Youtubers' challenge of TVB has turned out to be TVB exploiting youtubers, a “massacare” of teenagers by the baby-boomers. The youtubers have allegedly produced several short clips for the challenge. One of the producers, Dunhill Lam, sent me his piece, “Ultraman of Democracy” (《民主超人》) and asked me to comment on it. It is a short story of 6-7 minutes, with a collage of Ultraman, Mazinger, Japanese anime, Super Sentai and Tokusatsu, all of which formed part of our childhood. The story revolves around a monster who attacks Hong Kong and how the “Ultraman of Democracy”, invented by a scientist, played by Law Lok Lam (who did not die this time), fights against the monster.
On the surface, the story is about citizens during occupation versus the establishment. Public opinions drive the Ultraman of Democracy, but they are numerous and scattered, and Ultraman loses and retreats one round after another. Law, the scientist, then activates the secondary mode of Ultraman, “Functional Constituency Super Sentai”, strengthening Ultraman and regains some advantage. The public then argues on where to place the monster afterwards. People in Mongkok does not want it to be placed in Mongkok, adopting the philosophy of “not in my backyard”. Law repeated proclaims, “Who is the happiest with your lack of togetherness?”, yet he opines that the monster should not be placed in Hong Kong Islands, since he has two apartments being leased there.
People in Admiralty and Mongkok each have their own class interests, therefore unable to form a united front. Then a child's tears brings Ultraman to life again. Law says that Ultraman has now developed self-consciousness. With the audience now expecting Ultraman torise and defeat the monster, the self-conscious Ultraman decides to abandon the Earth and flies away, as his conscious self tells him that the fate of the Earth is irrelevant to him. The story ends in this anti-climatic scene.
The Ultraman of Democracy seems to be the force of democracy and righteousness, but he is not. Once he has developed self-conscousness, he no longer fights for the people. In fact, this is an illustration of the ideology and interest of a dictator quickly moving away from the people after rising amongst them. The Ultraman of Democracy is more similar to Hitler, Mao Zedong and Stalin. Their ruling power has no initial cognition, it is only the collective desire for change. Once the power has solidified and its positions established, they become leaders, third-parties who as a matter of fact do not care about the people or the monster.
Ultraman is revived in the background of a red rising sun, hinting at militarism, and in turn, modern China; the so called “people's democratic dictatorship” stems from the tears of an innocent child. In the Tokusatsu from our childhood, children are always innocent but powerful. But in the post-modern pieces such as this, the innocence of a child represents how the public follows blindly. Their selflessness, peacefulness, kindness and trust allow the dictator to rise.
The Ultraman of Demoracry is not about the rise of democracy, but the fall of democracy, or why has democracy never worked. It is because the people are too kind, too trusting for others to do the work, and they never doubt the power of the Ultraman itself is the source of tyranny.
Note:
1. Law Lok Lam is a Hong Kong actor who is famous for dying in 5 different soap operas in a 24-hour period in 2011.
Chinese Version 中文版本: