#like yeah she's annoying but let's be honest Taichi can be annoying as well???

[kennyomegasweave]

In defense of Maya (without knowing the manga):

She definitely annoyed me because obviously I know Taichi isn't the person she was claiming he is and she clearly knows Kohei likes him as a friend, at least, so it's like ...girl, come on. But like.

She only went off on Taichi after she got the first set of notes he took? Which, let's be honest here, were dogshit. He really didn't take a service that Kohei needs seriously and he was initially doing it for Kohei's lunch. She didn't lie there. We also learned there's only 23 notetakers in the entire college. This is a service that is very much needed, yet doesn't have nearly enough volunteers for, and Taichi was treating it like a joke that didn't matter at first. That shit was hella disrespectful. He didn't mean it as such, and Kohei didn't take it as such either, but it was. So no shit Maya got that notebook and was like "...what the hell am I supposed to do with this? And this is who Kohei thinks is so nice and cool and everything?"

All Maya has are the initial terrible notes that Kohei gave her like they were helpful (they weren't) and knowing Kohei only kept Taichi as his note taker because he liked being around him. With the unspoken fact, that maybe non disabled people didn’t pick up on, that he also only kept Taichi as his note taker because there just aren't enough note takers, so he couldn't have gotten better anyway. Which almost certainly factored in as to why Maya blew up at Taichi. Disabled people shouldn't have to accept shit notes just because the alternative is no notes at all. We already have to work uphill cause of the disability, it's adding insult to injury to basically know everyone’s like "well, yeah it sucks, but you could have nothing." Or even a “yeah, I didn’t care at first, but I do now!” Because it’s like “it’s great that you finally realized this is a real service needed for a real disability that affects real people. Glad you finally figured that out. Congrataritos.” Like it is exhausting being disabled and having to sit there and smile when people have their lightbulb growing moment since we don’t have the option to dick around until we decide to lock it in. So I completely got why those shitty notes set Maya off. Because she didn't go off at him after the dinner, it was after she got those notes.

And on a related note, we all clapped for Taichi when he went off on homegirl in the cafe because she wasn't treating Kohei like a real person with real issues, but he also wasn’t taking Kohei and his problems seriously with those initial notes. Like yes, he started trying and actually doing better, but that only happened once he became friends with Kohei and realized he needed to do better. Who knows, maybe the cafe girl could have grown as a person, like Taichi did, if she had been able to get to know Kohei as a real person. But Taichi didn't let her get that chance, just like Maya wouldn't have let him get that chance if she could. The only difference in those two situations, to me, is Taichi is already Kohei's friend so Maya can't stop them from interacting like Taichi did with that girl.

Like I’m sorry y’all, Maya's not being any more of a bitch than Taichi was because she can only work with the information she has, which obviously isn't what we as viewers have. She’s pushy and overbearing and, yeah, annoying because she also obviously has a crush on Kohei and we know he's sprung on Taichi, but it’s really not like she just looked at Taichi and went “fuck this guy” for no reason.

[fizzingwizard]

OK gang here we go, episode 33!

It was better than last week, which was better than the week before, so... make of that what you will.

Pic of the week!

A look of steely Dan determination.

More below!

Like I said, this episode is an improvement on the last one, by virtue of plot stuff actually happening, a few big happenings, and references to the other kids that suggest they haven’t been completely forgotten about (only mostly). Don’t get excited though - it still leaves much to be desired. I cry endlessly for the animation budget. But let’s get into it...

Taichi and friends are still in pursuit of SkullKnightmon and Hikari. We found our for sure last week that the creature in the little crystal is, indeed, Millenniumon, or rather a fragment of him, and his fragments fell all around the Digital World at the end of the great war or whatever it’s called and they’re the source of the miasma and they absorb energy from the human world etc etc...

So we find this big ass crystal which seems to be the central one, I guess? because it’s the biggest? and several creepy looking acolytes (dun dun DUN it’s VADEMON my FAVORITE DIGIMON) surrounding it and chanting...

Vademon: Find the horcux, kill Harry Potter, find the horcrux, kill Harry Potter,

In other news, there’s a lot of doom and gloom happening with Jou, who, bereft of his underwear, is forced to censor himself with his partners head. Gomamon you don’t deserve this

Jou: I need to get away from these Nanimon before I go prematurely bald too!!

Mimi, meanwhile, is Boxing Champion of the World.

Koushirou is the only one working. He’s on his way to pick up Jou, so I guess that means Yamato will get Mimi? That’ll be fun lol. We saw Yamato for half a second but it was the same frame of him riding Garurumon we’ve seen five times already so why bother capping it.

Koushirou is also keeping an eye on the satellite situation but doesn’t know what to do about it yet. Kabuterimon asks if he shouldn’t take a break about now and Koushirou says “I’m okay, besides, this is the only thing I’m good for” T___T you know this would be heart-breaking if I really believed the writers have ACTUAL PLANS to make good on Koushirou-related character development.... >:[

no this honestly pisses me off so much but I STILL do believe we will get SOMETHING for him and the others and probably not too far in the future... I think... I hope ugh

Back to Team A, they see lots of Digimon coming at them. Taichi’s like “it’s an attack!” but Sora, whose Fight Mode unlike Taichi’s has an actual Off switch, is about to figure out that they are in fact not interested in the kids at all and are running away from something.

Taichi: I can’t believe they didn’t want to kill us. Doesn’t everything in this world want to kill us?

The Digimon are fleeing from a suspicious crater with a familiar stone in the center. SkullKnightmon raises his own crystal fragment into the air and stuff happens.

By stuff I mean black lightning and purple-blue light which is meant to signify Evil which is mega DUMB because blue and purple are the most awesome color combo EVER I mean it throw some turquoise in there too and I will buy it whatever it is a necklace a shawl a codpiece

There are eight crystals that rise from the ground surrounding the central crystal and share energy with it. I thought the number eight might be significant you know for obvious reasons but it doesn’t appear to matter in this episode.

Evil crystals or not, Taichi’s on his way to save Hikari once and for all!

Hikari: Thanks, but no thanks, oniichan.

Taichi: H-Hikari! You don’t understand! You’re too young to go off with a strange man!

Hikari: But oniichan I love him

Taichi: Who do you think I am, Tevye!? You’re not marrying him and that’s final!

Hikari: waaah why don’t you understand me!!

ok back to the story...

Hikari abandons her brother for his muscular studly lover SkullKnightmon.

... >_>

Using Hikari’s powers, SkullKnightmon evolves to Gundamon DarkKnightmon. Meanwhile there’s lots of chanting and stuff about this being SkullKnightmon’s purpose or some such. I still kinda hope we get a redemption arc for SkullKnightmon or that he has something more to do with the story...

Agumon stops Taichi from wigging out and they go to save Hikari together, but before they can they are beset from all angles by henchmen.

Sora: Hey, you take care of Tweedle Dee and I’ll get Tweedle Dum!

Birdramon: *gets punched in the head* I hope you brought enough aspirin...

Then these guys appear. I’ve forgotten their names but evil as they look they literally just stand there till they get blown up and then more appear... I guess that’s a kind of talent

Takeru: Leave the small fry to me!

Pegasusmon: Takeru when I said I wanted a Happy Meal this isn’t what I meant

Hikari begins to be absorbed into a dark pocket dimension of DarkKnightmon’s or something like that. It seems like a very chill experience.

Taichi: I’ll save you! Take my hand!

Hikari: O... nii... chan... Fuck you...

ok so here’s my problem here.

This is meant to be all emotional and stuff right?? Hikari’s been blowing off her brother for an unknown reason (we all figured out what it was but look the main characters don’t know and that’s what counts) and he’s finally managed to catch up with her. His hand is inches away from catching hers and pulling her to safety. She’s got creepy glowing eyes. She mouths “o..nii...chan...” with a creepy smile before being pulled into darkness.

I know it’s for kids so it’s not going to be too scary or anything but there ‘just like... no build up here. The storytelling style is too mathematical. “We go from Plot Point A to Plot Boint B via Battles 1 2 and 3...” There’s nothing happening in between to make us feel Taichi’s desperation, or even to know what Hikari’s feeling in this moment. Is she really okay with this? Is she having second thoughts? It doesn’t make any sense for her not to be scared. I fully expected her to go through with it, but she can be scared and still go through with it... come on...

It’s like that scene from Utena except sapped of any and all emotional impact.

I don’t really remember how Greymon got up there in the first place since he can’t fly but at least we get a scene of him and Taichi plummeting to the earth after failing to save Hikari. The kind of thing that would be dramatic if there were any kind of animation budget at all.

The one thing the show is sure to do is show us Taichi’s expressions, which I guess is something... It’s just so rushed and the accompanying dialogue leaves something to be desired.

Greymon: Don’t give up, Taichi... Taichi... um. what are you doing...

Taichi: stop hitting yourself stop hitting yourself stop hitting yourself stop hitting yourself

Anyway, Taichi is Big Mad. I thought (hoped, to be honest) that we might get a glimpse of him going wild with dark energy like in the Devimon episode again... Or at least a hint that that was a possibility in the heat of the moment before Agumon snapped him out of it. But nope.

He takes a moment to be upset and then says “There’s no time to worry about what to do” and goes to save Hikari... from inside DarkKnightmon somehow :P

This does not go well.

Meanwhile Hikari is surprisingly okay for someone who was just eaten alive by sentient VantaBlack. She discovers a peculiar light inside... DarkKnightmon’s intestine??? Is that where we are now??? lmao

She recognizes the light as the voice that has been calling her and tries to head towards it, but is blocked by some purple jello.

There’s a kind of cool thing that happens here... We just had a scene where Taichi desperately tries to grab his sister’s hand and yank her out of the clutches of evil, but fails, mostly because she doesn’t do anything to help him since she is weirdly okay with the situation. Now we get a mirror of that moment with Hikari bursting out of the jello with her arm outstretched to grab what is clearly Tailmon’s paw.

Only Tailmon does take Hikari’s hand.

It was really cool to see the brother and sister paralleling each other this much. It shows the ways they’re both courageous and determined and caring.

Meanwhile Taichi finally whips out WarGreymon. Honestly, I feel like this should have been WarGreymon’s intro episode. This would have been a good time for a new evolution, rather than in a fight with a nobody that I’ve already forgotten. Idk. WarGreymon uses Brave Tornado to knock DarkKnightmon’s lances away and burrow into his armor. So, yeah, Hikari’s in his intestines, lmao.

Hikari is being chased by a two-headed monster who is in for the migraine of its (their?) life when the tornado crashes into it.

Hikari: Big brother! You look so cool!

Taichi: Promise me that no matter how many men come into your life, I’ll always be number one.

Hikari: okay that is creepy

WarGreymon explodes DarkKnightmon from the inside out x’D and Taichi gets a redo of his hand-reaching scene. First he berates Hikari for running off on her own and then smiles.

Hikari says she always believed he’d rescue her. Aww.

Sweet sibling love.

Then there’s this really hilarious sound which turns out to be the Vademon hivemind giving a collective cry of distress x’D it’s lmfao amazing. Then they start chanting “Next time next time next time” just in case you thought Millennium was defeated and we can go home now.

Taichi: Sora, do you know where I can buy a leash for this kid? I can’t keep chasing her like this. Aren’t kids today supposed to be glued to their phones and never go outside?

Patamon’s Girlfriend Radar piques at the bundle in Hikari’s arms.

And it is indeed Tailmon, and she’s been waiting for Hikari all this time.

Tailmon: I am Tailmon, a Holy Digimon.

Patamon: oh my god you can’t just call yourself holy ugh you’re so self-centered

D’awww.

They’re both sooooo cute. I’m annoyed they didn’t get a cool ending card like Takeru and Patamon did last week though. But still, this is a sweet moment.

So, there’s not a lot to complain about in this episode, comparatively speaking. I wish we had more dialogue and understood the value of a dramatic pause etc. Also wish Sora and Takeru had more to do than fight the henchmen. Like, if you can just erase an entire part of an episode and it still works fine, you clearly didn’t need that part so why waste time on it.

But at least we do get reactions from Taichi, and at least we got plot development. The Taichi/Hikari parallels were cool. And even though I had other hopes for how this arc would turn out, I’m glad it’s over because maybe we can finally do some other stuff now. Maybe. I want to get back to Koushirou SOOO bad but more than anything I am still gobsmacked by how long it’s been since Yamato’s had anything to do but ride on Garurumon. That is WEIRD. He’s YAMATO.

Next week...

... Looks like it’ll be a light-hearted undersea episode. I’m cool with that. The preview clips had a “Sebastian’s Calypso” vibe that I dig. It’s still about Taichi’s group but I think that’s to do more actual face time with Tailmon and Hikari. I hope we see the others as well and if not maybe the week after. I will be happy if this episode has some personality to it.

[queenyuyu]

I need to rant before I start my day. I started to watch Chihayafuru

And I love it; I think it funny and adorable, and I have always been a sucker for friendship-based stories. But can we talk about how utterly annoying the main characters love triangle is, please? Like seriously I hate this unhealthy portraying of being obsessed with one another. And the fans of either couple are toxic.

As for now, neither Taichi, nor Chihaya, nor Arata are ready for a Relationship or should be portrayed romantically. Hence them constantly saying each others name at random times and working “for” each other “to meet again”, becomes so utterly annoying. Yes, I understand the motivation behind it, but it's just freaking frustrating but let me get in depts: Chihaya obsession with Arata is just freaking the worst. Like the amount she randomly says “Arata, Arata, ARATA!” at times that have absolutly no conection to him, is so utterly annoying that I cringe so hard and ugh just urgh! It ruins her character to me because let's keep in mind that dude has not stayed in contact nor cared about her for YEARS! Yes, I have a childhood friends, I daydream about and would love to meet again too, but I'm not obsessed with them, even if they would share the same game obsession it wouldn’t be my number one thought all day long, at every little step I make in my life. GET A LIVE CHIHAYA, START TO LIVE FOR YOURSELF AND YOUR DREAMS!

As for now, EVERYONE that has ever played with Arata has the same “connection” as she does, they have nothing more in common than their love for Karuta. Nothing! They simply motivated each other to play once! WOW, HOw couldn’t I see this"SOULMATE MATERIAL” BECAUSE SOMEONE TOLD SOMEONE THEY COULD BE GOOD AT SOMETHING! Keep in mind that therefore Taichi, Retro, Nishida, or Shinobu, heck everyone else that played against him and was in awe, has a connection with him as well. They probably also had more dialogue exchange then Chihaya and Arata ever had and ever will have. If anyone I would probably rout for Shinobu at this point they at least have some chemistry and share some similarities, other then starring at each other blankly saying each others name. They also actually had and I’m serious a deeper conversation then the “main couple”.

  Arata seems to be more interested in Tachi then he is in Chihaya, so can we make him gay now? Because seriously that how he acts imo. He prefers to write Taichi rather then Chihaya, so clearly he is not interested. UNTIL, Of course, he sees her and of course she FAINTS, because that's the ultimate sign that they are meant to be, even though it Taichi that actually catches her, but he is friend zoned so that doesn't count. Even then all he thinks is her name. Now he needs to say and think her name as often as she does and BOOM COUPLE GOALS! Loving each other's Names! Wow, that’s so deep from a natural talent winning everything, and being so deeply in love with his cards. Like all, we learn from all the other character that seems to be important in Karuta is not portrayed in him, but yeah, but I guess plot armor.

And can we talk how freaking rude she is, I get the I need to sleep because I’m so exhausted at random moment comedic relief moments, but bitch please, you can’t even announce your win? Can’t you even hold it together for your teammates? At the time she acts so freakingly egoistic, that I have to give credits to everyone putting up with her.

  Taichi, dude, I get Arata is your Rival, but you share and do so much more with Chihaya that this obsession is really stupid, and either you move the fuck on or tell her because this is stupid.

And I know, I KNOW, Arata will end up with Chihayam the “random” moments, when they “romantically” exchange saying their names and nothing more is foreshadowing to that. And yet they didn’t have a single conversation. NONE! While Taichi *sigh*, pretty much is her best friend, pillow, the one supporting her dreams, and pushing her on. Let’s be honest WITHOUT TAICHI; she would not have made it to where she is now. He is a great friend and cares for everyone beyond a point where she can’t because she lacks empathy or is too self-centered.

So think about you want about Taichi, from annoying brat to be deserving of her love. Their relationship as for now is definitively the better one, but let’s also be straightforward, the amount o time he is self-conscious because of Arata would’ make him a pretty shitty overly jealous boyfriend.  Taichi too is unhealthily attached and obsessed with Arata.

  In short, all three of them are utterly stupid characters when it comes to their relationship with each other. I can’t ship or root for them. The one with the most personality is Taichi, and because the writer chose not to make him perfect, most people don’t like him, when he is the only one who shows great character growth and empathy for everyone even Arata, but then again, she ruins it with his “ARATA!!!!”-jealousy-obsession!!!, and I swear I get so annoyed whenever I hear his name.

  Also, can we fucking speak of how much of a freaking overpowered character Arata is, he does nothing and automatically is better than anyone else. Sorry, that’s quite boring, and I’m so glad the story didn’t involve him too much as for now. I know this changes, and yeah … see my exciting face. I might have to drop this series because the main characters cannot keep up with the strength and the wit of the support characters.

And that frustrates me because the idea of the story is beautiful and great, and the side characters are beautiful and have so much depth to them, even the main characters are loveable. But their “faithful-bond” is so utterly overdone, and thrown in your face, that the story becomes almost secondary to the frustration of this poor excuse of  “relationship” they are supposed to share.

  It almost 2019, and this is still the main romance top young girls are feed to read. CAN WE FINALLY GET FOR ONCE RELATIONSHIPS THAT ARE BASED ON ACTUAL CHARACTER GROWTH DEVELOPMENT AND GROWING OF FEELINGS BASED ON WORKING ONTO IT- make me care for their relationship because “destiny” doesn’t do it for me. It’s an unrealistic unhealthy portraying of relationship; I wished we could finally move on from.

  Also, the best character is Akito Sudo, fight me!

[a3-eng]

A3! Voice Drama: Leaders Meeting

An oldie but goodie included with the “MANKAI☆KAIKA SENGEN” single released back in February. The four leaders discuss the issues in each of their troupes, get a little personal about some of their members, and even do impressions of them!

