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News Stay At Home With ULTRAMAN| Ultra Science Fiction Hour on YouTube

From what I can tell, it was a full co-production, with Hanna-Barbera involved in the creative process from the get-go. The Ultraman Wiki says "Hanna-Barbera provided crucial advice and guidance in planning and production. In 1986, the project entered the specific implementation phase, with Mitsuo Kusakabe from a Japanese studio serving as the director, and the script being jointly authored by four American writers under the pen name John Eric Seward." (The writers were John Loy, X-Men's Eric Lewald, Jeff Segal, and Kelly Ward.)

So I don't really know why H-B or WB would only have the rights to the English soundtrack, when H-B had a hand in the creation of the entire story. I'm not convinced that's the reason for the new dub.

However, I checked the video that's available on YouTube, and it turns out that, unlike most American animated shows subcontracted to overseas animators, U:TAB's animation is not lip-synced to the English dialogue. It must have been animated the usual Japanese way, with random lip flaps done first and dialogue dubbed onto them later, or else animated to a Japanese dialogue track. Which would mean I may have been wrong and the English dialogue was a dub after all. Although that's strange, because the jointly owned rights meant that it didn't get released in Japan until a year and a half after its US release. It's all pretty weird.
 
Arc #3, "Unleash Your Imagination":
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An origin-story episode that mostly looks like it's just the first episode airing third, though it turns out to be a dream-flashback at the end. It fills in much of Yuma & Arc's backstory while still leaving a lot of unanswered questions and raising new ones.

The directing/cinematography in the giant battles is still very creative. There's a clever sequence transitioning from the fight to a montage of video screens showing the fight, then back into the live fight in an unexpected way.

The scene where Yuma and Rin work their first case together is at a very familiar, scenic location they often use in Ultra shows, and I think occasionally in Toei shows, with a bridge over a canal. I don't recall seeing it from this angle before, though. It's usually shot from the walkways alongside the canal, beneath the bridge.
 
Ultraman: Along Came A Spider-Man Manga Announced


news.tokunation.com

Ultraman: Along Came A Spider-Man Manga Announced

has announced a unique new project for manga fans! A new series features the second crossover between Ultraman and a hero (following Marvel's own series previously announced). In this new adventure, Spider-Man is brought aboard the following a devastating battle with When Doom sees the Ultraman...
news.tokunation.com news.tokunation.com



In this new adventure, Spider-Man is brought aboard the Interdimensional Train following a devastating battle with Doctor Doom. When Doom sees the Ultraman and kaiju battle he becomes obsessed with taking the heroes’ new power for himself.
Click to expand...
1V1ZfeY.jpg
 
Arc #4, "On the Kaiju's Tail":
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A decent, moderately comical episode about an electricity-guzzling giant rat, giving a spotlight to Rin and YouPi. Some slapstick beats in the giant battle. I kept wondering why Arc didn't use his sword to cut the cable powering the rat, though.
 
Ultraman Blazar blu-ray coming to the US. Wow. I'm surprised such a recent release got licensed. I'm still sore about no Ultraman Z though


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I'm sure that Z is included in whatever new licensing deal they've made, in fact I could have sworn I'd read a comment basically confirming it (it was a discussion with a MC person about including Sevenger Fight on the bluray set with Z because Z didn't have a proper movie). Plus Millcreek always does slightly odd releases, when they first started doing Ultraman releases they went in an order of releasing a showa series then a new gen series, eventually ending with the 90s/early 2000s Ultraman stuff. So I'm assuming they've gone with Taiga first this time because it is the continuation of where they left off in releases, then going to Blazar because its the latest complete show and is so disconnected from the rest that its a safe solo release (while also having the "hype" of being the latest complete show).

We don't know exactly all that they've got, but even taking away half remembered internet comments they almost certainly have Z, Trigger and Decker to go with Taiga and Blazar. We also know that they have Ultraman USA/The adventure Begins coming next year, so I'd say there is no point worrying about if they have something, because they almost certainly have the remaining major releases. I'm more curious to see if they have any more oddball stuff, I really want the two English language live action shows, then maybe some of the non-Ultra Tsuburaya stuff like Mirrorman, Red Man, and Fire Man.
 
