Shin Ultraman: A Kaiju Hero for a New Age
Josh B.
In 1966, Japan was introduced to the giant hero, Ultraman. Ultraman was a Tokusatsu series, meaning a show that focused heavily on superheroes and special effects – like Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers. Every week, Ultraman would battle new foes, both kaiju and alien, eliminating all threats to the peaceful life we humans lead here on Earth. Ultraman, as both a series and a character, proved to be insanely popular in Japan, and ever since it began, there has been a new Ultraman series and a new Ultraman practically every year! In terms of character iteration, you could compare it to England’s Doctor Who franchise. I first became aware of Ultraman as a character when the film Shin Ultraman was announced. Having seen and adored Shin Godzilla, and being made by the same team of creators, Shinji Higuchi and Hideaki Anno, I was eager to see their take on this seminal Japanese icon. I didn’t go into the movie blind as I did purchase the original Ultraman series on Blu-Ray at G-Fest to see what the character was all about. I watched as much of it as I could before lucking into a screening of the film at New York Comic Con last year. As I watched, I grew to know and love all the characters, human, alien, and kaiju, and was excited for what the new film would bring.
After seeing the film twice theatrically (once in Japanese with English subtitles, and again dubbed in English), I can safely say that this is not only one of my favorite films of 2022, but possibly one of the best kaiju films ever made. Shin Ultraman tells the story of Shinji Kaminaga, played by Takumi Saitoh, a member of the S-Class Species Suppression Protocol (SSSP), an organization dedicated to the defense of humanity against S-Class Species, or Kaiju. One day, Kaminaga sees a child caught outside during a kaiju attack, and rushes out to save him. He rescues the boy, but loses his life in the process. Ultraman, having seen this man’s sacrifice, takes his place, assuming his identity. Ultraman, now Shinji Kaminaga, defends Earth from kaiju threats, malevolent extraterrestrials and a doomsday weapon that threatens to exterminate the entire solar system!
Shinji Kaminaga played by Takumi Saitoh
One of Shin Ultraman’s greatest strengths is simply how dense the film is. It fits in quite a lot of story and action in only two hours, in an age where most Marvel movies stick around for at least two and a half. The film is always keeping you on the edge of your seat, wondering what new threat waits, and just how Ultraman will deal with it. Another strength of Shin Ultraman is the spirit of humanity. Unlike the Godzilla franchise, the armed forces and the common people can fight back against the giant invaders to our world. The movie even begins with a montage of kaiju that were defeated by humanity alone – without the aid of Ultraman! The film’s climax is also heavily reliant on both Ultraman and the people of Earth working together, showing a hopeful, collaborative spirit throughout the film. It’s that joyful spirit that radiates from the film, leaving you with hope for the future, and what all of us can do when we work together.
The simple fact that Shin Ultraman made it to the United States, let alone with an English dubbed version, shows just how much the Tokusatsu genre’s popularity has grown over the years. The original Ultraman series was licensed and dubbed in English, and ran in and out of syndication all the way until the 1980s, but despite its longevity, the series never enjoyed the mainstream success that Godzilla did. Ultraseven, the sequel series to Ultraman was greatly edited, and saw very sparse broadcast over several years. Ultraman Tiga, the 1996 series revival of Ultraman saw broadcast on Fox, a major network with their Saturday morning cartoon block, the FoxBox. However, the English dub by 4Kids completely altered the tone of the original series and was deemed so poor that Tsubaraya Productions ordered the English version be cancelled and all copies of it destroyed. As a result, the English dub of Ultraman Tiga is very nearly lost media, with the only footage of it existing today are fan reconstructions on YouTube. Because of situations like this, Ultraman has been a more niche franchise up until very recently. Mill Creek Entertainment teamed up with Tsubaraya Productions to produce DVDs and Blu-Rays of all the various Ultra series, allowing for far more people to experience the franchise legitimately. It should be noted however, that nearly all modern Ultraman home video has none of the English dubbed versions, which is a shame for those of us who enjoy that.
For fans of the Ultraman series, the redesigns of classic kaiju and aliens offer a really great look into just how much we have evolved in our ability to put thoughts to screen, as the majority of creature designs in Shin Ultraman were taken from what the original series wanted to do with their monsters, but couldn’t due to technical limitations of the day. Zarab, one of the film’s key villains, is a two-dimensional alien with a 2022 upgrade. It’s a true spectacle to see creature designs and giant monster battles made with modern technology. Shin Ultraman’s breadth of content covered in the film also makes it serve as an impeccable entry point for new fans of the series, or, of the genre as a whole. By the film’s end, you’ll know all about the Tokusatsu genre, and whether or not it’s for you.
