Directed by Kazuho Mitsuta. Written by Shozo Uehara. Airdate May 22, 1966.
This is Shozo Uehara’s debut as a writer for the Ultra franchise. His work is sparse for Ultra Q and Ultraman, although he penned the stone-cold classic Ultraman episode “The Monster Anarchy Zone.” It was later on Ultraseven and then as head writer on Return of Ultraman that he’d emerge as one of the most prolific and imaginative members of Tsuburaya Pro’s writing stable.
Uehara’s first script shows the promise of interesting ideas to come, such as aliens hiding on Earth in human form who hope to help defend the planet against antagonistic monsters and extraterrestrials. (Hey, maybe we could make a spin-off show using that premise?) But “Space Directive M774” feels undercooked as a story and the direction seems to be trying to make up for it with stylish flourishes and an overall slower pace. In spots it works, creating a quiet eeriness that feels dream-like. The final results are still a bit bland.
The opening teaser is one of the strongest parts. Jun, Ippei, and Yuri are on a cruise ship at night, playing cards in a pleasant moment of normalcy for our trio. Yuri goes on deck for some air and discovers a child’s doll. The doll starts to speak to her, calling itself Zemi of Alien Ruperts and warning of the arrival of the monster Bostang. It’s a great Twilight Zone moment, summoning up the image of Talking Tina from the classic TZ episode “Living Doll.” Zemi later communicates with Jun and Ippei by snatching them off their Cessna and putting them in an empty restaurant, where its voice addresses them through a 45 rpm record in the jukebox.
Zemi later appears in its human disguise (Keiko Mizuki) to implore the trio to spread its warning of the danger of Bostang, an aquatic stingray-like monster sent by Alien Keel to attack Earth. Zemi’s mystery wanes significantly once she’s an on-screen character, although she does have some of the qualities of the Venusian prophet in Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster.
There’s no twist after this point. Zemi convinces a defense ship to pursue Bostang and attempt to destroy it. The rest of the episode is done at a distance as our main characters watch the slow, mostly flat confrontation with a dull alien monster that doesn’t seem too dangerous. Even a threat to a cruise ship doesn’t boost the energy in the finale.
The hero of the episode is director Kazuho Mitsuta, who has several of the best Ultra series episodes on his résumé: Ultraman’s “The Rascal From Outer Space,” Ultraman Tiga’s meta-classic “The Star of Ultra,” and three Ultraseven masterpieces, “Showdown at 140 Degrees Below Zero,” “Ambassador of the Nonmalt,” and “The Biggest Invasion in History.” Like Shozo Uehara, this is Mitsuta’s first Ultra episode — first by broadcast order, as “Blazing Glory” was produced earlier — and he’s exploring the show’s style and the tricks he can pull. There’s an odd, purposely flat framing to multiple scenes; shots often cut together in unconventional ways. Mitsuta understands the weird tone of the program, but it’s still not enough to keep the episode afloat all the way through. With stronger material, he’ll become one of the great Ultra directors and one of the essential creative forces in the franchise’s long history.
The coda is what’s most memorable about “Space Directive M774.” It aims for what I can best describe as “benign paranoia.” Zemi explains that many aliens have made their home on Earth — and one may be sitting beside you right now. But these aren’t invaders; they’re here to protect the planet from dangerous menaces like Alien Keel and Bostang. (Alien Keel, by the way, eventually made a physical appearance … in the second season of Ultra Galaxy Mega Monster Battle, 43 years after getting a single mention here.) Although Tsuburaya Pro hadn’t started development on Ultraman when the episode was produced, this final scene feels like a direct setup: there are more aliens coming to Earth, and some want to stay on the planet and help us protect it. They’ll even take on human disguises!
Bring it on, Tsuburaya! I’ll watch it. I’ll watch more than a thousand episodes of it!
Rating: Average
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