Ultraman: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		2.5
Audio		2.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

Ultraman: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman October 20, 2019

Note: some of what appears below are summations from the booklet included with this Blu-ray release, written by Keith Aiken.

Special effects wizard Eiji Tsuburaya was at one point best known for his work on some of Japan's most popular Kaiju films -- Toho's Godzilla and Mothra -- but it may be for the Ultra franchise for which he will ultimately be remembered. In 1963 Tsuburaya founded Tsuburaya Productions, a then small house with the goal of crafting small screen entertainment with big screen quality. Tsuburaya's first production, Ultra Q, was a monster success (in more ways than one). A follow-up was quickly ordered. That follow-up: Ultraman, another massive hit for Tsuburaya and the first of numerous television and cinema Ultra Q spin-offs that has since gained the show recognition in the Guinness Book of World Records for its sprawling longevity.

With big success comes big challenges, and Tsuburaya faced his share when Ultra Q found favor with audiences and TBS (Tokyo Broadcasting System) ordered a new series to follow in Ultra Q's time slot. The challenge: make it better, bigger, and deliver the product faster. The show was to be created by Tsuburaya but many of the terms were dictated by TBS, which demanded the show be made in color, maintain a focus on monsters (many of Ultra Q's most beloved episodes featured big monsters), and create a hero-monster to fight alongside the human characters. TBS eyed American eyes, too, and insisted that Tsuburaya walk the line between building a show that would be a success in Japan and find favor half a world away.

What would become Ultraman was originally titled Science Special Search Team Bemler and then Science Special Search Team Redman. The title character's familiar design was quickly realized and honed to "convey both power and a sense of mystery" but given a "weakness" in its energy usage, signaled by a blinking light on the chest that added a sense of urgency to battles and a compactness that allowed the visual effects teams to play up the moment without worrying about extended confrontations. The character was designed by Ultra Q's own Tohru Narita. With the design down, the show quickly moved into production at breakneck speed. The title role was given to Ultra Q veteran Satoshi Fururya, who has previously portrayed several monsters. The suit was revised over the course of the first 39 episodes, molded into the familiar character known and beloved around the world today.

Ultraman's televised debut came not in a traditional episode but rather a live television special, presented in black-and-white, that gave the production team a much needed extension while still getting the character into the public conscience on TBS' timeframe. The show was a smash hit. Ratings soared, merchandise was well stocked and fast moving, and the public demand for more of anything and everything Ultraman reached fever pitch. TBS and Tsuburaya Productions would continue the series after a brief respite following the original 39 episodes, returning in Fall 1967 with Ultraseven, coming to Blu-ray December 2019 from Mill Creek.

The basic plot follows Science Patrol team member Hayata (Susumu Kurobe) who transforms into the intergalactic refugee/hero Ultraman to defend Earth from a variety of monsters. It's a relatively simple concept expanded to great success for both characterization and production design. There's enough individuality to each episode to keep things interesting and enough formula adherence to hold to a core audience watching with certain expectations in mind. The show looks and feels trite in the lens of contemporary television and cinema -- the visual effects are shaky and the extensive use of models and miniatures is obvious every time -- but it's still quite entertaining as it is, as a relic in look and feel but feeling rather fresh and refreshing in its simple charms that masquerade as something more complex, with a wink and a nod along the way.

Ultraman: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

While Ultra Q looked quite good on Blu-ray -- filmic, firm, borderline fantastic with only a steady but mostly unobtrusive barrage of vertical lines and a few pops and splotches getting in the way -- Ultraman is a different story entirely. Compression artifacts abound and define much of the entirety of the viewing experience. Clarity and detail aren't at all poor -- characters and environments and the various models and miniatures find good, stable definition -- but the image's better qualities are almost always overshadowed by the compression, the dense and intense macroblocking that appears across most every background. Additionally, ringing artifacts are not uncommon. Grain density is very uneven and choppy. The odd hair appear on-screen at times, too (see the 21:20 mark of "The Blue Stone of Barashi"). Colors appear to be a little washed out and depressed. The palette lacks deep contrast and tonal nuance. The 1080p resolution also equates to less forgiving model and miniature shots, which are very obvious. Wire work is also plainly visible, though these only add to the show's charm. One can imagine a more stable and sturdy presentation, but the show unquestionably benefits from the 1080p resolution. Add that Mill Creek has priced the set right and there's not a lot of room for loud complaint. Disappointment, sure, but the product's price still feels like a bargain.

Ultraman: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Ultraman's native Japanese audio track, presented here in lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 configuration, is the only sound option for the series on Blu-ray (English subtitles do default to "on"). The presentation struggles to find lifelike clarity and stage presence. It can be scratchy and unkempt but generally effective in bringing the core sound elements -- music, action, dialogue -- into the stage. Width is impressive and the track finds enough oomph and depth, albeit in a rather crude sonic configuration, to carry the various action scenes. Though scratchy and lacking finesse, the show's various and distinct sound effects are perfectly audible and the lack of perfect detail only seems to add to the charm. Dialogue does image well enough to the center and clarity and prioritization are fine under the track's limitations.

Ultraman: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Ultraman contains no supplements across any of the six discs. The main menu screens on each disc only offer the opportunity to toggle subtitles on and off in addition to selecting any of the disc's episodes, which are vertically oriented. The set does ship with an impressively assembled booklet that includes glossy pages, numerous black-and-white and color photographs, and plenty of text. It begins with introductory commentary on the show's history and production, a character breakdown, detailed episode synopses, key monster explorations, and character and technology guides. Mill Creek has put together a comprehensive series breakdown in a relatively small space. While it's disappointing that there are no video-based extras, this compact handbook will prove to be a treasure for veterans and a necessity for newcomers just getting their feet wet in the universe. A MovieSpree digital copy code is also included with purchase.

Ultraman: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Ultraman is corny by any measure in 2019, but there's no mistaking why the show proved so popular in its time: it tied in to Ultra Q, featured a cool looking new hero, threw plenty of monsters into the fray, and it was built around compact adventures with larger budgets and for the time impressive miniature and visual effects work. Add the small screen accessibility and the color photography and it's easy to see what Ultraman became a runaway success on the screen and in merchandise sales. It lives on today courtesy of Mill Creek in what is a fairly disappointing release, particularly for the troubled 1080p video presentation. The audio is by-and-large fine (though still with some inherent problems) and no extras are included. But Mill Creek has priced the set right. At time of release the set -- six discs, 39 episodes -- is selling in the low $20s, and the SteelBook packaging variant looks even better and is going for only a slight premium. Recommended for series fans and newcomers looking to broaden their library and appreciation of Sci-Fi TV classics, particularly those who can enjoy the show and look beyond the questionable video presentation and total absence of any on-disc extras.