WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Episode 59 of Digimon Adventure 2020, "Bolt, Herakle Kabuterimon," now streaming on Crunchyroll.
Though by now Digimon Adventure 2020 viewers will have been primed for it, Kabuterimon's transformation into his Mega form for the first time in the anime is still a satisfying development. Episode 59, "Bolt, Herakle Kabuterimon" puts his and Koshiro/Izzy's intelligence to the test, as per Koshiro's Crest of Knowledge, to achieve this powerful evolution, setting the stage for the group's leader, Joe, to be the final Chosen One to do the same in the next episode with Gomamon.
But that's not the only set-up provided by the latest installment of the Digimon reboot series. As Koshiro, Tentamon, Taichi/Tai and Agumon prepare to rejoin the rest of the group at the episode's end, Tai spots the remnants of a past villain lurking around the site of Kabuterimon's achievement.
The cause of Kabuterimon's sudden growth is twisted techno-genius, Nanomon, who, after obsessing over Koshiro's feats of intelligence, traps him and the others (Tai and Agumon simply because they end up in the wrong place at the wrong time). Like a strange mash-up of Saw and Indiana Jones, Nanomon forces the group to journey through an underground cavern, solving riddles to make it safely through, egged on by a kidnapped Whamon being held prisoner. Failure sends them on a more dangerous route, as well as a member of the team being taken captive by Nanomon as it watches from a secret location.
Koshiro makes plenty of errors along the way, leaving just him and a supportive Tentamon alone, eventually. Perseverance enables them to reach Whamon in the end, where a mean-looking GranKuwagomon is also waiting to attack them. Evolving to AtlerKabuterimon isn't enough to take the demonic insect down, pushing Koshiro's Ultimate-level Digimon to dig deeper than ever before and evolve into HerculesKabuterimon (also known as Hercule Kabuterimon). According to the Digimon Reference Book, the two are also sworn enemies; their fight even described as a "neverending" one. Luckily for viewers who don't have a neverending supply of attention, that isn't the case here -- HerculesKabuterimon soundly beats both GranKuwagomon and Nanomon, the former being through brute force and the latter (aided by Koshiro) through quick wit, cementing the episode's theme.
The sting comes when it's revealed that Nanomon wasn't quite acting like themself. They're actually a research associate of the trash can-loving Garbagemon who was manipulated into breaking bad. The culprit, as Tai astutely spots following HerculesKabuterimon's victory, is a flock of quickly exiting Soundbirdmon, which the DigiDestined hero recalls were previously affiliated with the iconic villain, Devimon.
That name will have sent a shiver down both his and Agumon's spines given their traumatic history in the show. But should we assume, then, that the devilish antagonist is about to rise from the grave? The only other instance of foreshadowing since Devimon's defeat has been Angemon's ascension to his Mega form, HolyAngemon/Magnangemon, which involved T.K's partner battling ghostly manifestations of Devimon in a similar trap to the one Nanomon set for Koshiro. Angemon was also reminded, at that moment, of Devimon's origin as a fallen member of his species. There is an outside possibility that Angemon could be corrupted, ushering a Devimon rebirth. However, it's also perhaps more likely that the mysterious 'Creator,' alluded to the last episode of Digimon Adventure 2020, is pulling the strings instead.