Tenma: A3! Drama CD. Sakuya: Leaders Meeting. —— /running footsteps/ /door opening and closing/ Tenma: Sorry, got held up! Banri: Tenma, you’re friggin’ late. Tenma: Filming went over. Sakuya: Everyone’s here now, right? Tsumugi: With that, I call the 13th Leader Meeting to order. Tsumugi: I, Tsumugi Tsukioka, will be the moderator. Tsumugi: As for secretary— Sakuya, I’m counting on you. Sakuya: Please leave it to me! Banri: /game sounds/ Boom! Got that super rare~ Tsumugi: Banri! No games during the meeting. Banri: Woooord. But uh, what’re we doing this meeting? The director isn’t here, yeah? Tsumugi: That’s true… She said she’d leave it up to us, but… Tenma: Hey. Tsumugi: Tenma, go ahead. Tenma: How about “Regarding MANKAI Company’s Operations Strategy?” Banri: Could we even decide something like that with just us 4? Sakuya: Why not collect some of our opinions and make suggestions to the director? Tsumugi: Yeah, that sounds good, I think. I’d like to confirm the status of each troupe, too. Tenma: So we’re set, then. Banri: Roger that. Tsumugi: Alright, let’s jump right in from Spring Troupe, please. Sakuya: Okay! Sakuya: Spring Troupe is currently practicing toward a local tour. We’re thinking of several unique strategies to make something even better than our last in-house production. Banri: It’s been awhile since your last show— isn’t it tough trying to get a feel for the stage again? Sakuya: That is the case, yes. We do get a lot of practice from street acting, though. Tsumugi: Improv theater is a bit different though, isn’t it? Sakuya: Yes… And Itaru seems very busy lately. Tsumugi: He’s the only one working full-time after all, maybe he has lot on his plate? Banri: Ohhhh, haha. It’s ‘cuz there was that massive update. Tenma: Huh? Update? Banri: The expansion for this game he’s into. With leveling and logging in day and night— ‘course he’s got no time. Tenma: You mean he’s “busy” with a game?! Banri: Exactly. Sakuya: There’s Masumi, too. He’s hardly in the mood for practice whenever the director is working with other troupes. Tenma: Yeeaah… Tsumugi: I can see that. The director is his life, after all. Sakuya: Spring Troupe improves exponentially when we’re in a pinch, but we may have trouble with regular, routine improvement. Sakuya: If I could just apply my leadership more… Banri: Well, every troupe’s got their issues. Tenma: Summer Troupe has problems too. Tenma: Since Yuki spends all his time on costuming for other troupes, there’re times when he can’t even do normal practice. Banri: Our costume designer is always aimin’ high after all. Recently Taichi from Autumn’s been getting roped in too. Tenma: Plus, Kazunari is in charge of the website and is busy with the updates. Tsumugi: A number of Summer Troupe members work behind-the-scenes or have their own side jobs, so it’s natural for those kinds of problems to pop up, I guess. Sakuya: Does Autumn Troupe have these kinds of issues? Banri: Well, I think everyone’s pretty gung-ho about practice. Banri: But— we fight a lot. Tsumugi: I’d expect nothing less of MANKAI Company’s most trigger happy troupe. Banri: Hyodo’s friggin’ annoying. Banri: I swear— practice goes nowhere. Tenma: Your relationship’s the same as when you guys first auditioned, huh. Tenma: If we’re talking about getting derailed though, Misumi’s just as bad. Tenma: At the least, we have to make sure we don’t leave anything triangular lying around. Tsumugi: Misumi’s love for triangles is pretty extreme. Banri: He’s more a devout believer than a fan. Tenma: “Trianglicism,” huh? Sakuya: How fitting… Tenma: Also, everyone’s so pushy that we lack unity and calm. Tsumugi: Summer is the overall youngest and an energetic troupe, right? Tenma: “Energetic”? More like “noisy.” Tenma: Those guys totally don’t get I’m the “leader.” Tenma: They don’t respect me at all. Tenma: Seriously, who do they think I am?! Tenma: I’m the talented 15-plus-year veteran actor Tenma Sumeragi! Banri: So the pushiest of them all is actually the leader himself, amirite? Tenma: What?! /chair shuffling/ How am I— Sakuya: Easy, easy. Sakuya: How about Winter Troupe? Tsumugi: Hmm… Well, in short, we have a lot of people who go at their own pace. Banri: Oh yeah. Like a poet, and a hostess*, and someone who sleeps three-thirds of his life. Tenma: Wouldn’t he be asleep his whole life then? Tsumugi: Maybe it’s because our members are all on the older side, but our difficulties are in being impulsive, or rather, unable to concentrate on improving. Tenma: Everyone’s got something, huh. Tsumugi: Yeah… Banri: Can we really talk about “strategy” in this situation? Tenma: We’ve got more fundamental problems. Tsumugi: Mmm… Sakuya: Oh! Speaking of which, I read this in a book the other day. Apparently, a leader’s love for the members is essential to improving a group’s performance. Banri: “Love” for the members? Tsumugi: So complaining like this is no good, then? Tenma: I mean, it’s not like there’s no love at all in those. Banri: ’the heck do you mean by “love” anyway? Talk about embarrassing. Tsumugi: Maybe it’s like, how much you observe and think about the members. Tenma: Or like, how well you know them? Like that? Sakuya: Excuse me! In that case, I’m actually pretty confident. Sakuya: So I noticed this just recently, but when Masumi is sleepy, he always rubs his right eye— never, ever the left one! Banri: Damn that’s specific! Tsumugi: Oh, I see. Good eye. Sakuya: When you live together, you start to notice all kinds of things, right? Banri: I got one. On nights after he’s had gym class, Hyodo will absolutely grind his teeth. Friggin’ obnoxious. Sakuya: Really?! Tenma: Isn’t he just tired? Sakuya: Tsumugi, have you noticed anything about your troupe members? Tsumugi: Hmm… When Tasuku oversleeps, he’ll definitely have a cowlick on the left side of the back of his head— like that? Banri: Of course. Childhood friends of 10-years deep have tons of info. Tenma: Kinda stalker-y, though. Tsumugi: Also, the wheezing sounds Hisoka makes during REM sleep is a little different from the wheezing sounds he makes during non-REM sleep. Sakuya: So it has nothing to do with how long he’s known someone. Banri: Tsumugi is the real deal. Tenma: He’s definitely built to be a stalker. Sakuya: B-But, you can definitely feel his love for the members! Tenma: If we’re just talking about “observing,” I’m observing too! Tenma: Yuki’s always like, “So obnoxious. Crappy actor.” Sakuya: Wow! That sounded just like him! Tsumugi: That was surprisingly good! Banri: That’s just an impression! Sakuya: Well, you can’t do an impression of someone without observing them closely. Banri: Then I can do Hyodo impressions all day long. So sick and tired of him. Banri: “Get lost. Jerk.” Tenma: …How’s that different from your usual self? Tsumugi: It really isn’t… Banri: Hey, it’s totally different! Don’t lump me in with that guy! Sakuya: Okay, my turn! Sakuya: “A blowfish will strike ducks who smile, laugh, and grow fat.” Banri: Hahaha! Spot on! Tsumugi: Just like Citron. Tenma: “Good fortune will come to the homes of those who smile, laugh and grow fat,” right? Tenma: The nonsensical bit was very Citron. Banri: How ‘bout Winter Troupe? Tsumugi: I’m not too confident, but— Tsumugi: “I shall present my poetic secret weapon.” Tsumugi: “Distant montage / Continual décantage…” All: Hahaha! Banri: Hilariousss. Sakuya: That is just like Homare. Banri: “Not too confident”? You were totally into it! Tenma: Oh, me, me, me! Tenma: “Princes are so amazing~ Wish I could be one~” Sakuya: Haha! It’s Muku! Tsumugi: “Each and every spice is critical in curry. In other words, curry is like its own little world.” Banri: Here comes the director out of left field! Sakuya: That’s too real! Tenma: You’re good! /door opening and closing/ Sakuya: Ah, Director! Banri: Oh…Director… Tenma: N-No! We weren’t playing around! Tsumugi: We weren’t fooling around either! Banri: We weren’t practicing for an impression contest either! Sakuya: We were seriously having a meeting! Tenma: Honest! Banri: Yeah! Like, uh, how we express our love for our members? Kinda? Sakuya: Y-Yeah, yeah! Exactly! Tenma: Like, how much we think about our members! Banri: Well, that last bit was totally an impression contest, though… Sakuya: Hm? Uh… the…meeting? Banri: I mean…we were having a meeting… Tenma: About…MANKAI Company’s…future operations strategy… Tsumugi: Ehe…we got really off track, huh?

* From the brief research I’ve done, the term Banri uses here specifically refers to women (who do nightlife kind of jobs). I’m sure he’s cleverly referencing Azuma’s feminine appearance in addition to his previous occupation.

[tutomon]

@mai-valentine I’m your Secret Santa! You said you like Michi so here’s a drabble! I’m not used to writing this ship but I had fun with it so I hope you like it, and have a very merry Christmas/happy holidays!!

“Onii-chan? Onii-chan.”

