Anime Doesn't stand the test of time
I'm probably gonna be crucified for even suggesting this, but the original Adventure doesn't hold up. Maybe I don't have nostalgia goggles, maybe I have weird standards, but I feel like the first Digimon doesn't look good so many years later. The more nitpicky ones:
- The animation is very rough and there are times when I look at it and think "geez, did they not double check this". A lot of times characters look Off-Model, and while the backgrounds can look nice, it's awfully static, like a single painting was used and stuff was animated on top. The frame rates can be off, and there are many cases of Recycled Animation and padding, namely the evolutions.
- The "Digimon Analyzer" moments, a big case of Show, Don't Tell. It's also another example of Recycled Animation, since they're shots we just saw being played again with a border around it.
- The series doesn't have a primary focus really.
- Before Vamdemon, it was just Monster of the Week who would at best be an ally later. And even with Vamdemon, the Monster of the Week serve no purpose but to show the partners power up. More importantly, the antagonists have nothing linking them together. Devimon, Etemon, and Vamdemon are all unrelated but all power crazy assholes. The Dark Masters were "allied" but largely solo. Apocalymon is practically a Giant Space Flea from Nowhere.
- The overarching goal initially is to find a way home, but they accomplish that before even beating Vamdemon. Then its just the standard "save the world". No personal motivations, no character conflicts outside of Taichi and Yamato's forced fight towards the end, and even random moments like the "dark caves".
- The relatively pointless side quests, like the search for the Crests. The Crests are pointless in retrospect with the reveal they're a conduit for the power in the Digidestined. What was even the point of hunting them then if the powers were already in the kids? Why didn't the kids just learn how to harness the crests to achieve Perfect level?
- The cast:
- The kids are alright, though Hikari coming in halfway limits her development here.
- The Digimon are limited in development. Most are just Satellite Character for their partners, which is noticeable compared to later seasons.
- The villains are mostly generic with little depth. Those that get depth either die relatively easily like Pumpmon & Gotsumon, or turn good like Ogremon.
Anime First Installment Wins,...
Digimon Adventure
Year:1999
Dub Voices of: Joshua Seth, Michael Reisz, Colleen O'Shaughnessey, Mona Marshall, Philece Sampler, Michael Lindsay, Wendee Lee
Grade: A+
Sorry but it's true as I see it. It was this season where it all began and from which every other season must be measured. It began like a stereotypical kids show,with an emphasis on "The Hero of the Day" which one season would put Up To Eleven. Anyway then it really started to grow into it's own
The characters are excellent,unlike Konaka they all managed to have depth,which Kazu and Kenta and Ryu,...did not. They were all very likable.
And then it really defined itself as the best when it got into Myotismon,who started the Complete Monster scale and would remain at the top until Kurata happened,he even stayed ahead of D-Reaper. Ultimately though despite Richard Epcar putting so much into it, it was Wizardmon who stole the show. Between the voice, the Tear Jerker sacrifice (saddest moment in the whole franchise) and the Character Development from Gatmon that ensued
This might also be the only season with a villainous Man Child that can be sympathized with to.
It can be Darker And Edgier when it needs to be,and it can be Lighter And Softer to,without any of the Tastes Like Dirt and Tastes Like Diabetes. It's completely accessible unlike Tamers and much of the time better done,but it's not afraid to be deep like the even numbered seasons. The voices are also really quite superlative.
It also has the best pace,neither does it take ten or more episodes to Grow The Beard (like the other odd numbered seasons) nor does it try to quickly blaze on without any atmosphere set up (Adventure 02). Unfortunately it did go into let-down mode when the Mega levels arrived,I mean for being so powerful,there were the most of them (7 opponents) and half were metal (ironically Metal Garurumon never faced any of those),Kari was kind of a Mary Sue,and the Apocalymon felt tacked on.
Sorry but First Installment Wins,although that doesn't mean there all losers,naw only the even seasons are
Anime Absolutely A Bloody Big Cosmic Clusterf!ck
It's truly a great series, with good voice-acting, character development, a well-rounded cast, etc, etc...
However, regardless of all that, I just can't bring myself to actually watch it, because, as the title of this review says, it is just Absolutely A Bloody Big Cosmic Clusterfuck.
