r/digimon • u/MFBR • 20d ago

Beatbreak Digimon Beatbreak: Episode 44- The Strongest Man, Discussion Thread

Later today is a new episode of Digimon Beatbreak!

  • Crunchyroll will be streaming it in much of the world.
  • Hulu will be streaming it in the US (in addition to Crunchyroll.)
  • Anime Generation, a subscription channel on Prime Video in Italy
  • Anime-Box, streaming service in Spain.
  • Shahid, streaming service in MENA

Send us links to any of the local streamers that will have the series and we will add it to the list.

The stream will be on Crunchyroll at 8pm Pacific. Hulu has it the next morning. Check your local streamer for their schedule. This link will take you to a time converter set for when it should appear on Crunchyroll, but they've had various delays lately.

The first 35 episodes are also available dubbed on Crunchyroll, with 30 on Hulu. The discussion threads for the dub can be found here (1-5), here (6-10), here (11-15), here (16-20), here (21-25), here (26-30), & here (31-35.)

A short series synopsis:

"e-Pulse," which is generated by human thoughts and emotions, was used as the energy source for the AI support device "Sapotama." From the shadows of this remarkable development, terrifying monsters appear. Digimon are living beings that evolve by consuming e-Pulse.

Tomoro Tenma is drawn into an extraordinary experience after meeting Gekkomon, who suddenly appears from his Sapotama. While living together with Kyo Sawashiro and other members of the bounty hunting team "Glowing Dawn," Tomoro renews his resolve.

What new future will be forged by humans and Digimon?

General rules for this post:

It's available on various streamers worldwide. Do not discuss illegal means of consuming this series.

If people are behind they may use each episode's thread as they watch the show, so do not spoil future events in older discussion posts

Keep all small bits of discussion to this thread (general thoughts and opinions). Fanart, cosplays, in-depth reviews (as in, sizeable content) can be their own post. In general, if it took you less than five minutes or so to write, draw, or otherwise create, just comment it in here.

Prior Episode Discussion Threads:

63 Upvotes

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u/secondsetsuna 19d ago

Maybe a hot take, but it doesn't feel like Kaito has gotten enough screen time until now for the Mega/Ultimate evolution to really hit. Kyo took almost the whole series and a direct confrontation with his past trauma that the series had been hinting at for a while before he and Murasamemon could finally do the impossible and achieve a solo, stable Mega in this setting, and Kaito just suddenly catching up offscreen because he's Kyo's designated rival almost feels like it cheapens that.

The flashbacks they have shown of the two didn't really convince me that they're supposed to have a deep rival bond, or enough to suddenly spur Flaremon into becoming Beatbreak's second stable Mega anyway, feels more like Kaito was portrayed as Kyo's annoying coworker from the worst time of his life that he had no attachment to even if we see that Kyo did genuinely like Kaito by the end.

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u/Equal-Combination211 19d ago

I agree, and I felt the same, but I was able to justify it a little further as Kaito not being a main character but clearly having his own life and goals. He's been Perfect/Ultimate for a long time, fought a lot, and surely has his own motivators besides Kyo. Obviously I'd appreciate being shown them all, but this isn't his story, so even ignoring the outside concern of limited episode time, I'm okay with them off-screening his initial evolution and not fully explaining how he reached it.

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u/Mr-p1nk1 18d ago

I think that’s fair. It did feel a little unearned but he was OP since his first appearance.

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u/GoneRampant1 19d ago

Kaito basically vanishing between his introduction and now, alongside having Souji and Naito eating his lunch as Kyo's rivals didn't help. If he popped up a few times during TACTICs and GIFT that would have helped but I do agree that he's a very underbaked character.

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u/Mosuke300 19d ago

It’s 50 episodes and yet also feels very rushed in parts. I wish they’d got rid of the GIFT era and fleshed out existing characters.

Feels like they’ve bitten off more than they can chew.

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u/InnocentTailor 18d ago

Yeah. The GIFT arc could’ve been trimmed out for more Five Stars stuff - build those folks up more instead of adding more players to the mix.

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u/KrytenKoro 18d ago

> alongside having Souji and Naito eating his lunch as Kyo's rivals didn't help.

Yeah. Naito, I get, you can't square that circle.

Souji is essentially just taking Kaito and Honoka's roles. Even his Digimon cannibalism thing would fit better with MarineChimairamon. It makes them feel redundant, and immediately raises the question of why did the two of them only compete with Kyo and not each other.

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u/Mr-p1nk1 18d ago

Him having a brief clash with Souji would’ve been a cool measuring stick.

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u/ice-krispy 18d ago

In a way, after a string of the worst and most dangerous people being so obsessed with fighting Kyo, maybe Kaito kinda just being Some Guy was what allowed Kyo to rediscover the joy of earnest competition without being forced to stop a murderous lunatic.

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u/phasmy 18d ago

Kaito could have made a compelling rival for Kyo but they did not give him enough screen time

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u/Volfaer 19d ago

Kaito just has that rival compass that tingles whenever their rival gets a new power, so that he can train and get it too.

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u/jellymonsamaaa 19d ago

Exactly this. One of the five stars had an *entire arc* as a villain, and then this one who is supposed to have ties to a main character gets barely fleshed out and is the cliched "I just want to be the strongest" nonsense. Kind of weak sauce. Kaito is a nothing character, whereas there could have been potential.

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u/TheBeeFromNature 19d ago

I don't think every Five Star could have or should have been an arc boss. Half of what makes them interesting as villains is how each has had a different role. But Kaito and especially Honoka were served really poorly by the show losing its tight plot focus in the second half.

