The☆Ultraman

The☆Ultraman, also known as Ultraman Jonias, was produced by Tokyo Broadcasting System and Tsuburaya Productions as the first animated entry in the long-running Ultra Series. Premiering in 1979, the series was created to revitalize the franchise through the medium of animation, allowing for more ambitious space-faring visuals and intricate kaiju designs that would have been cost-prohibitive to film in live-action at the time. It marked a departure from the traditional suitmation format, reflecting the height of the late 1970s Japanese animation boom.

The series was designed under the supervision of Tsuburaya Productions, with character designs intended to bridge the gap between traditional Ultra aesthetics and the expressive style of late 70s anime. While the transition from live-action to cel animation was met with mixed reactions from die-hard fans of the original tokusatsu format, the series is now recognized for its technical achievement in bringing the expansive scale of the Ultra universe to a new generation of viewers, serving as a distinct stylistic bridge between the Showa-era classics.