In the summer of 2019, Mill Creek Entertainment announced they had acquired North American physical and digital distribution rights (from Tsuburaya Productions) for pretty much the entire Ultraman library. The deal included more than 1,100 episodes and 20 films spanning 50 years of the Japanese franchise.

Since then, Mill Creek has begun releasing the entire Ultraman library – in order from the beginning! Check out our reviews of Ultra Q and the original Ultraman releases here.

That brings us to the third installment in the franchise – Ultraseven – which aired 49 episodes on Japanese television in 1967 and 1968.

By the time Ultraman was winding down in 1967, it had become a phenomenon, and there was no question that the show – in some form – would continue. However, where Ultra Q and Ultraman targeted young viewers and were massively popular with kids, the show’s sponsors wanted the next series to target a slightly older demographic and appeal to adult viewers.

Enter Ultraseven. The show isn’t a direct sequel to Ultraman but rather a continuation of the franchise in the same universe. The concept of a team of humans battling giant monsters with the help of an otherworldly hero is still at the core of Ultraseven, but the show has a strong sci-fi feel since it’s set in the future and focuses on a group of human heroes who are astronauts based in space. Their role isn’t to investigate mysterious events (as in previous series) but to literally protect Earth.

And whereas Ultraman was an alien who “merged life forces” with and inhabited the body of a human (allowing transformations back and forth), Ultraseven is an alien who can take the form of a human to blend in.

As in the two series that precede it, the Ultraseven suit and kaiju are all very obviously just dudes in rubber suits. Don’t go into this expecting 21st century special effects. Despite the attempt to lure in adult viewers, the show was still meant to have a massive appeal for kids. The actors, the storylines, the danger, and the humor might seem dated and cheesy by today’s standards.

None of this is meant as criticism. Just temper your expectations.

If you’re a fan of the franchise or of the kaiju genre, Ultraseven is incredibly entertaining, and it does interesting things with the franchise. It also holds up for today’s more discerning kids. I mean, my 8-year-old son has become obsessed and eagerly watches multiple episodes at a time. For what it’s worth.

The new Mill Creek release comes in two different versions. You’ve got your standard Blu-ray box set and a SteelBook edition. Inside, both are the same, so the only real difference is in the packaging. However, if you don’t really care, I’d highly recommend the standard packaging since Mill Creek is designing the entire Ultraman line to have a mosaic image on the spines when lined up together. Here are the first three releases together.

The set includes all 49 episodes of the show in their original, complete Japanese broadcast edits (fully remastered and restored in HD and with lossless DTS-HD audio). They look and sound great.

Also included is a 24-page booklet that gives a bit of background on the series and the birth and legacy of Ultraseven. It also gives brief synopses of each episode, key monster, major character, and important technology.

Finally, the set includes a digital redemption code for movieSPREE, where you can access and download all episodes for digital streaming.

(Disclosure: Mill Creek Entertainment provided a review copy of this set. All opinions remain our own.)