Directed by Yoshikazu Ishii. Written by Hirotoshi Kobayashi. Airdate August 12, 2013.
Here’s an episode that focuses on UPG member Gouki Matsumoto. So far, Gouki has had little to do except futilely shoot lasers at the monsters of the week and drive around with Arisa in the single car the defense team’s budget can afford.
I wasn’t exactly rooting for a Gouki episode. There’s an unwritten rule in Ultra shows that one defense team member will slip through the cracks and become “That Guy/Girl We Learn Nothing About.” (An important exception is Ultraman Leo, where we learn nothing about any member of MAC.) Under regular defense team circumstances, Gouki would be “That Guy” for UPG. However, since UPG has a slim roster of only four people, including the captain, Gouki was going to end up with at least one featuring episode, so here you go.
Gouki doesn’t have to show much in the way of character except resilience and the basic heroism you expect from a member of a defense team. At the start of the episode, he gets angry that UPG isn’t able to do much good, and that’s about as deep as his character goes. Soon after, guest villain Alien Yapool takes possession of him, and for the rest of the episode, Gouki is either under Yapool’s control or trying to break free of it.
Honestly, Gouki is perfectly serviceable as the center of this episode. Takahiro Katou does a capable job acting out all the character’s facial contortions and agony while fighting the possession. This episode is basically filler, not doing much with either Sho or Hikaru, and not advancing Alien Chibull’s Victorium-snatching scheme. Gouki’s job is to serve as Yapool’s tool and then try to resist the alien’s control in time to save a pregnant woman so he can feel that he made a difference. That’s really all that a standalone story like this needs, and Gouki works in this setting.
The episode is a mild celebration of Ultraman Ace: it features Yapool, Ace’s overarching villain, and Vakishim, one of the show’s most enduring choju (translated here as “super monster”). By “mild celebration,” I mean that the episode doesn’t have much to say about Ultraman Ace. Yapool and Vakishim are simply the visiting alien and monster of the week pulled from the toy box. Android One Zero summons Vakishim as the next Spark Doll monster; Yapool isn’t happy that someone took over one of “his” toys, so he materializes to seize the job of destroying the Ultra warriors by possessing a human.
This isn’t the finest use of such popular adversaries, but I don’t oppose it either. I’ve always liked Yapool, and he shows off some fun attitude, especially when he steps in to wrestle away control over Vakishim from Android One Zero. Vakishim is one of the most elegantly designed of the choju. Watching Vakishim swing Ginga around by the leg is some delightful Show-era wildness, and the four-way final fight with Vakishim and giant Yapool vs. Ginga and Victory works well enough.
There’s a minor bit of development in the rest of the cast: Sho and Hikaru are now operating with basic teamwork. For the first time, Sho seems to be enjoying himself doing the heroic job of Ultraman Victory. He’s also the one who advises Hikaru to rescue the pregnant woman, showing that he’s shifting away from his more selfish priorities. Sho isn’t the main character here, but it’s the most appealing he’s been so far.
This episode is filler, but it’s decent. If the action doesn’t turn into a grind, I’m inclined to be nice to Ultraman Ginga S. Plus, Vakishim is always a welcome guest.
Rating: Average
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