So, likely similar as to what happened in the original Digimon Adventure, each of the DigiDestined is getting their own episode where their Digimon gets their own Ultimate Digimon evolution. We started with Taichi and this week it was Mimi’s turn.
Mimi’s fallen down into a lower level of the ruins with Palmon. Instead of staying put and waiting for Taichi and Koshiro to come to her, she decides to try to find her way back to her friends.
Elsewhere Soundbirdmon is stirring up trouble. It actives Andromon in the midst of a giant scrap heap, and later also activates some Hagurumon for Taichi to fight.
Mimi and Palmon eventually wander through the scrap yard and Mimi makes a kind gesture for what initially looks like a pile of rusty metal, but is soon shown to actually be the Digimon Guardromon.
I do actually remember both Andromon and Guardmon from the original series, just not the roles they played, so this episode was a little nostalgic for me as I got to see some familiar faces (similar to Ogremon a few episodes ago).
Anyways, Mimi and Palmon are attacked by an emotionless, mechanical Andromon. He’s an Ultimate Digimon so naturally he is much stronger than Togemon. So much so that one punch completely knocks Palmon unconscious. Mimi and Palmon are about to be destroyed when Guardromon steps in and saves them. Guardromon is so touched at Mimi’s gesture from earlier (wiping dust off his exterior and smiling at him) that he becomes her protector for the rest of the episode.
Mimi explains to Guardromon that she needs to reach her friends on the upper level. Guardromon scoops her and Palmon up and takes them to an elevator. By this point, Taichi and Koshiro are making their way down the shaft Mimi and Palmon fell down and are playing catch up to Mimi.
Andromon catches up to Mimi, Palmon and Guardromon at the elevator. Guardromon puts up a good fight against the Ultimate Digimon for Mimi’s sake, but is overwhelmed and knocked out. Just when it looks like Mimi is once more going to be toast, she is saved this time by Kabuterimon and Koshiro! Mimi’s fellow Chosen Ones have finally caught up to her, although Taichi and Greymon are still stuck in the scrapyard fighting several Hagurumon. Guardromon revives briefly and stops Andromon from attacking Mimi by grabbing his leg, but Andromon stomps on Guardromon’s head and the guardian Digimon is out for good.
Mimi’s anger and sorrow over the loss of Guardromon is what pushes Togemon to evolve into Lilimon, a beautiful rose-inspired Digimon. Her big attack is Rose Cannon, which upon landing on its target apparently causes vines to grow and immobilize the enemy, then cover its target and the surrounding area with moss. A beautiful attack, if you will. Time will tell if the vines growing will be a permanent feature of this move, or if it was just used to stop Andromon.
Mimi spends some time grieving over Guardromon, who has also become covered with moss. Koshiro tells everyone that Andromon and Guardromon used to be comrades in battle until Andromon somehow became infected and changed. Maybe this is Devimon’s influence, or even just Soundbirdmon’s touch?
We do briefly get to see Sora’s group flying high over the desert, and Sora looks like she is showing some hesitation over leaving Neamon and its friends behind. Matt reassures her that the fastest way to keep Neamon and the others safe way to find the Holy Digimon and save the digital world.
Watching Togemon be the star of this episode reminded me of how ineffective Togemon can be sometimes. And before you yell at me, hear me out. All of the other DigiDestined’s Digimon, in their second form, have either an elemental-based or physical attack which can do damage to all types of enemies, including mechanical ones. Think about it. Greymon and Kabuterimon fire energy blasts (which can also be weak against metal but they still do some damage), as do Garurumon and Birdramon. Ikakkumon can fire missiles. Togemon… shoots cactus needles. Like the 10,000 Needles attack by Cactuar in the Final Fantasy series. So in episodes where the enemy is made of flesh Togemon can do alright, but up against metallic creatures like Andromon, I feel like Togemon is the only Digimon which comes up lacking.
Thankfully Lilimon makes up for Togemon’s shortcomings. Although this is Lilimon’s first appearance in Digimon Adventure: (2020), we can see that she has a strong energy blast attack with bonus physical effects. She is also able to sprinkle petals and shiny dust through the air which has the potential to confuse enemies. With Andromon the pretty petal dust successfully disabled his targeting system, making him unable to fire his missiles.
Seeing Guardromon’s interactions with Mimi was also very touching. Although Guardromon could not speak like Andromon or any of the DigiDestined’s Digimon, it was still able to show limited emotions and be humanized through how it protected Mimi and Palmon. I was admittedly a little sad when I saw that Guardromon was not going to survive until the end of the episode. I also noticed that Guardromon and Andromon did not crumble into bits of data when they died – is this because they’re mechnical Digimon, or maybe it was because they were covered by moss?