An Honest Review of Digmon Adventure 02: The Beginning | No Spoilers

Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning is my biggest disappointment coming from the Digimon franchise in years. If you liked it, I'm incredibly happy for you! Here is me explaining why I did not like it, without spoiling the plot.
Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning REVIEW & Discussion
0:00 Intro
0:30 To Be Honest
1:52 Action
2:53 Evolution
4:20 Story
5:30 Why A Movie?
6:04 The Star
7:43 Priorities
8:43 'For The Fans'
10:40 Summary
For a different perspective, here is Xanaxdu's more positive review: • Digimon Adventure 02 N...
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[@thedigiknow]

Thanks y'all! For an alternate perspective, check out Xanaxdu's more positive review! kzbin.info/www/bejne/f3PTgGd_hL6jr68si=efSWO9xC0YYaaVd2

[@jackhsu3458]

Some people said this movie was "beyond expectation", yet some said it was "bit disappointment", guess we really have to see it for ourselves to judge it.

[@fictionverse7292]

I liked it and there were one certain scene where it could’ve traumatized me if I was any younger. As a 20 year old, it just disturbs me and I imagine that scary scene sometimes. I’m getting over it

[@kevosaysohoe]

Naw Digiknow’s comments were spot on! Plus I’m seeing more bad reviews than good. You should definitely see for yourself but prepare yourself for a “deep” story about a new character with no fighting lol

[@aldendomino3523]

If you watch digimon foe the reason it's supposed to exist: the fights, then you won't enjoy it

[@sarkaztik3228]

​@aldendomino3523 What a bold assumption (and not correct). I never watched Digimon for the fights, it's always been about the plot. Fights were just a pleasant addition.

[@dododo8874]

For me some parts were disappointing. It was definitely a well-made movie…but once again it has left more questions for me. But at least now I have a small head canon about who the dark master from 02 ep 13 (hikari’s first time in the dark world.) so I guess one plot hole from many years ago is fixed. But this movie really didn’t focus on many of the 02 kids. Takeru had 3 noticeable lines and 2 were puns while the last one was a genuine concern that daisuke pushed aside with no care.

[@israelleon1949]

Miss the Armor Digivolutions so much. Kinda wish the 02 Digidestined fought against the loose end antagonists like Dragomon and Daemon from the Dark Ocean and Dark Gennai.

[@juliusgladney1188]

Man I thought that would have been the movie. They know we want this storyline. The movie was good though

[@dododo8874]

Omg so I looked at 02 ep 13 again. And I realized okomon looks just like the master dude from the dark ocean. So that plot hole, in my head, HAS BEEN FIXED AFTER LIKE 10 YEARS FOR ME🥳

[@bluelunarmonkeytarot8533]

​@@dododo8874dragomon was the dark master from the ocean. The creepy digimon from the movie did say they were connected to a powerful entity tho so that's a possibility. They'll have to do another movie for us to know.

[@tiger21823]

Where can we watch this on online ?

[@chelsinia5145]

I miss so much and I love digimon but I needed so much more

[@MLESoup]

I really enjoyed this movie, but I think your critiques are honest and fair. I agree that I wish we had spent more time with the 02 kids and looking into their lives.

[@rafaynoman1180]

One thing i think thats been missing from the adventure movies is a well written digimon villain like every villiain we've gotten in adventure movies since tri are either human/humanoid or digimon without any personality. The writers need to understand what made the og series so good are some of the digimon villian themselves like the banter between arukedimon & mummymon or the threatening aura of Myotismon and The dark masters.

[@minicle426]

Daemon or Dagomon could have filled that role... 🤷‍♂️

[@ShukakuTheCrazy1]

Why do you all get the pizza while I only get the cruuuuuust

[@SERRANDON]

This Lui story would be great if they decided to make a Digimon Anthology series based on the 01/02 universe. Where every episode focuses on a new digi-destined. I hate how they went about this film and I hope we get another opportunity to see the 02 cast in a story that focuses on them.

[@AussieDragoon]

I think what the director morseo meant when he said that this film could only be told with the 02 cast was less of a functional reason of requiring that Adventure canon and 02 cast to play a pivotal role that no one else could and more that they had more of an active interest in the 02 cast as characters and wanted to use them more than any other team. Because of all the Adventure material we've gotten since Tri, the 02 cast feels on point in how they're written. Davis and Ken's chemistry, Cody's tendency to go against the grain for the sake of it, Kari judging people based solely on her own perspective, and even the tendency of the 02 cast to divide amongst themselves when things get difficult and argue to take no action rather than continue forward down the immediate pass (like when they got wrecked by Kimeramon the first time, or during the Daemon Corps invasion, or at the end in the fantasy world which is how Myotismon trapped them to begin with). Its not all positive, but that's the characters and it's what drew me in here, because up to this point it felt more so like we had loose simulations of the Adventure cast in the previous films just similar enough to their previous selves to serve the story. Kari in the previous films had mostly been a prop for Tai and TK was even less than that. They kind of needed the 02 cast to be much of anything at this point. I think Gatomon has more lines in this movie than in the last 7 combined. And I'd argue that Davis is the key to solving the whole plot, with his ability to uncomplicated things and push forward with pure confidence that no other character in the franchise really has (and that solved all the previous conflicts I listed above). And while I get your criticisms and I think many are valid, there's no way you can convince me that this is worse than the latter Tri films, which just seemed to exist to pump out new forms and what Dark Gennai was trying to accomplish was never really elborated on so that plot went no where. It's the opposite problem, but I'd rather have this that forms and action for their own sake while pretending it's serious. A middle ground would be ideal, but picking between the two I pick this.

