Following the success of Ultraman, Tsuburaya Productions would produce Ultraseven as a followup. Going off of the concept of the title hero and the Ultra Guard defending Earth from alien menaces each episode, the show would give us some wildly outlandish alien designs utilizing such special effects methods such as rubber suits, makeup and even puppetry.
WINDOM
The first monster we’ll be looking at isn’t the first opponent for Ultraseven, but rather, one of the hero’s Capsule Monsters-heroic monsters that Seven’s alter ego, Dan Moroboshi, uses if he’s unable to transform. The concept would prove to be one of the show’s memorable features and would inspire Satoshi Tajiri to come up with Pokemon.
The first of these monsters to show up is Windom. Originally, the Capsule Monsters were going to be reused Ultra Q and Ultraman kaiju Red King, Peguila, Antlar and Pagos, but someone wisely thought that newer monsters would bring better ratings. Windom himself is a pretty solid looking robot monster and I think it was a cute idea for him to look a lot like Ultraseven himself. Makes me sort of wonder if that’s the reason Seven has him in his possession. I’m quite fond of Windom’s bird-like face as it reminds me of a large, mechanical owl, and the rivets around his body bring to mind those metal construction sets that used to be sold when I was a kid. All in all, Windom’s a pretty good monster and not a bad one to start us off. Windom would become one of the more famous monsters from the show, appearing as an ally in later entries.
COOL
In contrast to Windam, I don’t find Seven’s first opponent to be as interesting as the friendly Capsule Monster, but there’s quite a bit to like about Cool here. Cool was the first attempt by the special effects staff to try puppeteering to bring a monster to life, and while I’m glad the attempt was made, it’s not as elaborate as some of the monsters we’ll encounter coming up. The design takes inspiration from ticks while the name is derived with how coldly these aliens view humanity.
We don’t get much from the Cool in terms of their overall goals or nature aside from conquering Earth, but magazines at the time stated that the Cool lived on a hidden planet to hide themselves from other alien races. From there, they would launch invasions to different worlds to gather resources.
WAIELL
Waiell here may not look like much, being a walking shrub, Waiell here represents some good, old-fashioned body horror. Arriving on Earth, the Waiell begin their plot of conquest, but how the methods they go to achieve this goal is where things get freaky. The Waiell plan to transform humans into more of their kind by infecting with a special liquid.
While I don’t find Waiell as fascinating, nor as terrifying as Keronia, I do think they’re a pretty solid concept for a foe. The idea of an alien race arriving on Earth to assimilate us is a well worn one, and I feel like this episode does the concept quite well, as the idea of becoming a plant monster is a truly horrifying fate. The design of the monster isn’t too bad too, feeling the most plant-like of all the plant based monsters in the series thus far. If you look closely on the suit, you can see mirrors on it, with the original intention being it’d reflect the other parts of the suit and make Waiell look like it was hollow, but it doesn’t come across too well, but I can appreciate the attempt.
PITT
Our pair of alien girls here would start a trend that will pop up from time to time in Ultraseven: Dan Moroboshi getting his Ultra Eye stolen by sinister space-women. The Pitt, having decided to invade our planet, do so by unleashing their monster, Eleking into Lake Azuma in Japan, and ensure Ultraseven can’t stop them by stealing Dan’s Ultra Eye.
The Pitt are simple, but effective aliens. I’m fond of the heads, which feel very alien, but still within the realm of believability. Tohl Narita based them off of dragonflies, but I’ve always felt like they were more akin to lampreys or hagfish in terms of looks. They were also originally going to have their race’s name be Margaret in the script, but the final name would be derived from Cupid. Their personality is really fun as well, and you get the vibe these two are just doing this for a lark rather than an attempt to conquer Earth.
While not as prolific as their monster, the Pitt would go onto become a reoccurring race throughout the series, often showing up alongside Eleking fittingly.
