Today I set out early for an approximate hour-long train ride to a part of Tokyo I’d never been before. The goal was Soshigaya-Okura station, at which I was hoping to find something special. Once again I was in the morning rush hour commute, and today the trains felt even more packed. It took me three to get to my destination and I wasn’t 100% sure what I’d find when I arrived.
So imagine my joy when almost the very first thing I saw at the station was this:
And these:
And these:
Seven giant panels showing off Ultramen (and one Ultrawoman) of the Showa and Heisei eras! I had arrived at what has become known as ‘Ultraman Shopping Street’ 🙂
Right outside the station is a (human sized) statue of Ultraman, and even though it was early (around 9 am) I still had to wait my turn to take a good photo! I found it interesting that the others were younger than me. It seems a 60-year-old hero can still appeal to the younger generation.
The local maps outside the station are decorated with Ultraman imagery:
The station is at the nexus of two shopping streets that about two decades ago became ‘official’ Ultraman shopping streets. In addition to the statue and signs, this also meant installing street lights modeled after Ultraman and Ultraseven:
And installing spectacular gates at the end of the street showing Ultraman and Zoffy flying in to save the Earth!
Many businesses have signs at the entrance showing they are affiliated:
And a few – which were not open since I was there so early – looked like they sold merchandise or had additional decorations inside. I also saw lots of posters in windows for the new upcoming series as well (Ultraman Arc):
Oh and this guy was sitting by himself at the town community center:
It’s Kanegon, an alien that debuted in the show that preceded Ultraman (Ultra Q) and is a friendly monster. He looked lonely so I sat with him for a while:
To be honest, I loved it all. It was hot and humid and there was no English anywhere (or toilets, so I had to duck into a deafening pachinko parlor) but I had a fun time noticing all the Ultraman stuff especially the flying Ultras at each end of the street. It was absolutely worth the trip.
My next destination was about a half-hours walk away, which was faster than if I took the trains since there was no direct line! I steeled myself for a tiring walk in the humidity, and hoped it would be worth it. As for where I was heading… that deserves a post of its own!