Let’s take a trip down memory lane once again with the release of Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning movie. Remember when we were children, we all shared a common desire – to have an adorable Digimon as our friend, a loyal companion who would always be there to protect us. A lot of time just passed and we all are grown up but this little wish stayed the same. Although we didn’t receive our Digi partners and Digivices, Toei Animation didn’t hesitate to deliver a nostalgic sequel to the Digimon Adventure 02 series.

2023 has been a year of pure joy for animation fans as titles like – Across the Spider-Verse, The Boy and the Heron, and Blue Eye Samurai release. Amid all these epics the Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning Movie was a perfect nostalgic flashback for Digimon fans who dreamed of Digimon from their childhood. However, for me, my Digimon was my pet bunny named Merlin, who sadly passed away recently, leaving me alone. I would like to dedicate this article to my beloved Merlin, who will always be my own Digimon.

‘Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning’ is a direct sequel to the movie “Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna.” Produced by Toei Animation and directed by Tomohisa Taguchi, the movie was first released on October 5, 2023, at Shinjuku Wald 9 in Japan, and then in Japanese theaters on October 27. It was later released in Bangladesh on December 29, 2023, at Star Cineplex.

First Ever Digi Destined Revealed!

When the trailer of Digimon Adventure 02 was released, we were all eagerly anticipating the introduction of a new character who was hinted to be the first ever DigiDestined to exist even before Taichi, Yamato, and the others. The movie opens with Davis, Takeru, Kari and the others gathered in Davis’s ramen shop when they suddenly see news of a giant DigiEgg appearing at the top of a tower, with a boy dangerously climbing the tower.

Davis and Ken evolved their Digimon into Paildramon and immediately headed out to rescue a boy named Lui. After engaging in a conversation with Lui, they were shocked to discover that he was actually the very first DigiDestined to ever exist. The Digi-egg that had been forming atop the tower was revealed to be his Digimon, Ukkomon and Lui was the one to kill him.

Digimon Adventure 02: A Dark Twist

Digimon Adventure 02 doesn’t introduce any major adventure to the storyline but adds a significant Dark Twist to the entire series.  After the continuation of the conversation with Lui, Davis and others later on discovered the dark and sad past of Lui’s childhood and how he got his first Digimon.

Ukkomon was a special Digimon, a very special to have an immense ability to change the reality. Ukkomon told Lui that he had a strong connection with Yggdrasil. With that connection, he also has the power to change reality reforming them and grant wishes. Ukkomon fulfilled every wish of Lui and another wish was that Lui always wanted to have friends.

Ukkomon took this wish in a way and created the connection between Digimon and DigiDestined. The dark truth, the chosen ones were not formed naturally, but they were mainly created by Ukkomon who used his power to create a bond between them. The shocking news shocked everyone and they were tensed if that’s true, then fighting Ukkomon will also destroy the bond between the connection between existing chosen ones and digimons.

The Message And A Different Farewell

With the possibility of the disappearance of the bond between Vmon and Davis and others, they still believed that the bond which existed between them wasn’t artificial but was from the heart. So, with all their belief they took the risk to confront Ukkomon with Lui, who was convinced to have a conversation with Ukkomon and stop the creation of Digimon for every human. Cause if everyone gets a Digimon this will create chaos and disasters.

In Digimon Adventure 02, everyone’s DNA Digivolved their Digimon and confronted Ukkomon. After a successful conversation, Lui was able to prevent a catastrophic event from occurring. The ultimate message of the movie is a common mistake we often make in our relationships – not having proper communication with our loved ones.

Digimon Adventure 02 did a wonderful job of portraying this message. Following the event, the Digivices disappeared, but the bond between the characters and their Digimons remained unbroken. This illustrated the strength of the bond between Kari, Takeru, and their Digimons.

Digimon Adventure 02 Rating

Digimon Adventure 02 mainly relied on nostalgia instead of focusing on creating a new storyline and memorable fight scenes. It’s a movie that’s primarily for fans who want to relive their childhood memories. However, it didn’t measure up to its predecessor, Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna, which was both emotional and intense.

The moment the music started playing, it was as if I was transported to another world. The opening song, in particular, hit me with a wave of nostalgia and brought back memories that I thought were long forgotten. The sound of the music reverberating in front of the big screen made the entire experience even more special. As the movie progressed, I couldn’t help but be amazed by the background music and sound effects, which were incredibly well done. Overall, it was an unforgettable experience that I will cherish for a long time.

But the story of Digimon Adventure 02 was kind of pale. It mostly focused on Lu and Ukkomon, but as a fan, I’ll always want to see more of the Zero Two characters and their future life stories with Digimon. But it failed to deliver this. Also, there was only one fight scene, not even a full-fledged fight.  The cinematic graphics and visuals were eye-catching, no complaints about that. But if they enriched the story and gave it more insights that would be a big thing for the fans. So, if I give ratings,

Overall Rating: 7/10

Story: 7/10

Music: 9/10Visuals: 10/10