Digimon was rushed out of the gate. The anime and video games were created to take advantage of the popular Tamagotchi toys that give birth to the franchise. Digimon World, the monster trainer game on the original PlayStation, predated the anime by a few months, which resulted in a few inconsistency between the two. Still, these continuity errors were not only due to different mediums, as the cartoon series is riddled with plot points that go nowhere or seem pointless. Digimon Adventure served as an entry point into anime for most older children, as it offered a middle-ground between the brutal Dragon Ball Z and the childish Pokémon.

Looking back on it today, Toei Animation's action series holds up pretty darn well. Sure, there are a few cheesy moments - especially in the English Dub - but the characters and story continue to make for a fun sit. For children, logic is not really given priority, but that changes as someone gets older. Suddenly, you start to notice small things that just do not make all that much sense. It does not outright ruin the experience but serves as a reminder that Digimon was far from perfect.

Let us take a look at these imperfections, with 25 unresolved mysteries and plot holes Digimon left hanging.

25 The Dark Ocean Created A Hole Big Enough To Swallow A Planet

Describing the Dark Ocean as an arc is being kind. In reality, Digimon Adventure 02 dedicated a single episode to this fascinating place, before pretty much forgetting about it. Up to this point, Digimon established there were two different dimensions: Real and Digital World. We were okay with that, but the series shook things up by introducing the Dark Ocean as a third dimension. This realm holds a great deal of influence, as it is capable of turning twisted thoughts into reality. Kari ends up trapped within this gothic nightmare before she is rescued by her friends and partner. Sadly, the Dark Ocean was never really brought up again after this single episode. Why introduce such a crucial part of this universe to not make use of it? Digimon Adventure tri. did try to fix this plot hole, but by then it was a little too late.

24 Leomon's Prophecy Is Iffy On The Details

Nowadays, the idea that the DigiDestined are the chosen ones seems farfetched, as every new season introduces a fresh batch of one-of-a-kind children to save the day. In Digimon Adventure, Leomon's prophecy envisioned seven children who would be tasked with protecting the DigiWorld. For a time, this prediction was accurate, although it became absolute once Kari received her own Digivice. Suddenly, Leomon's prediction was not looking particularly reliable. Since Digimon was not based on a pre-existing manga, the story cannot really be described as air-tight. Kari was introduced as Tai's little sister before the creative team decided to upgrade her to the team. At that point, a prophecy is not going to get in the way. Eventually, DigiDestined started popping up from everywhere.

23 The Dark Masters Are Lazy

Man, the Dark Masters were so cool. Who does not remember the first time Machinedramon, Puppetmon, Piedmon, and Metal Seadramon showed up to destroy the heroes? They just oozed power and corruption, ensuring there would be no easy way out for the DigiDestined. They were created by Apocalymon and managed to completely take over the Digital World while the children were preoccupied with Myotismon in the Real World. Wait, why did they wait until then to attack the DigiDestined? They knew about their existence, so what were they doing for those months while the children got stronger? Sure, they carried out a few missions but defeating the group prophecied to defeat Apocalymon should have taken precedent. It is almost like they wanted to give the DigiDestined a fighting chance.

22 Eventually, The DigiDestined Stopped Caring

Digimon Adventure 02 was in production before the first season reached its conclusion. This meant the sequel's creative team was not really sure what to do with the characters from the first series. Due to that, they relegate them to a mostly insignificant role for Digimon Adventure 02. Instead of finding a proper way to write them out of the story, the heroes just stopped caring about the DigiWorld. After being informed about the existence of the Digimon Emperor and his plans to take over the Digital World, the heroes react with a shrug and barely show any interest. Admittedly, Tai and the gang were older and no longer the so-called chosen ones, but they had risked their lives to save the Digital World. After going through so much, you think they would want to protect what they helped to build.

