Since its debut 26 years ago, the Digimon franchise has fascinated millions of fans around the world. One of the most distinctive and recurring elements in the series is the use of aviator glasses (Goggles in English) by its male protagonists. An accessory that goes beyond a simple aesthetic choice, as it has an interesting story behind its origin.
As fans of the series will know, over the course of its nine seasons, Digimon has featured a diverse cast of characters. However, one visual pattern has caught the attention of the most attentive fans, and that is the almost constant presence of aviator glasses among the male heroes. This tradition has only been broken on two occasions, such as in “Digimon Data Squad” from the fifth season, where Marcus Damon, the protagonist, broke this rule by not wearing glasses.
Something similar happened with Hiro Amanokawa in the ninth season, “Digimon Ghost Game.” Hiro’s design originally included the iconic glasses, but the character designer decided to remove them for unknown reasons.
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The origins of tradition
To understand the origin of this tradition, it is necessary to go back to the beginnings of the franchise and, in particular, to the manga “Digimon Adventure V-Tamer 01”. In this work, the protagonist, Tai Kamiya, an alternative version of Tai from the animated series, already wore aviator glasses. This choice was the work of Yabuno Tenya, the manga’s artist, who planned to include aerial combat sequences, where the glasses would have a practical and logical function.
Illustration by Y0pl41rD3lR3y on DeviantArt
The success of this design led Nakatsuru Katsuyoshi, character designer for the first season of the anime, to adopt the aviator glasses for the animated series. Thus, the accessory became a constant within the franchise, establishing a sort of unwritten rule that most of the male protagonists have followed ever since.
This is how aviator glasses have become an iconic symbol of the Digimon franchise, representing determination, intelligence and an adventurous spirit. Although their origin was a creative decision, the accessory has transcended its original purpose and has also become a key element in the visual identity of the series.
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