (Fissure opens and red energy blackens the sky) Mimi: WHAT'S HAPPENING!?!? Narrator: What is the evil force that Gennai was warning the DigiDestined about? Find out on the next Digimon: Digital Monsters.

The funny "Wait, why Ogremon" exchange doesn't make it into the dub, which is a shame. Plus side, they do capture Taichi's annoyance at hearing from the useless old codger, as he sees him.

An interesting note: The dub says that the True Enemy created the Dark Masters, which isn't quite accurate. The True Enemy created the distortions in reality, as a passive consequence of existing within it.

This creature's existence is steadily breaking down the fabric of reality itself. This is what the "distortions in the Digital World" that we've been hearing about since we first met Gennai have been all along. The true nemesis was never Devimon or Etemon or Vamdemon or even the Dark Masters; They were all just evil Digimon who drew power from the distortions created by this thing.

We've been battling symptoms all this time. Evil Digimon made stronger by drawing power from the distortions. But there's no implication here that they are in league with the source or even that they are aware of its existence. Only that they found reality straining and breaking down, and promptly went, "Fuck yes, I can use this!"

Something is happening that is destroying both realities. And all of these guys have been opportunistic parasites riding its coattails who thought they could profit off the end of the world.

Assessment: Can you imagine if Piemon won here? This is the guy. Leader of the Dark Masters. When Homeostasis conceived their plan to create the Chosen Children, this was what it was for. It was Piemon they were afraid of. It was Piemon they were right to be afraid of, as it was Piemon who broke through their defenses and nearly strangled this entire countermeasure in its crib.

This was Homeostasis's last, best hope for thwarting the Dark Masters and the growing instability in the Digital World. What a victory this would have been for Piemon to not only vanquish the Chosen Children, but to collect them as memorabilia. To store them on his trophy case as a reminder of the desperate, futile lengths the world went to in order to try and stop him.

This. Right here. This fight. This is what it was all for. I mean, it's not really, the next fight is what it was all for. But so far as anybody knew, this was what it was all for.

There's an interesting implication that Yamato's behavior towards Takeru was suppressing his Crest this whole time. That he needed Yamato's validation, needed his brother to believe in him, before he'd have the strength of will to achieve Super Evolution like the others.

Mimi's cavalry charge gives me life. I legit spent the entire episode wondering when she'd get here. I remembered HolyAngemon and the Heaven's Gate finisher, so when Angemon Super-Evolved and Mimi still wasn't here yet, I was beginning to worry that they'd make her a punchline or something by having her show up after the fight was over.

But nope. Mimi's army to the rescue!

#digimon #digimon adventure #revisiting digimon #revisiting digimon adventure

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seventeenlovesthree · 1 year ago

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What the 2nd audio drama of Digimon Adventure 02 The Beginning tells us (potentially) in text and subtext

I've been anticipating the 2nd drama "An SOS to Our Brothers! Takeru and Hikari’s Secret Mission?!" for various reasons and in the end - it was not exactly what I had expected, but I can't say it hasn't caught me off guard. Also in various ways.

So take my little self-indulgent analysis with a (big) grain of salt.

Spoilers under the cut:

First things first: These are not the breadcrumbs I was hoping for, but they are breadcrumbs nevertheless! I will try to analyze the drama from the perspective of what it tells us about Takeru, Hikari, Ken - and the perception of the older children from their point of view AND from a production standpoint, aka "what the creators probably wanted to include in the movie, but couldn't and now tried to portray it in a more lighthearted way".

What the drama tells us about Takeru:

In context of the drama: Let's get the most important aspect out of the way: Let's hope the writing stress won't get to him in the way of turning him into a slight alcoholic. No, all jokes aside, just like in Kizuna, we are told that they're actual adults now by showing them drink alcohol and that will never not baffle me. What absolutely DOESN'T baffle me is that he continues to be an absolute troll that vibes with (and gets enabled by) Hikari 100% - and that he feels comfortable enough to troll and be open with Ken is also very nice development for him. Also, let's not overlook the fact that he basically made (diplomat and spy in training) Taichi the main character of his Totally Spies/Evangelion fanfiction here. Sure, Yamato ("he got my brother, the astronaut-in-training, on his side") and Koushirou ("[he] wasted no time in analyzing it and developing a shield that would nullify its attacks") played important roles in there too, but they were basically just the supporting cast Hikari had to remind him of, so he wouldn't just write an entire novel about Taichi's adventures to prevent World War III. Of course there were still lots of plot holes (which were rightfully pointed out by Ken), but you gotta love Takeru still idealizing Taichi like that, while sprinkling in references to Kizuna's events (and including Imura while doing so, whom he may actually have had some talks with after he regained consciousness again, so that was a nice touch).

