Toybox REVIEW: S.H. Figuarts Mother of Ultra

Release Date: September 2025

RRP: 8800 yen

With Father of Ultra finally joining the S.H. Figuarts line back in August 2024, it felt like only a matter of time before the Mother of Ultra would join him. Thankfully Bandai Tamashii Nations didn't have collectors waiting too long, and it was only another year before S.H. Figuarts Mother of Ultra was a reality. Also known as Ultrawoman Marie, she acts as medical relief for the Inter Galactic Defence Force and is wife to Father of Ultra and biological mother to Ultraman Taro. First appearing in Ultraman Taro all the way back in 1973, she is significant for being the first female Ultra warrior in the franchise. Despite this, the figure was a Tamashii web exclusive as opposed to a retail release.

S.H. Figuarts Mother of Ultra comes in a standard windowless box, the design of which matches the rest of the Showa era Ultraman range. The red colour scheme closely matches the majority of the Ultras released in the range (even if the shades aren't exactly alike), which curiously makes Ultraman Taro's stand out all the more as he came in a greyish silver box. The front of the box features a nice big image of the Mother of Ultra suit as it appeared in Ultraman Taro, with a fainter image of the figure itself beside it. Below them is the character name in big lettering, as well as the Taro series logo and usual Bandai of Japan logos. One side of the box is plain, while the other features the character name again alongside a bookend style spine image. On the back of the box is the usual array of stock images, showing Mother of Ultra off in a variety of poses. Open her up and you'll find both the figure and accessories neatly stored on their plastic tray.

The figure is based on Mother of Ultra as she first appeared in Ultraman Taro - or more specifically the first full body suit for her seen within the series. While the design for the character hasn't really changed in the years since, little details like the seam/crease lines moulded into the torso give it a retro look akin to that original suit. The figure does however use a very vibrant shade of red that gives it a more modern look, as a opposed to the more muted shade seen on both the Ultra Brother releases and Father of Ultra. So really it's just a good all-round Mother of Ultra figure, which works nicely as she doesn't seem likely to get another one for some time. Naturally the first thing that stands out about Mother of Ultra's design is her more feminine head design - complete with "Silver Cross Decoration" pigtails and tiny "Mother Red" horns. Her yellow eyes also stand out, as many of the Ultras with similar head designs (hers was originally a modified Ultraman head) have white eyes in toy form. The body is similarly well done with more womanly proportions and sharp paint apps - particularly on the silver buttons lining her torso on boots. Around her right wrist is the "Mother Blue", a bracelet which alongside her Colour Timer adds an extra bit of colour to the predominantly red and silver design.

Although the body may be a smaller frame than the male Ultras thankfully there's no loss of articulation here, and Mother of Ultra proves just as poseable as the previous releases. Altogether she features;

- Ball jointed head, neck, torso, waist and wrists

- Butterfly joint shoulders

- Swivel hinge shoulders, hips and ankles

- Double hinge elbows and knees

- Single hinge toe section

- Thigh swivels

Sadly there's no bicep swivels here, but given how none of the Showa era Ultras have them it isn't any surprise to see them absent yet again. That said, Mother of Ultra could have perhaps benefitted from them the most. Not only is the butterfly joint movement not quite enough to get a decent trademark Ultraman cross-arm pose (a pose Mother of Ultra makes as part of her Mother Beam technique), but the smaller joints means the elbows don't have a great deal of bend either despite being being double jointed. In fact, it's only slightly more than a 90 degree bend. The lower half of the body however is much better, with very flexible hips and knees as well as a very good ankle tilt - something that really helps balancing those heeled boots. One annoying little QC issue I've noticed on my copy (as well as a couple of other recent Figuarts releases to be honest) is that the wrist joints have a habit of splitting apart when swapping the hands - not breaking, but the two halves held together by friction just come apart and one half is left inside the hand. It's not difficult to clip the pieces back together and try pulling the hand off again, but it is tedious nonetheless. Overall though, Mother of Ultra doesn't need to be the most dynamic of figures so this figure is more than capable of pulling off most poses collectors plan to place her in.

The set includes a small but suitable range of accessories, consisting of four additional pairs of hands as well as a "Mother Beam" effect part. No alternate Colour Timer this time around, as Mother of Ultra never really took part in any real combat in Ultraman Taro. That said, the hand selection is the typical range you'd find with an Ultraman release (closed fists, knife-strike/beam pose and a variety of open pairs) so the figure itself has more than enough for some basic fight poses. The Mother Beam (which is a healing beam as opposed to an offensive one) effect part is made of translucent pink plastic, with its cylindrical shape setting it apart nicely from the other Ultras' beam parts. Despite on first glance looking like it might just simply slip over one of the standard right hands, there is in fact a separate one glued into it. If you do have a copy where the wrist joints separate easily though, be warned as it can be an absolute nightmare if it splits and one of the halves is left inside (I speak from experience). Overall it's a pretty basic range of accessories, but covers of the character as she appears in Ultraman Taro. I do hope Bandai will release her mantle one day though, as well as Father of Ultra's to go with it. While I wouldn't have expected it to come with this release (not just because it doesn't appear in Taro, but of course modern Bandai sell it separately), I do think it adds a lot to both of their designs and it would be nice to have the option to display them that way.

Much like Father of Ultra, S.H. Figuarts Mother of Ultra is a figure that was long overdue. It isn't a particularly elaborate release, but nevertheless it's an excellent representation of the character and fits in wonderfully with the rest of the Ultra Warriors. Nearly any picture you take of her with one of the Showa era Ultras feels like part of a family photo album given the number of them she's related to, but there's no doubt she looks best alongside Father of Ultra and their son Taro. The fragile wrists are a bit frustrating, but that's not necessarily something that every copy is going to suffer from. The Showa era Ultraman line-up is now beginning to look very nearly complete, so here's hoping collectors aren't waiting too long for the next release!