Goggles
Aviator goggles (ゴーグル Gōguru) are a traditional symbol for the lead human protagonist of Digimon stories, who are often nicknamed "goggle boys". The majority of lead protagonists from the Digimon anime series, manga, and video games wear goggles.
Some species of Digimon and Appmon also have goggles of their own. These species are usually either heroic dragon- or reptile-type Digimon who, like "goggle boys", have goggles purely for aesthetic reasons, or they are militaristic in theme and wear their goggles for practical purposes.
Overview[edit]
Of all Digimon anime series prior to Digimon Ghost Game, Daimon Masaru from Digimon Savers is the only lead protagonist who never wears goggles as part of his regular attire. Masaru is also, to date, the only lead protagonist who never wears any kind of eyewear at any point during his series.
In the anime and manga, only male characters have worn goggles so far. The only "goggle girls" to date all originate from video games.
Most of the time, the goggles are purely a fashion item that they wear on the forehead and are not used by the wearer as eye protection. Exceptions include Digimon Tamers and Digimon Adventure V-Tamer 01.
Other common traits that "goggle boys" often share, especially in the anime and manga, include:
- They are the leaders of a team of Tamers, Chosen Children, or other human children who are partnered with Digimon
- Their names start with the phoneme ta (た) or da (だ)
- They are associated with either warm colors like red and orange, or, less frequently, blue; and their Digivice is at least one of these colors
- They are partnered with Digimon who are Dragon-, Dinosaur-, or Reptile Type, and/or have fire attacks
These traits are also often shared with lead protagonists who do not wear goggles.
Production[edit]
The goggles tradition originated with Yabuno Tenya, the illustrator of Digimon Adventure V-Tamer 01. When V-Tamer 01 entered production, Yabuno conceived of an aerial battle that would be a highlight of the story. This inspired the decision to have the V-Tamer 01 version of Yagami Taichi wear aviator goggles, which Yabuno regarded as critical equipment in aerial combat. Since he and Digimon Adventure character designer Nakatsuru Katsuyoshi had previously agreed that Yabuno's Taichi design would also be used for the Adventure anime out of respect for the fact that V-Tamer 01 would be the first of the two productions to release, the Adventure version of Taichi retained the goggles as well.[1]
Yabuno himself would later be responsible for Amanokawa Hiro becoming one of the few anime protagonists to not have goggles. Although some of Hiro's early design concepts still had goggles, Yabuno argued that since their inclusion in the two Taichis' designs was motivated by their practicality for aviation, including them purely for show on a character who has no practical use for them is unnecessary.[2] (This is despite Hiro actually regularly engaging in the exact same practical use scenario—flying on the back of Gammamon's Kaus Gammamon and Canoweissmon forms—as the V-Tamer 01 Taichi.)
Digimon and Appmon with goggles[edit]
| Digimon and Appmon possessing goggles | |
| Digimon | Location |
| Arresterdramon | Worn on its forehead. Also present on all Xros Up forms, but not on Arresterdramon: Superior Mode. |
| Assaultmon | Worn over its eyes. |
| Bao Huckmon | Sewn into the hood of its cape. |
| Chamelemon | Built into its "helmet". |
| Fla Wizarmon | Worn on top of its hat. |
| Huckmon | Sewn into the hood of its cape. |
| Hover Espimon | Worn on its brow. |
| Huankunmon | Worn on its face. |
| JESmon | Sewn into the hood of its cape. |
| Ludomon | Worn over its eyes. |
| Savior Huckmon | Sewn into the hood of its cape. |
| Xiquemon | Worn on its face. |
| Appmon | Location |
| Logamon | Worn on top of its hat. |
| Offmon | Worn on top of its hat. |
| Shutmon | Worn on its forehead. |
| Sociamon | Worn on its hat. |
| Tripmon | Worn on its hat. |
Appearances[edit]
Anime[edit]
Digimon Adventure original continuity[edit]
Digimon Adventure (Movie)[edit]
In the spring of 1995, Yagami Taichi wore a pair of goggles around his neck. He briefly used them as a weapon by throwing them at Botamon while it was under his bed, to try to scare it out.