[@BlueShiny4Bowser]

Your analysis is great and pulls the others some parts that I had totally forgot about until I watched the Toei animation Digimon adventure 02 episodes they posted on their KZbin channel. What I believe was happening was they needed to continue with the adventure Tri series where Tai, and Matt, but mostly Tai didn’t want to fight as he knew that (1) fighting, doesn’t solve all problems, (2)fighting in the city was bad, and (3) you need to value all living life. Similar to the anime Symphogear, you have to fight someone else for there to be peace, and they may feel just as justified as you feel in your own, and in someone else’s eyes, you are the villain. 02 was the first time that they restrain their strength, and would only defeat digimon if they were a control spire. This is a perfect example of the route. I saw it going in Digimon adventure Tri as well as Last Kizuna. Honestly, what I really love is how different it is to POKÉMON‘s attempt to say that Pokémon aren’t being forcefully enslaved and forced to battle for the sake of sport that their masters want. I know that the Unova series tried to state that Pokémon were friends, and they wanted to battle. But here in this universe, Digimon actually talk as well, and they have the ability to fully express their emotions and opinions not like a pet but as a friend. I know that talking doesn’t solve everything, but adults, who would be the audience this is catering to, needs to learn that communication is key to everything, and we don’t read each other’s minds. We don’t truly know what the other person is thinking and it can lead to a lot of issues that can’t be solved with fists and fighting like it was in the very first Digimon adventure series. Things are a lot more complicated and messy, but those who wanted to see an action packed film are probably looking for that formula where it’s head on into battle!

[@user-hv6vs8mn1w]

I couldn't agree more with that. (What both of you wrote.)

[@amphibien8264]

Yes. Even though the 02 cast didn't get screentime, the movie was perfectly 02 thematically. The Beginning sends a very message to the 02 finale. The movie might not be action packed but is it really so bad for the 02 continuation to still be very 02?

[@ShukakuTheCrazy1]

You know what, you make it sound like it's worth watching. Thanks guys, I'm not gonna pass up on this one. Still need to watch Kizuna though

[@bluelunarmonkeytarot8533]

Nah I prefer tri. More digivolution and action. Not a soap opera. I was extremely bored and underwhelmed with this movie. Don't even get me started with the ending! Total crap show!

[@mraguirre08]

Completely agree. I felt disappointed in how the 02 cast got thrown aside for this story. The story is good on its own. If they had advertised this as a digimon project and not an 02 movie I think I would have been happy with what we got. But instead it was advertised as a continuation with the 02 kids. Honestly I don't even think they were really needed, this could have been released as a KZbin series with just rou working things out on his own.

[@kevosaysohoe]

🎯🎯🎯 I completely agree with this!

[@peach-ls5uk]

needed wayyyy more of the 02 kids.

[@s.k.bradford297]

I left the film thinking like “ohh… that was fun” but I didn’t feel the fun. I think I was just happy to see the 02 kids back. Your video explained all the things I felt but couldn’t pinpoint. In Japan, they’ve released a new audio drama each week with tickets and the one last week starts with the 02 kids and their digimon in an izakaya ordering food chatting and TK is drunk and then they start talking about discussing story stuff. I feel like maybe the team thought “oh the 02 kids aren’t shown much together having fun” at a certain point after the story had been cemented so they made the audio dramas to maybe make up for the lack of interaction in the film.

[@Justapracticinghuman]

Oh yes, thats exactly how I felt after watching the movie. I’m glad that I came to the theatre with no expectation cos otherwise, I would’ve been hella disappointed. I’m just glad where I’m from, they give out goodies when you buy the special ticket set.

[@zinkpopovitch9519]

Can't wait for your spoiler review. That movie gave me PTSD Post Tamera Stress Disorder. I remember certain scenes and thinking to myself 'If I saw this screenshot online I would never believe it was from a digimon movie'

[@Matiasfv]

The director of adventure and 02, Hiroyuki kakudo, last week he posted a blog of his version of the adventure timeline between the end of 02 and the epilogue incase you are interested in it . He was involved during the early production of Kizuna but ended up leaving the proyect because the script of the director contradicted his vision about the world completely. withthewill uploaded the full article translated. Kakudo was involved in Digimon Survive according to Habu Kazumasa, and some parts of his article even reminded me to certain parts of survive, it'd be interesting to know your opinion about that "what if" post 02 world according to the original director, he even talked about how certain character reached their careers in the epilogue and they kinda made a lot of sense. This part of his lore was really interesting, the humans according to him were getting digimon around the world increasing the number by two each year. 1 in 1996, 2 in 1997, 4 in 1998, 8 in 1999, 64 in 2002, etc etc, reaching the point in 2027 where every person in the world have a digimon. In his lore neither a wish or rui were never necessary

[@Noorutska]

That is super interesting but one thing with original lore and that vision is: how about the first digidestined? Weren't they a group of 5 and thus 5 digimon partners? Or was there one from earlier year that attached to the next year's group or something?

[@RamonGJ]

Bit of spoilers: I like how both hurricane touchdown and this dealt with going back to the beginning 😆

[@DrawciaGleam02]

This movie is LITERALLY called "The Beginning". So not much of a spolier in my opinion.....

[@MitWS]

What I hate is that all the movies do basically the same thing "here's a new kid, let's process their trauma" but this time they didn't really fight

[@KristalTheWolf]

As someone who enjoyed the movie, a thing i did was make sure to not expect Kizuna level of how it was going to be since that's almost a setup for disappointment. The film certainly feels like a start of something bigger for the thing and will mosr likely have tons more impact on following stories.

[@tiramix]

Understand where your disappointment is coming from, and it's quite valid. My personal opinion is that it's a good movie by itself for the story it has, and as for why it has less action etc, I find comfort in the fact that the producer kind of made it clear that this is just part of a bigger plot, and as the name hints, this is a 'beginning' for it~ The new character will come back as well from the interviews. We will most likely get into the bigger story about how digivices work and who the 'Grwat One' is! Had fun watching it!

[@HenshinFanatic]

So this is the Tri Part 1 of Adventure 02?

[@TheBleachj16]

Gotta be honest, I want them to stop making Adventure movies. They can't come up with a plot for these movies that isn't "new chosen child thats been around the whole time that the kids have to help" They add new lore that contradicts the previously established material. The retcon here was not needed. Im not the biggest 02 fan, but I cant see how fans of the cast will get much out of this movie.

