Constantly accused of being a Pokémon rip-off, Digimon has struggled to find a big audience, particularly in the West—it doesn't help that its marketing never really took off out here. However, despite it never gaining a huge fanbase like its rival, Digimon continues to be a strong—if not struggling—franchise that still has a foothold in countries outside of Japan complete with its own loyal fanbase. So when most people think of Fox Kids or Saban Entertainment, they fondly think of either Power Rangers or Digimon (usually the first season), and not so much of the network itself. But for years, it meant risking an all-out
...
playground civil war bringing up Digimon's name even when Pokémon's popularity was steadily declining, and one had to be hard-pressed to find someone who was a fan of both shows. To this very day, a mere 16 years after its first airing, there are still folks who are bitter towards Digimon and aren't afraid to fan the flames when provoked (Yu-Gi-Oh! had its share of hate, but not to the extent of Digimon's).
As a fan of both Digimon and Pokémon, I don't see how it's impossible to like both shows even though at the time I loved Pokémon to death and still do. They may have their similarities, but they are two vastly different creatures who just happen to inhabit the same genre. In fact, despite my love for Pokémon, I find Digimon to be immensely better in the anime department (the games not so much, ironically).
Story (8): Seven young kids go to camp for the summer, and wound up living in a digital land where they meet creatures called Digimon (short for Digital Monster) that evolve—called “Digivolving”—through six stages: Baby, In-Training, Rookie, Champion, Ultimate, and Mega. They use Digivolving and power of friendship to save the digital world from evil.
That's the simple, cliché response. In reality, Digimon goes much deeper than that, and it soon stood out from the other shounen 'Mon shows of the time. It still retains that cliché plot, but the thing about clichés is that there are different ways of playing with them, to help separate it from another similar clichéd plot. This doesn't automatically make the writing in Digimon perfect, there's always going to be flaws, but it makes it more watchable (or tolerable) than other similar shows.
Yes, seven kids (later it became eight) end up going into a digital world where they meet their Digimon partners. However, these kids end up discovering, or re-discovering themselves and grow up as characters to be better people. The Digimon technically don't change, although they are catalysts, and they do become stronger based on the inner strength of their partner. It's a form of teamwork, but more along the lines of “Believe in me who believes in you”.
But why were they sent to the Digital World? Because they are the Chosen: the DigiDestined who will save the Digital World from the bad Digimon who will do anything in their power to take over the world. Digimon was originally supposed to be about 13-26 episodes, however, high ratings in Japan was encouraging enough for Toei to continue for a total of 54 episodes. The series is thus commonly split into arcs named after the big bad: Devimon, Etemon, Vamdemon (Myotismon), and the Dark Masters. Each arc has its own fans, but typically the general consensus agrees the Myotismon arc is the highlight of the series.
Outside of your typical friendship and teamwork, Digimon is not afraid to tackle themes such as death, divorce, adoption, and fear of losing a loved one, and for a kids' show (especially given the time), it approaches them with maturity. And the average dub-hater will be pleasantly surprised to learn just how much Saban got away with all in a time where not even 4KIDS themselves wanted to touch such subjects (usually). Sure, Digimon has its share of censorship in the States, but only on an outward-appearance level (again, usually). Luckily, the script stays fairly true to the original while it developed Saban's signature gag dub trait, so a lot of the themes and atmosphere of the series remained. Still, the choice to watch the sub or dub rests all on the viewer, either are fine choices, both have their gains and losses.
Art/Animation (6): Let's totally be honest here, Digimon has a small budget, and it shows (Toei Animation has this problem a lot, it seems). Stock animation is rampant throughout the series, and there's off-model moments and other animation errors, but they typically try not to let you notice, and for the most part, they worked the best they could within their budget. As a digitally-colored show (heh, digital), the colors and line-art is clean, albeit kind of flat due to lack of lighting more often than not. The backgrounds (well, backdrops) stand out to me the most with this show in how everything looks holographic—in the Digital World, anyway, as the real world looks more normal, and thus more “real”. It's a stylistic choice that I feel is a staple to this show. Character designs are unique to the series in that everyone is distinguishable (big traits that stick out to me are the eyes, hair, and how big their hands and shoes/feet are—which is admittedly weird), and monster designs are varied from Digimon to Digimon. This helps them stick out in a line-up of other shounen anime, as well as pave the way for merchandise.
However, due to the small budget, the art is dated compared to later Digimon seasons, and even other anime of the time. The CGI Digivolutions in particular are the worst offenders (although for the time, it wasn't all that bad). The only exception I can think of where the animation was stellar and holds up very nicely (as well as go beyond its usual budget) was episode 21 when Mamoru Hosoda directed the episode.