| Yagami Taichi throwing his goggles at Botamon |
Digimon Adventure[edit]
From August 1, 1999 to the spring of 2000, Taichi wore a pair of goggles, together with a headband.[3][4]
The illusory version of Taichi's younger self, whom Taichi and Agumon encounter during Piccolomon's cave test, also wore the goggles around his neck.[5]
| Yagami Taichi putting on his original goggles |
Digimon Adventure 02[edit]
Taichi and Daisuke's goggles[edit]
As seen in flashback, Taichi wore the goggles again when Gennai called his group of Chosen Children back to the Digital World in 2000 to surrender their Crests.[6]
At the beginning of the 2002 school year, Motomiya Daisuke wore a pair of goggles of his own in imitation of Taichi, whom he idolized; he had found these goggles lying around his home.[7] When he first saw Daisuke, Takaishi Takeru was strongly reminded of Taichi, and complimented him on his goggles. During Daisuke's first expedition into the Digital World, the goggles were shattered when he was thrown off a cliff by an Evil Ring-possessed Monochromon's Volcano Strike.[8]
On the same day, Taichi initially donned his own goggles again when he entered the Digital World to respond to Agumon's SOS. After the battle with the Monochromon, he gave the goggles to Daisuke as a symbolic passing of the torch to the new protector of the Digital World.[8] Going forward, Daisuke continued to wear Taichi's goggles through 2002 and into 2003.[9]
In 2027[10]/2028[11], Daisuke's son wore a pair of goggles which resemble Taichi and Daisuke's. Neither Taichi nor Daisuke wore goggles.[12]
Digimon Kaiser's goggles[edit]
Ichijouji Ken's Digimon Kaiser outfit also features a pair of thick tinted goggles that he wore over his eyes. He threw these goggles away upon his defeat in the Chosen Children's final battle with Chimairamon, and the goggles dissolved into data.[13] The goggles also appear when Belial Vamdemon's Mind Illusion plunges Ken into a fantasy of the Kaiser being tortured by his victims. They are knocked off the illusory Kaiser's face by a Digimon's attack, and linger after the Kaiser's torture scene ends, whereupon an illusory version of Ichijouji Osamu picks them up as he reassures Ken that he has atoned for his sins.[14]
| Motomiya Daisuke wearing his original goggles | Motomiya Daisuke receiving Taichi's goggles | The Digimon Kaiser's goggles | Daisuke's son wearing his goggles |
Digimon Adventure tri.[edit]
As seen in flashbacks, Nishijima Daigo used to wear a pair of goggles when he was a child, during his adventure in the Digital World with Himekawa Maki and the other original Chosen Children. The goggles were knocked off his head in his team's final battle with the Dark Masters. He no longer wears them as an adult.[15]
When the Chosen Children began their investigation into the Infected Digimon in 2005, Izumi Kōshirō manufactured a new pair of enhanced goggles for Taichi. These goggles visualize the flow, strength and format of data as swirling lines of different colors, and as such could be used to visualize distortions (marked in red) and to identify ones large enough for an Infected Digimon to emerge from them. When not in use, Taichi usually let the goggles hang around his neck, instead of wearing them on his forehead as he used to do.[16]
When Taichi disappeared in the aftermath of JESmon's Un Pour Tous attack in the four-way battle between the Chosen Children, Raguelmon, JESmon and Alphamon, only his goggles were left behind. Ishida Yamato began wearing them in Taichi's place, as a symbol of how Taichi would want the group to keep going.[17] Upon Taichi's return to the group during the final battle against Ordinemon, Yamato returned the goggles to him.[18]
A pair of goggles were part of the Mysterious Man's Digimon Kaiser disguise. These goggles are smaller and significantly different than the original Kaiser goggles, but they are still darkly tinted.[19]
| Yagami Taichi wearing his enhanced goggles | The Mysterious Man wearing goggles | Ishida Yamato wearing Taichi's goggles | Nishijima Daigo wearing goggles |
Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna[edit]
In 2010, during the battle with Parrotmon in Nakano, Taichi used a new set of prototype goggles developed by Kōshirō, which Taichi had taken without Kōshirō's permission. These goggles were equipped with a targeting heads-up display which locks onto targets by perceiving its user's line of sight and provides information readouts about them.[N 1] However, they were still a work in progress, and an error with their display nearly caused Taichi and Agumon to be unnecessarily hit by Parrotmon, so he ceased using them.
