Western Animation / Ultraman: Rising

Sean plays Ken Sato, a baseball superstar with the secret ability to transform into the towering hero Ultraman. On what should be a routine battle with a rampaging kaiju, Ken find himself the unlikely caretaker of a giant kaiju infant, bringing him into conflict with both the Kaiju Defense Force who have their own agenda for the child. The film will release on Netflix June 14, 2024.

Previews: Teaser, Trailer

Recurring Ultra Series tropes:

• Creature-Hunter Organization: The main trailer highlights Japan's current defense team, continuing the franchise's long line of highly-armed monster-hunting task forces. Interestingly, the trailer presents them as being particularly interested in acquiring the baby kaiju as to put them at odds with Ultraman, thereby painting them in a far more negative light than most attack teams up to this point.
• Critical Annoyance: In the teaser, as he runs out of time to exist in his current form, Ultraman's color time blinks increasingly rapidly, producing a grating noise.
• Henshin Hero: A staple of the franchise, with Ken Sato shown in the trailers as being Ultraman's host and capable of transforming into the hero.
• Kaiju: The teaser features both a dragon-like kaiju that interrupts Ken's baseball game and the fish-like baby monster that imprints onto Ultraman. The main trailer also includes the return of Bemular and Neronga.
• Transformation Trinket: Subverted, in the teaser Ken simply transforms without an item. He is one of the few Ultras who do such as Jack, Chuck, Scott, Beth, Ultraseven 21, and Ultraman: The Next.

Ultraman Rising includes examples of the following:

• Action Dad: The main premise of the film is Ken Sato/Ultraman learning to become a parent after adopting a baby kaiju that's imprinted on him while having to protect her from outside forces who seek to abuse her for their own agendas.
• And This Is for...: Said by Ken as he punches out the Kaiju attacking during his match, as shown in the teaser.
  Ken: And that is for messing up my game!
• Bad "Bad Acting": Displayed at the end of the teaser. When Ken realises that the world at large in unaware of his “child”, he starts treating the baby monster like a regular rampaging threat.
• Breaking Old Trends: While past Ultras have been portrayed as capable of communicating with humans (often through implied telepathy), this movie's Ultraman is the first whose speech is treated as vocal, as demonstrated when, near the end of the teaser, a crowd of onlookers understand his attempts to communicate with the baby kaiju.
• Breath Weapon: Despite being very young, the baby kaiju can spit laser beams, which a friendly AI compares to acid reflux. Additionally, returning monster Bemular wields the same atomic breath he's shown off in past entries.
• Celebrity Masquerade: When not transformed, Ken Sato is depicted in the teaser as a highly-successful baseball player with numerous advertising deals.
• Company Cross References: A released shot features a cameo of Ollie from Lost Ollie, which was previously produced by Industrial Light & Magic and also written by Shannon Tindle.
• Funny Background Event: When Ultraman attempts to talk with the baby kaiju towards the end of the teaser, a billboard portraying a father holding his son can be seen behind the duo, mirroring their current interaction.
• Giant Flyer: The first teaser portrays Ultraman and the Kaiju Defense Force fending off a massive dragon-like monster.
• Imprinting: In the teaser and trailer, after the kaiju baby hatches, an AI tells Ken that it thinks he’s (Ultraman) her mother.
• "King Kong" Climb: In the main trailer, the baby monster climbs up Tokyo Tower, though without carrying a human with her. Ultraman follows shortly thereafter, grabbing the child just before the defense force shows up.
• Miniature Senior Citizens: Ken’s father, introduced in the main trailer, is downright puny compared to his son, even before the latter transforms into Ultraman.
• Mythology Gag:
  • A rather subtle one occurs with the main character's name, crossing into Fridge Brilliance. Ken Sato, an Ultra host raising a baby kaiju, shares his name with Ultraman Ken - better known as the Father of Ultra.
  • The kaiju seen in the teaser uses the same roar as past kaiju from the Ultra Series such as Pagos and Neronga, which itself was previously used by monsters from the Godzilla franchise such as Varan and Baragon.
  • A shot towards the end of the teaser trailer features storefronts referencing classic foes of the original Ultraman, with a Bemular-themed ramen shop, a coffee shop named after Antlar and a pair of black-and-white posters referencing Alien Dada.
  • As seen in the main trailer, Ken owns action figures of past characters from the Ultra Series, such as Alien Baltan, Neronga, Gomora, Skydon and, surprisingly, the original Ultraman himself.
• No Object Permanence: Given that it imprinted onto Ken-as-Ultraman, the baby throws a tantrum in the trailer after failing to realize that Ken is their "mother" when he transforms back.
• Painted CGI: As the trailers show, the movie's 3d art style is repeatedly complimented with painted shots that accentuate the film's action, similar to its use in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
• Pink Is Feminine: In the trailers, the baby monster is referred to as a girl and has a pink coloring.
• Power Glows: In the teaser, Ultraman's fists glow blue when delivering strikes.
• Product Placement:
  • In the main trailer, there is a shot of a crowd fleeing past a 7-Eleven.
  • Ken appears on a billboard promoting Kentucky Fried Chicken.
  • In the main trailer, Neronga repeatedly hits Ultraman with a statue of Sato-Chan, the mascot of Sato Pharmaceuticals.
• Shout-Out:
  • Towards the end of the teaser, Pac-Man appears on top of a van.
  • As seen in the main trailer, Ken owns an action figure of AbarenOH.
  • In the main trailer, the baby monster burps a smoke ring, drawing some comparisons to Minilla.
  • Ami's Wakita's drawing-covered apartment wall is inspired by the house in Kramer vs. Kramer.
• Small Parent, Huge Child:
  • An Interspecies Adoption variant of this trope is shown in the trailers. When not transformed into Ultraman, Ken struggles with raising a monstrous child that towers over him and spits lasers.
  • In the main trailer, Ken is shown to tower over his elderly father, even when he isn’t Ultraman.
• Top-Heavy Guy: This version of Ultraman, being a CG model instead of portrayed with a suit, has a noticeably buff and far more muscular upper body in comparison to the size of his legs, as seen in the trailer.
• Ungrateful Townsfolk: During his battle with a kaiju in the main trailer, one old woman shouts at Ken-as-Ultraman to do his job while he takes a beating.