"Kai, I am the light; I will never truly leave you. Light shines everywhere, and in everyone. If you open your eyes and look around, you will find my light. Farewell...."
- ―Ultraman Powered's last words to Kenichi Kai, Ultraman: The Ultimate Hero
Ultraman Powered is the featured Ultra Hero of Ultraman: The Ultimate Hero, the first Ultraman Series tokusatsu entry to be set and produced in the United States. Powered bonded with Kenichi Kai of WINR to defend the Earth against the Baltans as well as other monsters and aliens that threaten humanity.
Conception
Design
Powered's coloring is based on the original Ultraman and new details were added in the design process. In order to express unevenness of a delicate line, the suit was made entirely with clay during the prototype stage and was molded by die-cutting the foam rubber. While it can create a realistic look when used in the making of superhero suits, foam rubber is very easy to tear while being worn. This meant that a new suit had to be prepared for each new shot. In the majority of the Ultra series, Ultraman's mask is joined with the suit, but in the making of the Powered Suit it was decided to allow the mask to detach itself when needed. In various Japanese magazine media, attraction shows, and subsequent theatrical versions, costumes using wet suits made by Rice Production were used. Undulations of the chest and shoulder lines were major feature of the Powered suit, with the knee parts represented by stacking of the fabric.
The lights in Ultraman's eyes are blue. They were supposed to be white like all the other Ultra suits, but this was changed at the very last second to make this suit unique to the American production.
History
Ultraman: The Ultimate Hero
Ultraman Powered was on a mission to bring down the Baltans, an empire that brought death and destruction to countless worlds. Soon his hunt came to Earth, where he proved to be unable to survive without a human host. Choosing a suitable host, the young member of WINR, Kenichi Kai, Ultraman Powered brought the fight to the giant Baltan rampaging through the city.
The fight was fast and brief, but brutal, as the two knocked one another across the streets and into the buildings around them. As the other members of WINR watched on, the fight took to the sky and then back to the streets, where Baltan tried its best to bring down Powered. But the hero would not fail and launched the Mega Spacium Beam, a weapon so powerful it completely vaporized the Baltan.
While this threat was over, the mission of protecting Earth had just begun. While the Baltans retreated and re-planned, more monsters, some native and others alien to the Earth, began to rise. With the help of WINR, Ultraman Powered would put an end to the reign of several giant monsters and got in the middle of many battles between creatures such as Aboras and Banila. But as his adventures continued on, the Baltans soon returned. Watching over every battle with cruel eyes, they created a monster, Dorako, designed to dissect Powered. The monster not only handed Ultraman his first defeat, but threatened millions of lives. As the winged creature rampaged, Kai again summoned Powered, but ultimately, it was a battle that would permanently end their bond.
Dorako’s sharp blade cut through Powered's chest, and while ultimately the hero managed to kill the fiend, something unexpected had happened: Kai also felt the wound and pain! Hospitalized, Kai's wounds healed quickly, but the hero refused to put his host in any such danger again. He parted with Kai and headed directly for the WINR base to confront the final monster: Zetton.
With the base in ruins, Powered tried his best to vanquish it before his energy ran out, but it was futile. After his normal attacks failed, he quickly fired away his Mega Spacium Beam, but Zetton either reflected or shrugged off each blast. As the final seconds ticked, Powered fired one last time at Zetton's weakened body, and it finally gave out. The alien menace was destroyed, but with his power depleted, Powered was doomed.
He fell unconscious, his body lying helpless as WINR confronted the Baltan ship head-on. However, descending from the sky, two orbs came and rescued the crew and destroyed the invasion force before gathering up Powered's body. Now three orbs flew back into space, possibly to return in the future.
Mega Monster Battle Ultra Galaxy: The Movie
Powered, Great, and the Ultra Force about to fight against Belial.
