#koushiro analysis

[koushirouizumi]

{DigiAdv tri.} ~ Koushiro + OUTFITS ~ My {Personal} Preferences (for Koushiro’s outfits!) + + Koushiro & Jou / {Supportive} Moments & Interactions + Koushiro & Takeru / {Supportive} Moments / Materials + Pre-Bokura no Mirai DigiFes {+Shirt!} Poster (The shirt Koushiro’s wearing was later, iirc, released as official {+Tri} merch at DigiFes, an “irl” event in Japan!) {Real-Life Japan Event} Kokuhaku’s ending theme also helped to promote the same shirt. + (Tri!)Koushiro’s Character Traits (& Mini-Analysis)

My Commentary:

Like, some of the obvious POP culture references / in-jokes some of the other ‘outfits’ had aside, most of these outfits actually looked quite reasonable (and comfy, imo!! - which is pretty much the point I think Koushiro was going for?!??) and I could easily see Koushiro wearing some/most any of these canonically at various points of Koushiro’s tri. and post-tri. teen-aged lifetime, even just purely for fun. Heck, I’ve seen fan-artists (including on the J.P.N end and even in / using specifically their Tri-esque designs / outfits) draw Koushiro in MULTIPLE outfits like this!

{I kind of think the “King” outfit SHOULD stay, though.}

Also, the kimono choice is, like, fine? Koushiro’s Japanes---?

I’m just saying OK!!! Yes!! #LETKoushiroHaveFunWithFashion

Bonus:

(From my previous Koushiro compilations!)

{Gifs by Me} {DO NOT RE-POST} {DO NOT REPRODUCE WITHOUT MY PERMISSION} (Please ASK to Use)

{Anyway, Koushiro Izumi says Gender Identity rights---}

OK but Mainly I want to know which animator/Clothing Designer (as I’ve seen exist from some Tri and etc. Staff listings) specifically was involved in this specific segment / outfit set because they were clearly having a BLAST designing Koushiro like 20+ random outfits and honestly, as a Koushiro fan who has supported Koushiro since finding this series in my childhood I CAN’T actually blame them?? (You don’t even HAVE to use / consider every single one there, even TRI!KOUSHIRO doesn’t canonically use all of these!!)

{This is more of a quick compilation; I might expand on this post in the future and re-post it.}

I could also relate everything to do with motor skills and fine motor skills involving clothing and Autism when it comes to certain Autistic head-canons I may have, including buttoning clothes, but that might be a topic for another day...

(Do you see how the shirts TAKERU AND JOU actively help pick out FOR KOUSHIRO are comfy, A more baggy plain blue pullover (Takeru) and the DigiFes tee (Jou), without buttons?) {Despite the initial goal being to look for “fashionable” clothing!}

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{Please also LIKE this post if you are wanting to use!} {Once you have “Liked”, feel free to contact me to ask for permission!} {However, read my about & FAQ pages first. Please DO NOT use / ask if you match anything in my “Do Not Interact” section.} {I MAY POLITELY DECLINE USAGE REGARDLESS. Please do not take it personally!} {if you are unsure if you can use you can SEND ME AN ASK} {I will check your blog; if you do not match anything on my “DNI”; [CHECK THE FAQ FOR MY DNI SECTION/S] you will likely/may pass the check and can use!} {However please note my ENTIRE FAQ sections on such} {It is possible I may not grant permission for other reasons} [i.e.: You post a lot of something I have blacklisted]

PLEASE ALSO NOTE: {My headcanons for the characters of this series VARY} {for this set particularly; I headcanon most as M-spec/Multi-gender attracted*} {this post/my icons ARE NOT for people who cannot respect this fact or M-spec people / M-spec headcanons / MF relationships, Queer identities, etc. in general!}

[PLEASE BE RESPECTFUL AND FOLLOW MY RULES]

{This specific post is not purely meant as shipping Please be aware and respectful when interacting!} (However, I do side ship Joushiro, so I don’t mind if for example Joushiro gets tagged as a ship) {Just please understand that is not the main intention!}

[Note: 'Likes’ OK!]

#izumi koushirou #tri koushirou #tri koushiro #saikai koushiro #izumi family #yoshie izumi #kae izumi #izumi kae #mrs izumi #koushiro and mrs izumi #koushiro and kae #koushiro and yoshie #joushiro friendship #joushiro moments #tri joushiro #koushiros outfits #koushiro analysis #tri koushiro analysis #tri koushiros outfits #koushiros outfit simulator #{tri koushiro+kae} im ashamed {DONT BE} to admit but my {adoptive} mother always helped pick out my clothes {i couldnt handle the shops} #saikai spoilers #kokuhaku spoilers #tri spoilers #(I am very deliberately leaving out major Koushiro tag{s} because I dont want this to turn into something that isnt Koushiro POSITIVE) #(I am also attempting to clear this set out of my Draft{s} so if you choose to interact PLEASE Collect your followers if they leave) #(Not respectful comments {Hopefully Not}) #(One on bottomright 5th img of outfit{s} is more of just personal fav because mAN Id love to see Koushiro trying to actually pull that off)

[izzyizumi]

Digimon Adventure (Series) + 2020 reboot series x Zutomayo - {note: if top is not displaying properly, check the above link!}

"STUDY ME?" / "Figure it Out?" / "I'M (/KOUSHIRO'S) NOT A 'PROBLEM' TO BE 'SOLVED'"

featuring duo/ship/O.T.P.: KouTai / Taishiro[u]; Koushiro[u] Izumi x Taichi Yagami

(Characters Koushiro is otherwise involved with, like Izumi family, Tentomon, Jou, Yamato, Menoa, and Mimi; + vs. Vademon also show briefly at times but the focus is Koushiro & 2020!Koushiro + KouTai with minor spoilers from tri, Kokuhaku, BNM, Kizuna, and 2020 + its ending)

It is recommended you read the lyrics before or after watching!

This A.M.V. was pretty much made on a complete whim after I heard this thanks to a J.P.N TaiKou fan recommending another by this group as "DEFINITELY a TaiKou song" and let's just say Yes I see a Theme & Patterns going and I am Spilling Koushiro Thoughts Via Analysis by A.M.V. As a result it IS in actuality semi canon compliant to a very strong degree, but please keep in mind the intended pairing is mainly KouTai (though I ship various other Koushiro ships too!)

{DO NOT COPY OR REPOST!}

{DO NOT RE USE MY EDITING WITHOUT PERMISSION}

{I do Not own DigiAdvs / DigiAdvs (C) Toei; this is FAN MADE}

#taichi x koushiro #izumi koushirou #koushiro x taichi #s: study me #izzyizumi posts #izumi family #adventure koushiro #tri koushiro #2020 koushiro #owg koushiro #vademons dimension #novels koushiro #(also heavily Implied) #nonverbal koushiro #koushiros inquisitive heart #child of knowledge #chishiki no monshou #fountain of knowledge #koushiro analysis #koushiros canon traits #canon koushiro #adopted koushiro #former koumi #(ended on good terms implied but also w some Emphasis) #koushiro and yamato #(Implied as novels!Yamato once having an incorrect assumption on Koushiros personality) #(with spoiler up until mid Kuzuna but Koushiro in credits also appears)

[seventeenlovesthree]

Digi Dynamic Shipping Game

Send me two names among the following 12 13 and I’ll write a short analysis post about them:

Taichi Yagami | Yamato Ishida | Sora Takenouchi | Koushirou Izumi | Mimi Tachikawa | Jyou Kidou | Takeru Takaishi | Hikari Yagami | Daisuke Motomiya | Miyako Inoue | Iori Hida | Ken Ichijouji | Meiko Mochizuki

Whether canon provides input on them or not:  

When looking at Meiko's interaction partners in Tri, Koushirou is proooobably not the first person who comes to mind; after Jyou, he may share the least amount of screen time with her. And at pure face value, the interactions he does have with her are mostly indirect - and at first glance, not painted in the best light either. They have that kind of dynamic you definitely have to speculate about more to get to the bottom of it - and interestingly enough, once you do, you may discover that they actually have a few things in common. But we'll get to that.

First things first - as mentioned, they mostly are not seen talking to each other, but rather have a third party person to talk through: Mimi. From a shipping perspective, that is both, an interesting parallel and, at the same time, incredibly complicated. Why? On one hand, because you can see/interpret both Koushirou and Meiko as potential love interests for Mimi (with one of them canonically crushing on her and the other OBVIOUSLY opening up through her encouragement, care and emotional/physical affection). On the other hand... Things do not really get very far in text.

Their main interaction point throughout the first few movies consists of Koushirou trying to figure out what causes the distortions corrupting the Digimon - and by doing so, he ends up interrogating Meiko in a very uncomfortable and unfortunate moment, that causes Mimi to snap at him. She says that he's being insensitive, he says they don't have time to focus on "trivial things", completely overlooking her emotional distress in order to fix things as quickly as possible. As mentioned, not the best foundation for any kind of relationship, as Meiko is completely overwhelmed with her partner being corrupted - while Koushirou is desperately trying to stop the cause from spreading even further. And she is aware of his good intentions there - because Taichi explains to her that Koushirou means to investigate the whole thing "with his entire heart" and that that's "all he can do", indirectly asking her to not be mad at him for being "like that". This even leads to her contemplating to apologize to him. Mimi insists that she doesn't have to - and we actually never see the end of that conflict, just the glimpse of hope that Sora's words, "He'll figure it out", will eventually lead to good things...

The next notable interaction is by the very end of Tri - as seen above -, where he entrusts her with his beloved laptop to find out the key to locked-away data, a password only she is capable of knowing, to eventually and actually fix everything in the end.

So what does that tell the viewer? They may not have a lot of significant interpersonal interaction - but subtext indicates that Koushirou strongly believes in Meiko being able to be the key, to find the answers to their problems. He did so by interrogating her, he did so by handing her his laptop - and that is a very familiar pattern.

Not trying to go too much into detail here, but one of my personal favourite headcanons is that, Meiko is what Koushirou COULD have become if he hadn't been as lucky as he was; to be raised by loving parents and getting validated by them upon reconciling; to befriend seven (and eventual eleven) kids and their personal soulmates to figure himself out, friends that ALSO believed in him and his strengths; to be enabled by his best friend to come to Summer camp and come out of his shell in the first place - and to solve a card riddle that would solve a very significant issue. Meiko is incredibly insecure, she had been on her own for a very long time, her low self-esteem goes so far as to have her ask why she was even there in the first place - she visibly needs someone loud and vocal like Mimi to show her how capable she is, just like Koushirou needed Taichi and Tentomon in the same manner. And this may be a huge stretch, because other characters (such as Taichi, Mimi, Sora, Hikari and Takeru) have been WAY more direct and vocal about encouraging her verbally - but Koushirou (who absolutely CAN suffer from severe self-esteem issues as well once he doesn't consider himself "useful") may have passed his own personal torch here in a more subtle, non-verbal way.

Long story short - there is not exactly nothing, but y'all have a lot of guessing work and subtext interpretation to do here.

Whether I think why and how they’d work: 

As mentioned above, there are some very subtle similarities that may or may not help them to bond with each other. First of all, it shall not be underestimated that they both have a significant connection with each Mimi and Taichi - and especially the former case may be very enthusiastic to MAKE them spend more time with each other. (Abridged!Mimi may even go so far as to say "I'll make my two nerds have a good time, ha!") I really do believe that Mimi herself could be a great starting point AND topic for them to bond over. "She really is like that, isn't she?", in a gentle, lighthearted way. Because they may have issues opening up fully for some time, due to their bad experiences with interpersonal interaction - but I would argue that they're both also the type that just has to get over that point with each other ONCE and then don't have any issues afterwards anymore. They just need a "starting point". Taichi may actually be a good starting point as well, because both of them may have anecdotes (and their mentioned similarities) to share with each other fondly. Again, there are a lot of self-worth issues they need to overcome first, but once they do, I could imagine them being very soft (and potentially rambly).

(I also have the headcanon that Koushirou likes cats - not only should he have grown up interacting with Hikari and Miko a lot, but his own partner, supposedly a ladybug, has very cat-like tendencies and THAT absolutely should be a bonding topic too!)

Whether I’d prefer them as platonic or romantic ship: 

I may argue that, romantically, they MIGHT actually both be not straight-forward enough to get anywhere for a long time and due to the lack of canon interactions, I can only work off the formerly mentioned headcanons... So it may take Mimi and an OT3 setting for things to work out properly. Because hey, with Mimi being the driving force connecting and intertwining them, things could escalate very quickly (because, as mentioned, they're both enchanted by her and have panicked over her being physical with them, they share that fondness for her, so why not channel that energy into a mutual bond as well? And again, the same could apply to Taichi too, because he brought BOTH of them out of their shell to some degree and was VERY protective of them at some point, but I digress). Without that driving force, I'd rather see them as platonic. They're both very supportive (and nerdy) people in their own ways, but nothing too deep on the romantic end.

