SLICE
- Joined
- Nov 25, 2010
- Messages
- 2,028
Let me, as Seven's possibly biggest NerdBoy fan here, try to explain this.
You see, this isn't a case like, say, the Kamen Rider franchise, where the original Rider(s) were the face and driving force behind the series. In a sense, every single Rider after the original double had to fight to earn a spot next to them, except for V3...who earned it anyways.
You can see the results of this nowadays, where just about only two Showa Riders will be promoted in most fliers, besides the required three originals (Amazon and Black, the two most popular)
UltraSeven, when compared to the original Ultraman, is two things. Different and unique.
Ultraman was a scifi FANTASY, emphasis on the fantasy, that almost definately had to have a giant monster fight every episode that would only ever last about 2 and a half minutes. Ultraman as a human character, Hayata, was just sort of there, kind of bland and unassuming, who went through...few hardships in the scheme of things. You might even say that his fellow Science Patrol members had far more character and personality then he did. ...and you would be right. Ultraman and an Ultra.....imagine Ultraman. There ya go. He's the default, prime example of what it means to be Ultraman, good and bad.
UltraSeven however...
As a human, well, Seven gets one over poor Hayata by NOT being human. He merely takes a human shape, already giving him loads more personality. OK that's not fair...but seriously, from his introduction the dude has more personality then Hayata ever could have. He has a great, distinctive character from the get go, and as an Ultra, he is VASTLY different then almost any of them before or after...barring the ones that just took after him (Taro design wise, Max....in general....Zero...in general.)
Then you look at his SHOW....his show was Hard Sci Fi for the era, and had some, I think anyways, remarkable special effects and models for being a Japanese Low budget TV show in the SIXTIES.
It also threw the hard balls fast and often. Hell, by episode six Seven has already faced aliens competent enough to wreck most other heroes, and has witnessed the nigh extinction of a super advanced alien species...that he's partly to blame for. Things do not get any easier for Seven from then on...
And I think that's part of his charm. He takes on the worst possible bullshit of anyone, to the point where the finale ended on the uncertainty that he'd even be able to make it back home alive due to his crippling injuries, and dwindling power (in the final two episodes, he was so close to dying that he couldn't even use any beam attacks)
..then he came back to save Jack, came back to save Jack again, came back with Ace, came back with Taro...
....and here's the kicker.
Trained Leo into the master Badass of Badasses that Leo is now.
And I mean that utterly and honestly. Everything Ultraman Leo is, all of his skill, determination and badassery? Trained into him by Seven.
Leo had a lot of guts to start with...but Seven turned him into the warrior we know today. And he did this...through most of Leo's entire series.
Basically, Seven is a character unlike any Rider or Super Sentai member.
He's the only guy distinct enough to keep coming back and playing pivotal roles in series that are NOT his, basically guest star in some one else's series, and then, down the line, get SEVERAL more series, DTV and TV, to himself.
Ultraman is the face of the Ultraman franchise, for good reason.
UltraSeven is the heart and soul, cutting his place in history EyeSlugger in hand.
....plus the EyeSlugger may be the best Ultra weapon, if not the best Toku Weapon, ever made ever.
But that may just be my rampant fanboyism.
(It's not.)
You see, this isn't a case like, say, the Kamen Rider franchise, where the original Rider(s) were the face and driving force behind the series. In a sense, every single Rider after the original double had to fight to earn a spot next to them, except for V3...who earned it anyways.
You can see the results of this nowadays, where just about only two Showa Riders will be promoted in most fliers, besides the required three originals (Amazon and Black, the two most popular)
UltraSeven, when compared to the original Ultraman, is two things. Different and unique.
Ultraman was a scifi FANTASY, emphasis on the fantasy, that almost definately had to have a giant monster fight every episode that would only ever last about 2 and a half minutes. Ultraman as a human character, Hayata, was just sort of there, kind of bland and unassuming, who went through...few hardships in the scheme of things. You might even say that his fellow Science Patrol members had far more character and personality then he did. ...and you would be right. Ultraman and an Ultra.....imagine Ultraman. There ya go. He's the default, prime example of what it means to be Ultraman, good and bad.
UltraSeven however...
As a human, well, Seven gets one over poor Hayata by NOT being human. He merely takes a human shape, already giving him loads more personality. OK that's not fair...but seriously, from his introduction the dude has more personality then Hayata ever could have. He has a great, distinctive character from the get go, and as an Ultra, he is VASTLY different then almost any of them before or after...barring the ones that just took after him (Taro design wise, Max....in general....Zero...in general.)
Then you look at his SHOW....his show was Hard Sci Fi for the era, and had some, I think anyways, remarkable special effects and models for being a Japanese Low budget TV show in the SIXTIES.
It also threw the hard balls fast and often. Hell, by episode six Seven has already faced aliens competent enough to wreck most other heroes, and has witnessed the nigh extinction of a super advanced alien species...that he's partly to blame for. Things do not get any easier for Seven from then on...
And I think that's part of his charm. He takes on the worst possible bullshit of anyone, to the point where the finale ended on the uncertainty that he'd even be able to make it back home alive due to his crippling injuries, and dwindling power (in the final two episodes, he was so close to dying that he couldn't even use any beam attacks)
..then he came back to save Jack, came back to save Jack again, came back with Ace, came back with Taro...
....and here's the kicker.
Trained Leo into the master Badass of Badasses that Leo is now.
And I mean that utterly and honestly. Everything Ultraman Leo is, all of his skill, determination and badassery? Trained into him by Seven.
Leo had a lot of guts to start with...but Seven turned him into the warrior we know today. And he did this...through most of Leo's entire series.
Basically, Seven is a character unlike any Rider or Super Sentai member.
He's the only guy distinct enough to keep coming back and playing pivotal roles in series that are NOT his, basically guest star in some one else's series, and then, down the line, get SEVERAL more series, DTV and TV, to himself.
Ultraman is the face of the Ultraman franchise, for good reason.
UltraSeven is the heart and soul, cutting his place in history EyeSlugger in hand.
....plus the EyeSlugger may be the best Ultra weapon, if not the best Toku Weapon, ever made ever.
But that may just be my rampant fanboyism.
(It's not.)
