Hey kaiju fans, I'm Michael Callari, and last month I spent many uncomfortable hours
on a Greyhound bus so I could attend the U.S. premiere of Shinji Higuchi's "Shin Ultraman."
This has never been much of a review channel, so I'll spare you my opinion except to say that
I really enjoyed it—definitely a highlight of the Kaiju Renaissance era and one to see with a
crowd if you can. No, this video is about a matter more in Wikizilla's wheelhouse: continuity!
As soon as Tsuburaya Productions announced "Shin Ultraman" back in the summer of 2019,
speculation began that it was a sequel to "Shin Godzilla". Between the title, Toho's
involvement as a co-producer, and the number of returning staff members, it was unavoidable.
The book "Shin Ultraman Design Works" states that while the "worldviews" of the two films “may be
somehow connected," copyright considerations prevented anything too obvious. That said,
there are still a few winks at the audience which this video will chronicle. I've kept it as free of
plot spoilers as possible, but if you're trying to avoid all information about "Shin Ultraman" before
you see it, here's your warning. Let's begin … [ THE TITLE CARD ]
Once the company logos are out of the way, a swirl of colors coalesces to form the title card… wait
a minute, that says "Shin Godzilla"! Where's the real… ah, there we go. This is a nod to the
title sequence in the original 1966 "Ultraman" show, which exploded out of the "Ultra Q" logo
as a way of linking it to that earlier show in viewers' minds. Aside from their names and a few
returning creatures, there wasn't much continuity between them otherwise, although Tsuburaya started
treating "Ultraman" as a sequel to "Ultra Q" as early as the 1984 "Ultraman Zoffy" movie.
[ SHIN GOMESS ] Tsuburaya Productions was
founded by the same Eiji Tsuburaya whose special effects direction made Toho famous for science
fiction films in the 50s and 60s. As a result, his new company enjoyed tremendous freedom in
repurposing old Toho props and costumes for "Ultra Q" and "Ultraman." Gomess, the very first monster
to appear in "Ultra Q," was derived from the MosuGoji Godzilla suit. Gomess is also the first
monster shown in "Shin Ultraman," and in a nod to the monster's real-world origins, he is now
portrayed by a modified ShinGoji model. However, he's a mere shadow of the God of Destruction,
dispatched by the JSDF's Type 10 Tanks. The prospect of Gomess being related to
Godzilla—perhaps growing from a piece of him that was blasted off by the B-2 Spirits—is quickly
closed off by the second monster, Mammoth Flower, which is designated Giant Unidentified Lifeform
No. 2. This is a nod to the terminology used in "Shin Godzilla," but all but precludes Godzilla's
existence in the universe of "Shin Ultraman." I mean, what would they have called him, Monster
Zero? That's just wrong. By the way, the digital Tokyo Station set seen here is the same one from
the climax of "Shin Godzilla." [ MOPPING UP ]
Speaking of the B-2 Spirits in "Shin Godzilla," did you know that the MOPII
bombs they drop don't really exist? The Massive Ordnance Penetrators they're based on are real,
but there's never been a sequel. In "Shin Ultraman," the Americans use the
same MOPIIs for a bombing run against Gabora. We don't have footage from that scene yet… so here,
have a picture of the notes I took during the premiere. I promise my handwriting is a
lot better when I'm actually looking at the page. Anyway, this isn't exactly the most
iconic superweapon from the "Godzilla" series to cross over with Ultraman,
but an interesting choice nonetheless. [ AKASAKA RETURNS? ]
With the staggering number of actors in "Shin Godzilla," it would have been bizarre if some
of them didn't come back for "Shin Ultraman." Takumi Saito went from playing a tank commander
to an SSSP member and Ultraman's host, while Kyusaku Shimada received a cross-universe
promotion from Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs to Prime Minister. Their characters clearly aren't
meant to be the same people, since they have different names, but with one returning actor,
it was left ambiguous. In "Shin Godzilla," Yutaka Takanouchi played Hideki Akasaka,
the Prime Minister's national security advisor and Rando Yaguchi's mentor.
In "Shin Ultraman," he appeared in several scenes as an unnamed government official…
wearing a nearly-identical pin on his lapel. I guess we might need to keep an eye out for him
in Shin Kamen Rider too! [ NON-DIEGETIC STUFF ]
Even if you don't know Shinji Higuchi from Shinji Ikari, stylistically it's very apparent
that "Shin Ultraman" was made by the same people behind "Shin Godzilla." As usual, screenwriter
Hideaki Anno's dialogue is information-dense and delivered at a rapid-fire pace—though
the amount of on-screen text is pared back a bit. Characters are shot from all sorts of unusual
angles, which this time doubles as a salute to elite Ultra Series director Akio Jissoji.
Showa-era sound effects and music abound, with the late composer Kunio Miyauchi even credited before
living composer Shiro Sagisu. Speaking of Sagisu, keep your ears open for an alternate version of
his "Early Morning in Tokyo" piece from "Shin Godzilla." There's even a bit of "Shin Godzilla"
stock footage early in the film—now that's some real Showa ambition. Finally, and most
fundamentally, it's another reboot of a classic tokusatsu character which places him in a more
realistic setting than he usually inhabits. It's understandable, really, that Godzilla never
appears in "Shin Ultraman." Even if there were just a few shots of his frozen form,
now an accepted part of the Tokyo skyline, the shocking sight of Godzilla and Ultraman
officially crossing over in a movie might overshadow the exploits of Ultraman himself.
Remember the fate of "Kong: Skull Island"—half the online chatter during its opening weekend
was about the cave paintings at the end. Toho and Tsuburaya have also been more willing
to let these versions of Godzilla and Ultraman meet in non-film media. They've started to
appear together in art for the Shin Japan Heroes Universe project, and as of last month, you can
make them fight in "Godzilla Battle Line." Toho has also finally become more open to crossovers
outside mobile games, as exemplified by "Godzilla vs. The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers." Still,
I think if this Godzilla and Ultraman end up clashing on the big screen, it's most
likely to be something like the "Godzilla vs. Evangelion" Universal Studios Japan attraction.
So far, the Shin series has been a sort of anti-cinematic universe.
Its future after next year's "Shin Kamen Rider" is a mystery, but if Anno and Higuchi are still
interested, my money's on "Shin Gorenger" for the next one. We'll have more "Shin Ultraman"
videos for you once we get our mitts on a copy of the movie, but until then, thanks for watching!