21 The Resurrected Mother

Watching a dub is equivalent to a crapshoot, as some are downright terrible. The original English version of One Piece nearly ruined the anime's reputation in America and Europe, and a few localizations try way too hard to remove any traces of Eastern culture. In general, Digimon's dub is acceptable. The Japanese versions are slightly darker, but they both have their positives. That does not mean the English dub was consistently great, as a few add plot elements which contradicted the actual story. Digimon Frontier has one of the worst examples of this, as Koji is given an extra line about the pain he felt when his mother died. This suggests that he was there when it happened, which does not make any sense, considering his mother left when he was still a young child. On top of that, she is not actually dead, so there is no way he could have seen it happen.

20 Teleporting Emperor

Digital Adventure 02 was inconsistent, but it did introduce a few interesting ideas. The Digimon Emperor is a fan favorite and the first example of an 'evil' human character in the franchise. With his goal to rule over the entire Digital World, this emotional teenager was entertaining rather than terrifying. Honestly, he was somewhat of a letdown after the Dark Masters, but the writers developed his character throughout the series. In a few of the earlier episodes, the Emperor is defeated and surrounded by enemy Digimon, before suddenly appearing back in his fortress for his next scene. While it could be argued the Digimon were against killing a human, why not at least take away his Digivice? That would have saved the Digital World a heap of trouble. Digimon might not have been particularly mature, but this turned the Digimon Emperor into a Saturday Morning Cartoon villain like Inspector Gadget's Dr. Claw or Sonic's Dr. Robotnik.

19 How Do Crests Work?

Each DigiDestined is handed a Crest of the emotion they best represent. The characters funnel their energy via this device, allowing their partner Digimon to evolve to Ultimate or Mega. At the end of Digimon Adventure, Apocalymon destroys the Crests but the heroes manage to digivolve anyway using their own energy. The season ends with the group restoring the Digital World by sacrificing their ability to reach the highest two digivolution states. On its own, this makes sense, but Digimon Adventure 02 complicated matters. The new group of DigiDestined have their own Crests, which are needed to digivolve. During the last arc, Digimon Adventure's heroes return and regain their ability to digivolve as the power was always inside them. What? So, what they did give up at the end of Digimon Adventure? And, why are Crests still being used by Digimon Adventure 02's team?

18 Digimon And Brutality IRL

The tragic events of 9/11 caused a ripple effect that influenced many aspects of everyday life, including our media. Movies and TV shows were altered to avoid imagery that could be deemed insensitive. Digimon Adventure did not escape this trend unscratched, as the My Sister's Keeper episode went through heavy editing after 9/11. Re-runs of the English dub expunge any scenes showing Megadramon and Gigadramon blowing up buildings to lure the DigiDestined out of hiding. This alteration created a climax that is rather unfulfilling and rushed, as the episode just cuts to the heroes fighting the two Digimon after they show up in the Real World. Considering the events that led to this change, and the fact that Digimon Adventure was not the only altered series, it is hard to get too angry at this omission.

17 Digimon World (Kind Of) Includes Mega Digimon

In Japan, Digimon World hit the shelves three months prior to the launch of the anime. As one would expect, not everything aligns perfectly with the two mediums. The monster trainer game gets most things right but omits Mega Digimon since the term was yet to be created. The highest level a player can obtain is that of Ultimate, making Digimon World the only entry in the series to not include the highest digivolution form. Except, that is not actually the case. The developers inadvertently included a few Mega Digimon, just they did not know it at the time. Metal Etemon, Phoenixmon, and H-Kabuterimon can be unlocked, although they are labeled as Ultimates. In some ways, Digimon World was ahead of the curve. Now, if we can only figure out how to digivolve into something other than Sukamon or Nunemon!