The only response Hikari would get was a groan as Taichi finally started to wake up. He waved one hand as if attempting to shoo her away but then he let his arm fall lazily over his still-closed eyes.

“Five more minutes,” he mumbled.

He could hear a sigh and then he felt a sudden rush of cold as the blanket covering him was pulled away.

“No more minutes, Onii-chan. You have a visitor.”

There was another groan from Taichi, but once Hikari’s words finally sunk in he bolted up, eyes wide. “Why is someone visiting this early in the morning!?”

“It’s already noon.” Hikari sighed.

“There you are, Taichi! It’s not nice to keep a girl waiting, you know!” It was Mimi, standing in the living room with her hands on her hips. Taichi just blinked, still groggy from being woken up.

“Sorry?” He muttered, stepping into the living room and rubbing sleep from his eyes. “I didn’t know you were coming. Why are you here anyway? Er, not that I mind of course!” If there was anything that could get Taichi to be wide awake, it was the fear of an angry Mimi. He remembered how delicate she’d seemed when they had first gone to the Digital World, and how quickly he’d been proven wrong. Their Digimon partners all seemed to resemble them in some way, and it wasn’t a surprise that Mimi’s partner turned into a cactus with boxing gloves.

Mimi was great. She was kind, energetic, and Taichi could say for sure she was one of his best friends in the world - but he would feel bad for anyone who made the mistake of making her mad.

A raised eyebrow was Mimi’s response, and then after a moment she smiled, crossing her arms over her chest. “It’s been way too long since the two of us hung out, so I figured today we’d go out and do something fun!”

It had become a normal thing by now, whenever Mimi was in Japan she’d drop in unannounced at her friend’s houses - sometimes without even telling them she was back in Japan first. Takeru had told Taichi once about the time Yamato was visiting him and nearly had a heart attack when Mimi - who was supposed to be in America at the time - suddenly burst in.

So Taichi wasn’t at all surprised by the current situation, just…tired. And Mimi’s energy was hard to handle when he was tired. Still, she had a point. When was the last time they’d spent time together - just the two of them? And it wasn’t like Taichi had any plans for the day anyway, so why not?

“Alright,” he relented, “but a little warning next time would be nice. Where were you planning on going?”

“You’ll see!”

Taichi didn’t like that answer at all, nor did he like the fact Mimi had latched onto his arm, dragging him towards the front door. They’d made it halfway outside when he turned his head to call to Hikari, “if I’m not back by tonight send out a search party!”

“Of course!” Hikari called back cheerfully. “Have fun you two!”

“We’re here!” Mimi declared, finally letting go of Taichi’s arm once they made it to their destination.

He blinked. An ice cream shop?

“I figured since I flew all the way out to Japan just to see the great Yagami Taichi-san’s soccer game, only for it to be cancelled, you could make it up to me by treating me to ice cream!”

He thought about arguing that Mimi’s parents had already planned on coming back to Japan anyway, but decided it wasn’t worth it. It could be worse after all, Mimi could be making him pay for the plane ticket.

“Yeah, I guess that’s fair. ‘The great Yagami Taichi-san,’ huh?” There was a hint of amusement in Taichi’s voice as he walked into the shop, one hand already reaching into his pocket for his wallet. “Are you just trying to win brownie points or do you really think I’m that great?”

“I don’t have to win brownie points with you!” Mimi replied, grinning as she followed Taichi inside. “Joking aside though, you are pretty great.”

“Oh? How so?” Taichi couldn’t wait to hear this.

“Mmm,” Mimi tapped a finger on her chin as she thought it over.

“I’ll tell you after we get our ice cream!” She decided, rushing to the counter to order their frozen treats before Taichi could object. “We’ll take two large strawberry chocolate deluxe parfaits, with extra whipped cream!”

“Is that even a real thing?” Taichi questioned as he pulled his money out. Apparently it was, because the cashier nodded and got to work preparing the food.

“Of course it is! What, you weren’t gonna get plain chocolate ice cream, were you?”

“What’s wrong with plain chocolate!?”

“It’s boring!”

It wasn’t long before both of them got their ice cream and found a seat at one of the empty tables near the windows.

“So, were you gonna tell me how great I am or what?” Taichi teased before taking a bite of his ice cream. It was…actually better than he expected, not that he’d let Mimi know that.

“Right,” Mimi paused to swallow a spoonful of ice cream, “where do I start? You were the one who took responsibility for leading all of us back when we first went to the Digital World-“

“Yeah, and you guys fought with me practically every step of the way.” Taichi interrupted, though he sounded more amused than annoyed at the memory.

“And yet you never gave up,” Mimi continued, giving Taichi a look that clearly said ‘don’t interrupt me again.’ “We were just kids with the fate of the worlds on our shoulders, constantly being thrown into situations that could easily kill us, but no matter how scared you were, you were always there for us. Not just anyone could do that, Taichi.”

Taichi was quiet for a moment, drawing random little patterns in his ice cream with his spoon. He hadn’t expected that from Mimi, and he wasn’t entirely sure how to react.

“I never really put much thought into it,” he said finally, shrugging his shoulders. “Didn’t know you put that much thought into it either. I was just acting on instinct, that’s all.”

“Stop making it sound like no big deal.” Mimi’s eyes narrowed slightly. “We would have been lost without you, in more ways than one. Plus, you’re funny and sweet and good at soccer. You’re great, Yagami Taichi.”

Taichi half-expected her to immediately start listing his flaws, but she stopped there and went back to eating her parfait.

“…How do you know I’m good at soccer if you’ve never been to one of my games?” He cautiously asked.

“Well, who’s fault is that?”

“What!? How is it my fault a Kuwagamon decided to ruin everything!? We hadn’t even seen a Digimon in forever before that!”

“Mmhmm, sure. I bet you called the Kuwagamon there just so you’d have an excuse to see Agumon again!” Mimi pointed her spoon accusingly at Taichi, giving him a teasing smile. She earned an exasperated sigh in response.

“Yeah, right. I’d put the whole town in danger just to see Agumon again.”

“So aren’t you going to tell me how great I am now?”

“Huh!?” If anything, Taichi was amazed at Mimi’s ability to change the subject so quickly.

“It’s only fair!” Mimi lifted the glass her food was in and took another bite, leaning back in her seat.

What was he supposed to say? Mimi was amazing, of course, but Taichi wasn’t sure how to put into words exactly why she was amazing. He took a bite of ice cream to buy himself a little more time, and then, hesitantly, he spoke. “I- Well you’re not afraid to speak up when something’s bothering you. Even if it might inconvenience someone, you’re honest and you speak your mind. Some people might call that selfish but I…wish I had the courage to talk about things that bother me more often.”

His face had turned red from embarrassment by the time he was done talking, and Mimi had to hold back laughter because he just looked so cute when he was embarrassed.

“Thank you,” she said after managing a straight face. “Really, thank you, that means a lot to me. And you know, you can always talk to me if something’s bothering you.”

“…Yeah, I know.” Taichi smiled. “Thanks, Mimi-chan.”

They finished their ice cream and Taichi followed Mimi as she skipped outside and twirled around to face him.

“We need to get together again soon! Let me know as soon as that soccer match gets rescheduled, okay? If you win then I’ll treat you to some ice cream!”

“Sounds like a deal!” Taichi agreed, flashing a grin.

Mimi returned the grin with her own, and then leaned forward, pressing a quick kiss to Taichi’s cheek. She giggled as his face turned red, and waved as she started to walk off.

“It’s a deal! See you soon, Great Yagami Taichi!”

[50cyg]

Takari in Tri/Follow up to Digimon Tri Pairing post (unreasonably long, you have been warned)

Okay so a few days ago I did a post about the Digimon Adventure Tri ships that I am 95% certain will be canon, and how I feel if they do become canon Toei is doing two of them a great disservice by not investing the time into making us care for them.

Since then, I have received a few asks about my feelings on Takari as they were not featured in my post. There is a very simple explanation as to why they were not featured in my post and that is because I forgot about them… OKAY DON’T KILL ME! HEAR ME OUT!!

Yes Takari is definitely included in my “ships I am 95% sure will be canon”

Takeru is shown to have his arm around her waste in the same merchandize pick that has Sora and Yamato together

And also, this infamous scene

But the reason I forgot about them and why, even if I had remembered them, they would not have been included in that post is because they do not line up with the point that post was trying to make. Toei does not need to invest time into making us like Takari because 95% of the fandom is already in love with them, no convincing needed. I would guess that even for the 5% they are not a Notp but rather a ship they either just don’t get or prefer another ship over them (me being the latter).

Unlike the other 3 ships I mentioned, Meichi, Sorato and Koumi, and basically any other of the other pairings in digimon, Takari literally has nothing standing in the way of it being Canon.

