12.20
For 13 years a very vocal section of the Digimon fandom has been clamoring for a continuation of the Adventure series, despite the controversial epilogue in 02 that wrapped up the series in a nice little bow, fans would much rather forget that flash forward (and for good reason) in exchange for a third Adventure series. In 2014, they finally got their wish, cue Digimon Adventure Tri. Tri promised to show the adventures of the now teen-aged Digidestined and their Digimon partners in an all new television series set to air in the spring of 2015! Except it didn’t air in the spring, nor did it even air as a series, instead it was delayed all the way until fall and was suddenly announced that it would be a series of 6-movies instead. Once more was the announcement that the director of the infamous School Days anime would be in charge of the films. with all this combined with a slew of other announcements, fans were suddenly split (what else is new?). Some were mortified, some were skeptical, others remained optimistic, and the rest just wanted the damn thing to air and get it over with. Now that Tri’s first movie has finally aired, was it worth the wait? Well, that depends on who you ask.
To the surprise of absolutely no one, general reception has been mixed, and it’s not hard to see why. While the more mature tone and storytelling and Tamers-esque focus on how dangerous Digimon can actually be in the real world is much appreciated, the actual character drama leaves much to be desired. The infamous broken cell phone instantly springs to mind, not only does the movie beat us over the head with the image, but it’s not even a particularly good image for the emotion and drama it’s used to convey. It’s obvious the cell-phone was used to signify civilian casualties, so why not just show an actual dead body instead? It’s no secret that Digimon has undergone an audience shift in recent years, now being targeted at an older audience, with recent games being aimed more at adults. So why the pussyfooting? It doesn’t even have to be a particularly gory image, just a shot of an outstretched, lifeless arm protruding from some rubble would be an adequately powerful image. As it is, it just makes Tai’s doubt throughout the movie look unfounded, as if someone’s broken cellphone is the most traumatic image ever, and as a result makes Tai and Matt’s obligatory lover’s quarrel conflict seem forced. All of this comes to a head in the climactic battle with fan-favorite Alphamon (which also not only marks his traditional animation debut, but is also his first anime appearance since X-Evolution in 2005!) where Tai flashes back to the damned cellphone for a half-dozen times before finally getting his resolve. At that point the audience would just want the movie to get the fuck on with it.
Another point of contention is the fate of the 02 cast, Davis, Ken, Yolei, and Cody, shown in silhouette being defeated by Alphamon, and aren’t mentioned again for the entire movie, leaving many people to wonder what the fuck happened to them. Now let’s not fool ourselves here. These characters aren’t dead, and if they are, they’re not gonna stay that way. However, the fact that Davis and the others aren’t even so much as mentioned is incredibly jarring. With Imperialdramon slated to show up next movie, we can only hope for answers then.
And therein lies our next problem: the inevitable schedule slip. It’s no secret that Toei is notorious for not delivering things on schedule (just ask Sailor Moon fans), and with Tri being a movie series, episodes will be delayed, even the biggest optimist can’t deny that. And that will be Tri’s biggest obstacle. When all is said and done, will the audience still care enough to tune in?
Personally, I found Digimon Adventure Tri to be enjoyable in spite of all its faults. Visually it’s everything I wanted out of a Digimon anime, and as far as Toei’s revival attempts go, it’s miles better than Sailor Moon Crystal and Dragonball Super (but below Battle of Gods and Resurrection F). I’m interested in seeing where the plot goes, I want to see more interactions between these characters after so long, I want to know what the deal is with newcomers Meiku and Meiccumon, I want to see more of Alphamon, I want to know what role Hackmon will play, and it vexes me that I’ll probably have to wait 5 years to have any of these questions answered.