Ultraman Blazar ep 20: Assault Of The Insect
After two really intense episodes back-to-back with some shocking reveals and twists, it’s nice to cool down a bit and get to know more about one of SKaRD’s members. This time, it’s Teruaki’s turn to shine, who turns out is having a bit of an internal conflict with his father. Said conflict is involving his marriage, which he avoids talking with his father to the point where he has to lie his way in order to get Teruaki to talk, his family even prepared some candidates to be Teruaki’s wife. Unfortunately, Teruaki refused to have a marriage interview due to the increasing number of Kaiju appearances.
Two of them clearly have their own reasons for their decision. Teruaki’s dad acts like most parents would want for their kids, where they want their kids to continue their bloodline. However, Teruaki thought that if Kaiju kept appearing and he was still on GGF duty, he would not have enough time to have quality time with his would-be family. Even Gento has the problem of keeping up with his family in episode 18. So, it’s understandable why Teruaki has come to that decision, but he and his father still have to have a proper heart-to-heart conversation in order for them to reach an understanding.
Two of them clearly have their own reasons for their decision. Teruaki’s dad acts like most parents would want for their kids, where they want their kids to continue their bloodline. However, Teruaki thought that if Kaiju kept appearing and he was still on GGF duty, he would not have enough time to have quality time with his would-be family. Even Gento has the problem of keeping up with his family in episode 18. So, it’s understandable why Teruaki has come to that decision, but he and his father still have to have a proper heart-to-heart conversation in order for them to reach an understanding.
While they didn’t have that heart-to-heart conversation, fortunately, action speaks louder than words. When Teruaki protected his father from a Larva Zugugan (this week’s Kaiju’s larva state), that alone convinced him to stop asking Teruaki to get married after knowing how hard his line of work is and the fact that he’s been doing it for a long time. Teruaki himself told his father that he learned his way of life through his father. With that, an understanding between the two has reached. The dad even feels touched at the end after knowing that Teruaki protected the land that his dad managed.
That is pretty much the main thing that happened in the episode, but there are some fun moments on the side. One example is at the beginning of the episode when the SKaRD crew is practising for their next mission, which is teaching kids what to do when a Kaiju attacks. The crew’s flat acting when practising, in contrast to Yasunobu’s flashier acting, complete with a costume, really sells this scene. Although, it went serious a little bit when Chief Haruno is mentioned, after that Gento and Emi’s exchange glances to each other due to them being the only ones who know about his suspension.
That is pretty much the main thing that happened in the episode, but there are some fun moments on the side. One example is at the beginning of the episode when the SKaRD crew is practising for their next mission, which is teaching kids what to do when a Kaiju attacks. The crew’s flat acting when practising, in contrast to Yasunobu’s flashier acting, complete with a costume, really sells this scene. Although, it went serious a little bit when Chief Haruno is mentioned, after that Gento and Emi’s exchange glances to each other due to them being the only ones who know about his suspension.
Next up, let’s talk about this episode’s Kaiju, Zugugan. It is an insectoid subterranean Kaiju, and it’s quite troublesome to fight. There are two kinds of Zugugan in this episode: the larvae, which are the size of a human (but there are so many of them), and the mature one, which is properly Kaiju-sized. This Kaiju is troublesome to fight because it sprays mucus, which will freeze really quickly. With this ability, it managed to immobilize Blazar. Not only that, but it has so many larvae, and they will chirp to warn others when they’re in danger. That way, another swarm of Zugugan or even the mature one will respond to that chirp and help apprehend the danger, which happened when Earth Garron fired the larvae, and Anri and Teruaki approached the egg.
Thankfully, Teruaki found a way to use their chirping as an advantage by using it to lure the mature Zugugan away from Blazar, giving him a chance to finish it off. After that, he gathers all the larvae swarm to one spot with his phone, which is attached to a bomb, then detonates it to eliminate all the larvae swarm and the egg, at the cost of his own phone. I like how Teruaki apologized before detonating the bomb, which can be taken as he’s apologizing to his phone or feeling sorry for the larvae he’s about to eliminate. With that, Teruaki managed to save his homeland, and his efforts were acknowledged by his dad in the end.
Thankfully, Teruaki found a way to use their chirping as an advantage by using it to lure the mature Zugugan away from Blazar, giving him a chance to finish it off. After that, he gathers all the larvae swarm to one spot with his phone, which is attached to a bomb, then detonates it to eliminate all the larvae swarm and the egg, at the cost of his own phone. I like how Teruaki apologized before detonating the bomb, which can be taken as he’s apologizing to his phone or feeling sorry for the larvae he’s about to eliminate. With that, Teruaki managed to save his homeland, and his efforts were acknowledged by his dad in the end.
Blazar is pacing itself out quite well, interweaving plot-centric episodes with fillers so viewers can have time to breathe, as well as fleshing out Blazar’s new upgrades. The episode’s fight was choreographed well, although Blazar’s wonkiness is still there – which I think won’t go away even at the end of the show – it’s what makes him charming. The focus on each character of the team is also a nice way to balance out everyone’s characterization. However, with only a few episodes left to go (based on the previous series), it’s going to be a tight fit to deliver a satisfying climax.
KARP98
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