Why do I consider it as such? Because of Ryo, and Millenniumon. If you haven't played the games, the brief summation is that in-between Adventure and 02, Ryo is called to the Digital World, to fight Millenniumon, which was formed from Kimeramon, and the dying Machinedramon, of the four Dark Masters.
Near the end of the fourth game, ZeedMillenniumon releases Apocalymon on the Adventure universe, retroactively creating the Dark Masters, causing one half of the circumstances leading to his creation, and in the third, he infects Ken with a Dark Spore, which eventually causes him to create Kimeramon two years, finally allowing Zeed Mille to create himself.
Millenniumon has caused literally everything, in both Adventure and 02. He caused the existence of the Dark Masters, created the original Dark Spore infecting Ken, which caused him to become the Digimon Kaiser, you name it! Anything in both Adventure and 02 can be traced back to him.
How the Adventure universe literally hasn't been ripped asunder from this paradox, I'll never know.
The series, and it's sequel, are a fine anime, and a less fine anime, though still decent, respectively as stand-alone pieces, but if/when you take the story of Ryo into account, it quickly becomes incredibly convoluted.
In this light, the Tamers-reboot becomes far more understandable, and justified.
Anime Where it all started
Digimon Adventure. Where do I begin? Right up front, I'll be sure to mention its my favorite Digimon Season (although it most certainly isn't the best), and its what got me into digimon, and with a little help, anime in general. But on to the review ... Right after getting the character introductions out of the way, we are cast into the digital world, a rich colorful world with creative design thrown throughout. This whimsical, often beautiful world will be the setting for most of the series, and it will set it apart from other 'children's shows' by having a surprising level of depth. Also surprising is the depth of the characters. Despite being rather clumsily introduced at the beginning of the first episode, throughout the show we slowly delve into what makes them them, and get to watch them grown, and it feels very rewarding. Their development is on par with and perhaps better than most 'adult anime'. We even get to see a realistic portrayal of various types of homelife! True, the digimon themselves could use a bit more development, but even as is, they are a joy to watch as they go from adorable little things to badass warrior monsters. Sure it can get a little silly or over the top at times, but all in all, its a great little show. As for the dub, well, i have mixed feelings. I much prefer the voice acting (and naming scheme) of the dub, but its hard to deny that the japanese version has better dialogue. usually. Though in its defence, a localization is almost always better than a direct translation, although the lull destruction and overly cheesey dialogue could stand to leave. Overall, I give this anime a 8/10 (great)
Anime Really mature for its time
Digimon Adventure is what happens if you tell a drug addict and a child psychologist to write a children show. And let me tell you, my friend, it's fantastic.
So, it's pretty much universally accepted that the best children shows are the ones that adults and teens can watch without pulling their hair off of their heads. We could comfortably say that Digimon Adventure fits this definition in the best way possible: with substance. And not the one from the drug addict.
This is, on its first level of presentation, a show where giant digital monsters destroy each others in a Godzilla-like fashion. Everyone of the eight main protagonists has one of these little adorable beasts called "Digimons", and they evolve to new forms as the series progresses. One thing that nobody tells you, however, it's how absolutely bonkers most of these creatures and the world they inhabit are. A monkey that's also an Elvis impersonator? A cat that evolves into an angel? You name it. I'm not gonna spoil everything, of course, but trust me when I say that it's really inventive stuff.
But you're not here for this, aren't you? Nononono. The thing that everyone says about Digimon is that its characters are pretty damn great. And... they're right!
The eight main protagonists (at least in the version I watched, which is the original Japanese one) are quite believable for the standards of 90s anime: they actually act like kids, and their characterizations are really well constructed, in the way that they cleverly subvert stereotypes (Yamato, Mimi, Taichi, Jou, Hikari) and carry good social messages and themes (Sora, Koushiro, Takeru and Yamato again) while also being consistent, well written and likable. Even the villains are pretty good!
In general, after the first two arcs, you really start to feel like the whole "giant monsters" thing is more about the characters than the giant monsters, and that's kind of great for a series of its time. Even the filler episodes are good (mostly because of the strong character writing and the insane ideas the writers sneak in after their trip has concluded), even though they don't have the character development the series is known for. And when a character is so good that it makes a filler episode watchable, you know this is a great series.
Overall, I would really recommend you to check it out on your own, because it's quite the good show. So, I'm giving it a 9/10.