Ultraman

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This may not be the article you are looking for. For other uses of the word "Ultraman", see Ultraman.

Ultraman
Data
Human Host(s)/Form	Ken Sato
Height	41 m
Weight	35,000 t
Home World	Earth
Race	Ultra
Family	Ultradad (father) Emi (foster daughter)
Affiliation	KDF
Number of Appearances	1 (Movie)
First Appearance	Ultraman: Rising
Voice Actor(s)	Christopher Sean (EN) Yuki Yamada (JP)

Ultraman is the titular character of the 2024 film Ultraman: Rising, serving as a reinterpretation of the original Ultraman from the 1966 TV series.

Conception

Design

Ultraman Concept Design by Sunmin Inn

Shannon Tindle, the director of Ultraman: Rising and designer behind the titular character, has mentioned that "drastically different" designs were never considered for this iteration of Ultraman. Instead, Tindle comments that the classic red-and-silver color scheme was chosen because it was his favorite and that it evokes a sense of familiarity, in the sense that even newcomers to the franchise might recognize the nod to the iconic Ultraman design. Additionally, features of the original suit, like the "dorsal fin" zipper and the stretch marks from prolonged use of the suits, were kept in the design as a homage. Additionally, this takes into account that Ultraman is still considered a niche market in the West. Its classic design allows even Western audiences unfamiliar with the character to recognize its features.

Ultraman pose explorations by Tony Fucile and surface rendering by Sunmin Inn.

The final design of Ultraman took various design cues harkening, such as:

• In the design, crosshatching is not used, and the texture is directly embedded in the lines, utilizing banded textures, especially in the red and white areas of the ears, presenting a brushed metal texture.
• In the presentation, the "smooth" style is crucial for the overall design, ensuring it doesn't look overly simplistic. The design requires faceted edges and gritty textures. The red areas should have a black base color, increased transparency, and white outlines to enhance the visual impact of the red patterns, especially when viewed from a distance.
• With high local color brightness, the material inside the ears needs to be slightly darkened to maintain the shadow effect. Some metal areas of the body need to be slightly darkened to break up monotony. Internal lines require detailed handling to show proportion and consistency, particularly in character designs.

With regards to this iteration of Ultraman's thinner proportions, Tindle references the "elongated limbs" of Leiji Matsumoto's (of Space Battleship Yamato fame) works and the Evangelion of Neon Genesis Evangelion as key inspirations. Furthermore, the nature of animation meant that Tindle was not "bound by a guy in a suit" and could push the boundaries in a way unique to animation.

Ultraman's "pupil" enhances the facial expression features.

Constructing the CG model and creating the animation for Ultraman was considered a very challenging task by the animation team. Given that Ultraman’s face is a complete mask with no lip movement or eyebrows, it lacks any expressions that typical animated characters can portray. According to VFX Supervisor Hayden Jones, the animation team made some minor adjustments to the Ultraman character, allowing his eyes to light up and look forward. This "pupil" feature permitted the eyes to vary in intensity, conveying Ultraman's gaze and subtle expressions. Due to the balance between 2D illustrations and 3D rendering, the shading was quite complex, and the team had to consider how this stylization would harmonize with the reflective effects.

Regarding the skin effect of Ultraman's body, Jones mentioned that the model employed the Kuwahara filter. After studying how Art Director Sunmin Inn handled reflections and the sharp edges within those reflections, they added some subtle blurring to the edges. They also collaborated with Texture Lead Marco Firme to create multiple layers of auxiliary textures, which helped the compositing team blur the reflection edges to mimic the style of illustrative artwork.

Final Ultraman design, later refined during the modeling. process

The scene where Ken transforms into Ultraman was led by Aleksei Chernogorod, the associate VFX supervisor at ILM Singapore. He envisioned that when Ultraman transforms, he would reform into different spectrums of light. After in-depth discussions with Shannon, they conceptualized that during Ken’s transformation into Ultraman, he would split into a kaleidoscope-like rainbow, and as he shrinks, the rainbow shows an echo of what it’s like. The team conducted extensive testing and created graphic images for each frame to ensure the effect worked properly.

According to Atsuo Fujiwara and Tatsuyuki Shimada, some poses and angles make Ultraman look less cool, so the team tried to avoid those positions. The team also received numerous visual images from Netflix and watched other series, studying Ultraman’s iconic poses and making improvements based on them. Due to Ultraman’s long arms and legs, which can be both an advantage and a disadvantage, the animators consciously kept his feet on the ground and prevented his hips from floating. If the waist area looks well-fitted, even the outline of long arms and legs can appear cool, so they paid special attention to this when shaping the figure.

