Digimon (series)

Basic Information
Original Name	Digital Monster (デジタルモンスター) Digimon (デジモン)
Original Work Format	Virtual pet
Original Work Creator	Bandai
Adapted Format	Games, Anime
Region	Japan

The Digimon (デジモン) series is a Japanese multimedia franchise originally planned by the Japanese toy company WiZ and the game developer Bandai.

Summary

On June 26th, 1997, the first Digimon virtual pet was released to the market. Bandai intended it to be a "boys version" of Tamagotchi, introducing the concept of battling monsters. Although the launch was not immediately a big success, the release of subsequent series gradually increased its popularity among elementary and middle school students. A "D-1 Grand Prix" was also held throughout Japan, hosted by Volcano Ota.

In addition to the original virtual pets, video games such as the Digimon World series, card games, and manga were also released. In 1999, the first Digimon anime, Digimon Adventure, premiered on TV to great acclaim, and it was also very popular overseas. The "cross-media" strategy was an unprecedented success.

The original Tyrannomon that started the Digimon series set the foundation for the worldview that is common in all original series, and there are many graphic illustrations and specialized terms. However, the anime and its related games sometimes have their own worldview.

For copyright, the pen name "Akiyoshi Hongo" is used, this name is a reorganization of the names of WiZ and Bandai, respectively.

Devices

Roughly, they can be divided into virtual pets, adventure games, and illustration games. The first one is very similar to Tamagotchi, the second one adds RPG elements, and the third has the ability to search and collect images of Digimon.

Anime

TV

Number	Title	Original Run	Episodes	Director
1	Digimon Adventure	March 7, 1999-March 26, 2000	54	Akiyoshi Hongo
2	Digimon Adventure 02	April 2, 2000 - March 25, 2001	50	Akiyoshi Hongo
3	Digimon Tamers	April 1, 2001 - March 31, 2002	51	Yukio Kaizawa
4	Digimon Frontier	April 1, 2002 - March 30, 2003	50	Yukio Kaizawa
5	Digimon Data Squad	April 2, 2006 - March 25, 2007	48	Naoyuki Ito
6	Digimon Fusion	July 6, 2010 - March 25, 2012	79	Tetsuya Endo / Yukio Kaizawa
7	Digimon Universe Appli Monsters	October 1, 2016 - September 30, 2017	52	Gou Koga
8	Digimon Adventure:	April 5, 2020 - September 26, 2021	67	Masato Mitsuka
9	Digimon Ghost Game	October 3, 2021 - March 26, 2023	67	Kimitoshi Chioka / Masato Mitsuka

Movies

In total, there are 8 anime movies, all derived from the plot of the TV series. Even some of the theatrical releases have become an important part of the anime's storyline.

The main titles of these movies are usually the same as the title of the corresponding TV anime, they have a duration of 20 to 60 minutes each. The series also had two 3D animated movies for theme park screenings, which are 7 minutes in length.

American distributors had introduced the first three anime shorts, and recut and reorganized them into the film Digimon The Movie to be shown in the United States.

Also, the movie Digimon Adventure Last Evolution Kizuna, released in Spring 2020, commemorates the 20th anniversary of the first anime series, Digimon Adventure.

Manga

• C'mon Digimon (1997)
• Digimon Adventure V-Tamer 01 (1998)

Official links

• Digimon official website (Japanese)
• Digimon Adventure 15th Anniversary Project