[@Cpt_JohnRackham]

The big thing is that I think this movie was a setup for a series of new movies. Possibly leading up to an Yggdrasil storyline for the Adventure and 02 teams. The destruction of Digivices, and Lui's partner having a link to "a very powerful entity" and the Tree of Life imagery from the finale of the movie.

[@Cpt_JohnRackham]

That said, I 100% agree about your feelings on Paildramon. I was taken aback when they digivolved THREE TIMES (XV-mon, Stingmon, Paildramon) just for transportation.

[@Cpt_JohnRackham]

I love the original / retro digivolution animation, but it is 100% cheating for them to sponge screentime by running multiple digivolutions back to back.

[@thedigiknow]

Agreed, especially with how short the runtime is to begin with. We did not need to see those evolutions play out in full.

[@graceskrafts]

@@Cpt_JohnRackhamit’s really weird how they played Paildramon’s twice IN FULL and both of Paildramons, Exveemon, and Stingmon’s in full, but then everyone else’s non-DNA evolution plays out in the 6-way split screen. Like I understand why but I feel it’s a bit of a shame to make all that new animation so small, especially once it’s not on the big screen anymore. Hawkmon and Gatomon are my faves so it’s a bit disappointing to me they couldn’t have maybe paced out the evolutions more so we got to see them all, but I understand the need to save on time and for it to not get repetitive in the short run time.

[@PinayGrl926]

The reason I was able to enjoy the film was because of how similar it was to the plot of the Original digimon movie with Willis/Wallace. That was why the flashback didn't bother me too much. Rui's backstory was necessary to the plot of the movie (Just maybe not to the degree shown in the movie lol).

[@TheAggroQueen]

Yeah, i was let down too. Between the horrendous atrocity of a series called Ghost Game, and this which was so painfully average... Yikes. At least the Discotek Digimon movie redubs could make a good pallette cleanser...

[@MemeinAndDreamin]

Sorry to hear the movie disappointed you man. I personally thought it was a really good and well done mature story, and I feel like a lot of people misunderstood what they were trying to do here. It's clearly a much smaller and more personal story that deals with some serious topics. Abuse, misunderstandings, how relationships are a two way street and can't be one sided. I can see why people are upset with no new forms and the lack of battles and action but it also sort of confuses me because for a while now I was under the impression that it was understood that the Adventure characters were older now and were dealing with more "grown up" type stuff. I can't help but feel like a lot of the fans who say they grew up with the original series didn't actually grow up and just want new forms to buy toys of. It might be better off if they start to make these big movies or events take place in the Digital World for a better excuse to have new forms and battles. I really thought the ending in particular was quite good, what they did with the Digivices and the context of the bond between Digimon and their tamers was profound and the very real message of "you don't need and shouldn't rely on technology in order to have a real bond and connection with your loved ones" was fantastic and very important especially today. I totally agreed with it wholeheartedly. In regards to the director saying this could only be made with the 02 cast, I get what he meant by that. It's just like you said, this cast is different from the 01 cast as having a Digimon for them is more like an every day casual thing instead of some mystical or special event. And more Digidestined are being discovered every day, it's becoming a pretty standard and common occurrence. So with how their Digimon are really just their best pals, that happen to be monsters, they're all treated like legitimate people and family. And the main themes and ending of the film perfectly align with that. Anyway man, great video as always. Appreciate your thoughts and hope you're doing well.

[@thedigiknow]

10/10 comment, thank you for chiming in and respectfully disagreeing with me! Cheers

[@iammaximumstupied]

not gonna lie it was decent but it felt like it should’ve been Tri. it should’ve been a special. the movie was interesting but yeah felt like it should’ve been a special instead. i didn’t mind the lack of fights but eh. should’ve involved the dark ocean to finish up Karis 02 story.

[@leonardofarias8843]

All of that could have happened in 4 ovas and nobody would complain

[@gilbertosanchez2048]

​@@leonardofarias8843hell toei could've at least go a la dragón Ball super style and come up with an 02 series or ovas taking place after the events of the beginning There a picture on the Internet of the Adventure timeline and the beginning takes place in 2012 while the end of 02 is in 2027, so there's a 15 year gap where Toei can come up with something good for adventure 02 with more stories, well written villains, and new digievolutions while having both silphymon's mega (Valkyriemon) and shakkoumon's mega (SlashAngemon) appear for the 1st time

[@yrooxrksvi7142]

No, sorry, no matter how much you wanna spin it, another "tragic OC of the week" plot has gotten tiresome and dull.

[@bugking1413]

You know, while I did end up liking the film, I think I can definitely get behind most of these points. The strongest aspect of the movie was Lui's story and I feel like the forced inclusion of the 02 cast really only dragged down both Lui and the rest of the cast. Honestly the more time they spent on the Davis and the others, the more I just wanted it to get back to Lui. If they maybe did a small Tri-style series (2-3 episodes) with the quality of Last Evolution Kizuna, I think it would've been able to give all the characters the needed screentime and battles they deserved. And while I agree with the idea that the 02 cast not needing to be the one to tell this story I think it's just to help bring home the ending message. Not needing to rely on a physical things to have a bond feels like it fits with the team whose bonds are symbolized by their jogress evolutions. Not my favorite digimon media, but idk I found it charming enough.

[@DigiWarriorCallum]

(I doubt this counts as a spoiler, because Japan would have absolutely spoiled it if it were to happen before hand, like the Tri Megas, so...) Still haven't seen the movie myself. But i do know that Shakkoumon and Silphymon don't Digivolve to their own Mega Forms, which kinda saddens me. Would have been cool to see Valkryimon and ClavisAngemon along side Imperialdramon Fighter Mode. (No I will NOT accept Vikemon as a Shakkoumon Mega EVER!) Also, a minor thing... Why would TK and Kari need to DNA Digivolve at all? They have Seraphimon and Magnadramon now (and yes, Tri's canon. Meiko and Meicoomon were in Kizuna), it's like they're handicapping themselves to give Cody and Yolei's Digimon a buff, since Aquilamon and Ankylomon are useless on their own.

