Unmarked spoilers below!
The movie
- The opening montage is equal parts Awesome and Funny. Each Kaiju gets set up as an intimidating threat, but then the battle against them is either onscreen for a split second or outright skipped over, resulting in a series of anti-climactic shots of the Kaiju already dead. It's almost like a Recap Episode squeezed into less than two minutes, in the style of an opening to an Ultra Q episode!
- Shin Gomess in the prologue is actually pretty hilarious. He obviously has Shin Godzilla's 3D model, but it's been heavily altered by the movie makers so that many of ShinGoji's horrifying features have been changed: his eyes are clearly pointing in different directions, he has a horn growing out of the top of his head, and he actually looks to be of a healthier body mass than ShinGoji. He even has fully-formed arms!
- Doubles as a Mythology Gag when you remember that the original Gomess was literally just a recycled Showa Godzilla suit with some extra horns and spikes glued on. The fact they made this version of Gomess in the exact same way only with the Shin Godzilla design comes off almost like a Brick Joke.
- As Neronga attacks, Taki lampshades the uselessness of its invisibility, since it kicks up a large cloud of dust everywhere it goes. It gets even more useless when Neronga reveals itself in order to fire its lightning beam.
- As Neronga keeps damaging the power infrastructure in the area, the command tent gets reports of blackout zones spreading as a result. The camera immediately cuts to a railroad crossing, where cars are honking at a train that's struck in the way.
- As the SSSP run out of ideas with which to stop Neronga with, especially since this is a government official's home region and he won't accept any unnecessary damages...Taki: In that case...I'm out of ideas.
Yumi: I also... (slumps back in chair; in English) I have no idea.
(Tamura looks at Yumi, aghast) - Asami's report on Ultraman, which was supposed to be written and submitted despite there being no information on him.Munakata: She's [Asami] fast.
[Munakata flips the cover page. The report has only two words: "Identity Unknown".]
Munakata: [unfazed by her lack of pretention] And direct.- Asami expresses frustration with the idea that she had to submit a report on an unidentified giant lifeform when there was literally nothing figured out just yet.
- The coffee talk. For context, the SSSP are all racking their brains trying to learn more of Ultraman, as Kaminaga (Ultraman) simply walks into the office with a cup of coffee. Hiroko notices this and comments on how inconsiderate Kaminaga is for not asking her if she wanted coffee, let alone getting another cup for her. Kaminaga points out that humans (presumably) are self-sustaining lifeforms, and that they can do things for themselves. Hiroko makes a counterpoint that humans are social creatures who tend to rely on others, using Kaminaga's coffee (the coffee beans thereof) and clothes as examples of things he didn't import or make, but were handled by other people. Kaminaga comes to an interesting conclusion from this: that humans are "very much like a herd." Which isn't entirely wrong, but that's a blunt way of putting it!Asami: [taken aback by this response] This guy's an imbecile...
- After the US military's bombing run utterly fails to stop Gabora, the scene cuts to Chief Munakata telling someone to have the US bill the Ministry of Defense instead of the SSSP.
- Ultraman starts his fight with Gabora by descending while in his flight pose, like he's backing up a car...vertically. Then he spins in mid-air while still in his flight pose, before using his spin to kick Gabora in the drill with the momentum and sending the Kaiju flying back into a mountain range. Throughout the attack he looks stiff and prop-like, while the Catch Ring sound effect from the original series plays as he spins.
- When the SSSP's office suffers an alien EMP that fries their equipment, Yumi panics about the work she just lost, then flies into a rage about the stupid regulations that forced them to rely on a single closed-system database that was just destroyed. In the original Japanese, she declares that she's going to k**l the guy responsible for these flinsy regulations; in the English dub, her voiceover actress gives a slightly more descriptive threat that's also bleeped out. (This is an adaptation of a kids' show, after all.)Yumi: (English dub; seething) What idiot insisted on these regulations?! A closed environment and no backup drives?! Right about now I want to rip off their head and s***e it down their neck!
Akihisa: (numbly) …me, too…- When Zarab makes himself known immediately after, Yumi jumps out of her chair in order to hide behind it.
- Speaking of Zarab, he wears a large hat and conspicuous coat when he appears in the SSSP office, to minimize how much of his true form is alarmingly visible. Yet it somehow comes off as sillier than the corresponding episode in the original series, when Zarab was wearing this to pose as a passerby. Also, despite his confident, serious demeanour, he's comically short compared to his original incarnation, making him look all the goofier when he shakes hands with the Prime Minister of Japan. (Although he proves to be about as tall as anyone else, as seen when he towers over the captured Kaminaga.)
