ULTRA-THREAD 2.0

[Cryptid_Liker]

Ultraman Mebius turns 15 today!

[o.supreme]

That is crazy to believe!. I remember in the mid-90's I got most of Tiga on bootleg VHS (before the dub aired on FOX kids). I got the Dyna & Gaia Movies, but never saw the series. As the 2000's rolled on. I read about the various new Ultra's, and saw occasional clips, but never got invested in them.

Then when Max came out, and they started remaking classic kaiju suits it definitely got my attention, but didn't know where to see the episodes. Then, just by chance, shortly after Mebius started airing, I was in San Francisco, and a local shop had some of the episodes on DVD (no subs of course), and I bought 2 on impulse (which had the first 8 episodes).

In fact, I remember, it was probably sometime in August 2006, which is why they were able to have the episodes I got. I was at an anime convention. My son was 6 months old, and I pushed him around in a stroller up and down all the streets, my daughter was 18 months. They are 15 and 16 Now .

Once I understood this was taking place in the original Showa timeline, I was all-in. Mebius is by far my favorite modern era series. I've had the whole series with fan-subs for a long time and have watched it 4 times at least. I eagerly anticipate the MC BRD box set which presumably by Keith Aiken's comments last summer will include the Mebius & 6 Brothers Movie, and ALL the tie-in OVA's.

Keith Also stated that the Superior 8 Ultra Brothers Movie would be a stand-alone release, but seeing what MC recently did with the Zero Movies, I hope this one is included with the Mebius set as well. I expect with 50 episodes, 2 movies, and what? 4 OVA's, this will be pricier than most of their sets to date, but I will be more than happy to have all this content in HD .

[Gigantis]

A day late for the celebration, but apparently all the Ultra's attended Mebius' debut in 2006.. in suits!

[o.supreme]

Yes. At the end of one of the films (I can't remember if it is the 2007 film, or 2008), but they show a whole ceremony with all the Ultra's in suits, it's pretty hilarious, but touching at the same time.

[Jermobooka]

Y’know...I really hope Ultraman starts popular here in the west. I feel like that dream is starting to come to fruition, with the Marvel comics and Blu-Ray sets, but i’m starting to lose hope lol

[eabaker]

Y’know...I really hope Ultraman starts popular here in the west. I feel like that dream is starting to come to fruition, with the Marvel comics and Blu-Ray sets, but i’m starting to lose hope lol

What degree of popularity are you talking about? Ultraman's certainly never going to be as mainstream here as Godzilla is, for instance, but I'd say it's currently as well known as a lot of the major anime titles. Like, it's bigger within its niche than it has been in a long time.

[Jermobooka]

Y’know...I really hope Ultraman starts popular here in the west. I feel like that dream is starting to come to fruition, with the Marvel comics and Blu-Ray sets, but i’m starting to lose hope lol

What degree of popularity are you talking about? Ultraman's certainly never going to be as mainstream here as Godzilla is, for instance, but I'd say it's currently as well known as a lot of the major anime titles. Like, it's bigger within its niche than it has been in a long time.

Of course Ultra won’t ever achieve the popularity of Goji. That’s kinda a given lol. I just want Ultra to be more popular than it is now. To the point where it can have a fan base as “big” as Godzilla’s. I wouldn’t say Ultra is as popular as major anime titles in the west either. Certainly more popular than Gamera though, thats for sure

[Major sssspielberg!]

Ultraman himself might not be as mainstream as Godzilla anytime soon, but I mean, I remember being a kid and nobody giving a flying fig about Iron Man, Cap, or Thor. Look at how recognizable those guys are to the general public now. All it takes is a little media savvy and accessible content.
I think the Godzilla fandom as I knew it growing up is becoming a much more broad Tokusatsu fandom, and that's a good sign. Most of us are now familiar with more than one Ultra-hero's show. A lot of us kept up with Z as it released. It helps that Ultra is getting multiple good quality legal releases instead of bootlegs or Chaiyo's "legal" bootlegs.
Shit, I remember when I first saw ads for Kamen Rider in the states. TsuPro's bound to take the plunge and try and import a new show sooner rather than later.

[LamangoKaijura]

So when we renaming this board to 'Tsuburaya Topics'? Cause there's more then just Ultraman.

[MechaGoji Bro7503]

Y’know...I really hope Ultraman starts popular here in the west. I feel like that dream is starting to come to fruition, with the Marvel comics and Blu-Ray sets, but i’m starting to lose hope lol

As long as the Star of Ultra shines, the Ultras will rise
Yuh, I want Ultraman to become more popular here too, and I think they will. Slowly but surely, there's so much magic from the Ultras the west is needing.