After Ultraman Belial was freed from his prison, he went to the Land of Light with a weak Ultraman Taro. All the Ultras were already waiting for Belial to arrive, after Belial showed the Ultras that he defeated Taro, Ultraman Powered immediately along many Ultra Warriors charged against Belial to fight him. At a certain point during the fight, Powered uses his Mega Spacium Beam against Belial, but he blocked it by using Ultrawoman Beth as a shield, and then Belial fired a blast of energy from the Giga Battlenizer against Powered, hurting him and defeating him. After defeat almost Ultramen in the Land of Light, Belial stolen the Plasma Spark, which make the Land of Light quickly freezes over, as well as all of its denizens, including Powered as well (except Ultraman and Ultraseven survive by defending themselves at the last moment). In the ending, after the Plasma Spark was recovered, every Ultra, including Powered, was seen listening to Ultraman King's speech. Powered was seen alongside the Ultra Force, Ultraman Great, and Ultraman Max.
Ultra Galaxy Fight: The Absolute Conspiracy
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Ultraman Powered and Ultraman Great in Ultra Galaxy Fight: The Absolute Conspiracy
Ultraman Ribut was instructed by Ultraman Taro to head to Planet K76, a planet used as a training ground. When he arrived, he found that Ultraman Great and Ultraman Powered were there, ready to help train Ribut, so that in three days an expedition to Mikarito to rescue Ultraman Max could begin.
Ribut's training session with Great and Powered immediately began, with the two not holding back against him. They advised him to look into himself and unleash his latent power, which Ribut managed to do, and catch the both of them by surprise. Seeing his training completed, Great and Powered granted Ribut the Ribut Blocker and Spreader Rod respectively, saying that he should be able to use them effectively now. With that, Ribut returned to the Land of Light to receive the Gudis antidote from Sora, traveling back to Planet Mikarito to rescue Max, who had already been partially turned. As Ribut rushed in to cure Max, Powered handled Hellberus and finished it off. After the battle was over, Powered and the others return to the Inter Galactic Defense Force Headquarters to report the situation to Zoffy Ultra Galaxy Fight: The Absolute Conspiracy
Ultraman Regulos: First Mission
Ultraman Powered, along with Great and the Ultra Force, were instructed to help Ultraman Regulos fight Alien Reiblood and his revived monsters, with Powered fighting Dallie. He was soon able to defeat the threat before aiding the other Ultras in destroying Reiblood's new body, even though his incorporeal form managed to escape.
Profile
Ultraman Powered
Stats[1]
- Height: 55 m[2]
- Weight: 58,000 t[2]
- Age: 15,000 years old
- Home World: Land of Light, Nebula M78
- Maximum Flight Speed: Mach 27[2]
- Maximum Running Speed: Mach 9.9
- Maximum Underwater Speed: 120 knots
- Maximum Underground Speed: Mach 2
- Maximum Jumping Height: 1,800 m
- Arm Strength: 130,000 t
- Grip Strength: 50,000 t
- Punching Force: 100 million t
- Kicking Force: 200 million t
Body Features
- Eyes: Powered's eyes possess the same abilities as any other Ultras from the Land of Light, but his are unique in that they start off as blue and turn red with his Color Timer.
- Color Timer: Powered's Color Timer/warning light is like that of any other Ultra Warrior, but his has a unique appearance, in that it is encircled with a ring of green lights that flash when it turns red.
- Powered Stabilizers : The blade-like organs on Powered's arms allow him to fire the Mega Spacium Beam.
- Ultra Armor: Powered's body can withstand high temperatures and is resistant to fire and lasers.
Transformation
Kenichi Kai transforms into Powered by using an item known as the Flash Prism, or a second Beta Capsule in the English version. Much like how Shin Hayata transformed into the original Ultraman, but unlike Hayata, Kai clenches his "Beta Capsule" in his fist before transforming into Powered. After Powered separated from Kai for the final battle with Zetton, WINR used the abandoned device to attack the Alien Baltan ship.
Techniques
Special
- Mega Spacium Beam : Powered shapes his arms into a "+" shape to fire this beam; and comes from the sides of both arms. When charging it, blue energy particles will be emitted from his body. It is said to be five times as powerful as the standard Spacium Beam and is capable of incapacitating an Ultra.
