"The Pillar's only visible to those who know of its existence. This Pillar can absorb anxieties of the heart like fear and suffering. So, like the people of ancient times did, I decided to use it to erase anxieties one by one, in order to create a perfect paradise. As you're well aware, our greatest anxiety as humans... are kaiju. By erasing everything related to the kaiju, including memories, I will eventually be able to erase the very fact that the kaiju existed."
- ―The Man in the White Mask explaining the Pillar's purpose in his plans, Ultraman Arc episode 22 "The Man in the White Mask"
The Pillar [1][2][3] is a mysterious object that serves as the secondary antagonist of episode 22 of Ultraman Arc, "The Man in the White Mask".
Subtitle: Relic of the Paradise Dream [1][2][3]
Conception[]
Design[]
The Pillar was designed by the episode's director, Tomonobu Koshi. According to Koshi, its asymmetrical spirals are intended to evoke unease and fear, contrasting with its intention of absorbing worry and anxiety.[4]
History[]
Ultraman Arc[]
Kept a secret by nature of it only being visible to those made aware of it, the Pillar was used by the Man in the White Mask as his weapon to eliminate the kaiju and anyone who knew of them.
Its effects first manifested in the form of Yuma Hize's umbrella going missing - along with the very concept of an umbrella, as when he visited a nearby shop to replace it, the shopkeeper seemingly had no idea what an umbrella was - as well as damage sustained by Hiroshi Ban's car, and an injury to Shu Ishido's arm both having vanished. More pressingly, a whole month had passed without any kaiju appearing, leaving the team wondering if they would be disbanded.
The next morning, more sinister events began to take place. SKIP had completely ceased to exist. Unable to recall when it had last rained, Yuma, Shu and Rin attempted to find out using the internet, only to discover that the idea of rain itself had ceased to exist, as a search engine returned no results relating to it. Together, the three deduced that an invader of extraordinary power must be behind these events. While Shu was able to contact the Global Defense Force and set off to reach their base, Yuma and Rin decided to search for the source of the mysterious erasing phenomena.
As Yuma and Rin walked through the desolate streets of Hoshimoto City, seemingly devoid of all human and animal life and with its colors fading away, Yuma briefly caught a view of the Man in the White Mask, causing him to lose sight of Rin; the second he looked back, Rin had disappeared, having been erased by the Pillar. Yuma desperately called Shu to warn him about what had just happened, only to find out that Shu had lost his way, and couldn't remember how to get to the GDF. Surmising that either GDF or his memories of the route had ceased to exist, he decided to return to Yuma, but was immediately accosted by the Man in the White Mask and erased by the Pillar as well.
Shortly afterwards, the Man in the White Mask appeared before Yuma again, and revealed the Pillar's existence to him, making him see it with his own eyes, then teleported him to the top of the Pillar, high above the ground. There, the mysterious man revealed the Pillar's true nature.
An object supposedly used by an ancient civilization to remove negative emotions by forcing people to forget about them, thus resulting in them being erased from existence, it was discovered by the Man in the White Mask, who utilized its power to erase the kaiju and everything connected to them. However, while everything else was erased easily, the presence of a being of great power within Yuma prevented the Pillar from being able to erase him, and thus the plan to eliminate the kaiju could not be completed until Yuma and Arc were both destroyed or otherwise rendered unable to interfere. As he told Yuma that the time to finish his plans was near, and that he would soon become part of the Pillar, Yuma fell over the edge. As he fell, he attempted to turn into Ultraman Arc to survive, but the Pillar erased Ultraman Arc from the Arc Cubes, preventing him from transforming, and forcing him into an altered reality of the Man in the White Mask's creation, one in which his plan had seemingly succeeded.
After Yuma regained his memories and ability to turn into Arc, the Pillar itself attacked, now bearing the Man in the White Mask's mask on its surface, indicating that the two had fused. The Pillar attempted to seal Arc inside a dome that began to drain his energy and colors. Arc immediately responded by firing his Arc Finalize at the object, causing it to shatter into pieces and explode into a shower of colours, restoring the world to its proper appearance. As the Pillar was destroyed, everything it had erased returned to existence, including Yuma's friends, the GDF & SKIP, the kaiju, and the rain, which proceeded to begin falling not long afterwards.The Man in the White Mask
Trivia[]
- In keeping with its debut episode featuring several references to the works of Belgian surrealist artist René Magritte, the Pillar bears a resemblance to his painting The Castle of the Pyrenees, as like the Pillar, the painting's subject is a large stone object - in the painting's case, a castle atop a giant rock - floating in the air.
Data[]
- Stats
- Powers and Weapons
- Erasure: The Pillar bears a mysterious ability to erase objects, attributes and even living beings. It is also able to erase intangible aspects, such as the concept of a specific thing - as evidenced by it erasing all mentions of rain from the internet in addition to rain itself, the memories of living beings, and even the world's colour. At full power, the Pillar was able to render Hoshimoto City almost completely devoid of humans and non-human animals. When the Pillar is destroyed, everything it erased is returned to existence as it was prior to its erasure.
- Intangibility: The Pillar is completely invisible and intangible to all but those who know of its existence, allowing it to carry out its role in the Man in the White Mask's plan completely unopposed.
- Levitation: Despite its immense size, the Pillar is capable of levitating high above the ground.
- Draining Dome: After fusing with the Man in the White Mask, the Pillar can summon a dome around its target, which proceeds to shock them with electricity that takes away their colors. This dome is not impermeable, however, as Ultraman Arc was easily able to fire his Arc Finalize through it, leaving the Pillar defenceless.
Gallery[]
Ultraman Arc[]
References[]
| Ultraman Arc Kaiju | |
|---|---|
| Ultraman Arc | Rution | Digelos | Gomora | Red King II | Oo-ze | Shagong | Leodo | Monogelos | Nezutron | Livyjira | Alien Croco | Homger | Internet Kanegon | Neronga | Pagos | Noiseler | Oka-Gubila | Givas | Alien Meguma | Sweed | Zadime | Mogusion | Zangill | Gedos | Taganular | Bazanga | Hellnarak | Earth Garon | Supekkio (Gomess (SP)) | Red Sphere (Dori, King of Mons) | Man in the White Mask | Pillar | Biorno | Trigelos | Guilebaku | Ze Su |
| Ultraman Arc The Movie | Alien Diggle Sascal | Alien Repo | Shagong | Guil Arc | Doglf | Repodios | Zerogelos | Gartura |
| Pre-series | Chandlar | Eleking | Bemstar | Antlar | Houlinga | Neldorand | Takkong | Silvergon | Shieldron | Syazac | Leilons | Saramandora | Flygler | Guebasser | Raibasser | Demaaga | Gudon | Oka-Gubila | Barebadon | Peter | Gabora | Magular | Gubila | Guigass | Mukadender | Sadola | Birdon | Mogrudon | Telesdon | Ragon | Giestron | King Guesra |