Ultraman Ace

infobox television


show_name = Ultraman Ace
format = Science fiction, action, adventure
runtime = 24 minutes (per episode)
country = Japan
network = TBS
num_episodes = 52
creator = Tsuburaya Productions
starring = Keiji Takamine, Mitsuko Hoshi, Tetsurō Sagawa
first_aired = April 7, 1972
last_aired = March 30, 1973
preceded_by = "Ultraman Jack"
followed_by = "Ultraman Taro"|

nihongo|"Ultraman Ace"|ウルトラマンA（エース）|Urutoraman Ēsu is the title superhero of a tokusatsu SF/kaiju/superhero TV show, and is the 5th show in the Ultra Series. Produced by Tsuburaya Productions, the series aired on Tokyo Broadcasting System from April 7, 1972 to March 30, 1973, with a total of 52 episodes.

Starting with this show, the Ultra Series heads in a notably different direction, slowly shifting from a sci-fi/mystery adventure to full-tilt superhero fantasy fare. Also, all previous Ultra-beings (namely Ultraman, Zoffy, Ultra Seven, and Ultraman Jack) make more frequent appearances here, whereas they only made guest appearances in the previous show "Return of Ultraman".

Plot

Ultraman Ace takes the genre in a different direction. At the beginning of the series, it takes a man and a woman to change into him, giving Ace the courage of a man and a woman's love for peace. Ace also has a various array of laser weapons. There is a recurring villain (the Yapool), and there are a lot more guest appearances from the other brothers. Zoffy visits frequently, as does the Ultra Father. The five (Zoffy, Ultraman, Ultra Seven, Jack and Ace) are now known as the Five Ultra Brothers ("gokyohdai"), and they come together on at least three occasions. Ace, at the time was the youngest. And finally, the monsters ("kaiju") are now Yapool creations known as "Super Beasts" ("chohju"), supposedly more powerful than the monsters previous Ultra heroes had to contend with.

Ace's head fin has a great big hole in it and a Beam Lamp up front. Other than Ultraseven's detachable fin, Ace's is probably the most useful fin. The Beam Lamp can fire his Punch Laser, and the hole is a place where energy can be gathered, stored, or released (it is the nexus for his most powerful weapon, the Space Q). It is also where he emits Ultra Signs into the sky to communicate with other Ultramen.

Ace is also the first Ultraman to introduce hand-waving as part of the laser-emitting ritual. To fire his Metallium Beam, he must first twist his torso to the left and snap to center. This type of action was influenced by other tokusatsu series of the day.

The Five Ultra Brothers arrive on Earth together in episode 1, where they resurrect Hokuto and Minami. Ace gives them the Ultra Rings and merges with them. Whenever the need arises, he tells them, the rings will shine and they can transform into Ultraman Ace.

As for the circumstances of their death, Hokuto is originally a bakery employee who is delivering bread to a children's hospital in his van. He tries to prevent the bread from being destroyed by Yapool's first creation, Velokron, but his van and said bread are destroyed by the fire-breathing monster. Belokuron then starts attacking the hospital. Hokuto runs there to see Minami trying to save a wheelchair-bound kid. He jumps into a tanker truck and does a suicide run, killing himself and scaring Velokron away. Minami is also dead for reasons unknown.

Hokuto and Minami are both born on July 7. Hokuto has a spunky and goofy personality, which is a grand departure from his constipated predecessors. Minami is a lot more gentle and reticent (but she wields a mean gun when necessary). They often make googlie eyes at each other.

At first, Hokuto and Minami jump up in the air to transform, by spinning and touching their rings together (the Ultra Touch), but they stopped doing that, because it was feared that children might hurt themselves trying to imitate the move. In episode 2, they jump up together with motorcycles for a "Rider Touch" (perhaps an influence of Kamen Rider). When Hokoto is in a spaceship and Minami is still in the TAC base in episode 14, he and Minami transform by touching their rings to their respective video monitors.

Minami leaves halfway through the series, in episode 28, and Hokuto has to change into Ace by himself from then on. Minami is actually from the Moon, and when Ace defeats Lunatyx, her mission on Earth is done. In episode 29, the Umezu family is added to the cast. Dan, the younger brother, has the special ability to see the Ultra Star with his naked eyes even in the daytime, and thus qualifies to be the sixth Ultra Brother. (This is a notion that was brushed away with the introduction of Ultraman Taro, also dubbed the sixth Ultra Brother.)

The "chohju" designs are more colorful and powerful than in Return of Ultraman, and are genetic crosses (for the most part) between creatures of the Earth and outer space. "Chohju" is officially translated as "Terrible Monsters", but a more direct translation of the characters could be "Super Beasts" or "Mega Beasts." Bakushimu, Dorogoris, Ace Killer, King Crab, and Black Pigeon, to name a few. Since these are all creations of the Yapool, some are equipped with missiles and other synthetic weaponry. One drawback about the "chohju" is that they are rather hyperactive, and tend to move a lot faster than monsters from days of yore. Cameos of several monsters from previous series include Murochi II, Metron-seijin Junior, (complete with hip bell-bottoms), and Woo.

