[Fish Sandwich]

That was an extremely satisfying finale. I loved all the resolution to Gai and Juggler's impossibly dysfunctional relationship for one. Gai punching Juggler in the face and then immediately hugging him was perfect. Pretty much everything else was great too. Orb's stellar cinematography shines as always, with tons of really cool shots ranging from subtle (Gai and Juggler chatting with the monster in the background) to not so subtle (most of that final battle), I liked how Shin, Jetta, and Shibukawa got to all play an important part in saving the day, and the callback to the "Earth is round" line from the first episode at the end was the kind of bookend stuff I adore in any story, so that made me happy.

I'd say I'll miss Orb, but that phrasing doesn't feel quite right. The show told the story it wanted to tell and it told it well. I think asking for more at this point would just be greedy (and besides, we're getting a movie and a prequel series anyway). It's really telling of Orb's quality that it's won me over as much as it has. I wasn't giving it anywhere near enough credit early on despite more or less enjoying every episode, but now that it's over I feel pretty comfortable saying Ultraman Orb is one of the best Toku shows I've seen in a long while. Better than shows I like way more, even.

For an Ultraman show it has a very unique flavor, even beyond ditching the usual Science Patrol aspect, while still remaining distinctly Ultraman, which I feel isn't something to be understated. It hits all the notes you'd expect and also delivers its own story at the same time, and it does all of it with some pretty great action, a really enjoyable cast, and a ton of style throughout.

Considering how Ultraman has just been getting better and better since Ginga started, I can only hope we get another, even better show next summer too.