Episode 23: SEARCH TOMORROW (ASU O SAGASE) ***
Dubbed title: FUGITIVE FORTUNE TELLER
"Telepathy and other prophetic powers are things that all individuals have a little bit of. If you had prophetic powers, make sure you don't prophesize anything about space creatures. We wouldn't want your life in danger" -- U7's narrator gives good advice.
Captain Kiriyama and Furuhashi find a terrified old man named Yasui being chased by a mysterious driver of a chain-draped dump truck. Later revealed to be a fortune teller, Yasui divulges some information about an impending warehouse explosion where all the Ultra Guard weapons are kept. They search the facility but find no bombs. Yasui then states a UFO will land at Mt. Fuji, and again, nothing is found. The old man begs for protection, but the Ultra Force doesn't believe him at this point. Shortly thereafter, Yasui is kidnapped by aliens. Using a specially made gun, the Ultra Guard are able to locate the invaders and their hidden base where the old fortune teller is being held.
ULTRASEVEN was known for its frequent surrealism, and episode 23 sits among that group in what amounts to a unique half hour of SciFi entertainment. The plot point that an old man (presumably of North Indian origin considering his dress and shoes) predicts disasters only for the Terrestrial Defense Force to not believe him is kind of ridiculous considering the level of bizarre phenomena they've encountered up to this point. This sort of denial by the very organization whose sole existence is to investigate bizarre and otherworldy phenomena crops up in other series', too. It doesn't really hurt the episode(s), it just begs the question why they're in the business they're in if they're going to second-guess some of the potential paranormal, and otherworldly phenomena they're tasked to investigate.
The bits with the old man being chased by the dump truck border on horror what with the large chains dragging from the back. The unseen nature of the driver foreshadows Steven Spielberg's TV Movie classic from 1971, DUEL. There's also an air of BODY SNATCHERS type chicanery when Yasui sees aliens everywhere -- even driving a taxi that magically transforms into the dump truck of terror.
This episode features arguably the most bizarre monster battle up to this point, too. The initial fight between Seven and Gabura (a monster summoned by the Shadow Seijin) is relatively short, but the monsters notably gory demise isn't the end of the lion-headed monstrosity. Its noggin remains alive -- controlled by the aliens -- and flies through the air attempting to take a bite out of Ultraseven! With a poisonous bite, Gabura sinks its teeth into Seven's shoulder.
Regarding the mysterious Shadow aliens, their plan isn't elaborated on, but it's assumed they plan to take over, or destroy the world. The reason they want the old man is because he predicts the destruction they plan to bring. Their usage of a rusty old dump truck with chains dragging behind it is a curious idea, but just one in a long line of peculiarities in this series.
Shozo Uehara was honing his screenwriting skills on U7 before becoming the main writer on RETURN OF ULTRAMAN (1971-1972). He wrote 12 episodes of ULTRASEVEN, two others prior to #23. He collaborated on this one with its director, Nagase Sanma-chi; the latter under one of his alias's, Shimon Dragon.
Viewers will possibly find much to be entertained by in this quirky, quasi-horror tinted episode. The overzealous character of Yasui the fortune teller and that wacky monster battle are enough to make this an enjoyable 25 minutes of ULTRASEVEN.
MONSTERS: Shadow alien; Gabura (Kunio Suzuki)
WEAPONS: Radioactive Beam Shot (detects invisible enemies)
Ultraman Episode 2: BLAST THE INVADERS (SHINRYAKUSHA O UTE) ***
Directed by Toshihiro Iijima
"Why don't you go live on Mars!"
Late one night, a UFO is spotted over Japan. After a run-in with a strange, insectoid creature that leaves a few humans in suspended animation, a Defense Council meeting is held as to what to do with this potential menace from another world. Captain Muramatsu decides the best way is to attempt to communicate with it. When this goes sour, the aliens take control of Arashi's body and declare their true purpose -- to colonize the Earth with their own race, billions of which, are already here.
The second episode of ULTRAMAN is simplicity with its tale of invaders from outer space. Virtually every interplanetary conqueror attacked Earth (mostly in Japan) in the 1960s and 70s. This one, known as Alien Baltan, became one of the most popular Ultra adversaries. An insectoid creature with scissor-like claws that emit red freeze beams and explosive attacks, the Baltans fled their homeworld after their own scientists destroyed it with nuclear testing. Possessing the ability to shrink their bodies into bacterial forms, they can maneuver virtually undetected. The bug-crustacean-like beings can multiply itself via holographic imagery. Over 2 billion (60 billion in the dubbed version) of them live aboard their invisible ship.
Toru Narita (blueprint for Sanda and Gaira from WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS) designed the Baltan (see sketch at left) while Sasaki Kimyo (masks for Ultraman and U7) modeled the monster on Ryosaku Takayama's existing suit for the Semi-human Cicada alien from episode 16 of ULTRA Q, 'Garamon's Counterattack'. Narita was reportedly dissatisfied with the final result for some of his creations, including Baltan and those enormous scissor claw hands of his. Takeshi Sato was inside the suit for the popular alien's debut.
Baltan appeared once more in the original ULTRAMAN in episode 16, and
many other times over the course of the Ultra shows that followed. Additionally, as a testament to the monsters popularity, Tokyo's Billboard Live News featured a collaboration between French pop singer Sylvie Vartan and Alien Baltan in their February issue from 2013. The magazine featured information on the origins of the popular unfriendly alien and an interview with this episodes director, Toshihiro Iijima.
Screenwriter Senzoku Kitaotoko (director Iijima under a pseudonym) keeps things moving at a fair clip, if offering up some muddled details. At one point the alien that has taken over Arashi's body states they're only on Earth to repair their ship, but a few seconds later, he exclaims they're going to take over the planet. The episode is unnecessarily told in flashback while acting as a comedic showcase for Nihei Masaya, who plays Ide (Ito in the English version; seen in above picture). Some of his schtick is genuinely funny, and other bits are just goony. The framing device of Ide's inability to go to sleep leading to a black eye is forgotten about till the last minute. It adds nothing to the story aside from cementing Ide as the clown prince of the Science Patrol.
Where this episode excels is in its exciting finale culminating in an aerial dogfight between Ultraman and Baltan. It's not just two models of the two beings suspended on wires chasing each other, they clash and brawl in flight. Some of Matoru Toba's photographic shots are very creative and are rarely, if ever seen much again in later shows. Some of these eye-catching moments include shots where the camera is fixed above the miniature cityscape. Ultraman flies below as Alien Baltan fires on him. The camera is almost always shooting the flying scenes from the same angle every time, so seeing shots like these are intriguing in comparing with later shows.
For the first time Ultraman battles a foe at night. The nighttime duels always had a surreal quality about them. Ultraman also debuts his X-Ray Perspective Beam (akin to the high beams on your car) to find the invisible ship of the Baltans.
There was definitely some experimentation going on that would dissipate over the years. ULTRAMAN was a series that got progressively better with each episode. Other Ultra programs would fluctuate in terms of quality and energy. This first Ultra hero show was primarily consistent. Each succeeding episode would feature little nuances in its SPX shots that seemed to vanish in later years.
MONSTERS: Alien Baltan
WEAPONS: Spider Shot
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