Directed by Yuzo Higuchi. Written by Tetsuo Kinjo. Airdate Nov. 27, 1966.
Screenwriter Tetsuo Kinjo had a knack for taking topical subjects and finding ways to transform them into workable Ultra scripts. “Monster-as-metaphor” is one of the most viable and enduring forms of social commentary in science fiction and horror, and Kinjo was adept at not making the commentary in his monster scripts too heavy-handed, even with a subject as grim as the alarming number of deaths of children in auto accidents. And yes, that’s the subject of “Terror on Route 87.”
This episode may have the darkest concept yet in Ultraman — a monster inhabited and motivated by the spirit of a child killed in a hit-and-run — but it isn’t exceptionally bleak, or even that eerie for what’s essentially a ghost story. The monster scenes that take up a good part of the runtime are played fairly straight. It’s only in a few spots that the story digs into the tragedy of Akira Muto, an artistic elementary schoolboy who loved animals and died in an accident on “cursed” Route 87. (A fictional road; the number was chosen because it’s missing from the Japanese road-numbering system.)
The merger of the kaiju of the week, Highland Dragon Hydra, and the tragic tale of Akira is rough and leaves open several questions. It seems that Hydra is an actual prehistoric creature that has been sleeping under Mt. Omura for millions of years. At one point, Hayata theorizes a connection between the reptilian bird-beast and an Archaeopteryx. That seems improbable given the size differences between the two, although it’s not an absurd supposition for the universe of Ultraman. But the rest of the episode suggests Hydra contains the angry spirit of Akira, or maybe it’s the spirit of all children who die in car accidents, because the kaiju really just wants to smash cars along Route 87 once it breaks loose. Also, the statue of Hydra in the zoo at the foot of Mt. Omura (the real-life Izu Shaboten Zoo) is based on an illustration Akira drew for a contest, suggesting that Hydra took on that form, or maybe Akira had visions of what it looked like.
It’s a tangle, but honestly, I’m making it sound more convoluted than how it plays. The supernatural is definitely involved: Akira appears to Fuji early in the episode, speaking a warning that Hydra is about to emerge and cause destruction. But nothing overtly contradicts that Hydra is also a prehistoric beast. Tetsuo Kinjo intended to portray Hydra as a “Guardian Monster” for children, and when simplified down to that concept, the story works in spite of the scattered ideas.
As a monster of the week episode, “Terror on Route 87” lands on the tame side. Hydra is an awkward and sometimes plastic-looking kaiju. Its design is partially based on early sketches for Bemular when that monster was planned as the hero of the show. (Thank the gods they abandoned that idea and instead went with the silver-and-red alien hero!) Hydra’s design also had to resemble the already existing statue of the Highland Dragon at the Izu Shaboten Zoo. The final composite monster is one of the less exciting Ultraman kaiju. Hydra is stiff and unconvincing in flight, and it’s in the air often. Its destruction of vehicles along Route 87 is the action highlight of the episode, although it’s nothing spectacular. The fight with Ultraman is at least interesting for having another moment when Ultraman shows mercy to a kaiju, although his motivation is flimsy and depends on the audience knowing more than Ultraman does.
The coda wraps up the several loose story threads with a few lines of dialogue. The full Science Patrol stands before the statue of the Hydra and attempts to work out what happened with guesswork the viewer can either accept or not. It’s satisfactory and nudges the story over the finish line. And that’s the general feeling I get from this episode: an admirable attempt to tackle a dark topic that doesn’t reach its full potential, but it still ends up being a worthwhile entry in the Ultraman annals.
The statue of the Highland Dragon still stands today at Izu Shaboten Zoo, although no monster has yet to emerge from Mt. Omura.
Rating: Good
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