No problem! I've been digging into the Ultra series for the last year now, on and off. Return of Ultraman is actually the show that gave me the Ultra fever, and is still my favorite Ultra show so far (I think... Tiga gave it a real run for it's money!)
Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
Kaltes-Herzeleid wrote: ↑Thu Jan 06, 2022 9:44 am I love Final Wars. I praise Final Wars. Simple as.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
I finally finished Ultraseven the other day, and just now got done with the first episode of Return of Ultraman. It was good! The theme song is groovy as hell (that's most likely the first time I've ever used the word 'groovy', but it's appropriate...). I like that Hideki Go has a life outside of the MAT, which should help liven the formula up. Poor guy, though. He dies, is miraculously revived, but can't even celebrate because his friends freaking burned his car. I didn't realize that the show was made a few years after U7, and is now set in the '70s. That certainly helps it stand out visually from its predecessors, all the distinctly '70s hairstyles and everything. I was also excited to see that the overall look and feel of the show is pushed up a notch and comes across as much more cinematic... but then I read that Ishiro Honda directed it(!), so I'll assume that the first episode is an outlier and lower my expectations going forward. And the first disk's episode titles are hilarious. You think maybe there are monsters in this show?
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
A lot! And no mosnter!
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
Return definitely felt like the most cinematic of all the Showa Ultra shows. You could really tell the two parters must have had slightly higher budgets than the other episodes. They seemed much more grandiose with higher quality FX work.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
I was surprised to learn that apparently the popularity started to wane quickly and it didn't pick back up until around Bemstar's appearance. I think it's best period was the first portion with all the kaiju being Earth monsters.
It's really weird too, it seems like they were all Earth kaiju...then wild space kaiju...then the last portion all the kaiju were alien conquerors and could talk. Rather than mixing them up. I could be remembering wrong.
It's really weird too, it seems like they were all Earth kaiju...then wild space kaiju...then the last portion all the kaiju were alien conquerors and could talk. Rather than mixing them up. I could be remembering wrong.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
I finally picked this show back up. Episodes 2 and 3 were kind of ho-hum, but I really liked number 4. Kingsaurus III was a rare powerhouse for a monster of the week, and Go's civilian friends are growing on me fast. They do a lot to help this series stand out from its predecessors.
And then Two Giant Monsters Attack Tokyo was also pretty good. I like that Gudon and Twintail seem to be kaiju 'species' with known behaviors.
EDIT: Showdown: Monster vs. MAT concluded the two-parter very well. Some of the best human vs. monster action so far, and the human drama was well above average. Yeah, I'm really liking RoU so far.
And then Two Giant Monsters Attack Tokyo was also pretty good. I like that Gudon and Twintail seem to be kaiju 'species' with known behaviors.
EDIT: Showdown: Monster vs. MAT concluded the two-parter very well. Some of the best human vs. monster action so far, and the human drama was well above average. Yeah, I'm really liking RoU so far.
Last edited by JAGzilla on Sat Jul 23, 2022 5:24 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
Baragon getting an actual cameo via action figure, name-drop and all, is my new favorite thing. It's so cool that they gave a nod to the kaiju that sacrificed his own career to help get the original Ultraman off the ground.
EDIT: And that was just a good episode in general. The monster's chameleon gimmick was pretty well utilized, and the forested valley scenery was a nice looking setting.
EDIT: And that was just a good episode in general. The monster's chameleon gimmick was pretty well utilized, and the forested valley scenery was a nice looking setting.
Last edited by JAGzilla on Sun Aug 07, 2022 6:15 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
Working on the episode where Minami disappears over the Pacific now. The MAT maintenance hangar with the little cranes moving aircraft parts around was one of the most adorable things I've seen in a while. You can tell the SFX crew had fun with their job.
EDIT: The monster fight was also pretty great for being a standard monster of the week beat down. Honda directed it, though, so no surprise.
EDIT: The monster fight was also pretty great for being a standard monster of the week beat down. Honda directed it, though, so no surprise.
Last edited by JAGzilla on Thu Nov 03, 2022 10:38 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
Those early RoU episodes really have a "Toho kaiju movie in 25 minutes" vibe.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
They do! The first two shows were very hit or miss for me, with a lot of episodes (definitely not all) being forgettable, formulaic, and obviously low budget. RoU is really stepping things up, and just feels much more polished and impressive.Angilasman wrote: ↑Thu Nov 03, 2022 2:08 pm Those early RoU episodes really have a "Toho kaiju movie in 25 minutes" vibe.
On that note, I just finished Poison Gas Monster Appears, and woah. That was some heavy, serious stuff for a kids' show, dealing directly with post-war shame and graphically inflicting chemical warfare on random civilians. Kishida looking for answers and taking responsibility was relatively very high-end, gripping human drama, too. Easily one of the best Ultra episodes so far.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
Yeah I dunno there's something I like best about the earlier portion of Return of Ultraman. The attack crew is a bit less defined than other teams. No one really fills a role aside from the captain.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
Just got done with Here Comes Ultraseven. Finally, the episode where two Ultra heroes meet! I can imagine kids back in the day losing their shit. That was a pretty fun episode overall, with Bemstar turning out to be one of the most impressive, memorable Ultra kaiju yet.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
RIP Jiro Dan.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
One of the all-time greats. Despite having two iconic predecessors, it's his take as the Ultra's human host that sets the template largely followed by most of the actors who came after.
And what a handsome guy!
And what a handsome guy!
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
^He was surprisingly tall for a Japanese person too.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
Well ****.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
I find Go to easily be the most likeable Ultra host of the Showa era. Sad to hear.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
Sometimes he crouched just to be in the same shot as the other actors!
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
Man, this is hard to process. Jiro Dan's Hideki Go was my personal favorite Showa host, in fact Return of Ultraman in general has had such a profound impact on me. It's influenced my creativity and drawn me to why I find heroes like Go so inspiring. The kind that endure such tremendous hardship and end up overcoming terrifying threats. From stopping that tsunami to overcoming Nackle, and defeating Zetton, he's one of the greatest. He was also the first Ultra host to be shown having a personal life, and it genuinely grounded him. The 5 Ultra Oaths is going to hit a lot harder now.
He's with the Star of Ultra now. Thank you Jiro Dan, for the memories and strength.
He's with the Star of Ultra now. Thank you Jiro Dan, for the memories and strength.
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Re: Official "Return of Ultraman" Thread
A moment of silence for a brave MAT warrior...
Last edited by LegendZilla on Fri Mar 24, 2023 5:51 pm, edited 1 time in total.