16 Digimon: The Movie Is Such A Glorious Trainwreck

Released to theatres in the year 2000, as Digimon Adventure 02 was on the air, Digimon: The Movie might be the worst product associated with the franchise. Toei's anime has delivered a handful of genuinely great movies, although this is definitely not one of them. Instead of just adapting one film, this messy release smashed together content from three separate sources. Despite the story barely connecting, Digimon: The Movie tries (and fails) to set up a cohesive narrative. The plot takes place over the course of eight years, with the opening two chapters happening prior to Adventure 02. Despite establishing this timeline, things happen that were yet to be introduced in the anime. For example, MetalGarurumon and WarGreymon fuse to form Omnimon, an act which nobody knew was possible until the events of the second series.

15 Digimon Adventure Tri. Is SO Slow Paced

Digimon Adventure tri. is easily the most hyped-up addition to the franchise of the last few years. Ignoring the fantastic animation and mature tone, tri. brought back the lovable cast from the original series for a brand spanking new adventure. Fans have wanted something like this since the end of Digimon Adventure, but is it worth watching? Instead of releasing a new TV show, tri. is a series of movies consisting of four episode. Animation-wise, the anime definitely feels like a cinematic experience, although the slow pacing can be rather offputting. The villains practically say nothing during the first three movies, making it genuinely difficult to follow what is going on. This could have worked as a weekly show, but this made waiting six months for new content rather frustrating. At this point, Digimon Adventure tri. can be watched as a normal anime on platforms like Crunchyroll, which improves the overall experience.

14 The Time-Travelling DigiDestined

Who is Ryo Akiyama? This mysterious tamer randomly appears in the first two incarnations of Digimon, before properly joining the roster during Tamers. Despite the obvious passage of time, Ryo's physical appearance remains consistent. At first, this seems like a huge plot hole, although there is a reasonable explanation - Ryo is a time-traveler. Well, reasonable for anime. He is the main protagonist in a series of Digimon games released exclusively for the Wonderswan console. Bandai's portable console never made it to America or Europe, but it was relatively popular in Japan. Ryo's cameos made sense within the anime's country of origin, while everyone else was left scratching their heads. From Digimon's long history, Ryo is probably the most prolific tamer, due to showing up in multiple series and headlining three video games.

13 The Hesitant Emperor

Digimon Adventure 02 is really stepping up to the plate and proving to be the VIP for this article. Ken's Digimon Emperor was born after the young tamer was pulled into the Digital World and ended up in the middle of a fight between Ryo Akiyama and Millenniummon. After defeating the Kimeramon and Machinedramon hybrid, the evil Digimon infected Ken with a Dark Spore. Eventually, this virus manipulates Ken's negative energy, creating someone hellbent on ruling the Digital World. As the only people standing in his way are the DigiDestined, he has no problem ordering his minions to wipe them out. During episode 20, the Emperor has the perfect opportunity to deliver the final blow but hesitates due to an unspecified reason. The only argument is that Ken unconsciously knew what he was doing was wrong, but that might be stretching it.

12 Time Is (Apparently) An Abstract Concept

Time in the Digital World moves at a much slower pace than our world. This is established during Digimon Adventure, as the DigiDestined spent weeks in the DigiWorld before returning home to discover they were gone for only a few minutes. While their adventure spans a few months, in reality only a handful of days actually passed. Unfortunately, this story element is not really kept all that consistent. After defeating Etemon, Tai and Koromon temporarily return to the Real World. As he catches up with Kari, the heroes spend a few hours before finding a way back to the DigiWorld. Once they return, they learn that a few weeks flew by and the group fell apart. Obviously, this makes absolutely no sense, as those few hours should translate to years in the Digital World.

11 The Power To Control The Weather (Is Easily Forgotten)

Digimon Frontier ignores the events of the first three series, taking the franchise in a completely unexpected direction. In this version, the DigiDestined are legendary warriors who gain the power to transform into Digimon. Admittedly, that sounds ludicrous on paper, but the gimmick is entertaining enough to make Frontier worth trying. Over the course of the series, the tamers learn a few impressive skills, including the power to control and predict the weather. Takuya Kanbara picks up this nifty trait during episode 23, as he is capable of sensing any changes in the weather. Digimon Frontier lasts for 50 episodes, but this incredible skill is never brought up again. Why introduce something like this just for one situation? It would be like Dragon Ball Z's Goku learning instant transmission just to use it once.

