N-M Chapter 45, The Interpretation of Light—this is the kind of divine chapter we should be reading!
Chapter 45, The Interpretation of Light—this is the kind of divine chapter we should be reading!
Two nights after the previous episode aired.
In the office of the Celestial Master of Wonders.
Zhao Rui slumped in the boss's chair, his eyes fixed on Bilibili's real-time trending list.
"Why...why is everyone supporting Ultraman Tiga?"
Currently, the ratings, reviews, and viewership of "Superpower Overlord" are steadily declining, showing no signs of improvement.
Just when he thought things would improve after Ultraman Tiga ended this week...
Just now, that die-hard Tiga fan, the sarcastic Old Tang, posted a half-hour-long in-depth analysis video.
The number of views has now exceeded two million!
He knew that a film critic of Lao Tang's caliber, if he remained silent for too long, would definitely unleash something that would explode like a nuclear bomb in public opinion.
When you open the video, the background doesn't have the funny special effects that Lao Tang usually does.
He sat in a study, with an entire wall of philosophical and sociological works behind him.
Old Tang's expression was more solemn than ever before, even revealing a sense of exhaustion from being shocked.
The video title is: "The arrogance of civilization and the inheritance of light: A detailed explanation of episodes 19 and 20 of Ultraman Tiga".
"Everyone, this is Lao Tang."
In the video, Lao Tang took a deep breath, his voice deep and magnetic.
"I watched 'Towards Space' five times. The first time I watched it for the special effects, the second time for the plot, the third time for the humanity, and by the fifth time, I understood it..."
At this point, the background music in the video changed to a variation of Ultraman Tiga's theme song.
"This is not a simple tokusatsu drama. Director Gu Nan is using costumes and models to write an epitaph for the future of all mankind."
Old Tang pressed play, and the image froze on Goblin, the "steel-plate masked man" walking on the street late at night.
"Let's start by analyzing the initial plot."
The scene, naturally, is the opening of episode 19.
"Everyone, you can see that Gu Nan is clearly imitating the opening of a classic horror film. Many people think this is just to create a scary atmosphere. But have you ever thought about it deeply? Why is Goblin just an empty shell?"
Old Tang's voice suddenly rose in pitch.
"Because they are robots from deep space, the embodiment of 'absolute rationality'."
"According to my analysis, the name Goblin originates from the Celtic god of blacksmiths, symbolizing pure technology and forging. They have no internal organs, no emotions, only the logic of executing commands. They are the 'safety system' of the universe, a word that is too cold."
Old Tang pulled up a diagram on the screen illustrating the derivation of the "Dark Forest Theory".
"The Mechanical Island is not an invader; it is a 'purifier.' In Director Gu's logic, the universe possesses an unknowable will."
"This will holds that when a civilization masters the 'forbidden power'—namely, the Magus power system—it gains the ability to transcend the chain of suspicion and threaten other civilizations. Therefore, the safeguards are activated. It's not malicious, like a human stepping on a nest of ants simply to clean the road. This kind of 'cold violence' from a cosmic perspective is more despairing than any evil alien overlord."
The chat started flooded with comments:
Holy crap, Old Tang's interpretation has taken the sophistication to the level of the Dark Forest!
[Safety System = Civilization Killer]
This feels a bit like a patent! Someone invented it first, and then you developed it; naturally, they'll cause you trouble.
No, from the perspective of civilized society, this should be considered a technological blockade.
Director Gu's script is so profound, it completely blows away the script from the other show, "Qiao Tianzun"!
Old Tang continued to switch the scene, lingering on Dr. Ba Wei's slightly tired yet childlike face.
"Let's talk about Dr. Tomoe again."
Old Tang's tone softened considerably. "Director Gu Nan has created a scientist with a strong scholarly spirit here. He studied the Magneto propulsion system for twenty years. Why?"
Just like the scene in the video where Dr. Tomoe plays a role.
"At the top leadership meeting, he was questioned and attacked, but his final answer was: 'I just want to build a particularly large ship that no one has ever seen before.'"
Old Tang exclaimed, "What the ultimate romance! It's a pure desire for exploration, stripped of political and military motives. This is exactly what Daigo meant by 'evolution'—not a physiological change, but the soul's yearning for the unknown."
"But reality is cruel; Dr. Yao's invention brought about destruction."
The video shows the stunning aerial combat scene of the small Goblin attacking the Atlas.
"Here, Horii played a crucial role in balancing the philosophical conflict—'The value of science and technology depends on the user's intention.' This statement directly shattered the fear of technology and provided a moral basis for human civilization to resist the machine island."
Old Tang pointed to the steel behemoth named "Atdis".
"The takeoff of the Atlas is not a display of military power, but the embodiment of humanity's dream. It carries a cursed power to defend the right to pursue the light."
The stunning entrance of the Atlas, accompanied by an exciting background music, was exhilarating.
"At this moment, the industrial aesthetics of tokusatsu dramas reached their peak. The combination of live-action models and CG metallic skin gave the Atlas a profound sense of history. It is not just a spaceship, it is Noah's Ark."
To be honest, the Atlas is really cool!
[By the way, when are we going to get our hands on the Atlas figure?!]
It has a Star Wars vibe, huh!
The video then moves on to the core analysis section.
Old Tang captured the scene of Daigo questioning himself in the snow-white wasteland.
"This is, in my opinion, the greatest moment of these two episodes."
Old Tang's voice trembled slightly, "Daigo broke down in the face of the Kirieloids' mockery and Yuzare's prophecy."
