A Retrospective by John Paul Cassidy
Originally posted on his LiveJournal site on October 1st, 2007 (Link 1 & Link 2)

Special thanks to Sci-Fi Japan and UltramanLah for the pictures.

It was 40 years ago today that Ultra Seven, my favorite superhero, made his debut in his own TV series on Tokyo Broadcasting System! And he’s still going strong.

The following is a retrospective on Ultra Seven’s history and the TV series, as taken from my guide for the show on TV.com! The info has been revised for this post.

Hit the jump in 5… 4… 3… 2…

ULTRA SEVEN
(URUTORA SEBUN) ウルトラセブン

Show Type: Tokusatsu Science Fiction/Fantasy
Produced by Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS) and Tsuburaya Productions Co., Ltd.
First Telecast: October 1, 1967
Last Telecast: September 8, 1968
Color, 16mm

-49 Episodes (only 48 now, as Episode 12 is banned)
-2 TV Specials
-3 OVT (Original Video Tokusatsu) Miniseries (14 episodes total)
TOTAL EPISODES – 65

Basic Plot:
The year is 1987. At a time when Earth is about to be threatened by sinister aliens and monsters, Agent 340 from Nebula M-78 (the same planet Ultraman came from), who was originally sent to make a map of the Milky Way, decides to stay on Earth, and seeks to protect it. Disguised as a mysterious human named Dan Moroboshi, he is invited by the Terrestrial Defense Force to join its elite branch, the Ultra Garrison, as its sixth member to combat the threats from space. Little do the other 5 members of the Garrison know that whenever the situation becomes hopeless, Dan secretly puts on the Ultra Eye glasses, and becomes his true form of Agent 340, christened by the Garrison as its honorary 7th member, Ultra Seven!

Series Background:
Ultra Seven (Urutora Sebun in Japan) premiered on Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS) on October 10th, 1967. The show was created by special effects wizard Eiji Tsuburaya (who also created the first two shows, Ultra Q and Ultraman, the previous year) and his company Tsuburaya Productions. It is the 3rd Ultra Series and an indirect follow-up to the famous Ultraman (although the 4th series, 1971’s Return of Ultraman, made a clearer connection to both shows, as did most subsequent shows of the series). Ultra Seven continues Ultraman‘s tradition of a giant superhero fighting outlandish monsters and aliens, but what makes this show unusual from almost all the Ultra Series was the serious sci-fi drama and character development (comparable to the original Star Trek). In some episodes, Seven himself makes a brief appearance, others have him fighting very short battles (much like a samurai duel), and other episodes have him fighting a whole fleet of UFOs (as opposed to the usual giant monsters & aliens of the week). This show’s formula and style would be emulated in the new generation Ultra Series, starting with its first entry, the 1996 hit, Ultraman Tiga.

To this day, fans across Japan have hailed Ultra Seven as a sci-fi masterpiece, and the best of all the Ultra Series. Those fans included cartoonists and animators (including veterans such as Rumiko Takahashi and Akira Toriyama) who created manga/anime shows such as Urusei Yatsura, Dragon Ball, Otaku no Video, and Pokemon, all of which made references to this show! In fact, Ultra Seven is considered the “Star Trek” of Japan, long before anime favorites like Space Battleship Yamato (AKA: Star Blazers) and Mobile Suit Gundam held that title!
When Ultraman concluded on April 9, 1967, TBS aired Toei Company Ltd’s Captain Ultra as the “official sequel” to Ultraman (Captain Ultra, a completely unrelated series, was loosely based on Edmond Hamilton’s Captain Future pulp novels, which were adapted into an anime series by NHK in 1978). Months before Captain Ultra hit the airwaves, Tsuburaya pitched an idea for a space adventure called The Ultra Garrison (Urutora Keibitai) to TBS.