History

Ultraman: Rising

Ken fights against kaiju as Ultraman.

Several months after Professor Sato/Ultradad could no longer fulfill his duties as Ultraman due to aging and injuries, Ken Sato had to abandon his life in the United States and return to Japan. He transformed into Ultraman, using his extraordinary powers and abilities to combat the kaiju causing havoc in Tokyo. However, initially, he did not really want to become Ultraman and saw it as a burden that hindered his career as a baseball player. Additionally, unresolved issues with his father made it difficult for Ken to accept his new role.

On his first day back in Japan, Ken learned about the appearance of Neronga in Akihabara and transformed into Ultraman to confront it. As a novice, Ken lacked the determination, maturity, and sense of responsibility needed to fend off the kaiju. During several battles, he was frequently counterattacked by Neronga and even criticized by the public for showboating. His actions were ignored by the quasi-military organization KDF, whose primary goal was to eliminate the kaiju. Ultimately, Ken found himself unable to easily unleash the Spacium Beam during the fight and had to withdraw from the battle.

One day, while Ken was participating in the opening game of the baseball season at New Tokyo Dome, Gigantron suddenly stormed into the stadium, attempting to seize an object under tight KDF surveillance. Ken transformed into Ultraman to chase down Gigantron. Following Mina's instructions, he tried to prevent KDF's air units from attacking Gigantron. However, Dr. Onda of KDF ordered the air units to use lethal force if Ultraman interfered. Ultimately, both Ultraman and Gigantron were struck by missiles fired by the air units, and they both fell into Tokyo Bay.

Ultraman/Ken witnessed the birth of Emi.

When Ultraman/Ken regained consciousness underwater, he found himself lying next to the unconscious Gigantron and saw the object KDF had been pursuing. As the metallic shell of the object peeled away, it revealed a Gigantron egg. Upon closer inspection, Ken discovered that the egg had hatched a "baby kaiju". With KDF still actively searching for the egg, Ken's protective instincts were triggered. He decided to safeguard the baby kaiju and brought it back to the Ultra Base. Without considering the consequences of bringing a kaiju baby home, Ken quickly found himself taking on the role of "Daddy," having to care for the creature.

Ultraman/Ken reluctantly takes on the role of babysitter.

To take care of the baby kaiju, Ken frequently needed to transform into Ultraman. By constantly switching forms, he helped the baby get accustomed to his presence, and he caught fish by hand in the sea to feed it. Although Mina provided Ken with significant assistance during this process, he still faced many challenges in caring for the baby and struggled to find a balance.

Ultraman tried to save Emi in Tokyo Tower, but accidentally caused Emi to be injured.

Upon learning that the baby had escaped from the Ultrabase, Ken transformed into Ultraman once again, attempting to find and retrieve the baby in the Tokyo metropolitan area. However, the mission became exceptionally difficult due to the baby's high energy and swift movements. When the baby started climbing Tokyo Tower, Ultraman quickly followed, trying to prevent this dangerous behavior. However, as they reached the top, the KDF forces fired tranquilizers at the baby, causing it to lose balance and fall from the tower. Ultraman tried to catch the baby, but his efforts inadvertently led to the baby getting injured, resulting in a fractured bone. Seeing the baby in pain, Ken felt deep guilt and immediately flew back to the Ultrabase to evade KDF's pursuit.

Later, Professor Sato helped the baby, now named "Emi," with rehabilitation and wilderness survival training. However, KDF drones discovered Emi's whereabouts and attacked the group on the private island. An enraged Ken transformed into Ultraman again and destroyed all the attacking drones. But upon returning to the Ultrabase, KDF deployed a Mecha Gigantron and attacked the base with missiles, causing near-total destruction. In his grief, Ken decided to transform into Ultraman once more, determined to rescue the captured Emi and avenge his father, who went missing in the explosion, and Mina, whose system was damaged and rendered inoperative.

During this operation, Ultraman intervened promptly to thwart the plans of Mecha Gigantron and KDF. However, in the intense battle, Ultraman was shocked to discover that Mecha Gigantron's true identity was none other than the original "Gigantron" controlled by KDF. Emi managed to rescue her mother from KDF's control, but Mecha Gigantron was ordered to kill Ultraman. In the ensuing confrontation, Ultraman was defeated by Mecha Gigantron, reverted back to Ken, and fell into the sea.

Ken "rising" as Ultraman.