In the last episode, a Yapool disguises himself as the child of Simon-seijin and reassembles parts from previously defeated "chohju" (Corwa, Steal-seijin, Unitang, Mazarius, et al.) to create a grand masterpiece, Jumbo King. As the kid of Simon-seijin, Yapool takes advantage of Takeshi, a kid who tries to protect him. Hokuto sees through this ploy and shoots him, and must reveal his true identity as Ultraman Ace to regain Takeshi's trust. Ace defeats Jumbo King using a variation of his Ultra Guillotine, which severs the monster's head. The children bid farewell to Ace as he flies back to the Nebula M78.

Later events

In 1986, Ultraman Ace and the Ultra Brothers chase Yapool to Earth, in which they conceal the monster under the ocean near Kobe city. In progress, the Ultra Brothers lose their powers and thus forced to live as human beings. Seiji Hokuto, in particular, works as a chef and owns a hotel.

20 years later, in 2006, Hokuto and the other brothers transform as Ultraman for the first time in order to help Ultraman Mebius. Eventually, the Ultra Brothers regain their powers and thus, return to normal thanks to Zoffy and Ultraman Taro.

It is interesting to note that Hokuto reunites with Minami after helping Mebius defeating both Yapool and Lunatyx.

tatistics

* Height
40 meters
* Weight
45,000 tons
* Flight speed
Mach 20
* Running speed
1,000 kilometers per hour
* Aquatic speed
80 knots (148 kilometers per hour)
* Home planet
The Land of Light, Nebula M78
* Human form
Seiji Hokuto and Yuhko Minami
* Transformation item
Ultra Rings
* Weapons
** Metallium Kousen
L-style.
** Punch laser
It is fired from the Beam Lamp on his fin.
** Space Q
A ball of energy gathered at the hole in his fin, used against Ace Killer and Jumbo King. In his battle with Ace Killer, his energy is near depletion, and gets energy from his four brothers in order to use this weapon.
** Ultra Guillotine
A standard slashing laser beam or ring, with many other variations (Vertical Guillotine, Guillotine Shot).
** Timer Shot
It is fired from his Color Timer.
** Flash Hand
** Energy Kousen
** Ace Blade

TAC members

TAC stands for Terrible Monster Attacking Crew

* Captain Goroh Ryuh
* Seiji Hokuto
* Yuhko Minami
* Ichiroh Yamanaka
* Kohzoh Yoshimura
* Tsutomu Konno
* Noriko Mikawa

Cameos

* Episode 1
The Five Ultra Brothers merge Ace with Hokuto and Minami.
* Episode 5
Zoffy sees Ace's Ultra Sign (SOS), and saves him from being trapped underground by Giron-jin and Aribunta. Zoffy lets him borrow the Ultra Converter, a wristband that restores Ace's energy (and changes his blinking ColorTimer back to blue).
* Episodes 13-14
The Four Ultra Brothers are crucified on the planet Golgota by the Yapool. The Yapool send all five fake Ultra Signs to get them to gather at Golgota, where they find crosses with their names written on them. The temperature then drops precipitously, and they begin losing power. The Four give Ace their remaining power to go back to Earth, to defend it from CHOHJU Barabas. Ace protests, not wanting to abandon his brothers, but Ultraman slaps him to his senses, saying they will. After Ace leaves, the other four get sucked onto the crosses. However, Ace can't fight Barabas effectively, because the Yapools taunt him with images of his brothers stuck on the cross, threatening to finish them off. Meanwhile, Yapool then introduces Ace Killer, who sucks the Four Ultra Brothers of their Specium (Ultraman), Emerium (Ultra Seven), and M87 (Zoffy) energies, as well as the Ultra Bracelet (Ultraman "Jack"). Ace Killer uses these to destroy the Ace Robot for practice as the brothers look on helplessly. The upper brass at TAC send Hokuto to Golgota with a bomb to destroy the entire planet (and the Four Ultra Brothers with it), but Hokuto changes to Ace, destroys the bomb, gets energy from his Brothers to create the Space Q to defeat Ace Killer, frees his brothers, return to Earth, and destroy Barabas.
* Episode 23
Zoffy.
* Episode 26-27
The Four Ultra Brothers are turned into bronze statues along with Ace by Alien Hipporit. They are saved by the Ultra Father.
* Episode 31
Ultra Seven.
* Episode 35
Zoffy
* Episode 38
A revived Father appears as Santa Claus to help defeat Namhage and Snowgillan. He brings back Minami for a visit.

Crossovers

* ""
* "The 6 Ultra Brothers vs. the Monster Army"
* "Ultraman Story"