Ultraman Leo

Ultraman Leo
Created by	Tsuburaya Productions
Starring	Ryu Manatsu, Kōji Moritsugu, Mieko Mita, Tomoko Ai
Composer(s)	Tōru Fuyuki, Makoto Kawaguchi
Country of origin	Japan
No. of episodes	51
Production
Running time	24 minutes (per episode)
Release
Original network	TBS
Original release	April 12, 1974 – March 28, 1975
Chronology
Preceded by	Ultraman Taro
Followed by	The☆Ultraman (Anime)

Ultraman Leo (ウルトラマンレオ, Urutoraman Reo) is a Japanese tokusatsu TV show and is the 7th show in the Ultra Series. Produced by Tsuburaya Productions, Ultraman Leo was aired between April 12, 1974, and March 28, 1975, with a total of 51 episodes. Tatsumi Nikamoto was the in-suit actor of Ultraman Leo. On November 13, 2014 Crunchyroll announced that the entire series would be available that day on their streaming service for the US, Canada, Latin America, UK, Australia, and New Zealand.^[1]

Plot

Ultraman Leo comes from Nebula L77 (Leo constellation), and takes the human form of Gen Otori. Ultraseven appears to fight a new foe, Alien Magma and his two "pets", the Red and Black Gillas. Ultimately, Ultraseven is greatly overpowered and his leg is graphically broken by Black Gillas. Ultraman Leo drives off the foes, but Ultraseven is confined to his human form because of his injuries and due to the Ultraeye being damaged when he attempted to transform. Dan then maintains his role as Captain of MAC (Monster Attack Crew). Gen is a gymnastics teacher on the side and joins MAC to defend the Earth. Gen and Dan regularly train together, allowing Ultraman Leo to learn many moves in human form. In episode 34, Dan asks Ultraman Jack to take the Ultraeye back to M78 to be restored while he heals on Earth. However, in Episode 40 MAC is destroyed by Silver Bloom, a saucer monster that belongs to Commander Black. During the attack Dan asks Leo to keep defending the Earth and disappears in the conflagration. It is later shown that he was taken back to M78 to be fully healed and restored as Ultraseven. Gen is now unemployed and spends most of his time training the kids to defend themselves as well as defending the Earth as Ultraman Leo. Commander Black and alien bunyo captures Gen when he cannot transform completely. Gen as Leo is then dismembered, only to be brought back to life by Ultraman King. Leo would face Black's final monster, Black End, with the kids he trained, the latter of whom kill Black, and hand the sphere used to control Black End to Leo. Finishing his mission, Gen removes his Leo Ring and sets off to tour Earth, his "second home".

Ultraman Leo Statistics

• Height:52 meters
• Weight: 48,000 tons
• Home Planet: Nebula L-77
• Human Form: Otori Gen
• Transformation Item: Leo Ring

