Daigo Madoka. The human form of Ultraman Tiga.
There came Godzilla and Gamera then there was Ultraman!
Daigo Madoka (マドカ・ダイゴ Madoka Daigo?) is the reincarnation of the ancient Giant of Light, Ultraman Tiga. When Daigo learned of his heritage he became the new Tiga, and secretly aided his teammates of the Earth defense squad, GUTS. After a year of protecting the Earth, Daigo, as Tiga, fought and defeated the ancient evil, Gatanothor, and then retired as Tiga, married his love Rena Yanase and together they become among the first to colonize Mars.
Abilities and Skills[]
- Combat Training: As a member of GUTS, Daigo is trained in combat and the use of high tech arms.
- Pilot Training: As a member of GUTS, Daigo is trained in the handling of their machines and vehicles.
- Transformation: Using the Spark Lens, Daigo can transform into Ultraman Tiga at will.
- Darkness Resistance: Because of his Ultra DNA, Daigo is resistant to the power of darkness. The vampire monster Kyuranos didn't attempt to turn him, sensing that it would be pointless. He was immune to Gijera's pollen and survived in Gatanothor's darkness.
Profile[]
Daigo usually uses a device called the Spark Lens to transform, but in near death situations he is able to transform without it.
According to the hologram of Yuzare, Daigo has the DNA of ancient giants of light called the Ultramen who lived on Earth around 30 million years ago. It is implied during their first conversation and heavily in Final Odyssey that Daigo is in fact the reincarnation of the original Tiga, who was once a warrior of evil but turned to the light after falling in love with the original Yuzare. This is supported by the fact that Camearra, Tiga's former lover, immediately recognized him in human form, implying he is identical in appearance to the Original Tiga's human form.
Also, as stated by the Yuzare program in episode 2, the two are one being, Daigo is different from most Ultra Hosts/human forms, in that he is neither a human assimilated with an Ultra or an Ultra taking on a human form, Daigo is an otherwise normal human being who has the ability to transform into an Ultra, which is also his biggest weakness. Like other Ultras, who have the M78 three minute rule, Daigo is powering his Ultra form by the light he turns into and the light his body can absorb like any Ultra, meaning he can only stay in Ultra form for three minutes on Earth, although he seems to have more flexibility in space. Also any injuries he carries in human form carry over to his Ultra form and Vice versa. During a few episodes when Daigo's hand was injured, every time he transformed he checked his hand to see if it was in fighting condition. It was shown after his fight with Geozark that Daigo was immediately tired after transforming back into human form. Outside of his ability to transform into living light/an Ultra, Daigo is a normal human being as has been shown several times in the series.
Trivia[]
- Daigo Madoka is portrayed by Hiroshi Nagano (長野 博 Nagano Hiroshi?) one of the performers of V6 and Takashi Nagata (永田 貴嗣 Nagata Takashi?) during his childhood in episode 9.
- According to an interview with then-president of Tsuburaya Productions, Kazuo Tsuburaya, he stated that the decision to appoint Hiroshi Nagano as the main cast is to invoke the image of a youthful protagonist. His first name, Daigo, was devised by the series' producer, Hiroyasu Shibuya.
- Daigo is the first instance in the Ultra Series of a human being with Ultra Genes/biological relation to an Ultra. Daigo is also the first instance of an Ultra Host/Ultra retired.
- Daigo is the first human host who transformed into his Ultra counterpart instead of the two switching. He is unique (aside from fellow Tiga hosts) in that he is also the first to literally be his alternate persona. This makes him the opposite of Dan Moroboshi in that instead of being an Ultra in human form he is a human that turns into an Ultra.
- Daigo is the second Ultra Hosts/Forms who showed their transformation item to the members of the attack team, the first was Dan Moroboshi.
- Daigo is the first Ultra's human host who has abilities like when he recognizes a kaiju or he could talking with aliens perhaps due to he was Tiga's reincarnation.
- Daigo is the first protagonist to start a family, he is also the first Ultra being to retire.
- In Ultraman Tiga Gaiden: Revival of the Ancient Giant, Tsubasa mentioned that his father Daigo wants to live as a normal human.
- He is the first known Ultra host whose Ultra form runs in his family. Before him his ancestor Amui wielded his own Spark Lens and channeled the power of Tiga. His son also wielded Tiga's power, if only partially and Daigo is suspected to be a descendant of the original Tiga.
- Despite the loss of the Spark Lens, there is reason to believe Daigo could still transform if he wished, as he may still have the Black Spark Lens and his Ultra DNA also means he could still potentially transform.
- At the end of The Final Odyssey, right after Daigo met Asuka for the first time, he said, 'Good luck, junior' under his breath. This was a passing the torch scene.
- Daigo was meant to return in Ultraman Tiga & Ultraman Dyna: Warriors of the Star of Light movie and Ultraman Tiga Gaiden: Revival of the Ancient Giant but was never made it due to his actor having trouble with a scheduling conflict. Because of this, his children came into conception to replace him instead (Hikari Madoka in the movie and Tsubasa Madoka in the Gaiden).
- There are several episodes of Ultraman Tiga where Daigo suffered injuries or diseases which were thought to be a part of the script but in truth, these were actual ones which his actor, Hiroshi Nagano, received:
- In episode 15 and 16, he suffered from an injured left hand after Tetsuo Shinjoh accidentally crash-landed their GUTS Wing near the beach of Kurara Island. Originally, Daigo was meant to have been injured on one of his legs, but Hiroshi had injured his hand before the shooting took place.
- In episode 38, it was scripted that Daigo would be infected with a fever. Coincidentally, Hiroshi did have a fever at that time.
- Aside from Daigo Madoka, the only role that Hiroshi Nagano played was a character named Nagano in episode 49 of Ultraman Tiga, which was meant as a joke. In reality, Hiroshi Nagano claimed that if he were to be offered with a role other than Daigo in the Ultra Series, he would refuse it.
- This event is almost similar to Dan Moroboshi in Ultraman Leo. In reality, Kohji Moritsugu was supposed to portray a human character named Tetsutaro Kawakami, MAC's captain and Gen Ohtori's mentor, as well as the only human character to be aware of Gen's alter ego as Ultraman Leo. However, Kohji refused the role, fearing that people would mistake him for Dan.
- Great Decisive Battle! The Super 8 Ultra Brothers marks the last appearance of Hiroshi Nagano in the Ultra Series as well as his role as Ultraman Tiga's voice actor since 2000. Hence, this also was Daigo's last appearance.
Music[]
Ultraman Tiga OP - Take Me Higher (Lyrics)
Ultraman Tiga's badass theme song
Ultraman Tiga Gallery[]
