Digi-Modify! Fox Review, Activate! Uncanny Fox here, reporting for duty with my ongoing look at the Digimon Adventure Tri movies, in this week’s case the third installment, Confession. Last time, the Digidestined were coming to grips with the scourge of the Infection sweeping the Digital World, not to mention the arrival of their new member, Meiko. They bonded over a trip to the spa and a school festival, until Ken returned in his Digimon Emperor persona, looking to steal Meiko’s Digimon partner, Meicoomon. But the real shocker came after the battle with him and his Dark Imperialdramon, as Meicoomon suddenly killed Leomon in a random attack, revealing herself to not only be infected, but the source of the Infection.
With all that in mind, let us return to Digimon Adventure Tri: Confession, where our heroes are forced to make a choice that could change their lives forever, and poor communication really proves to be a killer.
The movie begins with an airplane in midflight, as the controls start to glitch. The co-pilot tries to set the controls to landing mode, but it doesn’t work. The pilot agrees to land manually, but the console gages are going haywire too, and land is coming up fast. They land, just narrowly avoiding a crash, and the news is soon reporting on the incident, saying that all flights have been grounded for the time being due to similar accidents elsewhere.
Daigo and Hime are watching this report from their office, with the former asking if Mecioomon really is the cause of all this. When Hime answers “yes,” Daigo demands to know why she didn’t tell him that before. Before Hime can give a response, her phone rings, and it’s the superior she’s been in contact with the whole time. A professor named Mochizuki (as in Meiko Mochizuki, it’s her father), has just arrived in town to weigh in on the situation. Daigo insists that he should have known about Meicoomon beforehand, but Hime points out that they need to focus on trying to counter her next move, whatever that may be.
The opening logo then appears, with no intro music this time due to it being out of place with the darker mood of this movie, then we head to the school, where the PA announcer declares the school festival to be over. All throughout the school, students are hard at work cleaning up in a series of stills, and Mimi is among them. As she’s pulling party decorations off of the blackboard (this school still hasn’t upgraded to Dry Erase, I see), one of her formerly hostile classmates hands her a peace offering in the form of an Orange Soda, and tells her that her dance routine brought in tons of customers. Mimi tries to shrug off her compliments, but she overhears another student saying that she wishes she wore Mimi’s cheerleader uniform, and takes a moment to soak in the success. The other classmate says that Meiko took the trash out a long time ago and hasn’t come back, noting that she’s “been out of it all day.” Mimi heads out to check on her.
Elsewhere, the Men In Black have blocked off one of the hallways and set up guards throughout the school, much to the confusion of the students. And Meiko’s watching them as they investigate the site of the battle with Imperialdramon, still shaken up from, you know, witnessing her Digimon partner commit First Degree Murder. At least Ai and Mako were in another dimension when Belezemon started his thing.
Mimi walks up to her and asks if she’s okay, causing Meiko to drop the trash she was carrying and take off running. Mimi gives chase as Sora watches from a distance, until Meiko gets winded and Mimi catches up. Meiko flashes back to Meicoomon killing Leomon, causing her to collapse on the floor in sorrow as Mimi and Sora try to comfort her.
Meanwhile, Kari and TK FINALLY decide to check up on their 02 teammates, starting with Ken. Only took you guys two whole movies. He’s not home (and neither are his parents, oddly enough), and none of the others have texted Kari back. Kari asks if Ken’s really gone back to the Dark Side, but TK says to just focus on the facts they do know for now. As he heads off to check someone else’s house, Kari notes how he’s grown-up over the years, nervously brushing it aside when TK overhears her muttering. Okay, I’m rarely a shipping kind of guy, but I ship them. I’ll admit it.
TK sends a text over to Matt at Izzy’s office, where the rest of the Digidestined have gathered to discuss Ken’s return and Meicoomon’s betrayal. In the pocket server, the Digimon scramble to get their food together, with Tentomon accidentally bringing up Mecioo, much to the others’ dismay. Matt tells them to stay in there for now, as Izzy turns his attention to finding out the cause of the Infection, believing that Mecioomon herself has been contaminated.
He’s worried that the Infection might be mutating, due to the outbreaks spilling into the Human World as well as the Digital one. Sora’s still shocked that a gentle Digi like Mecioomon could suddenly turn homicidal, and Matt asks everyone if they noticed anything strange about how she was acting before the attack. Izzy notes that the Infection is worse than they imagined, as he keeps running tests on his computer and getting no results.
Mimi and Meiko soon arrive, and when Tai asks the her, the latter says she’s okay even though she’s clearly not. Izzy starts to ask her about Meicoomon, wondering if she showed any signs of Infection that Meiko might have noticed before. She thinks hard about it, but soon breaks down after Izzy starts to press her too hard. Mimi snaps at him and tells him to knock it off, but Izzy insists that they need information and they need it now. An argument breaks out between him and Mimi, until Sora steps in with her usual job as peacemaker.
Meiko starts crying, lamenting that this is all her fault. Sora and Mimi move in to comfort her again, as the others watch with heavy hearts. And the Digimon have their faces literally pressed against the screen in the server room as they see this unfold.
After the meeting is adjourned, Joe heads off to his studies, the girls go somewhere to take Meiko’s mind off of recent events and Matt and Tai stand together in awkward silence. At least, until Matt pulls out a text of the prophecy Izzy found, the one that Mimi and Joe fulfilled to unlock their Mega forms in the last movie. Tai asks what it means, but Matt humorously says he doesn’t know. But he does point out that if more of their partner Digimon reach Mega level, they won’t need Omnimon anymore. And that would be easier on Tai… Matt walks off, leaving Tai to process that last bit.
Later that night, Meiko comes home, and her mother congratulates her on the festival being a success. Her dad is working late at a meeting, so it’s just her and the mother to enjoy a basket of her favorite food, Tempura (basically deep-fried shrimp and other sea-food). Meiko asks if her dad’s meetings are because of Meicoomon, signifying that her parents know about the Digimon…
Over at the meeting Meiko’s mom was talking about, Hime lists the areas around Japan that have been attacked by the Infected Digimon so far, not to mention the issues surrounding electric devices and airports. There have been four emergency landings in the past week alone, with one involving two planes nearly crashing into each other. Meiko’s dad (whose voice bears an unsettling resemblance to Lance Henrikson) weighs in on this news, telling of an unconfirmed sighting of a Digimon at the high school before the outbreak began, which he believes is connected. He’s talking about Mecioomon, but he doesn’t give the name.
After the meeting, Hime and Daigo discuss the situation out in the hall, with Hime concerned that another attack will happen in the near future, with even more victims. Daigo says that he doesn’t want to put the Digidestined through all that again, then Dr. Mochizuki steps out to leave. Daigo stops him and asks how Meiko is holding up in the wake of the Mecioomon ordeal, and the doctor assures him that he’ll speak with her when he gets home.
