Movies - Ultra Series

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	Movies - Ultra Series

The Ultra Series is the collective name for all the shows featuring Ultraman and his many brethren (although few of these shows, like the first Ultra Series, Ultra Q
, do not have any Ultramen in them). Regardless, the Ultra Series is one of the prominent tokusatsu superhero genre productions from Japan, along with Kamen Rider, Super Sentai, and Metal Heroes.

The Ultraman phenomenon

Ultraman and his many kin are usually red-and-silver (although several color variations have been seen in recent years), has glowing yellow almond-shape dome eyes and has various abilities, most notably to fire energy beams from various positions of crossed hands. The Ultras' main weakness is that each being can only stay on Earth in his giant form for three minutes owing to a limited supply of energy (Earth's atmosphere filters out his solar energy). This is marked by a light on the character's body usually called the Colortimer, which eventually begins to blink with increasing frequency as his energy supply dwindles (and turn from blue to red). At this stage, the Ultra must either find a way to recharge or finish the fight as soon as possible, or risk certain death. Some say another reason for Ultraman to recharge is due to the fact that the Earth is badly polluted by humans, so Ultraman only has 3 minutes on Earth, but can survive long enough in outer space. The other reason is that when Ultraman is critically injured by the monster, it tends to blink to indicate that Ultraman's life is in danger. Although this is not so often seen in the original Ultraman, this phenomenon is seen in other Ultramen.

Ultraman was followed by many other series. Sequels to the original series are: Ultra Seven (1967, TBS), Return of Ultraman (1971, TBS), Ultraman Ace (1972, TBS), Ultraman Taro (1973, TBS), Ultraman Leo (1974, TBS), Ultraman 80 (1980, TBS), Ultraman Tiga (1996, Mainichi Broadcasting System (MBS)), Ultraman Dyna (1997, MBS), Ultraman Gaia (1998, MBS), and Ultraman Cosmos (2001, MBS). Recently the studio tried a reinvention of the hero through the "Ultra N Project," which involved three heroes: Ultraman Noa (the "mascot" of the Ultra N Project, who appears in stage shows as well as the final episode of Ultraman Nexus) in late 2003, Ultraman Nexus (2004, Chubu-Nippon Broadcasting (CBC)), and Ultraman The Next (2004, Shochiku Productions). This was followed by a return to old-school style series in the form of the currently running Ultraman Max (2005, CBC). In the course of Max series, another new hero known as Ultraman Zenon was also introduced. April 2006 will see the 40th anniversary series, Ultraman Moebius.

The franchise has also been in the theaters, starting with Ultraman Zearth and Ultraman Zearth 2, Ultraman Tiga: The Final Odyssey (1997), as well as Ultraman The Next, a movie that opened in December 2004. The straight-to-video market also saw the release of Ultraman Neos in 2000, as well as special features for Ultraman Tiga, Dyna, and Gaia, who have teamed up in theatrical features (Tiga and Dyna once, as well as the three of them all together).

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