Hello and welcome, Ultraman Connection readers! With all the excitement from new announcements over the past week, with new releases of fan-favorite shows and movies to look forward to, you may have forgotten that the current Ultraman series, Ultraman Arc is still officially airing on YouTube every Friday evening! Never fear though, we here at UC will also still bring you the best coverage of Arc … with spoilers, of course. Now would be a good time to get caught up if you haven’t already!
Now, with that taken care of, let’s buckle down to the exciting, creatively-powered, imaginative exploration of the scientific method!
That might sound at odds with the premise of Arc, which has thus far focused on the concept of looking at problems in new ways, unconstrained by prejudices or limited processes. Often we think of science as being mechanical, involving a lot of tedious book work and mathematical calculations. But creative thinking is a necessary part of this process, the inspiration which drives scientific progress in our real world just as powerfully as it drives this show. This week’s episode illustrated that idea beautifully, and with the special effects flourishes that are quickly becoming a hallmark of the show’s style.
What do I mean by “flourishes”? Well, the opening of this week’s episode features a construction site laid out in miniature, a diorama of earthworks, backhoes and power lines criss-crossing overhead. It immediately gets flooded to set the stage for this week’s mystery. Imagine all the work that must have gone into carefully placing each piece, then dumping huge buckets of water over it while filming the whole scene in detail! I can’t recall this sort of practical effect for a flood being used in an Ultraman show since Gaia, almost thirty years ago!
SKIP arrived to investigate the scene after the surrounding towns were evacuated, and were surprised by the fact that the newly-formed lake in the mountains isn’t a lake at all -- but a huge reservoir of salt water! Professor Shinya Makino was already on the scene to investigate a mysterious Kaiju skeleton which was unearthed shortly before the deluge. He was surprised to find one of his former students, Hiroshi Ban, leading the SKIP team! Although Hiroshi’s specialty on the team is more related to geology in a broader sense, he described himself as a “former dinosaur kid”, who looked up to Professor Makino when he was younger.
Notwithstanding any coincidence related to the career of Hiroshi’s actor, Koishiro Nishi, I’m sure most adults watching this show -- and many kids as well -- can relate. I was certainly obsessed with dinosaurs when I was much younger, and that interest drove a lot of my curiosity about biology, natural history, and science in general. Professor Makino was well aware of the impact these passions can have on young learners, and sees his role in the public eye as a way to promote it.
The Professor’s reunion with Hiroshi brought some regrets with it, however. Hiroshi first came to him with a fossil he was convinced came from an unknown creature, but Professor Makino dismissed the idea, saying it would be too massive to exist -- even larger, presumably, than the dinosaurs! Such a dismissal was quickly dismissed itself, by the arrival of Kaiju on “K-Day”. The existence of these colossal creatures became all too obvious then.
Last year in Ultraman Blazar, and even before that in Ultraman Decker, we saw deadly conflicts erupt between the defense team members and their former mentors, who were driven to apocalyptic extremism by their convictions. It was a welcome change of pace to see these adult characters come to terms with past regrets in a more thoughtful and positive way. Working together, both the Professor and Hiroshi were finally able to resolve a mystery which had haunted both of their careers for years.
That mystery was certainly an odd one this week too! As someone with a scientific background, I was almost ready to complain to my friends in the middle of watching the episode, claiming that the geology and hydrology portrayed didn’t match what the team was investigating. Just like the Professor, I fell into the trap of thinking through matters in a way which was limited by only considering “realistic” scenarios and rigid predictions. If there’s one consistent element to Kaiju across the Ultraman franchise, it’s the idea that these strange creatures go beyond our understanding of the world around us.
Livyjira fits the bill perfectly. Rather than simply living in seawater, the Kaiju was actually the cause of the seawater, producing salt from its body! Unfortunately, SKIP’s discovery of the Kaiju also woke it up from its burrow under the salty lake, and sent it on a rampage.
There have been other whale-like Kaiju in Ultraman shows, the most famous (and downright ubiquitous in modern appearances) of which probably being Gubila from the 1966 Ultraman. Even though Gubila, and other aquatic Kaiju like it, come from underwater habitats, they usually end up fighting Ultraman on dry land.
Livyjira… is an exception! The audience doesn’t get a good look at the Kaiju apart from its huge, roaring head when it first bursts out from the water. Immediately after it was named, Livyjira dragged Arc back into the depths! This was another astounding flourish of special effects filming this week, I don’t think we’ve seen a full underwater Kaiju fight since Ultraman Mebius and the Mega Monster Battle series. They also take full advantage of the murky, dimly-lit setting to create one of the most tense and claustrophobic fights I can recall too!
I think it’s important to note that Arc doesn’t win this fight simply by overpowering Livyjira. The Kaiju definitely had the advantage underwater for most of their battle, but Arc had two specific tricks up his sleeve. One was Yuma’s imagination, once again using Arc’s energy shields in a creative way. But the second was a trick we actually saw in a previous episode, against Leodo! Just like before, Arc grabbed a tree to shove into the Kaiju’s snout, crippling its attacks.
Ouch. Painful, but effective! Anyways, at the end of the episode, Livyjira was made history after being blown up by Arc’s beam attack. Despite its loss, Hiroshi and Professor Makito were even more excited by the fact of its existence, and I’m sure the search for others of its kind will continue on, even after the credits roll.
Now that we’ve had the opportunity to get to know the members of SKIP, I appreciate how all of them fit into Yuma’s story in meaningful ways. Last week, Rin’s concern for the city reflected the stakes of Arc’s battles against the Kaiju. Yuma lost his own family, but has gained something of a new family with SKIP, which now motivates him to fight even harder to protect them and Hoshimoto City. Hiroshi Ban’s own passion for imagination coupled with scientific progress also reflects Yuma’s character, and gives him an example to strive for as he works within SKIP.
But there is one member of SKIP who remains a mystery to the others, and to the audience. Even though Shu Ishido was introduced in the first episode, we still don’t know his real purpose for joining the team, or his own history in the larger defense force. Next week, it seems that will change. Will it change his role on the team, or reveal a new mission Yuma and Arc must take on to protect the city? Stay tuned right here to Ultraman Connection to find out!
