As a little kid, I watched Ultraman with reverence and terror. Reverence because what a cool hero. Terror because I knew a monster was coming. Eventually I learned there were more Ultras beyond the first one, but didn’t get to see any of them until well into adulthood. So the US resurgence of Ultraman in the past decade has been welcome.
What I had to adjust to was the multiversal approach Tsuburaya Productions adopted. Marvel Comics wasn’t continuing or adapting the Ultraman I knew. Kyle Higgins and Mat Groom created a new version, one that acknowledged the series origins with Ultra Q, while nodding to the shows that came afterward. Both the manga/anime series on Netflix and Ultraman Rising did the same thing. Good stuff, but not… Marvelized.
I suspected that the comics-reading audience crossover with Ultraman was a bit more niche than Marvel hoped, but that’s not their fault. It’s a little like what happened with Miracleman. Great reputation, but to those who didn’t really know the character, possibly of its time. Except Higgins and Groom did a great job of bringing Ultraman to 2020, and the crossover with The Avengers last year was fun, even if it set rules for the Ultra-continuity that at the time seemed unnecessary.
Now Ultraman will fall, or the Tsuburaya license will expire. Either way, the original TV series ended in a similar fashion. We get one last one-shot to wrap it all up, and Marvel will get my dollars.
From Marvel:
The climactic chapter of Marvel Comics’ acclaimed ULTRAMAN comic book saga arrives this February in THE FALL OF ULTRAMAN! The one-shot will be written by Kyle Higgins and Mat Groom, the duo behind Ultraman’s Marvel journey since the very beginning, and drawn by artist Davide Tinto, returning after his work on Ultraman: The Mystery of Ultraseven.
Made in collaboration with Tsuburaya Productions, Marvel’s venture into the Ultraman mythos began in 2020’s The Rise of Ultraman, which delivered a bold reimagining of the pop culture icon’s classic origin. Ultraman’s Marvel adventures continued in The Trials of Ultraman, Ultraman: The Mystery of Ultraseven, and last year’s Ultraman X the Avengers, where Japan’s greatest super hero finally crossed over with the heroes of the Marvel Universe! It’s all been leading to this—at long last, witness the end of this incredible chapter in Ultraman’s groundbreaking legacy in THE FALL OF ULTRAMAN!
Together, they’ve crossed dimensions, unfurled conspiracies, tangled with giant Kaiju, and saved civilizations. But now, Ultraman and his team are given an unexpected glimpse at the path ahead – and that path leads unavoidably to the loss of our world’s greatest hero! What cosmic threat will be Ultraman’s undoing? Will the United Science Patrol be redeemed? And will Earth finally be lost to the sinister machinations that have been plaguing it for decades? It’s time to find out!
“Our very first version of the initial pitch for The Rise of Ultraman, our first Ultraman limited series, included an outline of how the saga would end,” Groom explained. “Now, five years later, that end is here, and it comes bearing the same title as it did in that first outline: THE FALL OF ULTRAMAN.
“It’s bittersweet to be saying goodbye to Shin, Kiki, Dan, and the rest of the Ultra Guard — but we’re thankful that we get to give them the send-off they deserve, and give Ultraman a final challenge worthy of both his shining heart and towering stature,” he continued. “For the fans who have been with us from Rise to Fall, thank you — we hope you enjoy the finale!”
“It’s been one of the great honors of my career to spend the last five years helping bring a new interpretation of Ultraman to Western comic book readers,” Higgins shared. “Getting to play even a small part in expanding such a timeless, heroic mythology has meant the world to me. My deepest thanks to C.B. Cebulski, Tom Brevoort, Jeff Gomez, Danny Simon, Kei Minamitani and everyone at Tsuburaya Productions, at Tsuburaya Productions, and the incredible artists who brought these stories to life. And most of all, to my partner through every step of this journey, Mat Groom — without him, there simply wouldn’t be a series.”
Check out the cover by Marvel’s Stormbreaker artist Netho Diaz and preorder THE FALL OF ULTRAMAN #1 at your local comic shop today.