[@IgnitedQuils]

IKR? Even Tri gives the other Adventure kids their mega forms. So it doesn’t make sense to me either.

[@Erinbeenwavy]

Wish they would give the Frontier team a movie. That was my fav season after Adventure 02. To see Takuya and the gang link up with Tai, Davis and the other well known digi destined would be amazing and something I’ve been wanting for so long

[@HenshinFanatic]

Dude they had at least one movie already: Dejimon Furontia: Kodai Dejimon Fukkatsu!! Now the series that does need a movie is Digimon Savers. They're the only classic team (Xross Wars/Young Hunters Who Leapt Through Time doesn't count as a classic series, it's part of the new (inferior) generation) who never got their own film. Hell, Tamers had TWO movies and even Frontier got one.

[@lipepinto77]

I have mixed feelings, there could be a scene like the beginning of last kizuna where the gang dealed with a wild digimon and commented on how Taichi and Yamato were no longer in the picture. Or some flashes of the 01 guys like the 02 kids had on last kizuna. Also, it's funny how they nailed Lui voice actor, nothing works as well to portrait a kid with parents issues as the voice of Shink Ikari haha

[@seanchen9265]

The ending of beginning dont bring justice to kizuna ending...i agree with you. Just watched at Malaysia just now

[@bam255019]

I liked better second viewing because I knew what I was getting into. Because I mostly agreed that my first viewing somewhat disappointing. But I'm glad we got this movie because some fandoms don't get anything. Hopefully the future projects take the criticism and make a better product

[@yrooxrksvi7142]

And what were you expecting ? Another boring to death "tragic OC of the week" sappy plot that has been done again and again for the past 7-8 years ?

[@eliscore]

It felt like a legit Horror movie at times. The thing chopped his mom's head off and you can hear it fall into the snow. (She deserves jt

[@monoplush1257]

wait really holy shittt i didnt notice that

[@KiteOvermars]

It did? i didnt notice

[@TheTortillaMan]

This makes me feel better since I couldn't see it in theaters. But I do hope it helps keep the franchise going with no announced anime atm

[@SiNKarnage]

Well you missed out on some worthless trading cards if that makes you feel betterer

[@zatchfan202]

I completely agree. This story was more about Lui, than the digidestined. And the whole idea that the reason they have their Digimon was because of a wish he made was absolutely ridiculous. I’ve watched every season of Digimon with the exception of fusion. I know what happened and what didn’t happen. And to not only mess with the Digimon lore. But to make the main digidestined side and supporting characters, with an extreme lack of combat was just wrong. Last Kizuna was way better.

[@graceskrafts]

While I still enjoyed the movie and the experience of watching it with fellow fans, I agree with you on your points. I saw both the sub and dub and after seeing it twice I couldn’t help but think about what kind of plot I would have done were I given the reigns. I feel there’s still so much untapped potential for an older 02-focused story. I feel what I would have preferred to see was a big threat that necessitated Silphymon and Shakkoumon finally reaching mega (I have been wanting Valkyriemon forever) and showed character growth and relations not just between tamers and their Digimon but also between the tamers and between the Digimon. The 02 cast is such a fun ensemble who’s chemistry I’ve always really enjoyed and they really shine when they’re allowed to just play off each other. In the small moments we got in the movie I felt they got that right at least, but sadly it was only small moments. As a fellow Digimon Survive enthusiast, I was thinking one possibility that would have been cool to see instead was maybe an arc involving the Digimon Sovereigns. We only ever met Azulongmon in 02, and also never really resolved all the holy stones being destroyed and it would be interesting if maybe because of that or some influence from the real world, a corrupted Fanglongmon was the big new threat. Maybe seeking out the other Digimon Sovereigns is how they could find a way to unlock new mega evolutions or heck maybe some of the many unused armors, or new armors. And maybe along the way have a journey full of introspection and bonding. I also had the thought it would be fun to have like Oikawa’s partner Digimon show up again or maybe BlackWargreymon reborn from a digi egg. Maybe they could be friends evens. I was also just thinking all the struggles the 02 cast could be having at this point in their lives. The spotlight is mostly on Davis and his ramen, but I feel there’s plenty the others could be going through too. Maybe Cody’s grandfather is getting older and not doing so well and him and his mom are struggling to deal with that. Cody has always been pretty reserved and private with his feelings so maybe learning to share them with his friends (especially TK who maybe can related living with his own mom). Maybe Yolei is trying to make her way in the tech field but is coming ups against Japan’s awful workplace sexism and is doubting herself and losing her fire and she could use Kari to remind her not to lose the passion and feistiness she’s known for. There was not even one Slap of Friendship in this movie, it’s a shame. Aha sorry for the long comment but I’ve just had these thoughts floating around my brain after 02 the beginning. I honestly hope they aren’t done with 02 because it would be more disappointing if this was their true and only shot at being revisited. I’m still made how shafted they were in Tri but happy about their appearance in Kizuna and very mixed on what is supposed to be their movie in The Beginning. It was nice seeing everyone again but I can’t help wishing we just got more 02 focus.

[@graceskrafts]

Oh also, would be nice if we actually got to go back to the digital world? It’s weird how neither of these movies really involve it. I’d really love to see it on the big screen with a movie budget art direction. I miss that entire half of what’s so fun about both Digimon Adventures.

[@JapaneseAlley]

I LOVED IT! I wrote my review, but I can understand why someone wouldn't care about it!

[@pipocus]

Thanks for the honest review! Ive always appreciated your point of view. I still wanna show support to the franchise but it helps to know to lower my expectations when I enter the cinema

[@HappyThes]

İt wasn't in theaters in our country. I'm still looking forward for it. Thanks for reviews. I'll have low expectations now but I'm still curious to see it one day!

[@Nico1996]

Definitely needed more action and wish the armor evolutions made an appearance. 02 cast definitely deserved a better movie , but the overall message was solid. They’re best friends no matter what even without a tech that originally brought them together.