This project evolved into Ultra Eye (Urutora Ai), about Dan Moroboshi, an esper alien from Planet R (not the same Planet R that the Baltans from Ultraman came from), who was born to an alien father and a human mother, whom he went to Earth in search for. Upon coming to Earth, Dan joined the Ultra Garrison, and became the driver of the Garrison’s Supercar. But unbeknownst to anyone, in times of crisis, Dan transforms into his R-ian form, known on Earth as Redman. Almost identical to Ultra Seven, Redman’s Capsule Monsters were monsters that were originally from Ultra QUltraman ( and Red King, Antlar and Peguila), as opposed to the original monsters that were made for the show (Windom, Miclas and Aghira).

The show initially began production as Redman (Reddoman; the same working title Ultraman used). Episodes 3, 2, 6 and 4 (the first episodes ever filmed in that order) were produced in May of 1967, with casting auditions held in June. The show was ultimately retitled Ultra Seven in August, and Episode 1 was then produced, and was the first to bear the final title. Thus, all references to “Redman” were dubbed out in the previously filmed episodes. (A strange, yet funny bit of trivia: Ultra Seven was originally going to be the title of this proposed live-action comedy by another company about prehistoric cavemen, much like The Flintstones!) With post-production completed in September, the show finally premiered on October 1, 1967, and competed against Toei Company’s Giant Robo (AKA: Johnny Sokko and his Flying Robot) and P-Productions’ Monster Prince (Kaijuu Ouji), earning a 30% rating. The show was originally going to be a 39-episode series, like Ultraman, but high ratings called for 10 more episodes, even though the ratings dropped to 20% by the show’s end.

In 1970, there was a huge controversy surrounding Episode 12, “From Another Planet With Love,” which contained irradiated aliens (the Spehl Seijin) who come to Earth to extract fresh blood from young people (children and young women) to restore their own bodies. This episode has since been banned in Japan after a protest from a group for survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, as that is a taboo subject in Japanese public. However, it did air in all English-dubbed versions (see below), with lucky foreigners being able to record the episode.

Ultra Seven came to a tearful end on September 8, 1968, and Eiji Tsuburaya decided that this would be the very last of the Ultra Series. That same year, he produced memorable non-Ultra SF TV shows such as Operation: Mystery (another pre-X-Files series, with a Science Patrol-like team called Scientific Research Institute [SRI for short] investigating bizarre phoenomena; This series had no flashy monsters or aliens) and Mighty Jack (Mission: Impossible with high-tech weapons & vehicles; This show’s first & last episode was combined into a movie for US TV by Sandy Frank in 1986). And in 1969, his final TV shows included Mighty Jack‘s campy sequel series Fight, Mighty Jack!, the childrens’ show Chibira-kun (similar to his hit childrens’ comedy series Monster Booska) and the Ultra Q-like Mystery Theater: Unbalance, which didn’t air until 1973.

Eiji Tsuburaya passed away on January 25, 1970. But the following year, his son Hajime Tsuburaya took over Tsuburaya Productions, and in 1971, he not only created the company’s first non-Ultra superhero, Mirrorman, but revived the Ultra Series! The next series, Return of Ultraman, premiered on April 2, 1971 (and the following night, another famous superhero premiered on Japanese TV; Masked Rider!).

Ultra Seven was also the first English-dubbed Japanese sci-fi show in Hawaii, where it was broadcast on KHON-TV in 1975 (the previous year, the more successful Kikaider was shown in English subtitles). Produced by Tsuburaya’s Hawaiian branch, the dubbing was provided by the Commercial Recording Company in Honolulu, and the voice actors were students of the University of Hawaii’s Speech Department. Veteran Japanese pop singer Masato Shimon sang the English version of the theme song in the credits. Unfortunately, this version is now lost, and only two episodes (including # 26) are known to exist.

There was a second English-dubbed version done in 1985 by Turner Programming Center in Canada, with somewhat campy dialogue, a new opening credit sequence and synthesizer theme music. Though never broadcast since it was produced, this version finally saw light on TNT in February of 1994. It aired until 1999, when TNT’s rights to the show expired, and reverted back to Tsuburaya Productions.
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Ultra Seven himself has the honor of having more follow-ups than any Ultra-hero! His huge popularity led to two TV special episodes, as well as whole series of direct-to-video episodes (aimed more at grown-up fans), and a new, upcoming update of the original series. Entitled Ultra Seven X, this limited 12-episode series, set to air in Japan this week, is produced as a commemoration of Ultra Seven’s 40th Anniversary!