#my two cents #meta #meiko mochizuki #koushirou izumi #koushiro izumi #izzy izumi #digimon adventure tri #koumeiko #koumei #meikou #digimon shipping game #shipping analysis #relationship analysis #digimon #long post

[froggie-bolt]

Digimon Adventure 2020 English Dub

TaiShiro moment I wanted to analyse lol

This small analysis was also in my post about Taishiro moments in the Sub that I recently posted. You can find it here.

While in the original Tai was just ‘Tai’, this time his full name is Taichi, and Tai is just a nickname. His last name though has still been changed to Kamiya instead of Yagami.

Koushiro actually does keep his Japanese name in the English dub! But this time ‘Izzy’ is also just a nickname. Of course, he retains his last name ‘Izumi’ like he did in the original English dub.

ANYWAY ANYWAY

one of my favourite bits from episode 1, is when Koushiro is showing Taichi his timeline, and Taichi goes something like:

(I have actually posted the clip)

“Well..I’m really bad at that stuff. You’re awesome, Koushiro!”

And Kou seems surprised and caught off guard by the complement, before quickly turning his attention back to his tablet in embarrassment and saying:

“Y-You can just call me Izzy—!”

And we know later in the dub, that Koushiro prefers being alone, which also suggests he doesn’t have many friends, or doesn’t go out of his way to make any. He doesn’t really like being around people. So we can guess that before Taichi, the only people that call him Izzy are his parents.

So Koushiro giving Taichi express permission to call him Izzy, especially for Koushiro, is something special and significant, even if Taichi doesn’t know this.

#digimon #digimon adventure #taichi x koushiro #taishiro #TaiShiro analysis #digimon analysis #digimon adventure 2020 #TaiKou #koutai

[taichi-x-koushiro]

Digimon Adventure{s} A.M.V. [Pre-view] ~ “Boku” / “Watashi” / “Someone Just for Me” {Part 2} [Previous Parts: 1] [As this is technically still a pre-view, it is Un-finished {For now}] featuring DUO/O.T.P.: ~ Koushiro Izumi + Yagami Taichi / KouTai {Koushiro x Taichi} / KouTai / Taishiro [Also seen: 2020!Sora, Adventure Chosen, Meiko, briefly]

Audio/Dialogue (C) Chobits & C.L.A.M.P DigiAdvs ( C ) T0EI.@nimation {This is a Fan-work, and no money is being made off this work. Be sure to support both of the original series too!}

Time Spent: About 3~ hours (or a little more) on 08/07/22 My Commentary:

I have a lot of Thoughts on how Koushiro feels towards Taichi, Actually {And also in reverse, though this is mainly Koushiro’s Point-of-View.} (This part will have just a bit of Taichi perspective too, though.)

I also have a lot of Thoughts on Adventure{s} wider LORE on a grander scale, but also as it relates to Koushiro’s whole canon.

I’ll probably go back and smooth this out later, but for now it’s doing what I want it to do, and hopefully you can follow along by reading the dialogue below: (Note: Contains starting spoilers for the originating series, Chobits, though the context in this part is quite vague, and happens quite early in series.)

Scenes used come from: - Digimon Adventure [Eps 6, 21, 24, 48] - Digimon Adventure 2020 [Ep 20; Koushiro-relevant scenes] - Digimon Adventure tri.: Saikai [Koushiro-relevant moment; non-spoilery] - Digimon Adventure Last Evolution: Kizuna [Adventure Chosen moments pre-final battle; Meiko relevancy] {Briefly} {It doesn’t necessarily spoil tri., but it’s a notable moment} It DOES spoil a significant moment of pre-final battle Kizuna w/out contexts} (Though 2020 is used, this is mainly meant as overall Semi[?] Canon-compliant, but 2020 Chosen can be in their own Time too...)

- Dialogue (Preview):

- As expected, there isn’t anyone in THIS CITY either.

- [THAT IS SOMETHING I “KNOW” WELL] Because, {I} [{Boku}/{Watashi}] am {ME} [{Boku}/{Watashi}].

{Note: In the J.P.N version, Koushiro uses “boku” as saying “I”, but Koushiro also speaks in overall rather formal/polite speech.} [This is the case in all current medias, including the newest “02″ movie, up until {supposedly} around the point of right about the Epilogue years] By then, he still uses “boku”, that is, but speaking just a bit less formally.] (In the originating series, the speaker is a girl using “Atashi”). (The rest of this ‘A.M.V’.s storyline will show itself in time...!)

[Extra Note: It is read in a storybook-like style, hence narration.]

(Check under the ‘read more’ for full text!)

[Note: replies/Tags that are Positive/respectful are ok!]

Everyone was with “THAT.” They won’t awaken from the {FUN} [Dream] with “THAT.” The (TIME) they spend with “THAT” is a [Dream]. A [dream-like] “wonderful” (TIME).

“THAT” can make ANY(?) {W I S H} come [True](?)

“THEY” will make people happy by ‘doing what they want’

Because “THAT” isn’t a {Person}

Which is why “THAT” can [BECOME] a {person}’s [Dream]

BUT, there is ONE THING “THAT” CAN’T DO.

“THAT” can’t [BECOME HUMAN].

It can [become] a “replacement” for one, but never [BE] ONE.

- [THAT IS SOMETHING I “KNOW” WELL] Because, {I} [{Boku}/{Watashi}] am {ME} [{Boku}/{Watashi}].

#taichi x koushiro #yagami taichi #koushiro x taichi #izumi koushirou #izumi koushiro #izumi family #takenouchi sora #koura friendship #2020 koushiro #adv taichi #inqusitive heartless koushiro #adv 21 #adv 24 #kizuna analysis #digiadv 2020 analysis #queer koushiro #queer taichi #chosen child of knowledge #is it wrong to want to know everything #koushiros formalities #koushiro keeping secrets #adventures lore #the digital world runs on wishes #(But what happens when the whole rest of the world sees you as 'Heartless'?) #(Can you still Wish without an 'Inquisitive Heart'?) #(What about 'Kizuna' 'Bonds'? What about your own Feelings? What About----) #kizuna spoilers

[ashxketchum]

Sharing my favourite part from the latest storyboard and character analysis posted by Digimon Partners

The Kizuna part of the analysis is titled as"vaguely thinking about his dreams for the future".

Takeru, who opted for literature as his field of study at university, is studying English and French languages, along with joining a Children Literature's Club. As always with the help of his good natured personality, he has many friends, both male and female, and enjoys a fun campus life. On the side, he dabbles in writing as a hobby and works to assist in Digimon related matters. He responds to Koushiro's calls actively and was present for the battles against Parrotmon and Eosmon.

In 02 The Beginning, we will see Takeru as a sophomore in college. While enjoying college life, he also seems to have started to take his writing seriously…? We are looking forward to seeing what kind of a young man he has become!

#takeru takaishi #digimon #digimon adventure #digimon 02 the beginning #digimon adventure last evolution kizuna #patamon #digimon translations #userdigiegg #HE IS A MEMBER OF A CHILDREN LIT CLUB HE'S JUST LIKE ME FRRRR #my writer baby boy i love you i love you #i hope takeru never has to face writer's block ever in his life #i hope that every sentence he writes is the most beautiful sentence to ever be written

[taikouvember]

Taikouvember 2023 - Prompt Guideline

If you read about Taikouvember and are excited for the event, but don’t know how to interpret the prompts, let us give you a little bit of input about what was on our minds when we brainstormed them. Maybe it will give you some inspiration!

Any kind of medium is a allowed: Fanfiction, drabbles, poems, fanart & doodles, picture & gif sets, AMVs, meta analysis, rambles/rants... You name it!

Disclaimer: It is all up to you and you don’t have to follow any of the following ideas!

Day 1, November 6th: The Multiverse: Canon vs. AU:

Stories about different timelines and universes are very popular these days - and for good reason, Digimon is pretty open for the possibility of several timelines existing. When it comes to Taikou, what is your favourite "version" of them? Do you prefer to focus on them in their original anime timeline (Adventure, 02, Tri, Kizuna, The Beginning) or do you like to explore their dynamics in the 2020 reboot? Do you rather focus on other kinds of Digimon media, such as the novels, the manhua or the games? Or do you have your own “alternate universes” you like to focus on when it comes to the two of them? Inspired by other anime, manga, fairy tales, comics, cartoons, movies, TV show, superhero stories, tropes - the possibilities here are endless!

So feel free to show off which universes, versions, dynamics you enjoy the most. Do they intertwine? Does that mean these two may always find each other, regardless of the timeline?

Day 2, November 7th: Past & Future:

When it comes to all the Digimon Adventure mediums mentioned above, we can tell that Taichi and Koushiro already share quite a history with each other. So this prompt can be the perfect opportunity for you to share what your favourite moments between Taichi and Koushiro are, that may have influenced their relationship? Whether it’s by redrawing scenes, creating AMVs or picture and gifsets, writing fanfiction or interpreting their most vital moments... Again, that is completely up to you!

But if you don’t like to look back and would rather look forward instead - how do you imagine they will interact in the future, how will their bond develop? What happens between The Beginning and the Epilogue, what are the unknown puzzle pieces, milestones you would like to see? Career wise and in regards to the Digital World, domestically, romantically...

Day 3, November 8th: Habits & Change:

When it comes to your favourite characters and ships, there are usually reasons as to why you feel drawn to them. So what are typical characteristics (one might even want to say: stereotypes & tropes) you associate with Taichi and Koushiro? What are things they have always done, things they are familiar with about each other, things they have adjusted to, habits they adore about each other (or are even annoyed by)? Feel free to depict how you see them playing off of each other, how they complement each other or where and why they might clash.

Again, if reminiscing in the past is not for you, you may want to focus on what we haven’t actually seen yet: How can you imagine them to change? Where could they adjust to and for each other even more in order to make their bond work? Could it change for the better - or even for the worse?

Day 4, November 9th: Trauma & Healing:

Sad and traumatic experiences have always been part of Digimon and will always define how and why the characters act and behave the way they do in certain situations. Taichi and Koushiro aren’t an exception in that regard; between existential crisis and near death situations, they have seen a lot. So what are the things that (still) haunt them, that may put a strain on their relationship? What are certain memories and experiences they might not be able to let go of, still unable to open up towards each other? Whether it’s attachment issues, fear of loss, abandonment or inadequacy, miscommunication or (emotional) distance, self-sacrificing tendencies...

However, let us not only focus on the negative parts - because our bonds may also be able to help us. So what are ways they can help each other to actually heal, getting better and more open or even learn to live with their trauma? How can they overcome their barriers and actually be honest with each other about their deepest fears?

Day 5, November 10th: Visible & Invisible Signs of Affection:

People have different ways of interacting with different people - and depending on the type of relationship, the type of person, there are often very specific ways to show (and receive) affection. What are, in your opinion, the smaller and bigger gestures these two like to offer in order to show their love languages to one another?

How do they show their adoration, admiration and appreciation - physically, verbally, through their actions, knowing glances or endless patience...? Do they have any kinds of “inside jokes”, communication patterns, certain touches and words, habits, quirks and rituals they react to in specific ways?

Day 6, November 11th: Brave Knowledge & Curious Courage:

Thanks to them being the way they are, they are natural plot drivers - the adventurous protagonist and his knowledgable right hand. Thinking about it more closely, they share more of each other’s central attributes than one may anticipate at first glance. So - how do they mirror each other and their trademark traits in certain situations?

What are Koushiro's moments of hands on activity, how does he take the vital first steps forward, how does he overcome his struggles to do what matters to him? What are Taichi's brightest strategies, his most thoughtful moments, his smartest speeches or interests he wants to put his own research skills to the test to?

#taikouvember #taikouvember 2023 #taikou #koutai #taishiro #taishirou #taichi yagami #koushiro izumi #tai kamiya #izzy izumi #koushirou izumi #ship week

[digitalgate02]

Scrapped Himekawa Maki's parts in the dropped Hinode project.

So you know... I've said it before, with Kizuna showing the 02 group going well and being happy, I decided to drop this entire project because I was satisfied with what they had done there.

Though, I liked some parts of it and especially Himekawa Maki's "redemption" arc parts. Well, she wasn't totally "redeemed" -- Think about Ex-Aid's Dan Kuroto in this case. The idea was that she could help Daisuke and co. to solve this strange mystery connected to the parallel world from Lady of the Castle counterparts -- with them discovering that their world also had a counterpart for Pandora (the main villain of that series) and that those new villains were after said person.

