Digimon Tamers Vol. #01

By Megan Lavey     August 23, 2004
Release Date: April 01, 2004



Creative Talent
Writer/Artist:Story by: Toei Animation Co., Ltd. / Art by: Yuen Wong Yu
Translated by:Stephanie Sieh
Adapted by:

What They Say
What they say: When three Digimon fans end up with real Digimon, they discover that taking care of a living creature is much more work than dealing with a few pixels on the TV screen. Each of our three would-be heroes must discover for themselves that being a Tamer means working together. Despite their differences, the Tamers strive to make life enjoyable for everyone!

The Review
Packaging:
Takato takes this cover with Guilmon in his two forms. The Digimon logo, the one used for the anime here in the United States, is behind him with "Tamers" striped across the bottom. The spine is the bright orange that is associated with Digimon and the back features the logo once more, plus a small summary of the book. It does take the time to remind us that it is based on the anime.

Artwork:
The art style here reminds me of the Pokemon comics that Viz released at one point. The kids have large, round faces with short, spikey hairstyles that tend to stick out. The Digimon themselves are pretty boxy. The layout of the panels is extremely easy to follow, and even the action scenes are neatly laid out. It's not my favorite art style, but it is very functional and will appeal to fans of the anime.

Text:
The volume is unflipped and the SFX is translated and overlaid. In a title like this, it has to be, since the younger crowd won't be able to comprehend the Japanese or pick up on the subtitles. The book itself is very easy to read and, again, is geared toward the younger crowd. I'd say this would be about third or fourth grade reading level here.

Content (MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS):
It's the ultimate Digimon fanfic - available in manga format!

Takato is obsessed with the Digimon TV series. But, unexpectedly, a Digimon that he draws turns out to be the real deal. Now, he's a Digimon Tamer and must deal with his new "friend."

This series is definitely aimed at the Digimon fans, and at the younger crowd set that embraces the series. Like I mentioned earlier, it reads like a fanfiction, especially with the basic premise of the story. Boy longs to have Digimon. Boy gets Digimon. Digimon proceeds to follow boy to school and wreck havoc. Boy discovers that there are other fans like him who also own Digimon. And so on and so forth.

As the story moves on, Takato and his Digimon, Guilmon, encounter a girl named Rika, who treats them to a pretty cheesy fight scene. Through this, we learn more about Digimon and how they can be used in battle. Takato learns more about the digital world he encounters, and how sinster it can be. But, there's a morale behind it as well!

A story like this appeals to the crowd that would love to have their own Digimon. I found myself scanning more as the book went on, simply because the series did not appeal to me. The storyline, narrated by Takato, is pretty good, but it lacks the depth of more mature titles. And it's not suppose to be deep. After all, on many levels, Digimon is the equivalent of Pokemon. A lot of the action centers around the kids playing with their Digimon, experimenting and battling with them. The level of violence is about the same as on the TV show, and it's a book that I would feel safe giving to my niece (and probably will, since she loves Digimon.)

Comments
Digimon Tamers is a good series for someone who is already familiar with the franchise. Those who are new to it will find themselves a bit lost. It's a good story for the younger crowd, still in elementary school. If you have a sibiling, cousin or niece/nephew that enjoys the show and you want to introduce to manga, this is a great title to start them off with. But, if you're looking for something with a bit more substance, I'd check out series aimed at teenagers and adults. But, for a title aimed at kids, Digimon Tamers does its job well.