Later, Taichi got a pair of regular goggles, resembling his original ones, out of storage along with his old Digivice, and started wearing them again until after the final battle with Eosmon.
Daisuke no longer wore any goggles, and instead wore a pair of sunglasses.
| Yagami Taichi wearing his new enhanced goggles |
Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning[edit]
In 2012, Motomiya Daisuke kept his/Taichi's original goggles in a drawer alongside several pairs of glasses, his D-Terminal, and his D-3.
| Motomiya Daisuke's goggles, D-Terminal and D-3 |
Digimon Adventure -Beyond-[edit]
Yagami Taichi wore a new pair of goggles in his second outfit.
All the goggles of every leader cycled at the end of the end of the short.
| Yagami Taichi wearing his goggles |
Digimon Tamers[edit]
When he first brought Guilmon home and declared himself Guilmon's Tamer, Matsuda Takato adopted a pair of goggles that he had stored in his room. He continued to wear them on a daily basis, except when in class at school, to the amusement of Shioda Hirokazu and Kitagawa Kenta when they first see him wearing them the following day.[20]
Takato regularly used his goggles to protect his eyes against hazards like the fog of Digital Fields in the Real World,[21] and when entering the Digital World.[22] His friends, Makino Ruki and Lee Jianliang, instead used sunglasses as their eye protection.
Following the defeat of the D-Reaper and the return of the partner Digimon to the Digital World, Takato ceased wearing his goggles.[23] He wore them again during the Locomon incident.[24]
| Matsuda Takato using his goggles as eye protection against a Digital Field. |
Digimon Frontier[edit]
Kanbara Takuya wore a pair of goggles on top of his hat. He only used them as eye protection on one occasion: to protect his eyes from a sandstorm in the Hamburger Digimon Village.[25]
| Kanbara Takuya's hat and goggles | Takuya using the goggles as eye protection |
Digimon Xros Wars & Digimon Xros Wars: The Evil Death Generals and the Seven Kingdoms[edit]
Kudou Taiki wore a pair of goggles. He had a habit of snapping his fingers on his goggles whenever he had an epiphany or an idea for a tactic in battle.[26]
During the last battle of Lake Zone, after Taiki had been incapacitated by exhaustion, Tsurugi Zenjirou temporarily wore Taiki's goggles while taking command of Xros Heart in Taiki's place.[27]
| Kudou Taiki snaps his fingers against his goggles | Tsurugi Zenjirou wearing Taiki's goggles |
Digimon Xros Wars: The Young Hunters Who Leapt Through Time[edit]
One year after Bagramon's defeat, Taiki had taken to wearing a new pair of goggles. Akashi Tagiru wore another pair of goggles of his own in imitation of Taiki, claiming to need them in order to surpass Taiki and become a "superstar"; Amano Yuu accused Tagiru of not understanding what the goggles symbolize.[28]
Hinomoto Akari put on Taiki's goggles while Taiki rested after winning the city basketball championship.[29]
The "legendary heroes" Yagami Taichi, Motomiya Daisuke, Matsuda Takato and Kanbara Takuya all still wore their own goggles while in DigiQuartz.[30]
When Astamon turned on the Digimon Hunters, it unleashed a blast that destroyed Tagiru's goggles. Taiki, having been badly injured by Astamon, gave his own goggles to Tagiru when he asked him to wield the Brave Snatcher in his place. As he struggled to raise the Brave Snatcher again, Daisuke, Yuu and Mogami Ryouma lectured him about what the goggles represent—bearing all of their power, and being one's own person rather than a mere substitute for Taiki—inspiring him to succeed at raising the Brave Snatcher in his own way.[31]
A month after Quartzmon's defeat, Tagiru continued to wear Taiki's goggles, while Taiki went without goggles of his own.[31]
| Akashi Tagiru and Kudou Taiki wearing their goggles | Hinomoto Akari wearing Taiki's goggles | Tagiru puts on Taiki's goggles |
Digimon Universe Appli Monsters[edit]
Shinkai Haru wore a pair of goggles as part of all of his regular outfits.