Maki would just help with technical and analysis stuff -- but hey, why can't they just ask Koushiro? Well, this was ▽ compliant and the biggest traumatic experience from 2005 made Daisuke feel a little... out of himself. So he believed he was the culprit for all of the mess caused by the ▽ villains and forced himself to isolate from the others -- he would only keep contact with Ken, Miyako and Iori for some reason. No, he wasn't... angry with the other eight, but more with himself.

Anyway, here's the Maki's parts! I'll put the context for better understanding.

Ch 6 - Energetic Waves, Fauermon

It hadn’t been her end. She was pretty alive, but far away from her duties. Her partner, and by that meant her human partner, had been missing and possibly considered dead. Insanity had kept Himekawa Maki out of her job. “You… You’re not dead right?” She was glancing at a photo, her hands shaking but holding tight the portrait. “Tell me… You’re NOT dead…” She couldn’t believe in what they said to her. Not three years ago, not now. Maki was feeling an emptiness in her heart, the people she loved had left and she was alive. The Chosen Children had found her lost, after the events. Daisuke had yelled at her and had accused to tricking them. She had felt guilty… But learning that her partner had died… No, she hadn’t believed in those kids. All she had done caused that mess. It had been her fault. Once she had returned to the human world, her boss had forced her to retire. Maki hadn’t complained, and had left. Without Bakumon she had no power. BUT without Nishijima Daigo she felt incomplete. Now she was looking at that old photo of them, taken by the sweetest girl in the Chosen Children group, Kitabayashi Hitomi. “Call me.” Her eyes were fixated on the boy’s smile. “CALL ME…!!” If the price she had to pay for having Bakumon back meant Daigo’s death… … She shouldn’t have made a deal with Yggdrasil. “Himechan…!” - a voice called her, a feminine voice. The person opening the door was… “Daigo??” No, it was Hitomi. Visiting her from her day off. A woman -- with neck length black red hair and moon shaped glasses, wearing a black suit similar to the one Maki used to wear -- entered the room and frowned. “No, it’s just me.” Maki turned her head back to the photo.

Context: This was Maki's debut in the story, as well for Hitomi, who is the girl pictured in pt4 flashbacks. The one with Orochimon/Xuawumon as partner. You might remember her from this post here. Hitomi is a headcanon name for this girl.

Ch 7 - You never saw it coming

Ken was returning home when he received a message. Curiously, the Chosen of Kindness stopped nearby a store and checked his phone to see who sent him a text. He widened his eyes in shock about the sender. He didn’t expect THAT name to appear in a while, not when all of his troubles had started with her. But their exchange… What do you want? - Ichijouji I’ve been contacted by your friend, asking for my services - Himekawa I thought you had fun enough with us - Ichijouji My crimes had been paid with his death. I do not beg your pardon - Himekawa Which friend are you talking about? - Ichijouji Motomiya Daisuke, why do you ask? - Himekawa He would be the least person in this world to make a deal with you again - Ichijouji She got on Ken’s nerves. From all he had gathered about her, he couldn’t accept her help at all. Like, why would Daisuke contact her? My phone got a message from him, unless it’s a scammer - Himekawa Why did you contact me, then? - Ichijouji I need your digivice once again, to re-analyze it - Himekawa “What?!” - Ken almost broke his phone thanks to all the anger he felt - “Why would Daisuke want HER help??! Is he sane?! She was the one who tricked us in the first place!” You stole it from me to analyze it once, don’t you have the data with you? - Ichijouji The data is stored in the Bureau, and I was forced to be retired for a while - Himekawa … “Retired”? - Ichijouji You don’t need further details of my life, I’m asking for your cooperation this time - Himekawa How can I be sure you’re not going to fool us again? - Ichijouji I give you my word I won’t do anything against you or your friends - Himekawa Can he believe her?

Context: This is a follow up to the previous scene where Daisuke, Miyako, Hikari and Takeru discuss how to discover more about the digimon trying to murder Daisuke and how they can "freeze" the place during those attacks, blocking the digivice signal. Daisuke says "I can't believe I'm doing this, but we need her help this time." Note that he could've asked Koushiro, but he's still trying to not bother any of the older six and is still recovering from his own paranoiac episode. He will get better later, I promise!! But Ken is not very happy with that idea...

Not totally Maki-related, but here's the follow up of this scene with Hitomi:

A teacher had been observing Iori talking with a couple of kids and then left to talk on the phone. She, Kitabayashi Hitomi, was interested in whatever he was talking with… So she approached with caution to at least hear what he was saying. “I know, I need to pick Upamon and I can do it for you. No? Are you saying Daisuke-san contacted that woman?! Why didn’t he ask Ken-san for that information? Ah… I forgot about it… Ken-san suffered a memory loss once the Dark Seed stopped working.” He sighed, but proceeded: “No, I have nothing against her but… Is he sure we can trust her after all the things she has done to us? Is it even okay, because I do not want to remind him that she’s the one who sent us to the battlefield and probably encapsulated us once we were unconscious.” “The Chosen Children are trying to contact Himechan?” - Hitomi thought, but she decided to not call her boss. To be honest, she wanted to know more details… Perhaps asking Himechan by herself? “I see… He has some plan in mind” - Iori blinked in surprise - “I’m going to pick Upamon now, if you have more news please contact me immediately. See you there.” And he left the school. Not realizing Hitomi was around. “What would the children want with Himechan? Should I ask them?” - she wondered - “Maybe I should ask Himechan? I will keep my eyes on Hida-kun.”

In which you learn she's also an undercover teacher, but at Odaiba Jr. High School (aka Middle School) instead, as a Science teacher.

Ch 8 - Deals

If Daisuke said so, we can trust her… Not. That was what Ken thought, he was against that idea of asking Himekawa for help. But he had to, his memories about the Kaiser’s tricks and gimmicks never had returned. And knowing the Data Bureau wouldn’t let touch the analysis she did in the prior three years gave him no choices. The young kids met her after school, in her residence. There, the kids saw a few photos of Daigo, and some peculiar ones with them as children with a group formed by five kids and… five digimons?! But when… “Himekawa-san was one of the original Chosen Child” - Miyako explained to Takeru and Hikari - “That’s how she gained Daisuke’s trust.” “Why didn’t she tell us before?” - Hikari was in shock - “Does it mean Nishijima-san was one too?” “Yeah, he too” - Daisuke answered her - “I guess we know by the photos who were their digimon partners.” Most of them had Bakumon, some of them had the other digimon and their partners: A Muchomon with a chubby boy, a Guilmon for a sporty boy and a Kamemon for a girl with glasses. Daigo’s partner was a Bearmon and they were present in the group’s photo. Iori realized the girl with glasses looked like a teacher from Odaiba Junior High. Daisuke, Miyako, Hikari and Takeru too, since they had seen her when they attended the school three years ago. “Kitabayashi-sensei was a Chosen Child too?” - they said in unison. “Ah, you’re here” - Maki received them, and they glanced at her - “Oh…” - she realized they were looking at the photos - “I apologize for not telling you kids before, it was confidential information.” “Confidential?” - they repeated. “In the time we all were recruited, we were forced to not contact the new Chosen Children. Actually, the Data Bureau was only created after the incidents of August 1999 and we became the bridge connecting the human world and the Digital World. In other words, all our work was to represent the Bureau in front of Gennai-san and the Digital World’s deities. I also was the vessel for Homeostasis in the past, which means I got a higher position for being able to bring her to the human world for beforehand reunions.” “You were a vessel like Hikari-chan?!” - Takeru gasped. “I didn’t like it, because Homeostasis had betrayed me as a child. But that’s not storytelling time, Motomiya-kun said you kids needed my help.” “Ah yes, we were almost forgetting it!” - Daisuke then glanced at Ken - “Ken, please?” Ken wasn’t okay with that idea. “I don’t understand what you want to search on my digivice, Daisuke” - he answered - “Actually we’re trying to search for some way to discover what’s blocking our power when we’re… Dragged in a distorted reality.” “Hm…” - she was thoughtful. “That’s why we need to check your digivice, Ken!” - Daisuke insisted - “Because you had this power once… Because your digivice is the Digivice of Darkness, right?” “Yes, I agree” - the other nodded - “But it sounds like it’s my fault you’re unable to evolve your partners and I… I do not like to feel that I’m the issue.” “It’s not you, we know that! We want to know about the source of the dark powers. They must have something similar from your digivice…!” “I see…” - he hesitated, then he glared at Maki - “I will let you do your analysis, but I demand to keep an eye on you. Takeru-kun and Daisuke will stay at the door, Miyako-san and I will be with you. Hikari-san and Iori-kun will stay at the front door.” “Even if I wanted to do something harmful, I could’ve done once you all were here” - Maki replied calmly - “But if it would make you comfortable, then feel free to lock the front door and the windows so I can’t escape from them.” “She’s sassy like Ken-kun” - Miyako whispered to the others.

Context: You can clearly notice this is old because I used my own assumptions for the partners of the kids, that before ReArise game (suspiciously) released the playable Holy Beasts evoline in game, which also used the same digimon depicted in pt4. I had this funny idea of the leader of them all being not Daigo, but Qinglongmon's tamer -- So I made him be a Guilmon here.

Also this is the part I miss the most -- Because the funny clash of sass masters Ken and Maki lol. And yeah, this would be the part Maki just spills the beans about her, Daigo and Hitomi's connections with the digimon.

Ch 9 - Fire 'n' Ice

“I have the results, Please contact Motomiya-kun as soon as possible.” Why was she calling Ken? Why was she talking to him and telling him to give the news if she could do that by herself? Ken had no patience with her anymore, but he had to cooperate and be polite. She was older than him, more older than Osamu. But oh he hated her. Hated her voice and her mind. “I will, but could you tell me what you found in my digivice?” “Well, that’s supposed to be discussed with your group in the next meeting. I’m sure you would wait until then.” “I’m very curious about the results” - he was pretty irritated with her, but didn’t let it be noticed in his voice. He kept speaking calmly - “If you could give me some information by phone, I’d be thankful.” “I found an interesting mechanism in your device. Unique, different from the digivice of your friend Inoue. It’s able to generate Dark energy and Light energy, it seems it’s related to the World of Darkness, or as you kids call it, Dark Ocean.” “That we know already, it was how we sealed Daemon six years ago. I opened the gate to the Dark Ocean and sent him there.” “I found that plan stupid when I learned about the events.” “What did you expect us to have done?! Let him catch me?!” “You could’ve gathered your friends’ digimon and finished him. If you had Omegamon’s All Delete on your side--” “We couldn’t! Their digimon was out of energy to help us! We had no choice, so please avoid criticizing our decisions and give me details.” “Your digivice has some kind of shard, like a sand pebble, from the Dark Ocean. It’s not literal, there’s data from that world installed in your D-3.” “A program?” “Yes, what did you expect? It’s a program. If you could bring me some samples of this distorted reality, I could discover more about its functions.” “Um… I will tell Daisuke and the others about it, I’m sorry but I have to go.” “Anytime.”

Context: Still part of the sub-plot she was involved, by analyzing stuff and telling the children. Ken and her had this not-so-friendly relationship as well, because of the events of ▽ lol. Anyway, this was the last thing I wrote before dropping the entire story.

You can read a few redux version drabbles of the main part of the story (the ones related to Wallace, Dai-Lightnimon, the Digimental Weapons, and the evil guys of this dropped plot) on my AO3.

Hope you enjoyed it ( •̀ ω •́ )✧

#da02 hinode concept art #himekawa maki #kitabayashi hitomi

[earlgreymon]

digidestined's fanon birthdays

so i saw a lot of taichi's fanart on twitter, mostly from japanese artists, wishing him a happy birthday a few days ago, and i thought: "...wait, i thought we don't have official birthday for these kids?"

and indeed we don't. however, i found a list of fanon birthdays which seems quite popular in japan. once again, i have to emphasise that these are not canon. the closest information we have are 1) sora's birthday is somewhere before summer (our war game), and; 2) miyako is a gemini. if you see the below list, their birthdays are FAR from that, which confirms that this isn't official stuff.

but hey, if you love to join the celebration by making birthday fanart, this will do! and if you are like me who loves writing in detail yet lacking the creativity to assign birthdays, this information can be useful too.

taichi: july 15

yamato: april 23

sora: october 25

koushiro: november 6

mimi: july 20

jyou: may 24

takeru: august 3

hikari: december 16

daisuke: may 11

miyako: october 18

iori: september 27

ken: july 31

source: (1)(2)

is there any explanation for these dates? not that i know of; i'll update if i found one. BUT if you love zodiacs/birth-chart/astrology/etc and need explanations behind the birthdays, i will gladly refer you to this awesome post from my beloved friend @dutchforstrangers and read her well-thought analysis on #DFS Digimon Astrology Journey!