ELEKING
We’re still pretty early in the list of monsters from the show, but we’ve just hit probably the most iconic monster from Ultraseven, and that’s Eleking here. The monster pet of the Pitt, Eleking grows from a tiny tadpole and into a giant monster within the episode’s time frame, tussling with Capsule Monster Miclas, before meeting his end by Seven himself.
It’s easy to see why Eleking became the most iconic monster from the show: just look at that design. It’s one that’s easily one of Narita’s absolute best, and it’s no surprise it became an icon. Like I’ve stated with similar creatures before, the black and white color scheme makes Eleking contrast well with the red-colored Seven, and the lack of eyes, rotating horns, holes at the end of fingers and toes and the glowing “mouth” make Eleking feel really alien and incomparable to anything here on Earth, which I can appreciate. Tohl Narita stated he tried to design Eleking without going off of any real-world animals for inspiration, and I think he hit upon something truly inspired here. It’s a design that really shows off just how unique Ultra Kaiju are compared to the various Toho and Daiei ones. According to the book 21st Century Ultraman Declaration, Eleking is a genetically modified life form created by the Pitt, with the natural iterations being peaceful and feeding on microorganisms normally. While that’s not part of the episode itself, it makes me look at Eleking in a new light, with some of the odder features and powers being designed intentionally as opposed to quirks of evolution.
Eleking would be one of Ultraseven‘s breakout monsters, appearing quite prominently in the franchises’ later entries, promotions and merchandise, and would spawn numerous variants as well. Most notably among his many roles, Eleking would take a heroic turn, and become one of Gomora’s allies in Ultra Galaxy Mega Monster Battle.
MICLAS
Aiding Dan in the fight against Eleking is Miclas, the second of the three Capsule Monsters utilized by our protagonist. Of the three, Miclas was always my favorite. He hits upon that same vibe characters like Kanegon, M1, or Pigmon have with their sort of “ugly cute” aesthetic. Narita took inspiration from Incan artwork in designing Miclas here, and I feel it pays off wonderfully. The geometric patterns on his body, as well as the different colored parts of his horn make Miclas feel like a nice alternative to Windom, feeling more natural, and “older” than his robotic counterpart, but still with a sense of mystique, and even comical elements to him thanks to those big eyes.
Miclas would go onto have several roles through the franchise, assisting Ultraseven and other heroes in their battles against other monsters. Most notable was his role in Ultraman Mebius, where he, along with Windom, was one of the two monsters utilized by GUYS to assist Mebius in battle.
GODOLA
Much like the Pitt before them, the Godola aliens steal Dan’s Ultra Eye, along with the high-tech sailing vessel Max, and even going as far to infiltrate the Ultra Guard’s base to plant bombs.
While their plan isn’t as elaborate as many aliens that have come after them, I can’t help but really like the Godolas, and I think that’s mainly due to their design mainly. Narita had said that the Godola were the aliens where the style of many of his future Ultraseven designs were nailed down, and as we go through the list of creatures, you’ll see certain traits Godola has, such as eyes at the very top of the head, and designs that make the aliens that imply the aliens are wearing some kind of clothing. Much like Eleking before him, I really like the black and white coloration on Godola, and it brings to mind fungi to me for some reason. The claws on their hands, or Godola Guns as they’re known, are fun as well and bring to mind Baltan.
Which speaking of, the original artwork by Narita gave Godola actual hands, but this was changed when the suit was made for the episode. I do wonder if Narita gave the aliens hands due to his hatred for his Baltan design, but we’ll never know. It also makes me wonder whether or not the claws are just weapons used by them or not.
Godola wouldn’t be as popular as other Ultraseven foes, but the aliens would go onto appear in the final arc of the Heisei Ultraseven specials and as of more recent, in Ultraman Geed and Ultraman Taiga.
VILLA
Taking control of renowned Dr. Yushima, Villa plots to use the scientist to sabotage a radar that the Ultra Guard plans on installing, and even frames Dan as the saboteur, forcing him to become Ultraseven to stop the aliens’ plans.