- Powered Eye Beam : Not used in the series, it can counter cloaking fields and barriers, similar to the original Ultraman's Ultra Discernment.
- Powered Slash : Powered's version of the Ultra-Slash. It is slightly smaller than Ultraman's Ultra-Slash. It is pure blue, and can slice through just about anything.
- Energy Knuckle : A white beam emitted from the fist, used to stop the enemy's movement.
- Powered Bomb : A blue blast emitted from his hands.
Physical
- Ultra Power : A maneuver Powered uses to overpower monsters.
- Powered Punch : Has the destructive force of a hundred million tons.
- Powered Kick : Has the destructive force of two hundred million tons.
- Powered Chop : Powered chops the enemy using his Powered Stabilizer. It is powerful enough to bring down foes like the Female Red King in one blow.
- Powered Double Chop : A variant technique, it uses both hands and makes use of the Powered Stabilizers.
- Ultra Headbutt : A powerful headbutt attack.
- Powered Lifter : Powered uses all his strength to lift up a monster overhead.
- Giant Throw : Powered can grab a body of a monster in both arms and throw it to the sky 500 m high.
Other
- Energy Reverse : When hit by a current of energy such as electricity or a beam, Powered can gather it into a ball and send it back to its source.
- Ultra Psychokinesis : Powered used this power to put out a fire at a refinery.
- Telepathy : Powered used this power to calm the monster Zambolar.
- Powered Barrier : Powered can create a transparent barrier to defend himself.
- Hand Shut Out : Powered put out Pestar's flames using his hands.
- Body Rebound : Aboras' acidic bubbles and Banila's flames were blocked only using his hands.
Combination
- Combined Beam Attack: Powered, alongside Ultraman Regulos, Great, Ribut, and the Ultra Force combine their Ultra Beams for a combined attack.
Other Media
Ultraman Galaxy
Ultraman Powered reappeared in the puzzle role-playing game for mobile devices, Ultraman Galaxy as a UC (Uncommon) card that you can unlock him in one of the levels in the game with a rare chance of getting Powered.
Trivia
Powered's rise with white eyes
- Ultraman Powered is the first Ultra to have blue-colored eyes.
- He is also the only Ultra whose eyes can also change depending on his energy level.
- Ultraman Powered's eyes are normally blue but in his rise, his eyes were white instead.
- Ultraman Powered is the third Ultra that almost never made grunts in battle. The only times when he grunted was when he fired his Mega Spacium Beam at Alien Baltan in episode 1 and when he flies away after every battle, which made him the most quiet Ultra, even breaking Ultraman Taro and Ultraman 80's record, who is the first and the second, respectively.
- Powered is the first Ultra to feature blade-like organs on his arms.
- Powered's grunts are reused sound bites from the Original Ultraman in the Japanese dub.
- Ultraman Powered's Color Timer sound is a high pitched version of Ultraman's.
- Ultraman Powered's rising sound is Ultraman Ace's rising sound with thunder in the background.
- Due to the high cost of producing the costumes, the American producers were concerned that they would be damaged in a violent fight scene. As such, Powered has some of the weakest fight choreography in the entire Ultra franchise, consisting mostly of the actors nudging each other and special effect attacks with minimal physical contact. Hence, this is one of the key downsides to this series.
- Ultraman Powered's fight with Dada was the only time his Color Timer did not blink.
- Episode 12 is the only time Kenichi transformed to Ultraman Powered twice (he usually transforms once in each episode only).
- Ultraman Powered's costume was reused for an unnamed petrified giant of light in Ultraman Tiga: The Final Odyssey.
- He is the only Ultra to fight his last battle without his host.
- His final fight before collapsing to his injuries is in fact a Zetton controlled by Alien Baltan. In the history of the show, he is the third Ultraman to fight a Zetton in his series finale, the first being Ultraman and second being Ultraman Jack. Just like the latter, he also wins his battle but soon collapsed from his injury due to fighting without any outside help.
References