COMMANDER BLACK
Warning! If you plan on watching Ultraman Leo, this section has some MAJOR spoilers. Proceed with caution!
Hailing from the Black Star and commanding an army of strange Saucer Beasts, Commander Black sets his sights on conquering the world. However, unlike many of the alien invaders whom the Ultras have battled against, Black does the unimaginable. Sending out his monster Silver Bloome, MAC is annihilated entirely. Outside of Gen, nobody else managed to escape and even Dan’s fate is in question. Without MAC, Earth is now completely defenseless and ripe for the picking by the Black Star forces. In addition, Black has Silver Bloome attack a department store where Gen’s friends Tomoko and Kaoru are visiting, and in the chaos, they are killed. While Leo is able to defeat the first Saucer Monster, this is only the beginning of a series of grueling battles as Leo now must defend the Earth alone entirely against the onslaught of the Saucer Beasts.
Episode 40 of Leo is infamous amongst fans for being quite possibly one of the most traumatic episode of the entire franchise, killing off all of the main cast outside of Gen and Tooru. While we’ve seen various alien invaders push the Ultras and the defense teams to their limits, as well as killing off two main cast members in Return of Ultraman, but that was child’s play. When Commander Black arrives on the scene, he’s playing for keeps.
This bold direction for the show was a response to the fact that due to the ongoing Oil Crisis and ratings slump, the show needed to cut some corners if it was going to continue. So, in order to save on the budget, it was decided to axe most of the cast, the MAC set and vehicles, and switch to puppet based monsters so they wouldn’t need to construct so many suits (though a few creatures would end up being realized as suits). The UFO theme of the Saucer Beasts was due to a fascination with flying saucers that was gripping Japanese pop culture during 1975.
While Commander Black may not be a well-designed rubber suit, you can’t deny that the guy has just the same amount of presence as other villains such as Yapool or Babalu. Actor Takeshi Obayashi does a fantastic job in portraying Black as a villain, putting him on display as a wrathful and cruel invader, probably the most evil out of all the Showa era Ultra villains we’ve seen thus far. Obayashi even conceived of what Black’s main wardrobe and props should be. And while it may seem disappointing that the Magma aren’t the villains of the final arc, several magazines and books mention that Commander Black was the man behind Magma and Babalu, so essentially, this is the guy responsible for all of Leo’s suffering through his show.
And while Black might look humanoid, it’s clear there’s something else going on entirely. His connection with the Black Star, a roving planet that can spit out different Saucer Beasts when Commander Black requests one it to makes me feel like the Black Star is a living organism, with Commander Black being a physical extension of it’s will, and the Saucer Beasts being produced from it’s cells based on what Black needs. It’s never fully explained in the show, but there’s so many strange, incongruous elements that paints the picture of of a group of beings that are different than your average space monsters. Whatever they are, Black can control them with the mysterious crystal ball he always carries around. Obayashi stated that the crystal ball, while impressive, was just a glass ball filled with water and the memorable way Black holds it with his fingers was just a way to ensure the water inside didn’t seep out. But with Obayashi’s talented acting, it elevates from the level of cheap prop to mysterious artifact. Just what exactly is it, and how does it enable to have Black communicate with and control the Saucer Beasts?
While Commander Black would go down in infamy as one of the most infamous villains in the entire franchise, it would take some 41 years before he’d make an official return (something we’ll cover later on). But many villains in the Heisei era of Ultraman, most notably the Yapool themselves, as well as fellow Leo villain Akumania, would borrow his unique fashion sense down the line.
SILVER BLOOME
The monster that ends MAC entirely, Silver Bloome is not a bad introduction to the concept of the Saucer Monsters, looking like a gigantic alien jellyfish. Indeed, of all the monsters we’ve seen so far in the franchise, Silver Bloome looks among the most alien.
The monster gives us a good rundown of some traits that are across the board for the Saucer Beasts, such as the ability to not be picked up on radar, as well as being able to shrink themselves down, allowing them to stay hidden and infiltrate human society much easier than your standard kaiju.
While the prop itself is clearly cheap, I think the design and ingenuity behind Silver Bloome help create a really memorable creature. I think there’s even an odd beauty to Silver Bloome’s design, as at first glance, it’s a bit hard to imagine this thing being nothing more than a harmless, but otherwise colossal jellyfish. But I think that helps go along with it’s insidiousness. It doesn’t need to look like something obviously intimidating when it’s got the reputation it deserves.