On Halloween, when Cameramon tricked the city crowds into pursuing Haru in an attempt to force him to surrender his Appli Drive, he briefly wore his goggles over his eyes while attempting to hide in the crowd. However, once a child immediately immediately caught him, he realized that this would be entirely ineffective given that there are cameras everywhere, and he took them off his eyes.[32]
| Shinkai Haru wearing his goggles over his eyes |
Digimon Adventure:[edit]
Yagami Taichi wore a pair of goggles, together with a headband, as part of his regular attire.
Like the real Taichi, all of the identical fake Taichis created by Algomon also wore goggles.[33]
| Yagami Taichi's goggles and headband. |
Digimon Ghost Game[edit]
Amanokawa Hiro did not wear goggles as part of any of his regular outfits.
However, while go-karting with Tsukiyono Ruli, Hiro wore a pair of racing goggles together with a helmet. When their go-karting turned into an investigation of Sistermon Ciel's "nightly procession" Digimon races, Jellymon gave Higashimitarai Kiyoshiro a helmet-and-goggles set as well when she forced him to join the race as well. (Ruli wore a full racing helmet with a visor instead of goggles.) The goggles in this case were worn for practical reasons rather than simply for aesthetic purposes.[34]
| Higashimitarai Kiyoshiro with his borrowed racing helmet and goggles |
Drama CDs[edit]
Digimon Adventure 02: Original Story 2003 -Spring-[edit]
In the spring of 2003, Motomiya Daisuke shared the story behind his/Yagami Taichi's goggles with a child who asked about them. Daisuke admitted that simply wearing the goggles made him feel as if he can do anything, and as if his feelings became stronger. The child asked whether the act of wearing goggles would make him stronger so that he could protect his family, having been inspired by seeing Taichi (wearing his goggles) and Greymon in action in Odaiba in August 1999, and Daisuke gave him a pep talk about how to be stronger.[7]
Manga[edit]
Digimon Adventure V-Tamer 01[edit]
Yagami Taichi wore a pair of goggles, together with a headband, as part of his regular attire before, during and after his adventure in the Digital World.[35][36] As he told Piyomon during the fight with Raremon, he had owned them since he was very young: they were a gift from his grandfather, who had them as a memento of a deceased pilot friend. After Taichi witnessed a friend being bullied, his grandfather gave the goggles to him as a symbol of the courage to act to protect one's friends, like his pilot friend used to do, sharing the maxim that "courage will become your wings upon which to fly through the sky" 「勇気こそが大空を飛ぶ翼になる」.[37]
Following Zeromaru's evolution into Aero V-dramon, Taichi periodically used the goggles for eye protection while flying on Zeromaru's back.[38]
When Motomiya Daisuke, Kanbara Takuya, and an alternate Yagami Taichi were brought from their realities to meet Taichi, they were all still wearing their goggles.[39][40][41] In particular, Taichi noticed that Daisuke's goggles were identical to his own, and concluded that Daisuke must have received them from his world's Taichi. When Daisuke demanded to know why Taichi saved him despite his hostility toward him, Taichi characterized the goggles as a sign of friendship and, based on his own reasons for hypothetically giving his own goggles away, he speculated that the other Taichi must have given Daisuke the goggles out of recognition of the fact that that Daisuke cared about his friends and was cared about by them in return. On hearing this, Daisuke recognized something of the Taichi that he knew in this Taichi and had a change of heart about him, enabling them to work together against Parallelmon.[39]
| Yagami Taichi wearing goggles |
Digimon Chronicle[edit]
Doumoto Kouta wore a pair of goggles.
| Doumoto Kouta wearing goggles |
D-Cyber[edit]
Lóng Zhìguāng wore a pair of goggles.