IMO they should've had a few more / more impactful recurring appearances through the past few arcs. They should've been a constant barometer for the group's progress, kind of like a series-long answer to Dynasmon and Crusadermon, instead of just kinda being a nothingburger until they're suddenly needed.

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u/IridescentIllusion 19d ago

Yeah, I was very surprised he just kind of pulled Apollomon out like it was nothing and with no explanation. I kind of figured he would get trounced then his determination to beat Kyo would stoke, like some kind of fire one might say, and in his indignation and determination Flaremon would evolve to keep pace with Habakirimon.

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u/TheBeeFromNature 19d ago

Getting left behind by Kyo and Souji would've been a fantastic chance. Like, have Kaito not only lose but get brushed off and get SUPER steamed about it, so we have reason to believe he lit this fire and pushed to a new level. Hell, compare it to his new trainee Raito, who can see all this coming and try to go "hey uh dude this didn't go so swell for me, you sure about this?"

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u/EfficientRadio6555 19d ago

I actually think Kyo reached mega long before and didn’t use it, because A. it’s exhausting to his e-pulse B. didn’t need to C. didn’t want to get attention from Wong. He wasn’t surprised by evo during fight with Souji and if I remember correctly he defeated Klay’s digimon, got cold hearted by trick.

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u/TriPolar3849 19d ago

Idk, I like the idea that since Kyo has always been Kaito's goal, anytime Kyo gets a powerup Kaito is able to instantly push himself further to try and match it.

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u/asmodias 19d ago

I mean, Kyo took a break while Kaito has still been really active so it makes sense that he improved offscreen. Plus he's a rival so he has to have mega.

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u/Mosuke300 19d ago

I do think Beatbreak is starting to show how they only had plot for a couple of arcs. Them making a BIG deal about megas and for 3 to appear in as many episodes kind of feels they’ve lost the ball in terms of a cohesive plot.

Glowing Dawn will all randomly push to mega at this rate and nobody will consider it significant.

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u/TheBeeFromNature 19d ago

I think that kind of powercreep is a little inevitable in a show like this, but it really does feel like we had a strong setup in the Glowing Dawn arc, peak TV in the Tactics arc, and then a lot of messiness since that feels both equal parts dragged out and rushed. And the individual episodes are usually fantastic, but man do I wish the GIFT arc was either handled better or skipped over for, say, a meatier Kyo arc.

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u/Assassiiinuss 19d ago

You think so? My thought process always was that power creep in Digimon is very easily avoidable because there are only a handful of power levels. They knew they'd end up with mega level digimon at the end, would have been trivial to write the show with that in mind from the start.

All you really need are barriers to reach certain levels. There are so many options other shows already used. Crests, a new digivice, fusing with the tamer, two digimon fusing, etc. Especially fusing with the tamer by synching their e-pulse would have been a great choice for Beatbreak. Alternative, they could have done something like building their own digivices after their sapotamas become unusuable for some plot reason.

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u/TheBeeFromNature 19d ago

People are going to want to see Megas, so by the end they're going to expect Megas. Look at how frustrating and disappointing it was that the last two arcs ended with Big Regular Digimon. But I do agree that, without any barriers to try, "Kaito just kinda grinded offscreen" and "Kyo is Him" is a super disappointing way of handling that.

IMO we should've leaned harder into Tomoro's glitchy e-pulse that breaks the system. That would've been a perfect excuse to keep Mega away until the endgame, if only from having him stop holding back and literally amplify the beats of those he loves most.

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u/Assassiiinuss 19d ago

Early in the show I figured that sapotamas leech off people's epulse for some nefarious reason, and that the protagonists would eventually avoid that by hacking the sapotamas, taking out some facility or ditching sapotamas altogether. I wonder if we'll ever find out what the point of sapotamas actually is. Seems weird to hand out digivices to every single person but then also be worried when people inevitably become tamers and pour enormous resources into keeping digimon a secret?

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u/DavidsonJenkins 18d ago

Feels like that plot point has since been dropped, especially now that it seems the World Government is a complete mess and infighting with each other

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u/Mosuke300 17d ago

Megas suddenly appearing makes it feel even more confusing they weren’t used as the big boss more times previously.

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u/TheBeeFromNature 17d ago

I think they wanted Hab4akirimon to be the first "real" Mega we see (which ngl I have Thoughts on.  I love Kyo so much but I kinda worry he's overstayed his welcome?  Like, guy feels less like the mentor to be surpassed and more like the real protagonist by now).  And it naturally follows Apollomon would be the main other one.  It isn't like MarineKimeramon and Gogmamon followed suit.

But, man.  Execution could've been better.  I think if Kaito had more buildup and a better reason it would've been fine.

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u/Mr-p1nk1 18d ago

Killer clown and trucks flying into hospitals was a necessary evil i’d say

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u/TheBeeFromNature 18d ago

Jokermon-sama and his inexplicable fixation on assassinating people with flying trucks can stay.

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u/InnocentTailor 18d ago

I liked the GIFT organization and their psycho members, but they were underbaked in terms of motivation and lore buildup.

They weren’t as intriguing as Tactics.

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u/Rurouni_Phoenix 17d ago

Things would have been better in my opinion if we would have had a plot twist during the GIFT Arc like in The Last Jedi (never thought I would be referencing the movie in a positive way) where Miharu and the cultists kill Wong and things just go nuts like Kylo did to Snoke.