An End-of-the-Year Tokusatsu Gathering!

Eiichi Asada (left) and Kazuya Konaka hold a poster for Konaka-san's film Single8 (2023). Photo by Brett Homenick.

Last night (Saturday, December 16), I attended an end-of-the-year party with two special guests: Eiichi Asada and director Kazuya Konaka. Konaka-san had his new film Single8 (2023) screened, but I missed it due to my work schedule. Maybe someday!

Despite being an end-of-the-year party, the proceedings were pretty typical. Actually, the most memorable moment for me was when one of my Japanese friends, whom I've known for years, asked me what I thought of Godzilla Minus One (2023). Well, technically, I asked him first, but, before answering, he asked me what I thought of it. When I said I didn't think it was very good, he smiled and shook my hand. It turns out he had the same issues with the film that I did and couldn't understand why it's so successful.

Eiichi Asada. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Overall, we both agreed that the visuals were good but that the script was the film's major weakness. With a few tweaks, I do think the movie could have been great. It's just a shame that the story has more than its share of flaws.

As mentioned earlier, one of the guests of honor was director Kazuya Konaka  Konaka-san helmed episodes of Ultraman Dyna (1997-98), Ultraman Cosmos (2001-02), Ultraman Nexus (2004-05), Ultraman Mebius (2006-07), Ultraseven X (2007), Ultraman Ginga S (2014), and Ultraman Orb: The Origin Saga (2016-17). 

Konaka-san also directed the feature films: Ultraman Zearth 2 (1997), Ultraman Tiga and Ultraman Dyna (1998), Ultraman Gaia: The Battle in Hyperspace (1999), Ultraman: The Next (2004), Mirrorman Reflex (2006), and Ultraman Mebius and Ultra Brothers (2006). 

I didn't get to speak with Konaka-san very much (despite sitting across from him for a good portion of the evening) due to my lack of familiarity with his work. But it was interesting listening to him answering the questions of others at the table who were much more familiar with his movies and TV shows.

That said, I had a lot of fun with Asada-san, as usual. After I had arrived late and sat down in the audience, Asada-san spotted me and greeted me from his table where he was signing autographs. One funny moment was when I was saying something about the Soviet submarine scene in Godzilla 1985 (1984), but Asada-san couldn't understand my use of the word "Russian" with a Japanese accent. It wasn't until I said the word in English that Asada-san finally understood what I was saying! 

At the end of the evening, a couple of attendees handed Asada-san their business cards, and, since comedy comes in threes, I handed Asada-san what I explained was an invisible business card. As you can see, I like making silly jokes a lot more than I'm sure people like hearing them. (I really should get new business cards made, though.) Also, as Asada-san was about ready to leave, we posed for the two photos above. 

All in all, it was a fun evening, and I hope to do it again next year!