Written by John Cassidy, with special thanks to August Ragone, Bob Johnson and Marc Hideo Miyake for information.

Characters

The Ultra Garrison
Six elite members of the Terrestrial Defense Force (TDF), chosen to fight evil aliens and monsters using high-tech vehicles and weaponry.

Commander Kaoru Kiriyama (Age 38) Captain of the Ultra Garrison. A no-nonsense but kind leader. From Tokyo.
Played by Shouji Nakayama

Shigeru Furuhashi (Age 29) Rotund, strong, trigger-happy member of the Garrison. From Hokkaido.
Sandaiyu Dokumamushi, who played Furuhashi, has previously played the equally trigger-happy Science Patrol member Arashi on Ultraman!

Anne Yuri (Age 20) Token female member of the Garrison, and also the youngest. Is the team’s communications operator and nurse, but is still effective in action. Has feelings for fellow member Dan Moroboshi. Also from Tokyo. (She is renamed “Donna” in the Cinar dub.)
Played by Yuriko Hishimi (who also played the karate girl Tomoko Tomoe in Godzilla Vs. Gigan).

Soga (Age 25) The Garrison’s expert marksman. Easy-going, but fierce in battle. Is friends with Dan Moroboshi. From Southern Kyushu.
Played by Shinsuke Achiha, who sadly passed away this year.

Amagi (Age 24) The Garrison’s twitchy stragegist. From Nagoya.
Bin Furuya, who played Amagi, was the suit actor for the title character of the original Ultraman. Nothing twitchy about that!

Dan Moroboshi/Ultra Seven (Agent 340) (Age 24) The title character, a soldier from the Land of Light in the Nebula M-78 (the same planet Ultraman came from). Code named Agent 340, he was originally sent to make a map of the Milky Way, he visits a planet that captivates him, our very own Earth, and on his first visit, saves the life of a young mountain climber named Jiro Satsuma, who nearly fell to his death to save a fellow climber from sharing his fate. Instead of combining with him, like Ultraman did to Science Patrol member Hayata, 340 makes himself into an exact likeness of the unconscious Jiro (with more casual civvies), but renames himself “Dan Moroboshi” to avoid confusion. A mysterious but friendly and helpful young man, Dan joins the Ultra Garrison as its sixth member, but unbeknownst to them (and anyone else for that matter), and saves the day from alien invasions in his true guise as Agent 340, christened by the Garrison as its “honorary 7th member,” “Ultra Seven” (who he transforms into by donning the Ultra Eye)!
Played by Kouji Moritsugu (Kouji Uenishi in costume). Moritsugu also played Jirou Satsuma.

Among his arsenal, Ultra Seven’s principal weapons are:

-Eye Slugger: A detachable boomerang-like blade on Ultra Seven’s helmet. With this, he can telepathically guide it to hack his opponent to pieces.
-Emerium Ray: Fired from Ultra Seven’s Beam Lamp (located in his forehead). Named from “emerald,” the color of Seven’s Beam Lamp.
-Wide Shot: Similar to Ultraman’s Spacium Ray, except that Ultra Seven crosses his arms into an “L” position to fire this ray from his upper forearm.

Ultra Seven is prominently 40 meters (132 feet) tall, and is able to make himself smaller, from normal human size to microscopic (like in Episode 31)!

Whereas all known Ultra-beings have the weakness of remaining on Earth for a limited time of 3 minutes (signalled by their blinking Colortimers), Ultra Seven can seemingly survive on Earth’s atmosphere beyond that time limit, thanks to a special energy supply (which depleted near the series’ conclusion). Despite that, he still has a main weakness: He is dramatically weak in subzero temperature, and this weakness is signalled by the Beam Lamp in his forehead, which starts to blink. Therefore, Ultra Seven must fly to the sun to recharge his energy.

