Summary
Legendary Skies was a missed opportunity for more Digimon Frontier content with new evolutions and enemies. Legal issues prevented the manhua from including original characters, leading to its early termination. While it never came to fruition, the idea of a sequel based on Chinese Mythology remains appealing to fans.
Digimon Border is considered by many fans of the series to be one of the best seasons of the anime series. Its unique approach to the DigiDestined concept, in which children themselves transform into Digital Monsters, remains an iconic part of the show's lore.
While the story of this Digimon season has concluded itself, there are plans to continue the adventures of Takuya, his powerful spirit Agunimon, and his friends in the form of a manhua.
This project was canceled, but it would have given Frontier fans more content, with new variations for the DigiDestined, new enemies, and new friends. Considering how well received Digimon Frontier was, it's a shame that this sequel never got released, as it could have capitalized on the elements that made that season so popular.
Digimon Legendary Skies Could Be a Great Series
Manhua will be inspired by Chinese mythology
A direct sequel to the hugely popular Digimon Frontier, Legendary Skies is said to follow the battle between the DigiDestined and Corrupt Ruler of China's Digital Worlda creature named Nuwa. Long before the series began, the creature lived in harmony with her companion, Fuxi, another ancient digital being who helped her create their universe. Their peace was abruptly ended when an evil virus took control of Nuwa, forcing her to become an evil ruler and tempting her to eat her mate, as doing so would give her great power.
To help her hunt down Fuxi are 28 heavenly generals, Powerful Digimon Inspired by Chinese Constellations. These creatures were once the guardians of the Chinese Digital World but were also infected with the virus that possessed Nuwa. In an attempt to escape from his enemies, Fuxi fled to the human world, where he met a boy named Yu. Although the series' protagonist initially believed the creature to be an illusion, he followed it, curious as to where it came from. This decision would lead him to meet three new characters, who were directly inspired by Takuya, Koji, and Zoe.
From there, the manhua would feature the new DigiDestined traveling to the new and unexplored Digital World, accompanied by Yu's partner, a panda-like Digimon named Daxiongmaoshou. The children would be forced to fight against the Heavenly Generals, in an attempt to stop them from capturing Fuxi and destroying both the Digital World and the human world. The series continued for a few more chapters after the introduction of the Frontier DigiDestined but was soon discontinued in November 2004.
Legal issues dogged the series from the start.
Chinese publisher does not have full copyright of Frontier cast
Despite its interesting premise and the intriguing idea of continuing the fan-favorite Digimon Frontier, this short-lived manhua was destined to fail from the start. Shanghai Century Publishing Group, the company in charge of the manhua, never acquired the full rights to bring the original series' cast into the fold.. This is the main reason why the characters introduced to Yu are only inspired by the main characters of the original series, instead of the actual cast. This is a big problem for the publisher, as they planned the entire series as a sequel to Frontier.
As a result, the story depicted in the few chapters that were published was far from the author’s original idea. They were forced to rewrite most of the story, as well as create new characters without being considered copyright infringement. These situations made the manhua less and less appealing to fans of the original series, which was the main reason why it was discontinued so early. The fact that the series was never introduced to an international audience also worked against it.
These events have prevented Digimon fans from enjoying what promises to be a fantastic sequel to one of the most popular entries in the series. The introduction of a brand new Digital World based on Chinese Mythology sounds more exciting than expected. The idea of the DigiDestined Frontier getting new evolutions based on the same concept is also a great idea that would be really fun to see. However, this concept is likely never to be seen again, as the idea of a sequel to another season of the anime series beyond the beloved Digimon Adventure has apparently not been discussed by Bandai executives.
Even after two decades since its release, Digimon Border remains one of the most innovative and iconic entries in the series. Fans of the series would certainly love the idea of a direct sequel, which is why the discontinuation of Legendary Skies is such a tragic event. However, hopes for an original series based on the original concept of this obscure manhua still exist among the fanbase.
