The flashback of how Kyo and Asuka met was super cute. Asuka was a super extrovert while Kyo was an introvert who got into fights. The orphanage Kyo was in was a facility run by Tasuku Tenma, Asuka and Tomoro’s grandfather, who was housing orphans affected by the Kano Island incident, with Kyo being one of them. The way they met and how they became friends was adorable, but since the title of the episode is called “Cherry Blossom Friendship”, it was short-lived due to cherry blossoms symbolizing impermanence; it also means rebirth because meeting and caring for Asuka caused Kyo to be reborn as a Cleaner when Cougarmon was born. This means that Kyo became a Cleaner at 7 and lived that life for around three years before becoming a member of the Five Stars at 11 (It’s three, not four because Kyo was 7 going on 8).

A few details of the Kyo and Asuka flashback you might have missed: there’s a shot where Kyo and Asuka have a glimpse of Shangri-la Egg and it’s in the same state as it was during Maki’s flashback, meaning it was 15 years ago. A staff member that worked on this episode confirmed Asuka’s age in the flashback to be 7 as the staff mentioned Asuka’s behavior and movements was based on their friend’s seven-year-old son, which is cute. Since the current year in the story is 2050, the flashback took place 2035 and, since it’s spring, this means that Tomoro was only around 2 months old at the time (he was born January 20). It’s kind of hilarious knowing that Kyo and Asuka were having the time of their lives while Maki was out fending for her life in the same year and had to experience Panjyamon dying too…

I also like that this flashback gives a lot of insight to Dr. Tenma. He opened up the Sakura Orphanage because of his regrets for the casualties caused by him and Chairman Wong. He’s also the creator of the Sapotamas, but warned Asuka and Kyo to be cautious of them. He also seemed to be on good terms with his family as Asuka came to visit him occasionally and was even a drummer like his grandsons; given his hair color being closer to Asuka than Tomoro’s, he’s definitely his paternal grandfather as Papa Tenma has brown hair while Mama Tenma has purple with the yellow streak. Also, Yoshimura even tells Tomoro how he and Dr. Tenma go way back and it makes me wonder why this hasn’t been brought up until now… I wonder about Dr. Tenma’s current whereabouts…

With Kishiwada instilling himself as a prominent character for this final arc, I can’t help but wonder what role he’s going to play. A part of me thinks he’s going to be the final boss, but then that would make Genjo wasted potential since there were a lot of hints that Genjo would be the final boss. On the other hand, we don’t even know who Kishiwada is; is he human? Digimon? Also, why does he know so much about the White Core and how it harbored Asuka’s Digimon?

Yeah, the twist of Asuka becoming possessed was obvious, but I didn’t expect that Asuka would give birth to a Digimon with a power very similar to the one that Wong is seeking out. On top of that, it happened four years ago, meaning it hatched a year after the Tenma parents got arrested. Heliosboamon has a sun motif and Gekkomon has a moon motif. Are they trying to create an mon with an eclipse motif or something?

Speaking of Heliosboamon, they’re voiced by Yukana who voiced Lalamon and her evolution line in Digimon Savers and New Century as well as Sistermon Ciel in Ghost Game. I’m using they/them because I don’t know what gender Heliosboamon is; they could be female due to the female voice actress but they could be male with a female voice like Mephismon. Also, the pink-haired nurse is voiced by Megumi Toyoguchi who voiced Rui’s mother in 02: The Beginning; outside of Digimon, she’s known for voicing Dawn from the Pokemon anime and Junko Enoshima in Danganronpa. Also, why do people think she’s Jokermon’s Owner from Episode 28? Their voice actresses are different, meaning that they’re not the same person!  Oh and if you're wondering about the voice actresses for young Kyo and Asuka...they're voiced by Pristimon and Maki's respectively.

Anyways, with the good news that Rose has been restored from Cold Heart, it does seem like she’ll be playing an active role later on but helping Kyo and his family. This would mean that Kaito and Honoka are not going to be active for the climax. Kaito has shown up a few episodes ago to stop Brilliant Thorns, but what has Honoka contributed to the story? I feel like she’s going to be the most wasted potential… Let me know your thoughts on this episode!

So there's three lines in the Asuka revival scene that stick out to me, specifically. Two of them are part of the same thought, so we'll adress them together.

I find the phrasing of this to be very specific. Not 'was born', not 'came into existence', but 'existed'. We know, of course, that this Digimon was HeliosBoamon in some form. Likely, it was their L6, cosnidering the second thought: