Entertainment: You're asked to make a graduation project, but you're asked to film Ultrama

Let's rewind to a year ago.

At that time, "Ultraman Mebius" was in the intense stage of script discussion and early preparation.

In the scriptwriting studio, the whiteboard behind Gu Nan was densely covered with plot outlines and setting cards for the entire series.

For several years, Gu Nan has always served as the chief screenwriter, but few people have objected. It is precisely because every one of his works is a masterpiece that he has such a reputation, which has allowed him to control the entire screenwriting administration of Light Chaser Animation Studio.

However, this also means that when dealing with certain special episodes, any changes need to be handled entirely by the individual.

For example, episode 32 – "The Legacy of the Monster Messenger".

In the original script plan, any tokusatsu fan would understand how heavy the weight behind this chapter was.

Therefore, this thirty-second episode presented him with an unprecedented sense of difficulty and headache.

This episode is a sequel to episode 33, "The Return of Ultraman," a masterpiece widely recognized as one of the three major problematic works in the history of Showa tokusatsu.

To understand this episode, we must confront the insurmountable ideological mountain that stands in the history of tokusatsu.

Gu Nan leaned back in his chair, and the classic, heavy story involuntarily surfaced in his mind.

It was 1971 in the suburbs of Tokyo, and a boy named Ryo Sakuma was tirelessly wielding a shovel amidst the ruins.

He had already dug deep pits into the ground.

The boy was taciturn, and no matter how others inquired, he always clenched his teeth and remained silent.

The surrounding residents were quickly gripped by unfounded panic and suspicion. Fueled by rumors, they stubbornly believed that the strangely behaving child was a dangerous alien disguised as a human.

As a result, a wave of collective rejection and malice swept in.

Several older children cornered the boy in front of a mud pit and subjected him to violence without restraint.

They brutally buried the boy in a pit, leaving only his head above ground, then grinned and poured cold muddy water over his head. They even viciously rode their bicycles and tried to run over the boy's head with the wheels.

If Hideki Go, who was patrolling nearby, hadn't intervened in time, the fragile boy would have almost lost his life in the brutal violence committed by his peers.

Even after being rescued, the boy stubbornly insisted that he was not an alien, but an ordinary human born in Hokkaido.

However, the spread of malice did not stop there.

While the boy was cooking porridge in the dilapidated house to stave off hunger, the older children came to his door again. They not only kicked over his iron pot and trampled the food scattered on the ground into the mud, but also released vicious dogs to tear the boy apart.

It wasn't until an incredible superpower emerged from the shadows and shattered the vicious dog on the spot that the group of bullies fled in panic.

In order to find out the truth, Hideki Go travels to the boy's hometown to investigate.

The records prove everything; Sakuma Ryo is indeed a true Earthling.

His childhood was filled with hardship. His mother died young from illness, and his father was forced to go to a big city to make a living. The young boy embarked on a journey to find his father alone, and eventually ended up in this cold and heartless corner.

The boy's tragic situation was vividly displayed on the bustling city streets.

When he went to buy bread with his tattered umbrella, the surrounding citizens pointed at him as if he were a plague, casting wary and disgusted glances at him.

The bakery owner didn't hesitate to kick him out, refusing to even do the most basic business.

The whole city was as indifferent as an ice cellar. Only a young female shop assistant took pity on him and quietly chased after him with a bag of bread, exchanging it for the meager change in the boy's hand.

When the boy returned to the dilapidated wooden house with bread in his arms, Hideki Go was already waiting inside.

Uncle Jinshan, who had been hiding in the shadows, finally revealed himself.

He revealed his true identity to Hideki Go—he came from Planet Metz.

This alien scholar originally came to Earth only to study its weather and environment. After arriving, he casually sealed the ferocious monster Murucci underground and, by chance, took in the orphan Sakuma Ryo, who was on the verge of despair.

In the dilapidated hut, the Metz alien cared for the boy like a true loving father, giving him the long-lost warmth of a family.

However, the rapid industrial development of the 1970s brought about serious air and water pollution.

The polluted air and harsh environment caused the physical functions of the Metz aliens to deteriorate rapidly.

His strength was waning, and he was even unable to keep the spaceship running.

The reason why young Liang frantically dug holes in the ruins was solely to find the spaceship buried deep underground and help his seriously ill uncle return to his hometown.

