Impressions: How the final episode of 'Ultraman Omega' surpassed 'Shin Ultraman'

I watched episode 25 (the finale) of Ultraman Omega, "Overlapping Futures."

Before sharing my thoughts on the finale, I would like to look back at how my own perspective has changed over the six months I have been following "Omega."

■ A story that began with a "young man burdened by his own kindness"

In the early stages of the story, the most impressive presence was Kousei. He is a young man who is "living without finding a purpose."

"I want to be useful to someone. But I don't know what I should do."

Sorato draws close to Kousei, who harbors such well-meaning helplessness, reflecting the "kindness" within him and guiding him toward action.
I felt that this relationship was a highly contemporary portrayal of a protagonist that accurately captured the sense of stagnation felt by young people in modern Japan.

On the other hand, the first half of the story followed a recurring structure of,

"Monsters rampage due to human carelessness -> Ultraman defeats them"

and from episode 3 onwards, the limitations of the episodic format began to show.

The main story, such as the mystery of Sorato's memories, did not progress much, and I must honestly admit that I felt bored during this period.

Even so, at the time, I watched "Omega" perceiving it as,
"A story about a 'foreign object' that appeared on Earth, touched by human kindness, and eventually choosing a path of coexistence."
as I watched it.

I felt this way because the story of "Omega" is rooted in themes that the Ultra series has repeatedly depicted, similar to the final episode of "Ultraman A" and "Ultraman Taiga":"The difficulty of living with different beings, and the will to never give up on that ideal."

However, even at this point, I already had a premonition that "Omega" was not merely following in those footsteps, but was perhaps trying to depict something "further beyond" those themes.

■ A definitive question posed

That perspective was significantly updated in episode 22, "The Person Who Watches the Stars."

Until then, I had written predictions that "Omega" was a work depicting,
"Justice chosen by oneself, not a chosen mission,"and that the true identity of Sorato, who lost his memory and is Omega, was a being sent to destroy the Earth.

However, the truth that was revealed was different, as expected.

Omega was not a destroyer, but a member of a cosmic observation team, a being in a position to simply "watch over" the [Moment of Awakening]—the struggle for survival between humanity and monsters.

This setting is reminiscent of the constant observers from "Ultraseven" or the civilization monitors from "Ultraman Max."
However, the cosmic observation team in "Omega" was more ruthless and carried an inescapable ethics than those.

This is because they are beings who,"Understand that they cannot help, yet still choose not to intervene."

What was posed here was one of the greatest questions in the series.

Why does Ultraman help humans?
Why did he not reach out to other aliens who had lost their homes in the same way?

I took it that what 'Ultraman Omega' is trying to depict is not the question of 'who to save,' but rather'why he decided to save them.'

■ The premise of Ultraman as a god

The Ultraman series to date, in which Ultraman possesses a human, has consistently depicted a worldview from the human perspective.

It can be said that Ultraman has always been portrayed as a being equal to a 'god,' standing on the side of humanity and possessing power that transcends human wisdom.

The composition that most directly illustrated this was, in 'Shin Ultraman',

—that line from Zoffy—and the phrase sung in the ending theme,

—that was the phrase.

What was depicted there was an image of Ultraman as a transcendent being watching over humans with a gaze of compassion.

■ The premise that 'Omega' broke

However, what made 'Ultraman Omega' innovative was that it questioned that premise from within the story itself.

This work does not depict Ultraman as an omnipotent arbiter. Instead, what emerged were

• the pain of being in a position where one is only allowed to watch

• the contradiction of being unable to save anyone because one tries to be fair

• the terror that the emotion of 'having come to like them' shakes one's ethics

—such conflicts.

And these are depicted not as abstract ideals, but as the personal emotions of an individual named Sorato.

That is precisely why Sorato-Omega's act of helping humans emerges not as a simple good deed, but as an ethical violation to them.

Here, for the first time, a question that had never been doubted before is confronted head-on.

Why does Ultraman help the people of Earth?

■ The answer provided by the final episode

And then, the final episode arrived.

'Ultraman Omega' is also said to be a work that spent 25 episodes depicting the content of the first episode of the original 'Ultraman'.

However, that was not merely a return to the origin.

What 'Omega' arrived at was,

'Just watching is not enough'

I believe that was the point it reached.

Not standing by in the name of peace, nor judging one side with overwhelming power, but facing all life, joining hands, and taking a step forward.

'Ultraman, have you come to love humans that much?'

The answer 'Omega' provided to that question was,

'It is precisely because I love you that I will walk with you'

which was an extremely human answer.

Because Ultraman himself chose this answer after much internal conflict and acted upon it, I believe 'Omega' was able to become a series that 'updated the origin for the current era' rather than just tracing it.

■ The never-ending question of coexistence with Kaiju

Of course, what Sorato said about 'joining hands with all life' is not a problem that can be settled with platitudes.

Even within the story, the reality of Kaiju damage does not disappear, and how to reconcile with that will likely continue to be depicted in future works in various forms.

This is a theme that has been repeatedly depicted in works like 'Ultraman Cosmos,' which features an 'Ultraman who does not kill Kaiju,' and just like how conflicts between humans never disappear in the real world, I believe it is a question that has no answer.

■ From a god to a story of human growth

—And a declaration to us that "just watching is not enough"

'Ultraman Omega' is not a story that presents the correct answer.
Even so, this work...

• Just watching is not enough

• Because I love it, I will not look away

• Hesitate, worry, and yet take a step forward

It depicted this stance to the very end.

What was decisively innovative here was that it depicted Ultraman not as "perfected justice" or a "transcendent being," but as a
life-sized beingthat hesitates, chooses, and changes.

Sorato-Omega did not have the answer from the beginning.
Should he watch over, or should he intervene?
How should he accept the feelings he developed?

He paused at each one, struggled, and
even while carrying the possibility of being wrong, he still tried to move forward.

It was not a story of a god, but a story of growth.

And—
The declaration "just watching is not enough" spoken in the final episode feels like it was both Ultraman-Sorato's own determination and an extremely realistic message to us living in the present.

Ukraine, Palestine, Venezuela.
Division and violence continue in the world even now.
We consume those scenes daily through TV and the internet by "just watching."

Even though we have the power to act,
we distance ourselves from the reality on the screen,
and are we not just settling for "observing"?

The words "just watching is not enough" that 'Omega' questioned
seem to have pierced that very stance of ours.

And at the same time,
this message must have also been directed at the children living today.

Ultraman is not able to fight because he is a special being.
When you worry, hesitate, and yet try to take a step forward for someone else,
you too can become Ultraman.

Sorato's choice to "move forward while holding hands with all living things"
was not depicted as the decision of a superhuman,
but as a stance that each one of us can choose in our daily lives.

Ultraman as a being who does not just watch as a god, nor judge as an arbiter, but who struggles together, chooses together, and tries to step forward together.

In the point that it depicted that life-sized growth head-on, 'Ultraman Omega', ahead of the 60th anniversary of the Ultra series,
"a story to deliver to children living today",
an ideal that might be laughed at as mere platitudes,
the "way of being of Ultraman" in the current Reiwa era,
was a work that sincerely presented it—
That is what I think.

■ In conclusion

It is honestly a shame that 'Omega' doesn't seem to have a theatrical film, but I hope that the story of what happens after Omega will be depicted in 'Genesta,' which starts next week.

And finally—thank you for letting me enjoy 'Omega' over the past six months! To all the staff and cast members, thank you so much for all your hard work!!!