Matt Ishida

Infobox animanga character
name = Yamato "Matt" Ishida
color = Blue
series = Digimon


caption = Matt in Digimon Adventure (season 1)
first = Episode 01, "And so it Begins..."
last = "A Million Points of Light"
creator =
voiced by = Yuuto Kazama (Japanese)
Michael Reisz (English)
Uraz Huerta (Spanish)
oaux1 name = Japanese name
oaux1 = Yamato Ishida
spouse = Sora Takenouchi
age = 11 (Adventure)Fact|date=May 2008
14 (Adventure 02)Fact|date=May 2008
aux1 name = Grade | aux1 name = Grade
aux1 = 5th (Adventure)
8th (Adventure 02)
aux2 name = Trait
aux2 = Friendship
aux3 name = Digimon
aux3 = Gabumon

nihongo|Yamato "Matt" Ishida|石田 ヤマト|Ishida Yamato| is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Digimon Adventure and Digimon Adventure 02.

Matt, one of the original DigiDestined, starts out as a secretive loner whose Digimon partner is Gabumon. His younger brother, T.K. Takaishi, is also one of the eight DigiDestined. He is very protective of T.K., and often acts harshly when he (T.K.) is in trouble. In the English language dub, the two were said to be half-brothers at the beginning of the series in the episode ""Garurumon", but that was a dialogue mistake, as it was proven during the Myotismon saga that T.K.'s mother is also Matt's mother, and his father was Matt's father. Matt was voiced by Yuuto Kazama (Japan) and Michael Reisz (US). Matt is the bearer of the Crest of Friendship.

Prelude to Digimon Adventure

He witnessed the Greymon/Parrotmon fight and that's how he became a Digidestined.

Matt's parents divorced before the events of "Digimon Adventure". His father took him while his mother took his brother, T.K. He and his father moved to Odaiba, where his father works as a consultant at the Fuji TV Network, Inc. building.

Digimon Adventure

Matt has served an odd role during the first season. He was one of the best friends of the group leader Tai, but he was also his rival, which led to a large internal conflict throughout the show and climaxed at the end of the season. It was mainly over whether or not Tai was a better older brother to T.K. than he was, and whether he was a better person than Matt. Matt was much more protective and concerned about the group as a whole, causing more conflict compared to Tai's head-first strategy.

He is the holder of the Crest of Friendship (友情の紋章 "yūjō no monshō"), which activated when Joe risked his life to save T.K. from a Vegiemon and was then being strangled by it. Matt remembered how he had berated Joe earlier for constantly making mistakes and keeping them both stuck working in a diner to pay off the bill for Joe's meal, especially his accusation that Joe was making these mistakes on purpose. Realizing that, he also realized that he could not win his battles alone (a revelation that was finalized in his mind much later in the series) and needed the help of everyone, including Joe.

When they were in the real world, one of Matt's turning points was when he and TK meet Pumpkinmon and Gotsumon, whose deaths at the hands of Myotismon hit Matt hard as expresses rage for such a horrible act. When the DigiDestined traveled back into the Real World, he had one encounter with his mother, which did not go well. Although T.K. was ecstatic to have his whole family together (if only for a minute), Matt refused to say much more than "Hi Mom" to her. This encounter revealed lingering resentments in him that continue even after he returns to the Digital World.

Upon returning to the Digital World, he became angry when he thought T.K. no longer needed him and decided to leave the group for a while. He was persuaded by Cherrymon that Tai was his enemy and his psychological hinderance, which culminated into a major fight between them. Though the fight ended because of Kari's posession, Matt decided to leave the group and find himself. He returned briefly to save the group from Puppetmon before disappearing again. Towards the end of the series, he ended up a cave created from the darkness of his personal doubts, realizing the his parents' divorce broke his heart and made him resort to solitude. He refused to let anyone see him cry, which caused him to push away from potential friends. Gabumon helped him to understand that everything would be all right, and he was valuable. Matt then rejoined the party just in time for the final battle.

Our War Game!

When Diaboromon began his rampage over the Internet, Matt, wearing his black 02 outfit, was at his grandmother's place. He and T.K. rushed to town and enter a barbershop, the only place that had a computer, and connected to the Internet. With Tai and Agumon and help from Izzy, they both battled Diaboromon. T.K. was by his side, as was Gabumon, in the form of MetalGarurumon. He and Tai entered the Internet unintentionally and with the help of all of the kids over the net, WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon were able to DNA Digivolve into Omnimon. Omnimon was able to defeat Diaboromon and Matt and Tai returned back home.