Even as Dan Moroboshi, Ultra Seven has extraordinary abilities, such as telepathy, ESP, and even X-ray vision.

Capsule Monsters

When not transforming into Ultra Seven (or unable to transform under some circumstance), Dan carries with him a small case containing 5 Capsule Monsters, which aid him in his fight against evil aliens and monsters. When thrown like a grenade, the capsule explodes, turning into a giant monster. When finished, Dan calls back the monster, which turns back into a capsule in his hand. Only 3 were used in this show. (NOTE: The Capsule Monsters were the basis for Bulma’s exploding capsules in Dragon Ball [which turn into various items like tents, houses, jeeps, etc.], and the Poke-Balls in Pokemon!)

Featured Capsule Monsters:

-Windom (40 meters) A metallic, monster-like robot from the planet Metal. Clumsy and comical, Windom is the least reliable of the Capsule Monsters. Discharges energy bolts from its forehead. Destroyed by the Guts Aliens in Episode 39. (Windom, however, was brought back in subsequent Ultra Seven specials, as well as in Ultraman Moebius!)
-Miclas (40 meters) A hulking horned monster from the planet Buffalo. The strongest of the capsule monsters. Resembles a Mayan statue. Shoots a powerful red heat beam from his mouth.
-Aghira (45 meters) A styracosaurus-like lizard monster from the planet Animal. The fastest of the capsule monsters. The red frill-like collar around his head spreads out under duress.

Ultra Garrison Vehicles & Weapons

-Ultra Hawk 1 The Ultra Garrison’s principal craft, a super-ship that separates into three separate fighter jets, the Alpha, Beta and Gamma sections. Launches from a hangar inside against a mountain. (The Ultra Hawk 1 would later inspire the GUTS Eagle from 1997’s Ultraman Dyna).
-Ultra Hawk 2 Spacecraft that shoots a laser from its nose cone. Launched from an octagonal silo.
-Ultra Hawk 3 VTOL craft that launches from behind a waterfall. Also transports the Magmaraiser. Releases fire retardants.
-Station Hawks The TDF’s basic jet fighters.
-Max The Garrison’s atomic ship.
-Magmaraiser The Garrison’s subterranean drill vehicle (similar to the Pelucidar from Ultraman. Shoots bombs and missiles.
-Hydranger Submarine piloted by two. Shoots missiles and lasers.
-Pointer The Ultra Garrison’s modified stock Crysler Imperial (and later, a Mitsubishi Eclipse). It fires missiles, has an energy barrier, and can also hover over land and ride on the sea.
-Space Stations V1, V2 and V3 The TDF’s space stations, on which the Station Hawks and Ultra Hawk 2 can dock. V3, which is stationed in orbit over the Far East, is commanded by Kiriyama’s old academy buddy Commander Kurata (a recurring character in the show).
-Ultragun The basic laser gun carried by each Ultra Garrison member.
-Videociever Communicator watches (with small video screens) worn by each Ultra Garrison member. (The name of the device is a cross between “video” and “reciever”)
-Paralyzer Gun
-Electro-H Gun
-MS Bomb
-Vertical Shotgun

Lyrics

Main Theme

Urutora Sebun no Uta (The Song of Ultra Seven)
Performed by The Echoes and the Misuzu Childrens’ Choir
(NOTE: This was one of two theme songs considered for the series. Around 200 children were allowed to select between the two songs, and this was the one that was ultimately used!)

Sebun, Sebun, Sebun, Sebun
Sebun! Sebun! Sebun!
Sebun! Sebun! Sebun!

Haruka na hoshi ga furusato da
Urutora Sebun, faitaa Sebun
Urutora Sebun, Sebun, Sebun
Susume, ginga no hate made mo
Urutora Ai de supaaku!

Sebun! Sebun! Sebun!
Sebun! Sebun! Sebun!

