[Fish Sandwich]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Lucha

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.

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.