Digimon Adventure tri. 1: Saikai (2015) Reviews

• A promising opening chapter for a project that may expand the horizons of this franchise

  jephtha2015-12-04

  The story of "Reunion" has two objectives, both of which are fulfilled adequately: to set the status quo and get the audience primed for the next chapter. To an extent, it amalgamates the styles of the first and third seasons. The gradually introduced plot points hearken back to "Tamers", while the minimal detail or follow-through on character points hearkens back to the first arc of "Adventure". Combining these approaches alternates between intriguing and frustrating, especially since the narrative hops so frequently between subplots that very little gains momentum. Not to mention, government agencies and enigmatic appearances of wild digimon have been incorporated before. But, enough is left open that the ultimate impression is of intrigue; whether the intentions of the agency and Alphamon are benevolent or malevolent in nature is ambiguous. At its core, though, the story is really a vehicle for the real selling point of "Digimon" (aside from the monsters themselves). The staff had the unenviable task of reintroducing the characters that got most people interested in this franchise, and whether they succeeded or not largely depends on keeping the right perspective. Most of these guys are re-established well enough, with their general traits from the series apparent; admittedly, simply seeing them after more than a decade is in and of itself a treat. However, all things considered, perhaps it was inevitable that some of them would largely end up on the sidelines. Adherence to convention causes issues at points. Matt has no true purpose beyond causing friction with Tai, which feels obligatory and regressive, and doesn't take advantage of the former's increased maturity in the second season. The only interesting detail is a reversal in view: once before he invited change and is now only wary about it. Joe, meanwhile, just does what he has done in nearly every "movie", only with a little more frustration. The three that get the best treatment are Tai, Izzy and, surprisingly, Mimi. The latter was consistently endearing in the second season, and many of her base-attributes shine through here. She remains ebullient and upbeat, and the scene where she gives everyone souvenirs had me smiling. Along with Sora's stuff, it's a testament to the charisma of these guys and the impact they can make with minimal material. Tai comes closest to being dominant, being more level-headed than in his younger days but retaining some of his laid back demeanor. Over the course of the story, he wrestles with fear of the collateral damage that is caused by the conflicts with enemy monsters, which he believes he and his friends are responsible for. It's a little contrived and not the most compelling matter he has dealt; maybe the whole "heroes possibly doing more harm than good" thing is growing stale (Gamera 3, The Powerpuff Girls Movie, most Batman movies, half of the recent Marvel movies, Watchmen). But, it provides introspection, complements his role in the group and advances his viewpoint. It even yields one of the best lines: "Now I see more, and understand less". Here's to hoping that theme catches on. Izzy is perhaps most successful. His usual technical prowess is on full display and has apparently evolved (a little too much, some might say). Beyond that, his newfound interest in Mimi allows this episode to do what I hope will become more frequent: take advantage of the stage in these guys' lives. Watching him so awkwardly try to make himself more presentable or impressive for her is pure joy. True, it essentially comes out of left field, since Izzy has mostly been apathetic towards Mimi since their one episode together, but it's an acceptable development for a guy fixated on technology for most of his life. Furthermore, it provides some surprisingly observant moments. My favorite (non-action) scene may be when Izzy imparts his reasons for resorting to online shopping. It's wonderfully honest, done in the spirit of the original series. On the technical level, "Reunion" excels in its own line. It's not exactly the pinnacle of animation in this franchise, but it is very satisfying to see "Digimon" finally be consistently up to par with most anime. The kids are all expressive and faithful to their earlier looks, though at several points I had difficulty telling Matt and T.K. apart. The digimon themselves look great, with sleek new transformation footage, greater range in movement and a feeling of force when they utilize their powers, all of which benefit the two big action sequences; Kuwagamon even manages a surprising level of menace thanks to size and an impressive roar. In the words of Chris Mcfeely, "I confess to getting all giddy" in seeing all of these guys again, especially the iconic Omnimon. Clear improvements are also evident in the backdrops, which are detailed and varied. There's a particularly sublime scene where Tai and Agumon are pondering at a river. Several fun nods to the series are included. The broken bridge from an early attack recalls the original Highton View Terrace incident, Kuwagamon mirrors his role in the premiere episode, Tai's class-book is titled "One Vision", one of the main songs in "Tamers", and the commemorative photo from the first season finale makes a few obscured appearances. My favorite little detail is perhaps the blog that T.K. briefly writes on. It's a nicely understated way to adapt an old plot point into the modern day. For this seasoned fan, "Reunion" is a satisfying experience. One could argue that the "set-up" objective was overly emphasized or that time should have been better allocated amongst the kids. Yet, these issues are less significant when keeping in mind that this is intended as only the first step in a larger story. Regardless, the target audience can at least be jubilant about one thing: there is now something new to look forward to. Digimon is back, so let's make the most of it.

