Directed by Kazuya Konaka. Written by Yuji Kobayashi. Airdate Dec. 9, 2013.
As the title proclaims (spoilers, Tsuburaya Pro!), this is the episode where Alien Chibull has finally collected enough Victorium to resurrect the body of Dark Lugiel. Except the episode isn’t about that until the coda. This is really the “Resurrection of Zetton,” a classic kaiju trotted out as a stopgap measure so the show can do a rehash of several earlier scenes and conflicts before moving into its finale. It’s moderately exciting — Zetton, even as a plot device, is a fun adversary — but most of it is jogging in place.
The general feeling I get watching this episode is that it was created as filler when the creative team realized the planned-out story arc needed an extra installment before the last two episodes, so they cobbled something together from the pieces already lying around and hit “repeat.” Essentially, they remade the previous episode, sprinkling in other familiar scenes and ideas from throughout the series.
Here are the main redundancies:
- Koyama is still trying to use the Victorium Cannon to destroy a monster and needs Arisa to handle the targeting.
- Arisa resists the idea of wielding the weapon and possibly injuring an Ultra, putting her in a moral bind.
- The rest of UPG is stuck outside the base, wondering what to do.
- A classic kaiju appears at the beginning (Zetton this time), but isn’t the main adversary by the end.
- One of Alien Chibull’s comic underlings is responsible for creating the enemy kaiju. Since Alien Guts has been “fired,” the leisure-suited version of Alien Kemur now takes on this job.
- Sho once more turns against UPG and the surface dwellers, believing they’re exploiting Victorium…
- …but then quickly changes his mind and joins Hikaru in friendship so that Ultraman Ginga and Ultraman Victory can work together in the final battle.
- Hikaru learns about the power of unity from Ultraman Taro, which rewards him with a new power-up.
- Android One Zero is still standing on a hill, watching events and doing nothing.
To be fair, I don’t actually know if the show’s creators were deliberately creating a filler episode. All this repetition just makes it feel that way.
What the episode does add to the continuing story is getting the Victorians more involved. Captain Jinno reveals to the other UPG members that the organization’s top brass, led by Koyama, built the base over a large deposit of Victorium. They’ve been secretly using the power of Victorium to develop weapons as part of Koyama’s plan to free humanity from relying on Ultras in the battle against monsters. When Sho discovers Koyama is exploiting Victorium, he breaks into the base to confront and possibly kill him.
Sho vs. Koyama is the best part of the episode because it’s something that hasn’t already been covered. We need to see the Victorians’ rage at the theft of their precious resources. (That Koyama has been using Victorium to construct weaponry isn’t new information. He made his plans clear when he revealed the Victorium Cannon last episode.) The fresh moment doesn’t last long — the episode falls back to aiming the cannon at a monster approaching the base — but there’s a kick to seeing Arisa and the other UPG members finally get the drop on Koyama and his goons.
Zetton fares well as the “distraction” kaiju that the Ultras and the Victorium Cannon must defeat while Chibull is dragging Lugiel’s body down from the Moon. This isn’t the best use of such a powerful and intimidating adversary. Zetton is a closing act, not an opening one. But the Zetton costume looks great (it’s “Hyper Zetton” built for Ultraman Saga) and I’ll always love the creepy electronic whir that accompanies this kaiju. Even if Zetton isn’t as intimidating as usual, the fight is a decent time.
(Toyama recognizes Zetton as a kaiju that once defeated Ultraman, again indicating that the Classic-era programs are either part of this timeline or something similar to them occurred.)
The episode concludes with the new form of Dark Lugiel, apparently a mindless monster rather than an evil alien mastermind, but this “Vict Lugiel” does look great. The preview for the next episode promises that Android One Zero will finally do something more than just watch the action from a distance.
Okay, let’s scratch this off as filler and move ahead to the last two episodes.
Rating: Average
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