Ask John: Could There Be A Digimon Revival in America?

Question:
Whatever happened to the Digimon DVDs in America? Digimon was a pretty popular series (and still has a bit of a fanbase today), but only one or two DVDs of the series were released, and even they only contained the highlights from the season. With the coming of Digimon Savers next year, do you think DVDs of the older seasons are a possibility?

Answer:
I occasionally receive inquiries like this one about the Digimon franchise, which suggests that interest in the Digimon anime hasn’t entirely evaporated in America. But I don’t think that Digimon has ever been a particularly popular franchise in America. Digimon was created seemingly in response to the success of Pocket Monster, and in America the franchise always seemed overshadowed by Pokemon. Apparently both Twentieth Century Fox and Alliance Entertainment have attempted to release Digimon anime on American DVD. The fact that all of these DVDs seem to be out of print may be taken as statement of the lack of interest in the franchise among American consumers. Furthermore, TOKYOPOP’s allowed its Digimon manga to go out of print last year, and earlier this year Bandai ceased distributing its American Digimon collectable card game.

In March of this year comic industry newswatch group ICv2 reported an unconfirmed rumor Bandai would bring the Digimon Savers anime series and accompanying merchandise to America next year. So far that rumor has remained unconfirmed. Bandai has not made any comments about plans to revive the Digimon franchise in America. No further word about a possible American release of Digimon Savers has come to light in the past seven months since the original rumor broke.

Digimon Savers is a slightly more mature series than its predecessors in the respect that it stars a teen instead of a preadolescent, and the show seems to be targeted at a slightly older audience than the earlier Digimon anime. I think that Digimon Savers is easily comparable to the 2002 television series Dragon Drive. Bandai did release all of the Dragon Drive TV series, but the show never seemed to sell very well. If the minimal American success of Dragon Drive can be taken as an indication of the potential success of Digimon Savers, I wouldn’t expect Digimon Savers to generate a sudden revival of interest in the Digimon franchise among American consumers.

I don’t know what the domestic licensing status of the earlier Digimon anime is. I don’t know if the early Digimon anime is still licensed for American distribution by 20th Century Fox or some other company, or if the distribution rights have reverted to Japan. A new American release of the early Digimon anime may be unlikely if the show distribution rights are still held by an American company. If the show wasn’t successful on American home video the first time, there’s little reason to try again. If Bandai has the ability to supplement an American release of Digimon Savers with the earlier shows, it’s hard to predict whether or not they will. Bandai may decide not to re-release the earlier Digimon anime in order to distinguish the new series from the earlier shows. If Digimon Savers becomes popular in America, a re-release of the earlier Digimon series may become more viable.

At the present time the Digimon franchise seems like its lifespan in the American market has come and gone. I don’t anticipate seeing the earlier Digimon series on American DVD even if Digimon Savers gets an American release because the audience for Digimon DVDs (particularly the older series) in America seems likely to be too small to justify the cost of producing and releasing them.