Directed by Toshitsugu Suzuki. Written by Shozo Uehara, Shinichi Ichikawa. Airdate August 18, 1968.
Among Earthlings, Dan’s secret identity as Ultraseven is secure. Among every other alien species, however, it appears to be a matter of public record. That turns Dan into Target #1 when the next extraterrestrial invasion plot swings by our little planet. Once again, the invaders of the week kidnap Dan before they execute their scheme. These aliens, however, have a nifty twist on the standard plan: rather than using a super weapon or a guardian giant monster against Earth, they’ve got an imitation Ultraseven! An “Imit-Ultraseven.”
This is the second appearance of an “Evil Ultra” in the series. The first was in the influential Ultraman episode “Brother From Another Planet.” “Showdown of Dan vs Seven” doesn’t reach the same classic level because it falls short of its epic promise of serving up a great Seven-and-Seven fight. But it has solid work from the seasoned production team, as well as a few intriguing treats, like casual wear and a capsule monster.
The Ultra Guard and the TDF are investigating reports of bizarre events around Cape Irago, when one of the Hydranger submarines explodes. Dan and Anne team up again for the investigation — they might as well be a romantic pair at this point — to follow a mysterious woman who may be linked to the explosion. Dan and Anne wear civilian clothes when they stake out the woman at a hotel pool, making them look exactly like a vacationing couple. (Dan wearing his civvies is also a good excuse to separate him from the Ultra Eye so he can’t transform: he leaves the Ultra Eye in his UG uniform in the car.) We eventually see all of the Ultra Guard wearing laid-back beachwear, which is a delight, especially when they’re in panic mode, trying to stop an alien disaster rather than chilling and relaxing.
Dan falls into the trap set by Alien Salome (Kiyomi Kadena and Masao Takahashi), and they imprison him in their lair beneath a lighthouse. Alien Salome plans to take control of the ocean floor, likely because they believe it’s fair game after the Ultra Guard annihilated the species that inhabited the seafloor several episodes earlier. There’s no explicit mention of the events of “Ambassador of the Nonmalt,” but writer Shozo Uehara almost certainly had the destruction of the Nomalt in mind.
The reveal of Imit-Ultraseven is staged in a way that’s remarkably similar to the reveal of the reconstructed Mechagodzilla in Terror of Mechagodzilla, several years in the future. I suspect this isn’t an accident. The coincidence is too great, and some of the VFX technicians on Ultraseven would’ve been working on Terror of Mechagodzilla. It’s a strong visual, only missing that thundering Akira Ifukube Mechagodzilla theme to slam it home.
Imit-Ultraseven in action, however, falls short of expectations. The fake Seven doesn’t even cause much destruction once Alien Salome activates it. It only blows up a single ship, which is feeble when it comes to planet-quaking terror. The title bout between the Sevens is over too fast, and most of it is shot outdoors without any kind of miniature sets to make the two combatants look like giants. The use of the vocal version of “Song of Ultraseven” does pump up the action. Using a show’s full theme song during a climactic fight would soon become the standard for the Ultra shows. I prefer this approach, where the song is trotted out only on occasion to sell a big moment — like Ultraseven fighting an evil duplicate.
So the Seven vs. Seven battle is a bit of a letdown, but the episode doesn’t have to survive on it. The Ultra Hawk 1 engaging Alien Salome’s flying hydrofoil is an exciting special effects bit. Dan trying to break free from his bonds and obtain the Ultra Eye before the lighthouse base self-destructs is an excellent suspense scene — classic “hero in a death trap” stuff.
Even better, there’s a cool surprise before the main showdown: Agira the capsule monster! Yes, after another long break, the capsule monsters have returned. I’m happy it’s the scrappy ceratopsian, Agira. Poor Agira is no match for the fake Ultraseven and ends up cowering in hiding, eventually resting its hand on its chin in an adorably goofy “oh well, good try” pose. It’s hilarious, the high point of the episode. Agira needed to make more appearances.
This late in Ultraseven’s run, the show was veering between some of its greatest, most ingenious episodes and episodes that did their best to work around tight budgets so they would still be entertaining. The cost-cutting tricks are obvious in “Showdown of Dan vs Seven”: no miniatures in the battle between the two Sevens, a lack of new monster or alien costumes, a reliance on pre-existing locations and exteriors, and ample casual wear. But the show hasn’t run out of magic or the enthusiasm of its cast and crew. Who could deny the appeal of an Ultra Guard Casual Friday?
Rating: Good
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