Ultra Q

[Jeff of Earth-J]

I was a big fan of Ultraman when I was a kid. In the early ‘90s I discovered there was a new “Ultraman” show, but unfortunately I was more interested in acquiring episodes of the old show on VHS than I was episodes of the new one. Somewhat later I discovered that there have been many, many “Ultraman” series over the years, rivaling Doctor Who in its longevity. A brief search of the internet yields the following results (but I’ve probably missed a few).

Ultra Q  
Ultraman 1966-67
UltraSeven 1967-68 
Return of…(Jack) 1971-72 
Ultraman Ace 1972-73 
Ultraman Taro 1973-74 
Ultraman Leo 1974-75 
Ultraman 80 1980-81 
Ultraman USA (The Adventure Begins) 1987
Ultraman Great (Towards the Future) 1990-91 
Ultraman Powered (The Ultimate Hero) 1993 
Ultraman Hero 1995
Ultraman Zearth (parody) 1996-97 
Ultraman Tiga 1996-97 
Ultraman Dyna 1997-98 
Ultraman Gaia 1998-99 
Ultraman Nice 1999-00
Ultraman Neos 2000-2001
Ultraman Cosmos 2001-02 
Ultra Q: Dark Fantasy 2004 
Ultraman: Next 2004 - p.82
Ultraman Nexus 2004-05 - p.82
Ultraman Max 2005-06 - p.86
Ultraman Mebius 2006-07 - p.91
Ultraman UltraSeven X 2007 - p.99
UltraGalaxy: Mega Monster Battle 2007-2009 - p.100
Ultraman Retsuden 2011-13
Neo Ultra Q 2013
Ultraman Ginga 2013 
Ultraman Ginga S 2014 
Ultraman X 2015-16 
Ultraman Orb 2016 
Ultraman Geed 2017 
Ultraman R/B 2018
Ultraman Taiga 2019
Ultraman Z 2020
Ultraman Trigger 2021
Ultraman Decker 2022
Ultraman Blazar 2023
Ultraman Arc 2024
Ultraman Omega 2025
Ultraman Theo 2026

We’ve been discussing other tokusatsu series in this forum lately, and because those series were produced later than Ultraman, I expected them to be technically better, but I ended up being somewhat disappointed in Super Robot Red Baron and Iron King. I enjoyed them, but I didn’t like them as much as I hoped to. Now I’ve started watching Ultraseven, and it’s everything I hoped it would be.

As the liner noteson the DVD set point out, “the difference in the overall quality in production between Ultraman and Ultraseven was marked, and made the show memorable 45 years later. According to Wikipedia, “Such is his popularity that Ultra Seven (or simply 'Seven') has appeared or at least made cameos in nearly every Ultra Series following his own and has had far more exposure than even the original Ultraman (though the original Ultraman is without a doubt the face of the Ultras).”

My wife and I disagree about the relative merits of Ultraseven in comparison to SRRB/IK. I would like to start the discussion with a look at the opening title sequence and music, then open the floor for rebutal.

The title sequence of Ultraman, as you will recall, looks as if it had been spelled out in a can of paint, slowly stirred, then run backwards. Ultraseven looks more like it had been spelled out in brightly colored confetti, placed atop one of those old electric football games, shaken apart, then run backwards. Whereas the soundtrack of Ultraman is jazzy, that of Ultraseven shows more of a classical influence.

Here is the English translation of the lyrics…

Seven… Seven… Seven… Seven…

Seven! Seven! Seven!
Seven! Seven! Seven!

A distant star was once his home
Ultra Seven! Fighter Seven!
Ultra Seven! Seven! Seven!

Onward to the edge of the galaxy
Use your Ultra-Eye and… STRIKE!
Seven! Seven! Seven!
Seven! Seven! Seven!

Dan Moroboshi is his borrowed name
Ultra Seven! Hero Seven!
Ultra Seven! Seven! Seven!

Defeat the great fire-breathing monster
Use yout Ultra-Beam and STRIKE!

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Sanders mocks Beck for studying Ultraman on her own time.

This is easily my least favorite scene of the episode... for two reasons. First, Sanders is a total @$$ (as usual); second, after he leaves, Beck smiles, indicating she is charmed by him. Yechh!!

[The Baron]

Episode 13:: "The Final  Showdown?"