#digimon #i know this might be a repeating post but #this is me making a note on my own tumblr so i won't forget later on lmao #ken is digiweek baby y'all #taichi yagami #yamato ishida #sora takenouchi #koushiro izumi #mimi tachikawa #jyou kido #takeru takaishi #hikari yagami #daisuke motomiya #miyako inoue #iori hida #ken ichijouji

[tillythemagpie]

“The Moon has kissed you.”: An analysis into the relationship of Renamon and Impmon from Digimon Tamers, why it possibly has sound basis in the canon, and why they could possibly be one the most layered relationships in all of the Digimon franchise. ART 1]

PART 2 HERE

PART 3 HERE

Well, this project sounds ambitious, but I’m ready for it!

I’ve been a fan of Digimon for years, since I was small, if I’m allowed to speak with honesty, I’ve done it all. Seen the fandom, seen the ships, all good and well. However one couple has always intrigued me, and yet I’ve felt the fandom has either not appreciated them well enough or mischaracterized them. I’ve always been intrigued about their relationship, and I feel they have a little more in common than what sees the eye at first. I saw there wasn’t much written about them out there in the internet, but I’ve been part of the fandom, noticed our passion, and thought “why not? This pairing is ripe for a good analysis”.

So that’s the project: An essay series about the characters of Renamon and Impmon from Digimon Tamers, their relationship, and why I think they have the potential to possibly be one of the most iconic couples in the series. (Yes those are some big bold statements right there, and I’ve got the receipts for them)

Before we start, a disclaimer to make my points get across and for you all have more context where I’m coming from with this analysis: I’m only familiar with Digimon till Frontier, I haven’t watched later seasons (besides Tri and Kizuna, but again, that won’t add to my analysis), but I’m only taking the Tamers season canon into account, since the writing staff and production can vary so much from season to season (and it can even vary with movies; see the Taiora mixup between Hosoda and Kakudou from Our War Game). I know about the popular couples (Taiora, Takari) in the fandom and so, but I won’t comment on them save for a small preface as to how I see that romance is portrayed in the Digimon franchise. I won’t compare RenaImp to other couples in the series; but I will compare them to common imagery for couples in other media, since their relationship is quite unique in the world of the Digimon franchise. I’m basing my analysis and interpretation off the original Japanese dub, since the form of dialogue can also add a lot to characterization that can get lost in translation. I’m not Japanese, tho, and watched the series with subtitles so forgive me if some points of information or analysis I’ve got are incorrect. While I’m taking into consideration Konaka’s online notes and some trivia I’ve read of the series, I’ll mostly add to my analysis what is presented in the finished product, because production and initial thoughts can vary a lot when creating a piece of media. Lastly, I’m only taken for hints in the original series, since hints in further media might discourage or contradict what is played out in the original series, since outside influences or new writing teams might sway the writing into another direction. Also, when I mention the main characters / mons, I’ll mainly speak of the main 3, their Mons, Culumon, and Impmon; since they have the most parallels and character development in common for the analysis to work. And while I’ll mention some bits of analysis about some other characters here and there (Ruki, Juri, Guilmon, Ai and Makoto etc), since their storylines are so interconnected, I’ll mainly focus on Renamon and Impmon, or how the other characters parallel them, cause otherwise I’ll write a whole bible I feel.

Also, I’ll be using their Japanese terms/names, to further avoid confusion.

Also, my favorite seasons are Adventure / Tamers (like most basics lol), and my favorite characters are Renamon, Impmon (naturally), Jyou, Koushiro, Ken, Daisuke, Sora, Takato, Jen, Gomamon, Guilmon, Terriermon and Tailmon. While I find some other ships cute, RenaImp is the one I’m fully and totally dedicated to.

With all that said, on with the show!

·      Basic ideas about the two of them / Introduction

So if you’re reading about this meta I assume you’re familiar with Digimon Tamers (and if not…then darling this meta ain’t for you hehe), the third season of the Digimon franchise that’s beloved by the community at large for taking bold chances by experimenting with the writing. Characters dying, an introspection into trauma and family issues, the conception of the Digimon, can artificiality grow a human conscience, yes yes. We all know the show, we all praised the show, we’ve all done metas about the show. On with our main players, whom I feel have a lot of untapped potential to write meta about.

Renamon and Impmon are Digital Monsters that are part of the main cast of Digimon Tamers. They are distinguished from the rest by being the two Digimon that go through character development the most this season, something unusual by the standards of the franchise, where the character development is usually reserved for the human characters. While all the main Digimon are given a personality, only Renamon and Impmon are given arcs; so to say, to give them conflict and showcase them to display a complex world and a complex viewpoint of their relationships and of the world.

Renamon is the partner Digimon to Ruki, the only girl of the main cast (Juri’s importance comes along much later). Reading behind the scenes, the writers were asked by the producers to design a different type of female character, since sales pointed out that the “girlier” previous female leads of Digimon didn’t sell so well (I know, it’s not good, but that’s how it went, and I cannot ignore history), so the writers attempted to change the model in a way that would seem more appealing to “stereotypical” boys watching the series. Ruki was based on Trinity from the Matrix, and given a more assertive and cold personality as well, to contrast against the motherly Sora or the perky Mimi of Adventure fame. Similarly, Renamon is also contrasted greatly against the other female-coded Digimon. Whereas most female Digimon beforehand were written to be very affectionate and feminine-coded, Renamon is much more aloof and…agender, so to say (Konaka wrote that idea in his character notes, and she notes it in dialogue as well in the series- Still, the characters use she/her pronouns in the show to refer to her, so I’ll do that here to make the writing easier). At first glance you wouldn’t tell her gender, unlike the previous Digimon, who were written with certain characteristics that would make it easier for audiences to know/assume their intended gender: the very pink Piyomon or Palmon, who carries a flower in her head (flowers often associated with femininity).

Renamon at first is presented as this great warrior, cold and intimidating, utterly devoted to fighting and nothing else. Follows Ruki’s commands without hesitation, even despite the fact that initially, both of them form their comradery based on purely selfish interests. Add to the fact that she barely talks, and she’s rather bizarre when compared to almost all other main partner Digimon we’re used to; who are much chipper, friendlier and cuter. For first-time audiences, she seems rather scary.

However she is not just a destructive killer machine; she’s shown she cares, even before developing into a softer figure. In the third episode, before attacking Guilmon, she hesitates once Takato gets near the newborn creature. If she was just wild and bloodthirsty she wouldn’t hesitate about collateral victims. Just at the end of the episode, she does the same once Terriermon interrupts the fight with Guilmon, urging for him to get out of the way.

While cold and stoic; it’s shown even at the beginning that Renamon has a soft, empathetic side, even if it doesn’t show at first. For one, she’s fiercely devoted to Ruki from the start, even when their relationship is far from ideal. Once Ruki accepts to see her as an equal, she starts blooming into more of the “big sister” role in the group: the cool, mature one to Terriermon’s jokester and Guilmon’s newborn. Even so, she still manages to often be by herself most of the time, not fully ever integrating herself properly into the group. When you finish watching the show, you get the sense that Renamon, aside from fighting, is rather an introverted figure, to the point that even making friendships seems a little hard for her. The narrative implies she’s programmed to have a “servant”-like role originally with Ruki, and even though they mended their bond, there are still parts where it feels like she doesn’t feel an equal to her partner- see in the final episodes, how she eats by herself while Guilmon and Terriermon happily bond over food with the Tamers’ parents.

Incidentally, a lot of her more empathetic moments are displayed when she shows concerns over Impmon’s wellbeing, and manages to listen to his advice, more often than not. Aside from Ruki, he’s the one character she shows the most concern over the course of the series. She gets along fine with Guilmon and Terriermon, eventually, but there isn’t this level of awkward intrigue and fascination like the script implies with Impmon.

Amidst the formidable warrior lies a caring soul, hence why she evolves into Sakuyamon, a Digimon that focuses more on Defense than Attack. Some people think it’s a character regression for Ruki; but seeing how Renamon was also developed in this arc, I think her evolution further showcases her character as well. The elegance and grace and caring nature she always withheld has finally evolved into a comfortable goddess role, where she can defeat the monsters and defend her beloveds as much as her heart desires. It’s a very nice contrast, when she initially started the show in a “subservient” role, to end up basically embodying a Queen/Goddess (Perhaps a subtle nod that her Tamer is the “Digimon Queen”…Heh). Hard and soft power in the same hand; for a queen must know when to fight, and when to care for her people. She cares, she always cared, even if she might struggle to show it at first. That does not mean she must lose her agency, or anything of the like. She still participates in the many battles and defeats the villains alongside her friends.

Now, on to Impmon.

Impmon, Impmon, Impmon. The rogue Digimon. The wild card. The prankster turned hero turned reborn hero. Definitely the break-out star of the series, and the riskiest character as well in my opinion. A Digimon without a tamer, with his own character development? A Digimon that turns basically into one of the main villains at one point in the series? A lot of the series’ success depended on if Impmon ended up being an engaging character for audiences, because otherwise I feel he would’ve come off as too bratty or monstrous for us to root for. Remember, he has his own arc, he doesn’t depend on Ai and Makoto for his character to work. He’s not an “accessory” Digimon, so to say. Audiences wouldn’t have cared too much for him if there wasn’t a human partner for him to bounce off from. For the writing to depend entirely on his shoulders, without relying too much on his partners (they appear pretty much only 3-4 times in the whole series), the writers had to be confident in the character they were writing, knew he had to be engaging on his own. And it worked! How?

Well Impmon goes through an archetypical redemption arc, where he’s conscious of the decisions he makes and tries to make amends for it. But he’s not cruel, or viscous; unlike a lot of typical villains. The best way to explain Impmon’s character arc is seeing it through the eyes of a child learning what true power and responsibility is like, and turning into a man due to it. He’s more selfish and irresponsible than a true villain, which is what makes him stand out against another villain in a similar situation to him. It’s interesting to point out in Tamers that outside of the D-Reaper, none of the villains are evil for evil’s sake; they’re acting for their own preservation and self-benefit. Selfish, yes, but it’s understandable, and the Tamers get to understand Yamaki’s and the Deva’s position once they start openly talking with them.

In episode 8, we have a microcosm of one of Impmon’s main flaw: he can bite more than he can chew. He doesn’t understand that power needs responsibility to work well; otherwise it’s a hose without control. He’s proud and doesn’t admit neither his flaws, nor his true strengths. He picks and teases Devidramon until the Digimon is freed upon the city and unleashes chaos. It’s like a micro of what his actions as Beelzebumon basically amount to in episode 34 onwards. Same thing in episode 19, as well, where not wanting to accept an unfavorable aspect of himself (his weakness) almost has him die by Indiramon’s hand. Only that when he teased Devidramon he ran away, and Indiramon as well. Part of his development is well, accepting his strengths and limits, and working from that point on. Instead of running away or hiding behind pride, he finally accepts how things are, how he is, and works from the ground up. That’s part of his development, accepting what true power is, like an adult would, and using it responsibly.

Of course, tho, one thing to note is that he envies power, he craves power, he admires power. That was his goal at the start, his initial “wants”. Hence why he awed at Devidramon plummeting Guilmon in episode 8, and initially why he was drawn to Renamon first, I believe - she was at the start of the show the most powerful of the main Digimon; no wonder he felt an initial admiration towards her. But it’s a very shallow reading of power- the way a child would admire power, basically. Less about using it to help others and more for the self-benefit. Part of his arc is trying to understand what the true power is and where it lies on (he shares this arc with Renamon, basically; whereas she amended her relationship with Ruki, he got worse to the point that he almost lost himself to the Devil-figure of the show).

So, we know get a good idea of our two characters. Let’s see what their hidden meaning is.

·      Preface: Love in the Digimon franchise

This entry will be short, but I’ll try to explain about how love and romance are often portrayed in the Digimon franchise for us to get a better understanding of how the possible development between Renamon and Impmon could work. I know in the Disclaimer I said I wouldn’t touch upon this, but it’s important to keep in mind to understand the analysis.