Arc #5, "Ocean on the Mountain Ridge":
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Not bad. The team investigates a mysterious ocean-water lake appearing out of nowhere, and we meet the mentor of Hiroshi, the head of SKIP. There's a reference to Koichiro Nishi's former role as the lead of Abaranger when he says "I used to be a dinosaur kid." And the director seems to be going for a bit of an Akio Jissoji feel with the blinding light through the windows putting the characters in silhouette a lot of the time. Similarly, while the previous giant fights have gone for flashy visuals, this one relies on lack of visibility in the murky depths. I didn't find it entirely successful.

I do like how Arc's fighting style is apparently based on imagination, coming up with creative tactics. Apparently tilting his head to the right is his signal for things getting serious. I do wish he didn't kill the kaiju when they're just animals protecting their territory or trying to survive. I was hoping he'd pick it up and fly it out to the ocean.
 
I love the sound of the kaiju's eyes opening is the same tune used in the original Ultraman's opening (where the Ultra Q title slowly formed before changing to Ultraman's)

Love how resourceful Arc was between combining the barrier and halo to create a turbine while sticking a tree on the kaiju's nose. And quite funny the part of him laughing at the monster being unable to use the smoke trick again.
 
Arc #6: "Welcome to the Akebono Inn":
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A nice story about Shu having to overcome his suspicions about a benevolent alien refugee, with the return of the Shagong species from episode 1 for the giant action. For once, Arc shows some mercy; after destroying two of the three Shagong, he lets the third go with a warning.

Arc debuts another variant on combining his barrier and halo, this time into a devastating weapon. Otherwise, though, this is perhaps the most conventional giant battle in the series so far in terms of its staging and cinematography, without any really creative camera moves or playing with the environment.

Next week is a recap/clip episode as the show takes a week off. So soon?
 
Here's the recap episode:
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Although I lost interest in this one after the first few minutes. The frame characters setting up the clips are kind of boring this year, just a bored guy with an uneventful job at SKIP and his irritable robot companion that's just the YouPi suit with a different voice and attitude.
 
Arc #7: "The Full Moon's Answer":
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A nice one with a spiky-tiger kaiju that turns out not to be malicious, but still dangerous. It debuts Arc's second armor, based on Moon power instead of Sun, and like several Ultras' blue forms, it provides speed and magic/illusory powers. We finally get an episode where Arc doesn't kill the kaiju, though it's a mixed outcome.

In the flashback with Yuma's mother talking about the Moon as a protector, I got the sense they might be going for a wordplay between Tsuki (the Moon) and suki (love).
 
Arc #8: "Internet Kanegon":
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(Half an hour late, since they had subtitle problems with the livestream, so I waited to watch the non-live version.)

A very silly episode, reinterpreting the classic Ultra Q comedy monster Kanegon into an online AI, and providing an economics lesson to the kids, along with perhaps a satirical commentary on how billionaires hoarding wealth hurts the economy for everyone else. It also borrows from Gridman the Hyper Agent in having Arc's climactic battle take place in cyberspace, though the mechanism for getting him there makes no sense.
 
Here's Arc #9, "Goodbye, Rin":
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The title's kind of misleading, but it's a nice Rin focus, even if it's a plot I've seen before, a team member finding that their mentor has feet of clay. The second episode in a row featuring very early kaiju, Neronga from Ultraman and Pagos from Ultra Q.
 
I liked seeing the old Kaiju, but like most episodes of the show the plot really leaves me cold. I just can't find anything to really grab me about Ultraman Arc, outside of occasionally cool action sequences. Its not a bad show by any means, but I'll admit I have a hard time remembering what happened in the week(s) before whenever a new episode comes out.
 
Which must mean it must be pretty easy for kids to follow.

They don’t need a masters degree to follow the series since it’s very episodic.

It’s the Star Trek voyager of the Ultraman franchise
 
We're only up to episode 9. Usually we get a big arc-defining 2-parter in episodes 11-12 and it sets the stage for the arc in the latter half of the season. So far Arc has been episodic, yes (ironic given its name), but it's been subtly establishing mysteries about Arc's nature, the Monohorn, etc., as well as hinting at a secret agenda behind the GDF guy's assignment to SKIP. I'm sure it's all setup for things that will start to pay off soon.
 