1. We open with WINR HQ being destroyed when a cocoon falls on it from space.
2. And suddenly, we have different, more dramatic opening credits for the final episode.
3. Beck notes that Kai is already beginning to heal. She discovers the Beta Capsule.
4. The critter is Zetton (or "Powered Zetton"), the final  boss from the original Ultraman series.
5. Kai, Sanders and Young are shipped off in an ambulance.  When the WINR team meets later, Beck reveals her belief thst Kai is Ultraman. Csp decides to keep it secret.
6. The miliitary deploys toy tanks to attack Zetton, to no effect. They consider a nuclear strike.
7. Sanders is extra insufferable in this episode, really unlikable.
8. WINR works out a way to use the Beta Capsule to boost the power of their weapons.
9. Ultraman apologizes to Kai, and separates from him. Ultraman fights Zetton. It doesn't go well, but he is finally able to defeat Zetton, after which he collapses.
10. The Baltan ship arrives. Sanders - once again defying Cap's orders - fires on it to no effect. The Ultras arrive and join the attack, destroying the Baltan ship.
11. We get new closing credits, too.

Overall: An OK wrap-up,with some interesting ideas.

The Series Overall:  It was OK, but not great. I probably would have liked it when I was six. I found Cap putting up with Sanders' regular insubordination less realistic than the space monsters. I like to think that after it was all over, Cap set about bouncing Sanders out of WINR.

 

[Jeff of Earth-J]

We open with WINR HQ being destroyed when a cocoon falls on it from space.

That scene reminded me so  much of an Eagle crashing near Moonbase Alpha from the opening of Space: 1999 that I was more disappointed than usual at the bland opening of Ultraman Powered (despite the fact that they did re-do the opening credits for the final episode). Say what you will about Space: 1999, but it had one of the most exiting TV show openings I have ever seen.

She discovers the Beta Capsule.

She looks at it as if it was a pregnancy test.

Sanders is extra insufferable in this episode, really unlikable.

Not to mention that he disobeys a direct order, again.

Sanders - once again defying Cap's orders - fires on it to no effect.

There ya go... not only does he disobey Cap's order's to his face, but he did so in a face-to-face situation, with absolutely no consequences.

Ultraman apologizes to Kai...

He sounds like Lyle Waggoner.

This series was marred by sub-standard model work, but also the interior sets were really unconvincing.

That takes care of, I think, all of the live-action Ultra-series. (There are a few listed online as "special series" whihc don't seem to be available.) there is an animated series from 1979-80 I may get to at some point, but after nearly 13 years it feels good to cap this discussion off (although I gladly accepted some help there at the end. Thanks, Bob!

[The Baron]

That takes care of, I think, all of the live-action Ultra-series.

There are two Ultraman series that I don't see on your list at the start of the thread:

1. Ultraman Omega, which aired from July 5,2025 to January 17, 2026.
2. Ultramsn Theo, which has not aired yet.

 

[Jeff of Earth-J]

I have added Ultraman Omega and Ultraman Theo to the list. 

Also, it occurs to me that this thread actuall begins with UltraSeven. that is because it followed on the heels of two of Commander Benson's Deck Logs, #141-142, dealing with the original series. (For that matter, Ultra Q has not been discussed here, either.) It had always been my intention, at some point, to re-do the index (correcting the page numbers from Ning 2.0 to Ning 3.0) and add them at that time, but you of all people know what a daunting task that can be. (I need to do that for "Dark Shadows" as well.) I will probably never get around to it, but allow me to take this opportunity to provide those links here:

Blog Entry: Deck Log Entry # 141 In a Super-Jet He Comes from a Billion Miles A...

Blog Entry: Deck Log Entry # 142 . . . Comes Our Hero Ultraman!

They are well worth reading (or re-reading), much moreso than my pathetic blatherings here.

Ultraman Theo?

[The Baron]

Next up is Ultra Q, the series that started it all.

Episode 1: "Defeat Gomess!"

1. There is trouble at the construction of a train tunnel for a new train line. A monster - who will turn out to be Gomess - is after what looks like an egg. Gomess is portrayed by a modified Godzilla suit.
2. Today's Amalgam: Gomess Addams!
3. Workers bring the egg out of the tunnel.
4. Boss: "Is that the guy who is an alcoholic?" Guess he's had no sensitivitry training, Also, do  you want a guy with a known drinking problem working on your tunnel?
5. Apparently, there's a tunnel inside the tunnel. Tunnelception!
6. We meet who I'm guessing will be our heroes:
   1. Jun Sanjome, a reporter, who is played by Kenji Sahara, who was in a zillion Toho kaiju eiga, from Rodan to Godzilla: Final Wars.
   2. Yuriko Edogawa, a.k.a. Rui-chan, a photogrspher, who is played by Hiroko Sakurai, who will return as Akiko Fuji in Ultraman.
   3. Ippei Togawa, their pilot,who is played by Yasuhiko Saijo, who appeared in several Ultra series.
7. Other charcters include Nitta, a senior reporter, and Jiro, a nerdy kid who is this episode's "Kenny". Jiro recognizes the egg.
8. Jun and Rui-chan explore the cave, but there is an earthquake while thye're in there.
9. Nitta, Ippei and Jiro go to a nearby temple, where they learn the legend of  Gomess and Litra, who seem to be fated enemies.
10. Jiro gets the idea of hatchng Litra from the egg so it can fight Gomess.
11. Gomess chases Jun and Rui-chan through the caves until some workers rescue them. Give Rui credit, she's snapping pictures the whole time.
12. Litra hatches from the egg. It's a large bird - too large to have come out of that egg, frankly.
13. Gomess emerges from the cave and fights Litra. It's a brief fight, but it's still a better fight than anything that we saw in Ultraman Powered. Of course, Tsuburaya was still alive in those days.Anyway, Litra kills Gomess with its "dissolving breath", and then dies itself, saving Japan from having to order nine tons of bird seed from PetSmart.