(I’m also basing this on the amazing Sorato analysis @jippy-kandi​ does. Seriously, go check them out, their stuff is great)

Usually, in children’s anime, unless the genre is a romance or the show is explicit in its context, the couples usually portrayed in it will have hints, symbolism and elements of foreshadowing, rather than the typical Westernized form of “open interactions and development”. Of course, some anime couples do, as well, but often times, if the romance isn’t a strong focus of the series, it’ll just have little hints and that would be enough to leave viewers pondering.

Case in point? The “main” Digimon couples, in Adventure and 02, follow this structure. Sure, we have many scenes of the couples interacting, but most of their development comes from imagery, hints, symbolism, pictures where they’re standing, etc.

Look at Yamato and Sora, for example. True, they do not share many scenes together, but you look at imagery surrounding them, and you see a connected pattern. Takeru considers Sora “family”; after Jyou, they’re the most caring towards the group, taking on a parental role towards the others; both tend to care for the others to the extent that they end up ignoring their personal needs; and in real life, often the feelings of Love and Friendship are interconnected.

Then, there’s Takeru and Hikari, who are not canon but they are hotly debated about to this day, and even if so, I do find their parallels noteworthy. They are connected not only due to shared interactions, but because of the imagery that surrounds them; their Digimon are the only Holy Beasts of the groups, Hope and Light are often associated in religious texts, Pegasus and Sphinxes are mythological creatures that originated from the same culture (Greek; though Sphinxes also have Egyptian roots), In their 02 outfits they both share yellow in their designs…

We see this as well with Takato and Juri, who are explicitly stated to have a crush on one another. Juri is the first of Takato’s friends who accepts Guilmon as he is and adores him (ea, accepting Takato’s true self), they share a Psychic Link, a Mental Connection, which in the Tamers universe, it’s only seen to exist between a Digimon and their Tamers (and later on, with another example); and later on as the story develops Takato plays the role of Gallant Knight to Juri’s Princess in the Tower-inspired arc.

There’s even a lot of suggestive imagery with other couples who are not as canon. Take Koushiro and Mimi, for instance. Before Digimon Adventure Tri, not many thought to link them together (yet they were very popular in Japanese fanzones), but the imagery of bugs and flowers is strong with them. Even Tailmon, who had little time with Wizarmon, manages to have a symbolic image associated with him; as she mourns the anniversary of his death, in 02, we see her carrying a bouquet of red roses while she’s tearfully remembering him. Red roses are often associated with love, so add to that plus her grieving = she mourns the loss of her best friend / possible first love. (This is rather incidental, but the imagery is quite strong. Plus the association Tailmon and Wizarmon have with wizards and their cat familiars was certainly done on purpose, I think…)

And well, then we see little things like characters holding on to each other and posters and the like. It’s small, but it says a lot.

So, how does this work with Renamon and Impmon? Easy. If the other characters had limited scenes but a lot of imagery, symbolism and foreshadowing, and that eventually lead to them turning into a couple/having romantic imagery, it could be easily applied to Renamon and Impmon’s relationship as well, since they also carry a lot of interactions with a lot of imagery on the side.

·      Interactions

Here is where we point out both the scenes they share together and what they could mean on a larger scale.

I think it’s fascinating to point out that early on, the Renamon focused episodes also tended to feature Impmon prominently as well. It’s something that’s more prominent in the first twelve episodes, but it’s still noticeable that in each Renamon-focused episode of the first arc, Impmon also had a prominent scene in it. Of course, he did appear in other episodes with the other Digimon, but it is interesting how he serves as a sort of “guide” for Renamon early on, where she’s doubting of her strength and her relationship with Ruki.

Their first scene where they meet is in Impmon’s introductory episode, episode 6, which is also the first Renamon-focused episode. What is interesting to note is that while Impmon appears early on in the episode, to the first Digimon he introduces himself to properly is to Renamon, precisely. And instead of being teasing or cruel towards her, like he’d be with Terriermon or Guilmon; at first he seems to try to attempt to start a conversation with her. It’s almost unlike him…At first. But you start to see what he’s trying to do here- he’s attempting to make her understand his world-view; the narrative later on suggests that just recently he ran away from Ai and Makoto, so he’s probably experiencing first time relief in a long while, and he doesn’t want to get rid of this sensation. So he sees her, doubting, and would try to reason with her about why he made the best choice. In a way, it’s misguided compassion, but it’s not outright malice at first. He sees her in in similar doubts and pain, and was probably counseling based on what he thought was the best choice.

At the end of the episode it’s also implied he was witness to her evolution into Kyuubimon, which, while he sees with initial sneer, it can be read as disappointment that she followed Ruki instead of his advice. Maybe also a little hidden envy, since she achieved evolution before he did? Who knows.

Next time, in episode 10, they meet in a Shinto temple (foreshadowing to Sakuyamon, I might add), and he seems excited to meet her at first. But then it turns into nothing once Impmon starts urging Renamon to fight with Terriermon. It leads to nothing, of course, except for Impmon to think to get a reaction out of Terriermon, but it does suggest that he looks forward to seeing her again.

Again, their next scene together is in a Renamon focus episode, ep. 12, again; where we’re also subject to Impmon’s past for the first time. She’s absolutely curious about his point of view regarding evolution and strength, since, again, she’s at odds with Ruki. And while we’re witness to his past, she isn’t, since it’s shown in a flashback, but I think she’s perceptive enough to have linked his shuddering with the crying children in the window below. Still, she follows him, not to judge or criticize, but to further gets answers; Impmon seems the most knowledgeable about the subject matter, so maybe he can give her answers.

A subtle one occurs in the episode where the Snake deva attacks in the subway (ep. 15). Beforehand, Renamon finds Impmon staring with jealousy at Guilmon playing with the kids in the park, and although he shows disdain, Renamon carefully points out that he seems too “heavily involved” to just despise them. He got mad, of course, but that’s typical of him, he tries too hard to deny and his true feelings, of how jealous and envious he is of the other Digimon just getting along with the kids so well…But at this moment he’s too proud to ever admit he probably committed a mistake by running, or even admit help from the other Digimon.

And of course, I must remember that this episode, a hint was shown coming from him (often it’s Renamon who displays a lot of their most affectionate actions); when Kyuubimon and Galgomon are beaten hard by the Deva in the subway, Impmon notices and immediately goes to alert Takato and Guilmon, who were completely unaware by having fun in the park. He might try to act like he doesn’t care or is too cool, but again, if he was truly wicked or cruel he wouldn’t have gone out of his way to alert the others to come save the day, I think. Actions speak louder than words.

Of course a big source of their interactions comes in ep. 19, where it’s the first time Impmon gets a fully character-focused episode. In it we see him endangering himself in front of Indramon and later on with the police, and it’s up to Renamon to save him (this is a recurring pattern; she’s always saving him when he does something reckless or stupid); in it Renamon gets the closest of all the characters to understand his psyche properly, to get there’s more to him than just the pathetic Imp harassing the playground. That yes, all the prankster bully persona is an act, and he’s very vulnerable and pitiful without a partner and without the means to evolve. Yet even as she knows it’s desperate to fight Indramon, he pleads her to let him fight; without any scorn or mockery in his voice. Renamon, unused to that side, respected his wishes that time, even if she knew it was suicidal. Yet it still that at this episode, Renamon has gotten to understand Impmon’s character much much more than the rest of the cast, and like I stated before; she’s an observant person; I reckon she probably already how initially she felt hunting for data with Ruki and can see parallels with Impmon- he’s obsessed with power but due to his circumstances he’s pathetically weak. I think she sees a side of herself in him, hence why she wants to help him so much.

Later on, in episode 20, amidst the chaos of the Deva, the kids also try to look around for Impmon. Even Renamon searches for him on her own in the abandoned place she took him in ep. 19; it’s a small scene but it says leagues about them, that she can find him and connect with him without getting the rest of the kids into their dilemma. Shows she’s mature enough to understand he would prefer having his own space, too.

After their incursion in the Digital World they don’t have many prominent scenes together for a long while…Until they meet again in ep. 30. This is important, since while they do not interact for a while, their characters follow similar scenes and patterns later on (and I’ll discuss this later on).

And I do love how in ep. 30, their scenes are followed by one another. Just after a Renamon scene ends, Beelzebumon’s first true scene is immediately showcased. And fascinatingly, in the same episode where it’s established Cyberdramon has need for fighting and gaining power to control, it’s also the episode where we have a first display of Beelzebumon’s power, completely unleashed and unrestrained. Yes, he’s happier than he’s ever been, but we know that power comes with red strings.

Aaand and and…Kyuubimon is the one that recognizes Beelzebumon, not the others. She doesn’t even need to be lead on by a witty remark, she senses his presence enough (either that, or the bandana was a clue), but again, this is recalled later on, where two times later, she can hear him or notice him when nobody else can.

Later on, here comes the big one; ep. 34. Impmon has absolutely fully engulfed himself into his power and completely believed the Devas’ crap about killing the children, so he goes as planned. It’s fascinating because he’s not even acting out like how when he previously killed other Digimon, in a careless manner, again, similar to a child playing with a dangerous objetc. He’s clearly seething and throwing his bile at the Tamers here, all the hurt, all the resentment, the feeling of “betrayal” since he never properly bonded with them (they tried to be friendly but heee…uuh…he’s also not good at making friends) and how he felt humiliated after Indramon beat him (but again, he forgets that the others were ready to save him, too). And of course, it’s interesting to point out how he’s insisting on killing Kyuubimon first, once the whole gang is reunited. He beats the crap out of Rapidmon and Growlmon when they jump at him, but he even points out he’ll “guard them for later”. No, it’s Kyuubimon whom he’s interested in killing first, even though she’s injured and unwilling at the moment to fight back. And frankly, even Kyuubimon is willing to talk first, even when Rapidmon and Growlmon have already given up. She pleads for him, in all dubs, to open his eyes, even while she’s bleeding on the floor. Why is this? Maybe he felt if he killed her first it’d be easier, since he would never kill her if she was kept for last, or maybe just his conscience just asking him to retain a little bit- remember, he’s at his Ultimate/Mega level, and a very powerful form at that; and he could easily kill all of them without pause. However, the fact that Growlmon and Kyuubimon keep him at bay a little while makes me think that he’s still subconsciously holding back (babe, no, you’ve started caring, no, babe, leave your friends alone, hahahah…)

It’s only in the next episode, ep. 35, after he’s killed Leomon that Kyuubimon accepts, resigned, admitting that he’s turned into a demon. It kinda really shows that she still held back, still believed in his inherent, internal goodness and potential (and as I mentioned in ep. 15, he had it there), but after how brutal he murdered Leomon and beat the others, she has come to accept that her odd friend has basically turned into the monster they must defeat. (The show LOOOVes the whole “give in to the monster” narrative so I’ll talk about it later)

And episode 40! Once again, it’s Renamon who notes Beelzebumon’s in distress, she hears his cry from afar, and she’s the one willing to give him a chance once again, even after all the horrible things he’s done, when the rest of the gang has given up on him. And they’re running out of time, they know it, if they miss the Arc they can’t go back home, and anyone less forgiving would be in favor of leaving him behind (Hirokazu even points out to Ruki how it’s crazy to bring him “after all the evil he’s done”)…But she can’t. Again, her gentle nature resurfaces. And considering this is the episode after Renamon evolved into Sakuyamon, I think the Mega is starting to influence her. (“A good Queen puts her people first”). 

Also…Ruki and Renamon find Impmon, abandoned and worn in the desert…it’s the first time he calls her by her name instead of a demeaning nickname or “you”…And this is IN ALL THE DUBS. Japanese, German, Engl, Both Spanish, etc etc etc. And Renamon always always always, no matter the dub, sounds very concerned when she reaches for him and asks him if he can stand. There’s only 3 times she ever sounds super worried throughout the whole series, and two times concerned Impmon/Beelzebumon’s being. She was worried, y’all.

I just noticed how the pattern kinda breaks mid show but then forms a new pattern; while in the first Renamon focused episodes impmon played a prominent part, once we get to Taomon’s and Sakuyamon’s evolutions he doesn’t feature in at all…YEEEET the episodes afterwards do feature him prominently, and Renamon worried for his well-being. Probably just a coincidence, but again, to me it shows how the two of them really are interconnected and really, their influence has rubbed on each other.

Ep. 41, nothing really big happens, but Renamon carries him in the Ark on the way back home while he’s sleeping. Again, nothing really big, but it’s a cute moment (even Jen smiles at it ;)) -It’s even stated by dialogue (from Jen, no less) that it was Renamon’s wish through and through to see him safe, while the other kids are going on about Ruki’s crazy fantasies instead- Jen was always the “big brother” of the group, and he has bonded with Rena earlier, so I like to imagine he can sorta infer there’s something bigger there, without having Rena or Ruki openly telling him it.  And uff, she’s the one that sees him vanish amidst the crowd once they return to the real world…! Ruki manages to raise her eyes to see him but Renamon, Renamon never left her sight from Impmon…!