Later on, Daigo and Hime park their cel-shaded CGI car into the indoor parking lot at their work, only to be met by Matt. The Digidestined asks for info regarding the Infection, but Hime points out that protocol dictates they keep everything they know classified. She caves though, and they all go up to their office, where the agents hand Matt a report on the incident at the festival. Hime tells Matt that they’ll have to tell the media of their findings soon, dreading the circus that will no doubt result. But the truth is going to come out one way or another, so they have no choice.
Matt asks about Ken, and Hime replies that they keep tabs on all of the Digidestined. She tells him not to worry about Ken (without really specifying where he and the other 02 kids are) then asks that he inform the others that the investigation into Mecioomon will begin shortly and that they will do their best to collaborate as much as possible. Matt thanks them for the info and leaves.
Once he’s gone, Daigo chews Hime out for lying to Matt about where Ken is. Apparently, Digidestined all over the world have been going missing just like the 02 crew, and Hime wanted to avoid a panic. Still, they have a right to know that something’s going down with their fellow Digidestined, especially since it’d only be a matter of time until whatever’s targeting them turns its sights on the main crew. Anyway, Daigo drills her about her hiding the fact that Mecioomon is the source of the Infection, and Hime counters by asking how knowing that would affect their friendship with Meiko. Uh, not really? They understand it’s not her fault, and they’re a pretty accepting group. They let Matt back in after he pulled that crap with Cherrymon back in Season 1, after all. And they all welcomed Ken with open arms after he turned Face in 02 (okay, Yolei and Cody needed some convincing, but the point still stands). And the thing is, both of those examples were deliberate choices on the part of the people perpetrating them. Here, Meiko’s partner is out of control. Nobody’s fault here.
Still, Hime asks Daigo to “preserve their innocence a while longer…” screw that! This is the fate of the world, lady! They need to know this crap! And Daigo agrees with me, as he grabs her by the shoulders and demands to know why she hid all this from him too. All she has to say for herself is “sometimes ignorance is bliss.” Not when, again, the fate of the world is at stake it’s not! They both get back to work, Daigo’s mind heavy with want he just heard.
Back at Dr. Mochizuka’s work, Meiko waits out in the hall for her dad, bringing him a change of clothes. He tells her to let her mother know that he’ll be working late again and heads back to it, but Meiko asks him about Meicoomon. He just brushes off the question by telling her that his meeting’s about to start. After she apologizes to him for this whole mess, he assures her that he and his people are going to fix everything.
The next day it’s raining, and the mood at school is a sullen one as Sora notes that Meiko’s not there. Indeed, she’s staying home sick, ignoring a concerned text from Mimi and looking sadly at the picture of them at the spa. And more importantly, of Mecioomon in happier, less friend-killing times. Heartbroken, she crawls into bed and cries herself to sleep.
Over at Hime’s office, the agent is looking through files on her computer in the dark, stopping at one labeled “Reboot” and thinking aloud. Yes, Reboot was a pretty cool cartoon, at least the couple of episodes I watched on cable once. Hey, I’m working on it…
She’s not the only one typing away, as Izzy is on the clock in his litter-covered office, trying (and failing) to make any breakthrough regarding the Infection. The partner Digimon watch in sadness as he bemoans his standstill.
Meanwhile, Sora goes over to visit Meiko, bringing her homework over from school and asking her how she’s holding up. And Meiko’s not feeling so good. Sora tells her that she has to try and pull together for her own sake if nobody else’s, telling her to eat something and get some sleep. Meiko giggles at this and tells Sora she’s like “an old mother hen,” which humorously annoys her as Tai said the same thing once.
Speaking of Tai, Sora tells Meiko that he had trouble with his Digimon before, mentioning the SkullGreymon incident. She assures Meiko that Agumon came out of that okay, so there’s hope for Meicoomon. She tells her that they and their partner Digimon are always connected, and that nothing will come between them. Lastly, she tells Meiko that it’s okay to let her emotions out, offering to be the shoulder Meiko needs to cry on right now. Which she does.
Joe shows up at Izzy’s place to find it a wreck, joking that it “looks like a tornado hit, after a hurricane and a typhoon.” He starts picking up some of the mess and pulling back the curtains to let the sun in, as Izzy wakes up after crashing in front of his computer, moaning for some black tea. I imagine this is what those poor animators are going to look like after they’re done fixing the Sonic movie.
Once he’s caffeinated again, he explains that he hasn’t slept since the festival, which causes Joe to get concerned. He tells Izzy that it won’t do much good if he’s too tired to get anything done, speaking from experience due to his studying. Izzy notes that he’s more upbeat than usual, and Joe jokes that he’s “Joe-volved to the next level” as he’s “grown tired of being tired from studying” before asking where the Digimon are. They’ve been staying in the server to avoid being Infected, and Izzy notes that even his server has some coding errors in it. He’s fixed them though, and when he cross-referenced the data with when Mecioomon was Infected at the festival, it matched. He’s set out to find a countermeasure, but Joe tells him to get some sleep and a shower, something Tentomon agrees with even from the server.
TK soon steps in to ask Izzy on his progress, but Joe points out that he’s taking a nap in a sleeping bag on the floor (apparently, he prefers it to the couch). TK asks Joe if Izzy feels responsible for what happened to Leomon, and Joe seems to think so. He explains that bad things have happened since Mecioomon got infected, but TK assures him that the other Digimon won’t get sick that easily. He says that if you focus on the negative, it’s more likely to happen.
Patamon sees TK and jumps out of the server to great him. The other Digimon soon follow, having been cooped up in the server since the festival in order to stay out of Izzy’s way. And naturally, they’re hungry, so Joe goes to work fixing them a snack while TK hugs (and smooshes) Patamon some more.
But as Pata’s tail wags, it starts to glitch in the same manner as the Infected Digimon, much to TK’s horror. He frantically inspects his partner, who doesn’t seem to be showing any signs of Infection… until he suddenly goes rabid and tries to bite TK. He gets him right in the arm, and Joe notices something weird going on but not what. He goes over to check on TK, but Patamon eventually regains himself and wonders what’s going on. TK just tells him and Joe that the two of them were just “hugging it out,” and that Pata’s bite was “just a scratch.” But Patamon suspects otherwise…
The other Digimon go about comparing Izzy’s sleeping bag to a bean-and-cheese burrito, while TK starts picking papers up and asking Joe what would happen if their Digimon became Infected. Joe supposes that they would need to fight said partners, but shrugs the whole thing off as Izzy’s department.