Sound (9): Sound-effects in general are generic, however, the beeps, drones, and screeches of the Digivice stand out the most in that department—I would go so far as to say it's iconic to the series. The soundtrack itself is spectacular. Composed by the late Takanori Arisawa, Digimon's soundtrack is full of adventure and wonder, while being almost in an electronic/techno genre to give it a more digital feel. Every DigiDestined has their own insert song, and character score—two versions, to be exact—not really unheard of in such shows, but it's a big deal to Digimon. Villains even have their own character songs, if not theme scores, and they are wonderfully kept in character. The opening theme, “Butter-Fly” by Wada Kouji, is honestly one of the best anime theme songs in a kids' show (if not in anime in general), perhaps one of the more recognizable from the intro alone this side of Pokémon. “Brave Heart” by Ayumi Miyazaki is also well-known as the Digivolution theme song.
Saban Entertainment, like most dubbing companies of the time, composed their own music. By themselves, the musical score is good, it's clear they got talent in the musical department. However, the editor(s) of the episodes completely went overboard with the music and just slapped pieces together to fill up the entire episode, rarely leaving a single scene quiet. But the musical score isn't as well-known as the ungodly catchy, simplistic theme song, simply titled “Digimon Are the Champions”. And now you have the English theme song in your head. You're welcome. Bonus points if you can see the intro play out in your head.
Voice-acting in the original is solid, though likewise with the English dub, some voices don't really fit the character. It's thankfully few and far in-between, and it's not like the voice acting is terrible. However, because I'm not fluent in Japanese, I'm slightly biased when it comes to voices regardless if that was the original intent on the casting director or not, thus I cannot judge them just based on how they sound alone. I do personally feel there are voices that work best in the original, while others are enhanced better in the English dub.
Speaking of, given the time, the English dub is surprisingly phenomenal with a great voice-cast—yes, a late-90s kids' anime has an amazing English dub, script and soundtrack aside. It took a bit for the directors and voice actors to get comfortable with the show, but they were able to bring the characters to life in their own special way. Many of them were in the field for years prior to Digimon, and are well-known to the anime community: Joshua Seth, Michael Reynolds, Edie Mirman, Mona Marshall, Derek Stephen Prince, and Lara Jill Miller (at this time, she was well-known from NBC's “Gimme a Break!”, her being cast in Digimon happened at the same time she returned to Hollywood) stand out best in memory, but many of the cast is well-done. However, as I said before, it, too, has its share of voices that just don't work out. This is more-or-less limited to side-Digimon that you don't see often outside of one or two episodes, so it's the main cast I have more praise towards (though Mimi is a bit of an exception in some areas—Ai Maeda in the original makes Mimi more likeable/listenable than Philece Sampler).
Characters (9): This is where Digimon truly sticks out as a show. It's very uncommon to find a show with as equally-complex and diverse a cast as Digimon Adventure. The eight main children made this show, even though their Digimon are good characters in their own right and serve as great foils/combos with their human partners.
The characters are as follows: Taichi “Tai” Yagami (Kamiya), the leader of the group who acts before he thinks (but isn't stupid); Yamato “Matt” Ishida, the cool-headed big brother of a lone wolf; Sora Takenouchi, the motherly tomboy; Koushirou “Izzy” Izumi, the young, know-it-all technical wizard; Mimi Tachikawa, a spoiled, rich girl who never hesitates to speak her mind, but has her heart in the right place; Joe Kido, the more down-to-earth of the children who has a paternal side to him; Takeru “T.K.” Takaishi, Matt's younger brother who provides a more innocent outlook to the world; and Hikari “Kari” Yagami (Kamiya), Tai's younger sister who is good-natured and soft-spoken.
Each of them have a backstory, and their own inner demons (well, maybe not so much with Kari according to some folks). Among the eight, any of them can be relatable to the viewer. Many of them struggle to become better, more mature people, but they aren't alone. The Digimon partners: Agumon, Gabumon, Piyomon (Biyomon), Tentomon, Palmon, Gomamon, Patamon, and Tailmon (Gatomon). They, too, grow as characters and have their own personality, although it's Gatomon (and possibly Patamon) who has the most character development. But their main role as Digimon partners is to protect and be supportive, and for the most part, they fulfill their duties. They are likewise the mascots of the series, and yet are more than just pieces of data.
