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, Ultraman, Ultraseven (and the more recent Ultraman Orb) here.

That brings us to the fourth installment in the franchise – Return of Ultraman – which aired 51 episodes on Japanese television in 1971 and 1972. It’s set four years after the events of Ultraseven, and it’s the one where Ultraman… returns.

Ultraman creator Eiji Tsuburaya intended Ultraseven to finish off the franchise in 1968, thus creating a standalone trilogy that told a more-or-less complete story. However, that turned out to be wishful thinking on his part. The franchise had become a phenomenon, and there was entirely too much demand (and too much money to be made) to ignore it.

Tsuburaya died in January of 1970, and his eldest son stepped up and became president of Tsuburaya Productions. And development on Return of Ultraman began in earnest.

This series, like the ones that preceded it, focuses on a dude – Hideki Go – who gains the power to become Ultraman. But unlike the original Ultraman (where the dude was a member of a top-secret military branch responsible for fighting aliens) and Ultraseven (where the dude wasn’t really a dude at all but rather a fake identity created by Ultraseven), HIdeki Go is an ordinary guy with an ordinary life and girlfriend.

Well, he was. See, he dies in the first episode. He was trying to save a little kid from a rampaging monster (as one does) and got crushed under a collapsing building. The kid got away, don’t worry, even though he showed absolutely zero gratitude.

In any case, Ultraman (who was in the neighborhood from Nebula M78) happened to see Go’s selfless action, reincarnated him, and merged with his reanimated body. So, yeah, Hideki Go is an Ultrazombie.

Interestingly, the Ultraman we see in this series didn’t also get officially named until 1984. Before then, he was mostly known as “New Ultraman.” Yawn. So in the early 80s, Bandai decided they needed a new name to market their new Ultraman toys. After a contest in which children from across Japan suggested possible names, he was rechristened… Ultraman Jack.

Yawn.

As the first post-Tsuburaya series, Return of Ultraman checks many of the same boxes as the previous shows, and it continues the franchise’s winning formula. Indeed, in the absence of its creator, it had to be strong. The first two episodes (along with a handful of others) were even directed by Ishiro Honda, legendary director of the original Godzilla, Mothra, Rodan, and several Godzilla sequels.

As you should for the entire Ultraman franchise, temper your expectations when it comes to special effects and storytelling.

If you’re a fan of the franchise or of the kaiju genre, Return of Ultraman is a worthy addition to the lineup. It also holds up for today’s more discerning kids. Well, depending on the kid, I guess. My 8-year-old son has become obsessed and eagerly watches multiple episodes at a time. For what it’s worth.

Like all previous Mill Creek releases, Return of Ultraman 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 four releases together.

The set includes all 51 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 28-page booklet that gives a bit of background on the series and the passing of the torch after the death of Eiji Tsuburaya. 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.)