[@22mhec]

Definitely enjoyed the movie but really was hoping for more action or evolutions. Maybe a new evo special for the movie. I do love that the whole team got the remade evo sequences. That was the highlight for me.

[@CreativeGeoff]

The movie was OK for what it was, but I strongly believe the 02 cast deserved a better spotlight. This was a fair critique! And I hope the movie served as a teaser for more 02 related stories, possibly a "tri" styled series or a reboot like Adventure 2020.

[@georgesagris3508]

I just saw the movie in the cinemas, and im also re-watching 02 and im almost done. I was very torn. I had no expectations and knew nothing about it, but was still very excited to see a digimon movie in cinemas. Rui's story was very surprising, but really well done. I feel like Cody wasnt even present in the movie, they focused on Davis a lot which was fine, but i think with some small touches they could've had the characters really show their personalities and give them justice, in a subtle way. I was almost expecting some new digivolution, or something different based off Kizuna and Tri. I actually really liked the ending, but agree with your point that regardless of who it is, digimon fans want to see some kind of battling. Like an actual struggle. None of the digimon struggled at all, and then they helped Rui and it was over. Ive seen theories that bandai will use this movie and others to make a follow up, which really excites me as it would tie them all together and give them the platform to show character development and stuff, but i also know that they constantly mistreat their Digimon IP, so im not holding my breath. Overall good movie, but i left feeling a little... Lacking. Who is the great one? Were Kari and TK together (shown in the beginning)? Why was Ukkomon so randomly powerful that it can great like a million digi eggs, but also just dies immediately?

[@FireFury190]

I enjoyed the movie and the critiques you said make sense. It seems to me that they were more invested and really wanted to tell the story of this new character Lui and his relationship with Ukkomon, but they had to incorporate nostalgic characters into it so that way Toei had enough of a reason to greenlight the project so they knew they could get butts in seats. Because to me I was more invested in Lui's story than the 02 cast being there. And it really felt you could have replaced them with any other Digimon characters. If we knew there were more Digimon movies set in this world after The Beginning maybe the fact about the lack of focus on the 02 cast and battles wouldn't have stung as much for fans. Edit: I would like to retract my statement on the claim any digimon cast would have worked here. I've seen some opinions that do a good job explaining why the 02 cast were the best option and I understand.

[@LacertaZilla2024]

After watching the movie and seeing how awesome and touching it I have got to get the dvd of it

[@bortiz_128]

I enjoyed it but i think because of the fan service we got....my gripes were Lui should have been older because if he is the first he should have been older than the first digidestined...if they were gonna get rid of digivices give them a purpose like they did with the crests...and Armadillomon needs justice with that voice they chose to give him

[@GerLeeblindasian]

Did they rush make it or take it the 02 digimon movie or what be more of things

[@vossboss220]

That actually really makes me upset. I was planning on seeing this movie but I just couldn't find the free time and I ended up missing the earrings but given what you said about it my heart honestly breaks

[@juanitoesparza3614]

Does anybody know where I can watch this movie online when it was in the theaters I was working I couldn’t found it anwhere

[@imsicaf]

I agree. I liked it overall but this does seem like a “one of many more” kinda movie not a final film like Kizuna was. I loved seeing the 02 characters get more of a focus but I honestly would’ve preferred no movie if more don’t come from this.

[@nazeersadek6705]

Thanks for the honest spoiler free review as someone who loved Digimon and watched everything up until tamers I was getting back to the franchise thanks to Digimon survive and cyber sleuth but this movie is very heartbreaking the potential is there and they could’ve done so much more

[@fighterwolfneon]

I saw it with six friends, one of whom hasn’t looked much beyond the Adventure Duology and still hasn’t seen Kizuna, and we all enjoyed it. Though I will agree about the lack of action being perplexing, and can understand dissatisfaction with the film being more about Lui and Ukkomon than the 02 cast themselves, though probably would’ve been more on Daisuke/Davis and Ken than the others. But to each their own, and ironically if multiple people have differing views on the same title, then I think the makers did something right.

[@derickhoang3491]

Hi, pretty big fan of digimon here and agreed 100% of all your points. I came out of the theaters thinking about all the points you brought up!

[@bursegsardaukar]

Just seen the Fan Screening of it for my area. Good thing I read earlier that the OG team won't have much involvement in the story so I don't expect them to do much. Otherwise, I really like the story when it focuses on the new characters and the rather dark theme of this movie. Worth the rather expensive fee for this Fan Screening. 4 stars out of 5.

[@josephbarbato789]

it honestly felt like the middle of a movie. I enjoyed it for what it was but it felt incomplete. I almost want to add 40 minutes to the film twenty on each side of it. 20 at the start for check ins with the characters and some slice of life. 20 on the back end to see some action and maybe end it with Yolei proposing to ken.

[@ideuseidolon]

It's going to have more sequel movies coming in the future, probably up until 2027, the year of the Adventure 02 epilogue. So, I guess, there'll be at least two or more movies to go. Let's hope that they'll do better.

[@bretbeebe4061]

I agree with you. At the end I just found myself thinking "that's it?"

[@mitshah9869]

Are you going to post a video explaining the full story of this movie? if so when?

[@robbthecobb]

This was a very fair review and critique and you have every right to feel as you do. Personally I loved it although funnily enough I never watched 02 or cared for the 02 kids so I mainly didn't need the check-in. I completely agree that this wasn't a story only 02 could tell and I still think Last Evolution was better. I really enjoyed Lui as a character though and would be welcomed to see him again. Your mention of the film basically just telling the audience what went on in the past is interesting. I'm fine with how they did it, but it could've been cooler if they had showcased his past in a bit more abstract way maybe.

[@lolkickdude2692]

what i enjoyed is that toei is still doing something with characters i love and that’s really all i could ask for. it was an okay movie. i was expecting it to be a lot better based of kizuna but then i heard reviews of people’s issues over it from your video and expectations went down. i still enjoyed it to an extent but wished it was better

[@Jmon7007]

I did really enjoy the movie, I've always loved the more mature themes in Digimon especially with the human characters. This movie definitely takes it to 11 with some parts, definitely feeling like ghost game with the body horror moment. The no real battles doesn't bug me at all but I definitely do agree with you that this didn't have to be an exclusive 02 movie but I do feel that it does best in the adventure canon, being the most fleshed out world we've seen. I would definitely like to see Digimon do more one off stories like this focusing on mostly one character in their own canon, possibly like the X evolution movie.