10 Digimon Adventure 02's Tamers Are MIA

Digimon Adventure tri. sold itself as a mature version of the beloved franchise. While Tamers tackled serious issues like depression, the dialogue and pacing ensured the content remained appropriate for all ages. At the end of the day, Digimon was a children's TV show, and that was unlikely to change. As tri. is being released as a series of movies, the creators are not restricted by what can be shown on cable. Unsurprisingly, the plot has more than a few dark twists, with the gang from Digimon Adventure 02 receiving the short end of the stick. After David, Yolei, Cody, and Ken suffer a crushing defeat at the hands of Alphamon, they pretty much disappear. This happens during the first movie, and the sequels have yet to explain what happened to them. We understand that Digimon Adventure 02 has its haters, but writing the DigiDestined out of existence is a tad extreme.

9 Matt's Forgetful Father

This one belongs solely to the dubbed version. Matt and T.K.'s home life is complicated, as their parents went through a divorce when the brothers were much younger. Hiroaki Ishida is their father and a highly acclaimed reporter, who also happens to know about the existence of Matt's Digimon. In the dub, Hiroaki believes that Gabumon is real, prompting fan speculation that he was part of the original children chosen to be the DigiDestined. Although this would have made for an interesting backstory, Hiroaki's reaction changes drastically once he meets Garurumon. Suddenly, he has no idea who this creature could possibly be, shattering the previously mentioned theory. In the original Japanese version, Hiroaki is unaware of Gabumon and only starts to believe in Digimon around the Myotismon arc.

8 Zoe Can Fly (When The Plot Remembers)

We are back to Digimon Frontier, a show filled with legendary warriors who keep forgetting they possess awesome abilities. Zoe Orimoto is the sole female character of the main group and can transform into Kazemon. This Digimon is like a mix between Angewomon and a butterfly, with her main strength lying in her ability to fly. She effortlessly takes to the skies multiple times throughout the series, except when the plot wants to fabricate some tension. During the sixth episode, the terrified DigiDestined find themselves dangling over a huge cliff. While it makes sense for the rest of the group to be afraid of falling, Zoe has no reason to react this way. She can literally fly. Zoe's forgetfulness crops up again during the 16th episode after a group of non-dangerous flying Digimon steal everyone else's D-Tectors. Instead of transforming into Kazemon and retrieving them, the gang decides to build a raft.

7 Emperor's New Clothes

Digimon Adventure's chosen children did not receive a style change when they teleported from the Real to the DigiWorld.  Whatever they happened to be wearing at that time stayed with them. Apparently, this was not exciting enough for the sequel, as the DigiDestined got an entirely new wardrobe. They kind of explain it by saying the Digital World reacts to the desires of the children, so Davis' earned a new shirt because he wanted to look cooler, but this is never really brought up during the first series. Also, why is wish fulfillment limited to their clothes? Is the DigiWorld controlled by their emotions, or is actually a living breathing entity? To be fair, you have to look stylish when on a mission to save the world. Otherwise, what is the point?

6 The Decline Of The DigiDestined

The entry requirement to become a DigiDestined in nowhere near as steep as it should be. Originally, this role meant the children were chosen because they needed to save the Digital World or stop a great evil. In the later series, earning the title of DigiDestined means you get a cool pet. The games are particularly unpredictable when it comes to this part of the lore, with Digimon World 2 featuring dozens of humans with their own Digimon teams. It could be argued that just having a partner does not necessarily make someone a DigiDestined, although the trainer would need to possess something special in order to form a bond with a Digimon. It is not something just anyone can successfully pull off, which makes the countless of trainers running around seem rather silly. Digimon is not like Pokémon, as it takes a lot more than just throwing a Pokeball to form a partnership.