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One of my great joys (and lasting influences) in childhood was watching Japanese tokusatsu shows such as Ultraman, possibly because my father worked at NASA, I ate up everything science fiction. I could say two defining role models for me were Nichelle Nichols (Star Trek) and Sakurai Hiroko who played the role of Fuji in Ultraman. (both shows were created in 1966)
Fuji, as a member of the Science Patrol was on equal footing with her male colleagues, (even wearing the same uniform) she always proved herself levelheaded and capable in all situations, she was sent on recon missions on her own, and one of the only times she had to be ‘rescued’ she had been transformed into ‘Giant Fuji’ (shown here) and her colleagues had to attempt to get her back without resorting to violence.
A few episodes showed Fuji in her everyday life, including one where she covets a string of pearls and after a successful mission, she goes shopping with a colleague to pick up a necklace, making a point of purchasing them with her hard-earned monster fighting salary. In some episodes she is shown with her younger brother, an honorary member of the Science Patrol, yet this relationship never comes off as maternal, as she encourages him to undertake dangerous situations.
In the series run, she was never shown as anyone’s romantic interest, or that romance in itself was one of her goals (though there was an implied affection between herself and Hayate and in later films of Ultraman (the franchise is still going in Japan) she and Hayate were married.
But I wanted to point out, she was a fully realized character, with her own hopes and career goals within the Science Patrol, and more importantly, she was always treated with respect, and confidence in her abilities by the other members of her team. Not to mention they were able to tease each other, and the feeling was of a close knit family. I feel a bit of sad nostalgia that the future shown to me in Ultraman about gender equality has not come true as yet.