[@xironheadx-4590]

Anyone know where to pirate it? I wasnt able to watch it in theaters but i really wanna see it

[@alinskeful]

i would like to say im a hard core fan and I completely agree left disappointed there are more things to Digimon than just the story i feel like there was no risk in this film or development to characters at all

[@freddyking14]

the way you present yourself made me subscribe. I like the way you gather your thoughts

[@TheAverageGatsby]

I'll keep it spoiler free here, but that ending left me questioning how does this exist as a direct sequel to Last Evolution. Bringing Paildramon to Lyft the kids to the egg was so laughably questionable that the 02 kids even had to question it. The answer was "Well the police aren't going to like us doing this," but why exactly? Izzy is the go to Digimon guy in this world, and they know him personally, why not just have the kids interact with the 01 cast (like Last Evolution did to the 02 cast) to resolve this? Because only the 02 cast could listen to the darkest exposition dump ever made ending with providing a taxi service so that he can talk it out? But thanks for the suggestion on Digimon Survive. Hopefully the Winter sale comes through for me.

[@thedigiknow]

Good to hear from you! I don’t know if you own a Switch but Survive is half off right now I believe! Not sure if that sale is on PC as well or just Nintendo.

[@bkitch2011]

I agree. This is a weird follow-up to the emotional ending of Last Evolution Kizuna.

[@AussieDragoon]

That's been an issue with all these projects, If Meiko wasn't briefly in and mentioned in Kizuna, there's no evidence that Tri ever happened. Same here, if Homeostasis wasn't randomly mentioned by name, there's nothing to indicate that Tri even happened, and less to indicate that Kizuna happened.

[@thekey0123]

Homeostasis wasn't even a tri reference. It showed up in the original series, so that doesn't even prove tri is cannon to the Begining

[@AussieDragoon]

@@thekey0123 Yeah, but they didn't name it until Tri, they reference it had existed before with it possessing Kari back in Adventure but Tri's when the Adventure cast was given a name to call it.

[@valkyrasonara1797]

My biggest issue with this movie was the few screentime of Armadillomon. I wish he had a bigger screentime. But Hawkmon was really good in this movie! 😂

[@santosmurilo]

I watched in my city here in Brazil. I liked this movie, but your concerns are totally valid.

[@jetx2599]

I got my gf into digimon in preparation for this film and we watched Kizuna the night before and she was so disappointed with the film. She said it was whiplash going from Kizuna to this film.

[@drugaming3788]

What dissapoint me: 1. No new evolution line of slyphmon or (wasted digimon) shakkoumon. 2. Tailmon transformed to Angewomon (Ultimate) only to get pawned and DNA digivolve to Slpyhmon (Ultimate) that easily handle main villian digimon.

[@PPsqueezer]

The movie was okay, but I was also very disappointed with the lack of battles. The total lore shake up also seemed unnecessary

[@CodenameJD]

Oh, and for the Digivices not being needed any more; one, kind of a moot point with them already being replaced by smart phones, but also, they serve plenty more function besides just enabling Digivolution. At the start of the film, Yolei arrives at Davis's restaurant through a portal. Guess they've lost that travel ability now.

[@TheDiscoGenre]

The problem is this movie is just a weaker Ghost Game episode mixed with bad melodrama. And Ghost Game is still far superior to modern Adventure as a whole, despite having no plot

[@RohlenFalwethYT]

I have to agree with you, from the get-go, with the random plot devices to make a story that didn't even focus on the team. I wanted to see the team thrive, it's what we wanted after Tri! Unfortunately, from what I heard, this is the last movie for the adventure series.

[@davelopez483]

Hey man love your content and I've been following you for quite a while, I also acknowledge that your feelings and concerns are valid and fair. (The movie wasn't the best digimon movie yet). However, we were told early on by early reviews that this film wasn't about fighting (fights), also I agree that I would of liked new evolutions but there was no need to present evolutions as concerning something because all the evolutions used were unlocked long ago.

[@thedigiknow]

Thanks for watching. I don't believe 'we were told ahead of time' isn't a bulletproof defense though. For instance, If we were told a film was going to have no soundtrack, and then we watched it and the lack of soundtrack simply didn't work, 'we were told ahead of time' wouldn't make the final product better. Like I mentioned, I was told to expect no evolutions and miniminal fights but decided to watch the movie and see how it all worked in context. Was surprised and disappointed with the final product even knowing those two caveats.

[@chelsinia5145]

I have to agree with you wholeheartedly as I just went to see this film today and I craved more action and season 2 cast not a new character who came out of nowhere

[@DuskWolf_]

Totally agree, I was super disappointed with this movie. It was a pretty big letdown for me 😣

[@AceRonan]

Agreed with the video wholeheartedly also feels like a waste to not give us the official megas for the other 02 dns digivolutions pairs like tri did

[@SergirothGames]

Thanks for your take on the movie. I’ll leave watching it whenever it is on some of the streaming platforms. I like story in movies more than action, but if the story of a “continuation” doesn’t talk about its previous iteration and characters, I won’t go out of my way to watch it. I still want to watch it, but not a priority.

[@itsishbish2689]

I think what's in the movie is good. But it simply doesn't have enough. Even though it was roughly an hour and a half, it almost feels like a bonus movie on a DVD release. I think it needed a bit of an overhaul. Surely there must be a sequel right? I mean otherwise the 02 team basically got shafted for a movie where basically nothing but exposition happens. Also I don't where else to mention this but they should do a theatrical rerelease of Digimon The Movie before the Blu-Ray release.

