Digimon Tamers

Digimon Tamers (デジモンテイマーズ) is the third animated series based on the Digimon franchise, first broadcast in 2001. The story takes place initially in the "real" world, a world much like ours where Digimon is just a franchise, composed of video games, a collectible card game, and a cartoon series. A group of 12-year-olds (10-year olds in the Japanese version), Takato, Henry and Rika (fans of the Digimon card game) meet their own Digimon friends and start to duel "bio-emerging" Digimon who cross the barrier between the inforpationt network, synthesizing proteins and becoming real. Most of it set in the modern Tokyo ward of Shinjuku and only changes scenario to the Digital World for a short time.

The tone of this season has many elements from head writer Chiaki J. Konaka's other works, especially Serial Experiments Lain, including a few aspects from Neon Genesis Evangelion. Thus, the series had a very dark tone in nature, much more so than its predecessors. The show's English dub had little editing compared to previous seasons.

Plot summary
Takato creates his Digimon partner Guilmon when he slips a mysterious blue card he found in his deck through his hand-held card reading device, changing it into a D-Arc, the Tamers version of a Digivice. The appearance and powers of this Digimon come from Takato's sketches that were scanned into the device. Guilmon bio-emerges from the Digital World and is found later by Takato. Henry meets his Digimon Terriermon when he rises from the screen of a computer game, while Rika's Digimon Renamon approached her to ask to be made stronger, since Rika was famous for her skills on the Digimon card game. Other characters, Kazu, Kenta and Jeri (Takato's friends from school) and Suzie (Henry's little sister) become Tamers later on in the series, and Ryo (Rika's rival and fellow Digimon Tamer) is introduced later on. They also encounter two more Digimon that they frequently run into: Calumon, a mysterious Digimon that has the power to make other Digimon digivolve but dislikes fighting and only wants to play and eat junk food, and Impmon, a Digimon that left his Tamers because he was sick of their bickering and selfishness and thinks that all Digimon with Tamers are a disgrace. Along the way, the kids learn to be responsible for those creatures as a mysterious man known as Yamaki tries to stop wild Digimon from coming to the real world. From the secret government agency called Hypnos, Yamaki was in charge of monitoring all Digimon activity around the globe. Later, the new Tamers are forced to fight a series of evil Digimon calling themselves the Devas, who, serving the Digimon Sovereigns, believe that true Digimon shouldn't pair up with humans (it is later revealed they were actually misguided). Their true purpose to come into the human world was to capture Calumon and take him back to the Digital World so they could use his power of Digivolution. The Tamers and friends then decide to leave for the Digital World to rescue Calumon. They destroy all but one of the Devas (Antylamon turned to the side of good and became Suzie's Digimon partner) and confront and defeat Impmon, who is now Beelzemon after making a deal with the Sovereign for more power in exchange for eliminating the Tamers. After traveling to the Digital World to rescue Calumon the Tamers meet (and fight with) one of the four Digital Gods, but finally agree to work together in order to destroy the D-Reaper, a computer program initially designed to keep digital life from getting out of control, but it itself went out of control.

Several new elements are introduced in this season, including the use of game cards to Digi-Modify and give different powers to the Digimon, the presence of Calumon, a lone Digimon responsible for the Digimon evolutions, and the use of "biomerging" to bring the Digimon to their final Mega levels by merging their bodies with their human partners. The season also continued the progression from Digimon Adventures, which was set in the Digital World with only a temporary return to the real world, through Adventures 02, where the characters returned from the Digital World to rest after most episodes: in Tamers the action is entirely within the real world, with a journey to the Digital World in midseason.

Episodes
For an overview see List of Digimon Tamers episodes.

Digimon Tamers aired 51 episodes on Fuji TV in Japan from April 1st, 2001 to March 31st, 2002, and on Fox Kids in the United States from September 1st, 2001 to June 8th, 2002.

Digital World
The Digital World (or DigiWorld for short) is a parallel, shadow world that coexists with Earth, created as it was by it. This is where all Digimon live.

The Digital World that runs parallel to the Earth inhabited by Takato and the Digimon Tamers originally started out as a barren desert, which became home to the digital life forms created by the Monster Makers in the 1980s – the Digimon. Some organisms even evolved on their own from the Digital World, the DigiGnomes. But in the early days of life in the Digital World, it was attacked by the deadly D-Reaper deletion program, which had been created to destroy all artificial intelligence that moved beyond its limits. However, as it deleted many Digimon, it absorbed their data, and was mutated by it, gaining sentience and more power. It entered a period of inactivity, and buried itself away, deep beneath the Digital World.

