Ultraman Is Back / Losing to a Movie Like This Isn't Shameful

After all, in their world, the Ultraman TV series doesn't have a human host. Ultraman is Ultraman; they are guardians from the Land of Light who only appear when humanity is in its most critical moment.

However, Asuka and Gamu soon proven wrong.

Because when the mirage appeared again the next day, they, like Daigo, also saw the illusion.

However, unlike Daigo saw the Showa Four Elders transform, the other two saw themselves transform into Ultraman.

During their casual conversation, the three of them talked about a course I had taken in my Gamu — Parallel world.

Daigo believes that perhaps the things in the dream are real, and that they are happening in a Parallel world.

Asuka and Gamu didn't dismiss Daigo's guess like they did in the original "Super Eight," but rather harbored a vague skepticism.

For the three of them, life is not going well. They have not fulfilled their childhood dreams and are drifting along in society, just trying to make a living.

Their current monotonous life was naturally unsatisfactory to the three of them, and they would be more than happy to transform into Ultraman and become heroes if they could.

This is also a relatively obvious difference between Shinji's version of <Super Eight> and the original. Shinji's version focuses more on the psychological description and changes of the characters in the dialogue scenes, rather than being as direct as the original.

This kind of depiction makes the characters more realistic and resonates with the audience.

Heroes are not made overnight. In a good movie, a character's Character song is a smooth arc, and the change in a character's mentality is accumulated little by little.

The three of them just think that Ultraman is cool and can help them escape their boring real lives; they haven't thought about the true meaning of becoming Ultraman.

On the other hand, although their lives were mechanically repetitive, there was no major survival crisis, so Daigo two did not feel the necessary urgency to transform into Ultraman.

It's not that the original Super Eight series handled the characters poorly; it's just that the focus was different. The original story had clearer distinctions between love and hate, making it easier for children to understand.

As for Shinji's film, because he was so deeply immersed in the role, the core of the film unconsciously leaned towards adults.

Fortunately, the special effects in Shinji's film are several levels above the original, transcending the typical tokusatsu genre and more akin to the Hollywood blockbusters of his previous life.

Furthermore, Shinji's reputation as Director can attract a group of young viewers who don't usually watch tokusatsu, which is enough to make up for the children's market that Shinji lost.

"Wow, it's only because I'm awesome that I can attract far more viewers than the original Ultraman series."

Admiring his masterpiece, Shinji leaned back in his chair, elegantly crossing his legs, a smile playing on his lips.

If you were to pair Second Master's hand with a glass of red wine at this moment, he would definitely exude the aura of a behind-the-scenes mastermind.

"If it were just Tsuburaya Productions, they couldn't film it like this; the movie would be a complete flop."

"In that case, Tsuburaya won't have to wait another two years; they can just package themselves up and hand themselves over to TYO."

Sitting behind Shinji, Kazuo Tsuburaya quickly spoke up after hearing Shinji's boastful remarks, "Brother Shinji, please don't say such terrible things. If TYO really takes over the company, then our Tsuburaya family will truly be kicked out."

Shinji rolled his eyes at Kazuo Tsuburaya behind him.

[Historically, you were destined to be kicked out. And you deserved it!]

Kazuo Tsuburaya felt wronged after being glared at.

He was clearly saying that the Shinji brothers were better than TYO, so why was he being glared at?

"I just think that cleaning up other people's messes is really tiring, because the person whose mess they're cleaning up never knows how big a mess they've made."

"... Let's continue watching the movie."

Sensing Shinji's disdainful gaze, Kazuo Tsuburaya chuckled awkwardly and shrank back.

Chapter 237 Ultraman is back

On the screen, just as Daigo and his two friends were reminiscing about their childhood and feeling lost about their current lives.

A sharp scream woke the three of them.

Immediately afterwards, everyone in the theater heard a heavy rumbling sound.

It turned out that the mastermind behind the accident was a Dark Shadow Mage who orchestrated the crash. Under the influence of dark energy, a truck scraped against the roadside railing and charged towards the intersection like a ferocious beast.

Because it happened so fast, everyone on the street was stunned, and the children crossing the road were so frightened that they couldn't move.

Even if it moves, it's useless; the car is going too fast, too fast for an ordinary person to escape.

At this moment, the Showa Four Elders, who were walking in front, made their move.

Moroboshi Dan rushed into the truck's cab to try and stop it, while the other three quickly pulled the children off the sidewalk.

Compared to the original version's brief mention, Shinji has emphasized the special effects in this scene.