Ep. 43 is a big one for Impmon, for he reconciles with his Tamers and starts aiding the older Kids with defeating the D-Reaper. Note how initially, the only one who doesn’t reject him is Taomon; she’s surprised at his sight, while Rapidmon and Wargrowlmon are just skeptical. And once his attacks makes an effect on the Reaper, SHE is the one who supports his attack, making the others follow suit. (Incidentally, it’s also the episode where he admits he feels Blast Mode is his true form after all…JP language only, but it seems to suggest that really, being Beelze feels more true to Impmon than being stuck in his Child form).

In ep. 48, it’s Renamon who recognizes his figure, tied inside the Reaper. It’s also interesting cause it’s the climax of Impmon’s whole character development, where he has accepted the crimes he has committed, and instead of asking forgiveness, he will just right the wrongs, even if it costs him his life.

And episode 49! Goodness it has so many moments. After Beelzemon falls, Sakuyamon is the first to rush to his rescue (see? She’s always saving him); and gosh darn she sounds desperate, this is nuts to hear because Renamon/her evos, no matter the dub, always keeps her cool, so to again; hear her voice just scream and tremble urging him to fly and get up… And then once Grani saves Impmon, he lends Impmon for Sakuyamon to carry. Rather it’s the most practical choice, since she’s the only one who can carry him, since SaintGalgomon is too big and Dukemon is kept busy with his shield and lance, but still…She sounds so relieved when she urges to rest in her arms, as they keep battling the Reaper…

And of course, like almost every other plot point, their relationship is also resolved in ep. 51. When the whole team is relaxing at the park, relieved after they defeated the D-Reaper, Impmon appears, and once again, who notices him first? That’s right, our favorite fox. And again, her usual monotone breaks just to show relief to see him safe and sound. Even he, before he addresses Juri, seems to reassure her over the rest. I like how it’s a little moment, but I love that in the last episode, the writers managed to give a wink to their little relationship that carried on throughout the whole show. The writers knew they had to tell their story (his story), and they knew how important it was to see it to a satisfying conclusion.

·      Similarities / opposites

Ok, so we’ve gone over why their scenes together matter. Big deal, what else is there?

Well, it’s not only the fact that they share many scenes together, is the fact that their characters are written to be eerily similar in many aspects.

They both initially look up to power, believe in the ideal that Digimon are only made for fighting. Later on we discover that is pretty much the law in the Digital World, but for us, the audience, they’re the two that bring up this idea the most when we first start seeing properly the series.

She’s stated at first to be the strongest Digimon in the main cast, while he’s the weakest. That’s a parallel, keep that up in mind.

They’re also the two Digimon to have a proper arc and character development, something that the others really don’t. And incidentally, they carry a similar arc- both initially are mistreated by their Tamers which makes their relationship and views of humanspoor; but while Renamon manages to get better with Ruki, and therefore stronger; Impmon just denies himself and goes on a self-destructive path.

Also, his proper introduction in the series is in the same first episode where Renamon gets focus. I know I said it before, but it bears repeating. And he presents himself to her first of the whole group! It’s also implied he witnessed the whole battle and Renamon’s first evolution into Kyuubimon, too… I tell you, it’s there. These stories aren’t written by bots, it’s a bunch of people that decide what element is added here and there to make certain things work.

When the series called Impmon a child…They were not far-off, for, as I wrote before, he’s written to act similar to a teenage kid- bratty, irresponsible, selfish…But not cruel, not truly, just undisciplined. Funny enough, it contrasts nicely with Renamon, for as “mature” as she seems, she lacks a lot of knowledge in things, but due to her nature, she’s not to go around asking as much. (See, in comparison, Guilmon and Terriermon, who are much more confident in their placement in the world and their relationship with their Tamers; and Guilmon is written to be seen as a baby /little dog for most of the series). If she was as “grown-up” as we imagined, she wouldn’t have initial hang-ups and doubts about her placement as Ruki’s partner.

The episode with Vajramon is also fascinating to consider because, much Like Impmon, he first appears to Renamon with a similar vocabulary: to abandon the humans to create their own destiny. Vajramon’s crush on Renamon is much more openly displayed, and yet he seems to try to impress her with the same talking points as Impmon did earlier. Remember that Impmon only tried to suggest Renamon to join his side, yet with Terriermon and Guilmon he was just tricky and antagonistic. Also remember the Devas at this point are just cruel and menacing to the Digimon, but Vajramon…Well, he takes a liking to Renamon, and it’s pretty obvious (calling her “beautiful” many times and such).- We’ll get to Vajramon’s crush later, but I wanna pinpoint this as a parallel to Impmon’s development with Rena.

Vajramon: We weren’t meant to serve humans. Come with us, to serve our god, and you’ll discover your true purpose! (paraphrasing but that’s what his dialogue basically amounts to)

So, if the villain who openly crushes on Renamon has the same talking points as Impmon, then...

Similarly, episode 24 is the one where both allude to their deaths. It’s the episode where the children decide to go to the Digital World to find Culumon, and each of them prepare in their own way to say their goodbyes. Ruki is about to tell her grandmother as she discovers It by her own by finding Renamon, and isn’t surprised at all at the giant furry fox. She even confides in Ruki that she thought Renamon was a spirit sent to protect her granddaughter.

(Sidenote, but that makes Renamon’s design make so much sense, since I have this theory that each Digimon/their evo were chosen to reflect the development of their Trainer; hear me out. Takato was originally written to be a self-insert for kids in the audience, so he gets the Digimon that evolves into stereotypically things that little boys like: dinosaurs, robots and superheroic figures (Dukemon has a red cape probably as an allusion to Superman). Jen is the most tech-savy of the three and his father aided in the creation of the Digimon in this verse, so it makes sense for Terriermon to mechanize more and more with each evolution. Finally, Ruki is Japanese ethnically, of course, yet her behavior and style of dress seems more…uhm, Western, so to say; until you see what type of house she lives – a fancy old Japanese style mansion; in comparison to Takato and Jen who live in humbler flats. Considering that Ruki’s arc was meant to discourage her loneliness and bring her closer to friends and family, it makes sense that Renamon -her humanity, her heart, her character development- is the Digimon with most Japanese callbacks in her design: she’s linking Ruki back to her family.  Something similar happens in Adventure; Piyomon is pink to call back to Sora’s love, motherly nature, and connection to her mother).

So, we were where Ruki is planning to say goodbye to her family, like the other kids, since they’re determined to go to the Digital World to rescue Culumon. Grandma seems untroubled, and finds Renamon charming as well (even says she’s “beautiful”); but just asks our foxy to protect her grandchild.

Renamon declares that she’ll protect Ruki no matter what, even if it comes to her death. Ruki is seen openly touched at hearing that.

Meanwhile, Impmon has pretty much given up at this point. Defeated and humiliated by Indramon, he’s hidden in the sewers and expects nothing to come at this point. He feels hurt, betrayed, lost, without anyone at his side (but that’s mostly due to his actions; since he left his kids on his own accord, and the Tamers were ready to welcome him with open arms, as long as he behaved, yet he just didn’t know how to make a stable friendship with them) The Digital World calls to him, but he reacts less like an adventure, and more like a release. He sees no point in going forward, in going back…He’s given up on everything. And once Catsuramon calls to him, in the little portal to the Digital World, he goes there less because of adventure, and more because well…What else is there?

So while the other Digimon look forward to the Digital World as an adventure, Renamon and Impmon are the only ones that allude to it in a deadly manner…

And there’s also the matter of which when they both evolve to Mega…Which I’ll further address in other points in the meta, but I’ll comment that they’re dark parallels / opposites between them. While he evolves to Mega for selfish gains, for purely his self-interests, even if means he’ll have to kill innocent children for it; Renamon obtains her Mega after sacrificing herself to the D-Reaper, saving Culumon and giving time for the other kids to flee. Selfish desire vs selfless action. It’s at the apex of their character: his darkest hour vs her brightest time. While he goes to the point of no return, this is the climax of her character development.

The two of them tend to be loners by nature, and while they both do crave friends, they’re kinda awkward about gaining friends. Impmon initially doesn’t know how to make friendships outside of pranking and teasing; and the last episodes, while the whole team is together, Renamon maintains her distance from the others more often than not. Even if she’s at her most compassionate self, she still feels a little off, never fully a part of them. No wonder they connected, tbh, if even at a subconscious level.

Before I forget, it’s good I talk about the Psychic Link, because otherwise I would’ve forgotten about it. In the Digimon canon, it’s often established that Digimon have really strong bonds with their humans, so it’s natural for them in a way to share their minds and thoughts together. Ruki and Renamon at times early on had psychic conversations together. So, nothing wrong with that, of course, makes sense for the canon of the series and strengthens the bond between human and tamer.

So, it’s interesting to consider that Renamon and Impmon also have a slight connection; so to say. Renamon recognizes him before anyone else does, Renamon hears Beelzebumon’s cries of despair from afar; and she’s always aware of wherever  he is or whether he’s in trouble.

You could say it’s a simple connection between the Digimon, since in Tamers it’s established the Digimon can sense each other by instinct, since the Tamer Mons can notice whenever a rogue Digimon is nearby by scent or instinct…Yet neither Guilmon nor Terriermon show this attitude when it comes to Impmon.

And of course, note, nobody else in the series has this connection, aside from the tamers and their respective mons...It would be an anomaly, maybe just a Digimon thing…BUT…A couple also does:

Takato and Juri, who are the main “couple” in the series. From the first episodes it’s stated Takato has a crush on Juri, which seems to be reciprocated from her side. And in the final episodes, as the whole team attempts to save Juri from the Reaper’s center; Juri is able to hear Takato’s voice, even when the others technically couldn’t since he’s fused into Dukemon (clarification for the Eng Dub only viewers: in the original JP and other dubs, the Mega Digimon have their own voices instead of the “Two-voice” thing the Eng. Dub attempted. So we hear Dukemon/Guilmon, SaintGalgomon/Terriermon, Renamon/Sakuyamon speaking when they’re talking in public (ea their usual voices, except Dukemon who got a different voice actor, since Guilmon’s childish voice wouldn’t fit the heroic knight character Dukemon represents). We only hear Takato, Jen and Ruki when we’re privy to their insides (inside the Digimonn basically)- so ea, Hirokazu or Kenta can’t hear Takato if they’re talking to Dukemon directly.

Yet Juri can listen to him, even if the others can’t, even if they’re far away. So, to reiterate- the humans and their Digimons’ bond is so strong that they can feel each other’s thoughts and pain. This is what allows them to fuse in the first place, and it’s something special that no other characters have. Except for the main romantic couple of the series, Takato and Juri…And Renamon and Impmon, naturally. Which...Means a lot more than one thinks.

More on Part 2! Then stuff gets juicy...

#Digimon tamers #Digimon meta #Digimon tamers meta #RenaImp #Imprena #Beelzemon #digimon #Digimon couples #Sakubeel #beelsaku #Sakuyamon #my meta #RenaImp meta

[digimon-adventure-screentime]

Episode 24: Crush! AtlurKabuterimon

Some pretty neat distribution of screentime between Koushiro and Tentomon. Even though Vadermon and PicoDevimon had a few scenes on their own, the heroes still surpassed seven minutes each, which also made Tentomon cross the hour mark on the overall card!

Once again, the group is still split and there wasn’t a lot of screentime of Koushiro, Tentomon, Yamato, Tsunomon, Takeru and Patamon near the end so I don’t count any “full group” screentime for this episode either.

Evolution sequences screentime: 26,24 seconds for Tentomon Total character screentime: 10:30,88 Full group screentime: None

Every time a new rule has to be set I’ll mention it on the relevant episode, then update the FAQ at some point I guess XD

It may be only a photo shown, but we still see Koushiro and Tentomon on our screens, so the time of the photo being on screen counts for their times.

And once again, color-coded analysis:

Dark Purple is solo Koushiro, which was 03:15 minutes combined. Mid Purple is Koushiro with Tentomon, which was 04:34 minutes combined. Light Purple is solo Tentomon, which was 02:34 minutes combined.

Orange is Taichi, blue is Yamato with Tsunomon, yellow is Takeru with Patamon.

