The Saucers Have Come

The Saucers Have Come
Ultraseven, episode 45
Information
Airdate	August 11, 1968
Directed by	Akio Jissoji
Written by	Takashi Kawasaki Shozo Uehara
Special Effects Directed by	Koichi Takano
Continuity
Previous	The Terrifying Super Ape-man
Next	The Showdown of Dan vs Seven

The Saucers Have Come is the forty-fifth episode of Ultraseven.

Synopsis

A timid boy named Fukushin with a passion for astronomical observation, lives in a downtown industrial area. At night, he observes a group of flying saucers approaching and informs the TDF, but no illegularities were to be confirmed. It was Alien Perolynga who secretly came to Earth under a special barrier field that could cloak them as star clusters!

Plot

Saburo, a man who lives in a small village in Japan works like the average Japanese citizen, but is unhappy with his current life. Saburo in his neighborhood is an unpopular and mostly hated person because of the noise or problems he causes. On his free time, Saburo likes to look at the billions of stars in the universe, but this causes him to be extremely tired at work to the point where he almost gets himself severely injured.

One day, Saburo meets a young boy who also shares an interest in stars and the two become friends. Saburo one night discovers multiple flying saucers in the night sky, however no one believes the sighting, including the Ultra Guard. The Ultra Guard claims that he was an "amateur astronomer." The young boy however believes his story and says that there will be more saucers in the sky. Later, the boy takes Saburo to his shop where he reveals to him to be Alien Perolynga. Alien Perolynga mocks and scares Saburo into calling the Ultra Guard to see if they believe his encounter with Alien Perolynga. The Ultra Guard doesn't believe him and of course thinks he is crazy. Alien Perolynga sees Saburo's depression in his life on Earth and gives him an offer to "Come with him to stars."

Later, after a further investigation by Dan Moroboshi and the other members, it turned out Saburo wasn't lying as the Flying Saucers weren't detected by advanced telescopes, but indeed exist. The Ultra Guard move out to stop the threat of invasion, but Dan's ship is destroyed in the conflict where he transforms into Ultraseven. A giant Alien Perolynga emerges and the two battle. After many more ships get blown up and destroyed, Ultraseven continues punching Alien Perolynga only for him to explode along with the rest of his fleet.

At the end of the episode, Saburo is now recognized by his neighbor as not being crazy or drunk, but in fact a hero in the community. The episode ends with Saburo riding his bicycle most likely thinking, what if he had accepted Alien Perolynga's offer to go to space.

Cast

• Dan Moroboshi/Ultraseven : Kohji Moritsugu
• Anne Yuri : Yuriko Hishimi
• Shigeru Furuhashi : Sandayu Dokumamushi
• Kaoru Kiriyama : Shoji Nakayama
• Soga : Shinsuke Achiha
• Amagi : Bin Furuya

Guest Actors

• Saburo Fukushin : Kimihiro Reizei
• Gen Kaneko : Fumio Watanabe
• Shige-san : Mickey Yasukawa
• Alien Perolynga : Hiroyuki Takano
• Factory Manager : Dai Kanai
• Police Officer : Setsuo Wakui
• Neighbor : Shigeo Nakahara

Voice Actors

• Narrator /Alien Perolynga : Shigeo Nakahara

Suit Actors

• Ultraseven : Koji Uenishi
  • Alien Perolynga : Kunio Suzuki

Appearances

Ultras

• Ultraseven

Kaiju

• Alien Perolynga

Home Media

• Ultraseven Volume 11 features episodes 42-45.
• In a 1985 VHS release, the episode name was swapped with the previous episode's name "The Terrifying Super-Simian".

1999 release

2009 release

Trivia

• Ultraman Taiga episode 6 "The Flying Saucer Is Not Coming", acts as a tribute to this episode. Despite some similarities, their direct connection remains debated.
• This episode draws inspiration from Aesop's fable The Boy Who Cried Wolf, reimagined as a modern parable with satirical tones. Although officially co-credited to Akio Jissoji (under the pen name Takashi Kawasaki) and Shozo Uehara, Jissoji alone wrote the screenplay.
  • Beyond its theme, the episode examines how ordinary people might respond to a UFO sighting, reflecting a satire on common heroic story themes.
• Similar to episode 8, "The Marked Town," Jissoji’s approach diverges from the typical futuristic setting of Ultraseven. Instead, he highlights everyday Japanese life, choosing locations like vacant lots, reclaimed land, and industrial areas to portray Japan’s complex blend of modernity and grassroots culture. Here, the story’s real protagonist is the character Fukushin.