Borrowing visual effects from Hollywood productions of speed-type superheroes like Quicksilver and the Flash, Shinji transformed this short, low-budget special effects scene from the original manga into a blockbuster.

A frozen moment: shards of glass, people's terrified expressions, and a truck veerging out of control and crashing to one side.

Against a backdrop where time seems to stand still, the superhuman actions of the four elderly men— Hayata Shin, Moroboshi Dan, Hideki Go, and Hokuto Seiji— leave the audience speechless.

In the past, the way heroes displayed their superhuman physical abilities before transformation in Tokusatsu was very simple and crude. It was either by flashing their eyes as X-ray vision or by using a simple prop to show that they were incredibly strong.

The incredible scene of rescuing people from under a truck is something no creator in the tokusatsu (special effects) field could have imagined.

"Wow, that's amazing! If I had the money, I could do that too. I'm so envious!"

Shinichiro Shirakura, who has produced the Heisei Kamen Rider series such as Kuuga, AgitΩ, and Ryuki, and has yet to be criticized by fans for his questionable actions, sighed.

As a "high -Toei" in the eyes of fans, Shirakura, who hadn't yet rotted away, was considered a god-like figure in the first ten years of the Kamen Rider series before the Heisei era.

Kamen Rider's rise to the top in 2000, surpassing Sentai and Ultraman to become the number one of the three major tokusatsu series, owes an undeniable debt to Shirakura.

Of course, these achievements cannot be used as an excuse to whitewash Shirakura's questionable actions in "Zi-O".

Later on, Shirakura became completely unpredictable, and could easily form a Toei madman duo with Toshiki Inoue and Satoshi Morota.

Shinji believes that it is biased to say that the three mentioned above are guilty of the same crimes, since Toshiyuki Morita are equally unforgivable, but these three are just more famous.

Unlike his later years, Shirakura is not yet tarnished. Thanks to the success of Kamen Rider masterpieces such as Kuuga and AgitΩ, he is currently a god-like figure among Kamen Rider fans.

"That Director named Shinji Matou is such a waste. His car accident rescue scene could have been enough for me to make several episodes of Kamen Rider."

Shirakura's words weren't a boastful expression of his ability to save money, but rather a deep sense of envy.

If given a choice, who wouldn't want to lavishly spend the budget when making a film?

The budget cuts for Kamen Rider to that extent were not what Shirakura wanted.

Sakamoto Koichi was sitting in the row behind Shirakura, nodded in agreement after hearing this.

Unlike Shirakura, who has always focused on developing his business in Japan, Sakamoto Koichi has been leading his team to develop their business in Australia for the past two years.

Sakamoto's original idea was to first learn from foreign countries, and after studying their advanced technologies, return to Japan to develop his business.

After hearing that Tsuburaya Productions had been acquired by an outsider, Sakamoto Koichi, a die-hard Ultraman fan since childhood, returned to Japan with the dream of directing Ultraman series.

Using his connections in the tokusatsu (special effects) industry, Sakamoto easily obtained tickets to the premiere movie.

His original plan was to watch "Super Eight" first and then go for an interview with Tsuburaya Productions, to give them the impression that he was well-prepared and leave a good impression.

However, to Sakamoto's utter surprise, the "Super Eight" movie he was watching was actually a 3D film like this!

As shards of glass shot across his face from the screen, Sakamoto couldn't help but feel that the world had changed.

In particular, the 3D stereoscopic technology used in this movie, which doesn't require glasses and is not the current mainstream color difference 3D technology, left Sakamoto completely bewildered.

Because he was a tech person and had some understanding of the current state of 3D technology in the industry, Sakamoto Koichi found the movie increasingly incredible.

I simply cannot understand how that Director managed to do it.

Am I already old? I'm only in my early thirties!

Given the seniority-based system in the Japan film and television industry, Sakamoto is certainly not considered old for his age to have reached this position.

You can see a young man who is not even 20 years old making a movie that you can only dream of.

Even the usually confident Sakamoto Koichi couldn't help but ask himself this question.

In contrast, Milo Johnson, who is merely a film critic, is not so sentimental.

Because of his delicate relationship with Jidai Group., Milo Johnson paid a lot of attention to the movie "Super Eight" and knew a lot of inside information.

He's neither a seasoned tech enthusiast nor a hardcore tokusatsu fan.

Milo Johnson's knowledge of tokusatsu is limited to the fact that horror films often employ many tokusatsu filming techniques.