Deeply shocked upon learning the truth, Hideki Go took off his uniform jacket, silently picked up a shovel, and accompanied the boy as they dug through the mud.

However, the cruelty of fate far exceeds imagination.

The suspicious residents in the neighborhood eventually came together.

Armed with sticks and farm tools, they led fully armed police to surround the abandoned house, shouting that they would completely kill the so-called aliens.

Seeing that the boy was about to be harmed by the mob, the seriously ill alien Metz had no choice but to drag his faltering steps out of the house and loudly declare that he was the real alien, and the boy was just an innocent Earth child.

However, the irrational mob refused to listen to any explanations, and panic fueled the most indiscriminate killing.

A chaotic burst of gunfire erupted as a police bullet pierced the chest of a Metz alien.

This alien scholar, who always held goodwill toward Earth, fell in a cold pool of blood.

As the life of the Metz alien came to an end, the seal he left behind collapsed and disintegrated.

The ferocious monster Murucci burst forth from the ground, wreaking havoc on the streets.

The rain poured down, accompanied by thunder.

Having witnessed the entire atrocity, Hideki Go's inner faith crumbled in that instant.

The ugliness of humanity, the narrow-mindedness of the group, and the cruel persecution of the weak pierced his heart like sharp blades.

Faced with the rampaging monster and the residents fleeing in all directions, Hideki Go stood firmly in the pouring rain, letting the rain wash over his face, his eyes filled with only cold disappointment.

He had absolutely no intention of transforming into Ultraman to save these foolish killers.

At that moment, the guardians felt a deep chill towards mortals.

At the critical moment, Captain Ibuki, disguised as a monk, appeared in the storm.

"Village! The streets are already a mess, aren't you going to do anything about it?"

At this point, Hideki Go could no longer distinguish whether the chaos was on the street or in his own mind...

Admittedly, even if the residents in front of us have committed unforgivable sins, the mistakes of this small group should not be borne by the entire city or even the entire human race.

Hideki Go not only possesses sacred power, but is also a defense member with the responsibility of protecting others. His duty is to prevent the disaster from spreading further and to save more innocent lives.

Hideki Go finally raised the transformation device in the heavy rain.

However, there was no joy of victory throughout the entire battle.

The sky was overcast and the rain poured down. The background music accompanying the battle was not Ultraman Jack's rousing battle song, but the defense team's slightly tragic attack march.

This precisely shows that Hideki Go is not performing miracles as a high-ranking Ultra Warrior, but rather as a defense member burdened by duty, fulfilling his mission amidst pain and contradictions.

The monster fell, and the rain gradually subsided.

On the muddy wasteland, the young boy Sakuma Ryo pulled his dilapidated cart alone, still digging a deep pit shovel by shovel.

The boy's mind seemed to have fallen into self-isolation.

In his mind, his kind uncle had not died, but had simply returned to Metz aboard a spaceship.

He firmly believed that as long as he could dig out the spare spaceship, he could cross the galaxy and go to that distant and warm country to reunite with his uncle.

The desolate figure and the numb persistence became the heaviest slap in the face in the history of tokusatsu, striking the hearts of every viewer.

Gu Nan stood up and paced back and forth in the room, his thoughts still immersed in that extremely depressing ending from back then.

The reason why "Monster Messenger and Boy" is regarded as a classic is that it ruthlessly exposes the rejection of the different in society at that time, the violent instinct of the group under panic, and the environmental cost of blind industrialization.

It was a chilling reflection that pierced to the bone.

However, when the story reached the generation of Ultraman Mebius, the sequel "Legend of the Monster Tamers," produced 35 years later, presented an incredibly awkward disconnect in terms of both production quality and critical reception.

Gu Nan clearly remembers that this episode faced severe criticism for many years on various online communities and video platforms in his previous life.

At least the negative aspects outweigh the positive ones.

Many seasoned viewers even criticized it as a poor sequel.

So, what exactly went wrong with the original episode 32 of Ultraman Mebius?

First, there is a serious imbalance between the plot progression and the logic of the characters' actions.

In the opening of the sequel, an alien spaceship plunges into the atmosphere and lands near Mount Takuma, where life signals from monsters are detected.

In the future, Ultraman Mebius receives a telepathic message from Bio, the spaceship's owner, and the two make contact in the forest.

