Spectreman

(Spectreman スペクトルマン^?, Supekutoruman) is the one and only, titular protagonist of the series. He is from the Nebula 71 Star (many horror/science fiction shows such as Ultraman take place somewhere called Nebula) and must request transformation. His human form is called Gamou Joji, who is played by Tetsuo Naricawa.

History[]

Spectreman was a cyborg created by aliens from Nebula 71 known simply as, "The Overlords." They sent him on a mission to Earth, to help stop pollution. In order to blend in with society, he created a human disguise called Jouji (George in the English Dub) and joined an anti-pollution team.

On the distant Planet E, a peaceful planet of apes, the evil Dr. Gori had been banished, for trying to conquer the planet. After many years of wandering the universe with his sidekick Rah (Karas in the English dub) he found the planet Earth.

Disgusted by the mistreatment of this planet, he decided to use the pollution to create the monster, Hedoron, to destroy humanity before they could ruin Earth. Luckily, Spectreman stepped in and fought the monster, setting it ablaze by charging at it after he'd been shot by Dr. Gori's ship.

However, Hedoron was revealed to have survived the flames and continued to wreak havoc in Tokyo City. Jouji transformed into Spectreman for the second time and used his Spectre Light to reduce Hedoron to a puddle of goo.

Time after time, Dr. Gori sent horrific monsters to eliminate the humans and Spectreman (at one point even bringing Hedoron back as Neo Hedoron), but none of them succeeded.

Features and Powers/Weapons[]

Body Features[]

Beam Lamp: The green gem on Spectreman's forehead is the equivalent of a Color Timer, except instead of changing color, it flashes and dims when Spectreman is low on power. When it goes out, Spectreman is unable to physically move until his energy is recharged by Overlord. It's also the means by which he communicates with Orverlord, and even transform from his human form into his cyborg form when Overlord sends a beam of energy to it to initiate the transformation.
Body Armor: While Spectreman's body is extremely durable, his chest and body cuirass, gloves, and boots are almost invulnerable, able to withstand extreme force without yielding. His body armor is strong enough to even ward off Giligand's weaponry, save for when he got slashed in the leg. Very few times are when the armor is pierced, like when Spectreman was stabbed in the back through the chest with a pitchfork by being forced back by a concussive force. In the manga version, exceptionally vicious opponents like Salamander are able to pierce his body armor.
Super Strength: As is with most superheroes, Spectreman possesses great strength. Human size, he's able to match, even exceed, Karas/Ra, who is able to break large wooden beams like matchwood, crush boulders with his bare hands, and rend full grown men limb from limb. When fighting Kaiju, he's able to lift monsters like Salamander and the Sphinx clean over his head and throw them like ragdolls.
Self Repair: In certain instances, Spectreman slips into a coma-like state so his body can repair itself from whatever damage he might sustain. But this leaves him in a vulnerable position, so he sparesely uses it, as seen in episode 4, "Ra Searches the Earth" when he was impaled by a pitchfork and needed to quickly repair himself.

Techniques[]

Hand-to-Hand Expert: Spectreman is an expert at hand-to-hand combat, able to match most opponents with his martial arts prowress, like Karas/Ra, whom was a trained soldier of Planet E.
Spectre-Blade: An energy blade formed from Spectreman's hands (manga only).
Spectre-Flash: An energy beam that surges from Spectreman's fingertips. The Spectre-Flash comes in different forms: There's the standard Kaiju-killer form, which is a straight beam/ray fired from the hand outstretched; the slightly weakened blast or bolt-like form, fired from the hands when they're crossed in an X-shape; a weakened form that is able to melt and fuse metal, like when he fused a door shut; and the "medical" form where spectreman weakens the flash to its barest minimum, then concentrates the amplitude of his X and R rays, used to cure a human family and their victims of a deadly pollution in their bodies.
Spectre-Ray: A Rainbow Ray that can destroy a monster.
Spectre Thunder: Spectreman can generate a shockwave of energy.
Nebula Slice: A multicolored shuriken, that expands when thrown.
Spectre Cutters: Razor-sharp blades that burst forth from Spectreman's forearms.
Nebula Gimlet: Using the Spectre Cutters, Spectreman rotates like a drill, digging fast.
Spectre Sword and Shield: Sword and shield sent to Spectreman from Nebula Star when requesting them.
Spectre Gun: A huge gun sent to Spectreman from Nebula Star when requesting them.
Flight: Like most giant heroes, Spectreman can fly.
Size Change: Spectreman starts out human-sized but can grow giant sized.
Spectre Shock: Spectreman can electrify himself to electrocute his foes. This power only works on contact.
Spectro Eyes: Spectreman's eyes turn light blue and can see invisible objects and life forms.
Freeze: Spectreman can shoot shoot snow from the spike on his head to freeze his enemies.
Light: Spectreman's body can flash brightly to blind his opponents and also burn them.

While Spectreman is virtually invincible, he can still be damaged. In one episode, when injured in the leg by an opposing monster, he bled green blood. He bled one other time, when bitten in the neck by a space vampire. Notably, his blood color had changed to bright yellow.

Transformation[]

Spectreman Transformation (manga) — Spectreman Transformation (manga ver)

Jouji needs to ask the Nebula 71 people for permission to transform. He extends his right arm towards the sky and is then bathed in a ray sent by Nebula 71 and transforms.

Trivia[]

Spectreman was created around the time of many other famous Tokusatsu TV series such as Kamen Rider, Ultraman Ace, Ultraman Taro, Zone Fighter, Ultraman Leo, and Dinosaur War Izenborg to name a few.

Spectreman’s name in the English dub is George instead of Gamou Joji.
Much like the original Ultraman, Spectreman's costume went through a few changes. The first one had a detailed, muscular tone to the chest and body covering with a golden belt and buckle. The second costume retained the muscular tone, but the belt was gone, leaving only the buckle. The third costume did away with the muscular tone entirely, making the body smooth, aside from some subtle features, and completely lacks a belt, having only a buckle on the abdomen.