The new Netflix animated sci-fi movie Ultraman: Rising might at first seem somewhat imposing. Even a cursory look online will reveal that Ultraman as a franchise has been around for decades with a storied history in Japan. But while that's all true, and there's plenty more Ultraman where Rising came from, the folks that made Rising have a simple answer to whether you need to know about Ultraman to get what Rising's doing: You don't.
The movie follows baseball star and reluctant superhero Ken Sato after he inherits the role of Ultraman. He quickly ends up becoming a surrogate father to a baby kaiju and must learn to juggle all of the expectations of him while still defending the world. It's a lot! But also, at least according to the people that made it, you don't really need to understand anything beyond what's presented.
