Ever wonder what Japan thought of Star Blazers? One place to find out was the magazine of the official Space Battleship Yamato fan club. It featured unique articles on Star Blazers over four consecutive issues in 1986, providing this rare Japanese perspective on what was done with Yamato in the U.S.
Producer Yoshinobu Nishizaki fully recognized the contribution of private fan clubs to Yamato‘s smash success in 1977. Hot on the heels of his announcement that there would be a Yamato sequel, he set into motion phase two of Yamato fandom: the founding of an official fan club. Read all about its most exciting years here.
The members of Studio Nue made their mark not only with mecha design for Yamato, but also such classic fare as Macross, Crusher Joe, Dirty Pair, and plenty more. Here we meet a member of this elite group who blazed a trail for anime design and is still working today: the great Naoyuki Katoh.
The internet bursts at the seams with Star Blazers and Space Battleship Yamato content. If you’ve backed away in terror at the sheer magnitude of it all, this page is here to highlight some of the more noteworthy artifacts that have emerged on YouTube, either directly related to Yamato or inspired by it.
The six participants in this 1993 interview discussed their experiences from the early years and their work on the forthcoming Yamato 2520, which at the time was simply referred to as New Yamato. The fact that 2520 would not work out as planned makes this a particularly interesting read.
A once-in-a-lifetime round table discussion between three luminaries: director Leiji Matsumoto, composer Hiroshi Miyagawa, and auteur Hideaki Anno. Translated from the 1998 Railway of Fantasy concert program.
Mr. Tenjin resides in Japan’s elite category of go-to painters for package design and anime production art. Best known for his long association with Macross, he also holds a record for most Yamato mecha painted by one artist. Here you will find talk of robots, model kits, and what it’s like to be Tenjin.
Yamato Mechanical Illustrations, published in 2011, contained this discussion between Tenjin and the editor of Yamato Fact File magazine. Their conversation explores some unique philosophical ground, mapped out by the responsibilities and pitfalls of visualizing SF anime’s most iconic spaceship.
This was the last of Yoshinobu Nishizaki’s essays on Farewell to Yamato, published in the Office Academy hardcover book on the film, published in 1979.
Yamato Part 3 had previously been used as the working title of The New Voyage, and it was invoked again when the first official mention of “the Next Yamato” appeared in fall 1979. Follow the record from this point through January 1980 through the pages of the Yamato fan club magazine.
Previous Yamato stories were created by committee, but for Be Forever, Nishizaki and Matsumoto began the process as a duo, which was reflected by a joint authorship credit on the finished film. Their work began in a meeting on October 23, 1979. Presented here are the notes from that meeting.
Story draft by Leiji Matsumoto
Matsumoto took the lead in expanding initial ideas into a story synopsis. He produced two drafts, completing the first on December 8, 1979 and the second on December 31. Presented here is his second draft, which laid the foundation for the movie. [3 pages]
An interview with Michael Pinto and Brian Cirulnick! Their mutual love of Star Blazers and their privileged perspective put many opportunities in their path and enriched their lives in ways neither could predict. As you will see, they do far more than fit the category of superfan — they define it.
January to May, 1980
On the first day of 1980, the film was only eight months from its theatrical premiere, and all the production staff had to go on was the first story draft, still called Yamato Part III. But believe it or not, things were right on schedule.
Star Blazers fan clubs in America didn’t have quite the same numbers as Space Battleship Yamato clubs in Japan, but they were absolutely equal in terms of passion, dedication, and motivation. This unique collection of documents from the early years puts all of that on full display.
Story draft by Toshio Masuda & Yoshinobu Nishizaki, January 1980.
Toshio Masuda took over the writing process with Nishizaki ensuring that the “Yamato flavor” was maintained in the finished draft. The story was essentially decided at this stage and became the foundation of the film. [3 pages]
“In the years since 1974, I have put my entire life as a producer into Space Battleship Yamato. These days, I think my whole life was leading up to the creation of this drama.” In this 1980 essay, Yoshinobu Nishizaki explains his thought process behind the making of this turning point in the saga of a lifetime.
Staff Essays
Tokuma Shoten’s Roman Album Volume 36 covered Be Forever in October 1980. The editorial staff of a Roman Album made it a point to collect essays from production staff members, which were always enlightening for fans wanting a look behind the curtain.
Published in July 1980: In this candid and wide-ranging conversation, Nishizaki comments on the social impact of Yamato, nationalistic themes, the rise of overzealous fans, the ideology of Ghandi, and much more.
Magazine coverage for The New Voyage was comparatively thin, but not hard to find; Animage, OUT, and the Yamato Fan Club Magazines all gave the film its due and fans did get a few words from the inside. Read it all here.
Producer’s Production Memoir
Executive producer Yoshinobu Nishizaki’s definitive essay on Be Forever Yamato‘s creation and production, from the Office Academy deluxe book, November 1980.
The New Voyage was first broadcast on Japan’s Fuji TV network Tuesday July 31, 1979, from 7:30-9pm. Referred to as a “telefeature,” the film occupies a special position in the Yamato saga in that it was intentionally designed to serve two audiences. Read the whole story of its development and release here.
OUT was a magazine by fans for fans. This article perfectly represents that approach; the transcript of a round-table discussion at a Yamato fan club meeting. At the time, Yamato 2 was just past the halfway point of its first broadcast and with each new episode enlarging the context of the saga, there was plenty to discuss.
