Directed by Toshihiro Iijima. Written by Kitao Senzoku. Airdate Oct. 30, 1966.
Alien Baltan is back after Ultraman attempted to genocide their entire race in “Shoot the Invader!” They want another crack at Planet Earth. Lucky for them, the Tsuburaya Pro team apparently wanted another crack at a big VFX finale with their signature alien villains. The special effects climax of “Shoot the Invader!” was its weakest part, likely a result of it being the first episode put into production. “Science Patrol Into Space” is a small upgrade over what was a pretty solid early episode: it loses some of the mystery and mood but goes full-force as a science-fiction actioner with ambitious special effects.
We get an answer to one of the lingering questions about Alien Baltan from the earlier episode: the race was indeed on a quest to take over the Earth; it wasn’t just the solo scheme of one bad apple. Some Baltans managed to escape Ultraman’s destruction of their ship and settled on “Planet R.” But they’ve still got their glowing greedy eyes on Earth. They seize control of a scientist aboard a rocket ship en route to Venus so they can split the attention of the Science Patrol and Ultraman while they launch a swarm assault on Earth.
It’s a standard alien invasion story, but the episode opens with a different conflict — a ‘60s era Space Race dilemma. Professor Mori (Tadao Ikeda) has completed his rocket ship, Otori, to travel to Venus. This is the endpoint of a competition between Mori and the Science Patrol’s in-house inventor and semi-regular cast member, Professor Iwamoto (Akihiko Hirata). Iwamoto didn’t believe his own rocket ship was at full safety levels, while Mori chose to launch the Otori with a higher risk factor. As Captain Muramatsu explains to Hoshino, who’s fully on “Team Iwamoto” and isn’t happy that Mori beat him to the finish line, it’s difficult to say which approach to space travel is braver and more scientific.
In this debate, I’m firmly on the side of “safety.” The episode seems to agree, considering the trouble that befalls Mori when the Baltans seize control of him and use him as a tool in their conquest plans. When Alien Baltan makes its move, it’s Iwamoto who comes to the rescue. He attaches his Hydro-Generate Rocket to the Science Patrol’s Jet VTOL to allow it to travel into space to reach the stranded Otori. Iwamoto is also present for the rescue in the coda, indicating the story has been about a personal triumph for his scientific approach.
You could be forgiven if you came away from “Science Patrol Into Space” thinking not that it was about a debate over space travel philosophies, but about how awesome it is that the SSSP blew up a bunch of flying bug invaders and that Ultraman buzz-sawed two giant aliens in half. Iwamoto’s science heroism moves to the background when the action starts, and Prof. Mori is never shown as a cocky fool who deserves what happens to him. Space travel is shown in a positive light on both sides, fitting the futuristic optimism of the show.
If the episode has a central theme, it’s teamwork. The SSSP functions as a unit with no character taking the spotlight for long. Technology is the star, and we see plenty of it in action: the Otori; the retrofitted Jet VTOL capable of space travel; Ide’s newest invention, the Mars-133 laser rifle; an alien-language deciphering circuit; and the communication devices Fuji plays like an organist. This is a tactical SF adventure tale and it’s good at what it does.
The showdown between Ultraman and two giant Baltans makes up for the quickie finale of “Shoot the Invader!” Alien Baltan has a nifty new shield to defend against Ultraman’s Spacium Beam — but they forgot about (or didn’t know about) the Ultra Slash, one of Ultraman’s signature attacks. This is the first time we see the Ultra Slash in action, and it’s a whoa! thrill. Using it twice may be overkill, but it’s the best Ultra finishing move shown so far.
Ultraman doesn’t hog all the Alien Baltan-bashing: Ide uses the Mars-133 laser rifle to take on a formation of flying Alien Baltan. These Baltan miniatures look a touch silly; the smaller the models, the trickier to make them convincing. But Ide has a great time blasting away. He’s in a pretty giddy mood the whole episode, which makes sense considering how tech-heavy it is.
Arashi, on the other hand, comes across horribly. When he sees Hoshino in tears because Prof. Iwamoto lost the rocket race to Venus, Arashi assumes the boy is crying because he lost a fight and berates him for being a coward. There are plenty of times in the show where I like Arashi’s hotheadedness and “let’s just shoot ‘em all!” attitude. Defense teams need a member like this. But when Arashi directs this at a kid, I want the nearest available kaiju to stomp him.
Unfortunately, this is it for Alien Baltan in Ultraman. They’ll pop up as an illusion in “The Forbidden Words,” and won’t reappear as a race until Return of Ultraman in the aptly named “The Revenge of Alien Baltan Jr.”
Rating: Good
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