Ultraman Orb: The Chronicle Retells Orb's Story Ahead of a Possible Return

As Ultraman Geed approached its finale, Tsuburaya moved to keep interest in a previous hero alive with Ultraman Orb: The Chronicle, a special-edit series recapping the story of Kurenai Gai, the alien wanderer who starred in 2016’s Ultraman Orb. The format follows the same template as Ultraman Zero: The Chronicle, which aired earlier in 2017: rather than new footage, it retells the hero’s past adventures across television edits.

Gai’s story by that point spanned considerably more than his original TV series. Beyond the main show, he appeared in the sequel film Ultraman Orb: Lend Me the Power of Bonds, the short-form Ultra Fight Orb, and Ultraman Orb: The Origin Saga, along with guest spots alongside other Ultra heroes, among them Geed’s Zero, Zero’s father Ultraseven, Ultraman Dyna, Ultraman X, Ultraman Ginga, and Ultraman Gaia.

The timing invited speculation: when Zero received his own Chronicle series, it turned out to be a lead-in to a regular role in Geed. Whether Orb’s Chronicle was building toward something similar, or was simply revisiting old material while fans waited for whatever announcement Tsuburaya was teasing at the time, was left an open question. Ultraman Orb: The Chronicle premiered on Japanese television on January 6, 2018.