Did you know our beloved Merlion will turn 50 on 15 September this year? To celebrate this milestone, Singapore Tourism Board (STB) on Tuesday (April 12) released a video titled “Ultraman: A New Power of Singapore” featuring everyone’s favourite childhood hero, Ultraman, along with our amphibious mascot – in a form you’ve probably never seen before.
The 6½ minute video showcases a Merlion with red-and-white mane and red paws, which is apparently the form of its alter ego called Merliger. Its look is actually based on a previous guardian kaiju called Gukulushisa from the 2018 film, “UltramanGeed The Movie: Connect The Wishes!”.
STB’s new video is actually a combined video of a series of short episodes (each lasting 2 minutes) – where Ultraman battles various kaijus in Singapore – commissioned to commemorate the 55th anniversary of Singapore-Japan diplomatic relations.
The series sees Ultraman fighting various kaijus – like Red King, Gubila and Neronga – as they attack Singaporean landmarks like Gardens by The Bay, Marina Bay Sands and Jewel Changi Airport. At MBS, the final location, we see Merlion transform into Merliger, and rises from the waters to aid Ultraman fend off three kaijus.
Watch Ultraman protect our island nation from kaijus:
The series was directed by Kiyotaka Taguchi, who was the main director for Ultraman Z (2020) and Ultraman Orb (2016). It was a collaboration between STB and Tsuburaya, the Japanese production house which owns the Ultraman copyright. You can also watch the three short episodes on the ULTRAMAN OFFICIAL YouTube channel.
“Ultraman: A New Power of Singapore” was part of a larger campaign called “SJ55” and was also coincidentally Ultraman’s 55th birthday.
The campaign will run until December 2022, with plans for Ultraman to be progressively rolled out in the coming months with Singapore Airlines, the Night Safari, as well as a “luxury hotel” that cannot yet be named.