[Cryptid_Liker]

Is there a list of all the monsters in the Ultraman intro anywhere? I recognized Namegon and everything after Neronga but the rest is a complete mystery.

[GodzillaXGomoraFight]

Just ordered a couple more Blu-Rats, including Ace and Taro, which I have never seen before. At this point, the only Showa Ultraman shows I don't have copies of are Leo (which I watched 5 years ago on Crunchyroll) and Ultraman 80.

How do you guys like Ace and Taro? Do they compete with the OG Ultraman and Seven?

Last time I posted here I mentioned how I needed to watch UltraSeven more. I actually haven't gotten through the first third of Seven still but I hope to get back into it soon. I still have Ultraman Jack on Blu-Ray and need to watch it.

[Mac Daddy MM]

Ultraman Mebius turns 15 today!

Thanks man. I just love feeling old.

[LSD Jellyfish]

Just ordered a couple more Blu-Rats,

Why would anyone order Blue-Rats; they are disgusting vermin!

How do you guys like Ace and Taro? Do they compete with the OG Ultraman and Seven?

Both are good as classics. I think there’s some better episodes and more iconic episodes from the original series and seven, but tarp and ace have their great episodes.

[Angilasman]

Ace has some really cool episodes, but is uneven overall. Taro is more consistent, I'd say better, but it's highs aren't as high as Ace's.

Neither are as good as the first 4 (Q, Man, Seven, Return), but there's still a lot to love in them.

[Millenial88]

Ace is just pure cough syrup dream energy and I thoroughly love it for that. It may not be as compelling as the best moments of previous shows, but it’s still a showcase of old school Ultraman’s bold creative swings.

Taro is basically a softer variant of that same energy. It probably has a lot to do with the fact that it was aimed at a younger audience, but in toning itself down, much of that oddball vibe ends up not hitting as hard as Ace does.

[_JNavs_]

Mega Monster Battle: Ultra Galaxy Legends kinda did Infinity War before Infinity War now that I'm rewatching it

[LSD Jellyfish]

Angilasman in the Ultraman Z thread, and I responded saying that Tiaga's film was justified and good, while Geed's was not.

Here's his original post for context:

I feel most Ultra movie spinoffs are useless fluff. They're roughly the same quality as an episode of the series in terms if production, but often feel like hasty afterthoughts in terms of story and basically just serve the purpose of showing a team-up with last year's hero and giving a new power-up form to the main hero (aka, selling one more new toy before the next series ushers in the new toyline). What's worse, they often blunt the impact of the series finale they directly follow. Z ended with some emotional farewells, a movie would, by necessity, involve everyone returning to status quo like a month later (maybe setting them during the show's run instead of after would be better?).

Today I watched Ultraman X's movie for the first time, years later. The movie did a good job at quickly catching us up to speed, and I liked it overall more than Geed and Orb's movies, but man does Angilasman's post really ring true.

Greeza was a much stronger send-off and finally pairing of episodes in X's series, and even though wasn't present like Empera, was built up nicely with the Dark Thunder energy throughout the series. Zaigorg was just "Hey, there's a strong monster sealed and some bozo accidentally unleashed it!". That's the plot, and Zaigorg doesn't have anything unique, minus swimming in "hell" which is never really expanded on. He has a power to "make monsters" and while Antlar and Golza are given neat upgrades and work well as recolors, it's jarring when he just summons a bunch of Deemaga at the end of the film. Missed opportunity to connect the Demaga, X's new Kaiju, to Zaigorg throughout the film as Zaigorg looks similar to Deemaga. Still, I did like the action in the movie more than some other Ultraman movies and episodes, and when Zaigorg was rampaging he did feel like a real threat.

Sure enough, they introduce three new characters, Carlos, the professor, and her son, who take up way more time than needed, and are there to have development instead of X and Daichi, or anyone else. Xio gets a few satisfying moments throughout the movie, but they're mostly just there. It sort of ends with some lame and forced drama, with X going into space, but then instantly coming back.

[GodzillaXGomoraFight]

Thanks for the pointers on Ace and Taro everyone! I am going to try Seven again very soon to get back into the swing of things. I would love to watch a bunch of these Showa series by the end of the year. The last Ultra show I watched consistently was Q, which I really enjoyed.

[o.supreme]

Mega Monster Battle: Ultra Galaxy Legends kinda did Infinity War before Infinity War now that I'm rewatching it

Well to be fair, IW was based on a comic event from the early 90's, and large superhero gathering crossovers aren't exactly a new thing. If anything , Ultra Galaxy Legends was an "It's about time they finally did this" event/film. And to be fair, I loved it. Too bad a few more obscure ultras were left out (though they had quite a few), but I guess Absolute Conspiracy is trying to fill those gaps.