TK’s bothered though, and decides to head for home. Joe notices him taking Patamon with him and reiterates Izzy’s point about keeping the partners in the office so he can keep an eye on them. TK points out that keeping them all in one place leaves open the possibility of one of them getting Infected and spreading it to the rest. Joe doesn’t even want to think about that, and TK’s counters that he just wants to spend some time with Patamon. Still, Joe’s not ready to let him go, until Pata starts crying that he wants to go with TK, refusing to let Joe pull him away. Dumbfounded by this, Joe lets up and allows the two to leave.
TK and Patamon head home, walking through the rain as Pata notes how “fun” it is. He says that the reason he threw a fit back there was because he saw how worried TK was and knew that he needed to go with him. But he still doesn’t get why TK was worried, not yet…
Over at Meiko’s, the weather report plays on the TV as Meiko’s mom asks how she is doing. She’s apparently doing well enough to go back to school, and she walks out under the bridge as she starts thinking about Meicoomon… until she slaps herself out of it and keeps going.
She meets up with Sora in the hall, and asks if she wants to do lunch with her later. Inside, Mimi is overjoyed that “Mei-Mei” is back, and gives her a big girlfriend hug. Even Matt and Tai are happy to see her, although Matt was a little worried with how she up and vanished before. At least, that’s what Tai, Sora and Mimi think; he’s currently trying to be a tough guy about it. And Mimi keeps calling him a “tundra.” Yeah, I don’t get it either…
Tai assures Meiko that Izzy’s doing his best to figure out how to help Meicoomon, telling her about how he spends all his time in his office. Mimi gets annoyed by Tai’s nonstop hyping of Izzy, and tells him that Meiko’s smart enough to get the picture. Meiko insists that she wants to know what’s going on with the Digimon, just because she’s trying not to let it wreck her life doesn’t mean she wants to keep in the dark about it all. Plus, she wants to go over and apologize to Izzy for running off. Mimi wants to go with her, leading Matt to complain about her being dramatic, Mimi arguing that she’s not, and Sora trying once again to break up the resulting fight.
The Digidestined meet under the bridge later, as TK tells everyone about how he took Patamon home with him. Apparently, Izzy was mad about this, but TK insists that Patamon wanted to go with him, and that he was homesick. He assures everyone that if anything goes wrong, he’ll send Pata back to Izzy.
Meiko and Sora arrive from their lunch date, as Mimi complains about only Patamon getting to go home, as they all miss their Digimon. And according to Joe, the partners themselves are getting sick of being stuck in the server all day. That being said, they aren’t sure if it’s safe with the Infection still going around. When Matt suggests that they’d have to fight their partners if they do get infected, TK flips out, horrified of the thought of having to take out Patamon. And for good reason…
Tai takes the moment to explain why taking the Digimon out of the server is dangerous, and TK has a flashback to Patamon suffering from the Infection earlier in the day. He tells everyone that Pata’s fine and that he “just wants more time with him.” Still, Mimi insists that it’s not fair for just Patamon to come home and not the others, and Joe suggests that letting them out once in a while can’t hurt. He says that the Digimon can be at Izzy’s while they’re at school, and come with their partners when they go home. Sora points out that they can keep an eye on their partners if something goes wrong, and Mimi compares it to leaving a kid at daycare. The matter is then settled after Kari attempts to remind everyone that they need to keep an eye on the situation.
As the others discuss how they’re going to go about this plan, Meiko backs away, saddened by the discussions of partner Digimon. Joe points out that the internet may not be secure, so they’ll need to go in person to pick them up as opposed to Izzy e-mailing them. Matt caves as well, since Gabumon would be upset if he was the only one left behind. And Mimi keeps calling him a “tundra.” You keep using that word, Mimi. I don’t think it means what you think it does.
Everyone soon realizes that Meiko’s still without a partner, but she assures them that she’ll be fine. With that, they all head over to Izzy’s place to pick up their Digimon. Except for TK and Meiko, who stay behind to walk home. TK apologizes for reminding Meiko of Mecioomon, but she’s fine. She starts toward home to do her homework, but TK stops her and asks if they can talk somewhere.
They head to the beach, where TK tells Meiko that Patamon’s been infected and kicks himself for keeping that from the others. Meiko understands, due to her own grief with Meicoomon, but that’s small comfort for TK, who doesn’t know what to do now. He breaks down crying at the thought of losing Patamon again, and Meiko starts blaming herself again. He assures her that this isn’t her fault, pointing out that he should be comforting her right now. But she still insists that this Infection mess is because of her, and that’s where the scene ends.
Still heavy-hearted, TK heads home, telling himself to put on a good face for Patamon’s sake. The little flying hamster thing greets him at the door, all giggly and hugging as usual, and TK holds him tight as his tail starts to glitch again. Patamon’s noticed, saying that it’s been going on all day before asking TK if he’s been Infected. He seems to be taking the whole “going rabid from a virus” thing pretty well, as TK fights back tears and assures him that he’s going to be alright. But Pata knows better, and tells his partner that if he starts to go bezerk, the others will have to put him down. This hard truth breaks TK down, and he starts crying as Pata assures him that whatever happens, it was worth it just to meet him. And soon enough, they’re both in tears. They’ve already suffered this once before, and now they have to do it again.
They stay in the same position all throughout the night, until the doorbell rings later on. It’s Matt and Gabumon, who sit down at the table for a snack as TK asks if Matt’s gotten into a fight with anyone lately. Matt says no, telling TK that he’s noticed something up with him. He’s not going to leave until TK comes clean, so the younger Ishida tells Matt that he’s afraid that everybody’s going to find out that… Matt is a terrible guitarist. I mean, it was on full display in the last movie. Matt gets annoyed at his younger brother for teasing him, and the two have a playful spat while the Digimon watch in amusement.
TK then gets a call from Sora, who’s checking in on how he and Patamon are doing. After she hangs up, he moves over to Izzy, and she thanks him for all his work the previous day. And all the other days prior. She tells him to remember to eat and sleep, but not at the same time, before hanging up. Biyomon points out that Sora works hard taking care of everyone else, but she seems to be forgetting to take care of herself. She decides to take care of Sora for her, since she’s Biyo’s favorite person, and Sora is touched by the gesture.
At the train station, the display screens start to fritz out. Over at the planetarium, a hologram of the Earth turns on, and starts glitching too. The power goes out at the airport, and to make matters worse the back-up generator’s not working either. And there’s planes coming in. Wait, I thought they were all postponed…
The Earth hologram starts displaying this message, and a deep, sinister voice declares that “the time has come. The era of destruction is at hand. Digimon shall roam free again. Because your world is completely reliant on its digital infrastructure. It is fragile, extremely fragile. It is a house of cards, ever teetering on the brink of complete collapse. It must be acknowledged. The era of complete catastrophe is upon us.” Go home, Zoom. You’re drunk.