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• Digimon Tri sets high bench mark for movie series, captivating long-time followers but leaving newcomers behind.

  preb-521292015-11-30

  Digimon has always held a special spot in my heart, as I watched it growing up, and I could not stop loving the series years later. Well, as a long-time fan, this movie didn't disappoint me; it was just as much a celebration of its history as it was a loving gift to its fans. *This review will contain spoilers for the first two Digimon series, as well as this movie.* Plot: 7/10 - Following the events of Digimon Adventure 02, the group has grown up further, and they're well into their high school years. Strange disturbances in the networks throughout Japan ominously herald the start of another adventure. During a soccer game, Tai chases after a Kuwagamon and witnesses firsthand the devastation such a creature could bring about. Chased and exhausted, he is saved at the last moment by Agumon, who proceeds to fight Kuwagamon after Digivolving into Greymon. The two are then transported into an airport and continue their fight, while Tai and the other DigiDestined are all escorted to the airport and reunited with their Digimon partners. After driving back Kuwagamon and its two reinforcements, the group struggles to regain its luster, knowing all too well that the fight has just begun. The plot of this movie is essentially groundwork for what's to come; it sets up character arcs and relationships that will not be expanded upon until later, as well as conflicts and problems we can spot a mile away. Characters: 10/10 - Right from the onset, there seems to be discontent from the group, as with their adulthood looming they develop both physically and mentally, and they drift ever further apart. Tai, the leader of the group in the first series, has serious issues with his future, and the entire DigiDestined seem shackled to the past in one way or another. The love triangle between him, Matt and Sora doesn't aid in calming his nerves, and his newfound fear in the power of Digimon and helplessness towards them that he failed to grasp as a child. Izzy has a glow-in-the-dark obvious crush on Mimi, and he struggles with it, while TK and Kari are also starting to notice their increased popularity and attraction is changing their relationship. Even the oldest of the group, Jo, has a girlfriend, one whom he disregards for his failing entrance exam scores. The character development is subtle, and logical, deeply rooted in the characters established in the two prior series and with an additional layer of complexity worthy of exploration. Interesting moments and character beats connect long-time fans with their childhood favorites, while also showing signs of adulthood and change all-too familiar. Pacing: 8/10 – Up until the final five minutes of the movie, the pacing was excellent and worked wonders. Taking itself slowly, and showing through actions, not words, how far the characters have changed from our last encounter, it brought the group well into focus and the movie gained gravitas and impact because of it. But the final five minutes the movie realized it needed to wrap up; non- stop evolutions of progressively greater power, culminating in a frantic Alphamon vs Omnimon battle, none of which was built up properly or had a pay-off worthy of its much greater hourly set-up. Ending the movie on the Omnimon transformation would have worked great, I felt, as would a declaration from Tai to fight, finding a reason to. Maybe his failure to size up could have ended the movie on a cliffhanger, and provided motivation to fight next time. But this ending felt rushed and unworthy of the honestly very atmospheric and amazingly powerful built-up that the movie had spent itself creating. General Notes: 9/10 – The animation is beautiful to behold, crisp and clear while retaining much of the charm from the earlier, sloppier, animation style before it. The Digivolution sequences were great, although they were a bit too much Digimon Tamers rather than Adventure for me. Hearing the "Butterfly" and "Brave Heart" songs again was amazing, and the renditions here are excellent. The brief glimpses of the four Adventure 02 DigiDestined and their defeat at the start of the series was a subtle and effective way of showing the continuity of 02. But their complete lack of reference past that point is baffling. Especially as TK is shown communicating to the worldwide DigiDestined community, and we know that those shown briefly should be discussed more, especially as Kari and TK know them well, and they go to the same school! Mention their disappearance at least. Conclusion: 9/10 – For me, characters and atmosphere can dominate story and improve a property immensely, and Digimon Tri did just that. Its story is obvious and not the most interesting, but the rest is amazing. If not for the horribly paced final minutes, then it would be a clear 9.5/10, but it lost a lot of its flow in reaching for that Omnimon appearance. The villain is also non- existent as an element in Tri, and the use of Kuwagamon, while significant to us as their first challenge in the digital world, is never menacing. If you can watch the movie as a single film, it is much better than the episodic version, as this was clearly meant to be a single unit, and not a string of episodes. For long-time fans or people looking for a tearfully nostalgic property, Digimon Adventure Tri satisfies perfectly. Newcomers will be lost however, as there is no recap of previous events.