[@BlazingLion2010]

As someone that didn't enjoy the messaging of Kizuna and only liked the action bits and 02 moments I wonder how I'll feel about this one

[@LazyTallGuy]

I almost forgot Cody was in this movie 🤣 that’s how little of him there was compared to the rest. But I agree with your points, in my theater there were no kids and I left feeling kinda like ‘huh? This wasn’t what I thought it was gonna be’. I didn’t hate the movie but felt empty at the end of it.

[@jimmymagic7686]

Cody never added anything important to the story ever. So him not talking os pretty great! 😂

[@KGH786]

Thanks for saving my time and money with this, I love 02 and am disappointed to hear that it's all just dialogue in this movie

[@iammaximumstupied]

I personally feel this should’ve been a special like Tri. At least have the padding in the special then have the movie. i was fine with the lack of fights, the story was interesting but felt they did force some digivoleing and DNA. I would just consider this a fun time. my thing was when Rui was telling them what what happened and Kari gets all “well they were trying to do good by you “ it killed his parents lol. not on purpose for sure but still feel like it could’ve been handled better.

[@Aoi_shade]

I also agree with what you said. I went to go see the movie and I liked it but, I still wanted more. It felt like a gap film between kizuna and another more enticing third movie. Kizuna was such a strong movie and didn't rely on just nostalgia. This movie heavily does. I would have been fine if we got this story as a 4 part ova. Because it feels like an ova. Then later get a film that focuses around zero two while doing the same thing as the crest with the digivices. Saying that the partners can digivolve without need the digivices, that it was just a tool to help their bond. I like this movie, it feels like something to put in the background and just listen to. But, it is disappointing that the 02 cast doesn't get a full packaged heartfelt story like kizuna. This movie is essentially a kizuna epilogue. Unless they make an announcement that we're getting a third movie that end the series and brings back everyone for one last final battle. I don't think this movie will age well. Again I still like this movie and enjoyed my time watching it. But, please give zero two a complete movie that isn't just there to tie up plot threads.

[@evanminton8315]

This. I think we need one last movie to end the Adventure series once and for all. I was hoping this would be it. I also liked it, but thought it could have been more. The movie could have been everything it was but still brought a lot of actions. Maybe Ukkomon could have been like "I've used up too much of my power, now I'm rampaging and can't stop." and maybe Ukkomon could have created a lot of humanoid monster figures for the Digimon to fight (not unlike Eosmon). We didn't need "New" forms per se, but getting Sylphymon and Shakkoumon to digivolve to Valkyriemon and SlashAngemon would have been quite satisfying. And I also was hoping that maybe Lui's wish for everyone to get a Digimon would be the means by wish Agumon and Gabumon returned. After all, if EVERYONE is going to get a partner, that means everyone, including Tai and Matt. But they had partners and lost them. So, Ukkomon's power could have been the means to bring them back and explain their presence in the 02 epilogue, which we know is still canon because both Kizuna and The Beginning give us LOTS of clues that that's where their stories are headed! Yolei is even flirting with Ken in this movie (they're married in the epilogue). So, like I've said in a couple of other comments. It was a good movie, but not a great movie. I think we just need one more movie. And who knows? We might get one. In the 2022 Digimon Fest, they seemed to be making a big deal on how much time there was between Last Evolution Kizuna and the 02 Epilogue. Maybe they've got one more left to tell. But knowing this franchise, who knows? For years, I thought Revenge Of Diaboromon was the last one, then we got Tri, and Kizuna was made out to be the finale, but then we got this film. So let's hope and pray we get one more movie. Maybe this film could even address the dropped Dagomon and Daemon stories while explaining Kizuna's connection to the 02 Epilogue. Kill all the birds with one stone.

[@Aoi_shade]

@@evanminton8315 I agree

[@yrooxrksvi7142]

No, Kizuna was mediocre emotional gaslighting. And this is yet another trite tragic OC of the week plot.

[@Aoi_shade]

@@yrooxrksvi7142 in what way did you find kizuna to be gaslighting emotionally? I think the characters were handled quite well and realistic. If someone had a life long best friend who was going to die and they had the option to spend more time with them or fight to save the world. Wouldn't they choose to spend time with them or be conflicted over what to do? It's a hard question to answer and Kizuna represents it quite well. Yes it is mainly a Tai and Matt story. But, that makes sense. They were the leaders of the group and had to make a lot of the tough decisions when it came down to it. I mean that's why they got omnimon and megas before the rest of the group. Yes the movie could have incorporated Sora better, instead of minor mentions and her relying on Matt and Tai to save the day. The emotional beats for me hit hard and the new bond forms feel deserved at the end of the film. That's the pinnacle of their bond and they weren't given special treatment just because their the protagonist. They still lose Agumon and Gabumon. For me that hurt when I saw it for the first time. These were characters I knew and grew up with. But, it still had a hopefully ending saying that we can move forward even if we have to leave something behind, to not focus on the past.

[@Christ-or-Chaos]

The best thing about the movie was that the english voices were the same. Except Armadillomon. Not a dealbreaker. Driving 600km to see this would be a dealbreaker. Some top level scenery artwork also.

[@whattheegad]

So, funny thing is I specifically said in my Adventure Tri review (no longer on YT) that a "slice of life" drama was the way to go. The only reason I can think the spectacle of battles would be downplayed is that the children and their Digimon have pretty much hit their peak. They're basically unstoppable unless the show just keeps adding tier after tier of evolutions and bad guys to fight on top of Ultimate (Mega) evolutions. In short, the movie probably didn't focus too much on battles because the Chosen Digimon are just way too powerful. We pretty much know how every fight will be resolved before it even starts. Hard to make a battle dramatic if you've basically turned every Digimon into One Punch Man. Just my thoughts on this. I'm currently writing a script that will cover the Adventure 02 show entirely. I'll let you know when its finished.

[@thedigiknow]

I would have loved a slice of life 02 story. Sadly this wasn’t one. This was more like a slice of listening [to Lui]

[@whattheegad]

@@thedigiknow It's really weird that they did that, by the way. They really need to stop inventing new characters and just focus on the original characters

[@canko15]

Is it available anywhere online?