Moroboshi Dan no na wo karite
Urutora Sebun, hiiroo Sebun
Urutora Sebun, Sebun, Sebun
Taose, hi wo haku daikaijuu
Urutora Biimu de sutoraiku!

Sebun! Sebun! Sebun!
Sebun! Sebun! Sebun!

Mirakuruman no nanbaa da
Urutora Sebun, eesu da, Sebun
Urutora Sebun, Sebun, Sebun
Mamore, bokura no shiawase wo
Urutora Hooku de atakku!

TRANSLATION

Seven, Seven, Seven, Seven
Seven! Seven! Seven!
Seven! Seven! Seven!

A faraway planet is your home
Ultra Seven, fighter Seven
Ultra Seven, Seven, Seven
Forward, to the end of the Milky Way
Spark with the Ultra Eye!

Seven! Seven! Seven!
Seven! Seven! Seven!

Borrowing the name of Dan Moroboshi
Ultra Seven, hero Seven
Ultra Seven, Seven, Seven
Beat them, the fire-breathing monsters
Strike with the Ultra Beam!

Seven! Seven! Seven!
Seven! Seven! Seven!

The number of the miracle-man
Ultra Seven, you’re an ace, Seven
Ultra Seven, Seven, Seven
Defend, our happiness
Attack with the Ultra Hawk!

English Version

The Theme Song of Ultra Seven
Performed by Masato Shimon

Seven, Seven, Seven, Seven
Seven! Seven! Seven!
Seven! Seven! Seven!

Far among the galaxy is where your home lies
Ultra Seven, fighter Seven
Ultra Seven, Seven, Seven
March to the end of the big Milky Way
With the Ultra Eye, spark!

Seven! Seven! Seven!
Seven! Seven! Seven!

We know you by another name, the planet man Dan
Ultra Seven, hero Seven
Ultra Seven, Seven, Seven
Save us from destruction, the evil monsters
With the Ultra Beam, strike!

Seven! Seven! Seven!
Seven! Seven! Seven!

Seven is the number of the miracle man
Ultra Seven, hero Seven
Ultra Seven, Seven, Seven
Go, fight, defend our life and happiness
With the Ultra Hawk, attack!

ULTRA SEVEN
Performed by The Echoes

1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4
COME ON, (5, 6) SEVEN
1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4
ULTRA (5, 6) SEVEN
ATTACK, THE HAWKMISSILE
FIGHTER SEVEN
ULTRA SEVEN

1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4
LET’S GO, (5, 6) SEVEN
1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4
ULTRA (5, 6) SEVEN
STRIKE, THE EYESLUGGER
HERO SEVEN
ULTRA SEVEN

Above is a fanart I drew for the 40th Anniversary. It can be found in this link.

AUTHOR’S REFLECTIONS OF A SUPERHERO

And now, here’s my retrospective on Ultra Seven (taken from my review at IMDb.com, with slight changes and new additions):

—–

If I was asked who my favorite superhero was, along with Spider-Man, the Hulk and the Incredibles, it’d be Ultra Seven.

We know Ultra Q and Ultraman are tokusatsu sci-fi TV classics in Japan, but the very peak of Tsuburaya Productions’ famed Ultra Series was reached with Ultra Seven, which Japanese fans have, to this day, hailed as the all-time best Ultra Series, and for good reason! It is basically the Star Trek of Japan (long before shows like Space Battleship Yamato)! Even underneath the wild battles between the red & silver alien from M78 and his alien foes, this is a very serious and thought-provoking sci-fi drama. Especially in the human scenes, with our protagonists, the Ultra Garrison. This is a very different series from its aforementioned two predecessors. Later Ultra Series like Ultraman Tiga and the more grown-up Ultraman Nexus would duplicate this formula.