Meichi is in hot competition with Taiyama and Taiora (the two favored pairings for Taichi from my understanding). If Meichi becomes canon and the creators put no effort into converting some of the non-shippers they are going to have a lot of hate on their hands. In addition, it’s also in competition from people who ship Meiko with other people (MeikoxMimi appearing to be the favoured with MeikoxSora seeming to come in as a close second, and I have also seen some JyouxMeiko shippers… OH AND BTW WHERE ARE THE YAMATOXMEIKO SHIPPERS?? I mean I don’t ship them but it surprises the hell out of me that this is not a thing anywhere… there is way more shippable moments between them then TaichixMeiko…. :S seriously in shock that YamatoxMeiko has not taken off yet). I’m going to be honest, I feel like Tri (based solely on the moments we have had in the movies and excluding Taiyama as an option) is actually gearing up for a YamatoxMeiko and TaichixSora ending. But I don’t think that will end up being the case because of the controversy it could cause which ties into my “Gut Feeling” I keep talking about.

With Koumi they have Jyoumi, TaichixMimi and YamatoxMimi to compete with (Mimi seems to be the most shippable female). I will be honest, I was never a part of the fandom until after I watched Reunion so I had no idea that Koumi was a thing… everyone I knew either shipped Jyoumi or YamatoxMimi and I always thought Jyoumi was a given as a child (I felt about them the way most people seemed to have felt about Taiora and Takari, that they were the one couple destined to be canon) so I was very shocked when I watched Reunion and instead of Jyoumi like I expected I got Koumi and boy was I not happy. So Toei needs to invest time into attempting to convert me to a Koumi shipper, which they have (I’m still not converted but I have some interest in it)

And Sorato we all know has a lot of fire behind it. It has been at the center of what is, to my knowledge, the greatest Ship War in the fandom. Now I wasn’t in any online community until recently and as a child didn’t care that Sora ended up with Yamato (I actually completely forgot it happened until it was brought up by a friend of mine in highschool and I was just like “oh yeah… that was a thing wasn’t it”) so I have only heard about this war in legend, although I believe I have recently been subject to the after effects of it… Anyway, Sorato is in competition primarily with Taiora and Taiyama, as well as many other ships to a lesser extend like SoraxMeiko, JyouxSora, etc. If this ship is not made canon in Tri then Sorato fans will be very upset (and understandably so, there are even Taiora fans who feel that if Sorato is removed then it is disrespectful). At the same time, if it is made canon they still have a large fanbase upset. Furthermore, unlike Meichi and Koumi who could easily become canon without changing anything because who these kids ended up with was left up in the air – Sorato was not left up in the air, it is canon and they either have to change the ending or go with it, no alternative. So, more so then any other ship, I feel they need to make people invested in these two to avoid massive backlash.

Takari, like with ships like Koumi and Taiyama, is getting a lot of attention from the creators because it is so popular within the fandom (probably the most popular ship of all) and so of course they are going to want to cater to it. Now Taiyama is not likely to be made canon because it isn’t a Heterosexual couple (I don’t think this point needs further explanation…)

Takari is a whole different game than any other pairing in digimon, in my opinion. It has virtually no competition and certainly no real competition. They are most people’s OTP for these two characters. And also, who they ended up with is left up in the air so even if Tri sticks with the original epilogue, these two could very easily be married in that world. And they are a heterosexual couple… they literally meet all of the criteria to easily be made canon whether this is the 02 Epilogue universe or an alternate universe. So yeah… let’s say they have a 98% chance of becoming canon to me 😝 and I’m putting that 2% in as a safe net… and also because I think an argument can be made for them not becoming canon… which I’m about to do because it ties into how I feel about the couple, specifically their relationship in Tri

Okay let’s talk how I felt about Takari as a child before getting on to Tri… because this one ask was left ever so slightly ambiguous as to if they wanted my feelings in general or just Tri (most of my focus will be on Tri but I’ll cover all my bases).

When I was a kid I shipped these two for sure (not really hard… the only ship I shipped super hard as a child to my recollection was syaoran x sakura from Cardcaptors). And I think I just assumed they were married in the Epilogue because it wasn’t stated otherwise. They are the youngest two characters and super cute together

Love the scene with them against piedmon

And holding hands as they fall (just noticed that in this scene Hikari is holding his hand and it’s reversed in Tri)

And they had some good moments together in 02. I love every second of them together in Hurricane Touchdown, especially the train scene (favourite scene in the original Japanese version)

They really do act like partners and people who have known each other forever, more so than I think a lot of the other pairings in the original cast (but that might be because of how much we see Hikari and Takeru vs the other 6). But I always really liked the idea of Wizardmon and Hikari as a couple as well. And have grown a love for HikarixKoushiro in recent years (I have plans to do a post on why I ship these two in the next week).

Tri though has done something very peculiar to my feelings regarding Takari, it seems to have done the same thing to many Koumi fans, and that is that it has made me ship Takari less.

I seem to not be seeing what everyone else is seeing. Many people seem to believe that Hikari is in love with Takeru but I am not getting that vibe at all.

The way she teases him about the Girlfriend in Reunion does not come across as someone who is jealous. It comes across as a girl making fun of her guy friend, who she has zero interest in, finding himself a girlfriend.

Takeru on the other hand does come off like he is hoping Hikari is jealous, so I think he likes her romantically

I’ll give more detail in a sec but I want to take a moment to point out that I feel this is similar to their dynamic in 01 and 02 (I always felt he liked her more than she liked him) because in hurricane touchdown (at least in the English version, I don’t remember the Japanese version off the top of my head) he seems annoyed with her concern for Daisuke

And in the episode with the dark ocean he is acting like he is trying to confess and she seems kind of oblivious to me, or maybe understanding but not 100% on the same page as him

The way she warns Meiko comes off one of two ways to me: either as a girl warning another girl about her platonic friend who is a playboy, but who she also has affection for and so it is said in a lighthearted way vs in more of a “omg get away while you can” kinda way

Or alternatively, and here we are getting into some theories of mine, as a girlfriend warning another girl about her boyfriend while also stealthily telling her boyfriend off for flirting…

Okay so I think it is not in any way unthinkable that Hikari and Takeru could have gotten together between the airport battle and the scene where they are searching with Meiko. I think it is possible they are secretly dating. Because I also think the scene where Hikari seems to be teasing Takeru in Loss comes off as either a girl teasing a guy friend about a potential crush or a girlfriend warning her boyfriend

Unlike Koumi though, where it is over the top obvious that Koushiro likes Mimi, all of the non-teasing moments with Takari could easily come off as both platonic and Romantic love.

Her holding him after he loses patamon

Yamato also holds him

Takeru is holding her arm not her hand

I’m Just saying…

…

And even if he was holding her hand

I’m just saying…

As for him always being by her side protecting her… well he has always been like that, he is just by his nature very protective of her and honestly, I think they have always hinted that he likes her from 01 to 02 to now Tri. But you could also argue there are a lot of pairing like this

Koushiro is always by Taichi’s side as the series progressed

Taichi and Yamato are often attached at the hip

Sora and Taichi are pretty attached at the hip (specifically in adventure)

Jyou is always protecting Takeru

He is also pretty attached to Mimi

Now the scene where she says he has grown up… I do not get this scene… I don’t see how Takeru has grown up any more than he had grown up in 02… and I definitely don’t see how this scene showcases he has grown up. But I would say this is the most shippable moment, I feel like her thinking he has grown up is one of those very cliché (not as in bad cliché but as in recognizable) lines that indicates growing romantic interest.

Why I ship them less is because I don’t really like the way she teases him… she almost seems to tease him in the same way she teased Daisuke. It comes across as more mocking than anything else and I don’t care for it, just like how I didn’t care for how she treated Daisuke.

Also there is the MeikoxTakeru stuff I wanted to address. Cause there is a lot of MeikoxTekeru in Tri. She has more interaction with him than any other male character and also

I think Hikari ships it lol

Okay so I addressed the scene where she gets the nick name earlier.

But then we also have the scenes in Determination (also side note but Yamato is so fucken hot in this scene omg, that necklace that shirt perfection)

And him being the first to come up to greet her friend (Maki)

The fact that he opens up to only her in Confession, and I know you could argue it’s because she is the only one who may understand but it also means he has a level of comfort with her

And how he tried to get her to come to the digital world with them

Playboy with shy girl is almost more common in anime then hyperactive/lead boy with shy girl (takeruxmeiko vs taichixmeiko)

Anyway, I’m not going to do a long analysis of TakeruxMeiko, I just wanted to throw it out there as a possibility or alternative to Takari

I feel like I have kinda gone around in circles with this post, sorry, it’s probably not super easy to follow.

I have heard there is an interview where they said they were planning to make Takari Canon but I’d like to see some definitive proof. Actually I’d like to see some proof of all these rumored interviews… like the one where they said the epilogue is still going to be canon specifically. Cause I have some theories about that one but I need to know the exact wording used, otherwise I’m shooting a little more in the dark.

Thank you everyone who requested this topic 😊 and to everyone who actually got to the end of it. This post is over 4 pages long in an MS Word document haha

[fizzingwizard]

So I’m sure you’re ALL on tenterhooks to find out what I thought of episode 36... the answer is.... LOVED IT!!!! No I really did. If you like Taishiro friendship, this is an essential episode to watch. Doesn’t blow me out of the water, but still just good.

Although Taichi has a big something to do as usual, it’s still very much a Koushirou episode. FREAKING YAY. I have a dozen thoughts about it, and what bugs me the most, of course, is how we needed this episode AGES ago ugh. But we’ve now had two or three episodes in a row that have actually felt like Digimon Adventure, so perhaps all that finger-crossing is working?

