Ultraman Orb - new series to start in July?

[lhb412]

I reiterate the episode 2 complaints, and it basically just covered the same ground as the first episode - terrific kaiju action at the end, though. Great model city! Episode 3 was much better.

[sentaison]

I just finished episode #4 and my enthusiasm for this series is waning. The characters seem silly and boring. And while there is the mystery of Gai and Juggler, it isn't enough to offset the blah that is the weekly stories. The f/x are good as are the fights, but this series is a serious step down from X and not a good way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Ultraman.

Just my opinion fwiw.

[Gman2887]

[The Great MM]

Episode 5 was alright. I really liked the new form of Hyper Zetton. It's still too early to tell if I like it as much as X, but I still say it's a lot better than Ginga and Ginga S.

[sentaison]

I'll agree, Ep. 5 is actually pretty good. The goofy parts actually worked by keeping two thirds of SSP out of most of the story. Naomi becoming the perpetual "Damsel in Distress" as a running gag has worked so far. Her being placed in peril by Sailor Zetton, er I mean Zetton Seijin worked here. If they can keep this up my opinion of the show will definitely improve.

[O.Supreme]

Just started watching this yesterday as I had some free time. I took a long break from Ultraman after the Zero Trilogy. It was cool, but had me kind of burnt out at the end. As a result I have not seen any of Ginga, Ginga S or X. The announcement that Winkler is going to dub some of the films has be excited for a *hopeful* North American release by S!F. Anyways....

Orb is ok...watched episodes 1-4 (will try to catch 5 & 6 this weekend). I'm still not big on using gimmicks to sell toys, but I know it is the norm now in Japan. The only problem I see is , like my son was asking, he wanted to see way more different combinations of different Ultraman powers, other than the standard three Orb seems he will be using.

[klen7]

^Ultraman X may be a better series than Orb, but its got a LOT more toy placement. Orb is just cards and the henshin devices.

i'm sure there will be more forms as the series progresses, but i wouldn't be surprised if Orb has its own form that becomes the staple at some point.

I am enjoying watching Orb, but the Ultraman franchise is not really one i can binge watch, due to it being pretty formulaic in nature, so getting one episode a week has actually increased my enjoyment of it. I'm sure if i watched 2 or 3 episodes back to back, i would be less forgiving. I do like that Orb isn't focusing on "the science team" but rather some amateur monster chasers. I also like Gai as a host more than i liked Daichi, but most Ultra series I dont care for the host character.

[O.Supreme]

Just watched 5&6...they had some pretty cool reveals



Also...any particular reason they refer to as Don Nostra? Is he like the official alien/monster Godfather now?

Now that I'm caught up, any suggestions? Should I just burn through Ginga,Ginga S, & X ? Also how many movies/side specials were in between? I thought there was just one, but I think the Winckler article talks about dubbing three films...

[O.Supreme]

Just watched episode 7. Pretty basic. The only reveal - .

episode 8

[klen7]

[O.Supreme]

Episode 8--not really my thing. I know they were trying to develop the sympathy-for-monster factor with Ragon...but I think this was much more for kids. I loved the look on my sons face when Kupira swallowed the young Ragon, I thought it was hilarious, but of course Ultraman rescued him and all was well...

Next weeks episode with Telesdon looks interesting.

Also...I saw a video recently on Youtube with supposedly some new forms for Orb...but comments said it was supposedly only for the card game in japan.

[Specium Ray]

My son loved the Ragon episode. He keeps asking when will Orb get the Ultraman X card.

[O.Supreme]

[lhb412]

^Crunchyroll has the episodes up for free subbed in English: for subscribers the day of, and for everyone else the episodes come at a week's delay.

[The Great MM]

I just download the subed ones on Nyaa. Last episode was okay. Didn't see Babby become a good guy, rather unexpected. Kelbeam was wasted, however.

[lhb412]

Once again, I'd like to remind everyone that if you're pirating Orb you might want to at least run the Crunchyroll version in the background. View counts are important for Tsuburaya.

[sentaison]

Episode 11. Looks like we get the Belial/Zoffy combo form next episode. The series has really picked up since the low point for me around episode 4, and the humor of Gai and Juggler trying to have a serious conversation while constantly being interrupted by Naomi's mom was right on target with me. I'm actually looking forward to episode 12.

[Dai]

I was on the fence about Orb for the first few episodes, but it's really grown on me. I like that it keeps switching up the pace with mini-plot arcs that act as a B-story for a few episodes at a time, while the varied individual episode plots are treated as the A-story. Also nice to see that the monsters and aliens aren't all tarred with the same brush, since some are just in the wrong place at the wrong time, or can even turn hero given half a chance.

The only annoyance are the lengthy and frequent transformation sequences. I know they're a franchise staple, but it gets stale when Orb cycles through different forms in one fight, complete with multiple mandatory catch-phrases for each.

EDIT: Just watched episode 11. Absolutely brilliant. The first half was hilarious, and the second half featured the strongest action direction in the series so far. I have a suspicion that there may be more to Naomi's mother than there seems.

[Specium Ray]

God damn that Thunder Breaster fight was one of the best fights I've seen in a tokusatsu show in a long time.
Of course, this means the next ep is a clip show...

[Dai]

[lhb412]

Okay, I got about 8 episodes to catch up on this weekend.

I've got a couple of bottles a Ramune, so I'm prepared. What's everyone's favorite flavor of Ramune?

[The Great MM]

With Zepandon coming up and new fusion kaiju appearing in the stage shows, I half wonder if Tsuburaya is testing the waters for the next gimmick: kaiju fusions. Would seem like a logical step.

[O.Supreme]

ok...not sure if I'm going to be watching on cruncyroll anymore, if they have no filters or logic to their advertisements. Not sure Ultraman Orb (a kids show) is the best place for adverts for KY spray...yeah that was an interesting conversation with my 10 year old son... .

Anyway...isn't Orochi classicly 8 headed? I know this is "Maga-Orochi"...but he should at least have some concept of the number 8 about him right? -other than the name, a really cool monster.

[kiryugoji04]

[Dai]