Seven himself is different from Ultraman (who is a mysterious godlike being), as he’s become the greatest archetype for the high-tech Japanese superhero. His powers/weapons are incredible (who *doesn’t* love his flying boomerang-like Eyeslugger weapon?)! But underneath his cool exterior, he has even more heart, personality and depth than his famous predecessor. And the transformation from Dan Moroboshi (Kouji Moritsugu) to Ultra Seven, each time he puts on the “Ultra Eye” glasses, is without a doubt my favorite Japanese superhero transformation ever. I would also say that Ultra Seven is technically more like Japan’s answer to Superman than Ultraman (who is more like the Green Lantern), only “Clark Kent” puts on his glasses to become Superman!

The Ultra Garrison’s not half-bad either! Very different from the Science Patrol from Ultraman. The team uniforms (helmets, jumpsuits and rayguns) are memorable, so much that they have become pretty much the template for the defense forces in all future Ultra Series (and few of the series would copy them closely, like the 1979 anime series The Ultraman). And the mecha is awesome! I really love the Ultra Hawk, which splits into three different jet vehicles (Ultraman Dyna had something like this, too)! Of course, just like in Ultraman, the team members have similar personalities, but Dan Moroboshi (Seven’s human alter-ego) is a different person from Ultraman‘s Hayata. He’s still a tough member, but he’s also very considerate. And even in human form, he’s well equipped to fight alien invaders, from having X-ray vision/telepathy to being equipped with miniature “Capsule Monsters” (Windom, Miclas and Agira), which are like tiny capsules that, when thrown like a grenade, explode and transform into giant monsters (and Dan can call it back into a capsule any time). I wonder which two anime series did this later on . . . 🙂

The music score and theme song, composed by the great Tooru Fuyuki (who would compose for many future Ultra Series and other Tsuburaya shows) are absolute classic, and one of the best soundtracks ever. Quite a different case from Kunio Miyauchi’s jazzy score for Ultraman, Fuyuki’s orchestral score for this series evokes more power, ranging from neo-classical to avant-garde. Also, the catchy “Song of Ultra Seven” theme song has been arranged perfectly in the music score, more so than that of Ultraman. You could even say that it also recalls Barry Gray’s famous music for many of Gerry & Sylvia Anderson’s “Supermarionation” shows (like Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet)!

And, of course, there’s the bizarre and imaginative alien & space monster threats! Some of my favorites include Eleking (a fan-favorite), Dankan, the Guts-Seijin and Seven’s final foe, Pandon!

Sadly, this was also the final Ultra Series by creator Eiji Tsuburaya, who originally wanted this to be the final Ultra Series. (And the heart-rending farewell finale couldn’t have emphasized it more!) Due to this series’ unbelievable popularity, a new Ultra Series was planned in late 1969 (Ultraman Continues [Zoku Urutoraman]), but Eiji died (in 1970) before production began. The said project later became Return of Ultraman in 1971, when Eiji’s first son Hajime Tsuburaya took over the studio (until his untimely death in 1973). But needless to say, Seven himself (and his alter-ego Dan) continues to make appearances in future Ultra Series, and due to fan response, got some TV specials and direct-to-DVD series!

This series was originally seen in the US in Hawaii in 1975 (the dub of which is now lost, but two episodes still remain), and on TNT in 1994 (from a somewhat comically-dubbed 1985 dub by Cinar in Canada), but Ultra Seven is a series that truly deserves the same revisiting as Ultra Q and Ultraman in the US. If fans of Japanese pop-culture know what’s good for them, they have to see Ultra Seven! Disregarding it is like sci-fi fans disregarding, say, Star Trek or Doctor Who.

No more words need to be said, Ultra Seven is a true Japanese sci-fi classic! But to quote LeVar Burton, “You don’t have to take my word for it.”

—–

In closing, here are clips from the show on YouTube:

The opening credits (from the first episode) and theme song

Ultra Seven, through the years (transformation, powers, weapons, etc.) and his appearances in the Ultraman Moebius series and movie
A great picture collection with a beautiful symphonic rendition of the “Song of Ultra Seven” theme song

I hope you have enjoyed my retrospective of Ultra Seven. Thank you for reading! And I hope Tsuburaya Productions will eventually have luck in getting this released once again to the US on DVD in the future, so that everyone can enjoy this classic series.