- Ultraman deals a chop to Imposter Ultraman's/Zarab's head, which staggers the latter and leaves the former with a hurting hand. What makes this better is that this is a reenactment of the same fight from the original series, right down to where the chop broke something off of Imitation Ultraman!
- Looking closely during the midair fight, Ultraman doesn't fire the Specium Ray until after Zarab sees him ready to fire it and blinks. Despite the lack of human facial features, you can just hear the "wait, wha—" in Zarab's head before he's blasted.
- After her stint as a giant, Hiroko comes to the SSSP office looking dead inside. Apparently, she went through a lot of embarrassing medical exams trying to figure out any lingering side effects of the Beta Box, but all she got out of it was "days of indignity". Then she yanks open her laptop and, in Large Ham fashion, rants in embarrassment about how the whole world knows her face (and, judging by the search results that were blurred under SafeSearch filters, her panties) as the Giant Woman in Japan. She ends the rant by slapping her thighs and growling, "Mefilas… I will never forgive you!"
- Which is when Mefilas sends her an audio apology and wipes out all the candid photos of her from the Internet. The search results soon empty out until the "No images match your search query" error message appears in their place. Then Hiroko, overjoyed, jumps out of her seat with a Big "YES!".
- The tension-laden negotiations between Mefilas and Kaminaga is contrasted by the silliness the evil extraterrestrial indulges in:
- There's something hilarious about the fact that these two extraterrestrials chose to meet in mundane locations like a playground and a bar, as if they were just ordinary human businessmen or two old friends hanging out for a chat. It brings to mind Alien Metron and Dan Moroboshi discussing the former's Evil Plan while both are seated at a coffee table.
- The two are first shown sitting on swings at a playground while discussing Mefilas' plan to make humanity submit to him. The entire time, Mefilas is enjoying himself on the swing, while Kaminaga sits on his swing with his usual stoic expression.
- After Mefilas teleports himself and Kaminaga away from the playground, one of the SWAT members can be seen raising his helmet windscreen and looking around in utter bewilderment.
- After negotiations fall apart, Mefilas asks for the bill at the bar they're eating at. He opens his wallet, winces slightly, then asks if Ultraman would be willing to split the bill. Ultraman as Kaminaga just turns his head as Mefilas asks this, but we don't actually see if he agrees to split the bill or not.
- How does Ultraman find Mefilas' Beta Box? By tracking the scent of its first subject: Hiroko. Cue Kaminaga using Ultraman's alien senses to memorize Hiroko's scent (complete with a faint sound effect), with Kaminaga having a completely blank face while Hiroko is awkwardly standing there, and the rest of the SSSP watch them with varying levels of confusion. It's quietly hilarious.
- Yumi's probably the least confused about Kaminaga's scent-acquiring method, partly because she was the one who suggested using smell to find it in the first place.
- As usual, the awkwardness of the situation is completely lost on Ultraman. When Hiroko apologizes for not having taken a shower before, Kaminaga states that it doesn't matter, her scent as it is now will suffice for finding the Beta Box. Hiroko, embarrassed, snaps that that's not what she's worried about.
- Even Mefilas is annoyed that Ultraman would resort to sniffing a woman in order to find the Beta Box, and immediately calls him out on it before turning back into his true form to fight. Given he went out of his way to erase all the candid photos of Asami as a Giant Woman on the Internet as an apology to her, one gets the impression he's more upset by Ultraman acting like a pervert (by human standards) than his plans falling apart.Mefilas: You searched directly inside the Planck Brane using a woman's scent? For the noble Ultraman to engage in such licentious behavior... "The ends justify the means." One of my least favorite sayings.
- While the SSSP are under arrest, Yumi is busy eating snacks. A lot of snacks. Though it gets a little sad when it's mentioned it's a result of stressing from being held in custody.
- Taki holds a meeting with the world's greatest minds to work on a plan that hinges on understanding the Beta System. What makes this grand undertaking funny is that Taki participates in a virtual reality meaning, with him having a PlayStation VR headset on his face as he speaks to the other participants in English. Yumi even lampshades how silly it looks to Tamura as they watch Taki from behind.
Shin Ultra Fight
- The Ultraman versus Ultraman (Imitation Ultraman/Zarab) fight is set up in a boxing ring with steel towers at its corners. Shenanigans include:
- One Ultraman punches the other Ultraman in the groin, resulting in a foul bell and the offender holding up his hands.
- Neronga suddenly charging into view and electrifying the boxing ring for the rest of the match.
- The Ultraman versus Zetton episode reenacts the fight from Episode 39, taking Zetton's Kill Sat appearance in the film and using that as the Zetton that Ultraman fights. The once intimidating Final Weapon ends up looking goofier than the original Zetton, acting like a guy in a rubber suit mimicking Zetton; rather than a vaguely-humanoid, abstractly-designed weapon.
