The anime A Certain Scientific Railgun has taken some of the most exciting parts from A Certain Magical Index and brought them to life, like the story of Accelerator's Level 6 Shift experiment. This arc is Ren's favorite part of the Index series.
Compared to Index, Railgun focuses more on daily life and school settings, with a pacing that's easier for most people to enjoy. It slowly builds up the story, allowing the tension to rise naturally before hitting its peak. This kind of pacing appeals to a broader audience.
The light-hearted and humorous daily life scenes are also fun to watch, providing a good balance with the intense moments. The growth of the main characters is clear and relatable, making it easier for viewers to connect with the story emotionally.
The blend of excitement and touching moments makes it hard for viewers to lose interest.
Of course, Railgun isn't without its flaws. Some fans might find the original storylines a bit dull. But the parts that stick closely to the source material are undeniably engaging, especially the Sisters arc in Railgun S, which is truly exceptional.
Another highlight of Railgun is its music, particularly the theme songs, which are incredibly catchy. Unfortunately, since the lyrics are in Japanese, it's a bit more challenging for Ren to hum along compared to the Chinese songs from Ultraman Tiga. But there's always a way to adapt. After all, while Japanese songs are great, Chinese lyric-writing skills are top-notch.
In fact, Ren thought back to all the great Chinese versions of popular songs from his past life, like "Later," and felt that something similar could be done here.
"Not bad, not bad!"
Ren smiled, satisfied with the first two works he'd drawn. This month was off to a great start. Even if the next work turned out to be something subpar, he wouldn't feel disappointed.
Soon, the third work appeared before Ren's eyes—Ultraman Dyna, the follow-up to Ultraman Tiga.
Dyna is one of the "Heisei Trilogy" of Ultraman series, but it was the only one not aired on Chinese Central Television (CCTV).
Why was that? It had nothing to do with the quality of the show itself, which was quite good. The reason was tied to the actor who played the main character, Shin Asuka—Takeshi Tsuruno.
Ren didn't like the actor at all. In his previous life, Tsuruno was known for his hostile attitude towards China, his visits to a controversial shrine, and other actions that made him disliked by many. Even in Japan, Tsuruno wasn't well-liked within the industry due to his arrogance, rude behavior, and poor reputation. He was even part of a certain controversial group in Japan, which only added to his unpopularity.
But that's just a side note. The important thing is that Dyna itself wasn't at fault. Ren just felt like venting a bit after remembering all this.
Back to the show itself—Ultraman Dyna was the second Ultraman series of the Heisei era, following the success of Tiga, which meant it had big shoes to fill.
To attract fans, the series cleverly continued the world established in Tiga, setting the story eight years after the events of Tiga and featuring an upgraded version of TPC and GUTS. This made Dyna the first true sequel in the Ultraman franchise.
Various innovations in the series helped retain Tiga's audience while also drawing in new viewers. The series was a success in its own right.
However, there were some aspects of the story that fans criticized. For instance, in the end, not only did the series break up the main couple, but it also sent Ultraman Dyna into a black hole, leaving his fate uncertain. This made Dyna the first Ultraman since the original series to have an ambiguous ending.
In contrast to Tiga's somewhat upbeat conclusion, where a group of children performed a ceremony to bring the Ultraman back, Dyna's tragic finale left a much deeper impression.
But looking back at the subsequent Ultraman series, Ren realized that this dramatic ending was actually a clever move. Dyna became a recurring character in various other Ultraman stories, much like how Kamen Rider Black appeared in other Kamen Rider series.
As for Dyna's design, it was quite similar to Tiga's. Dyna also had a silver body with two colored stripes and a golden chest piece, with a head adorned with crystal elements. The design of Dyna's Flash Type was slightly simpler than Tiga's Multi-Type, making it look a bit more streamlined.
However, Dyna's abilities were significantly different. His Strong Type focused on physical strength and close combat, similar to Tiga's Power Type.
But Dyna's Miracle Type was almost a glitch in the history of Ultraman. His Leptonium Energy Wave could, according to the story, send enemies into a black hole, completely erasing them. That's incredibly powerful!
Moreover, Miracle Type could recharge itself. In one episode, an artificial sun acted as Dyna's personal power bank, making Miracle Type the biggest overpowered character in Ultraman history. It's quite a contrast to Jack, an older Ultraman, who nearly got roasted when he tried to recharge using the sun.
That said, Dyna wasn't perfect. Perhaps because Tiga had set the bar so high, the characters in Dyna didn't leave as strong an impression. While Tiga had memorable supporting characters like Director Sawai, Commissioner Yoshioka, and Dr. Yaoi, Dyna only had one notable supporting character—Gondo, who was somewhat of an antagonist.
Other new characters, like the new director and female staff, left almost no impression on Ren. He couldn't even remember their faces clearly, which showed that the character development in Dyna was lacking compared to Tiga.
Overall, though, Ultraman Dyna was a successful follow-up to Tiga, serving as a bridge in the Heisei Trilogy with both continuity and innovation.
"Sigh!"
Looking at this work, Ren felt a bit disappointed because he had already started working on Dyna during the production of The Final Odyssey. He had even signed the actor for Dyna. Now, with the completed story already in hand, he couldn't help but feel it was a bit redundant.
But maybe this was a good thing. It would save him the trouble of coming up with the story on his own. After all, writing original content is much harder than simply adapting something that's already there.
Fortunately, his company, Gu Yuan, had expanded, and the current financial situation was stable. Shooting Kamen Rider Amazons and Dyna simultaneously was definitely feasible.
"Hmm, but…"
Suddenly, Ren thought of something else. What about Dyna's power level? Could Dyna have defeated the monsters from Tiga, like Camearra, without the power boost Tiga had? Tiga had the ability to absorb their energy, and the villains initially held back against him because of past connections. But Dyna…
He imagined Camearra and her crew giving Dyna a brutal beatdown right from the start.
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