Meanwhile, partner-less Digimon play important roles to the story, perhaps even more-so than the human protagonists. Some examples (off the top of my head) are Leomon, Ogremon, Piximon, Wizardmon, Myotismon, Etemon, Pumpkinmon, and Gotsumon. These characters had depth despite being in a few episodes at the least, but they also were just that memorable to the point they have fans to this day.
Special mention goes to the children's parents for adding a depth to the show most kids' shows don't do. Parents in Digimon were very supportive of their children, as well as loving, but were also the most human. While they don't go through the same experiences as their children (for the most part), it still affects them greatly to let their children go and save the world without knowing why it is they have to. They had to put their trust in them, and thus they (and the writers) gain my respect when they could've been like every other adult in similar kids' shows. If somehow the children don't grow on you, then perhaps their parents will.
Enjoyment (10): It's truly a damn shame Digimon has never gotten as popular as Pokémon. Both franchises were being worked on at the exact same time, neither creator knowing of each other, and yet it was Pokémon that was finished first, and would overshadow every other 'Mon show that would come out since. Is it possible to blame bad timing for why it is Digimon has to constantly work to get noticed? Maybe. But how do we know Pokémon wouldn't have gone through the same ridicule had it been Digimon that came out first? How do we know that Digimon would have gotten the same popularity? Would it still have struggled? Would it have been a worldwide phenomenon?
Do I wish Digimon would have a bigger audience? Truly, I do, it clearly deserves recognition and praise. However, at the same time, I feel it was a good thing Digimon has remained rather... quiet under many people's radars. For one thing, it felt more special to me, as a kid, to know that as sad as it was, the show was more for me (and my brothers) than anyone else. I didn't want the magic and wonder of Digimon to be sucked up by anyone else, I wanted to experience it all for myself. In my mind, everyone else had to be just as special to like it as much as I did.
Another reason I'm kind of glad it stayed low was unlike with Pokémon, Digimon has never really been accused of the same things its rival went through (at least, that I know of). If it had, I don't think Digimon would have survived. Pokémon had Nintendo, tons of merchandise, and millions of children (and dollars) to back it up. What did Digimon have? Fox Kids? Saban? Toei Animation? Some of Pokémon's percentage of fans? What good would any of those have done to keep Digimon afloat against the onslaught of attacks?
Even with the cheesiness of a gag dub, I still find Digimon to be highly enjoyable. Yes, the original Japanese is superior in everything, but the English dub is special, even if highly subjective, and thus I can't forsake the dub. It's just as memorable as Pokémon's dub, and yet though I managed to find a way for Pokémon and Digimon to co-exist as friendly rivals, it's the better of the two (although I honestly would have a hard time picking my most favorite). Saban Entertainment took good care of Digimon at this time, and I thank them for that. It's the only thanks I can really give them besides “Thanks for Samurai Pizza Cats” and “Thanks for the Fox Kids block”.
In the end, I think “Butter-Fly” says it best for Digimon as a whole (translated):
“After an endless dream, in this world of nothingness
It seems as if our beloved dreams will lose
Even with these unreliable wings, covered in images that tend to stay
I'm sure we can fly, on my love”
Alternative Titles
Synonyms: Digimon Adventure 01
Japanese: デジモンアドベンチャー
More titlesInformation
Type:
TV
Episodes:
54
Status:
Finished Airing
Aired:
Mar 7, 1999 to Mar 26, 2000
Premiered:
Spring 1999
Broadcast:
Sundays at 09:00 (JST)
Studios:
Toei Animation
Source:
Other
Theme:
Isekai
Demographic:
Kids
Duration:
24 min. per ep.
Rating:
PG - Children
Statistics
Ranked:
#10232
2
based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.
Popularity:
#565
Members:
400,903
Favorites:
5,381
Available AtResourcesStreaming Platforms | Reviews
Filtered Results: 65 / 65
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Your Feelings Categories Mar 9, 2015
Constantly accused of being a Pokémon rip-off, Digimon has struggled to find a big audience, particularly in the West—it doesn't help that its marketing never really took off out here. However, despite it never gaining a huge fanbase like its rival, Digimon continues to be a strong—if not struggling—franchise that still has a foothold in countries outside of Japan complete with its own loyal fanbase. So when most people think of Fox Kids or Saban Entertainment, they fondly think of either Power Rangers or Digimon (usually the first season), and not so much of the network itself. But for years, it meant risking an all-out
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May 1, 2009
Story: The storyline of Adventure evolves (no pun intended) into something wonderful as the series goes on, however, the beginning is very shaky, and, for some audiences, a weak beginning is an automatic turn-off. It starts off very episodic, and, aside from the fact that the kids want to get home and have to fight a guy called Devimon, there is not much else for plot. However, after they get home, the series jumps into one of my favorite anime story arch of all times: The Eight Child arch. That part (which largely takes up the middle of the series) was masterfully done, and if
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Jun 6, 2010
If you were to ask me what it was that possessed me with such a desire to re-watch the Digimon Adventure series I saw when I was younger, I couldn't tell you. Before now my memories of Digimon were not fond, the dubbing in the show was terrible, to the point were I hated the vast majority of the entire cast. I was a lot younger back then so I didn't understand that the occasional stupid things characters did/said were because the script was being hacked up. But beyond the negatives of the show there was a strange charm that reached me, and having re-watched
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May 20, 2013
First of all I want to apologize before handed for any grammar mistake you might find in the review as English is not my native languaje.