#Digimon #Digimon Adventure #Taichi Yagami #Yamato Ishida #Gabumon #Koushiro Izumi #Tentomon #Takeru Takaishi #Patamon #episode 24

[koushirouizumi]

ME: Good morning only to the Japanese fans I follow elsewhere who will rewatch Adventure/02/etc. and find all the same small details I notice about canon!Koushiro literally every time I rewatch *too*, like "Koushiro has Taichi pay the phone bill using Koushiro's {phone card}/'Telecard'" but does it in such a way it makes Koushiro "cool and {reliable}" in their opinion, or details like "Koushiro was equally as distracted by the prospect of food as all the others were" {but was much better at hiding it} up until the point something happens that makes Koushiro actually acknowledge it, which Koushiro then Ignores in an attempt to distract both Koushiro's self and the others (from further noticing Koushiro's plight) ("{We were talking about what YOU had right}???") / "What about YOU, Taichi-san??"

#koushirouizumi chatter #koushirouizumi koushiro #koushirouizumi adv koushiro #koushirouizumi advs #koushirouizumi dgmn #digiadv ep 02 #koushiro analysis #adv koushiro #food mention

[izzyizumi]

Digimon Adventure (1999) {1st Movie} + Digimon Adventure Last Evolution: Kizuna + Digimon Adventure tri.: Kokuhaku [“Confession”] + Digimon Adventure tri.: Soushitsu [“Loss”] ~ Animated / (+Story-wise) THEMATIC Parallels / Visual + Auditory Cues - TAICHI YAGAMI + Blowing the WHISTLE - HIKARI YAGAMI + {Original} OWNER OF THE WHISTLE - KOUSHIRO IZUMI + WANTING to KNOW {About: The Digimon, The Digital World, Koushiro’s OWN SELF...} - The Whistle acting as a Turn-about in Times of Crisis (+ Acting as ‘Alerting’ the Others + Other DIGIMON Can Hear, Too) + Friendships, Team Comradeship, & BONDS {“KIZUNA”}

{Original commentary has been moved under the ‘read more’ as it was originally quite lengthy: Minimal Spoilers for later Tri underneath!}

(Note: in the J.P.N Version, the Whistle scenes are pretty much ALL represented using the EXACT SAME SOUNDS, along with a similar “lengthy” time of Whistle-blowing) [which typically TAICHI, or originally Hikari, initiate]

{“I think [YOU] fixed the [Distortions] of [the airspace] in here!”} - Koushiro

“So we [STILL HAD] a {BOND}” (“KIZUNA”)... - Tri!Koushiro, commenting with a genuinely HOPEFUL/grateful tone in his voice

“YOU GUYS DON’T GET IT,” “DO YOU?”

“We’ll GET There, no matter HOW {Thorny} our {PATHS} GET.” - Tailmon, encouragingly - Adventure Episode 45, post-Yamato & Jou+Mimi (Temporarily) Leaving the Group {Eventually to RETURN}

My Commentary:

Even if you disagree with my comparisons of the medias, if you have never watched it (or maybe you’d rewatch in) subtitled in original Japanese version in full, I highly suggest you give all of Adventure, 02, and even later medias a chance, with an open mind. The commonalities in the story themes may end up surprising you, even if you thought you knew everything! (This post can also serve as a mini-personal Analysis post)

“Is it wrong to want to {know everything}?” - Koushiro Izumi, genuinely, Adventure Episode 24 (J.P.N Version)

gifs by izzyizumi, {DO NOT re-post} {DO NOT remove caption} {Please ASK to Use} {usage of gifs may be allowed if permission is asked / or if credit is given. However, read my about & FAQ pages first. Please do NOT use / ask if you match anything in my “Do Not Interact” sections.}

{Additional note: this post is mainly intended INFORMATIVE/FOR REFERENCE. please remember + RESPECT this when interacting}

[Note: commenting/tagging positively/respectfully is ok!] (Please AGREE TO BANNERS BEFORE interacting) (Note: Click on the banners to view in full or enlarge!)

#yagami taichi #yagami hikari #izumi koushirou #chosen children #digimon adventure last evolution kizuna #digimon adventure tri #digimon adventures #digimon adventure last evolution: kizuna #adventures parallels #kizuna parallels #tri spoilers #koushiro analysis #kizuna spoilers #kokuhaku spoilers #soushitsu spoilers #(This wasnt made for any particular event but I was compiling gifs across all the medias and got super emotional because.. I genuinely love) #(These charas especially KoushirO Taichi & Hikari and all three get so misunderstood so constantly & jUST... I hope I can convey this well) #adventures lore #the distortions #the whistle #(It'd be easier to explain in vid format but itd take SO much compiling & anyhow I tried to tag everything &we have a next movie on the way) #(This post is a Positivity post for Adventures and if you cannot acknowledge that I respectfully ask you do not comment ThankYou)

[seventeenlovesthree]

Yeah so your dynamic shipping game? I know I say Takeru and Hikari a lot because I always want to know others perception of them.

Another one I am very curious about is Koushirou and Mimi. Because Tri just worked for them.

But if you mean non common ships I have been curious about Yamato and Mimi. I get the whole they look good together vibe especially in illustrations, but personality wise they don’t really mesh up well in my opinion. Maybe you’ll find something good out of it?

Anyways thank you for reading this. Even if you do one review I would appreciate it. Thank you!

Hello there! Thank you for sending me this, I still have all the other rarepairs in my queue and want to work on them, since I always enjoy to have some thought experiments here and there.

Since my stance on Takari hasn't really changed ever since writing my first analysis post, I hope it's okay if I'm not gonna repeat this one.

However, the other two (namely Koumi and Mimato) are definitely more interesting to write about, for very different reasons each:

Digimon Shipping Dynamic Game:

Send me two names among the following 12 and I’ll write a short analysis post about them:

Taichi Yagami | Yamato Ishida | Sora Takenouchi | Koushirou Izumi | Mimi Tachikawa | Jyou Kidou | Takeru Takaishi | Hikari Yagami | Daisuke Motomiya | Miyako Inoue | Iori Hida | Ken Ichijouji

Whether canon provides input on them or not:

Since I've already written a huge tumblr breaking analysis on what does and does not work about them, you can bet that canon provides a whole lot of input about them. I will try to keep this section as brief as possible regardless:

You have their initial set-up, which appears to be your typical "opposites/beauty and the nerd" tropes at first glance - and while they do fulfill their stereotypes to at least some degree at various parts of the series, they also frequently defy them. They're the same age and also classmates, making them one of the few characters who have known each other (very superficially) even before the events of Adventure - and they start off rather roughly. While both of them are portrayed as oddballs in their own ways (enjoying questionable food combinations, being very focused on the things they're interested in, etc.), they have very different priority systems. Basically, whenever these two are the focus in an episode (namely the infamous episode 10 of Adventure), a scene (namely their interactions in "Diablomon Strikes Back) or a plot-point (namely their interactions throughout the first four Tri movies), it's usually about them having to come to terms with their different approach systems:

Koushirou is the rational type, who focuses on solving a problem by going through the entire PDCA cycle, trying to figure out each and every puzzle piece and gather all information to come to a conclusion. Mimi's judgement is based more on emotions, feelings and instinct, she likes to skip the first three steps of the PDCA cycle and does what she thinks is best for everyone - and that's where these two tend to clash. While Koushirou absolutely can be a hands-on person who jumps into action when necessary, he has a hard time understanding Mimi's reasoning sometimes, especially when she demands him to take her/other people's feelings into account. They do have very different energy levels in that regard - which, on the other hand, is also what makes their DSB interactions so entertaining to watch, as she is just very happy to be back in Japan, wanting his attention (extroverted dominance), while he's absolutely done trying to save the world once again (introverted exhaustion).

While their fights can turn out to be rather exhausting whenever they're not able to communicate well and also whenever they cannot admit that the other may have had a point (especially in Tri), they do work best once they actually reconcile and combine their strengths; whether it's when he is leaving his laptop behind (once) to tear down a wall to save her, admitting that acting is better than thinking sometimes (episode 10), when she praises his skills and achievements up to the point of them even working on her online shop together (Tri + Kizuna/To Sora), or when he leaves his laptop at home once again after being told to do so by her, just to come to the conclusion that this helped him to actually think about what he wants to do in the future (Stageplay).

There is a reason why they're among the most popular ships in the Digimon fandom world-wide due to their interesting dynamics (see here and here). So much so that there was even an audio drama explicitly functioning as fanservice, making Koushirou write a love letter to someone and having Mimi be rather infuriated by the idea that it was for Hikari instead of herself. While instances like this (and DSB) formed the preferred fandom headcanon of Mimi having a crush on Koushirou, Tri canonized him having developed a crush on her instead - even though said crush was rather treated in a comic relief manner without serving a development trigger in either of their arcs, as the main focus had been, once again, them having very different view-points instead.

Long story short - there is A LOT to work with. Even though I have to say that, in my opinion, Tri did not really work for them. The recycled conflict between them (rational vs. emotional) could have been great if it had been intertwined in their respective arcs (self-isolation vs. selfishness), but was NEVER properly resolved. The crush never led to anything but fanservice (while also reducing Koushirou's character to that in a "they had to dumb him down so he couldn't figure out the plot immediately" way). I actually prefer their portrayal in the stageplay (as well as in Kizuna/To Sora), which is why I chose the screenshot above - but let me elaborate on that...

Whether I think why and how they’d work:

The "opposites attract trope", if done right, can be a very appealing one - and, as mentioned, it explains why these two are as popular as a romantic ship as they are. As mentioned above, I do prefer their portrayal in the stageplay as opposed to Tri; while their personalities were still very much on opposing ends, there was a lot more familiarity and closeness between them, which could have been the natural development after they had started to come to terms with their "differences" after episode 10 of Adventure, throughout 02 and up to this point. Mimi scolding Koushirou for relying on his laptop too much is met with him seeming rather helpless, exhausted by her attitude at first - however, instead of just acting obediently and leaving his laptop at home to please her, he uses that twice: Once by teasing her, pretending to have withdrawal symptoms and scaring her in the process, ACTUALLY joking around intentionally and playfully for once! Secondly, he actually talks about his own dreams, feeling inspired by her and indirectly thanking her for that (the crush does not seem to exist at this point btw). And that is a mutual point for them, as Mimi also confesses to Sora that, while she's currently not crushing on anyone, she also feels inspired by Koushirou to maybe do "something with computers" in the future (which, as we know, will actually happen by the time of Kizuna).

And that is what, as mentioned above, could be their greatest strength as a romantic couple. They're AWARE of their different energy levels and, after all these years, they've started to gain an understanding of the other's needs in terms of emotional and mental affection. At least they SHOULD BE. Instead, Tri implied that Koushirou suddenly started to get interested in fashion JUST for the sake of impressing Mimi - which is not what his character is about at all and misunderstood his entire arc of accepting himself the way he is. Having him bend over backwards to impress the person he fell in love with, hiding behind an app to tell him how to dress, would always result in him never opening up - sure, he's been able to stand his ground against her, but that only resulted in them shouting at each other in Tri, unable to really understand each other. And Tri COULD have used that to make Mimi comment on how it didn't matter what he wore as long as he felt comfortable with it. Because - again, they're both weird in their own ways and wouldn't be themselves if they changed for the sake of someone else. But that conclusion was never reached.

In an ideal world, I feel like they could just have naturally progressed from 02 to the Stageplay to Kizuna/To Sora; with Koushirou becoming more aware and considerate towards Mimi needing attention and affection and Mimi learning that there are times when Koushirou needs to be left to solve his riddles, with words of encouragement in between. The Kizuna promo art of her looking absolutely amazed at whatever he had managed to make out of her online shop while he beams at her with fondness and pride is how I could see them working out just fine. Sure, there would be moments of them clashing again - but they'd be able to deal with that without him turning into an obedient puppy or her turning into an enraged harpy. There can be a sense of protectiveness and gentleness between them, learning from and complementing each other without actively trying to CHANGE the other, enjoying each other's company as well as spending time apart, as long as they have something to gush over together (whether that's online shops, food, their friends - or, like in the reboot, the actual fact that Mimi's grandfather is the manufacturer of Koushirou's tablet. The potential of them actually having business-related rambles is just too good to pass on).

Whether I’d prefer them as platonic or romantic ship:

Alright, enough rambles - throughout all this time spent analyzing their romantic potential, I have actually grown more fond of them as a couple. Despite that, I still prefer them as platonic business friends, since I primarily ship each of them with other characters. Still, I love the idea of them growing more and more close and familiar through the years (which is basically canon at this point anyway), teasing and praising each other, making jokes, gossiping over their friends, etc. (Though I would actually like to see them in an OT3 with Taichi - because in my opinion, both Mimi and Taichi care deeply about Koushirou and he'd be such a wonderful bisexual disaster around them. Plus, I thoroughly despise certain fandom depictions of Michi cheating on Koushirou with each other, because that couldn't be further from their actual personalities.)

