Funny you say that, cause the surname Hebikura is no doubt a wordplay on Juggler since the onyomi for the word hebi(which means snake in Japanese) is "jya". And when the Japanese writing for Juggler is Romanized, it can be written as "jyaguraa" so it all fits. Anyhoos, Ultraman Z episode 1 last time was impressive, and then they give us episode 2, a great new episode that further makes me want more of this show. Really love the writing regarding the scene when Haruki and Z are discussing trivial things. That whole bit about the Z Holder was awesome. :lolol

Just so you know, X is my all-time favorite New Generation Ultraman. Yes technically Orb and Geed is better, but X just hits all the right notes for me.

Though I am somewhat salty that X is kinda underrated compared to his successors lol. I kinda want Z to be related to X in some way.

Like I said not too long ago, it really is a great back-to-basics show alongside Max. :rock:

Man this episode was great! I really like the relationship between Haruki and Z they’re building here, Haruki being able to talk with Z like this is intriguing, and their chemistry is still perfect. Also, the other characters are just as good. I adore Yuka and how they play her as an evil scientist in the making :lol

Yoko is really cool too. I like how they are able to portray a badass character that is still caring and kind. I’m not sure how I like her having a crush on Z yet but if they play it for fun I’m for it.

And Shota – yes they’re definitely giving him Juggler-vibes on purpose and I love it.

The action scene at the end was really cool, the suit performance of Alpha Edge continues to be amazing and the fighting choreography was overall excellent.

Perhaps my favorite little thing about this episode was that they actually cared to explain how people cannot see the Z Holder. I myself was wondering if it wasn’t way too obvious when he was walking around the STORAGE facility with this bright blue box which has a "Z" embedded on it at his waist. When they addressed this I had to smile, it was perfect.

I agree. Geed is my favorite show closely followed by Taiga but X will forever be special to me. It was my first Ultraman show and it really does all things right in my book.

The robot action is already a much more entertaining way for the supporting cast to get in on the action than the old fighter jets, and I hope it keeps up. Though... I can't help but feel like they will inevitably and eventually fall to the sidelines and then the bench, especially once Geed joins the fray.

EDIT: Wait 5000 years old? That's like a middle schooler by Ultra standards...

For some reason, I found the scientist girl happily running off to dissect a monster to be especially funny for whatever reason. So far I am liking the cast, which is one of the highlights of Ultraman anyway.

Wondering when we'll get the other robot.

He's 200 years older than Taiga. Which probably means he's just 2 'weeks' or 'months' older than Taiga lol

Another thing I really liked in episode 2 is that the show cared to explain how transformation works in-universe.

See, with Kamen Rider for example it’s easy: It happens in real-time. We are made aware of this because in some situations the transformation is sped up off-screen or enemies are actively being pushed away.

But Ultraman is stock footage, so how does this work? Well, Z explained it for us in episode 1:

https://i.imgur.com/yh4U2qQ.jpg

The transformation takes place in a pocket dimension where time works differently. And in this episode, we can see that once Haruki takes out the Ultra Z Riser it creates an entrance to this dimension and he goes inside. Or rather, Z creates that portal and lets Haruki inside, just like he did earlier in the same episode to talk.

And since the transformations sequence is approximately 45 seconds long, the transformation from human to Ultraman takes less than one second in our dimension.

I guess most of us assumed something like this was happening all along in previous shows anyways, but as with the Z Holder: It’s really nice that they're actually explaining this stuff now.

The other robot, seen in the opener, is one of the Capsule Monsters used by UltraSeven. Sevenger actually originates from the Leo series.

As far as the show itself and my opinions, I view this as a pretty standard series with amusing interactions and moments of character insight as humorous excerpts, but with little experimentation. Having a giant robot makes this almost like a Sentai or live-action adaptation of a Mecha manga/anime and that's a neat touch, but it seems like STORAGE has little else at the ready save for Sevenger. There will be a recurring villain later, but so far it's just "Host uses toy to activate special Ultraman combat form and defeat a decades-old Kaiju"! The little things, like explanations and characterization, are helping it. The battles themselves are a work of art in terms of set design and miniatures, but that's Ultra-Standard.

Also, why does the toy have two different gimmicks? An Access Card and Ultra Medals could ultimately lead to someone besides Haruki merging with Zett. The overview of classic Ultras and Kaiju at the end also suggests the possibility of Kaiju Medals, which could lead to Kaiju Fusions like the ones in Geed!

It would be nice if they made a totally new Mecha which can fuse with Zett, which would show an alliance between STORAGE and Zett, but that's wishful thinking and unrealistic!

