[TokuKnight89]

Saw Ep. 1 of Ultraman Great: Towards The Future...and I have no idea what I just saw! I don't know whether to like or loath this series!

Cons: It doesn't have the kitschy charm of a legitimate Produced-In-Japan Tsuburaya Ultra Series. It wears late-'80s/early-'90s "isms" on every sleeve. It has all the hallmarks of market-by-market syndication. English-speaking actors with "meh" dialogue doesn't necessarily inspire confidence when paired with an Ultraman. The first episode with Gudis and Bogun is a little underwhelming with limited action and visually unappealing energy effects. The lack of official licensing in these days means that all we have are low-quality copies, but even high-quality might not be enough!

Pros: The suits for Great, Gudis, and Bogun are decent enough and you feel like they're decent enough designs to justify a reappearance in a modern production. The Commander is echoing some of the Anti-Ultra sentiment before the advent of Next and Nexus: "Anything that big isn't on anyone's side!" You also have to wonder, for better and for worse, if Saban was gauging this show's reception (and toy sales) to determine if licensing Super Sentai in the West was such a good idea! To that end, there were toys and I have some of them now thanks to old copies being occasionally sold at conventions and old Ultraman toys aren't always a bad thing (even those sold in the U.S.).

I don't know if I can stomach this or not. I want to so I can see just what those old toys are based off of, but I fear for the writing and budget limitations! This doesn't have the heart and charm and cheese-appeal of Power Rangers. It's closer to V.R. Troopers (sorry Troopers) than Power Rangers! That said, it was one of the strongest attempts in the old days to market Ultraman in the West and there were varying degrees of success. It's also possible that it's just a classic case of "so bad that it's good".