At this point, the comparison that Lao Tang showed in the video was actually the Showa-era Ultraman from Tsuburaya Productions.
"Unlike the early Showa-era Ultraman series, which featured Ultraman in a 'one-body' relationship with humanity, the Tiga series' story, almost from the very beginning, shows that Tiga, as the hero of light, is practically synonymous with Daigo."
Then, the scene shifted to the plot of the first episode of Ultraman Tiga.
The ancient prophecy aptly points out that "Daigo becoming light" is the "method to revive the giants."
Old Tang had the audience compare the two, explaining as he went:
"So, does Daigo live as an Ultraman who saves humanity, or as a human?"
"But based on the current plot, we don't know clearly whether Daigo still has much consciousness after transforming. However, as the plot progresses and the emotions become richer, I naturally tend to think that Daigo chose the latter—in human form."
"From the very beginning, when Daigo encountered the pyramids and the three stone statues, he transformed into light and merged with Tiga's body. In our view, this is naturally a historical choice that has been passed down from the ancient times."
"But from Daigo's perspective, it was actually a complete coincidence; he had doubts and was also confused."
The video then showed the events that had just occurred:
"From the moment everyone was helpless when faced with the appearance of Gakuma in episode 2, to the moment in episode 3 when he only hoped to save the captain who was in dire straits, Daigo always wanted to do what he could on his own."
"But then, the Kirieloid, who wanted to guide humanity, appeared before Daigo, mocking him as nothing more than a laughable person who secretly wanted to become the 'protector of Earth.'"
"Their wanton accusations of 'hypocrisy' naturally shocked and bewildered Daigo."
"I've forced myself to shoulder the heavy responsibility of being the 'protector of the Earth.'"
"From then on, Daigo embarked on a journey of fighting alone."
Even a few episodes ago, the Taoist priest Jinglong, who cultivated immortality, was telling Daigo: "Being a hero is a lonely thing."
"Faced with an unknown space robot, Daigo, who transformed into Ultraman Tiga, suffered his first defeat, which made Daigo doubt his ability to become an Ultraman."
The video shows that white, misty space, Daigo's mental world.
"He asked, 'Am I qualified to be Ultraman?' This is the awakening of a 'false god.' In the previous battles, Daigo may have subconsciously considered himself the 'protector of Earth,' which is a heavy form of arrogance."
"But the explosion of Goblin made him realize that there are limits to his power as an individual."
Yuzare told him that this power was "inheritance," but "humanity cannot enter the next era if it cannot work together."
As he spoke, Old Tang's voice quickened slightly.
"This is the highest political metaphor in the entire play: heroes are not saviors, heroes are merely the sparks of collective will!"
"The reason Daigo was able to stand up was because he saw his comrades still fighting in the oxygen-depleted spaceship, and he saw Dr. Tomoe protecting his dream. At that moment, Daigo was no longer a lonely god; he became a member of the human race."
"The line 'I am not alone' marks the complete transformation of Ultraman Tiga from a traditional superhero film into an epic film."
At the end of the video, Lao Tang released a carefully edited slow-motion clip—the moment when the Atlas activated its Magus Cannon and its light merged with that of Ultraman Tiga.
"At that moment, human technology and divine light became one. In artistic expression, this is known as 'anthropomorphism'."
"Light Chaser Studio used this scene to tell the world: We don't need to wait for miracles, we are the creators of miracles ourselves."
At the end of the video, Lao Tang remained silent for a long time before leaving behind a summary that shocked the entire internet:
"Qiao Tianzun makes 'commercial' films, while Director Gu makes 'backbone' films. From today onwards, stop calling him a 'college student director'; he is the undisputed 'soul of tokusatsu' in this era."
Bilibili's servers have once again flashed an orange alert.
The comments section can no longer be described as "lively"; it has practically turned into a large-scale interdisciplinary seminar.
A comment from a user identified as an "Associate Professor of Philosophy at a university" was pushed to the top: "Thank you, Lao Tang, and thank you to Light Chaser Studio. In this episode, I saw Kant's 'Starry Night and the Moral Law,' and Heidegger's questioning of technology. Special effects, as a kind of 'fictional reality,' carries a power that transcends the scope of film and television itself. This is a self-examination of civilization."
Meanwhile, many more fans were venting their emotions wildly:
[A masterpiece! A true masterpiece!]
After reading the analysis, I immediately went to watch it for the third time. Before, I only thought the Atlas was cool, but now I feel it's a history of humankind!
Dr. Tomoe's comment about "wanting to build a big ship" really struck a chord with me. What is my dream? I've almost forgotten.
[Director Gu, I'm begging you to make a model of the Atlas! We need to support the backbone of Chinese science fiction!]
……
In the studio, Chen Bo watched the rapidly increasing number of likes, his palms sweating profusely.
"Brother Nan, Old Tang's hype is... I'm starting to wonder if we've really become gods? The depth of his analysis makes me suspect that you had a philosophy master ghostwrite the script."
Gu Nan smiled slightly, his gaze fixed on the bustling night view of Jinghai outside the window.
"That's the charm of images, Chen Bo."
Gu Nan said softly.
"We provide the skeleton, and the audience's thinking gives it flesh and blood. Lao Tang isn't praising me; he's expressing this era's thirst for 'hardcore thinking.'"
"People are fed up with all that bland, AI-generated garbage; they need to see something genuine and substantial!"
In that spectacle society filled with capital, AI, and fast-food culture, Gu Nan and his Chasing Light Studio, like the Atlas, are relentlessly rushing towards that profound future, trailing a long tail flame.