Fortunately, Professor Sato, in his Ultradad form, rescued Ken just in time. Emi, by calling out, successfully restored her mother's consciousness from KDF's control. After all KDF members fled, Dr. Onda transformed the Destroyer into a massive robot to confront the group. Ken decided to "rising" as Ultraman for the final showdown against the Destroyer.

Ultraman and Ultradad jointly fired the Spacium Beam.

In the fierce clash, his shoulder was injured by the Destroyer's attack. At this critical moment, Ultradad extended his help, supporting Ultraman's vertical right arm with his horizontal left arm. Together, they launched the Spacium Beam at the Destroyer, and with the assistance of the Mecha Gigantron and Emi, they successfully destroyed the Destroyer.

However, inside the Destroyer, Dr. Onda activated the self-destruct button, putting the surrounding city of Tokyo Bay at risk of annihilation. In the end, Ultraman decided to sacrifice himself, using the Proto Shield to contain the blast within a designated area, minimizing the damage to the surrounding regions. In the ensuing storyline, it was confirmed that Ultraman/Ken miraculously survived the event.^{Ultraman: Rising}

Profile

Stats

• Height: 41 m
• Weight: 35,000 t
• Origin: Tokyo, Japan

Body Features

• Color Timer: The standard Color Timer, but instead of measuring his energy levels, Ken's time as Ultraman tethers on emotional balance. If he gets too stressed or his emotions run rampant, Ultraman's Color Timer starts flashing red, and he will de-transform. Likewise, if he recovers from this imbalance, his Color Timer returns to blue.
• Eyes: Unlike most Ultras, Ultraman's eyes are blue, and the white lights in his eyes appear to reflect the movement of his gaze.

Transformation

Ken jumps into the sky and transforms into Ultraman in a flash of light.

Transformation

Rise

Abilities

• Flight: Ultraman can soar freely in the skies.

Flight

Techniques

Special

• Spacium Beam : Ultraman's iconic finisher, a powerful energy beam fired from arms crossed in the '+' position. The first time Ken used the Spacium Beam was with assistance from his father, Ultradad, with his vertical right arm being supported by his father's horizontal left.
• Ultra Slash: A buzzsaw-like energy disc that Ultraman forms in his hands and tosses at foes. It can also return to him like a boomerang.

Spacium Beam (with Ultradad)

Ultra Slash

Physical

• Energy Punch: Ultraman channels energy into his arm to enhance his punches.

Energy Punch

Other

• Force Shield: An energy barrier deployed by Ultraman to block incoming attacks, or as a dome to contain an explosion.

Force Shield

Trivia

The concept art for Gamma Man.

• In the precursor project to the 2001 film titled Made in Japan, the protagonist was envisioned as a Japanese superhero named "Gamma Man." Initially, Gamma Man's appearance was more akin to the Super Sentai style, but it was later changed to a character inspired by the original Ultraman.
  • According to Shannon Tindle, the final design of Gamma Man was inspired by the eyes of Ultraman Zearth. Tindle mentioned that Zearth provided inspiration for this version of the character.

The concept art for Made in Japan by Tindle was drawn in 2001.

The concept art for Made in Japan by Tindle was drawn in 2015.

Gamma Man Vs Gigantron, by Ovi Nedelcu

Los Angeles at night by Paul Lasaine

Gamma Man Vs Mecha Gigantron, by Andy Bialk

• This Ultraman design, following Ultraman Powered, is the second to be based on the original Ultraman template and features blue eyes. According to Shannon Tindle, he felt that choosing blue eyes was a perfect fit and adopted this color scheme based on his intuitive decision-making process.
  • This is the second Ultraman to debut in a film, following the appearance of Ultraman in Shin Ultraman, based on the original Ultraman design.
• Unlike other Ultras, this version of Ultraman exhibits a complete physiological linkage before and after transformation, including aspects like aging and injuries. The blinking of the timer is based on mental strength, and it's even possible to stop the timer from blinking through sheer concentration. However, if the timer blinks for an extended period, the transformation will be forcibly terminated. Due to Ken directly inheriting his father's lineage, he also fully inherits his father's physiological traits.
• Coincidentally, the combined Spacium Beam technique used by Ultraman and Ultradad is remarkably similar to the joint Spacium Beam attack depicted in the Japanese manga Ultraman Story 0, performed by the original Ultraman and Ultraman Jack.
• The artistic swirl that appears behind Ultraman when angered is a reference to the swirling title card of Ultra Q and Ultraman.
• This version of Ultraman is one of the few Ultras who have visible scarring, as seen when the Destroyer cuts deep into Ultraman's left shoulder.