They could unravel all that good work in a minute by never addressing it again... or not letting Koushirou show his personality unless it’s his “turn” for an episode from here on... but you know, I will cross that bridge when we come to it.

Pic of the day:

“I don’t like people. But they are occasionally useful.” - 2020 Izumi Koushirou’s life lesson, lmao

*The red strip at the top is about the big earthquake that hit Eastern Japan yesterday. It’s annoying to have it there for the entire episode - usually they only stick around for a couple minutes - but this WAS a large earthquake. It caused many people to lose power. So making sure everyone knows what’s going takes precedence over Sunday morning cartoons. (I’m in Osaka and didn’t even feel it, but my friends in Tokyo prefecture very much did.)

Lots and LOTS of ranting from a rabid Taishiro fan under the cut!

(also I didn’t check for typos so. yeah)

The episode starts right off by assuring us this is a Koushirou episode. We get the trademark Izumi Koushirou floating in the void of space sequence, which is excellent and very encouraging framing.

Koushirou Kenobi: “Use the force, Taichi.”

Taichi: “Use it yourself.”

(the episode in a nutshell)

The initial thing that bugged me - okay, so the kids got separated for the umpteenth time many episodes ago, and since then we’ve stuck to Taichi like barnacles. The only glimpses we’d get of the other kids showed: Yamato running towards something, Koushirou flying towards something while researching the satellite malfunction, Jou in the hot springs, and Mimi at the crystal caves. For Jou and Mimi, I don’t care, because they never tried to move, but Yamato and Koushirou were constantly moving. Yet, in the end, it’s Taichi’s group that catches up with Koushirou, rather than the other way around. It DOES make sense - it seems like Koushirou told them to “meet at the giant gold pillar” because that’s where they needed to be to save the world, so it became the rendezvous point. But it just bugs me because, once again, all the activity is on Taichi’s side. But that’s a minor quibble. The end result is still THIS:

More of the team is together!!! Taichi and Koushirou are together!!! Yaaayy!!!

... the betting pool for how long it will be till the next separation is now open >.>

Poor Komodomon’s long mop dog fur is so dirty. “Fizz his fur always looks like that.” He’s tracking mud everywhere. “Fizz look at his ears his fur is supposed to look that way.” Next episode - everyone gives Komondomon a bath.

So the start of this episode is just a bunch of talking about how dire things are with the satellite situation. I’m not gonna bother translating. Watch the sub when it’s out if you really want to know :P The important thing is, the gold pillar is directly causing the malfunction, no one on Earth can stop the satellite from plummeting to Tokyo, the city is being evacuated, and there are only 20 minutes till impact.

Koushirou has an elaborate plan which Sora adorably sums up as “So, we’re gonna shoot it out of the sky *makes punching motion*”

The crux of Koushirou’s plan hinges on a repeat of how Omegamon saved Tokyo from the missile way back in like, episode 2 or 3. Taichi says, “Yeah, but I barely remember how we did that.” Which is hilarious because I don’t remember either because it was 30 EPISODES AGO. Once again this episode feels like it was meant to happen WAY EARLIER THAN IT DID. It’s just weird to be referencing something that happened 30 episodes ago after everything else that’s happened, AND on top of that, there are many references in this episode and none from later than like, episode 10 or 12. Making this all seem very oddly timed.

I’m not quite sure if, within the story itself, it matters that Taichi “doesn’t remember well.” He also doesn’t remember the Devimon battle where he and Agumon were infected with dark energy. That one makes sense for him not to remember. If that hadn’t happened, I would just take his “I don’t remember how we stopped the missile” to just mean it was so long ago. But together, it’s making me wonder if something else is going on.

Or maybe Taichi’s just been hit on the head one too many times (okay, that seems the most likely of all, haha)

People of Tokyo: Is it Godzilla again? I heard he’s itching to fight King Kong. You know, given how often our city is attacked by kaiju, some might wonder why we haven’t moved away by now. But home is home, ya know?

The group sets up to fly to the peak of the gold pillar. Obviously, without Yamato, there’s no Omegamon. No one points this out, but Koushirou seems very stressed with his plan, and it seems that he contacted Taichi in the first place because he thought “Taichi’s the one who can pull this off.”

After hearing the plan, Taichi shoots him through the heart with another “Koushirou, you’re so awesome!” and YAY I MISSED THIS SO MUCH!!!!!! *sobs*

Then he does his best to reassure Koushirou by remaining positive and determined that they can and will do this no matter how much Koushirou waves. The majority of the episode is them flying up the pillar while being assaulted by enemies trying to stop them, so it’s not like they get to talk about their feelings (lol). But at least we get a bunch of close ups of Koushirou’s and Taichi’s expressions, and that’s how we see this dynamic in play. Yes, Koushirou is the brainy one who made the plan, but he doesn’t have the confidence to take the lead, so he handed the reins to Taichi. As for Taichi - yes he has the confidence, yes he can do it... but he also has absolute faith in Koushirou. So that’s why this episode makes my little Koushirou fanatic heart skip a beat.

First of the enemies is this guy, aptly named BladeKuwagamon.

They’re actually pretty scary! They do real damage. (Blood in Digimon word is glowy unicorn-like stuff haha). Birdramon gets stabbed, but before Sora can get too upset, she just yanks the blade out of her chest...

... and then crushes it into dust with her beak.

Sora: Holy crap, my partner is metal AF.

Forgot to mention earlier but 5 whole minutes of the 20 minute countdown are used up just by digivolving apparently xD Taichi keeps asking Koushirou “how much time is left” and Koushirou’s panic grows more visible with each passing second...

MetaLiffeKuwagemon looks cooler than he is. Supposedly he’s there to bring out the big guns, but to be honest...

... the BladeKuwagamon don’t seem to need the help :P The enemy’s strategy is obvious: isolate each member of the team to prevent anyone from getting to the top. This is why Koushirou’s so stressed: he’s got a plan that is totally reliant on there being a leader strong enough to pull it off AND there being enough backup to protect that leader from the large number of enemies. And Koushirou doesn’t like these odds.

Garudamon gets stabbed AGAIN

Sora: Go on, we’ll be fine.

Taichi: Are you sure??

Garudamon: *DESTROYS EVERYTHING WITH FIRE*

I MEAN HONESTLY! Garudamon is not only my favorite of Piyomon’s evolutions, it’s pretty much my favorite Adventure evolution. Always has been since I was 11 years old. And she (and Sora) NEVER get that credit. Like. Growing up, with US dub Adventure, I interpreted Sora as more of a straight up tomboy than she is in the original. That’s okay, that’s whatever, but what was most important to me was that I saw her as the third “strong” member along with Taichi and Yamato. Those two were clearly in a class above her, but I saw her as being in the same “Taiorato” league. Garudamon seemed to prove that: she was so cool, so powerful, and... yeah, I just always thought she had so much potential to be awesome and never got why it wasn’t used. That’s also why I was disappointed in Tri - like, I liked Soushitsu, but I just wanted more from Sora’s arc. Same thing in Kizuna: I understand Sora’s arc, I don’t hate it or anything - I think it makes sense for her. But since I wanted something different for her all those years ago, it just left me feeling a bit flat.

but enough about other Digimon series :P Garudamon gets to be super cool here and I only hope we get to see more of it in this reboot. I’ll forgive it some of its other mistakes if we do :D

With Takeru/Hikari and Sora isolated by the BladeKuwagamon, it’s up to Taichi and Koushirou alone to race against the clock! Their teeth are clenched, sweat runs in rivulets down their skin, their hearts are pounding in desperation...

Koushirou: Taichi-san! If we don’t get to the top soon it’ll be too late!

Taichi: Just don’t call me late for dinner!

Koushirou: ASDFGHJKL;’ DAD JOKES NOW?? REALLY????????

MetaLiffeKuwagamon makes life that much harder by knocking them against the pillar. However, this is a pillar of data, which enabled the BladeKuwagamon to evolve into MetaLiffeKuwagamon in the first place. Bugs aren’t that bright.

Taichi and MetalGreymon are nearly submerged inside the pillar as a result, and then we get this sequence of red and black. The pillar had been emitting dark lightning, so I started to think... omg... is MetalGreymon gonna get a Dark Evolution???????

.... Nah. That would have made sense, but.... nah :P

Overall I’m glad though, because that would really have turned this into a Taichi episode instead of a Koushirou one.

I’m not personally certain what the point of bringing BlitzGreymon out was. I had figured he would be like, a super fast evolution that would enable them to make it to the top. That would also have turned this into a Taichi episode. But...

... Taichi tells Koushirou that he will have to go divert the satellite because Taichi has to deal with MetaLiffeKuwagamon.

I was both really pleased and really surprised. Because, again, now what’s the point of BlitzGreymon...? Why did we need a new Agumon evolution? There’s no particular reason why they couldn’t have just isolated Taichi with the enemy the same way the others were and had him tell Koushirou to keep going on his own then. They did do that, but first they gave him a new evolution. Why? Just because it’s cool?? I assume that must be the reason but we don’t even see BlitzGreymon fight xD It’s... it’s weird. But whatever.

Taichi: Go, Koushirou!!!!! You can do it!!!!!

