So I finally finished watching season 1 of the Netflix
Ultraman anime. The first thing I can say is that after the MASSIVE letdown
that was the Godzilla anime trilogy, this was miles better! I know that several
old school fans complained that it was basically like an updated version of
Iron Man (with the heroes encased inside the armor suits), however, I didn’t
mind that at all. I figure that they needed to update the show in order to make
it appealing to mass audiences, as well as anime fans. I felt they did a good
job in making it a continuation of Hayata’s story, this time focusing on his
son Shinjiro.
It begins years later after Ultraman left the earth. Hayata
is now much older. He soon discovers that his son possesses the same abilities
that enable him to be an Ultraman. Ide recruits Shinjiro into the science
patrol to fulfill his destiny of becoming an Ultraman.
In addition to Hayata and Ide, it also brings in Dan
Moroboshi, who plays a bitchy, tough member of the science patrol and is also
an Ultraman himself. Jack also returns, as a human who lives among aliens in
Alien City. As for the monsters, they’re nicely updated and I enjoyed figuring
out who was who (some were easy to spot, others it took me a while to get which
kaiju/alien they were supposed to be). Bemular is a main character, he looks
completely different than the goofy kaiju he’s based on. He’s now a cyborg
style alien. Yapool at first glance I thought it was Quraso Seijin, but then
the red face and small antenna made me realize it was Yapool. That was part of
the fun for me, seeing how certain classic characters were updated and seeing
how long it took me to “spot” them.
The storyline moves at a good pace (13 episodes in total),
with some nice surprises and twists. I appreciated the fact that it didn't resort to predictable clichés that was I expecting (e.g. a female love interest does not get kidnapped by evil aliens and Ultraman must save her; Hayata does not get killed in order for Shinjiro to reach his full potential, etc). I found all the characters to be engaging
(I watched the English dub and found it quite enjoyable; no annoying
over-acting **cough cough… Haruo… cough**). The action sequences are where the
series really shines, showing wonderfully choreographed fights, good use of
slow motion, and lots of explosions, bloodshed, action. And the themes (what it
means to be a hero, letting go of self-doubt and insecurities in order to
achieve your full potential, revenge, xenophobia, etc.) all play out smoothly
without coming off as preachy or lame.
It’s a very enjoyable show and I know that the manga that it’s
based on had several chapters so I hope Netflix continues to do more seasons.
It’s enjoyable enough to please both new and old fans, as well as appeal to
older fans who have complained about the kiddie style humor and blatant toy advertising
of the newer Tsuburaya Ultraman shows by having more serious, adult themes. I am a fan of this anime and plan on supporting it.
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