That might actually be it. I came across KR purely by sheer luck too

I guess. Fighting cheoreography is still badass though.

What he said. It's funny, Orb is the 50th Anniversary show yet it has no appearances from other Ultraman while X had a whole bunch of returning actors and their respective Ultraman.

Orb just has the cards without any context, and that short bit at the end where we get introduced to some Ultraman from the past.

The show itself has like zero references to other shows, it’s really just the cards being named after old Ultraman and the protagonist of Orb channels their powers to transform, that's all there is to it.

I always viewed X as a sort of a modern day take on Mebius - various older Ultra characters show up but the difference is Mebius gave viewers Showa characters while X gives them Heisei characters.

They probably let Orb stand alone as an anniversary series because of how much new products were being tied into the past.

I can't speak for the rest of fandom, but here's why I'm not as into Ultraman...

Disclaimer: these are just my impressions of Ultraman based on limited exposure to the franchise. I could be way off. If I am, please correct me and point out series that don't conform to my criticisms! I'll probably watch those shows!

1. Militarism: From what I've seen, Ultraman is as much about the Special Defense Force side-characters as it is about Ultraman and the Ultra-mythology. For me, being in the military holds zero escapist appeal, so I have trouble enjoying escapist fiction about members of militarized police forces (unless they're trying to topple or rebel against said forces). Of course, there are Sentai teams and Kamen Riders affiliated with military defense forces and whatnot, but those are the shows I tend to enjoy the least (with the major exception of Jetman, as that show is about civilians who are forced into the military by circumstance, and the corrupt members of Sky Force are often as antagonistic toward the Jetmen as the Vyram are). In general, I find that Toei heroes are (ever so slightly) more outsidery and/or anti-establishment than Ultra heroes. The Ultraman stories I've enjoyed the most prioritize the Ultra mythology over the Special Defense Force characters (i.e., the Zero movies) or are so old that the militarism comes off as quaint, naive, and benevolent (i.e., OG Ultraman).

2. Action: I'm way more fond of dynamic martial arts-style action choreography than I am of giant-sized, pro-wrestling-style brawls. From what I've seen, the action in Sentai and Kamen Rider is way more kinetic, athletic, complex, and visceral than the action in Ultraman -- which is more lumbering and slow-paced (though I'm sure it's very impressive in its own way).

3. Style: Tsuburaya tends to spend their money on different things than Toei does, leading to the shows looking very different aesthetically (different cameras, video/film stock, SFX, CGI, etc...). I'm more accustomed to Toei's style, so Tsuburaya productions look oddly jarring to me (obviously this would change with increased exposure to Ultraman).

4. Accessibility: The show wasn't as popular in the west during my entry into the fandom, so there were fewer fansub options for older shows. Plus, there were no new Ultraman shows for the majority of the time I've been watching tokusatsu. Obviously, Crunchyroll and a slew of new shows have made this reason obsolete in recent years.

5. Backlog: There are just so many Sentai and Kamen Rider (and Metal Hero) shows I want to watch that the idea of adding in Ultraman shows makes me want to tear my hair out. It's just too overwhelming. There are shows I want to watch, and I'm sure I'll enjoy the hell out of them, but I can't even consider them until I've gone through more of my Toei backlog.

--

And... that's pretty much how I see it. Obviously, feel free to challenge my perceptions as you see fit. I'm sure a lot of them are wrong. ;)

Militarism: While I prefer the independent, almost disconnected from the real world feel Kamen Rider and Super Sentai typically has, that was a weird way to say it, I will admit that Ultraman's more military like approach does hold some appeal, at least just because its something different then most Toku I've seen.

Action: That's probably my biggest negative about Ultraman, at least at the top of my head. I'm not a big fan of the battles. While Ginga/X/Orb all have nice special effects in addition to the wrestler-like combat, the battles in Mebius are extremely boring to me. The low use of special effects and slower action make for an experience that almost puts me to sleep.

Just keep in mind that I've only seen Ginga(S), X, and Orb. I've just started Mebius though.

With Toku superhero fans, I notice you have two sides of the fandom in the US. You have the Toei Toku superhero fans who love Super Sentai and Kamen Rider, but can't get into Ultraman, Godzilla and Kajiu in general. While you Kajiu Toku fans that love Ultraman, Godzilla and Japanese Giant Monster movies but don't seem to care for Henshin heroes from Toei like Kamen Rider, Super Sentai and Metal Heroes.

I feel like some kind of freak. I adore Godzilla (Gamera is a'ight, too) and I'm impatiently waiting for an opportunity to watch Shin Godzilla, but I could never get into the Ultra series. :lol

I'm the opposite: love me some Ultra, but could never get into Godzilla and other kaiju stuff (unless you count Daimajin Kanon, which you probably shouldn't).

Well it's certainly pretty pro-establisment, but I think calling Ultraman militaristic is a bit extreme in most cases. The Science Patrol type characters in most Ultraman shows tend to be far more about just that: science. They're problem solvers who just happen to have access to high tech jet planes and the like.

The only show that really plays up the angle the way you're describing it (at least to my knowledge) is Nexus, which makes the occasionally shady organization giving the orders as much a source of conflict as any of the actual monsters, sort of like what you said about Jetman.

Military stuff tends not to have much escapist appeal to me either, so I totally get where you're coming from, but I've never really gotten that vibe from Ultraman too much.

At any rate, if that's one of your big problems, you should probably put Orb at the top of your list of Ultraman shows to watch if you haven't seen it, since it basically completely avoids that element. Or Ginga, I guess, but that show isn't anywhere near as solid in its writing, and has a distinctly low budget feel to the effects, both of which make it pretty hard to recommend. I have a soft spot for it though, because of course I do. :p