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• Brings Back Memories, Enjoyed it.

  mercfma2015-12-06

  Now if your watching this then you must already be familiar with at least the original season of "Digimon", it definitely brings the nostalgic feels seeing all your childhood characters grown and seeing what they're up to. This movie translates in English as "reunion" and thats exactly what it felt like, it felt like this movie was to set the tone of everything, bring back your beloved childhood heroes and get you remembering and catching up with everything that is "Digimon". Now my first observation was how different everyone looks from the original especially the digimon themselves, the art style looks completely different but thats not necessarily a bad thing. It breaths new life into the nostalgic childhood series. Now as the story goes its just getting started, basically the entire plot is we don't know whats going on yet and we don't quite find to much out in this first part of the movie series. The artwork and animation is very nice, some scenes definitely look extremely awesome and then for me there's a few that seemed to be lacking but as a hole i thought it was done very well especially the combat scenes I was impressed. (I was actually getting flash backs from the original digimon movie where Greymon fights the green parrot while Kari stands and watches in the street) The music was really good, i thought it matched just fine & the opening & ending theme weren't to bad either. As for the voice acting i have no complains, it was my first time hearing the Japanese voices and thought they were just fine. Now my only complaint is the last fight scene, it seemed extremely rushed i think it should of been at minimum twice the length that it was it seemed to take away the dramaticness of the battle by just blowing through without any emotional tension like they normally would have. That said, my favorite thing about the new movie is that everyone doesn't stay in their same old outfits like in basically every cartoon/anime you've seen. They all change their clothes everyday with a new look and its very cool it makes them more "real", and their pretty damn stylish xD. 4/5 Why? I feel it should be slightly lower but i rate higher because this movie was more or less just to lay out the page, set the tone. There's only so much you can do when your trying to reintroduce a fairly big series all in one movie time frame. I also think my nostalgia goggles may make me more bias than someone who didn't watch the original as a child. The artwork and animation was different from what i was expecting but in no way was i disappointed, the music matched well and the story seems like its going to be decent, it definitely leaves you wanting more and wondering whats going on. If your looking for a trip down memory lane i'd watch it, i believe the up coming movies will definitely be better now that the tone has been set, i can't wait!

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• Adventure Anime

  mahmoudosama-565792015-11-24

  Adventure anime film series produced by Toei Animation. It is a six- part series of films in Akiyoshi Hongo's Digimon franchise, serving as a direct sequel to the first two television series, Digimon Adventure and Digimon Adventure 02, and celebrates the anime franchise's 15th anniversary.The first film, Saikai was released on November 21, 2015 and will be released on region-free DVD and Blu- ray in Japan on December 18, 2015.The second film, Ketsui will be released on March 12, 2016. The films are being streamed in episodic format outside of Japan by Crunchyroll. The movie takes place in 2005, Three years after the events of Digimon Adventure 02, Taichi Yagami is now in high school, downhearted that none of his friends are able to come to his Football game. Meanwhile, strange occurrences are causing electronic devices to malfunction across Odaiba. Minutes before Taichi's match begins, a Kuwagamon that had been causing the malfunctions suddenly appears, soon taking physical form and causing collateral damage to the city. Just as Taichi is cornered, his Digivice shines and his old partner Agumon appears, devolving into Greymon to fight against Kuwagamon, who is more powerful than the first time they fought. As the two Digimon end up traveling through portals to an airport in Haneda, Taichi is given a ride by his substitute teacher, Daigo Nishijima. As more Kuwagamon appear, Taichi is joined by the other DigiDestined and their Digimon partners, with the exception of Joe, who defeat two of them, while a mysterious hand appears and destroys the last one. Following the battle, as the DigiDestined look over the strange occurrences leading up to Kuwagamon's appearance, which are believed to be caused by distortions in space, Taichi and Yamato pay a visit to Nishijima, who reveals himself to be part of an organization monitoring Digimon activity, particularly infected Digimon like the Kuwagamon that appeared. As Koushiro develops ways to provide easier access to their Digimon partners and seek out digital disturbances, Taichi begins to fear that people could get hurt as a result of his actions as a DigiDestined. The next day, a mysterious black Digimon known as Alphamon appears, seemingly targeting a Digimon under the care of Meiko Mochizuki, a girl who recently transferred into Taichi's class. With Alphamon proving too powerful for the other Digimon, Yamato urges Taichi to stop running away from his fears, and together they manage to drive Alphamon off with the power of Omnimon. Afterwards, Meiko reveals that she is also a DigiDestined with her partner, Meikuumon, being the Digimon Alphamon was targeting.

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• Brought old memories and my childhood. Thank YOU!

  ahmetcem32018-05-14

  I was a huge fan of digimon when I was 7 years old. I can understand now why I loved it so much. It's all about digital universe. I am 25 years old right now I am a software engineer. I think there is some effect of this show to make me software engineer. I think this movie is created in a way to all fans of the digimon adventure to have some nostalgia. Thank you very much for creating Digimon tri and bring my old memories!

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