[GrandComplete]

Ultraman Tiga, Ultraman Dyna & Ultraman Gaia: The Battle in Hyper Space

Being totally upfront I can’t be objective about this movie. (Not that any of this thread ever was) It’s a childhood classic for me. I used to have it on dvd as a kid, and would play it constantly. It's a movie with a lot of nostalgic attachment to it. Despite that however I still say even with rose tinted glasses I still think this is a good and fun movie and thanks to its standalone nature can work as a good introduction to the Ultra Series by showing off some of the most impressive big budget it could’ve achieved at the time. Gaia was an expensive production and this movie felt even bigger was an impressive feat. (And I would argue the CGI used here is still on par and at times better than most modern Toei tv show productions lol.)

With that long winded preamble at the beginning what is it that I love about this movie? It has to be the main character Tsutomu. Why? Because he’s literally me; and I mean it this kid embodies everything I am: his love of Ultraman, his unathleticism, minimal friends, insistence of hoping others can get into Ultraman. He is me. Hasegawa really tapped into the mind of the audience for this movie. (This won’t be his last romp with meta fiction in tokusatsu, Superior 8 Ultraman Brothers almost acts as a companion piece to this movie really.) And if you think this movie sounds really familiar Producer Shinichiro Shirakura himself admitted this movie was a huge inspiration in 2018’s Kamen Rider Heisei Generations Forever the final movie of the Heisei Era for Kamen Rider.

This movie's core heart to me is understanding its fanbase so well. And it’s no better illustrated then the scene where Gamu lands in the “real world” for the first time. The literal army of children chasing after him wanting him to transform to Gamu hiding in a toy shop that just makes you feel the nostalgia with all those Ultraman toys in their classic toy packaging giving you glimpse to a simpler time all while the Gaia Theme Song is blaring in the background, It’s just the peak of this movie.

And finally we have the first time team-up with the iconic TDG Trio, Even though neither Hiroshi Nagano(Tiga) nor Takeshi Tsurono(Dyna) reprised their roles for this sadly. (It would take almost another decade before all three stars would finally be together in the aforementioned Superior 8 Ultraman Brothers movie) Though it was actually planned when making this movie to unite this trio but sadly fell through to two major reasons Nagano’s talent agency Johnny & Associates were not playing ball, (not the first time nor the last time this had happened sadly and for those not in the know this helpful video from Vintage Henshin is a great way to learn more about this frustrating part of the Ultra Series history that still haunts us to this very day.)

and Dyna’s involvement post show was complicated by reasons that I won’t spoil so that had to fall through. But being honest it was mostly likely the Johnny thing first. I'm sure Tsuburaya could’ve figured something out about Dyna in time if they had also secured TIga/Daigo’s place in the movie.

A reminder of just how massive a production Gaia was, this movie's increased budget allowed it not just one or two new kaiju suits but 4 new ones in total!

Starting off is Satan Bizor. This Zetton like kaiju homage is a really strong starting point for this movie thanks to its unique shape, memorable call back and an amazing color scheme. Fun Fact the episode that Tsutomu was watching is Episode 13 “The Devil's Kiss” but as we all know that is not the actual thirteenth episode of Gaia. Meaning the “real world” has an exclusive episode that we never got. I imagine had Gaia came out today they would’ve actually filmed a fake episode 13 and sell it on the Japanese blu-ray as a bonus feature like what Ultraman Geed did with the first episode of the in-universe toku show the protagonist Riku is a fan of Donshine.

Sculla is this very slimy and gross amphibian bipedal kaiju with a gaping maw that can bite down an Ultra in half. It's almost very lovecraftian look made it a perfect match against Tiga in the ocean floor.

Basiliss is a flying insectoid kaiju who’s armored plating and scissors hands that look like Gigan makes for really inventive kaiju and getting to see more space fights with Dyna is always a plus in my books.

And finally King Of Mons a very unique Godzilla inspired kaiju with a nice rich purple coloring, menacing three red eyes, combining the maw of Sculla in its belly and Basiliss wings on it’s back it worthy movie kaiju and has since actually become one of my favorite kaijus in all of Ultraman because of its simplicity, brutality and fusion nature. Plus his reused roars are super fun to listen to too.

Honestly just go listen to the entire soundtrack it’s amazing Sahashi given a big budget movie score allows it to match his grand vision. (The movie alongside the soundtrack was double billed with “Ultraman M78 Theater Love & Peace” so the actual soundtrack stops at track 21)
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...6YCCMvgZezWFLU
The remixed tracks breathes new life into things we’ve heard but the crowning jewel has to be “The Three Great Ultra Warriors • The Battle in Hyper Space” for combining Gaia’s BGM with Tiga and Dyna battle themes it’s an epic nostalgia boost that lifts you up every single time you hear it.