In context of the production: I actually adore that they are going all out on portraying Takeru as obsessed with writing and I think it feels very organic in terms of foreshadowing his career AND his role as narrator of Digimon Adventure as a whole. I also maintain that this means to take EVERYTHING we hear about the Adventure canon with a grain of salt, because it may or may not be fabricated by his own ideas and perspectives - and that is EXACTLY what this drama did. It definitely worked for me - because by the end of the drama, I actually went "You litte sh*t really got me good, I actually believed you!" It's also funny that they're contextualizing their obsession with Evangelion references through Takeru - at this point, we can just assume that he is a big Evangelion fanboy himself and that is where all these hints and nudges are coming from.

What the drama tells us about Hikari:

In context of the drama: She actually appears less prone to being a habitual drinker than Takeru and only drinks sweet stuff (Pina Colada) because she's got a sweet tooth - as opposed to Tailmon going all out with the Tequila, holy... That aside, her main role is to enable Takeru and help him write fanfiction. I'd like to believe that she would actually have liked to contact the others for real (hence why she was so keen to talk in detail about Yamato's and Koushirou's involvement and Sora's and Jyou's reactions), but the movie itself already showed us that Taichi and Koushirou were not available and the former actively shouted at her to leave him alone - hence why the frustration over that may have led to them coming up with a little story like that in the first place. And I think it's very telling that they feel comfortable enough to tell their little headcanons to Ken in particular. Even if it was a trolling attempt, it shows that they are supposedly close with each other and that is pretty neat.

In context of the production: The main take-aways for me here are: a.) The fact that Hikari and Takeru are basically glued to one another by the hip, troll partners in crime - and Toei and the writers absolutely have no intention of changing that whatsoever while STILL managing to portray them as strictly platonic. b.) You can tell Hikari is a skilled story-teller by the way she was sprinkling in little details about the "characters" to flesh out Takeru's narration, or else it may have been even less convincing. And that was also a nice touch to showcase she would be great at telling stories to children as a future kindergartener too!

What the drama tells us about Taichi:

In context of the drama: There he is, our busy diplomat in training, working for the "Digital World-related department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs". Despite all the outlandish and exciting things Takeru likes to imagine about his career, as Ken points out, Taichi is still "too young" to make that big of an impact yet, being able to pull strings and having important connections like that - but at least the movie showed us he WAS working behind the scenes together with Koushirou.

In context of the production: I cannot help but wonder whether they actually would have liked to make a little OVA about Taichi going on an undercover mission, backed up by Yamato and Koushirou (and Mimi????), to prevent his own employer from causing World War III/Third Impact. Granted, Takeru's descriptions there were WILD and I'm still not over the "my brother and Taichi-san boarded an F-16 and rushed into the sky over Tokyo" comment, but overall... Cutting away some of the over-the-top narration, Kizuna already showed us that they absolutely WOULD go on spy missions and that this could have been a great OVA theme to show that the older kids are, indeed, still relevant. ESPECIALLY our main character of main characters, Taichi Yagami. Even if we still don't know the state of Agumon, at least we do know he is making progress.

What the drama tells us about Yamato:

In context of the drama: What we can assume is that Yamato actually already is an "astronaut-in-training", since Ken didn't really disagree with that point. There were a few "details" that may or may not be taken with a grain of salt as well, such as (Kizuna's) Imura being portrayed as "a friend of my brother in the FBI" (could be true!) or the idea that Yamato might already be capable to board a "F-16 and rushed into the sky over Tokyo", but... Hey, since Tri, we have at least seen Yamato giving persuasive speeches, but whether or not he would be as involved in everything remains to be questioned. We actually don't know how or if he was involved at all in this.

In context of the production: I still find it funny that, even in Takeru's own world-building, his big brother is "just" the secondary main character - but that is at least mainly in line with how he is overall portrayed.

What the drama tells us about Koushirou:

In context of the drama: There actually isn't a lot of content mentioned in THIS drama that could be used canonically, since everything mentioned here is just Takeru projecting his Evangelion fanboyism onto Koushirou - but drama 1 and the movie itself already contextualized his role rather nicely, as you will see below.