While the episode in question states that Silver Bloome is a native of the Black Star, the book Ultra Monster Zen Encyclopedia would state that Silver Bloome was a space amoeba that mutated after eating cosmic dust. While I prefer the idea that Bloome was just born from the Black Star itself, perhaps the roving world converts other living things into Saucer Beasts? The idea isn’t too crazy as many of the monsters we see in this stretch of episodes are mentioned to be born from different organisms, perhaps there is credence to this concept.
While Silver Bloome’s consumption of the MAC base is truly traumatic in every sense of the word, I feel like I should make mention of his defeat, when Leo pulls out the semi-digested Maccy from the monster’s body is probably up there as one of the most disturbing moments in the entire greater Ultra canon.
BLACK DOME
The second Saucer Beast to attack, Black Dome’s arrival on Earth is spotted by Tooru and his friends who mistake the creature for an interplanetary craft. Trying to get the attention of the UFO, they accidentally summon Black Dome into the city, who begins wreaking havoc with his acid foam.
While he’s not as cool as Silver Bloome, I’m quite fond of this killer horseshoe crab. The design is a bit drab, but the coloration really reminds me of stone, and I like how his eyes fold into his body and then pop out when he’s about to cause trouble! According to the All Monsters and Phantoms Encyclopedia, Black Dome was created from a species of space crab native to black holes.
ABSORBA
Forced to retreat after his first battle with Leo, the shrunken Absorba is found by a boy who takes care of injured animals in a small, home-made hut that he has. Now normally in this sort of episode, you’d anticipate Absorba to possibly turn to the side of good and be spared by Leo, or if he dies, he dies tragically with Leo being forced to put him down or the monster sacrificing itself to save the kid.
Nope. Not in this show, you forget we’re watching Ultraman Leo. It ends tragically for the kid as he’s forced to watch his ramshackle animal hospital get torched and almost loses his life as he tries to free his animals before Absorba burns them all down. We’re in the endgame, nobody is safe now.
Absorba is one of the more messed up Saucer Beasts, and the fact that even a young child’s kindness couldn’t reach out to this space jellyfish just goes to show how ruthless and cunning these seemingly simple monsters can be. They’re smart enough to take advantage of someone and use them as a way to lie in wait for their next attack.
As for his design, I quite like it. You’d think a jellyfish monster would be redundant with Silver Bloome, but I feel like Absorba manages to march to the beat of his own drum without stepping on Silver Bloome’s toes (er, tentacles), and I think the UFO-shaped head and the green and red color scheme really help this guy stick out amongst a group of monsters with similar designs and gimmicks.
DEMOS
A blood-sucking Saucer Beast, Demos quickly begins a rash of vampiric murders that leave the police baffled and helpless against his reign of terror.
Demos is another really fun Saucer Beast, as the idea of Commander Black sending a creature like this down with no objective outside of causing enough fear, panic and mayhem is a wonderfully twisted plan, which is compounded thanks to a special ability Demos has: The Demos Q.
Not just content to keep his murder spree a solo mission, Demos has a trio of organic bodies called the Demos Q which can operate independently and suck blood to return to the main Demos, allowing him to grow to colossal size. We see just how quickly the four of these creatures can spread through human society, and with their stealthy nature and lethality, it’s no wonder Demos is among the deadliest of an already nasty subspecies of kaiju.
Demos’s design is based off of the brittle star, a close cousin to the starfish and a creature I’m surprised isn’t used more often as a basis for a kaiju. It’s a pretty good looking monster, that does look like the kind of thing that’d feast on human blood, and the goofy, bugged-out eyes and circular mouth are ridiculous enough to make Demos feel more obscene. Can you imagine being drained of all your blood while this thing is making a silly face at you? It swings around from being funny to something out of a nightmare.
BLACK GARON
While it was intended for most of the opponents in this final stretch of the show to be puppets, we did get a few suits that managed to sneak their way into the Saucer Beasts arc, and Black Garon is the first of this small niche within a niche. Sent by Commander Black while disguised as a meteor, the smaller Black Garon is found by a classmate of Tooru’s and taken home, which causes problems when Tooru tries to warn him that this is the latest Saucer Beast out for blood.
Black Garon’s alright. As the first monster in awhile that’s portrayed by a suit, he isn’t too bad, but he does feel a bit drab compared to some of the more exotic Saucer Beasts. There are some cool features he has though, such as the grey, warty skin he has that makes him look like he’s made out of rocks, the long, frog-like tongue he uses as a melee weapon, and the fact that in place of hands, his arms just end in hoses that he uses to fire a stream of sparks that can overwhelm an Ultra easily.