Digimon Next[edit]
Tatsuno Tsurugi wore a pair of goggles.
| Tatsuno Tsurugi wearing goggles |
Digimon Xros Wars[edit]
Kudou Taiki wore a pair of goggles.
| Kudou Taiki wearing goggles |
Digimon Universe Appli Monsters[edit]
Shinkai Haru wore a pair of goggles.
| Shinkai Haru wearing goggles |
Digimon Chronicle X[edit]
Doumoto Kouta wore a pair of goggles.
Digimon Dreamers[edit]
Kodou Ritsu wore visor-like goggles on his head.
Wakamiya Jo wore a pair of goggles around his neck.
Digimon Liberator[edit]
A man holding Digimon Card Game cards in Lacuna wore a pair of goggles.[42]
Kinosaki Mirai wore a pair of goggles over a helmet.
Digimon ReCollection[edit]
Video Games[edit]
Digimon World 2[edit]
Akira wore a pair of goggles.
Digimon World: Digital Card Arena[edit]
Motomiya Daisuke wore his/Taichi's pair of goggles while in Flame City
The end credits show Yagami Taichi wearing his original goggles. Since he is depicted in his Digimon Adventure 02 design during the game itself, however, he is not depicted wearing goggles anywhere else in the game.
| Motomiya Daisuke, wearing his goggles |
Digimon Tamers: Battle Evolution[edit]
Yagami Taichi, Motomiya Daisuke and Matsuda Takato all wore their respective pairs of Goggles.
Digimon World 3[edit]
Atsushi wore a pair of goggles.
Digimon Story: Sunburst & Moonlight[edit]
Both player avatar options from both versions of the game, Koh and Sayo, wore goggles.
| Sayo (Night Claw) and Koh (Light Fang), wearing their goggles | The Light Fang versions of Sayo and Koh, wearing their goggles | The Night Claw versions of Sayo and Koh, wearing their goggles |
Digimon Story: Lost Evolution[edit]
Both player avatar options, Shuu and Kizuna, wore goggles.
| Both Shū and Kizuna wear goggles |
Digimon Story: Super Xros Wars Blue & Red[edit]
Kudou Taiki wore his goggles.
Digimon Fortune[edit]
The protagonist wore goggles.
| All versions of the Fortune protagonist, except the default male and female, and the female elementary school student in the lower grades, wearing goggles |
Digimon World Re:Digitize & Digimon World Re:Digitize Decode[edit]
Taiga and Shinomiya Rina both wore goggles.
Yagami Taichi, Motomiya Daisuke and Matsuda Takato all wore their respective pairs of Goggles.
Clearing the first Free Battle in the Colosseum of each of the leaders of the anime series grants Taiga their goggles as accessories for his Partner Digimon to wear. The goggles of the leaders who do not appear in the game can be obtained from other battles in the Colosseum:
- 1st floor "Take on my Agumon!": "Taichi's Goggles".
- 1st floor "Taichi's Kouhai": "Daisuke's Goggles"
- 20th floor "My Guilmon": "Takato's Goggles".
- 40th floor Tournament: "I can't believe my eyes!": "Taiki's Goggles".
| 250px | Digimaru wearing Taichi's Goggles | Digimaru wearing Daisuke's Goggles |
| Digimaru wearing Takato's Goggles | Digimaru wearing Taiki's Goggles |
Digimon Adventure[edit]
Yagami Taichi wore a pair of goggles, together with a headband.
The illusory version of Taichi's younger self, whom Taichi and Agumon encounter during Piccolomon's cave test, also wore the goggles around his neck.
