A plane carrying the Terrestrial Defense Force's newly developed high-spec gunpowder "Spiner" is attacked en route to a test site, forcing the Ultra Guard to come up with an alternative way to deliver it. Dan Moroboshi, having discovered a new appreciation for rally car racing, suggests transporting it under the guise of participating in one.
Dan and Amagi are assigned on the task, but soon find themselves in a terrifying death race when several aliens get the same idea.
Plot[]
Dan Moroboshi and Anne Yuri enjoy an afternoon watching a rally car race, and Dan becomes excited at the thought of participating in one. Meanwhile, a transport plane carrying the Terrestrial Defense Force's new high-spec gunpowder "Spiner" is shot down by an unknown enemy, and the Ultra Guard must think of a new way to safely transport the high-explosive material. Dan eagerly suggests smuggling the Spiner to the test site by joining a rally car race.
Kiriyama assigns Dan and Amagi on the mission, and the latter expresses suspicion towards some of the other participants. With the Spiner protected only by a shock-resistant container, the two cautiously set out on the road as the remaining Ultra Guard trail behind them in a separate vehicle. Along the way, the two are confronted by a man on a motorcycle that narrowly avoids colliding with them. Dan shoots the man, who explodes violently, revealing himself to be a human bomb. Another car passes by them and explodes, tripping a landmine that was meant for Dan and Amagi.
Investigating the wreckage, the two are ambushed and fired upon by one of the participants, forcing them to hide. Dan sneaks behind the assailant and shoots him, but Amagi is injured. He confides in Dan his childhood fear of explosions and laments Kiriyama specifically assigning him to the task anyway despite knowing that, but Dan comforts him and they continue on their mission.
In the evening, the two stop to inspect an abandoned rally car and hear distant music. They investigate the source and discover it to be the rest of the Ultra Guard camped out, and Kiriyama angrily scolds the two for abandoning their cargo. They return to their car to find a time bomb has been planted on the Spiner's caspule, and Kiriyama orders Amagi to defuse it. He manages to disarm the bomb despite the immense pressure and is instilled with newfound confidence.
The following morning, Kiriyama gives Amagi the chance to swap out for Furuhashi, but he resolves to complete the mission himself. On the final stretch of their journey, Two helicopters descend on Dan and Amagi and attach a balloon to their car, lifting them off the ground. Amagi destroys one of the helicopters with a weapon stowed in the car, and the other flees. From a distance, Kiriyama orders Soga to shoot the balloon, and the two safely land and continue to the test site.
Arriving at the test site, Staff Officer Manabe congratulates the Ultra Guard for a successful mission, and it is revealed that the real capsule containing the Spiner had been stowed in the back of Kiriyama's vehicle the entire time. Amagi realizes that Kiriyama had assigned him to the mission specifically to get rid of his fears and thanks him.
The Ultra Guard observe the test from inside a bunker, but before the Spiner can be detonated, a giant dinosaur riding on the back of a tank emerges from a nearby mountain and swallows the capsule. It attacks the bunker, burying two engineers in the debris. Dan rushes outside and transforms into Ultraseven to rescue them before confronting the dino-tank.
Knocking the Spiner capsule out of its mouth, he lures the monster on top of it before firing a beam at the capsule, destroying the beast in a massive explosion. Buried in the rubble and reverted to his human form, he is found by the rest of the Ultra Guard. As he is carried away in a stretcher, he silently remarks to himself how proud he is of Amagi.
This episode is regarded as one of the most entertaining in the series, fully embracing a comedic tone. The plot incorporates elements of spy-action films, particularly in the tension created by an unseen enemy constantly targeting the protagonist. Additionally, Amagi's psychological trauma and Captain Kiriyama's strict but ultimately supportive guidance serve as the narrative's core.
Dino-Tank concept art
Regarding the concept of Dino-Tank, Tohl Narita reportedly disliked the idea of a "dinosaur riding a tank."