As the son of Jinshan, a Metz alien who died years ago, Bio said that he came with the original intention of establishing diplomatic relations, and that he brought the monster only to have a bargaining chip for self-defense on this planet protected by Ultraman.

He hoped that before formally commencing peace talks, the Earth side could provide a clear explanation for the tragedy that occurred 35 years ago when his father was innocently killed.

In the future, from Mebius's perspective, he made a promise that as long as the other side abides by the peace agreement, he will never intervene militarily in the feud between the two races.

However, just as the two were about to clasp hands and peace was beginning to dawn, Aihara Ryu, in the distance, seemed to be affected by fate.

Knowing full well that the future's true identity is Ultraman Mebius and that the future is clearly engaged in crucial negotiations with an alien envoy, Aihara Ryu pulled the trigger without saying a word, shooting and injuring Bio.

This sudden shot made the entire plot development seem particularly awkward and deliberate.

As a frontline member of the Earth Defense Force, shooting and injuring an alien envoy without any clear hostile action is a serious dereliction of duty that cannot be shirked under any treaty, and could even lead to a military court.

The original screenwriter's sole purpose in arranging this shot was to forcibly escalate the conflict and instantly shatter negotiations that could have been resolved peacefully.

Enraged by the gunshot wound to his hand, Bio immediately launched his spaceship to launch a fierce air raid on the nearby city and issued a domineering ultimatum to the defense forces, demanding the cession of 20 percent of Earth's territory.

This hasty plot twist instantly transformed Bio's character from a vengeful victim occupying the moral high ground into a naked bandit and aggressor.

What was originally a serious and weighty historical feud and accountability story has been transformed into a brutal invasion drama in the blink of an eye, weakening the tragic depth of the previous work in confronting guilt.

Later, Bio, who was leaning against the building catching his breath due to a hand injury, encountered kindergarten teachers and students having a picnic in the suburbs.

These innocent children were not afraid of the alien; instead, they kindly offered him a handkerchief to bandage his wound.

When Mirai and Aihara Ryu arrived at the scene, Aihara Ryu actually recited the famous quote that Captain Ibuki had said to Go Hideki back then, in order to urge Mirai to transform and fight.

However, when Aihara Ryu learned from Bio that the other party was the biological son of Jinshan, who was killed years ago, he showed a look of great shame and put down his sidearm.

This jarring psychological shift not only failed to showcase the human warmth of the defense team members, but also made Aihara Ryu appear exceptionally reckless and wavering.

One second he recklessly opened fire in self-defense, creating conflict; the next second, in a critical moment when the city was engulfed in flames and countless civilians' lives were threatened, he laid down his weapon because the other party said he wanted to avenge his father.

The character's professional ethics and will to protect others are in serious conflict at this moment.

What Gu Nan found even more unacceptable was the resolution mechanism in the climax of the story.

The kindergarten principal stepped forward and told Bio the story.

It turns out that when the principal was young, he saw Sakuma Ryo, who was persistently digging holes, many times on his way home from school. From Ryo, he learned about the great kindness of the Metz alien Jinshan and his longing for friendship.

The principal claimed that she was inspired by the love that transcends the stars at Kingsoft and decided to become a caregiver to educate the next generation. She said that these pure children who know how to care for others are the most precious legacy of love that Kingsoft has left to this planet.

Faced with this speech that lacked sufficient emotional buildup, Bio, who had originally vowed to avenge his hatred with blood and even destroy the city to demand the cession of territory, was suddenly swayed by his hatred.

The way he chose to let go of his obsession was by actively asking Ultraman Mebius to take action and completely eliminate the monster Zoa Murucci that he had brought with him.

In the previous game, the monsters were native creatures sleeping underground, but in this game, they are set up as tools of resentment connected to Bio's brainwaves.

The idea that eliminating monsters can eliminate hatred in one's heart is a mechanical cause-and-effect relationship that seems rather childish.

In the end, Zoa Murucci was defeated, and Bio returned to the spaceship with the children's handkerchiefs in hand, leaving behind only a rainbow symbolizing hope and an open farewell awaiting the blossoming of the legacy.

Gu Nan believes that this episode must be drastically revised. The reason why the original "Legend of the Monster Messenger" was so criticized is that its fundamental problem is not just the minor oversights such as Aihara Ryu's rash shooting or the 20-acre land cut.