Second, I have to say I'm utterly disappointed with the score Digimon Adventure has. 7 is not a bad score, but is way below of what I expected. This is a kid show, and as such it should be scored as how satisfaying it can be to kids, just as how shonnen should be scored as how they satisfy their teen audience, seinen their older audience, and so on. I feel like many are comparing and scoring anime without any ... Jan 16, 2015
“Remember? How could I ever forget?”
Digimon Adventure 01, a household name, a childhood memory, what did this blast from the past have in store for us? That one time at band camp... I mean summer camp. Seven children dubbed the Digi-Destined find themselves in an alternate world, filled with bizarre creatures and a luscious ecosystem, where they soon discover the inevitable path they must walk, together. Although initially hostile, they are each partnered with one of these bizarre creatures known as ‘Digimon’ whom they must work together with to not only save the Digital world, but human world as well. Digimon is best described ... Aug 1, 2019
It’s August 1st, 1999!
On this day exactly 20 years ago, these were the words spoken by an 11-year-old boy after discovering at his home in Odaiba during his summer vacation that...well, I don’t want to spoil anyone here. It’s been exactly 2 full decades since that odd snowy summer day when 7 children were sucked by a giant wave into an unknown world where they would meet some small, strange talking creatures that claimed had been waiting for them for a long time and would live together the most important journey of their lives, kicking off the story of the 1st series of a franchise ... Aug 6, 2010
Digimon started it all for me. Not only was this the first anime I ever saw, but it was also the very first show I watched dutifully- I never missed an episode. Digimon was also the first thing I got into outside of the show; I had Digimon cards before I even got Pokemon cards. Seeing as how just seeing a picture of the first season of Digimon fills me to the brim with nostalgia, my judgement may be somewhat clouded; but to me personally, this is and always will be my favorite anime of all time. No matter how many times I rewatch this
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Aug 31, 2011
This is one of my favorite anime of all time, so I decided to drop by and review it. Yes, I am a Digi-dork, and I grew up on this series. Note that the dub was majorly hacked and turned into a pun-fest, so if that drives you off, then try to track down the raws or subs (good luck- they're hard to find). That being said, if you REALLY have patience for the puns, the shows darker elements (like character's backstories) were retained in the dub. This show didn't suffer as bad with the dub as other anime from its time, but the original
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Apr 5, 2014
The unfortunate truth of story telling mediums is that how we perceived something as a child is often very different to how we perceive something as a grown-up. The pacing issues of Dragon Ball Z and the repetitive nature of Pokemon become more apparent as a grown-up, and it's largely nostalgia that allows us to persevere with otherwise mediocre shows. This tendency to view childhood favourites through rose-tinted glasses can make it difficult to evaluate such series as there is always the possibility of painting them in a more favourable light than merited. However, every so often you may revisit a favourite from the past
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Feb 5, 2012
I remember watching Digimon from when I was younger. I was a big Digimon fan and never missed an episode. Ten years later, I decided to watch this series again and all these memories from the past came back to me. Being a huge Digimon fan myself, I never understood why this series was so extremely underrated. Was it because of Pokémon, a super successful anime that was airing that time? I guess so. Digimon has always been compared to Pokémon, because they look a lot alike and both involve weird creatures. To answer some of your questions: "Does this mean that Digimon copied Pokémon?"
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Aug 20, 2011
Reviewing this really brings back my childhood. Recently watched this season again despite being almost In college haha. Honestly this is perhaps one of the only cartoons/anime that made an impression on me while I was younger. Now let's get into the review!
Digimon Adventure's story could be listed as a generic "Hero's Journey", where character starts off hesitant and weak, goes through adventures and guided by a wise mentor, overcomes the "abyss" which strengthens them mentally and emotionally, and eventually succeeds in the journey. This setup widely-used for a reason though, BECAUSE IT IS ... Apr 20, 2008
Well this is my first review so don't be harsh on me:P.