It's not a bad show, just a "by-the-numbers" show!

P.S.: Sorry, Zett! The big blue storage box on Haruki's side is rather conspicuous.

Yes and no. Yes, the card is a gimmick and yes, other people in the show will use one. But not to become Z.

Riku has his own Access Card that allows him to use the Ultra Z-Riser to become Geed, and if the toy listings are correct the bad guy also has an Access Card, although we don’t know if he uses it to become an Ultraman or something else entirely.

I'm thinking that the reason the Ultra Access card is a thing, at least in universe, is that the ones who made it remember what happened with the Geed Riser and added some extra security in case this model gets stolen too. Which, I mean... it did. And it looks like one of the villains has a riser AND card, so it wouldn't have worked anyway if that was their intention. But at least they tried.

Though out of universe, it's most likely just so that other ultras/people can use it, sort of like how the faceplates on the Sengoku driver worked. It's just that instead of having it be a separate piece of the riser, they had it use the same scanner as the medals, which is kind of interesting.

The train of thought is interesting, because we know from Geed that Ultraman Hikari made the Ultra Capsules and the Riser. So we should assume he also made the Ultra Medals and the Ultra Z Riser, maybe even as a direct upgrade.

I always wondered what they are made for, but someone raised a very interesting point recently on this forum. I forgot where and when, but the post speculated how it's mainly newer, fairly young Ultraman who use fusion forms, as means to make up for their lack of power an older Ultra would naturally have.

It’s of course not an in-universe explanation as form changing was simply introduced to sell more toys, but I like the idea that older Ultraman don’t need the support of fusion forms.

Tie this together and you actually have a great explanation to why Hikari keeps making all this stuff in the first place: The number of battle-hardened champions like the Ultra Brothers is very low, so in a state of emergency they couldn’t possibly defend the entire universe alone. Cadets need training and experience which in dire situations they have no time to acquire.

Which is where all these items infused with the strength of their very best fighters come in: They’re made so that younger Ultraman can power up and rise to the challenge.

Whoever sent Genegarg and is behind the Devil Splinters purposefully stole these items so that the rampaging monsters could eventually overwhelm the Land of Light.

How does the Ultra Z Riser DX toy read cards? Is it scanning them like the Decadriver? NFC? Or does it just push a button?

Like the Decadriver, it scans the barcode on the back of the card :)

https://i.imgur.com/0n1j9TL.jpg

New episode descriptions and information on Geed's appearances and power-up!

http://ukiyaseed.weebly.com/ukiyasee...sode-summaries

New information on the recurring villain and how Kaiju Medals will operate...all derived from toy information!

http://ukiyaseed.weebly.com/ukiyasee...mages-revealed

Oh, so he transforms into fusion monsters like Skull Gomora. Interesting. I also saw toys for Skull Gomora, Pedanium Zetton and Zeppandon announced, guess that's why.

Skull Gomora makes sense as he has Belial, Gomora and Red King medals. For Pedanium Zetton he'd use Belial, Zetton and King Joe.

But Zeppandon? Zetton, Pandon and... Jugglus Juggler?

Also the Z-Riser really is a Geed Riser 2.0, isn't it? :lol

Zeppandon requires the Maga-Orochi Medal, not Juggler's.

Geed's new Galaxy Rising form actually works really well. Can't wait to see it action. :rock:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4e0zMIMo7cM

This Redman reboot is looking pretty great so far!

Episode 3 was my favorite so far by a long shot. The premiere was Ultra-solid, of course, but I have a feeling that in the future, if someone asks for a single episode that really represents what Z was all about, this is the one I'm going to point to.

From the way Tsuburaya described it before it started airing, emphasizing that Z is a "hot-blooded" character, and likewise making martial arts a big part of Haruki's background (plus Alpha Edge's fighting style), it's evident this is meant to be The Action Ultraman Show, and that really clicked in my brain watching this one. The thing about STORAGE having giant robots instead of jets and cars means an entire episode can be almost entirely dudes in suits wrestling, and I'm finding that massively changes the flavor in a way I'm all for. You're getting a lot of bang for your buck with Z when it comes to watching giant humanoid aliens and monsters throwing down.

Where this particular episode takes things to the next level is in how it does another thing I'm always game for, which is placing a huge focus on contrasting the fantastic and the mundane. If you ignore what the context is, the plot is entirely about a bunch of blue-collar workers trying to impress the higer-ups to make sure they give them what they need to do their jobs properly, all while dealing with comedic, poorly timed mishaps like the guy with the most important role in the scheme dealing with allergies. If it weren't for the giant robot and monster, this could conceivably be an episode of any workplace sitcom out there.

