June 17, 2010

"The Song of Ultraman"

I was totally into Ultraman after it started being shown on one of the four TV channels we would have had in Galveston back around 1972 or 1973. I was around seven or eight years old. Once upon a time, I was known for striking poses such as the one pictured above. Thing is though, I think the show really creeped me out.

I thought the uniforms and gadgets (especially the thing Hayata uses to change into Ultraman) of the Science Patrol were really cool. I wanted to be one of them.

Hayata, a.k.a., Ultraman - no doubt an early hero of mine

Ironically, despite my fascination with the show, it no doubt scared the absolute heck out of me. Each episode, beginning with that weird, strangely shiny, swirling melting effect pictured above, was full of things that no doubt permanently traumatized me to some extent and made appearances in the kind of nightmares only children can have.


Even Ultraman, the "hero" of the show, scared the bejeezus out of me. The whole thing was/is just strange, as is most Japanese culture to us Westerners. Here is the Misuzu Children's Choral Group performing the show's surf guitar-inflected (for the Americans!) theme song, something which is forever burned deep into my brain:


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