Fiz: *dies a thousand brilliant deaths*

So, Koushirou tells Taichi that he can’t do it - he can support Taichi, but he can’t take the lead. Taichi’s just like that’s wack, dude, of course you can do it. What I LOVE about Taichi and Koushirou’s dynamic is just that: Taichi never sees Koushirou as a weakling. The fact that he’s small, or that he’s brains over brawn, or even that he’s kinda antisocial - those are all reasons an energetic, extroverted kid like Taichi might bully, or at least think poorly, of Koushirou.

But Taichi values Koushirou. He knows how hard he works and is impressed both by that hard work and his talent. What’s more, he doesn’t see Koushirou’s brains as his support system. The whole time Koushirou’s thinking he’s there to support Taichi with his plan, Taichi was thinking, “I’m here to support Koushirou’s plan.” That is SO, SO important. And that’s why I LOVE this episode. The one thing the reboot seemed to really understand, that hooked me from the start, was the way it just GOT Taichi and Koushirou. They each support and follow each other, while each feeling like the other is better than them. Ugh I could like, cry over Taishiro now... omg....

Taichi is successful in pushing Koushirou to go on, but of course Koushirou himself is still plagued with doubts. He reflects on how he’s always been fine being alone. He hasn’t particularly wanted friends and didn’t mind not having them, even though adults worried.

(Side note: this is a normal, if kinda rare, personality trait. I have it too. I always score Koushirou on “what Digimon character are you?” tests too lmao. Just like some people feel the need to be surrounded by others at all times, there are those whose social needs are very very low. I’m one of them. There’s nothing wrong with it except that even those people can get lonely and it’s easy to misunderstand them as shy or snobby. So what I love about Koushirou is, yes he learns to value his relationships more, but also learns to value himself. He is Koushirou: a brainy kid who’s happy on his own, but also happy with friends. While some people, like Mimi, struggle with that aspect of his personality, others, like Taichi, just accept it. To me that’s the best life lesson there is: there are always people who can and will be friends with you. Yes, I’ve lost friends because I just wasn’t social enough for them. But I have other friends who I’ve known for literal decades now. And I REALLY love those friends.)

Koushirou feels grateful that he has AlturKabuterimon, and also that he has Taichi. So... here he is, reflecting on the last time he had meaningful interaction with that great friend Taichi... back in episode three. -____________-

Seriously, this would mean a lot more if this dynamic had been built on continually until this episode...

Koushirou then briefly reflects on each of the other Chosen. Notably, every single solo image of them is from an episode that Koushirou either wasn’t in or wasn’t with them at the moment. Then we get this group image. It’s from EPISODE 12. (I’m actually not sure of the episode number but the point is, it’s from A LONG LONG TIME AGO. I think it’s the swamp episode??) That drives me NUTS. We shouldn’t have to reach soooo far back to find meaningful moments!!! Urk.

Koushirou makes it to the peak of the pillar and AlturKabuterimon attacks the satellite to drive it off course. We see the impression of what looks to be HerculesKabuterimon and I really thought we’d get an evolution - it seemed way more appropriate than freaking BlitzGreymon - but nope.

Oh well. Koushirou still saves the day. The people at home get to see the Crest of Knowledge take over their screens, hopefully giving rise to the idea that a nerd superhero is protecting them. Koushirou is the hero we deserve.

The satellite falls into the water. I was like, shouldn’t that cause a tsunami lol?

... be careful what you wish for >_>;

fortunately people were evacuated soooo things will be okay.

He did it!! He’s so happy! AlturKabuterimon’s triumphant holler is adorable.

Taichi and BlitzGreymon fought hard OFF SCREEN!! OFF SCREEN!! HIP HIP HOORAY! And then we get to see him leaning on Sora T_T could this episode give me any more perfect moments?? Looooove it

So yeah, if you can’t tell, I’m thrilled with this episode. There are just a couple things I would have liked to improve: better animation, at least one palpable heart to heart between Taichi and Koushirou, or just a bit more time spent explictly in Koushirou’s head - but honestly we got something that is pretty darn good, especially for this reboot. I hope we do get more like this, both for Koushirou and for the others. I hope the growth here isn’t forgotten moving forward. I really, REALLY want to see more of that “I lead, you support me - you lead, I support you” mutually beneficial relationship that is the foundation of Taishiro <3

So next week! Mimi’s back and the heads are gonna roll!

Lmao!

My theory that she’s finding crystals to make Crests seems unlikely to be the case now that we know the rocks constract the rock Digimon. But... hey, we’ll find out next week.

Also Taichi’s gonna make this face after talking with Mimi bahahahaha. I can’t wait.

[fizzingwizard]

so I actually don’t remember seeing the Digimon Adventure profiles listed on this site before. :o

They look familiar to me - tbh they read a lot like character profiles as they might have been shown when Adventure was first airing. A lot of it’s right from the first 13 episodes. I have most likely seen these before, and I’m certain the mega fans out there have done these already, but still there were tidbits I’d totally forgotten about!

So even if this wasn’t that last anon’s request, I’m gonna translate them. At the very least, it’s a nostalgia blast!

Taichi:

He's a "I don't like studying but I'm up for all physical activity!" athletic young boy. He's the super active type whose his body moves faster than his mouth. Sometimes he overdoes it and fails, but he never lets it get him down, and optimistically leads his friends on with his inherent courage and energy. He's in the soccer club at his elementary school, where he is their ace striker in spite of being a fifth grader.

“Anyway, let’s go! It’s no use just waiting around here!”

Sora:

An energetic girl with short-cut hair. She doesn't wear skirts and always dresses boyishly. She's got great reflexes and made a "two top" formation with Taichi in the soccer club. But while strong-willed like a guy on the one hand, on the other she's sensitive and considerate of her friends, so she often winds up with a sisterly role in the ragtag group.

"Hey, don't just get all relaxed like that. I'm not going to take responsibility here."

Yamato:

A cool kid who does well in both school and sports. His parents divorced three years ago, and now he and his father are living together. Perhaps because he has a strong sense of responsibility and is overly serious, he tends to be a bit cautious during their adventure in the digital world. Maybe for that reason, he often gets into conflicts with intuitive Taichi. He’s also overprotective of his younger brother Takeru, who lives with their mother. His special skill is playing the harmonica.

“I’m saying we should wait and take stock of the situation for a while! Everyone’s tired!”

Koushirou:

A boy who’s always carrying around his notebook computer and whose number one hobby is using the Internet. He’s very inquisitive, and when he comes a cross a puzzle he becomes totally absorbed in trying to solve it. But when he becomes too engrossed he can miss other problems or dangers in front of him, so he sometimes offends people. He isn’t great with socializing and always refers to everyone as “-san.” He swears he’s bad at physical activity (but is he?).

“Maybe we can solve the mystery. What this world is, who you are...”

Mimi:

She's the number one prettiest girl in Koushirou's class. Basically, she's a soft-hearted, young lady-type who everyone likes, but having been raised in a wealthy family without any cares, she can be a little selfish and irrepsonsibile. She hasn't known hardship, so when something bad happens she has a bad habit of quickly crying about it and relying on someone else. To be plain, she's not very useful, but she has an innocent personality that oddly no one can hate.

"I hate this! I'm going home!"

Jou:

A reliable, serious honors student. Born into an elite family, his future goal is to enter a first-class university. He’s the oldest of the group, so he always feels an obligation to bring the others together as the leader. But due to his indecisiveness and lack of skills, the reality often is it’s emotions only that are spinning his wheels, and he looks like a fool to the others.

"I have to be be strong. I have to bring everyone together."

Takeru:

Yamato's little brother. Since their parents’ divorce, he’s been living with his mother. Because of that, he really adores Yamato, and believes that everything will be okay as long as his brother is here. Although his personality is kind and honest, sometimes he listens to Taichi over his overprotective brother and unknowingly annoys Yamato.

"Yeah! It's summer vacation, so I came to my brother's place to play!"

Hikari:

Taichi's little sister and the eighth Chosen Child. She was supposed to go to camp with the others and journey in the Digimon's world, but she had to stay home due to a cold and was the only one left behind in the real world. Usually she's very kind and cares about her brother, but when a terrible adversary appears she has an inner strength that doesn't waver.

"He's very kind, my big brother."

I’m gonna do the partner Digimon too, but only the bits that I haven’t seen much before, since usually it’s the same stuff regurgitated again and again.

Agumon: He (probably?) inherited his quickfire personality from Taichi, often fighting recklessly to protect him. But he's usually easy and carefree, and the other humans besides often Taichi treat him with friendship.

“I... I will protect Taichi!”

Piyomon: She likes to be coddled, and loves her partner Sora. Her personality is honest and she feels sad when scolded by Sora.  She's really not so good at flying, and always competes with Patamon who's at a similar level.

“As long as Sora’s here, I’m not worried!”

Gabumon: He acts tough around his fellow Digimon and humans, but inside he's quite shy, and never takes off his Garurumon pelt (so his real face is a secret).

(When someone tries to take off his fur) “Ah, don’t ever do that!”

Tentomon: His relaxed and friendly personality with everyone maybe makes a surprisingly good combination with Koushirou, who is not good at socializing at all. He keeps up a running commentary as if he knows a lot about Digimon, but there is some good information thrown in. For some reason he speaks in Kansai dialect.