In context of the production: Interestingly enough, through the course of both the movie and the dramas - aside from Taichi -, he was the character who was mentioned and referred to the most. There shouldn't be any question about his role as tertiary (or even occasional secondary) main character, since, even as a background character, he oozes supporting cast energy - no matter whether he is being referred to as "expert in all things Digimon" (movie), mentioned by Tailmon and Patamon to be a potential sugar daddy sponsor as rich "company president" (drama 1) or is being described by Takeru to pull strings in the back by creating AT fields to support Taichi and Yamato. You can tell that they simply CANNOT tell a story without him and it's nice that, through Takeru's (and Hikari's) narration skills, we are being told that he is vital and influential to everything that is happening. He really deserves the appreciation. (I do wonder if Takeru watched the Rebuild Series and thought "Wow, Maya is so annoyed and fed up with everything, I can use that for Koushirou-san in my fanfiction!!!")

What the drama tells us about Mimi:

In context of the drama: Crazy Mimi being crazy spy Mimi was actually what broke the immersion for Ken. And that in itself is amazing. We actually have no idea what she is doing right now, but apparently, "Mimi, who happened to be passing by, to make an anonymous phone call" is not realistic enough for Ken to accept Takeru's fanfiction as canon. To be fair, it was Patamon who included Mimi - since neither Takeru nor Hikari knew how to include her in there...

In context of the production: ... And Toei probably didn't know either. Which is a shame, since I think we can all agree that we all would have loved to see crazy spy Mimi in action. But at least we know she wasn't the only victim here...

What the drama tells us about Sora:

In context of the drama: I want to believe that Hikari actually IS in (semi regular) touch with Sora. I want to believe that she is currently on her way to "follow the path [she] believed in". Because if she isn't, my reaction to Takeru and Hikari not knowing how to include her either that would be the same as Ken's: "Wow..." At least it being "hard for her to join the fight after all" could be explained by her and Piyomon not being reunited yet, but... All we can do is guess here.

In context of the production: Once again, Sora, just like Mimi and Jyou, gets the shortest end of the stick and we are still led to believe that she is not really in touch with the group and still on her way to self-discovery. Which is still a shame. And maybe they really just (still) don't know what to do with her.

What the drama tells us about Jyou:

In context of the drama: Writing Jyou is easy. Because I actually BELIEVED the course of the story outlined by Takeru here: Them not wanting to contact him, because he is "always busy" and him getting "really pissed at us after the fact, saying that he actually managed to have some free time for once, and we hadn’t let him know", so they "had a hard time calming him down". THAT WAS REALISTIC - and also implies that Gomamon would have been there and ready to take on the fight, but... Yeah, unfortunately, all of that wasn't real.

In context of the production: They love to play with the running gag of Jyou always being busy - but I like that they, through Hikari, acknowledged not only the fact that they should ALL FEEL GUILTY FOR NOT CONTACTING HIM (and everyone in general), but that he is indeed Mr. Reliable if he is given the chance. Even if reading that bit got me mad for a moment, it at least granted him a little dignity.

What the drama tells us about Ken:

In context of the drama: I think the most important take-aways here are that Ken Ichijouji not only is a person of common sense and sensibility in general - but also that he can be assumed to be comparably rather close with Takeru and Hikari, which is a very nice touch. We don't really get to hear a lot about him personally, but the fact that Hikari and Takeru went out with him alone for food and drinks is pretty telling in my opinion.

In context of the production: Ken has the honour of being a stand-in for several parties at once: First of all, he is a stand-in for us, the readers/listeners, to witness the craziness that is Takeru Takaishi's (and Hikari Yagami's + their Digimon's) imagination in real time, reacting sceptically to whether or not the stuff is realistic/believable in the first place. Secondly, by the end of it, he is a stand-in for the writers who (I am sure now) absolutely would have LOVED to go bonkers with the older kids, telling a crazy Totally Spies/Evangelion AU through them (or at least the ones they knew how to include, such as Taichi, Yamato and Koushirou - they OBVIOUSLY would have loved to put Mimi in there too, even going so far as to make Ken TRY to come up with a scenario for her... But then, they didn't even try with Sora and Jyou).

#my two cents #digimon adventure 02 the beginning #digimon adventure 02 the beginning spoilers #the beginning spoilers #meta #takeru takaishi #hikari yagami #ken ichijouji

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