Samurai8472 said:
Which must mean it must be pretty easy for kids to follow.

They don’t need a masters degree to follow the series since it’s very episodic.

It’s the Star Trek voyager of the Ultraman franchise
Click to expand...

Thats pretty insulting to all the Ultraman series that are memorable from the start. Kids don't need mindlessly episodic stories and bland characters, is Ultraman Z really that long ago that people don't remember how much better it is then anything that came after it? In fact, I'd say that Ultraman X, Orb, and Geed also had a lot more going for them from the start, and they (and Z) were all popular shows for all of their audiences.

I swear, Trigger and Decker dragged the franchise into the pits and now anything even slightly better gets treated like the norm. Ultraman has a lot of shows made for the same audience as Arc that are much better, they've been doing it since the 60s actually (with a few mediocre or bad shows along the way, no franchise is perfect).

Of course its fine to like Arc and not have the same problems I have, but to admit to its problems but just wave them off because kids (I guess) deserve lower quality shows is ridiculous. Ultraman Arc isn't made the way it is because "thats what the kids want", its just a mediocre Ultraman show (so far). The show is so avaliable nowadays even in Japan (Tsuburaya has a streaming service in Japan with most of the older Ultraman stuff) that there is no need to stick with the mediocre.

I saw a video online recently from Japan of a woman asking a little kid who his favorite Ultraman was, and he said Ultraman 80 (she actually asked him twice because she thought she misheard). This is a little kid in 2024, and if he can like Ultraman 80 that just shows that kids are watching a variety of Ultraman and are just as capable of getting attached to the old stuff as the new stuff, they don't need stuff less complex or blander, a kid in 2024 isn't inherently less intelligent then a kid in 1980, for example.
 
Oops, I forgot Arc was on last night. Here's #10, "To My Distant Friend":
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A nice, heartfelt story with an unexpectedly poignant ending. The story took a couple of turns I didn't see coming.
At first, I thought it might turn out that the alien who befriended the introverted guy over ham radio was actually the invading monster gathering intel or something, but it turned out to be something much sadder. I was also convinced that Arc was going to follow the signal back to her planet and save her, but no, they took the more painful route.

I'm glad they finally had Arc figure out a nonlethal way to deal with the kaiju, paralleling the ending of Noiseler's original Ultraman 80 appearance.

I loved the bit where the SKIP team was talking out the science, and they were startled to discover that Arc was leaning in to listen to them.
 
Arc begins its 2-part climax for the first half-season with #11, "Message":
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A giant robot interrupts a fight between Arc and Oka-Gubila (the subterranean version of the drill-nosed, narwhal-inspired Gubila that appeared in the original Ultraman) and appears to protect a couple of kids, but SKIP's translation of its cryptic message featuring the word "Givas" suggests it's declaring itself Earth's enemy. Only Yuma believes otherwise, but we won't find out until part 2.

It's pretty clear that the "enemy" translation will be wrong. They figured out "Givas" meant "one who obstructs a path," but it seems to me that that could mean a protector, a shield, which makes more sense in the context of the message. Anyway, the "science" they used to deduce the alien language was total gibberish.

I wouldn't be surprised if Givas turned out to be an ally/protector, since Ultraman seems to like featuring recurring giant robots these days. Although the preview revealed that
there's someone in a cockpit inside Givas, and the narration mentioned an encounter across dimensions. Could we be getting a guest star from a previous season? Although that seems unlikely given that the robot speaks an unknown language.
 
Arc #12, "You Are Givas":
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Pretty nice conclusion, with Arc functioning more as a peacekeeper than a monster-slayer, a nice change. We see that Yuma sustains injuries when Arc is injured.

It didn't end the way I expected, with Givas ending up as a permanent robot ally. Although it's ambiguous enough that it might return. I was also expecting some kind of story-arc setup in this 2-parter, but there's just a touch of mystery about the "new moon" that was mentioned. It actually looks like the midseason clip episode next week might also reveal some new info about Arc's identity and nature.
 
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