Motomiya Daisuke, Matsuda Takato, Kanbara Takuya, Kudou Taiki, and Akashi Tagiru all wore their respective original pairs of goggles while within Huckmon's Digital Dungeon, as did Huckmon itself. Daisuke attempted to use his goggles—i.e. Taichi's own goggles three years in the future—to make Taichi recognize him.[43]
| The crossover heroes with their respective goggles |
Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth[edit]
Both player avatar options, Aiba Takumi and Aiba Ami, wore a pair of goggles that served as their Digivice. The game's pause menu is the Digivice's interface.
When Lord Knightmon trapped Takumi/Ami, their goggles were left behind and found by their allies.[44] Shiramine Nokia temporarily used the goggles while coming to their rescue, but did not actually wear them herself and had only restricted access to their Digivice functions: she could command Takumi/Ami's Digimon, but could not use their DigiLine chat or Hacking Skills. She returned the goggles to Takumi/Ami when they reappeared for their final fight with Lord Knightmon.[45]
Kamishiro Yuuko also had a pair of goggles that she wore around her left arm. Shinomiya Rina also continued to wear her goggles.
| Aiba Takumi and Aiba Ami, wearing goggles | Aiba Takumi/Ami's Digivice goggles |
Digimon World -next 0rder-[edit]
Both player avatar options, Takuto and Shiki, wore goggles.
| Takuto and Shiki, wearing goggles |
Digimon Universe Appli Monsters[edit]
Both player avatar options, Kazuki and Itsuki, wore goggles, as did Shinkai Haru.
| {{{c1}}} | Kazuki wearing googles |
Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth Hacker's Memory[edit]
Amazawa Keisuke wore a pair of goggles that served as his Digivice. The game's pause menu is the Digivice's interface. He used his goggles as the interface through which he entered EDEN. His goggles could project a holographic screen which he used to perform hacking tasks.
The comments of two NPCs in EDEN's entrance imply that goggle-style Digivices were sold as sought-after consumer goods and that they came in many styles, including both Keisuke's visor-like ones and Takumi/Ami's smaller ones.
Aiba Takumi/Ami, Kamishiro Yuuko, and Shinomiya Rina all continued to wear their own respective goggles.
| Amazawa Keisuke using his Digivice goggles to install the Hummingbird malware on a target |
Digimon Encounters[edit]
The protagonist wears goggles.
| Both versions of the Protagonist, wearing goggles |
Digimon New Century[edit]
Sakamoto Satoru wears goggles.
| {{{c1}}} |
Digimon Survive[edit]
Momotsuka Takuma wore a pair of goggles. His goggles are in homage to Yagami Taichi, the character that he is based on.
| Momotsuka Takuma, wearing goggles |
Digimon Soul Chaser[edit]
The protagonist wore goggles.
| Both versions of the Protagonist, wearing goggles |
Digimon: Source Code[edit]
The protagonist wore goggles.
| Both versions of the Protagonist, wearing goggles |
Digimon Story: Time Stranger[edit]
Yuki Dan and Yuki Kanan wore goggles.
Misono Inori wore a pair of goggles on her wrist with her Cyber Sleuth costume (as a part of Kamishiro Yuuko's attire). Aegiomon wears swimming goggles when wearing his swimsuit.
| Yuki Dan and Yuki Kanan, wearing goggles |
Digimon UP[edit]
Three types of goggles are available as head ornaments for the player: basic Goggles, Brown Goggles, and Green Goggles.
As part of the collaboration event with Digimon Story: Time Stranger, the goggles of its protagonists, Yuki Dan and Yuki Kanan, were also added as head ornaments.
Other than the player, Yagami Taichi and Motomiya Daisuke, both Buddies, wear their usual goggles.
Virtual Pets[edit]
D-Spirit[edit]
One of the three player characters in the D-Spirit's "Quest" game mode wears goggles.
Miscellaneous[edit]
Digimon Adventure Divine Project[edit]
Heitong wore goggles.