[@OrangeLightning86]

Probably on sites that use cinema recordings on smartphones, but always support the official release.

[@azurebluegames]

Just watched it yesterday and I agree with everything you said! While I'm happy that 02 finally got some love, the movie fell flat in most places. 😅 I'm also not a fan of retcon after retcon that happens for each of the Digimon movies...

[@shinyanakagawa8241]

This movie doesn't really retcon anything.

[@MrGonz801]

Wait... So Last Evolution Kizuna is worth seeing? I bowed out with Tri, and then again with Adventure 2020. I've had negative faith in the series since then, but if LEK is good I might give it a shot

[@thedigiknow]

Not everybody likes Kizuna but I think most agree it is much better than Tri or Adventure 2020. I personally think Kizuna is excellent.

[@kameronmckenzie8171]

After the movie was over i thought i was the only one who didn’t really like it but then like 15 people booed and everyone laughed

[@matthewlynn6108]

I really wanted to go with a friend just to casually meet other Digimon fans and treat it like a rare, event style film. This review makes me feel less disappointed that we couldn’t make it.

[@MrSasyB]

My only question is when will it be available on streaming for the rest of the world

[@Universalfeature343]

Yeah the story in the film and the character who looks like Paul I forgot his name but I think he’s cool and the animation was best part of the movie. I will admit the characters from the previous digidenestines felt in the back line while the new character gets the time to shine and most character development. I absolutely love the movie but I understand the criticism with it I enjoy the review

[@arkanamaster4961]

Rui(Lui in the dub) was the new character’s name

[@lucablue]

I think this movie is best going into it with 0 expectations. My cousin who knew nothing about digimon went with me and gave it an 8/10! I personally LOVED it, giving it 9/10, but I totally understand its issues with the retcons and lack of 02 focus. For me it just finally gave me what I wanted - a much darker more mature digimon.

[@user-hv6vs8mn1w]

I absolutely agree. I'm glad not everyone hated the movie.

[@fr33bird7891]

I enjoyed the movie. Every Digimon movie has been different from the show so I was expecting it do feel different. My wife who has only seen TRI loved it. I wasn’t expecting how dark it would go so that really pulled me further into the story. I also don’t go into a side story expecting it to be greater or more action based than the last one. Over all it was a great film.

[@JayceCH.]

I can never understand this "a much darker more mature Digimon story" takes. Digimon was ALWAYS DARK. I dont see how kid going through abuse makes it "much more darker."

[@aztecarey185channel8]

I can see the movie didn't help the lore at all, but I'm still happy to see more digimon 😊 Even if it's more complicated and didn't give a proper solution, I still love digimon I guess we have to wait for the next movie of digimon 😔😭 because the finale episode of adventure 02 is still canon and I really want to know how the digimon reunited with all digidestine

[@jjrome78]

I liked it not having too much action it shows the solution isn't only just unlocking a new evolution and kicking ass. It shows that the bond of Digimon is more than fighting each other.

[@Anberye]

it feels like they wanted to take a risk in the story but they still wanted people to attend the theater so they had the 02 cast sprinkled in just to get bodies to the seats. Lui's story is interesting but like you pointed out we didn't really need the 02 kids to be there to understand it. I hope they could give the 02 cast a true Kizuna tier movie that shows us their growth aside from a montage

[@ipdfmd1632]

At the theater i went there was only like 6 more people besides me, as for my opinion on the movie....it was meh, and doesnt the ending pretty much makes the kizuna movie whole plot with agumon and gabumon invalid?

[@juken16]

I think what yours saying about not having fights is an issue with alot of movies aimed at young audiences or nostalgic audiences. It's all about taking through issues

[@nathandavidson7298]

My brother and I enjoyed this movie a lot, but we both understood that Lui’s story just doesn’t really work for a number of reasons. I like the idea they presented, but Tri really makes the execution not gel with the overall Adventure story much at all

[@michaelcheung26]

Exactly. The story works without the 02 cast and thus as a 02 movie it is failure.

[@Spamkromite]

In the end I liked the ending. I thought I'd be disappointed but it really left everything in the universe of Adventure quite open to elaborate on different tamers if they want 😛It quite doesn't compare to Kizuna and its relationship with it is very sketchy. For newcomers, the movie is a bit like on the zetsubou side too. I didn't like Ken's adult design though, but that's just my opinion. Everything else was cool, but maybe the studios should stop being so overboard with animating tentacles 😅Well, at least if they are to animate the D-Reaper, its cables would look awesome with all the experience they got doing this movie 🤭🦑 Also, I don't like how they shoehorned Ukkomon's backstory into the stablished lore. We'll still will never know how many destructions of the Digital World there were since its inception and how that "feudal Japan" Ancient Digital World looked like. Guess the Sovereigns will remain more useful in Tamers than they did on the concept of the Ancient times spoken along Adventure and 02 (and barely on Frontiers, where again they tried to rewrite the concept of the Ancient Times with the 10 Warriors and the age of peace and destruction brought by the descent of Lucemon).

[@battlestar976]

Hopefully will get another 02 film that dose it justice

[@johanstenfelt1206]

Hm, I see, it’s unfortunate that this Movie fell short for you, perhaps this might be a sign that they should probably give the Adventure Cast break for awhile, if not completely retire them, ‘cause it seems like they have not been to recapture that Magic so far or what do you think? Also, this makes me wonder, how would’ve you done this Movie?

[@snehashismajumdar8157]

I wish Tamers would get a sequel. I never found out if they reunited there like it was done with Adventure. And of course I still want to see Impmon adult and perfect stage.

[@88Expert]

ya ikr

[@redrangerfanpage8356]

Yo I love video you hit excellent points but the veemon middle finger pic got me 😂😂😂😂

[@thedigiknow]

Hahah I couldn't resist. I love that image so much.

[@Jesuselectrifyus]

I haven’t viewed it yet. But I’m excited only because I can walk into a film with low expectations but still excited for some morbidly dark reason. My heart is also cold and dead so… 🤣