Overall: A pretty good start. I'm hoping that Jiro isn't a regular.  I notice that the critters in this are much smaller than in the G-Films of this era.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

I've seen every episode in this series only once each and welcome the opportunity to watch them again. I think of it as a kaiju anthology series with a regular cast. On my first time through, I soon came to see Jun, Rui and Ippei as the Japanese Clark Kent, Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen.

[The Baron]

Episode 2: "Goro and Goroh"

1. In a monkey sanctuary, a giant monkey interferes with a ropeway. The monkey costume is pretty bad.
2. A young guy named "Goro" works at the sanctuary. Goro seems to have "developmental issues", or maybe he's simply a deaf-mute. He is blaned for damage that monkeys apparently did. Some Aoba nuts are missing, whatever they are.
3. Goro gathers food for the giant monkey (hereafter "Goroh").
4. Junn and Ippei her from Yuriko, who is on Eilan Island in the South Pacific. The pair of them are assigned two the giant monkey story.
5. A milkman is frightened by Goroh, who drinks his milk. Goro summons his big pal again.
6. Jun and  Ippei arrive by helicopter. Yuriko is summoned to join them.
7. Our heroes find Goro being beaten for stealing food to feed Goroh.  The cops come to haul Goro away. Yuriko motes that she encountered a giant monkey on Eilan Island. It seems that Aoba nuts make monkeys grow.
8. Goroh enters the town and starts trashing stuff. Yuriko suggests sending Goroh to Eilan Island, which I'm sure will thrill the people living there.
9. Goro is tricked into giving Goroh drugged milk, to make it easier to ship him. Goro is distressed by this outcome, but is unble to express himself articulately.

Overall: Another pretty good episode.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

That ending is quite ambiguous, I think. Goro was tricked into drugging Goroh, but it was for the giant monkey's own good. Goro reacts as if he had just poisoned Goroh, which made me fell kind of bad for him.

I'm getting some use out of that Ultraman Episode Guide I bought recently... but not much. It is little more than a compilation of episode summaries, with no commentary. I'm glad to have even that, but the least I expected was a profile of each kaiju and a look at the respective scientific organization of each series and profiles of each of the cast. there is usually more information in the booklets which accompamy the DVD sets that is to be found here. there is an introduction, however, which points out elements of Ultra Q which would be carried over into the entire Ultraman franchise going forward, including...

• Science as a force for good
• Rampaging kaiju as metaphor
• Intelligence & practical use of force

[The Baron]

Episode 3: "The Gift From Space"

1. Jun and Yuriko are flying back from a job when they see something crash into the sea. It runs out to be a Mars probe that had been believed lost. Jun, Yuriko and Ippei (hereafter "the Trio") discuss it with an acdemic with a prodigious mustache. He thinks that Martians may have sent the probe back.
2. Two small gold balls were in the capsule. Some experts discuss it and then have the balls locked up. A guy cosplaying as a Blues Brother twenty years esrly breaks in and steals the two balls along with a ton of cash.
3. The Blues Brother tries to force a pilot to  fly him somewhere.  The two brawl, and one of the balls drops on the  piot's office floor. The pilot gives in and flies the Blues Brother to an undisclosed location. The Blues Brother meets with a confederate in a cave. The other gold ball falls into a volcanic puddle, where it grows into a slug monster. Its name is not given in the episode, but apparently, it's called "Namegon".
4. The Trio fly to investigate reports of a monster. In flight, Ipppei gifts Yuriko a pendant made of the other gold ball, which he apparently he found and didn't think to wonder where it came from or who might own it. Also, I thought Ippei was the pilot, but Jun does all the flying here.
5. The Trio emnter the cave and find the crooks dead. Namegon spots them and chases them out of the cave.It has grown to an enormous size and follows them out.  It chases Jun, but falls into the sea, where the salt water disintegrates it.
6. Later, the Trio discuss the day's events with Professor Mustache. They consider the possibility that Namegon was sent as a warning to humanity to not bother them. Yuriko inadvertently exposes the other ball to an open flame (lucky she didn't set herself on fire) and it grows and hatches into another Namegon, as our heroes race to get some salt water.

Overall: Another entertaining episode.