Attacks and Weaponry

• Leo Kick: Ultraman Leo's Signature Ability. Ultraman Leo jumps to an amazing height of at least 1,000 meters into the air and charges his foot with energy, striking his opponent with a powerful jumpkick. It can destroy monsters with one blow. There are several variations of this ability that are seen throughout the show.
• Leo Chop: Ultraman Leo can charge his hands with the same energy of his Leo Kick and chop his enemies to bits. There are several variations of this ability that are seen throughout the show.
• Judo: Leo is highly skilled in a form of Judo called Space Judo. He is highly skilled in several Martial Arts moves. These includes suplexes, throws, chops, and flips. Also, Leo received further training from Ultraseven, especially when he suffered defeat against an enemy, allowing him to win the next time.
• Leo Nunchucks: Ultraman Leo can conjure up a pair of Nunchucks to do battle when the time and space allows him to.
• Wrist Beam: Leo can emit a powerful beam from the devices on his wrist which can destroy monsters in one blow.
• Color Timer Shot: Leo can emit a blue laser-like beam from his color timer, but only while it glows blue.
• Revive Ray: An energy ray Leo can emit from both eyes. Used to bring the dead back to life.
• Light Ball: Leo can emit a powerful red energy ball from his jointed hands.
• Dark Shooter: Leo can emit a small arrow-shaped energy blast from his hands. Used to take down flying foes.
• Full-Body Radiation: Leo can emit a powerful wave of heat from his very being in beam form.
• Ultra Shot: A small white energy blast Leo can emit from his clasped hands.
• Ultra Shooting Beam: An extremely powerful beam Leo can fire from his arms. Can destroy entire planets.
• Calming Ray: Leo can emit an energy ray from his hands that will pacify a monster.
• Leo Cross Beam: Leo can emit two powerful streams of zig-zagging lasers from the beam lamp on his forehead.
• Fingertip Beam: Leo can emit a powerful yellow energy beam from his fingertips when they're pointed forward together.
• Leo Flash: Leo can use energy from his color timer through both of his fists and release it like a blue flash. Can destroy monsters in one hit.
• King's Mantle: Presented with the cape of Ultraman King, Ultraman Leo can conjure up objects and stop/fizzle out incoming projectile attacks with the item.
• Ultra Double Flasher: With the help of Astra, Leo and Astra can fire a very powerful red beam of lightning together from their hands. Able to destroy several powerful monsters.
• Zero Double Flasher: With the help of Ultraman Zero, Leo and Zero can fire a very powerful red and green beam of lightning together from their hands. Able to destroy several powerful monsters.

MAC (Monster Attacking Crew) members

The Monster Attacking Crew (MAC) is one of the most radically different Ultra support teams. As mentioned above, the captain is Dan Moroboshi, who is Ultraseven deprived of his ability to transform. MAC also has a flowing membership. Members get killed off and replaced with frightening rapidity. To top it all off, MAC gets annihilated mid-series (Episode 40). There are (were) bases in orbit above North and South America, Africa, Northern Europe, and Japan. This is in addition to numerous land-based bases as well.

• Captain Moroboshi Dan (the commander and leader, Ultra Seven)
• Otori Gen(Ultraman Leo)
• Ichiroh Aoshima - Killed by the Silver Bloom in Episode 40
• Captain Akio Kuroda - Killed by the Ron in Episode 10
• Captain Atsushi Hirayama - Killed by the Vekira in Episode 8
• Kiyohiko Akaishi - Killed by the Alien Atlar in Episode 16
• Junko Shirakawa - Killed by the Silver Bloom in Episode 40
• Haruko Momoi - Killed by the Alien Atlar in Episode 16
• Daisuke Satoh - Killed by the Silver Bloom in Episode 40
• Jun Shirato - Killed by the Silver Bloom in Episode 40
• Ippei Kajita - Killed by the Silver Bloom in Episode 40
• Haruko Matsuki - Killed by the Silver Bloom in Episode 40
• Member Suzuki - Killed by the Alien Tsuruk in Episode 3
• Saburo Sato

Theme songs

• Ultraman Leo (ウルトラマンレオ, episodes 1 - 13)
  • Lyrics: Yu Aku
  • Composition & Arrangement: Makoto Kawaguchi
  • Artist(s): Ryu Manatsu, Lake Boys and Girls Choir (Tokyo records )

• Fight! Ultraman Leo (戦え! ウルトラマンレオ, episodes 14 - 51)
  • Lyrics: Yu Aku
  • Composition & Arrangement: Kawaguchi Makoto
  • Artist(s): Yuki Hide (credited as Hideyuki ), Lake Boys and Girls Choir (Tokyo records )

US Television Premiere and Streaming release

Honolulu, Hawaii-based on-air broadcaster of Japanese programming, KIKU-TV, the home of the tokusatsu or Kikaida craze of the 1970s, began airing all 51 episodes of the series on Friday, January 3, 2014, at 6:30 PM (Hawaiian Standard Time) in Japanese with English Subtitles.^[2] In 1975, an English-dubbed version of Ultra Seven was broadcast on Honolulu's NBC affiliate KHON-TV. On November 12, 2014, Crunchyroll obtained the streaming rights to the series from Tsuburaya Productions and began posting the Hawaiian subtitled episodes on their website for viewers.^[3]

Appearances in other series

Besides the Showa period Ultraman Leo series, Ultraman Leo's popularity and fighting ability enabled him to make guest appearances in the following Ultra Series after the end of the original TV series.

