Common Tri Questions/Misconceptions

There are a couple basic questions and misconceptions I’ve seen passed around a lot in the past two weeks (especially from people who have large audiences but aren’t deep in the fandom). Feel free to send people here if you see them spreading these misconceptions.

These are all basic questions with quick answers; if you want a more thorough FAQ containing questions about the events of the first film, check out @fuzzleyan-scratchpad​’s write-up.

Is Tri a movie or TV series?

TLDR: “OVA series” or “series of films”.

Technically, it’s planned to be a series of 6 feature-length OVA films primarily released on digital streaming platforms (iTunes and PlayStation in Japan) and DVD/BD with limited theatrical runs in select theaters in Japan. However, Crunchyroll has released chapter 1 internationally with the film split into 4 TV-length episodes. So Tri Chapter 1 “Reunion” is what Crunchyroll labels as episodes 1-4.

When is chapter 2?!?!?

Chapter 2 “Determination” is planned to be in theaters March 12, 2016, and on DVD/BD April 2, 2016. Crunchyroll hasn’t announced whether they have rights to future chapters or if they’ll be available at the same time/date like Chapter 1 was, but they’ve very strongly hinted that they do have the rights and will be airing them:



Subsequent episodes will be set for a future date to be confirmed in Winter 2016

Crunchyroll split it into episodes because they can’t handle movies, right?

Nope. Crunchyroll can support films (here’s 5 Centimeters Per Second which is available on CR in the US and you should totally watch).

Crunchyroll split it into episodes because they’re greedy

Huh?

So why did Crunchyroll split it into episodes?

Unfortunately, we don’t know for sure. Sorry. Also, it’s unlikely that Crunchyroll themselves split it, so it’s more a matter of why they have the edited TV-size episodes instead of the film format.

It was initially going to be a TV series but then was delayed and turned into films, right?



Nope.

There was never any announcement or indication that it was ever going to be a TV series. On August 1, 2014, Tri was announced as a “series” coming out in Spring 2015, and then on May 6, 2015, the first PV announced that the series would be 6 films with the first coming out on November 21. All messaging from the start said “series”, but the same word (in both English and Japanese) is used to describe TV series and OVA/film series.

The narrative that “Tri was initially going to be a TV series and then was delayed and turned into films” has spread like wildfire because lots of people assumed the “series” described in August meant TV series and the 9 months before the next announcement let that assumption grow unchecked.

Digimon aren’t common in Tri, so that means the ending of 02 was retconned, right?

Nope.

The epilogue of 02 only states that Digimon are commonplace 25 years later, and doesn’t say anything about how long it took to get to that point—and it especially never claims that it was immediate. (Also, the Revenge of Diaboromon OVA/movie is widely accepted to fit into the main series’ canon and depicts a world months after the 02 final battle where Digimon aren’t commonplace.)



I think the misconception stems from the quick juxtaposition of several new kids (+Oikawa) getting Digimon after the final battle and everyone having Digimon in the epilogue, leaving the two events intertwined even though the script never connects them.



Let us know if you have more questions!