Thought i saw this ages ago so i don't remember it good. Story: is nice but I didn't 't like it very much because the characters were too young.At start digimon is bit boring for me but it goes better later.Lot of relationships in there. Art: well i can't say anything bad about the art, it was nice. Thought there surely are animes with better art and stuff. You got to see it yourself. Sound: It was ok, thought themes were bad. Lets skip this. Characters: characters are young children and monsters with who the children get friends ... Mar 16, 2014
When it comes to 'childhood shows' you grew up watching, there comes a certain kind of dissonance between the experience you had as a kid and the experience you would have as an adult. Rewatching Digimon Adventure recently, I realized that it's the kind of show that wouldn't sit well with you if you think too much, especially when compared to other better anime. Objectively speaking, it's not a classic, and one would certainly have to retain some sense of nostalgia to really enjoy having this adventure. For an anime created to promote the virtual pets merchandise, however, it is a well-produced series that offers
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Jun 17, 2015
Digimon may not deserve a score of 10 but for me, the anime just gave so deep an impression and I treated as one of my favorite anime forever.
I had no idea how much percentage of western people of 1990's watched this anime, but in China, most people born in that period had a memory of watching this anime. As a result, the opening music "Butterfly" is now regarded as one of the most famous (maybe "one of" could even be deleted here) in ACG circle in China. Even till now, once listening to this music, I would probably get fired up easily. Not confined ... Jul 22, 2015
It’s a bit of an anticlimax. A memory of a few powerful episodes made me hope I’d get more of the same. The Digimon series is split into different shows, each spanning about 50 episodes. These are stories that eventually conclude, instead of going on forever. Such decisions separate good storytellers from the bad. I hoped I’d get something more like Medabots – odd characters, light episodes that slowly grow into a dark and intense climax. It turned out something like that, but with none of the skill Medabots displayed.
There are the hilarious comparison to Pokemon. It’s Medabots that is actually far similar, with the ... Aug 31, 2011
MUGEEEEENDAAAINAAA YUUUUMENOOOOATONOOO~♪ ♫
NANIMONAIYONONAKAJAAAAA... Yes, that's pretty much what made this show so awesome, i.e. THE OP SONG BY WADA KOUJI. The insert song is pretty cool too, btw. Idk about non-Japanese versions, though. The ED songs could sound really cheesy if you're not used to cheesy J-pop. To sum it up, this show has 54 episodes of awesome friendship and bromance and character development for every protagonist. It's about 12 years old, so it has some old school moments, but these songs got never old for me, and if you watch it you'll know why. Although if you didn't watch it 12 years ago I'm not sure ... Nov 25, 2014
One of my favorite anime growing up and still is. It teaches the values in the forms of crests and has a stable story line going along the development of the characters. As the first digimon season, there are multitudes of surprises as there is no pattern for it to follow yet.
The soundtrack(japanese version) is amazing, and the artwork for it's time had a great adventure feel to it. ^_^ The many main characters can be a little overwhelming at first, but once adjusted will be easy to find characters to a variety of audiences liking. This is one of the first anime to introduce so ... Dec 12, 2014
A little discussion about childhood shows on last 2013 with my best friends made one of them tried to search this wonderful show, and re-visit it. And part of my childhood memories had risen since last May 2013.
Digimon? Yes it is! This show was a perfect show for kids, or even for adults, to show them how important friendship and togetherness are, and how to find out your own identity and your specialty, and how important life was, since Digimon showed the interaction between each others perfectly, and showed that lots of Digimon sacrifice themselves (Ex: Angemon and Wizarmon) to save all of them. So far, ... Jan 7, 2015
Note: This is a review of the English language version of the series. As such, any discrepancies between it and the original Japanese script will not be taken into account unless I feel it is necessary.
Normally, when I review an anime series or movie, I judge each series by the same general merits, as any story should be able to provide an excellent level of entertainment regardless of length, genre, or intended audience. However, there is one demographic that this rule changes for, and that would be for shows aimed at a child audience. Of ... Mar 31, 2017
Just nostalgia or really one of the best anime series of all time?
Admitting when I started rewatching the show again after I've seen it as a teenager I already new the outcome. Just the feeling of watching it got my heart to beat in the rythm of each and every episode. What drives the series though is not the overall story which is fine but lacks ingenuity here and there. The story is quite basic: heros are on a journey, a henchman or evil digimon appears, some main charakter digimon digivolves, victory, the end. This is how I'd say 80 percent of the episodes go. ... |