Ultraseven Ep. 20: Destroy Earthquake Epicenter X

Directed by Samaji Nonagase. Written by Bunzo Wakatsuki. Airdate Feb. 18, 1968.

There are several Ultraseven episodes that feel as if they were reworked from unused Ultraman scripts (something that did happen with “The Strolling Planet”). “Destroy Earthquake Epicenter X,” from what I can tell, was originally written for Ultraseven, but the Ultraman vibes are strong: an episode focused on a giant monster and high-tech equipment rather than alien schemes or a strange science-fiction twist. Ultraseven’s stories are usually alien-themed, but this episode feels as if the alien invader could easily have been cut and the script left as a terrestrial kaiju story.

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Ultraseven Ep. 19: Project Blue

Written and Directed by Samaji Nonagase. Airdate Feb. 11, 1968.

Professor Miyabe (Akiji Nomura) has invented a magnetic defense barrier, Project Blue, that will shield both Earth and the Moon from the barrage of alien invasions happening on a weekly basis. (At this point, the Ultra Guard is so familiar with these invasions that they know the preferred routes aliens take when launching attacks.) But Alien Bado, self-proclaimed “Emperor of the Universe,” is not going to have some Terrestrial Defense Barrier hinder their plot to explode Earth and eradicate the potentially deadly human race. The aliens covertly park their spaceship under Professor Miyabe’s home and kidnap him, threatening to murder his wife Grace (Linda Mabrey) if he doesn’t surrender the plans for Project Blue.

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Ultraseven Ep. 18: Escape Dimension X

Directed by Hajime Tsuburaya. Written by Testuo Kinjo. Airdate Feb. 4, 1968.

“Escape Dimension X” is Ultraseven’s version of Ultraman’s influential episode “The Monster Anarchy Zone”: a fast-paced monster-packed adventure taking place in a weird wilderness of exotic dangers. Many Ultra shows have their own take on this pulpy Lost World concept. Now we see the darker SF sensibility of Ultraseven at work on the premise. Where “The Monster Anarchy Zone” is a wild, fun rollercoaster with plenty of giant monsters, “Escape Dimension X” is horror-tinged and eerie, with monsters of the more creepy-crawly variety. This “lost world” is also presented as a science-fiction mystery, an artificially created alternate dimension, although the story leaves most of it unexplained.

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Ultraman Ep. 20: Terror on Route 87

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.” 

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Ultraseven Ep. 17: Underground Go! Go! Go!

Directed by Hajime Tsuburaya. Written by Shozo Uehara. Airdate Jan. 28, 1968.

The standard procedure for Ultra warriors who come to Earth is to merge with a human host, a precedent set in Ultraman and followed throughout most of the shows. Ultraseven is one of the exceptions (Ultraman Leo is another), where the Ultra warrior chooses to adopt a human form and remain 100% alien. But how does an Ultra who takes this route decide on their human “costume”? This episode addresses that question, making it an essential watch for the lore of the show.

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Ultraman Tiga Ep. 11: Requiem to the Darkness

Directed by Shinichi Kamizawa. Written by Junki Takegami. Airdate Nov. 15, 1996.

“You’re a highly creative inventor with a contagiously cheerful personality.” This is how one of Horii’s friends describes him in this episode. That’s an accurate, precise portrait. It explains why Horii works so well when he gets the role of the main character in an episode of Ultraman Tiga. He’s fun to be around, even when dealing with dark events. 

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Ultraseven Ep. 16: The Eye That Shines in the Darkness

Directed by Toshitsugu Suzuki. Written by Keisuke Fujikawa. Airdate Jan. 21, 1968.

  • An alien race mistakenly interprets an exploratory probe from Earth as a hostile attack and plans to launch a counterstrike.
  • A lost space vessel returns to Earth with a mysterious surprise aboard. 

We’ve seen these story concepts in the Ultra shows before — several times — but “The Eye That Shines in the Darkness” not only uses both, it adds something new to the mix. Not new for the broader franchise, but for Ultraseven specifically: a child character as the lead. 

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Ultraman Tiga Ep. 10: The Abandoned Amusement Park

Directed by Shingo Matsubara. Written by Hideyuki Kawakami. Airdate Nov. 9, 1996.

Many Ultra shows have scenes in amusement parks. I looked at the earliest one last month, Ultra Q’s “Challenge From the Year 2020.” For multiple reasons, amusement parks are ideal settings for the series. The special effects team can pack them full of creative and fun models to obliterate during monster fights. They make it easy to bring children into the story. And the general tone of amusement parks as spots for thrilling but safe fun matches much of the tone of many Ultra shows. The kick of a good roller coaster is what people expect when watching something like Ultraman Tiga.

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Ultra Q Ep. 19: Challenge From the Year 2020

Directed by Toshihiro Iijima. Written by Tetsuo Kinjo and Toshihiro Iijima. Airdate May 8, 1966.

It’s redundant to write, “This is a weird episode of Ultra Q,” because weirdness is the show’s default setting. But this is a weird episode of Ultra Q. Not in the humorous fashion of “Kanegon’s Cocoon” or the crazy pinball machine of “The Underground Super Express Goes West.” This is the weird of dark science fiction where not much ends up making sense; intentional SF surrealism appears to be the point. I can’t say I understand much of what occurs in “Challenge From the Year 2020,” but I do like a lot of what I see. Your mileage may vary, either up or down.

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Ultraseven Ep. 13: The Man Who Came From V3

Directed by Toshitsugu Suzuki. Written by Shinichi Ichikawa. Airdate Dec. 24, 1967.

“The Man Who Came From V3” feels like Tsuburaya Productions attempting an even split between a character-driven drama about Cap. Kiriyama facing an ethical dilemma and a huge science-fiction blow-out that crams in the maximum amount of dueling ships and giant monster action that a half-hour of TV can hold. But somewhere in the process of writing and shooting the episode, the character half gave up and let the VFX half spin donuts all over everything.

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