This message plays throughout all of Japan, and come the following morning news of the blackout hits the TV. It seems like everybody’s stocking up for the apocalypse now, and Tai and Kari are trying to wrap their heads around what the message meant with the whole “Digimon roaming free” bit. Their mom tells them to get to school, and asks them to pick up some ice cream on the way home. As Tai and Kari chuckle about their mom’s priorities in the midst of Doomsday, Agumon agrees. And we see his eyes glitching out…
The partner Digimon are soon dropped of at Izzy’s, where they watch him work up a storm and bemoan that he’s ignoring them. They note that he’s basically in a trance, and Patamon mutters that it’s going to be a long night. Agumon speaks up, asking if Izzy needs help with anything, but Tentomon assures him that it’s just how Izzy works. He goes over to make them some snacks, reminding everyone not to bug Izzy because if he can’t get what he needs to done, he’ll be doing it longer. And the longer he’s doing it, the more he’s killing himself.
Gabumon steps forward and makes some squeaky gestures, leading the other Digimon outside for some fresh air. Unbeknowst to them, a squad car is parked outside the office, and a pair of Men In Black are watching them and radioing to Hime that they have left the building. She tells them to just follow the Digimon…
Over at the school, everyone is buzzing about the blackout the previous night, chatting about how they handled the situation and complaining about how they should have gotten the day off due to the outage. Outside, TK is sitting by himself and moping over the ordeal with Patamon.
Meanwhile, Kari’s walking the halls when she gets a call from an unknown number, even though her phone was turned off. When she tries to answer it, the colors become inverted and she becomes overtaken by a mysterious force. Which is why I just leave those unlisted calls unanswered, you never know if it’s some evil entity looking to possess you or a creepy voice telling you that you’ll die in 7 days. And this is, like, the third time that’s happened in the course of the Adventure canon. She mutters that “the time has arrived” and heads off somewhere in a daze.
At the Digidestined meeting spot under the bridge, the Digimon wonder if it was okay to leave Izzy’s place without telling him, with Palmon pointing out that they can’t ask second after they left and Agumon getting off track and saying that he always asks for seconds. Tentomon tells them that he didn’t want to bug Izzy, but he needed to get out of that office for a bit.
Anyway, Gomamon asks what they should do now, and Gatomon points out the dangers of exposing themselves to the Infection. At this point, Patamon comes clean and reveals that he’s been Infected already, leading everyone to comically freak out before asking him what it feels like. He’s more scared than hurt, but when Palmon suggests telling the other Digidestined, Pata insists that they don’t, even after Gatomon says that Izzy would be able to help somehow and Tentomon jokes about “Digivaccinating” him. Uh, that’s not how vaccines work…
As Hime watches them from afar, Patamon decides to leave so he doesn’t Infect the rest of the group, much to their dismay. He makes them all promise that if he loses it like Meicoomon did, they take him out, but they refuse. He tells them that they are like family to him, and that he can’t bear the thought of Infecting them.
Then the wind starts to pick up ominously as Possessed Kari walks up to them. They all panic and assure her that they aren’t sneaking off without permission and one of them isn’t infected, but she’s not interested in that. Gatomon recognizes that Kari’s been taken over (third time, remember), and the entity possessing her says that she is “the one who longs for stability,” and that it borrowed Kari’s body so it can talk to the Digis.
She says that both the Human and Digital worlds are in danger due to the Infection, going on about how the Digimon under its sway are “terrorizing the quantized world and disrupting its continuity.” So, the Infected Digis are in charge of the Terminator movies?
She goes on to describe how the digital devices in the human world, and the internet connecting them together, gave life to the Digital World, causing it to emerge from the Quantum Sea like many other worlds before it. However, if the Infected Digimon aren’t stopped, they will destroy the Human and Digital worlds, leading to the latter ceasing to exist and the electronic devices of the human world to fail. Which would be a whole catastrophe in and of itself, given how much people rely on them.
The Digimon are naturally distraught over the idea of both worlds being destroyed, but Possessed Kari knows what must be done to prevent this, one that requires tremendous sacrifice. She says that time will run out once Meicoomon next emerges, then passes out as whatever has taken over Kari leaves her. Hime runs in to catch her, as Gatomon demands to know what happened to her.
Hime explains that someone – or something -used Kari as a way of delivering a message to the Digimon (didn’t she already say that?). When Gabumon asks what Not-Kari meant by “a sacrifice,” Hime suggests a reboot of the Digital World. So this is like the Terminator movies…
After Agumon takes a moment to ask if a reboot is something you can eat (is anyone else bothered by how much dumber Agumon is in this series as opposed to the TV seasons?), Hime exposits that the Digital World, along with many others, exists parallel to the Human one, and that as long as the Human World remains, the Digital one can be reset, like a computer. Funnily enough, Ken once suggested doing this after he was finally defeated as the Digimon Emperor.
Gabumon asks what would happen if the Digital World would be rebooted (aside from everybody being played by different people and being able to team up with the Avengers), and Hime says that while the Infection would be no more, there’s no telling how it would affect the other worlds created by the Quantum Sea – since the Digital World is the base of them all – and the Digital World itself could be destroyed outright. And it will only work if every trace of the Infection is in the Digital World when the reboot is performed. But they’re running out of time and options, so the moist extreme solution may soon prove to be the only one.
Gatomon then asks how Hime knows all this, and the woman answers that she’s a High-Ranking officer. Real reassuring there. She says that the reboot will be performed by Homeostasis, the previously unnamed entity that oversees the stability among the worlds, and the one Hime believes spoke through Kari just now. And the next time Meicoomon appears, an uncontrollable version of the reboot will be triggered.
In the meantime, Hime decides to drive Kari to the hospital, and Gatomon asks if she can be trusted. It’s just that she once put her life in the hands of an evil vampire before and got screwed over, so she’s just being careful. She tells her to go ahead to the hospital while she and the other Digimon discuss their next move.
Meanwhile, Izzy’s still at his lab, working away until he finally notices that the Digimon are gone. I’ve got a similar thing, but instead of noticing people are gone, I notice people arriving out of the blue.
Back under the bridge, Gatomon discusses the reboot with the other Digimon. She points out one major thing that nobody else has yet: Rebooting the Digital World means setting the timeline back to Day One. And not only the world would be affected but they would too. Meaning that they would be set back to before they met their Human partners, and they wouldn’t remember them. Nobody’s on board for that, and they start to have second thoughts about the reboot. Still, they’re running out of other ways to stop the Infection, and Meicoomon’s just going to trigger the reboot when she next appears anyway.
