Digimon Journey 02 The Starting Anime Movie Overview
Although Davis, Yolei, Cody, Ken, T.K., and Kari—the core group of DigiDestined—may make a cameo appearance in Digimon Adventure 02 The Beginning, their story isn’t primarily focused on them. Yes, they are in practically all of the scenes. They engage in a lot of entertaining exchanges, some of which even set up the notorious epilogue of Digimon Adventure 02, and everyone has an opportunity to shine at different points in the narrative. In the end, though, this movie is really about Rui, the first DigiDestined, a new character. When Rui needs assistance in the last chapter of his tale, our heroes act as both an audience stand-in and a pillar of support.
Rui’s story is essentially a psychological horror story with a Digimon theme. It revolves around a youngster who has experienced serious domestic violence and is predicated on the notion that kids and Digimon are naive beings who merely want to be happy and make other people happy. But the truth nevertheless stands that such innocence can give rise to vast evil—that an aim or purpose can be wholly good and without malice, yet nonetheless result in immense pain. This is not a film about a large, evil foe that requires a good beating. It’s a tale of how good intentions may lead one straight to damnation.
Conversely, the story’s lesson emphasizes how crucial communication is to any kind of relationship. Because Rui and others around him are too preoccupied with themselves to notice the world around them, they assume the worst about what other people are thinking and feeling, which is why things go as badly as they do in Rui’s life. Everyone takes things at face value rather than making an effort to get to know one another, which sets the stage for a catastrophe that could have been easily averted with a few talks and some introspection. It’s a nice moral, if a little trite, and one we could all stand to recall a little more frequently in our daily lives.
Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning is a good stand-alone narrative. But as a part of the larger Digimon Adventure series, it significantly modifies the lore of the series, suggesting that large portions were either made up or misrepresented by other forces. This will be the part of the movie that puts your ability to suspend disbelief to the test if you’re a die-hard Digimon fan.
Film-wise, it looks fantastic. Throughout, there is a lot of fanservice for the real Digimon, with a blend of 2D and 3D animation. Although there aren’t any Armor Digivolutions, we still get both regular and DNA Digivolutions, and the film’s main action set piece features a ton of amazing pictures and dynamic camera work to showcase them. New arrangements of the series’ well-known theme songs contribute significantly to the nostalgia for Digimon Adventure 02 in the soundtrack.
Overall, fans of the first Digimon Adventure 02 will find a lot to enjoy here. On the one hand, having this group of heroes back in the heart of things after being absent for a large portion of Tri and Last Evolution Kizuna is a nice change. We also receive a fantastic unique story with a profound moral and sound subject. However, it puts a huge wrench into Digimon lore, so I have a feeling that a lot of people will be disappointed. In the end, you’ll probably like this movie if you’re a fan who can overlook the retcons and their consequences. You probably won’t if it’s not.