BLIZZARD
Dispatched by the Black Star to assassinate scientists who are gathering information on the Saucer Beasts, Blizzard kills them by fittingly freezing them to death.
Accompanying Blizzard on his mission is a mysterious girl named Mayuko. We’re never given quite an exact answer if Mayuko is a brainwashed child, an illusion created by Blizzard, or a form the monster is able to take on that’s separate from the main UFO body it has, but whatever she is, she and her French doll are used to walk among human society undetected, and get close enough to the scientists to put them on ice.
Blizzard’s an overlooked, but really interesting monster in my eyes, feeling very reminiscent of the various Invader monsters found in Mirrorman, with the human form/agent being used to kill off prominent scientists subtly. The design itself is a two-sided one, akin to Ashuran from a few episodes ago with elemental abilities corresponding to the different colors (blue for ice and red for fire respectively). I also really like how the design, with the head fin as well as the honeycomb-textured body bring to mind not only squids, but planarians as well.
HUNGLER
A car-eating Saucer Beast, Hungler quickly makes a meal out of motorists, until Leo and Astra, in his final appearance for the rest of the show, vanquish the angler.
Hungler is one of the more simplistic Saucer Beasts, but he’s a really fun one regardless. I’ve really dug the marine life motif of these freaks, and Hungler is no exception, this time being inspired by the footballfish, a species of of anglerfish. It’s another one of those animals I’m surprised hasn’t been used more often for kaiju, as it fits wonderfully for Hungler. The lure is even used in a clever way, as it can change colors like a traffic light! I’m a sucker for traffic light kaiju oddly enough, so a traffic light anglerfish kaiju is just something that I’m always down for.
Hungler would be planned to return in Chapter 5 of the Ultraman Orb 10 Episode Plan, where he would’ve been behind the disappearances of ships in the Burlesque Triangle on Earth during Orb’s long, 100 year trek across Earth. Unfortunately, due to Orb doing good, but not good enough to warrant loads upon loads of spinoff media, Hungler’s return would have to wait. Sorry man, maybe next time.
BLACK TERRINA
A clam-like Saucer Beast, Black Terrina is sent by Commander Black to enact what is arguably, one of the most horrific plots he has cooked up yet (which is really saying something considering what Black has done).
Much like Demos, Terrania has the ability to create smaller organisms to aid her in her reign of terror. These creatures, living seashells called Terrania Q, go around and can just start biting into people with relative ease, as evidenced by this poor guy up here. In addition to that, the Terrania Q also can control the minds of the people whom they’ve latched onto, leading to people under their control attacking Gen without warning.
Black Terrania is a really creepy monster, and the slimy, tentacled body hidden under her clamshell creates the image of an utterly loathsome and repulsive creature. The real stars of the show are the Terraina Q though, which despite literally being seashells, cause quite a lot of mayhem and enough eye-trauma to rival most 80’s Italian splatter films.
SATAN MORA
A bird-like Saucer Beast, Satan Mora’s scheme may not be as complex as some of the previous monsters, but it’s still remarkably cruel. Satan Mora flies straight into a fifty story skyscraper, forcing Leo to try and brace himself against it so that it doesn’t fall onto the evacuating civilians, all the while Satan Mora is attacking Leo, and sending out smaller copies of itself called Little Moras who go around stabbing those trying to escape!
Satan Mora isn’t among my favorite of the Saucer Beasts, but even then, he’s still pretty high in my book. He’s clearly not the most powerful or complex of his lot, seeing as how Leo makes quick work of him once all the civilians escape, but the idea of just having a big bird monster to commit a terrorist attack and then send out little bird monsters to stab those fleeing for their lives is such a banal, awful evil that it can’t be forgotten.
Satan Mora was designed by Kengo Kime and broke away from the usual aquatic life themed Saucer Beasts, instead opting to go with Concorde Jets for the monster’s motif.
NOVA
A teru teru bozu (handmade cloth dolls that are put up to bring good weather) Saucer Monster, the deceptively harmless Nova aims for something that will guarantee to harm Gen: Tooru. The blood red monster takes control of the young boy, and the two travel around the city to cause mayhem. With the ability to spit out a red gas that turns people into violent maniacs, Tooru and Nova lead a path of destruction.