Agumon wonders if they can prevent the reboot if they catch Meicoomon, but it’s a long shot. Gatomon gives everyone a rousing speech about how it’s their duty to protect their Human partners and their world, and Tentomon joins in by telling everyone not to give up hope yet, since Izzy’s still working on a way to fix all of this. But he soon starts to glitch out, meaning that he’s Infected too. Meaning they all might be, adding even more urgency to this situation.
Hime helps check Kari out of the hospital when it’s clear she’s going to be okay. When Kari asks what happened to her (she doesn’t remember being possessed, nor talking to the Digimon), Hime lies and says she only found her after she fainted. Still, she offers to drive Kari home, but Kari says she left her bag at school and that she’s fine to go back.
While driving back to her office, Hime sighs that they’re all out of time. Which is a little weird to say when she’s by herself considering what we find out later…
Kari’s soon walking home from school when Gatomon catches up with her, relieved that she’s alright. Kari asks why she isn’t at Izzy’s, but Gato says it’s okay and wants to go shopping with her. It’s clear she wants to spend time with her partner before her memories are lost.
She’s not the only one, as Gabumon is waiting outside Matt’s practice studio as he’s playing his guitar. Matt lets him in, and Gabu asks that he play his harmonica for him. Matt’s too busy practicing, and he asks if something’s wrong. Gabu assures him that everything’s fine, and happily listens to Matt play his guitar for a bit before he relents and pulls out his harmonica.
As the harmonica music plays, we see scenes of the other Digimon hanging out with their partners. In her room, Biyomon asks Sora what she wants to do with her life, but the latter tries to deflect by saying that things have been too busy to think about that. If the end of 02 is any indication, I take it she plans on marrying Matt and becoming a fashion designer.
Meanwhile, Joe wants Gomamon to meet his girlfriend (so she is real), since there’s a good chance she might be the one and he wants them all to hit it off right away. Goma asks if he should wear his “formal fur,” but Joe says he’s perfect as is. Though Goma does throw in a quick jab about other people actually seeing her, which leads to Joe insisting that she’s real. Poor guy will catch a break on the day that Sukamon is voted “Sexiest Digimon Alive.”
Kari and Gatomon are browsing through the stores, and the latter notices the Baskin Robbins knockoff ahead of them. They get a strawberry cone to share, then take their pictures in the nearby photo booth. And all the while, Kari is weirded out by Gato’s unusual enthusiasm, wondering if something’s wrong.
Over at Mimi’s, she’s chatting with Palmon about flowers not growing under her care (ironic when you consider who her partner is), and Palmon is too deep in thought to notice the punchline of the plants being plastic.
Elsewhere, Tai is reading a soccer manga while Agumon asks him to play soccer with him, and then video games, and then get lunch, and then get more lunch, with some lunch on the side. He likes lunch. Tai wonders if he’s gotten into the coffee again, but Agu says that he just wants to spend time with him. Tai presses further, and Agu eventually breaks down and tells him about the reboot. Tai’s shocked by it, and notices Agu’s eyes glitching as the Digimon assures him that everything’s going to be fine. But he knows better…
TK and Patamon sit in the dark together, as the latter suffers from his Infection and the former feels totally helpless. Just like he did after the battle with Devimon. Pata powers through it, telling TK that him being there helps. I’m not crying! This is text, how can you see if I’m crying? You’re crying!
Matt finishes his set, and Gabumon asks him what’s on his mind. Matt says that he wishes he could go back in time, that he wonders if he remembered the way things used to be wrong. Gabu assures him that their adventures together were all real, and Matt starts playing again.
In the dark void where the battle against Imperialdramon took place, the cloaked Digimon floats ominously…
Over at Izzy’s Office, Izzy notes the errors that keep popping up in his source code, that he deduces is the root of the Infection. Tentomon asks if he found something, and Izzy explains that the digital devices in the Human World work on a Binary Code (0s and 1s), while this code has been hacked to include 2s, sending the whole thing out of whack. Meaning that now, computers around the world are getting viruses. The electronic devices can’t recognize the new code, which doesn’t seem to operate in any known numeric system, and Tai’s goggles were unable to pick it up.
Izzy laments that he could have acted had he known all of this sooner, but without the base for the code he’s helpless. He wonders if he can convert the data to something readable, but one mistake could ruin the entire system. And even if that worked, his own computer, which he programed himself, has been overwritten.
He bangs on his desk in frustration, berating himself for not being able to do anything, and Tentomon assures him that he can accomplish anything due to his great persistence. He says that he thinks Izzy is at his happiest when he’s learning something new, since he sees not only what something is, but how great it can be. But now that he’s been focusing on what’s bad instead of what’s good, his work doesn’t make him happy anymore. Makes sense.
Izzy apologizes for being so down in the dumps, and Tentomon admits that there’s only one thing left to do: the reboot. He tells Izzy that he and the other Digimon are ready to do what needs to be done, even if that means losing the memories of their partners. But Izzy has a plan to deal with that, and Tento takes a moment to admire his partner as he gets to work on it… until he starts glitching…
Over in Daigo’s classroom, he’s looking over some calligraphy when his phone goes off. It’s Hime, telling him of a new distortion going on downtown. Indeed, the clouds start to swirl like they did before, and a bolt of lightning strikes down at one of the buildings, forming a sort of Terminator time travel ball. But it’s not naked Robert Patrick coming out of it, but rather the Dark Meicoomon. And she’s not here for a costume contest…
The Distortion Detectors start going off at Izzy’s office, and there’s a lingering shot of Hime in her office in the dark. It seriously goes on for the longest time, like they forgot to put something else in while the sinister drums finish their solo.
The cops gather at the site of Meicoomon’s emergence, as Tai notices his computer fritzing out in his room. He grabs his goggles and checks outside his window. Sure enough, there’s a big ol’ swirling ball of red distortion lines gathering in one place, meaning that something big’s about to go down. He and Agumon decide that it’s time to go to work.
They aren’t the only ones, as Meiko heads off to try and talk some sense into Meicoomon. And speaking of, Evil Meicoo is in full rampage mode by the time Tai arrives in the city, and I see she’s studied the Shark-Jaw from “Clash Of The Red Rangers” method of demolition. Joe gets there as well, and they Digivolve their partners to the Champion level via a split-screen sequence to fight on even footing with Meicoomon.
Greymon and Ikkakumon try to force Nega Meicoomon back through the portal she came from, but the cat is just too quick for them. Elsewhere, Meiko gets a text from I’m guessing Joe(?) saying where the fight’s taking place, and she hurries over to help.
And help is needed, as Anti-Meicoo keeps on dogging the good Digis’ attempts to catch her. Birdramon soon steps in to lend her Metor Wing attack to the proceedings, and Togamon provides cover fire with her Needle Spray. Sora and Mimi run in to join the others, who now include Kari and TK, and Tai takes a second to note how “epic” the fight is. Uh, aren’t you supposed to be worried about collateral damage?