What is truly regrettable is the compromise and retreat at the core of its spirit.

In the previous work, the creator used a cold and detached style to expose the xenophobic nature of human society, blind obedience to violence, and the environmental consequences of blind development.

That direct confrontation with and profound questioning of historical wounds possesses immense intellectual power.

However, in the sequel to Ultraman Mebius, the screenwriter avoided the social ills of the time, the profound reflection on the system and the historical reckoning, and instead turned to the abstract haven of universal love that is most commonly used in Japanese works.

Whenever real-world conflicts reach a dead end and cannot be resolved with reasonable moral solutions, creators invoke the banner of love and tenderness, attempting to erase decades of deep-seated hatred with a few touching lines of inspirational dialogue.

The deeper poison lies in the subconscious mindset of a perpetrator's descendant.

When faced with questions and demands for compensation from victims, the party who has made a mistake often subconsciously displays resentment and avoidance.

Instead of facing the trauma they have suffered, they desperately try to show the other side how kind, polite, and loving our next generation is.

It seems that as long as the new generation shows a pure and beautiful face, all the sins committed in the past can be naturally forgiven, and the debts of history can be naturally wiped away.

This narrative logic, which attempts to use the simplicity of later generations to escape the judgment of the soul and history, no matter how gorgeous and sentimental its cloak, appears pale and powerless under rational scrutiny.

However, from the objective perspective of a creator, Gu Nan fully understands the dilemmas and limitations faced by the original team back then.

As a commemorative work for Tsuburaya Productions' 40th anniversary, "Ultraman Mebius" has an incredibly bright, passionate, and sunny tone.

It tells the story of young soldiers who meet true comrades on Earth, trust each other, and grow together.

Passing on love, safeguarding hope, and believing in the future are the unwavering underlying themes of the entire series.

If the sequel, written 35 years later, were to follow Ichikawa Moriichi's original style, allowing hatred to run rampant, mobs to reappear, and darkness and despair to permeate the entire city, ultimately leading to a cold and devastating ending.

While this episode may approach the level of a masterpiece in terms of its theme, it feels out of place and awkward within the overall framework of Ultraman Mebius, completely disrupting the show's brisk narrative and the audience's emotional experience.

In fact, if we remove the halo of its predecessor and place "Legend of the Monster Messenger" in the later generation of tokusatsu series, its ability to directly address the historical issues left over from the Showa era and explore the themes of alien refugees and revenge is already considered a rare masterpiece.

The key point is that its opponent is "Monster Messenger and Boy".

That means we have no choice but to raise the standards.

Faced with such a monumental work of thought, any superficial attempts at compromise or cheap happy endings are destined to be seen as a disappointment by discerning viewers.

The night outside the window was deep, and the city slept peacefully in tranquility.

Gu Nan picked up a pen and began making revisions to the script for episode thirty-two.

In the original version, the creators tried to maintain the family-friendly style of Ultraman Mebius while paying homage to the original, but ended up pleasing neither side. They not only made Aihara Ryu's character a mess, but also turned what should have been a serious and profound historical dialogue into a childish emotional blackmail.

But since Gu Nan is remaking the script in this parallel world, he will never allow such a script flaw to repeat itself!

This episode needs a radical overhaul!

The scenes involving Aihara Ryu forcibly firing shots to incite conflict and ruin his character must be completely erased. The professionalism and protective duties of the defense team members must never be trampled upon.

The demands and motives of the second generation of Metz aliens must be more composed, legal, and in accordance with racial dignity, and must not degenerate into a crazy clown who demands to cede land at every turn.

More importantly, the deaths of Jinshan and the tragedy of young Liang cannot be glossed over with superficial and abstract expressions of love. The defense organizations and humanity must demonstrate their responsibility and sincerity in facing their mistakes.

We must uphold the thought-provoking insights into humanity found in "Monster Messenger and the Boy," while also preserving the bright and unwavering hope of "Ultraman Mebius."

This is undoubtedly a highly challenging creative test.

He raised his hand, erased the original plot outlines on the whiteboard, and wrote down the reconstructed plot.

In this brand new world, he wants to write a truly upright and unregretful new answer to the tragedy of that rainstorm, to the boy who wielded a shovel alone in the mud, and to the civilizations of both sides that have been tested by time.