However, as an industry insider who cares about the development of the film industry, Milo Johnson believes that if this film is successful, it will mean the maturity of IMAX film technology and market recognition of it.

This is good news for Milo Johnson, who is known for his reviews of commercial films; the more commercial films he makes, the more money he earns.

The biggest selling point of "Super Eight"—the Naked-eye 3D technology —was naturally also within Milo Johnson's considerations.

[Not all shots have 3D effects; most purely dialogue-driven shots have almost no out-of-screen effect, but when they transition to out-of-screen shots, they appear so natural... How is that achieved?]

Milo Johnson wasn't a tech fanatic. After struggling to explain this amazing effect scientifically for a long time, he simply gave up and instead compared the film to existing 3D technology.

[The advantages are that no 3D glasses are needed, the picture quality is more natural and brighter, and the out-of-screen effect is excellent. I believe that horror movies will soon have no shortage of jump scares extending beyond the screen.]

[The downside is that the out-of-screen effects are great, but the in-screen effects are a bit lacking. Is this due to technical limitations, or is it just the nature of this film?]

[Based on my observation, because the out-of-screen effects are so good, this movie has many shots that deliberately show off technical skills, which actually disrupts the story's presentation. I hope this won't become a trend for future Naked-eye 3D movie...]

While amazed by the new technology used in <Super Eight>, Milo Johnson still felt that such technology was too powerful and even suppressed the film's narrative ability.

However, the film critic also had to admit that, with the support of this new technology, the overall quality of "Super Eight" has truly reached a new level.

The 3D-like visuals, in particular, gave him a feeling that was both real and dreamlike.

[Shinji Matou, he really wasn't wrong to call himself the world's number one commercial Director; he's a truly terrifying person.]

Unlike filmmakers who are still struggling between enjoying movies and analyzing new technologies, ordinary viewers are already eager to see more.

They wanted to see that same tense, exciting, and adrenaline-pumping battle from the opening sequence once again.

Although Shinji used illusions and car crashes to showcase the film's 3D technology during this part of the plot, in the eyes of the audience, this approach was merely scratching the surface, leaving them feeling both excited and frustrated!

The story has now progressed to about a third of its length and needs a key plot twist, which is exactly what the audience is hoping for.

Although the film features numerous cameo appearances by actors from the Ultraman series in its dramatic scenes, it also contains countless Easter eggs in various corners of the film, and portrays the relatable experiences of office workers.

But none of these are the main characters of "Super Eight". Since it's called Ultraman, the main characters can only be monsters and Ultraman.

And now, the monster that all the audience has been eagerly awaiting has finally made its appearance!

While working, Daigo suddenly found himself transported to a dream world once again, where he encountered the deep-sea monster Guvira!

On the calm and tranquil dock, Daigo gazed into the distance, wondering why he had come here.

Suddenly, a gigantic wave surged up from the distant sea without warning, forcing Daigo to run quickly toward the inner side of the pier.

Immediately afterwards, a huge drill emerged from the sea.

The ferocious beast finally revealed its terrifying side to the audience, causing devastating damage to the dock as soon as it landed, destroying the dock's warehouses.

The ground trembled because of the monster's presence, cars on the road bounced slightly, and Daigo felt like he was on a trampoline, falling to the ground every two steps.

Daigo could only lie on the ground, cried out in despair, "What's going on? Is the world going to end?"

Daigo's response was a colossal shadow that blotted out the sky, and a gigantic foot descending from the heavens, attempting to crush him into a pulp.

At this critical moment, a bright golden light descended from the sky and repelled the monster.

A giant with red and silver patterns appeared before Daigo, and he assumed a fighting stance, making an attacking motion towards Guvira.

"Ha!"

The hero of the new era, Ultraman Mebius, has arrived!

"Ultraman!"

Whether it was Daigo on screen or the audience off screen, everyone cheered the moment Ultraman Mebius.

Even in the preview screenings in China, even though Ultraman Mebius hadn't been officially released in China, children were cheering for this Ultraman warrior they'd never seen before.

Whether you're familiar with him or not doesn't matter; as long as he's Giant of Light, he'll bring you an indescribable sense of security.

"This is exactly what I wanted!"

Even an adult like Li Ri'ang covered his mouth in excitement as he watched Ultraman Mebius's towering figure on the screen.

"Ultraman is back!"

Chapter 238 Compared to a movie like this, it's no wonder it lost.

In the early days of the Chinese internet, there was a saying that circulated like this.

What is happiness? Happiness is a cat eating fish, a dog eating meat, and Ultraman fighting monsters.