Hello and welcome, Ultraman Connection readers! In the midst of the current Ultraman New Generation Stars series, we’ve been getting to know Ultraman Z and the legacy of his Ultra hero predecessors, all of whom have contributed to the franchise over the years.
But Zett himself didn’t serve as Ultraman alone in his own titular show, he fought alongside a human partner, Haruki Natsukawa! So this week, we thought we’d delve into Haruki’s story and talk about how this unlikely rookie pilot came to secure his own place in that legacy as well.
Haruki and Ultraman Z are both very similar in the first few episodes of the series. Both of them were relatively inexperienced, but quite assured in the hot-blooded spirit to launch themselves into dangerous situations without, well, comprehending the full consequences of their actions. In a lot of ways, Haruki’s character reminds me of Hideki Go in Return of Ultraman. Even back in 1971, Go was flinging himself recklessly into danger for the sake of protecting those around him – and both protagonists also got themselves killed in the first episode after trying to rescue a cute dog.
Go found himself selected by Ultraman Jack as a result of his… remarkably selfless act of courage. Haruki and Zett first meet each other more as a result of a cosmic accident. After Ultraman Z arrived pursuing the Kaiju Genegarg, both he and Haruki end up mortally wounded by the space shark’s attack. Their decision to join their lives together may have been convenient at the time, but they grow to become fast friends and excellent partners over the course of the show.
That doesn’t mean that they get along perfectly with no potholes along the road, however. You see, there is a reason why Haruki himself was so fiercely devoted to his role with the defense team STORAGE. Throughout the series, we see him eagerly tackle every challenge while piloting Sevenger, with just as much gusto as fighting as Ultraman. I think for Haruki, both of those roles are inseparable, and he takes on the responsibility to protect all the lives he can from within the cockpit, and alongside Ultraman Z himself in the same way.
But as the show goes on, it becomes increasingly clear to Haruki – and the audience – that they are not the same role. Haruki’s duties within STORAGE are bound by the orders of his superiors in the GAFJ defense force. When threats begin to escalate, STORAGE becomes focused less on protecting lives, and increasingly focused on destroying those threats instead.
It takes Haruki some time to realize the difference between those two missions. His first major breaking point happens on a seemingly-ordinary battle with STORAGE, while trying to exterminate a pair of Red King kaiju who are threateningly close to his own hometown. When he realizes that they destroyed a pair of kaiju who were only fighting to protect their child, the shock and horror he feels actually prevents him from fighting alongside Ultraman Z as his partner.
That crisis of conscience isn’t the only thing that drives him apart from Zett. After this, Haruki won’t even open up to his partner about these feelings because he feels ashamed about them! It might seem a little childish from the outside looking in, but Haruki was always driven by the determination that he was doing the right thing, and fighting the good fight to protect others – just as his father did before him. He was willing to give his life in the same way as his father as long as he believed he was doing the most good to defend innocent lives. It just wasn’t until he started fighting as Ultraman that he realized that responsibility necessarily involved protecting other lives besides just human beings.
Ultraman Z himself also learns a lot from this experience, from being connected so deeply to another life from another planet, and experiencing life on Earth. His inexperience as an Ultra hero didn’t just mean a lack of fighting experience, but also the experience of these dilemmas. Like Haruki, he hadn’t yet examined the consequences of fighting, or the responsibilities of Ultra Heroes outside of just defeating monsters. By the end of the series, both of them were able to fight united as Ultraman after enduring these challenges together.
More lessons are sure to come to Ultraman Z as a result of this new training from his “Master”, so stay tuned right here to Ultraman Connection for more!