Meiko calls out to them to stop the fighting, and she runs over to Meicoomon while the other Digimon have her in a dogpile. But the cat still has one more trick in her bag: Dark Digivolving to a humaniod cat-woman named Meicrackmon Viscous Mode. She’s actually pretty cool-looking, kind of reminds me of Renamon, only more metal. Which means I should probably have Safe Search on while I Google her… for research purposes, of course.
She forces the other Digis off of her, as Meiko begs her to stop all of this from below. She almost gets struck by debris for her troubles, but Matt makes the save. Again. He’s getting pretty good at that. Back in the fight, Team Digidestined try to sumo-push Meicrackmon back into the portal, but the Ultimate-level Digimon proves too strong for them.
Meiko tries to run in to stop her, but Matt holds her back, saying it’s too dangerous. He assures her that their partners are doing all the can to help, and they’re the best chance anyone’s got. Futhermore, he points out that Meiko getting herself hurt or worse would do more harm than good, as Meicoomon might go bezerk. Well, more bezerk…
Gatomon decides that sitting around watching her friends struggle isn’t helping, and Kari lets her join in the fight. Patamon begs TK to let him help too, as Gato Digivolves into her Ultimate form of Angewomon to even the odds. She manages to pull Meicrackmon into the portal, sending the whole group pouring in after them.
Matt, Meiko and Daigo finally join up with the others, as they all watch the battle unfold from outside the portal. Inside the Dark Void, the partners go head to head with Meicrackmon, taking her on in pairs and being swatted aside for their efforts. Meicrack heads back for the portal, but Greymon and Garurumon keep her inside.
As they and the others struggle to hold her in, Patamon begs TK to let him join, but TK refuses due to Pata’s Infection. It’s at this point that everyone realizes what’s been up with him, and they watch as Pata tells TK about how the Digimon have a duty to protect the world, and why he was chosen to be TK’s partner in the first place. He flies out of TK’s hands and heads off to fight, much to TK’s dismay. He tries to stop him, but Kari holds him back as Patamon Digivolves into Angemon.
Angewomon gets knocked out of the portal, and Angemon catches her. Then the two angels push Meicrackmon back into the portal as she tries to get out, with Grey and Garuru helping from the inside. Meiko tries to call out to her partner, but Meicrack isn’t listening as the force from her struggle rips up the pavement. So poor Meiko laments that there’s nothing more she can do.
Meanwhile, Izzy is picking up a massive energy spike coming from the battle, one that’s different from the other distortions he’s come across. And it’s coming from Meicoomon…
Tentomon asks him what’s up, and Izzy reveals to him that all of the events that have occurred lately, the Infected Digimon and the distortions, all started when Meiko and Meicoomon moved to town. Meaning that Meicoomon didn’t catch the Infection from another Digimon, but Meiko.
Tentomon tells him that he’s needed at the fight, but Izzy still needs to finish something on his laptop. He’d better hurry up, because Meicrackmon just broke free from the Digimon, and to make matters worse Angemon starts to succumb to the Infection. He falls to the ground as TK and the other Digidestined watch in horror, unable to do anything to help.
But Angemon’s able to fight through it for a while, and attempts to tackle Meicrackmon into the portal. However, she turns the tables and tosses him in, before everyone else pops up and grabs onto her, hoping to push/pull her into the portal.
They all head into the Void, only for Angemon to be overtaken by the Infection completely and attack Angewomon. He throws Hand Of Fate blasts at her as the others struggle to keep Meicrackmon in check. Outside, the Digidestined are mortified by this, and soon grow concerned for their partners, as any one of them can be the next one Infected.
As the clash of the Angels continues, TK falls to his knees in grief, blaming himself for not telling everyone about Patamon’s Infection sooner. Kari goes to comfort him, but it’s clear he’s being reminded of the night he lost Angemon the first time.
Just then Izzy and Tentomon show up, as the other partner Digimon continue their battle against Meicrackmon. Birdramon tries a Meteor Wing, but Meicrack shrugs it off as Garurumon and Togamon attempt to grapple her. Unfortunately, Birdra falls under the Infection, which is a shock considering she’s one of the partners who didn’t show signs of it before. Making things worse, Garuru and Toga are soon corrupted as well, signifying to the Digidestined that all of their partners are infected.
An all-out war breaks out between the Infected and non-Infected Digis, and soon only Greymon is left uncorrupted when Ikkakumon and Angewomon fall victim to the scourge. Outside, Daigo laments that the Infection is spreading, and if it grows too far, the entire data network will collapse.
Greymon fights valiantly, going as far as to Digivolve to MetalGreymon to even the odds. As he tosses Meicrackmon aside and the other Digimon struggle with the Infection, a clock starts counting down on Izzy’s laptop screen: the reboot has begun. There’s only 10 minutes left until it happens, and Izzy is forced to explain to the people who don’t know about it what it means. As the battle inside the Void ranges on, the Digidestined lament that the reboot would erase their partners’ memories, and naturally they’re all horrified.
But Izzy has a backup plan: he’s been working on a program, a cube-like pocket dimension that will create a back-up copy of the Digimons’ memories (like me and pretty much everything I’ve ever worked on) as long as they are inside it once the reboot hits. He orders Tentomon to go in and help MetalGreymon, who’s currently on the losing end of a 7-on-1 Handicap Match.
Tentomon Digivolves to Kabuterimon, then helps MetalGreymon knock everyone else into the cube. This proves difficult, as they are still outnumbered 7-to-2, and Kabuteri is soon forced to De-Digivolve after being pummeled by everyone’s attacks.
Izzy begs him to get into the cube alone if need be, but Tento insists that he can’t abandon the others. MetalGreymon’s already got Meicrackmon in a grapple, but it won’t last, and Tentomon points out that he and the others are already risking their lives to stop the Infection, so he can’t do anything less. He exposits to Izzy about how when they first met, he didn’t know Izzy from Adam (and he still doesn’t know who that guy is – what, you’ve been around TK enough recently), but that getting to know him over the years was the greatest thing that’s ever happened to him. If his memories get erased, he and Izzy will just make new ones, and he makes Izzy promise that he’ll never give up his love of learning.
With that, Tentomon thanks Izzy for having known him, and flies back into the battle, even still at Rookie level. With the clock ticking down at 3 minutes and counting, Meicrackmon breaks free of MetalGreymon’s hold, and Tentomon Warp-Digivolves to his Ultimate form, MegaKabuterimon. He declares that once he gets ahold of Meicrackmon, he won’t let go, and sure enough he doesn’t as they both plummet into the Void.