"I’ve never seen a legend before, so I don't know."

Palmon: Her personality clearly shows her emotions and she tends to go at her own pace. Also the way she likes to be spoiled resembles Mimi a lot. Depending on her mood, she can emit different scents from the flower on her head, and she can extend her leaf-like arms to photosynthesize.

“That’s right. Feet that are like roots are great!”

Gomamon: When he gets angry, the red fur on his hair bristles... He's a rascal who meddles with everything he sees, so of course he plays around without really listening to Jou either.

"It's okay, when push comes to shove, I'll help you out."

Patamon: He is particularly amenable compared to other Digimon, and bravely does what he is told. He can fly using his ears, but only at one kilometer an hour, so walking is actually much faster.

“I can fly, look!”

Tailmon: Although it's hard to imagine it based on her cute appearance, but she can take out Greymon and the others light as bean bags... Perhaps because she was in command of the Digimon unit [under Vamdemon]. she sometimes speaks to her fellow Digimon in a commanding tone like a strong-willed older sister.

"My training was different from yours. Alright, let's go, Patamon!"

[fizzingwizard]

kizuna countdown part 2! yup i just did them all in one go, everyone who’s doing it day by day, have fun! See y’all on Friday!

Favorite Chosen Child-Digimon bond

... uh... so I guess I already answered this in the last question XD I think it's because it's so difficult to think about the Digimon without thinking a lot about the relationship they have with their partners. So I'll just let this one lie, I guess.

Favorite Chosen Children friendship

I pretty much like any relationship dynamic that involves Taichi.

Taichi & Yamato show the most growth, both in themselves and in their appreciation and respect for each other. Taich comes at Yamato expecting to make friends just by being himself as always. Yamato's built up walls to keep himself from getting hurt, plus there's a side to him that wants to be as free Taichi, and he winds up feeling jealous. Then there are ways in which they are legit different which adds even more friction. Their friendship comes out on top because both of them are extremely loyal to their friends at their core. They rock. I loved them in Tri too, when Taichi was acharacteristically waffling around and Yamato was even more concerned about it than the confused viewers hahahaha.

Taichi & Koushirou because they're the opposite of him and Yamato, their friendship is steady and strong throughout. They already respect each other from day one. Taichi puts a lot of faith and trust in Koushirou's abilities and relies on him to get him out of a pickle, even one he's made on his own. Koushirou is a bit shy and not exactly afraid to speak up, but not 100% convinced that his contribution is valued. Taichi helps him see his own worth. And Koushirou believes in Taichi :')

I also love him and Sora and Hikari. For friendships that don't include Taichi, my favs are:

Takeru & Hikari because they're really POWERFUL when they're together (teasing Daisuke for example)

Sora & Koushirou Managing Things, Somehow

Koushirou & Mimi driving each other crazy while really valuing each other

Daisuke & Miyako ^ similar dynamic

Ken & Miyako, I know it becomes a romance, but I loved it when they were kids and it was like Ken and Hikari were off being angsty together and Miyako's like I FEEL LEFT OUT and whines about and then kicks their butts to make the sun shine

Favorite Adventure series villain

Etemon! just kidding. Though the Etemon arc was so great for Taichi that I really enjoy it XD

I'd definitely pick the Dark Masters. Devimon was your typical RPG villain, then Etemon was nonsense run amok. Myotismon was the most fun storyline, what with going back to the human world and the search for the eighth child... I especially loved the chaos when the kids are all separated throughout the city.

But yeah, it'd be the Dark Masters, mostly because I loved how much the kids' resolve got tested when they had to decide for themselves to go to the digital world instead of just being thrown in there. The only one who's had to do that before was Taichi. They fought and they lost a lot of friends, and their team splintered and we saw new sides to everyone. It was harsh. About the villains themselves, MetalSeadramon was whatever, but Puppetmon with his envy and vulnerability and weird relationship with Cherrymon was so interesting to me. Machinedramon was downright terrifying. And then Piedmon playing everyone like marionettes and taking down the trump card as soon as it appeared on the scene... it all led to my favorite moment when the kids are running away one by one and sacrifice themselves to save each other. Sora's moment saving Takeru and Hikari while grabbing Yamato's doll was absolutely epic.

Favorite non-partnered Digimon

Piximon! I loved and wanted more of his training sessions. Wish he'd been like Rafiki and just followed Taichi around smacking him on the head with his stick.

Does Gennai count? He's not a Digimon so I guess not, but I loved Gennai too. He was useful. And also useless. I mostly liked it when he was useless xD

Also Whamon. Traveling in the belly of a whale is awesome. And I was so upset when he got killed.

Also Leomon & Ogremon should count as one of my favorite friendships.

Favorite ship / OTP

So, my number one Digimon OTP is Joumi. Always has been. I like it for a lot of similar reasons that people like Koumi, I guess. But the reason I glued onto Joumi mainly happened in Dark Masters when they were traveling just the two of them for a while. Mimi is positive and outspoken and caring despite being a bit self-absorbed. Jou is reliable, steady, and protective, even though he's also perpetually stressed out. They can both be panicky, but they grow out of it a lot. I think they're pretty realistc in personality and that's one reason I like them together: no one's unusually adept at something or other, they're just kids. They confide in each other about their struggles and they pick each other up. (I loved Ketsui for those moments! Such gifts)

Other ships I really enjoy are Taishiro, Taito, Miyakari, Daiken, Takari, and Daikeru. I also love one-sided Taidai and Mimiyako!

A friendship you'd like to see developed

Honestly? Sora and Miyako. The 02 kids inherited the Adventure team's crests, and each seemed to have a slightly stronger bond with one predecessor than the other. Daisuke had interesting dynamics with both Taichi and Yamato, so that was okay. Iori seemed to have more significant moments with Jou than Koushirou, I think because the sort of knowledge that Iori quests for is a different kind. Miyako is really, really similar to Mimi, her passions are just more hard sciences than artsy-fartsy.  But Miyako really never gets any moments with Sora at all? There's that one when she's panicking about being a Chosen in like episode 2, and I can't think of any after that. I would love to see Sora big sister-ing Mimi, helpig her bring out her sensible side, since Mimi's got the eccentric covered.

I'd ALSO like to see Hikari & Sora have a great friendship. One that isn't entirely based on worrying about Taichi x'D

Favorite Kizuna character profile

Takeru's because I just love that he's in a children's lit club!

Favorite Kizuna promotional art

I... haven't been paying attention, so this isn't a real answer, but that one with the boys eating ramen I guess. I even wrote a ficlet for it lol.

Favorite Tri. installment

Kokuhaku!!!! That destroyed any reservations I still had about Tri. It was epic. Somewhat undercut by the fact that we all knew the Digimon would wind up getting their memories back eventually, but I was okay with just enjoying the ride until we got to that point. It was great. I loved the sacrifice the Digimon were willing to make, I loved the secret farewells each partner took, I loved Takeru's protectiveness, Koushirou's breakdown, and Tentomon's strength. Like seriously, he gets all the MVP awards.

Favorite non-Tri. Adventure movie

Our War Game. It's just classic. Plus, Bolero.

Favorite character besides the 12 kids & their partners

Oh, I guess now I could pick Gennai if I want. But I think I'd pick Meiko. I was so not feeling her when Tri came out because I expected her to be the Typical Anime Movie Newbie, who's almost always a girl, bland and uninteresting, eating up valuable screen time from the characters we actually want to see, magically saves everyone and then never appears again.

Meiko did not end up being that girl. Her shyness and awkwardness might have been annoying if they hadn't been tempered by her personal journey through the six movies, and I ended up really liking having a shy girl on the cast. It was refreshing and it was beautifully cast against Mimi. Mimi/Meiko FTW. And she hd real female relationships - with both Sora and Mimi. Her protectiveness of Meicoomon, but also her selfishness, and the terrible decisions she had to make, the way she struggled with self-pity and real honest grief... it ended up really moving me. I think she became very well-rounded and added a lot to Tri.

If Tri had been just one movie, like those anime movies I was expecting, I think she would have been That Girl, but fortunately with six we had plenty of time to get to know her.

(Bonus) Freebie! Talk about something we didn't cover :)

Well, we did lots of favs, so how about a "least fav"?

Of course I don't have a least favorite Chosen, or Digimon. In fact the only thing I'd really pin as a big disappointment happened in Tri. I love Tri but it's certainly got its holes, and for me, Himekawa Maki is a big one. I hate that we just left her wandering in the dark ocean. I hate that were wasn't more expansion on the original Chosen team. I remember when I was a kid and we found out in the last ep or so of Adventure that there had been kids before Taichi and co, I was annoyed, I'd wanted them to be the first.

But I was also curious. With Tri, we finally found out some about that... but only scraps. Who were the others on the team? Where are they now? What's their relationship with Digimon, and if they don't have one anymore, why? What would they say about Daigo's death and Maki's disappearance? Honestly I didn't want to dedicate more time to them at that point (even with six movies they couldn't cram everything in - much as I love Ketsui, I think it should have been a bit different, and moved the plot along faster). But I also hate that we finally learned some stuff about them and in the end were just left with even more questions.