Taguchi's direction really shines here, as usual. I expected a bit more use of the live TV news footage gimmick, but I suppose he had his fill of that back on X. Instead, he shows off a much wider variety of tricks. My favorite shot in the whole episode comes right at the start, when Gigass is getting pushed back by Sevenger's Rocket Punch, and you can see a bunch of trees zooming by in the foreground. Taguchi is an absolute master at giving these giants a proper sense of scale and weight, and the clever use of perspective in that scene is a perfect example of why.

Beta Smash's debut is obviously another big talking point. It's probably going to end up being my favorite of Z's forms, if it isn't already. The muscles suddenly made a lot more sense when I remembered how OG Man has been on steroids for the past decade or so, and making the classic Taro style entrance of flipping a few times before landing a kick is a great touch. Sure, Burnmite did it too, but that's exactly why! If you've got a form with Taro's powers, you have to do some sick flips! Natrually, it all makes for an entertaining scene, and I don't know whether to credit the wrestling style "bell" being rung at the start to clever direction or writing. Presumably it was both coming together to make an episode that's basically already perfect that little bit more so.

I mean, did you see all those foreign dudes watching? They were getting pumped. It's good to see Ultraman's western fanbase is growing even in-universe. :lol

Oh yeah, there was good money betting on loving Beta Smash before it even premiered and this is that reason. Beta Smash makes a very wonderful debut.

It's hard to really talk about Z coherently because I still love it so much, there's so many good jokes, the action is great, heck even the guest cast this time was like my favorite part.

Just all these foreign guys like, "It's just like the Japanese Animations when I was a kid!" or like, "Oh it's doing a Kabuki attack!" in regards to Sevengar is really great.

Also man Gomora cannot catch a break huh? Allergies suck, for both humans and Kaiju.

How long are the youtube uploads up for

The looks on Shota and Yuka were priceless. :lolol

When will Geed make his new debut in Z? Feels like Geed & Zero all over again.

Episode 3 was awesome.

The setup was super fun and I really liked the comedy of this one. Poor Haruki can’t stop sneezing ;)

The action was great as always, I still adore Alpha Edge's fighting style, but man Beta Smash is awesome. My favorite little thing was how a mascot sign fell down on Sevenger to "ring the bell" :lol

I'm very much looking forward to the next episode since the bad guy will finally get more screen time.

2 weeks I think.

Episode 6 I guess. It's called "That Man Returns!" and the description of it mentions that a giant similar to Z will appear.

Also yes, it feels exactly like Geed & Zero and I love it.

User Kiwami is correct. Each episode will be available for two weeks as soon as it is uploaded. Not viable to wait for the whole series and then binge the whole thing after the fact.

Z continues to be a highlight of my week. Not sure I like anybody calling Ultraman 'Man-niisan', that's so weird and funny!

Gomora did nothing wrong.

Again.

Z trying to talk to Yoko but it just coming out as Ultraman Grunts is hilarious.

They were supposed to take Gomora to a deserted island, but Beta Smash ended up killing it instead. He really IS Redman! His debut starting with him flying on screen and drop kicking Gomora in the face rules. Beta Smash rules.

This show continues to be great.

Ehh, it's been a thing since Mebius but yes, it can take time getting used to.

You have to wonder why they didn't simply rename the original Ultraman at some point. Kamen Rider got renamed Ichigo when Nigo came around, but Ultraman - just stayed Ultraman.

Where are X and Cosmos when you need them?

Preparing for the day they punish their 'brothers' over their anti-kaiju tactics :lol!

Honestly, Gomora was probably just allergic and aggravated!

Another really good episode. I like how this show seems more grounded and realistic in a way. Obviously the giant robots/monsters/Ultraman are pure sci-fi, but it's rare that you see these shows deal with things like collateral damage and budgets. Between this and Haruki needing more hand-holding on how to fight, it really feels like the show is trying to build a more true-to-life world for itself. I think that's a pretty cool approach.

So figuring out the forms:

Ultraman Zett:
Zero + Seven + Leo
Ultraman + Ace + Taro
Tiger + Dyna + Gaia

Ultraman Geed
Ginga + X + Orb

If I'm to guess for another form:
Jack + Ace + 80

What will Zett's final form be like?

I’d like to see a form based on 80, Nexus, and Max whose main ability is to turn invisible because those shows are so often overlooked.

That’ll work! But what about Jack and Ace?

Ace is already part of Beta Smash. As for Jack, well, we never get all of the Ultras in these power mix-up shows, there are just too many of them.

Maybe Jack + Cosmos + Mebius = ?