After a ski resort experiences some trouble, the Science Patrol investigates a mysterious girl and her rumored guardian monster.
Plot[]
A group of men escorted Machimura after he fainted at Mt. Iida to the ski resort. He claimed to be attacked by a creature named Woo in the middle of chasing a little girl who meddled with his bear hunting spree, the monster appearing in order to protect the little girl.
Muramatsu sent Hayata, Arashi and Ide to investigate the situation out of fear that the nearby ski resort would be threatened by the monster. The Mt. Iida was popular due to constantly remain snowy even during the summer and is also declared a mystery zone. The three patrolled the Mt. Iida through skiing and suddenly found themselves lost in the area. Hayata accidentally injured his right leg after falling into the snow girl's trap. The ski resort owner, Akita, told the story that 15 years prior, the snow girl (Yukiko) and her mother appeared in the village out of nowhere. After her mother died, she was left all alone, but was labelled as a Yuki-onna by the villagers due to her miraculously surviving the mountains. Charcoal maker Kisuke decided to adopt her until he died two years prior to the present day, leaving her all alone. Even for 15 years she settled in the village, she is still considered a pariah, a fact that is strengthened by her connection to the monster Woo.
The three SSSP members decided to spend the night at the ski resort as Ide related Yukiko's story to how he lost his mother at a younger age. The next day, Woo appeared and started to approach the sky resort. Yukiko managed to convince Woo into retreating back to the mountains despite Machimura's attempt at firing, but another incident of a villager falling into a trap forced the entire villagers to chase the little girl while Arashi and Ide were ordered to eliminate the monster. Hayata was forced to transform into Ultraman when Woo approached the resort once more. When Yukiko called the monster's name, it disappeared from the scene. Yukiko at that point was already dead. Ippei theorized that Yukiko was just an illusion created by the mountains, just like Woo did and finally headed home.
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Trivia[]
This was the first episode to feature Ultraman's C-Type suit.
This episode is considered the premiere of Ultraman's third quarter, written by Tetsuo Kinjo and directed by Yuzo Higuchi. However, in terms of production order, episode 31, "Who Goes There?," was completed earlier. The episode explores themes of "a girl ostracized by her village and her connection with a monster" and "the oppressed," delivering a serious narrative. It also raises sharp questions about the existence and purpose of Ultraman and the SSSP.[1]
Bin Furuya, the suit actor in Ultraman, had previously made a heartfelt request to Kinjo. He hoped for an episode where the monster was not killed, believing that while justice must be strong, if every story ended with a monster's destruction, their existence would feel unnecessarily tragic, and Ultraman's role would lose some of its meaning. This suggestion inspired the creation of this episode and episode 20, "Terror on Route 87."[2]
The name "Woo" originates from a project proposal titled WoO, which Fuji TV discussed two years before the planning of Ultra Q. This project was Tsuburaya Productions' first prepared series and is considered the foundation of the entire Ultraman franchise. Minoru Nakano is believed to have been the one who came up with this name. Another theory suggests that the name "Woo" was chosen by Tetsuo Kinjo, inspired by the Okinawan term for banana fiber, specifically the choma fiber, called "Woo" (苧, Ū) in the local dialect.[4][5]
In this episode, Where Captain Muramatsu is only mentioned by name, and Fuji does not appear at all. Hiroko Sakurai Sakurai once shared that Akiji Kobayashi jokingly remarked to her, "Neither of us are in this episode!"[6]
For the filming locations, Mt. lida is a fictional setting created for the episode. In reality, the episode was shot at the "Maruike Ski Resort," a ski facility operated by TBS in Niigata Prefecture, located in Shiozawa Town (now Minamiuonuma City), Niigata Prefecture. According to director Yuzo Higuchi, the outdoor shoot also included filming some advertisement footage. However, only a few scenes were ultimately filmed, and Higuchi himself never saw the final product. The shooting for this episode took place from February 14 to 15, 1967.[7]
In a December 1986 interview, Higuchi revealed that the episode includes a scene where Hayata, Ide, and Arashi arrive on the mountain in a Jet VTOL and then ski downhill. In reality, none of the three actors could ski—not even five meters. The crew hired ski instructors from the resort to serve as stand-ins for the actors. Despite these challenges, the filming process was reportedly enjoyable for everyone involved. For instance, lighting technician Shu Yamaguchi even brought his child to the set. The child was cast as one of the village kids bullying the snow woman.[8]
It is said that on February 15, 1967, the crew held a wrap party at the ski resort to mark the completion of filming for this episode. They also staged a live battle performance featuring Woo, Ultraman, and Draco for the children in the audience.[9]
The hunter, Machimura, who chases Yuki and is attacked by Woo, is portrayed by Ren Yamamoto. This marks his second role in the series, following his portrayal of Onita in episode 11, "The Rascal from Outer Space."
The key character of "Snow Child," Yuki, is played by Sachiko Tominaga. According to director Yuzo Higuchi, Tominaga was selected through a casting call for the role of Yuki because her fair skin and pure, unpretentious aura matched the character's requirements.
Kunio Suzuki, who portrayed the Woo suit actor, also plays a villager in the story. Additionally, in the ski resort scenes, Koichi Takano and Ken Kumagai made cameo appearances.
There are some differences between the draft and final version of the episode. The following segment was removed in the final version:
In the draft, another hunter, Nagano (永野), encounters danger in the snowy mountains, prompting the SSSP to conduct a search. Nagano is later saved by Yuki and accompanies the SSSP back down the mountain. Yuki attempts to return Nagano's lost rifle but is captured by a man at the lodge. In gratitude for saving his life, Nagano rescues Yuki. In the final version, however, the Snow Child becomes involved in a tragedy when a trap set by mischievous children causes the death of an elderly man, and she is wrongly blamed.
Higuchi once mentioned: "If I had the chance to reshoot, I would like to make Phantom Snow Mountain again. As a director, I would prefer to create a fantastical work combining snow mountains and beautiful girls."
Regarding the final scene, which hints at Yuki's death, he explained: "The final image was not meant to imply death. It was a shot looking down at Yuki lying on the ground, accompanied by the sound of a train's whistle. Perhaps at that moment, I should have made Yuki's figure disappear from the screen. The audience might have wondered: 'Did Yuki die? No, maybe she just went up into the mountains.' That would have been better."
In this episode, Hayata uses the Beta Capsule with his left hand, rather than the usual right hand for transformation.
In Tetsuo Kinjo's novelized version, there are differences in the ending compared to the episode, including a line of dialogue from Ide: "I knew it. No matter what others say, I still believe. Woo is the mother of the 'Snow Child.' Now the 'Snow Child' is surely in her mother's arms, on the other side of Mt. lida, reunited after fifteen years." The final scene in the novel freezes on Yuki's frozen body in the snow, with a wild rabbit hopping around her.[10]