In May 2000, Matt arrived in the Digital World and gave up his Crest power to free the Digimon Sovereigns. As a result, Gabumon lost the power to become WereGarurumon and MetalGarurumon.

Digimon Adventure Original Story Ninenhan no Kyuuka

On the Original Story Music and CD Drama, track 7 "Bass wo Hiki Nagara", set in March 2002, looks at Yamato theme as well as a short story of the creation of Yamato's band. Yamato had a conversation with his father, only to find out he was part of a band in his youth (he didn't sing, though; he only played bass). While Yamato tried to learn more about musical genres, he started playing his father's bass guitar, and they talked about the movie "I Was a Teenage Werewolf", and he reminded his father about Gabumon's evolutions (Garurumon looks like a wolf, and WereGarurumon is the one who looks like a werewolf).

He informed his father that his mother was writing a report about what took place in 1999, although she wouldn't mention the Chosen Children.

Later, Yamato recalled that when his parents separated and couldn't decide who would stay with whom, it was he who choose to go with his father, so that his little brother could stay with his mother. He thought about the way he always liked to make his own decisions, even though that could keep him from making friends. In the end, he concluded that, thanks to Gabumon, he had realized that he wasn't right and that he wasn't alone anymore.

Digimon Adventure 02

After the end of the first season, at the age of fourteen, Matt became the vocalist and bass player for a rock band called the Teenage Wolves. He was very popular and girls were always running up to him wanting his autograph, much to his dismay. One of his biggest fans was the older sister of Davis, Jun Motomiya, who constantly pursued him in the storyline. One time, when Matt was going to tell the Motomiyas that Davis was going to be gone for a little while, Jun said that she knew he was lying, and blackmailed him into going on a date. She also wanted to go camping with him, but he told her to close her eyes and left her behind; she later tracked him down at the campground itself.

His friendship with Tai changed considerably: while there was still a note of rivalry, it was a rivalry based on friendship, with mutual respect for each other. At one point when Tai felt he had let down Agumon, Matt punched him in the face to snap him out of it. Unlike in the previous season, Tai said, "I needed that."

In the final episode epilogue in 2027, Tai grew up to become an astronaut (being the first person on Mars), is married to Sora and has two children with Koromon and a Yokomon.

Hurricane Touchdown/Supreme Evolution! The Golden Digimentals

He regressed in age thanks to Wendigomon.

Michi e no Armor Shinka

During a plan to distract Boltmon via tap-dancing, Tai confessed that he had romantic feelings for Sora.

Revenge of Diaboromon

Matt and Tai defeat Diaboromon/Armageddemon, with Gabumon and Agumon digivolving together to form Omnimon. He was still good friends with Tai and the rest of the DigiDestined. At the beginning, a picture of Matt and Sora whilst on a date, is seen. cite web|title= Revenge Of Diaboromon|url=http://youtube.com/watch?v=A3VQ4vir33k ] Matt and Tai first travel onto the internet to try to defeat Diaboromon, but the battle moves to earth when the Kuramons escape into the real world. Later, he, Tai, and Sora lift up their Digivices to help give power to Imperialdramon so that he can defeat Armageddemon.

Trivia

* Matt and T.K.'s given names, Yamato and Takeru, are a reference to Yamato Takeru, a figure in Japanese legend.
*Matt's father seems to be the only one of the parents who is fully aware of his sons' activities in the Digital World throughout seasons one and two; in several places, he actually helps to cover for them.
* Matt has two Japanese image songs, "Walk on the Edge" and "Negai Kanaeru Kagi" ("The Key to Granting Wishes") as well as a third one sung with Gabumon (Yamaguchi Mayumi) called "Oretachi no Melody" ("Our Melody").
* In addition, a single has been released in Japan, (4/4/2001), of the song "Tobira" ("Door"), which Matt's band sung in a concert in one episode (It was dubbed as "I Turn Around" and was recorded by Michael Reisz), as well as another called "Hitoribocchi no Seesaw" ("Lone Seesaw") as a B-track.

References