Science Patrol Captain Toshio Muramatsu (Captain Mura) and Lieutenant Mitsuhiro Ide (Ito) are riding on a bus to investigate the alarmingly high frequency of bus crashes at one particular location. The bus crashes at the location, with Muramatsu and Ide among the injured. An hour after the crash, Ide is in the hospital because of having sustained a broken leg in the crash. Muramatsu suspects that a certain lady, whom he announces to the other Science Patrol personnel that he will follow, has done all this. His team acknowledges understanding of this--then Muramatsu falls. Shin Hayata, now acting captain, sends Lieutenant Akiko Fuji and Lieutenant Commander Daisuke Arashi to the hospital to assist Ide.
At the hospital, the doctors find that one of their patients is from a local space research institute, and Ide is there to listen to his story--which explains that all the people in the space research institute are frozen by a being called a Dada! He says that he was the only one to escape, but before he can tell much more of his story, he The disappears. The Dada captures the man and uses his body as a false human form, the lady and Muramatsu came in while the lady wanted a paper and Dada will apparently get it the woman sees SOS Dada and the guy comes in and sees what she saw and then Muramatsu came to the rescue.
Muramatsu and the lady run, in what proves to be a vain attempt to escape, while Dada is communicating with his superior, saying he should capture them anyway as human specimens, and he requests a new freeze ray. No longer able to contact Muramatsu, and with Arashi, Fuji, and Ide out of action, Shin Hayata sends Muramatsu the only assistance available--his own. He ignites the Beta Capsule and transforms. Ultraman is in flight to Muramatsu's last known position within minutes.
Muramatsu and the lady, both finding themselves trapped on a roof, fall off it--but Ultraman rescues them both. He then turns around and fights the Dada, using his Spacium Beam on that one of the Dada. The other Dada tells their superior that Ultraman is far stronger than either had believed. Then Dada was being unfair, and he was big, and Ultraman was small, then Dada was small, then Ultraman was huge, then Dada went flying back, but Ultraman killed him with his Spacium Beam.
According to director Samaji Nonagase, at the time, Toshihiro Iijima and Hajime Tsuburaya, along with other directors, planned to create a lively episode for the 1967 New Year's special. As a result, their team decided to experiment with a thriller-style plot. During the production, Nonagase intentionally drew inspiration from Alfred Hitchcock's style.[2][3]
Initially, the team planned to shoot Ultraman scenes at the Toray Foundation Research Institute, even bringing a doll for the shoot. However, due to unforeseen circumstances, they were unable to film there and ultimately had to complete the scenes on the rooftop of the Toho studio.
As for the scene where Ultraman suddenly shrinks to human size, Nonagase explained that it wasn't due to the ability to shrink freely like Ultraseven. Instead, it was a plot point where Ultraman was shrunk by the beam from Dada's weapon. From Nonagase's perspective, Ultraman could not shrink to human size. The team filmed the scene based on this concept.
In this episode, the original design concept for Dada was not the multi-faceted form seen in the final version, but rather an "optical art" that would be expressed through changes in the camera's perspective. However, due to the technical limitations at the time, it wasn't possible to achieve a satisfactory design within a short period, leading the team to abandon the original concept. The team did try creating some samples in Ryosaku Takayama's studio.
The battle between Ultraman and Dada in this episode lasts for over 3 minutes, reaching a total of 5 minutes.
Regarding Dada's motivation for collecting human specimens, the script does not provide a clear explanation. Screenwriter Masahiro Yamada intentionally chose not to elaborate on this aspect of the character's background. He believed that "keeping the mystery as a mystery was the best approach. If we were to force a logical explanation, it would become uninteresting and even detract from the overall effect."
According to the script, the bus crash at the beginning of the story was actually planned by Dada. He orchestrated the incident to test whether the passengers could serve as suitable specimens, reporting the results to his superiors.
In the draft script, there was also a scene where Muramatsu, during the battle with Dada, faces the situation of running out of Supergun ammunition and then successfully escaping after destroying Dada's shrinking ray device. Therefore, the malfunction of the shrinking ray device in the final version is a remnant of this draft idea.
According to an interview with Bin Furuya, the design of Dada's mask was actually based on a real person—a female student of Tohl Narita. Narita drew inspiration for the mask from her hairstyle and mouth shape. Furuya also mentioned that this woman was highly respected for her dedication. Even in physically demanding tasks, such as moving heavy sandblocks into the studio or constructing slopes and rivers for the monsters' movements, she handled everything herself, often getting covered in mud but still completing the tasks with precision. Furuya also recalled that the woman treated him kindly, and joked that, had the circumstances been different, they might have even developed a romantic relationship.[5]
Regarding the battle between Ultraman and Dada in this episode, Furuya reflected that his performance was likely at its best. Dada's design was almost human-like, which made it easier for Ultraman's moves to flow naturally, while Dada was able to react more effectively. This synergy between the two characters created a seamless dynamic on screen.[5]
During the filming, Furuya felt a sense of "silent encouragement" from the chief cinematographer, particularly during the fight scenes. His sharp and powerful movements seemed to resonate with the chief cinematographer, who likely felt emotionally invested in the action. Furuya imagined the he thinking, "This is amazing, Ultraman! Every punch is packed with power! I won't miss a single move, I'll capture them all and share them with the children across the country!" This unspoken support was conveyed through the camera, filling Furuya with energy. In that moment, he felt stronger, jumping higher, throwing more powerful punches, and delivering more explosive kicks than ever before.[5]
![[4]](/wiki/File:Dada_1966_Miscellaneous_01.png "Dada 1966 Miscellaneous 01.png (1.04 MB)")
