Ultraman - Series One, Vol. 2
For those Japanese sci-fi fans whose appetites were whetted by the previous DVD set ofUltraman's adventures,Series One, Volume 2presents the remaining episodes of the '60s space giant's battles against a horde of villainous (and improbable-looking) monsters. The brainchild of special effects legend Eiji Tsuburaya (who created the monsters for many of Japan's movie creatures, including Godzilla),Ultramanwas a popular children's series on both sides of the Pacific (and around the world) and spawned numerous sequels and imitators in its country of origin. The plot of each episode revolved around the Science Patrol, a small group of dedicated scientist/soldiers who fought a ceaseless parade of giant monsters that threatened Japan. Thanks to a chance encounter with an alien, one of the Patrol's members had the ability to transform into the colossal silver-and-red-suited Ultraman and aid the Patrol in dispatching the troublesome beasts.Volume 2essentially follows this structure in all 19 episodes presented on its three discs, with several of the series' most popular monsters (dinosaur Gomora, the bizarre humanoid Dada, birdlike Dorako, and the excitable and well-liked Pigmon) making their first or return appearances in these episodes. The action is frantic and fun, and should please younger first time viewers as much as the older Ultra-fans.The previousUltramandisc set (Series One, Volume One) received flak in fan circles due to audio and video problems, and while the image quality in this set seems improved over the previous entry, the audio problems do persist to a degree (specifically, the English language tracks "drop out" during certain scenes and are replaced by a subtitled Japanese track). The impact of this issue will undoubtedly vary from buyer to buyer, but there's no denying that at their core, the shows remain enjoyable, no matter the state of the audio tracks. A multi-page insert booklet is included in the set, which presents interviews with several of the original Japanese cast members, while a pair of trading cards with action scenes from the show and a monster gallery featurette are all welcome and fun extras.--Paul Gaita