Due to his simplistic design, you’d think I’d perhaps find Nova to be one of the more boring monsters, but on the contrary, I love this guy. There’s something really striking about such a simple, childish looking monster, and the idea that an icon of childhood has been perverted into an agent of evil is always a fun villain concept. The fact that Nova promises Tooru that he can see his dead parents and sister is just the icing on the cake of just how evil this guy is. The teru teru bozu inspiration makes for some interesting abilities too, such as the zone of red rain Nova can create for his battle with Leo.
Perhaps due to his oddball appearance, Nova would become one of the few monsters to escape from Leo, and would appear with some frequency in the Heisei era. One notable return appearance was his episode of Ultraman Mebius where Nova took control of the Maquette Monster system to create numerous duplicates of himself to distract GUYS while the real deal attacked their HQ.
BUNYO
The penultimate Saucer Beast, Bunyo has the highest intelligence of his predecessors comparatively, but is weaker than all of the previous Saucer Beasts.
Rather than arriving on Earth in his UFO form, Bunyo rather takes on the appearance of a goofy looking man in a green sweater. While his funny mannerisms may lull the viewer into thinking that the producers slipped in one last comedy episode before the series’s end, the fish-eye lens closeups of Bunyo’s human form make him seem quite off and uncanny..
Due to his goofier nature, Commander Black and even Gen initially write off Bunyo, but what Bunyo lacks in strength, he has in smarts, and he concocts what is arguably the most horrifying scheme in the Showa era entries. Kidnapping Sakiko Miayama, the woman who Gen and Tooru are staying with, Bunyo threatens her with torture and death unless Leo surrenders. Gen complies, and we are treated to something out of a horror movie.
Commander Black and Bunyo ensnare the Ultra with a special “space rope” that prevents Leo from growing to his giant size, leaving him to their mercy. The two villains then proceed to freeze Leo solid, and then violently hack him up with a saw and unceremoniously dump his dismembered corpse into a local graveyard where poor Toru finds it. Had this been something other than Ultraman, this perhaps would’ve been it for the Earth with MAC and Leo both out of the picture and Commander Black able to conquer Earth unopposed. It’s only thanks to the intervention of Ultraman King reviving Leo that Bunyo is finally able to be stopped.
I’m honestly surprised Bunyo hasn’t been elevated to the status of guys like Nackle or Commander Black. He may have only been a one-shot monster, but his actions here are more in line with the kinds of horror films that populated the mid-late 70’s than most children’s tokusatsu. And much like a few of these other freaks, the fact that Bunyo is just so goofy makes the whole thing so much more worse and unwholesome.
Bunyo was another Osawa design, and while I don’t think it was intentional, he always repulsed me, but in the right sort of ways. I literally cannot think of a single kaiju from this show that brings this much revulsion aside from Bunyo. In addition to his design and the goofy acting by actor Keizo Kanie, the way he’s constantly shot in closeups with fisheye lenses and how over the course of the episode, his human disguise slowly becomes more and more alien just helps cement him as a memorable villain.
BLACK END
The final boss of Leo and what a final boss it is. The last and most powerful Black Star monster, Black End is summoned to Earth to finally bring Leo down once and for all. Causing all sorts of earthquakes and emitting a cry that sounds like he’s calling out to Leo, Black End tries to lure our hero out into the open for one last duel. The monster is able to succeed and almost wins when Commander Black grabs hold of Tooru as a hostage, demanding Leo to stand down unless he wants his last living friend to die too. However, Black’s plan would be undone by Tooru’s friends, who attack the alien conquerer and get him away from his crystal ball. Energizing the crystal ball, Leo tosses it into Black End, killing the creature, and causing Commander Black to melt. With the deaths of Black End and his master, Leo then destroys the Black Star itself, ending the invasion once and for all.
Our final boss here is one that much like Jumbo King, I wish was much more beloved. While Leo‘s monster budget often struggled quite a bit due to the ongoing oil crisis, I am really happy the team was able to create a really imposing and memorable looking creature. The design itself was fittingly done by Tetsuo Osawa, who implemented memorable design features such as a psychedelic color scheme, lots of horns and a fish-like tail to create a truly memorable final opponent. Much like Takkong from Return of Ultraman, I find Black End’s shape to be very sublime, as it brings to mind simultaneously not only fish, but also a human heart, which makes him feel extra creepy when he’s calling out “LEEEEEEO! LEEEEO!”. Overall, a fantastic final boss monster and one that deserves to be remembered.
Easter's Kaiju Kompendium 