There isn’t a whole lot to say here about Villa, but he’s another alien that I find quite fun. Brought to life with a puppet, Villa draws inspiration from shrimp, and I think the combination of such a base for a design, as well as the surreal nature of the puppet itself makes for a really visually interesting foe.
One curious thing I’d like to mention is how the Villa have time-freezing technology on their starships, a story element that feels like it has enough meat to be expanded upon, but sadly isn’t.
PEGASSA
Pegassa, seen here behind Anne Yuri in a promotional shot, debut in a story that will show how different Ultraseven is from it’s predecessors: Morally grey tales regarding mankind’s relationship with their cosmic neighbors.
The Pegassa are an incredibly advanced race, living in a space-faring city. Unlike the previous aliens we’ve seen in Ultraseven, the Pegassa are a peaceful race. One of their kind, infiltrates Ultra Guard headquarters disguised as a shadow and befriends Anne Yuri, right as a message from Pegassa City is received: The advanced metropolis’ power systems have failed and to avoid a collision with Earth, the planet’s orbit must be changed. Unable to fulfill such a request, Ultra Guard attempts to contact the Pegassa, and have them evacuate to Earth before it is bombed completely. The Pegassa, seeing the Earthlings as primitive, don’t believe them, and their city is destroyed. The last Pegassa, unaware that his home and people are destroyed, attempts to detonate a bomb in the planet’s core, thinking there’s time to save his civilization.
The story of the Pegassa represents the sort of maturity Ultraseven brings to the table with many of its episodes highlighting the sort of moral conundrums that born of interactions with alien cultures and of those kinds of episodes, the Pegassa story is among the best. It’s an incredibly tense and even tragic thriller and among the show’s best.
In terms of design, the Pegassa have always been fairly iconic in my eyes. I really love the “hammerhead” they have as it makes them feel really alien. Their mainly black color scheme helps communicate their shadow-based abilities and their generally mysterious sort of nature, they really give off the vibe that this is a race that has called space their home. Narita had these guys go off of the same design philosophy as Godola, but I feel like he was able to make them stand on their own as a concept without feeling derivative at all.
QURASO
Quraso here, is not an alien invader, but rather an escapee from a space prison. Upon arriving on Earth, the fugitive goes around murdering people and consuming his favorite food: gasoline.
Quraso is probably the weakest of the aliens we’ve seen thus far. While I like the concept of a space criminal running around on Earth and his kind asking for assistance with stopping him, Quraso isn’t as visually interesting, nor really fleshed out as the idea really should be. The suit is a recycled Kemur-Man from Ultra Q, having been given a new head that’s supposed to be evocative of a mask, but it really just falls flat and makes the monster look slapdash and non-threatening. The alien isn’t even a challenge for Ultraseven, as he blows up right as he turns giant after eating all that gasoline! I’m serious, the guy literally explodes seconds after he turns giant, it’s incredibly anticlimactic. Overall, I think the idea of an escaped space prisoner running around and killing people is a great monster concept, but Quraso is an utter disappointment in terms of the execution of the concept.
METRON
Much like Eleking up above, Metron here is easily one of Ultraseven‘s memorable enemies, let alone one of the most iconic villains of the entire franchise. Taking a more hands-off approach to their conquest of Earth, Metron places space poppy seeds in cigarettes, and those who smoke the poppy-laced cigarettes become rampaging killers. Metron hopes the experiment here will provide a way to take over the Earth without having to lift a finger.
I think Metron here is a great example of all the creative minds working on the show coming together to bring to life a creature that’s fantastic in all aspects. The story of aliens exploiting humanity’s trust and vices is one that still hits hard half a century later, especially with the episode’s ending narration. The design itself is another winner from Narita, bringing to mind different sorts of aquatic life such as tadpoles, shellfish, tropical fish, barnacles, etc, without being explicitly based on any of them, and the red and yellow color scheme matches the sunset setting of his battle with Ultraseven. I think my favorite feature of Metron’s has to be the arms, which are used cigarette butts, a nicely subtle nod to his plan. Metron’s personality makes him stand out from the myriad of other invaders in the show, seeing as the dude is so confident, he invites Dan for a chat to explain his evil plan in detail!
