Whenever I tell people I wrote these teleplays, I either get an enthusiastic response or a blank stare. This page is for all you blank stares out there ...
Ultraman is a Japanese superhero created in 1966. Imagine a giant guy in a rubber suit (not too different than the one pictured above, but with a smaller head) fighting Godzilla amid the skyscrapers of Tokyo, and you'll get the picture pretty quick. (And if I have to explain Godzilla to you, well ...)
The basic story was that the Ultraman was a warrior from the nebula of light, and he had come to Earth to keep it from being invaded by giant monsters and other assorted alien menace. But during his first visit to earth, he collides with a fighter jet piloted by Hiata, one of the soldiers of the Science Patrol ... which had the unfortunate effect of killing Hiata. So Ultraman gives Hiata his lifeforce, and the ability to change into Ultraman with the use of the Beta Capsule (a small device which bore a passing resemblance to a toothbrush travel case). But the catch was, Hiata could only be Ultraman for 3 minutes at a time before draining his power and being forced to change back into Hiata again.
Ultraman had, of course, ultra powers. He could fly. He could fire laser weapons from his hands. He always waited until the very last minute to use his laser weapons, though ...
If you were a kid growing up in the early '70s, you might have seen Ultraman. Several Japanese live-action monster series were dubbed for the American market back then, and Ultraman was probably the most popular of these.
After the success of the first series, several "sequel" series were produced in Japan (and are still being produced today). Some of these were ULTRA 7, RETURN OF ULTRAMAN, ULTRAMAN LEO, ULTRAMAN 80, ULTRAMAN GREAT, and of course, ULTRAMAN POWERED.
So far only three of these series have been shown in the U.S.
ULTRAMAN POWERED was the second series made in English, and was produced in the U.S. by Major Havoc Entertainment (renamed Steppin Stone Entertainment) here in the L.A. area. Originally titled ULTRAMAN 1994, and then retitled ULTRAMAN: THE ULTIMATE HERO, it was released on video in Japan as ULTRAMAN POWERED. It has never been released in the U.S.
Why was it never released in the U.S.? Probably several reasons. First, only 13 episodes were ever produced. And most TV stations won't air a show unless there are 20-30 episodes, so it doesn't have to keep showing the same few episodes repeatedly.
Another reason (and probably the main one) was that, although a wealth of talent was poured into the production, the show was tragically underfunded by the Japanese studio which owns Ultraman. The result was a show which is somewhat rough around the edges by U.S. standards. No matter how you cut it, guys in rubber monster suits tend to look like, well, guys in rubber monster suits ...
And finally, in the '90s, the more traditional shows like ULTRAMAN have been replaced by the less intelligent, even cheaper productions like MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS, in which the heros are the kids themselves, fighting against villians which are more comedic than threatening. Perhaps shows from earlier eras were more violent (the ULTRAMAN shows which were released in the U.S. were edited for violence), but, cheap as they were, they were also more dramatic, with a greater sense of peril and heroism. Oh well ...
As a kid growing up in San Francisco, I was a big fan of Japanese monster movies. And when I found ULTRAMAN on TV, I instantly fell in love with the show. But then, I also loved watching SPEED RACER, so, go figure ...
After graduating from USC Film School, I was working in L.A. doing office grunt work for the dubbing department at Disney (a whole 'nother nightmare ... ask me about it sometime), and trying to sell a pair of scripts I had written with my writing partner at the time. In the course of pitching these around town, my partner and I learned of ULTRAMAN 1994, the first U.S. produced Ultraman series.
Being a big fan, I immediately jumped on the bandwagon, and was happy when I got the opportunity to write two teleplays for the series.
Each of the episodes were titled after the monster which appears in them.
The teleplays were middle episodes from the series of 13 episodes, so no page space was wasted in describing things and people which had already been seen in earlier episodes, or stuff which, as in the case of the monsters and equipment, had been already designed in Japan by the studio which owns the rights to Ultraman, Tsuburaya. Which makes them kind of confusing to read, if you're not familiar with a few things.
So, here are some crib notes for the teleplays:
W.I.N.R. - the Worldwide Investigation Network Response ... basically, the new version of the Science Patrol. Their base is a "free standing, ultra-modern, military/scientific research facility."
Kenichi Kai - the hero of the story, and oddly enough, the only Japanese W.I.N.R. team member. In the first episode, he made a deal with the alien Ultraman so that the two could work together to fight the Baltans, the alien baddies. Unlike Hiata, who had to die to become Ultraman, Kai did it to help Ultraman, who had trouble hanging out in the basic Earth environment. His duties include Rover driver and armory specialist, but he spends most of his time getting into trouble and turning into Ultraman to fight the nasty monsters.
Captain Edlund - the W.I.N.R. team commander.
Theresa Beck - the W.I.N.R. data analyst and communications officer.
Julie Young - the W.I.N.R. Hawk pilot.
Rick Sanders - the W.I.N.R. Hawk gunner.
The Hawk - the Hawk is a fighter jet that can fire a multitude of weapons, and has the ability to hover. It is carried by the MAC 2000 to the combat locations, and launches from the airship in much the same way that bi-planes would launch from the carrier zeppelins.
The MAC 2000 - a giant airship, this craft acts as a carrier for the Hawk, as well as being an observation platform for the W.I.N.R. team to view the situation.
The Rover - this was supposed to be an ultra-cool hi-tech all-terrain vehicle, like something Syd Mead would design. In actuality, it ended up being just a redressed Hummer.
Teresdon - a giant monster that looks like a cross between a big lizard and an armadillo walking on it's hind legs. Covered in really tough armor, burrows underground. No fire-breathing or laser eyes or anything like that.
Jamra - an astronaut who was turned into a giant monster. Looks like a monsterous spacesuit with clawed hands and feet. He doesn't have any cool fire/laser weapons either.
Well, that should be everything you need to know to enjoy the teleplays. So go enjoy them ...