Ultraman has been called Japan’s Superman. The Ultraman series first appeared on Japanese television in 1966, and was based on an even earlier show, Ultra-Q. The main character is Hayata, a member of the Science Patrol, who has the ability to transform into the giant superhero, Ultraman. The Science Patrol with Hayata and Ultraman battle many different kaiju (Japanese for monster) and seijin (Japanese for alien) to protect Japan and the world.

Since the original series aired, Tsuburaya Productions has produced several different Ultraman series. All with the same theme of a human transforming into an Ultraman. For a complete list of the Ultraman series and movies visit http://m-78.jp/en/program.php.Also visit http://members.fortunecity.com/ultramanarchive/index3.htm for episode lists with kaiju pictures.

An English-dubbed version of the original 1966-67 Ultraman series is now available on DVD. Each volume includes an eight-page episode guide with a short descriptions and kaiju appearances. A few of the Ultraman movies and a few episodes of the other Ultraman series have also been dubbed in English. Ultraman Powered was produced for American television, and was filmed with English-speaking actors. A few of the Ultraman series are available on DVD with English-subtitles including Ultraman Tiga, Ultraman Cosmos, Ultraman Max, Ultraman Nexus, and Ultraman Mebius. Luckily there are more battle scenes than dialogue.

When purchasing Ultraman DVD’s check the Region code. Only Region 1 or Region-Free DVD’s will play in American DVD players.

There are many Ultraman videos available at www.youtube.com, and this is an excellent way to preview an Ultraman series before buying the DVD. Ultraman Nice was the star of Bandai infomercials that appeared during reruns of Ultraman Tiga in Japan in 1999. These commercials can be viewed at YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9fQ2YtXpBA and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdZ8XZmW9fk.