When Tsuburaya Productions assigned him the task of designing such a creature, he was not merely frustrated—he had reached a point of resignation. This decision was largely influenced by budget constraints and the need to repurpose old props from Toho. At the time, the production team had acquired a batch of military vehicles from Toho's Godzilla series, which led to the concept of fusing a tank with a kaiju. This approach was further reflected in episode 30, "Glory for Whom?," which featured a TDF land-based training exercise.[3]
However, this compromise ultimately became the breaking point for Narita. Following his design work on Alien Platic in episode 30, he departed from Tsuburaya Productions.
The suit for Dino-Tank was created by Ryosaku Takayama, who was also involved in the production of Kaiju ouji at the time. As a result, the design of Dino-Tank bears a resemblance to the Lion Dragon featured in that series. Additionally, the tank's design was based on a 1/5 scale model of a 61-type medium tank from the movie Gappa: The Triphibian Monster. Narita had borrowed this model from Nikkatsu and added "diamond block" decorations, resembling building blocks, to its surface. This design detail was revealed by Narita in an interview in 1984.[4]
The battle between Ultraseven and Dino-Tank from this episode later reappeared in Dan's recollection in episode 48 "The Biggest Invasion in History: Part 1."
Meanwhile, the relationship between Dan and Anne takes a noticeable turn in this episode. While previous interactions between them avoided overt romantic moments, the series now begins to depict them as a couple more explicitly.
The opening scene features Dan and Anne sitting in a movie theater, sharing an oversized rice cracker. It is said that, in the past, such snacks were commonly sold at Japanese cinema concession stands.
According to Yuriko Hishimi, Kazuho Mitsuta once recalled: "Eiji Tsuburaya told us during Ultraseven's production, 'Don't make it too Japanese in style.' But I thought—why not? Who knows, maybe one day these giant rice crackers will become popular overseas too? So, with that playful idea in mind, we had Dan munch on one in the theater scene."[5]
In 2015, Hishimi called Director Mitsuta to inquire about the origin of the large pancake. Mitsuta explained, "I had seen one at Nakamise in Asakusa, so I asked the prop department staff to buy it."[6]
Additionally, the middle-aged male actor who boos Dan appears to have been a background actor at the time. This scene was filmed in Toho's screening room.[7]
According to an interview with producer Ken Kumagai by Yoichi Iwasa:[8]
During the filming of this episode, an unexpected and unseasonal snowfall occurred—just as the crew was preparing to shoot the rally race scene. As the cameras were about to roll, assistant director Masataka Yamamoto quickly came up with a solution: borrowing a fire truck, filling it with hot water, and having the entire production team use it to melt the snow covering the roads. Half-jokingly, the team responded with a mix of resignation and humor, saying, "Alright, let's do it!" However, for Yamamoto and production manager Atsushi Takayama, the idea seemed entirely serious. Fortunately, the weather cleared up soon after, and the snow melted naturally, so the team never had to go through with their plan.
Regarding the episode's concept, Kumagai noted that rally racing films were quite popular at the time, citing The Great Race (1965) as an example. This trend inspired Ultraseven to create a rally-themed episode. However, the challenge was figuring out how to integrate such a premise into the context of the Ultra Guard. The solution was the idea of transporting high-performance explosives. Once that decision was made, the team faced considerable difficulties, as they had no prior experience handling vehicle coordination or filming rally sequences.
This episode introduced an explosive called "Spiner." Kumagai and writer Shozo Uehara were particularly fond of the name, leading to its reuse in Return of Ultraman episode 6, "Battle! Monsters vs. MAT." Kumagai noted that such details helped create a sense of continuity between past and present works. He reflected that this desire to connect the series' world might have been the foundation for the later "Ultra Brothers" concept. Although the show ended, they still live on—this was the belief that guided the production team.
A trailer for this episode narrated by Tomokazu Seki was released on April 1, 2023 as part of a series of trailers created to celebrate the 55th anniversary of Ultraseven, that also promoted the episode being made free on TSUBURAYA IMAGINATION for a month. The trailer uses the style of Japanese films from the 1980s-1990s.[10][11]