Time passed, and four Digimon evolved into their highest stages, becoming the "gods" of the Digital World – the four Digimon Sovereigns, Azulongmon, Baihumon, Ebonwumon and Zhuqiaomon. The Digital World eventually grew to be composed of six planes – the earliest was the desert, while the sixth is the highest plane where the Sovereigns dwelled, along with the Shining Digivolution - the power source that provided the energy to allow Digimon to Digivolve. On the four planes in between are "miniverses" - specialized environments created by the Digimon that inhabit them. There are a great many of them, but ones seen included: an area of clouds and clockwork where Clockmon and Hagurumon lived, a warped, black-and-white town where the Nohemon dwell and a Knightmon patrolled its castle at night, an area of forests, lakes and rivers where Orochimon is a dictator over the Gekomon's village, a 'world' entirely composed of water and underground caverns within them where a Divermon lived and protected the Otamamon there, and a region of ice. Huge Data Streams connect the regions of the Digital World to Earth, as digital matter from the Digital World is manipulated and utilized by computers on Earth. In the void between the Digital World and the real world, there is a warped area where reality is in flux, and is defined only by the perceptions of those within it.

Battle of Adventurers
Takato visits his cousin Kai in Okinawa, only to learn of an evil plan conducted by Mephismon/Mephistomon. Early mistranslated promo information cemented the idea that this movie was out of continuity with the series, but in the finished movie, there is very little to suggest that this could be true. Given that Kai goes on to appear later in the series itself, and knows who Guilmon is at the time, would suggest that the movie is in continuity.

Runaway Locomon
This takes place after the series finale (technically, six months after the D-Reaper was destroyed in the time slot); in it, the Tamers are planning to throw Rika a surprise party, but the Tamers are forced to try and stop a train-Digimon named Locomon, who was being controlled by Parasimon. The movie served to provide insight on Rika, and also to confirm that the Tamers were, indeed, reunited with their Partners after the series ended. It may have happened right after the event, as Renamon makes a remark to Rika that "you never change."

Chiaki Konaka states in his character notes (for Rika) that he "was not consulted" on Runaway Locomon, which possibly explains certain continuity errors. On this he also says: "However, ...Mr. Tetsuharu Nakamura [the director], [who was] an assistant director of the TV series... [and] Mr. Hiro Masaki,... a regular writer for the series... paid a great deal of attention to the psychological aspects of the series when completing the movie... I am very grateful to them for boldly illustrating the parts of Rika's family life that the TV series never explored." Some differences include the fact that in the English dub, the music for Biomerge Digivolution was used for the DigiModify and normal Digivolution sequences. Also, the Digivolution text looked different.

Digimon Tamers 1984
This short story, written by Chiaki J. Konaka and illustrated by Kenji Watanabe, was published in 2002 in Volume 5 of SF Japan, a Japanese science fiction magazine. Tamers 1984 was intended for a more mature audience, specifically the adult fans of Digimon Tamers, and focused on the creation of the original Digimon program by the Monster Makers at Palo Alto University in the United States. It revolved around the roles and thoughts of each of the Monster Makers, and dealt largely with the philosophical and technological issues surrounding the creation of artificial intellligence.

English dub edits

 * In episode three, "To Fight or Not to Fight", two scenes are cut out:
 * Gargomon's gun aiming at Rika's head (his arm is painted over, making it seem as if Gargomon is just looking at Rika).
 * Renamon scratches Gargomon, drawing blood.
 * In episode 19, a few scenes of Indramon beating up Impmon were cut out.
 * Episode 23 (aired September 9, 2001 in Japan)
 * When Makuramon overloads Juggernaut scenes were edited of the Hypnos tower exploding (barely, it is possible to see it if the video is run slowly)
 * the scene of dark smoke rising from several of the tower's windows was edited mainly in response to 9/11 in the United States, while in Japan the episode was released two days prior to the attacks.
 * In episode 34, a couple of scenes were cut out:
 * Beelzemon pointing his guns at the children.
 * A few shooting scenes.
 * Beelzemon kicking Kyubimon in the stomach.
 * Beelzemon sinking his claw in WarGrowlmon's face
 * During the fight between Gallantmon and Beelzemon, the scene where Beelzlemon is aiming his Berenjena shotgun at Gallantmon's head is edited (The gun is painted over as if Beelzemon's hands are still at his sides).
 * In the movie "Runaway Locomon", some of the Biomerging sequences were edited, as well as Gallantmon's graphic impaling of the main Parasimon's eye, Mega Gargomon blowing the Parisimon into pieces, and Gallantmon impaling a Parasimon and tossing it at another.

Theme and Ending Songs

 * Opening: "The Biggest Dreamer" by Kouji Wada
 * Ending 1: "My Tomorrow" by Ai Maeda (as AiM) (eps. 1-23)
 * Ending 2: "Days-Aijou to Nichijou-" by Ai Maeda (as AiM) (eps. 24-51)

Evolution Songs

 * 1: "SLASH!!" performed By Michihiko Ohta (Episodes 3–51)
 * 2: "EVO" performed by Wild Child Bound (Episodes 4–51)
 * 3: "One Vision" performed by Takayoshi Tanimoto (Episodes 36–51)

Insert Songs

 * Primary Colours (Episode 9 and 51)

General

 * Hypnos (Digimon)
 * List of Digimon Tamers episodes
 * Digimon

Locations

 * Digimon Tamers: Resources - Locations
 * Shinjuku, Tokyo
 * Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building
 * Shinjuku Central Park