ALRIGHT, NEXT.

Digimon Shipping Dynamic Game:

Send me two names among the following 12 and I’ll write a short analysis post about them:

Taichi Yagami | Yamato Ishida | Sora Takenouchi | Koushirou Izumi | Mimi Tachikawa | Jyou Kidou | Takeru Takaishi | Hikari Yagami | Daisuke Motomiya | Miyako Inoue | Iori Hida | Ken Ichijouji

Whether canon provides input on them or not:

Depending on what you want to look at: There isn't much. While you referred to them as "non common ship", I do believe there is quite a fanbase for them out there. However, I'm inclined to agree that it is mainly based on two factors: Both of them being highly attractive characters and the potential they could have due to their personalities (and the tropes they represent).

Throughout Adventure 01 and 02, I actually cannot remember any significant interactions these two had with each other; Yamato starts off having a hard time approaching the others, he's not exactly closed off or aloof, but is mainly focused on taking care of Takeru. Him ACTIVELY bonding with others happens very rarely, so when he's not contemplating things (sometimes together with Jyou), or argues or fights with and alongside Taichi, he doesn't really have any capacities to interact with Mimi - who, in turn, is more likely to play around with Takeru or spend time with Sora or Jyou. At first glance, Yamato is the classic introvert to Mimi being an extrovert, which is not only displayed by their colour palettes being VERY different (warm shades of red and pink vs. cold shades of green and blue), but also by their energy levels. While they're both very outspoken and opinionated - they never talk to each other in either 01 and 02. In the novel, there are even several instances of their energy levels and approaches being that different that they actually clash with each other, actively fighting.

Thus, figuring out their dynamics is rather difficult - there are just minor instances (and characteristics) that COULD make them rather interesting; one of the most famous moments in 01 is the way Yamato tells Taichi off, demanding him to give them - and Mimi in particular - time and space to mourn the loss of the Digimon that have already died, implying that he's sympathizing with her. Yamato has definitely experienced loss in his life already after the divorce of his parents and still struggles with feeling inadequate as a brother to Takeru - while Mimi comes from one of the happiest, most peaceful families in the series. Her purity, her sense of wanting to achieve peace without sacrifices almost appears as a stark contrast to Yamato's "corruption" later on; when he demands Taichi to fight him, trying to solve things in a rather violent way, it's almost a shame that someone like Mimi is not able to stop him there and then (since deep down inside, he doesn't want to fight either). And that's where I assume fandom likes to step in using their personalities to form headcanons:

Mimi being a positive influence, a genuine force of sincerity to (literally) pull Yamato out of his (more negative) tendencies, helping him to be more honest with himself as well - almost in an actual "Beauty and the Beast" kind of way. Neither Tri or Kizuna really elaborated on their dynamics - but the former did like to imply that they are indeed opposing forces, twice; the situation depicted above shows the group coming together after Mimi had another fight with Koushirou. Meiko feels like a burden, since she was the reason Mimi and Koushirou clashed in the first place, as he tried to interrogate her in a moment of emotional vulnerability, while Mimi called him out for being insensitive. Yamato voices his concern towards Meiko, telling her to stop worrying them - and both Taichi and Sora step in, saying that Yamato was just genuinely worried about her, to which Mimi tries to call him a "Tsundere". He just deflects by telling her that she cannot speak proper Japanese and that she's just making things more complicated (because she refuses to take a step towards Koushirou at this point). The other instance is within the stageplay - where Yamato tells Mimi to stay away from his cooking, fearing that her extravagant tastes (bananas and fish) may ruin the dish...

Long story short - they don't appear to be very compatible as friends canonically. So, again, that's where headcanons have to step in.

Whether I think why and how they’d work:

As mentioned above, due to their contrasting set-ups, family backgrounds and way of attraction, there is an appeal that may make them quite popular in singular online spaces. Mimi is a natural people-magnet due to her openness and tendency to become the center of attention very quickly, she easily befriends everyone around her (even if some may find her controversial, as depicted in Tri) and tries to spread a positive spirit. Whereas Yamato, despite being a band leader (that is also very popular), is indeed more closed-off, with a very selective group of friends he is very committed to and protective of (maybe even possessive to some degree, as you can imagine he is not good at dealing with losses). From an outside view, they almost have that "idol-like vibe" that makes them very attractive - so it's no surprise fandom sees them as an intriguing and compelling combination to end up together. Due to them being as opinionated as they are, they may clash a lot - but similarly to Koumi, that COULD be also a strength, as it is important for characters like Yamato to ACTUALLY speak their mind without hiding behind a mask. Plus, Yamato needs someone he can truly be vulnerable around with, because he's a lot softer (and awkward) than his facade would make you believe at first glance. The question is - would he be able to let loose around Mimi like that? It's very hard to tell, because unlike with Koumi, we don't really know if she understands how he rolls. Sure, she can see that he has VERY Tsundere-like tendencies, tough shell, soft and caring on the inside - but up to this point, they're not close (or even comfortable) enough for him to not deny that rather aggressively (especially because Taichi and Sora were actually a lot quicker to pick that up - which is no surprise either, because they're canonically closer to him). So it feels more like they'd be prone to fight for dominance than being able to take a step towards each other (even more strongly than Koumi, because Mimato may take disagreement as a personal attack and can't even seem to bond over their passion for cooking together at this point in time).

Mimi, on the other hand, also needs someone who can keep up with her - people like Jyou and Koushirou, as we've seen, should be used to her habits already, but it is very difficult to tell whether Yamato would have the energy and patience to deal with her, giving her the assurance and attention she needs.

Long story short, the potential is there due to their personalities, but we never learn if and how they'd be able to interact on a closer level.

Whether I’d prefer them as platonic or romantic ship:

Admittedly, they're a relationship I have pretty much no attachment to, simply due to the fact that canon never gave me a reason to believe that they'd think of each other as "close friends", let alone "romantic partners". As they're both Chosen Children, they would surely protect and fight for each other, no question - but everything beyond that never gave me positive vibes. Which is actually a shame, because they're both (potentially) good with Jyou and Takeru, Team Hope exists for a reason after all (and I even ship both Mimi and Yamato with Jyou, yet I couldn't imagine them being an actual OT3). Heck, they're also both (supposedly) very close to Sora, yet they never had a group moment together. Even in the reboot, they were mainly just arguing and never had a positively reaffirming moment together. So I must say, I rather think of them as acquaintances than anything else.

#my two cents #meta #long post #mimi tachikawa #koushiro izumi #yamato ishida #koushirou izumi #relationship analysis #shipping analysis #digimon

[froggie-bolt]

Just a Digimon Adventure 2020 Post about The TaiShiro Moments

(Sub)

I love how Taichi and Koushiro are both shown to think highly of the other. Taichi even brags about how smart koushiro is sometimes, its so wholesome.

Everytime the group gets separated, the first person Taichi tries to call is almost always Koushiro.

and in the first episode Koushiro meets up with the rest of the group in the digital world, Taichi's face immediately lights up.

Like if anything happens ever, Koushiro usually addresses Taichi right away. Between Him and Tentomon, both are the ones checking in on Koushiro and making sure he's doing okay.

Specific moments from episode 36:

"but there's only 20 minutes left"

"that's more than enough"

"we won't know unless we try right?" Taichi believing in his ability.

"but--"

"there's no time left, lets go"

"alright, I'll support you!"

Then

"Let's go, koushiro!"

"R-Right!"

Then

Koushiro, you have to do this!"

"me!? No way! I can support you, but I can't--"

"koushiro"

"I leave it to you."

"Taichi-san..."

"I'm counting on you."

*kou hesitates*

"Right!"

"Go, Kosuhiro!"

AND THEN KOUSHIRO THINKING ABOUT HOW HE HAS ATLURKABUTERIMON, AND THEN SPECIFICALLY THINKS BACK TO WHAT TAICHI SAID TO HIM IN EPISODE 3 BEFORE THINKING OF EVERYONE ELSE TOO-

It was also just great to see Koushiro feeling good about his own ability- especially with this music at the end, damn.

episode 43 was funny.

They call eachother like, every episode to see how it's going.

Episode 59

So when they get that trial wrong, Taichi is taken, and [digimon] says he's gonna undergo surgery to become a digimon.

Taichi just smiles and says "Nah don't worry about me guys, I leave the rest to you Koushiro."

Then Koushiro blames himself for whats gonna happen to taichi.

And whiole all this is going on, we know taichi is worried about how the other is handling it right now, since he's under a lot of stress.

Bro koushiro looked so sad.

and then tentomon always believes in koushiro, always. which is exactly what he needs

EDIT

SO THE ENGLISH DUB JUST CAME OUT A FEW DAYS AGO AND IVE WATCHED (at least the episode with TaiShiro moments) SOME OF IT AND I HAVE MORE THINGS TO SAY

So let’s start from the top once again

(Dub)

Episode 1’s script for the most part is unchanged :)

However, there is the changes to the names.

While in the original Tai was just ‘Tai’, this time his full name is Taichi, and Tai is just a nickname. His last name though has still been changed to Kamiya instead of Yagami.

Koushiro actually does keep his Japanese name in the English dub! But this time ‘Izzy’ is also just a nickname. Of course, he retains his last name ‘Izumi’ like he did in the original English dub.

ANYWAY ANYWAY

one of my favourite bits from episode 1, is when Koushiro is showing Taichi his timeline, and Taichi goes something like:

(I actually posted the clip here)

“Well..I’m really bad at that stuff. You’re awesome, Koushiro!”

And Kou seems surprised and caught off guard by the complement, before quickly turning his attention back to his tablet in embarrassment and saying:

“Y-You can just call me Izzy—!”

And we know later in the dub, that Koushiro prefers being alone, which also suggests he doesn’t have many friends, or doesn’t go out of his way to make any. He doesn’t really like being around people. So we can guess that before Taichi, the only people that call him Izzy are his parents.

So Koushiro giving Taichi express permission to call him Izzy, especially for Koushiro, is something special and significant, even if Taichi doesn’t know this.

I will absolutely be adding onto this in the future

#digimon #digimon analysis #digimon adventure 2020 #digimon adventure #koushiro izumi #taichi yagami #izzy izumi #tai kamiya #taichi x koushiro #TaiShiro #TaiKou #KouTai

[somena-libra-dawn]

Oh yeah something I picked from DA Last Evo Kizuna when my first time watching it: it kinda reminds me of Shugo Chara manga between post Easter battle-Encore.

.

So yeah, when Amu lost her first three Shugo Charas, Tadase initially assumes "they're disappeared because you mentally grow up". Thus, Amu hesitates to grow up after seeing Ikuto's Shugo Chara, Yoru disappears. And that she doesn't want to end up in similar situation as well.

The issue also occurs in Kizuna as well. Yamato and Taichi have expressed their doubts to grow up / progress since the beginning of the movie. Plus, Menoa's theory which is supported with her experience of losing her Digimon years ago only makes it worse. Ultimately, Sora lost Piyomon by mid-story; Taichi and Yamato lost their partners at the end; then (by offscreen) Mimi, Koushiro and Jou lost theirs as in the credit.

.

With SC, Amu's shugo charas are back (albeit as eggs. They're hatched by the epilogue/Encore). Tadase even wonders about his initial hypothesis since her shugo charas aren't really disappearing / she still manages to get them back. So he asks Tsukasa about it, in which he replies;

"Her shugo chara were still there. They never disappeared. When you're young, and still a child, the window of your heart is clear, and you can see your shugo chara very easily. Sometime's the rain comes down hard, and the wind blows. But you know, when you grow up, there are all sorts of things you have to think about. And then, the window gets foggy, and you can't see through it... But you know, if you rub a window that's foggy, you can see right through it again. The journey you two went on wasn't a search-and-rescue. It was a journey to make sure what was there was still there. And your journey...continues even now."

With Kizuna, it is implied that they will reunite with their Digimons, at least from Taichi and Yamato's words. I wonder if the next 02 movie will cover it or the reunion happens offscreen (basically just skips / ends up to 02 epilogue which we had seen).

"Wait for me! I will definitely meet you!" (If roughly translated)’

I pointed similarities rather than fully analysis because I fear that these media may have some cultural references. Graduation and new term in Japan occur on spring, which Shugo Chara's end happens. Taichi and Yamato at Kizuna's end is also on spring because it might be cherry blossom at the background (guess months has passed since then). So maybe it is a reference to sakura flower symbolism or even spring? I dunno. I will leave it to the people who know better.

#shugo chara #digimon adventure last evolution kizuna #my random thoughts #digimon adventure #parallels