Directed by Yuichi Abe. Written by Keiichi Hasegawa. Airdate Dec. 18, 2013.
We’ve reached the finale of the first New Generation Heroes show. It’s been a short journey: eleven episodes plus a special. We’ve spent most of that time hanging out at an abandoned elementary school, watching Ultraman Ginga and his allies fight monsters in a nearby field. It’s often been glaringly underfunded, even impoverished. The themes are uneven. The drama is frequently juvenile. But this last episode, the resolution of the Dark Spark Saga and confrontation with the Ruler of the Dark, is absolutely … pretty good. Good enough to keep the Ultra Series moving forward in this new era. That’s what Ultraman Ginga was trying to achieve in the first place, so congratulations.
Spoiler caution from here on, as this is the finale and I’ll need to talk about a few earlier revelations.
The first few minutes of “The Future of Yours” feel like it’s supposed to be the last few minutes. All the minor characters come back for a reunion after the time–space barrier around the school lifts. (Remember the barrier? The last two episodes didn’t.) The people who were Dark Sparked into monsters, all of whom were once students at the school, flood back onto the grounds to talk about their new life dreams. Did you want to know what the motorcycle psychotic from the second episode plans to do with his future? Or the new goals of those illegal garbage dumpers from the first episode? Were you curious about Kuwabara, who’s just been hanging around in the background since Alien Nackle turned him into the monster Zaragas?
I’m asking in a facetious tone, but I honestly like this wrap-up with the supporting characters. The running theme about dreams has always been light frosting for the show, so if the final episode wants to squeeze some fun from these lesser characters to make that theme feel bigger, I’m all for it. Besides, the real heart of this opening is seeing Misuzu reuniting with her father after their Dark Spark nightmare, and that carries weight.
There’s still the rest of an episode to fill, so the pleasant times stop when the Ruler of the Dark finally reveals himself: Dark Lugiel. Audiences already knew it was Dark Lugiel — he’s in the opening credits of every episode — so I don’t think the showrunners meant for his manifestation to come as a surprise. If they wanted it to be a surprise, they would’ve had a different credit sequence.
The actual surprise is that Mrs. Shirai is Dark Lugiel’s human vessel. The Ruler of the Dark possessed her soon after his arrival on Earth in the events that burned down the Ginga shrine. Hotsuma revealed the possession in the previous episode, but his attempt to exorcise Dark Lugiel from Shirai didn’t fully take. Mrs. Shirai now summons Dark Lugiel to feed off the hopelessness of everyone at the school and face Ultraman Ginga at extremely unfair odds. Thank the gods that everyone remembers the school song about hoping for the future so they can sing it to give Ginga an extra edge! (Yes, this happens. No, I don’t have a problem with it.)
On the basic level of action that ties up a full show, this episode does its job with enough excitement to leave viewers happy. Or moderately entertained. The biggest thrill comes from Taro. After spending the series as a miniature action figure, the moment Ultraman Taro arrives in his giant form to join the fight is the biggest cheer moment of the whole show. I’m a fan of Ultraman Taro, so seeing the full-sized hero back in action, accompanied by his killer theme song (“Taro! Ultraman — Number — Six!”) and pulling some of his famous moves, got my pulse pumping. Taro has always been popular with children, and I’m sure this part hit just right with the kids tuning in.
Dark Lugiel is a standard “Dark Lord” Ultra villain, and his ambitions about “stopping all life, stopping all time!” seem a bit stretched. This fellow has spent the entire show possessing a school principal and turning the graduates of an elementary school into random kaiju. The show’s limited scope creates a disconnect. But at least — at least — the climactic battle of Ultraman Ginga finally gets out of the cursed field next to the school and goes somewhere different. It goes to the Moon! The lunar set isn’t a complicated one, but it looks different. That puts an exclamation point on what’s an otherwise standard fight. Considering the limitations and ambitions of Ginga, it’s admirably functional. I’m happy with it. Yes, admirably functional, the true stamp of approval.
Thus concludes Ultraman Ginga, although not the full adventures of Ginga. I have plenty more thoughts about the entire show to ponder here at its admirably functional end, but I’ll save those for the upcoming intermission post before moving on to Ultraman Ginga S.
Rating: Good
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Next: Ginga Intermission—Wrapping Up the First Season
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