Reviews

Sep 26, 2021
I am writing this review to compare Digimon Adventure (2020) with the original Digimon Adventure. I do not see this as a new anime, and I will be harsh for an obvious reason; when you recreate such a classic work of fiction, with the same characters and main concept, you know your job must not disappoint. It seems that most Digimon Adventure fans - like me - are not satisfied with this reboot. The reasons are simple, so let’s examine them carefully. But before I begin, I must make a wish:

I wish the next generations will know watching the reboot is the wrong choice.

Another point to be made before I start my analysis is that Toei Animation, after a bad comeback with the Tri. movies, managed to create a masterpiece of a film to bid the old fans a tear-jerking farewell and end the Digimon Adventure. The nostalgia was there, we felt that, the movie was amazing in all aspects too, so let's make it clear from now; Digimon Adventure 2020's target audience is not the '90s fans. These fans had enough and loved their completed journey.

So, since the target audience is mainly kids of the new generation, there were some things concerning Koushiro (the genius child) and the world which obviously showed that this anime is newer. And these are the evolution of computer science and technology. Unluckily for Toei, they didn't think that making Koushiro hack big companies or take over ships in seconds from his laptop would seem extremely unrealistic. Back in 1999, he may have had hacking skills but they actually seemed more magical and all took place in the digital world, showing he is charismatic and that he can do great things from a laptop; he is the future of humanity in his own way. This time, it didn't feel like this at all, he was just a plot convenience for surreal things to happen. As a result, the use of modern technology to suit today's younger audience better was a failure and it was negative for the character writing as well.

Digimon Adventure was not just a TV show with cute or cool-looking monsters; it was far more than that. It was the journey of a group of "chosen" children and the road to maturity, where everyone had a digital partner of their own, the famous Digimon. Unlike the reboot, the original anime focused on all characters. Everyone had their flaws and immature behaviours, so the Digimon helped them grow up and see the world differently. The reboot does not focus as much on the characters and their development, while Taichi gets most of the credits and still, his character development is not even close to the good old Taichi we knew. This is because he feels more than a superhero, rather than a child who makes both mistakes and good deeds to mature.

Even if the reboot lacks in character, it is definitely more impressive in terms of fights, action and animation. The Digimon are mostly used as war tools, the interactions between Digimon and Chosen Children are far less and unimportant, and from episode 1 the real world is in panic due to a continuous huge catastrophe caused by the Digital World. If you're here for some supernatural action, pick the reboot but trust me, it will be a forgettable and shallow experience, giving you or your young friends/family only temporary pleasure.

The Digimon Evolutions were originally triggered by the children's character development and it was beautiful to see them surpass any borders by powering up mentally and psychologically. In the reboot, this is not the case. The Digivolutions are far easier to happen, and their flashiness is a big part of the series' selling point. Sometimes, they just evolve out of nowhere, as if there is no sense of fatigue. The Digimon are undoubtedly more powerful and more in numbers; a mix of Digimon found in Adventure, Tamers and other spin-offs. But all the magic of progressing and maturing allegorically by Digivolving seems lost, and this is one of the biggest turn-offs for old fans - and one of the reasons this version is forgettable.

Another big minus here is the use of the Chosen Children's crests. In the 1999 version, the crests were awarded to them as they faced and overcame many hardships, and each crest had a unique characteristic (courage, love etc.) that suited its owner as a result of their character development. It did not feel the same in the 2020 version; it felt forced, since the character development was clearly inferior as the anime mainly focused on showing off well-animated fights between Digital Monsters. It is actually funny because the episodes were more this time, but we still didn't get to know well some characters.

Another thing to take into account is that the villain writing and what surrounded it was uncanny. For example, Milleniummon seemed like he would be the last Digimon the children would have to face, and insanely powerful Digimon fought him and as a result, it looked like a climax. But it was not like that, the last episodes introduced us other Digimon and an anticlimatic way to end the series. The most bizarre thing Digimon Adventure 2020 did was to introduce the legendary Omegamon in one of the first episodes, to beat a powerful virus type Digimon. I guess there was a metaphor behind that which was not clear and did not work. Or maybe it was made to give us old fans nostalgia from "Bokura no War Game" movie, which is nonsensical because the reboot wasn't even made for this purpose.

The soundtrack follows the regular Digimon pattern; there's an opening song, an evolution insert song and an ending song in every episode. The only difference, here, is that the ending songs change every 12 episodes and there are some great artists like Reol performing them. In my opinion, the opening and insert songs are decent, but cannot compare to the legendary "Butter-Fly" and "Brave Heart". Wada Koji's absence hurts a lot and Digimon Adventure could never be the same without him.

To sum up, Digimon Adventure 2020 is one of the biggest question marks in anime history. It is a forgettable, chaotic hypefest with shallow character writing and almost no significance for kids, made to visually impress them and show off powerful Digimon fights. If you want your kid or young sibling to watch a cool looking kids show with monsters and action, here you are. If you want them to watch a meaningful story which includes both, and one that they can remember for the rest of his life, you should definitely show them the classic, original, beloved version of Digimon Adventure. In my opinion, the best kids shows are the ones who combine good visuals with morals and understandable life lessons.

Thank you for reading!
Reviewer’s Rating: 2
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