[blastmonkey]

I had a creeping suspicion that I had seen this movie once before, and I was right. Once Ultraman changed forms it hit me.

The suits were interesting. The added texture to the base form of The Next helped to set it apart visually from his smooth brethren. The raised armor plating, sinewy details underneath and the general vibe of the design felt as if they were trying to steer the franchise into a more realistic slant. Kind of how the redesign in leather for Kamen Rider The First felt. Those design features were carried over nicely to the final version of The Next.

The design of The Beast was alright; nothing too outlandish with a limited color palette. Small details that were highlighted, such as the shoulder faces changing when it assimilated the birds for flight, were nice. Despite the weight, the suit moved fairly well, with the limited neck movement taking me out of the action every now and then.

The plot was fairly limited, but it hit the beats it needed to. All in all it was not a bad watch, not too slow paced and enough ultra on kaiju action to satisfy.