• Jissoji personally wrote the episode’s dubbing script, now preserved in the Kawasaki City Museum.
• One standout feature of this episode is Jissoji’s expert use of sound effects. He mixed everyday sounds—like traditional poetry recitals and baseball broadcasts—with the narrative in a playful, satirical way. For instance, the crack of a bat hitting a ball syncs perfectly with key moments, creating an ironic effect. This neighborhood noise also mirrors 1960s Japan’s urban atmosphere.
  • The baseball audio came from the August 3, 1968, second game of a doubleheader between the Sankei Atoms and Yomiuri Giants, apparently recorded live by Kouei Shinsha, the series’ sound company.
• In My Television Chronicle, Jissoji explained that this episode features minimal special effects because the script intentionally limits their use. He recalled how the tokusatsu team on the original Ultraman often complained about too few action scenes, but they welcomed the lighter special effects demand here.

Piniya

• The alien, Alien Perolynga, was originally conceived as an "Aquatic Human" named Piniya. Its original script, titled "The Scream from the Bottom of the Lake" , was shelved due to budget limits and expected costs of underwater filming. To reuse the concept, the alien’s design was modified—its head painted in vivid psychedelic colors—and featured in this episode.
• Due to ongoing budget constraints, art director Noriyoshi Ikeya made the alien’s saucer prop by stacking two salad bowls. Jissoji reportedly was too tired to complain about the simplicity. Many late-series spacecraft props were improvised from household items like plastic hydrofoil models and glass bowls.
  • Ikeya recalled Jissoji asking for 100 saucer models. To meet this, Ikeya stacked two glass containers for each saucer, despite Jissoji’s criticism. Without this method, finishing on time was impossible. Since no compositing technology existed, each saucer hung by three piano wires—totaling 300 wires.
  • During filming, the crew hung all 100 saucers from a frame and ensured smooth movement. The filming team, skilled at wire removal, handled erasing the piano wires from the footage. They also mixed paint and colored the saucers to blend with backgrounds, making the props appear seamless.

• Although Wakako Tanabe’s name appears in the episode’s opening credits, she does not appear on screen. Tanabe herself has no memory of participating in the production. One theory suggests she may have played a female employee at Fukushin’s company, but those scenes were cut from the final version.

The script cover titled "The Nightly Saucers"

• The original episode title was "The Nightly Saucers" , and two finalized script versions exist. According to the director, no draft scripts were created.
• Yuriko Hishimi claims the episode’s title was inspired by the 1952 French film Beauties of the Night by René Clair. Composer Toru Fuyuki also used its theme song.
  • The first script included a scene where Fukushin and Gen give Anne the film with Saucer footage during their second sighting.
  • Both scripts feature conversations between Fukushin and a young boy, plus scenes with Fukushin’s company president and a female employee who reprimand and comfort him. Fukushin struggles at work, leading the Factory Manager to fire him.
  • The second script adds a scene where Anne exposes a photo forgery.
  • After the battle, Dan and Soga find Fukushin beside the Saucer wreckage and rescue him. The story ends with life returning to normal.
  • The Police Officer’s role is larger than in the final cut.

Anne and Furuhashi in pajamas

• The final script still cut some scenes during filming. The biggest cut showed Anne in pajamas arriving at the control room after a UFO attack report. A behind-the-scenes photo captures Anne in pajamas posing with Furuhashi, hinting at this removed scene.
• The Ultraman Neos episode 5, "Invisible Bonds," contains Easter eggs referencing this episode.
• The Ultraman Orb episode, "Revenge's Trigger", is a tribute to this episode.
• At the end of the TNT dubbed version of the episode, the Narrator says, "The area where Saburo lives could never be called beautiful. Perhaps someday, his friend from the planet Pelonga will return to Earth. Perhaps again, he will offer to take Saburo out of his sorted surroundings, off to explore the mysterious reaches of outer space. But in the meantime, Saburo waits with his heart among the stars." This implies that Alien Perolynga survived his fight with Ultraseven and may one day reappear. In Taiga, his survival is seemingly confirmed as the individual who appears in the series is supposedly the same individual from Ultraseven, even meeting with the same boy, Saburo from the original episode.