Princess Comet

guest appearances in episode 63

Ultraman Story

Stock footage of Ultraman Leo fighting kaiju

Ultraman Mebius

Appeared in Ep 1, 34, 50

Ultraman Leo returns in Ultraman Mebius episode 34, "A Man Without a Home to help", in his human form Gen Otori. He trained and helped Mebius to defeat Alien Reflect.^[4]

Mega Monster Battle: Ultra Galaxy Legends The Movie

Leo appeared in this film training Ultraman Zero during Zero's exile. Leo and Zero would battle continuously on K76 with Zero wearing Techtor gear armor which made him incredibly slow. When Seven sent an S.O.S., Ultraman King sent Zero to the battle, followed shortly by Leo and Astra.

Ultra Galaxy Legend Gaiden: Ultraman Zero vs. Darklops Zero

Leo would then travel in between dimensions to rescue Zero, who was sent there by Darklops Zero along with the Imitation Ultra Brothers.

Ultraman Zero: The Revenge of Belial

Ultraman Saga

Appeared alone with the 4 other Ultra Brothers (Ultraman, Seven, Jack, Ace).^[5]

Ultraman Retsuden

Ep39, a cutscene from the film Ultraman Saga; appeared alone with the 4 other Ultra Brothers (Ultraman, Seven, Jack, Ace), flew to the alternate Earth to help Ultraman Zero.

Ep102, showing him training the later Ultraman Zero, who happened to not be wearing the Techtor gear armor.

Ultraman Ginga

Ultraman Leo participated in the Dark Spark War along with the Ultra Brothers. While in their midst battle, Dark lugiel turned every Ultras alongside their allies, monsters and aliens into Spark Dolls. The location of Leo's Spark Doll is unknown.

Astra

Astra (アストラ Asutora) is the younger brother of Ultraman Leo. He came to earth after learning that Leo had survived the destruction of their home planet Nebula L-77 and appeared several times in the series, assisting him several times when the odds were stacked against Leo.

The younger brother of Ultraman Leo, Astra came from the desert Nebula L77 of the Leo constellation. After the destruction of L77 by the Alien Magma, Leo, Astra, and Leo's pet monster Ron were the last survivors, but Leo thought he was the last of his kind. As Leo and Ron landed on Earth, Astra was captured and held prisoner by the Alien Magma until he was eventually rescued by Ultraman King. After Ultraman King told him of Leo's survival, Astra headed for Earth and rescued his brother during a battle against Garon and Littre. Ever since Astra has saved Leo against several different aliens over the months that were too powerful for Leo to defeat himself. At one point Alien Babalou froze Astra in a special type of ice in space and took his identity as he stole the Ultra Key. After Ultraman King revealed Babalou for what he was, Leo saved Astra from his icy imprisonment, defeated Babalou, gave back the Ultra Key, and the two brothers became the first Ultra Brothers that were born outside of Nebula M78. Astra continued to help Leo after helping him destroy the Saucer Monster, Hangler.

Even though Astra is the least active of the Ultra Brothers in the new series Ultraman Mebius, he is present during the series finale, assisting his brother Leo using the Ultra Double Flasher in destroying the coating that was surrounding the sun.

Later on, Astra appeared in the film Mega Monster Battle: Ultra Galaxy Legend The Movie, watching over Ultraman Zero’s training with Ultraman Leo. When Seven’s eye slugger was sent as an S.O.S., Ultraman King sent Zero to the battle, followed shortly by Leo and Astra. When they arrived, Zero had already defeated Belial and blasted him into a river of molten magma. However no sooner had they arrived, when the spirits of 100 monsters started to flow towards Belial and formed Beryudora. Leo and Astra then did their combo attack while everyone else attacked Beryudora on their own until Zero finished him off. Astra and Leo then returned to the Land of Light with the others. Astra also reappeared in the movie Ultraman Zero: The Revenge of Belial.

International broadcast

In Thailand first aired in 1995 on IBC7 (is currently TrueVisions)

References