Japanese Title: Submarimon's Escape from the Bottom of the Sea
While hiding within an undersea tower connected to an oil rig in the Digital World, the kids watch a Kaiser-controlled MegaSeadramon as it swims down. They know that they won't have much time left before they run out of air, while Iori laments that it's all his fault...
We jump back to a few hours earlier, while the kids investigate a signal indicating a Digimental near an oil rig in the middle of the sea. Iori, excited by the thought of finding his Digimental, leads the others to hurrying to the oil rig. Meanwhile, at his base, the Kaiser decides that he doesn't have time for them and sends MegaSeadramon to take care of them. MegaSeadramon attacks the area around them, seals off the exits, and makes a crack in the tower, causing water to leak in. While V-mon manages to stop the water with an emergency shutter, the kids are now trapped in with no way to get out.
We return to the scene at the beginning of the episode, where Iori claims that it's his fault because he rushed in before checking to see if it was a trapnote . Luckily, Patamon finds an emergency escape pod, but it's only big enough to fit one person. The other kids decide that Iori should be the one to go, but Iori refuses, and Miyako suggests Drawing Straws to make it fair... only for Iori to see right through it and reveal that Miyako had marked all of the straws so that Iori would be the one chosen regardless. The kids, however, manage to "persuade" Iori by forcing him into the escape pod anyway and tell him, as he leaves, to go get Jou because Ikkakumon will be able to help them.
Iori returns to the human world and goes to Jou's cram school in order to get him to help, but on the way runs into his mother, Fumiko, and his grandfather, the former of whom wants Iori to run an errand. Iori says that he has something to do, and when Fumiko asks, Iori hesitates, and his grandfather tells Fumiko not to press the issue because Iori will then have no choice but to lie about it, and that Iori shouldn't lie about something, ever. With that, Iori takes his leave.
Iori arrives at Jou's cram school, but the officials prevent him from entering, telling him that Jou's in the middle of a test. The officer tells him that the only exception they can make for releasing Jou is if a family member was in an accident or hospitalized due to sudden illness and, imagining the other Chosen dying from lack of air but also remembering his grandfather telling him not to lie, feels conflicted over whether he should try and use that excuse.
While still trapped in the tower, Takeru decides that it's not worth much doing nothing and begins to dig around looking for the Digimental, while the others help him.
Jou rushes out of the cram school, having heard that his father is in trouble, but Iori explains the situation. Iori continually apologizes for the trouble, but Jou understands and calls Koushirou.
The kids find the Digimental after digging up the floor and, after none of them can lift it, conclude that it must be Iori's after all. As they speculate what kind of armor evolution would result from Armadimon and the new Digimental, they begin to laugh, and the Digimon remark that Armadimon's trust that Iori will come and save them is making everyone feel more at ease. The physical strain of having dug up the Digimental begins to take its toll on them and Miyako begins to cough for air, but the kids are saved in time by Ikkakumon... only for Ikkakumon to be attacked by MegaSeadramon.
Ikkakumon remembers his earlier defeat of MegaSeadramon, but also remembers that at the time he had defeated him by becoming Zudomon and that he's unable to do so now. Ikkakumon is unable to fend off MegaSeadramon, but Jou and Iori come to rescue them, having had Koushirou and Tentomon get Whamon to come and help them.
Iori tells everyone to get into Whamon's mouth, but Daisuke and Takeru show Iori the new Digimental. Jou recognizes the mark on the Digimental as the Crest of Honestynote and the others agree that "honesty" fits Iori, but Iori disagrees and refuses to take it, saying that this whole crisis was caused by the Digimental and that they should leave without it. With Miyako running out of air, Jou pulls Iori over to the Digimental to check it out.
Iori reveals the real reason he's hesitant about pulling it up: he's upset about having lied to get Jou out of cram school when his grandfather had just told him not to lie. Jou comforts Iori, telling him that there are good lies and bad lies, ones that help people and ones that hurt people, and in this case Iori was lying in order to help everyone. Hearing this, Iori successfully picks up the Digimental, and uses it to armor evolve Armadimon to Submarimon in the spirit of Gomamon's evolutions.
Submarimon happens to be a Digimon that takes the shape of an underwater ship, and while the others escape in Whamon, Iori takes the wheel inside Submarimon, and the combined efforts of the Iori-driven Submarimon and Ikkakumon destroy the Evil Spiral on MegaSeadramon. However, the Kaiser staying behind in his base seems unfazed, and analyzes MegaSeadramon's data...
Instead of returning to the surface immediately, Submarimon decides to take a bit of time to have an undersea journey with Iori (with, of course, Gomamon floating by).
Tropes
- In Medias Res: The story starts with the heroes already trapped in a submarine base by a MegaSeadramon, and a flashback tells the audience how they got in that predicament to begin with.
- Shout-Out: The dub title is a reference to 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.