Metron is an alien invader who’s earned his spot in the pantheon of famous Ultraman monsters, and I can easily see why. Metron is a masterpiece of design, concept, and execution, the perfect example of the creativity of the monsters in the Ultra franchise, let alone just the creativity of monsters seen in tokusatsu alone.
CHIBULL AND ANDROID ZERO ONE
While Chibull looks like one of the more comedic creatures we’ve seen thus far, his plan for invading Earth is far from laughable.
Disguising himself as an old toy maker, Chibull, and his gynoid assistant Android Zero One, distribute toy guns, and special badges to the children they meet. These toy weapons are the real deal, and once a certain signal is sent out, the badges will brainwash the tykes into child soldiers for the invasion. Chibull figures either that mankind will be forced to lay down their arms, unable to harm their own offspring, or be forced to kill their own children to defend their planet.
WOW. That is some heavy stuff. Out of all the various invasion schemes we’ll see in the show, I always found Chibull’s to be the most grim, seeing as how regardless of what choice is made, there’s going to be a lot of suffering. With the rise of gun violence as of the last few decades, Chibull’s plan is just as chilling now as it was in 1967, perhaps even more so.
Moving on from the heavier stuff, Chibull is again, another puppet alien, and in my opinion, the best one found in Ultraseven. Narita took inspiration from the abstract shapes found in seashells to give Chibull’s cranium an incredibly unique look that gives off the impression of being a huge brain without going the cliche giant brain route. And while Chibull here looks fairly goofy, I think the big-headed, grinning true form he has just makes his plan that much more insidious because he’s so comedic looking. This goofy-looking octopus man was gonna make us choose whether or not we would have to kill our kids. We don’t see much of Chibull’s true form here in the episode, and his attempts to kill Ultra Guard are with him using Zero One, along with lethal toy tanks and planes, which fits his human guise well. There isn’t much to say about Zero One, but I really like how sort of surreal she looks, which makes her feel like a giant, walking Barbie doll, the perfect henchman for a killer toymaker.
We don’t get much regarding what Chibull’s society is in the episode, but magazines at the time stated that the aliens lived on a high-tech planet governed by their advanced computer systems. I think from that it could be surmised that the Chibull’s bodies perhaps just outright atrophied over time after they automated everything.
ICARUS
Starting off as sort of a tokusatsu take on Rear Window, the suspicious neighbor in question is revealed to be Icarus, who is preparing to launch an invasion fleet from their secret base in the 4th Dimension.
While there’s not much to Icarus honestly, I can’t help but find the alien really memorable, and there was a good chunk of time when I was a newbie Ultraman fan where I personally considered him one of the iconic monsters of Ultraseven. After being exposed to the rest of the franchise, I have to say I still feel roughly the same. I think Icarus is a really underrated looking creature, a great blend of bat, and fish by Narita, making it feel recognizable, but still very alien and unique. I also am reminded of the various “flightless bats” found in Dougal Dixon’s speculative natural history book, Life After Man. That was one of my favorite books as a child, so I wonder if that played a factor on why I noticed Icarus over many other aliens. Regardless, I think it’s a solid design for an alien, and easily among the ones I’d call my favorites from this show.
While Icarus’ invasion plan isn’t too crazy, the 4th Dimension, aspect adds a bit more flavor to the proceedings, and while other official sources place these guys as coming from our dimension, I do kinda like to imagine they’re weirdo bat-fish people from the 4th Dimension, feels like the kind of 50’s b-movie I’d have a blast watching.
Easter's Kaiju Kompendium 