Unfortunately, MetalGreymon has fallen to the Infection as well, and has Digivolved to WarGreymon as he charges at MegaKabuteri, who counters by reaching his own Mega level form, HerculesKabuterimon, kind of a giant, gold preying manti… I mean, Hercules Beetle. As the clock keeps counting down, he grabs a hold of several of his fellow Digimon in his multiple arms, only to be tackled by the others.
He gets pushed out of the portal into the Human World, where the Digidestined can only watch as their Infected partners pile onto him. HeculesKabuterimon asks himself if this is how it all ends, noting how sad everyone is going to be as he finds the strength to push himself free. He begs the other Digimon to come to, and it seems to work. They all regain their senses enough to embrace their friend in a hug.
He thanks them, and pushes them all into the portal as the clock ticks down the final minute. Everyone watches as he inches ever closer, until he finally pushes through just as the reboot timer hits 0. The portal closes as everyone looks on in stunned silence, their Digimon partners, and the Digital World as they know it, lost to the reboot. There’s no sound, no music, just quiet reflection as the gravity of what we all just witnessed bears down like a hammer.
TK hears an echo of Patamon telling him not to forget him, and lets out a silent cry of sorrow. In fact, everyone breaks down in tears, and later on TK tells everyone that he thinks Patamon was the first to catch the Infection, and that he was too afraid to tell them before. Patamon is the Digimon partner of Hope, and when he went down, everyone else’s hope went with him.
A week passes, and there is relative peace in the Human World. But as Summer Vacation begins, the Digidestined are still torn up over the loss of their partners. They try to go about their normal lives, but as we see in the shots of them alternating in this scene, they are still left with a void that can never be filled.
Hime’s voice narrates how there hasn’t been any disturbances from the Digital World. The reboot worked, but as Daigo points out, there was a high price to be paid. Matt goes over to Tai’s house, and the two friends head out for a walk. As they hang out by the shore and eat Sea Salt ice cream (insert Kingdom Hearts reference here), Hime explains that this was inevitable.
In his office, Izzy thinks he sees Tentomon in the reflection of one of his computer screens, but it’s just wishful thinking. Hime goes on to narrate that the people of Highten View Terrace will rebuild, and in 6 months no one will be able to tell any of this happened, and in a year’s time, no one will remember the Digimon at all. And the Digidestined will just have to say goodbye to a big part of their childhood, one that no doubt shaped them into the people they are now.
One day, TK visits Izzy’s office and helps clean up, asking If Izzy’s heard anything about the Digital World. Izzy notes that the Digivices haven’t rebooted yet, despite the rest of the Digital World having done so. He’s been looking into finding a way into the Digital World to look for their partners, but it’s a no-go without the Digivices.
TK points out that even if they do find them, they won’t remember the humans at all, and he laments that he couldn’t save Patamon. Still, Izzy tells him that moping around trying to forget them won’t accomplish anything, and that this isn’t about what he couldn’t do before, but what he can do now.
TK thinks about this as he walks home later, and he thinks he sees Patamon on a railing in the corner of his eye. But it’s just a figment of his imagination, and he sadly heads for home. And the figment flies up into the sky after he’s gone. And a distortion flairs up in the water…
A dialogueless montage plays out where Izzy goes over to the other Digidestined and asks them for help in trying to reach the Digital World, but they all turn him down. The kids all go about their lives as the days go by: Matt and TK go riding on a motorbike, Mimi visits Izzy in his office, Tai works on his soccer game, and Izzy desperately calls Hime to get her opinion on the whole deal.
Meiko gets a text from Mimi while studying in her room one rainy day, saying that she won’t be coming over due to the aforementioned rain. She’s not the only one caught in it, as Tai is waiting by the bleachers on the soccer field, thinking of what Izzy said during the montage, as he asked Tai if he wanted to see the Digimon again, only for Tai to answer with “maybe someday.”
He then hears a familiar whistling sound, causing him to drop his ball and head for where he thinks Agumon is, while Kari chases after him with an umbrella in hand. They run off to the bridge, where they don’t find their partners, but they do notice the other Digidestined running off somewhere.
They all gather at a nearby building, where Tai tells them all that if they keep waiting around for their partners to return, they’ll never find them. The Japanese theme song “Butterfly” hits as they all decide to make a drastic decision: go back to the Digital World. And as they look up, the rain stops and the sun shines through a crack in the clouds. A light of hope breaking through the grey of their sadness.
The next day, TK goes over to Meiko’s and tells her that he and the others are leaving. Over at Daigo and Hime’s office, the agents try to talk the Digidestined out of going to the Digital World, since there’s no telling what’ll be waiting for them there since the reboot. Not to mention the gate being unstable, meaning they might not be able to return. Nonetheless, the kids point out how they survived there when they were younger, and now they’re old enough to know the risks involved.
Hime agrees to set the portal up at the sight of the kids’ last battle, much to Daigo’s dismay. Hime tells him to take the kids there while she distracts security in the area. Daigo asks them one last time if they are sure about this, but they’re determined. And outside, Hime takes a bite out of a donut she took from Daigo and gives a sinister grin…
Meiko tells TK that she can’t go with them, since she doesn’t have a partner anymore, and that she and Meicoomon were the reason the Digital World had to be rebooted in the first place. She tells him that Meicoomon was the source of the Infection, a fact that shocks him. Even though it’s been long established by this point, TK didn’t know before now.
We then get a flashback to when Meiko first met her partner as a child. She heard a noise coming from the forest outside her house (Japanese version of the Sticks, remember. I live in the American version, and it looks pretty much the same), and followed it to find Meicoo crawling out of the bushes, her eyes glowing and purple energy flowing though her. Meicoo snapped out of it enough to mutter Meiko’s name, and when the girl embraced the cat, a Digivice materialized in her hand, one with a DNA-like X-pattern on its screen.
She took Meicoo to her dad, who was researching Digimon at the time, who gave the creature a once over before telling his daughter that Meicoomon was extra special, without ever telling her why. Meiko heard rumors though, and when the Infection happened, her worst fears were confirmed. As the scene flashes back to the present, where she tells TK that she wanted to tell him and the others about all this beforehand, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it.
As TK listens to her story, time freezes and turns to greyscale, and he sees the image of Patamon from before, repeating his line about now wanting to make everyone sad. He snaps back to the present and tells Meiko that he understands what she’s been going through, assuring her that what’s done is done, and what matters now is making sure their partners are okay. Told ya they’d be fine with it.
Meiko’s still upset though, and tells TK that she deserves the blame for what happened. She storms out of the room in tears, lamenting in the bathroom that everything is horrible as TK tries to convince her to come back out. She admits that it feels good to say all this out loud to someone, but she still feels she has no right to see the Digital World after helping to ruin it. She tells TK to leave, but he won’t, saying that they’re all in this together and she’s one of them. With that he leaves, assuring her that they’ll be waiting when she changes her mind.
Over at the site of the battle, TK spills to everyone that Meicoomon was the source of the Infection all along, and Daigo assures them that he would have told them had he known beforehand. I mean, he wanted to, after all. Joe suggests that Meiko should have told them earlier, but TK comes to her defense by asking if he could have done that, because TK couldn’t. That seems to be the recurring theme in this movie: the consequences of keeping secrets from the people that said secrets effect. Meiko, TK and Hime’s silence was what helped lead to this tragedy.
Izzy sets up his laptop and types in the coordinates to where he thinks the partner Digimon are, which he deduced after scrubbing the data and getting intel from Hime. Everyone holds up their Digivices, which start reacting to Izzy’s typing via their screens lighting up.
Hime arrives to help them, holding… Ken’s D-3 and D-Terminal? Okay, how in the heck did you get those? Seriously, not a single Digidestined asks where she got them. Do not ignore this. This is serious. She explains that they could be able to open a gate to the Digital World by connecting the Digivice to Izzy’s laptop and the power that exists within the Crests of each of the Digidestined, which is sort of how the kids were able to travel between the worlds in 02.
Once everything is set up, she steps aside, and the kids point their Digivices at the laptop’s screen. Their Crest symbols glow behind them, and a portal opens from the laptop as a beam of light shoots into the sky. See, that’s not just for bad guys. The portal soon opens above the Digidestined, and they step into it after working up the courage. They float up into the sky, passing through the portal into the Digital World. Sadly, we don’t get “Here We Go” to go with this scene, but the instrumental of “Butterfly” makes up for it.
Back at her house, Meiko drops a glass and gets to work cleaning it up, cutting her finger in the process. She flashes back to when Meicoomon did something similar, and sure enough little Meiko pricked her finger in the same way. As she puts on a Band-Aid, Meicoomon apologizes for causing Meiko to be hurt, but the girl assures her that it’s fine, and that she’s “pretty tough.” Okay, where did that go…?
In the present, Daigo arrives at the house to check on her, but she’s already headed for where the others gathered. But by the time she gets there, they’re already gone. She collapses in dismay…
And speaking of the others, they’ve arrived in the Digital World, noting that it still looks the same as it always did. Izzy points out that the World may have been rebooted, but the overall structure remains the same. Only that something feels off about the whole thing, something that none of them can put their fingers on. Maybe it’s the lack of random phone booths in the middle of the beach that can’t call anywhere…
Regardless, they head off to see what they can find out, not noticing the Digimon Emperor lurking in the trees behind them. Seems he didn’t get rebooted with the rest of the Digital World, since he must have been outside it when the reboot hit.
One montage of still frames later, the Digimon learn nothing from their searching except that they’re out of shape. But Joe points out that at least they didn’t find their usual discovery of trouble, pain and terror…
Right before explosions start going off around them. Jinx. They look up to see Alphamon locked in a battle with another Mega-level Digimon, one that can best be described as a Gundom made out of spikes. Spikey Gundom blocks Alpha’s laser shots with a diamond-shaped force field, causing a series of stray shots that send the watching Digidestined running for the hills.
The two Digis continue their clash, wrecking the forest around them as the Digidestined slide downhill. They barely escape the chaos, and take a moment once they’re clear to catch their breath. Izzy checks his laptop for any info on the new Digimon they saw, discovering that his name is Jesmon, and that he’s indeed a Mega like Alphamon. Or, as he’s using the Japanese terminology here for some reason, Ultimate.
Joe doesn’t get it, as all of the Digimon should have reverted to eggs after the reboot. Izzy wonders if it’s possible for some of them to have escaped the reboot, and Mimi starts going off about what they’re supposed to do if one of said Digimon starts gunning for them, since they have no Digimon partners to protect them.
She spoke too soon, as Kari hears a faint, yet familiar, whistling coming from somewhere in the distance. They head for the source, running through the woods until they reach a clearing at the shoreline (with broken power poles sticking out of the ocean, the Digital World is weird), where, sure enough, Patamon’s In-Training form of Tokomon is standing on a rock and blowing on Kari’s old whistle, which she left with Gatomon at the end of Adventure. Not sure how the Digimon have it since the world’s been rebooted, but whatever.
The other In-Training partners hop over to join him, and oddly enough Nyaromon (Gatomon’s Training form) is with them despite having previously spent this part of her life in Myotismon’s service. I guess the timeline isn’t really following what came before here.
Anyway, the Digis don’t recognize their partners, and Tokomon keeps playing with the whistle despite Nyaromon wanting a turn. Sora heads over to Yokomon (Biyomon), but the little raddish-looking thing (that somehow becomes a bird) hides behind the rock in fear. Izzy tries a calmer approach, walking up to Motimon (Tentomon) and telling him that he’s new here and looking for a friend. This works, and the Digis start walking (hopping?) over to the humans.
Up on a hill overlooking them, the Emperor watches on, until he looks over his shoulder to see Hime behind him. She’s in the Digital World too now, and even crazier, she’s smiling at him with that same sinister grin she flashed before! He notes that it’s a “touching reunion,” before glitching his image into the younger form of Gennai! Say wha!!!!
In the meantime, Tai notes that it’s great to see their partners again, even if they don’t remember them. And from the bushes, Meicoomon watches them with glowing green eyes, having survived the reboot herself, and Part Three ends with her muttering Meiko’s name. The end credits play out with upbeat guitar music and a montage of the Digidestined and their partners hanging out.
So, now that we’ve finished talking about the story, on to Pros and Cons:
Pros:
- The plot seems more focused this time.
- The dramatic final battle.
- The reboot is an interesting idea, providing some concepts for future installments.
Cons:
- The fact that Matt bought Hime’s BS line about the 02 kids being “fine” without any further evidence or explanation. Not to mention her randomly having Ken’s Digivice at the end without anybody questioning it.
This is probably the best Tri movie thus far. The story is more focused and emotional that the other two, and while there’s still some filler, it keeps on topic with the plot of the reboot and the plight of the Digimon partners. It ends on an emotional high note, forcing the Digidestined to face the possibility of losing their partners, and dealing with the reality that they now have to start over with them from scratch. Not to mention the twist with the Digimon Emperor at the end, and Hime being in league with him all along.
So, that’s it for Part Three. Can the Digidestined rebuild their friendship with their partners? Has Gennai truly turned to the Dark Side? And how come not a single solitary person questioned where Ken’s D3 came from? I’m serious! Don’t ignore that! Find out next week, as we continue our review with Part Four of Digimon Adventure Tri, titled Loss. ‘Till then, I’ve been The Uncanny Fox. Live long, stay gold, and remember: Matt should really just stick to harmonica, his guitar playing has been getting sloppy of late.
The Uncanny Fox 