February 20: Chapter 5 premiere
The countdown hit ZERO and the film launched at last. The Incandescent Galactic War premiered with all the extra bonuses fans have come to expect. Spoilers for “The last minute” had been well-protected, increasing the suspense for everyone who made their way to the 72 theaters screening the film across Japan. Historically speaking, it was the same for fans in 1980 who didn’t yet know what “Warp Dimension” was all about.
The episode titles perfectly embodied the spirit of the original series:
15. Fight to the death – protect the immigrant fleet!
16. Decisive battle – conquer the Dezarium fortress!
17. Space reborn – Super Yamato awakens!
18. Continuous warp – Yamato, transcend time!
Photos posted on Twitter by kida4483, shinobuhayamida, and jakodayo
Amazing! Yamato 3199! The last minute really got me!
forest_fu
That ending…I wanna watch Chapter 6 RIGHT NOW!!
kida4483
Chapter 5, you’re totally pumped up, aren’t you? The way you depict the mecha, the story progression…I was seriously watching it while getting all excited! I’m really looking forward to the next chapter!
shoko_a_0410
Photos posted on Twitter by toshimahata, meteor08, and AnalyzerAU09
You really treated us to a barrage of calorie-dense works in a short time, didn’t you, Bandai Filmworks?
hatayama1975
Chatting with fellow members is always fun, and getting to meet in person the comrades whose faces I didn’t know before is fun, too. That’s the true thrill of a real-life meetup, right? Thank you, everyone. I love how the theater buzzes in the last minute.
AnalyzerAU09
GYAAAH! For real, the supply base battle being the main event. Tons of homage shots, like from Yoshinori Kanada. The way the music is used is top-notch. And then, the last minute. GYAAAAH!
birdtorisan
February 20: Chapter 5 program book
A fresh, glossy, 40-page program book was ready to be purchased at theaters, always the first and best printed source for info on the latest episodes.
See it from cover to cover and read Harutoshi Fukui’s introduction here
February 20: Chapter 5 limited edition Blu-ray
Anyone who bought a movie ticket could get in line to buy a blu-ray of the episodes they were about to see, plus the usual Blu-ray extras. This time that included cast and staff commentaries, teasers & trailer, the “story so far” segment, the Chapter 4 “Sasha Yamatalk,” and the Chapter 4 Science Beginners video shorts. Also found in the package was the 12-page Blu-ray booklet.
See it from cover to cover here
The exclusive bonus books contained the storyboards for Episode 18, flipped with the script for Episode 17, and a 36-page guide to the CG technology used to make REBEL 3199.
February 20: Chapter 5 theater goods
Theater gift shops were packed with a tidal wave of new products in multiple categories to suit any taste in collectibles.
See the complete lineup here
February 20: Week 1 handout
Ensuring that no moviegoer walked away empty-handed, theaters were equipped with a free gift to be handed out as long as they lasted. The handout for the first week was an illustration board featuring Shima and Kodai.
February 20: REBEL 3199 Original Soundtrack Vol. 1
The arrival of a new soundtrack is a sublime moment for all true Yamato fans, giving us a gift that lasts long after we finish watching the anime. This one contained two discs and came with different bonus items, depending on where you bought it.
This forced some fans into a “choice roulette” with at least three options all using Kia Asamiya’s cover art: a pin, a keychain, and a “big jacket” art print.
Of course, there’s a lot more to say about the soundtrack, and you can read it in a separate article here
February 20: Chapter 5 end song released
This ending song sails through uncharted waters for Yamato, bringing a sound unlike those heard before. The story was picked up by several entertainment sites:
“I was trembling…”
Megumi Ogata performs the ending theme song for the latest Space Battleship Yamato film
Published at Livedoor, February 20, 2026. See the original post here
It has been announced that the ending theme song for the animated film REBEL 3199 Chapter 5 (currently in theaters) is Persona, sung by Megumi Ogata. A lyric video was released on the 21st, and the song is now available online.
The lyric video features the ending theme song with its progressive rock sound and beautiful chorus melody, and Alphon, a key character in the series, superimposed on the video.
Lyrics by em:óu
Composition and Arrangement by Ryo Takahashi
■ Comment from Megumi Ogata
I’m a true Yamato generation member. I cried my eyes out at Farewell to Yamato and was shocked when Be Forever followed Yamato 2. When I was a rookie voice actress, I was cast as Surveillance Fleet Commander Miru, replacing Osamu Ichikawa, who retired after the game version of Farewell, and I was so thrilled that I recited all of my lines by heart, shocking my manager at the time. (Laughs) Now I’m ecstatic to sing an ending theme song for Yamato.
The words conveyed to me were, “Not a ballad, but hardcore rock,” and “A song that will destroy what Yamato has been like up until now” — a massive shock. (Laughs) Of course, I know they meant “destroy it in a good way.” But how? That’s where the journey of this song began.
The final scene of this film will be quite a turning point in the story for longtime fans, so the team decided to make a progressive rock song with the theme, “The world can suddenly change one day. Along with the concepts of justice and truth,” and “Still, I’ll live on. With you.”
However, since it’s Yamato, I wanted the chorus to have a beautiful melody line that would hold up even if rearranged into a ballad. Then Ryo Takahashi came back with an incredible song…!! I put my heart and soul into the lyrics that I sang, with love for Yamato and for humanity. I’ll be happy if it resonates with Yamato‘s “current position” as it navigates the modern era.
Watch the 90-second lyric video on Youtube here
Listen to the full version of the song here
February 20: Chapter 5 opening day stage greeting
The day ended with the first of two stage greetings at the Shinjuku Piccadilly theater in Tokyo. This one featured the familar “Yamato trio”: General Director Harutoshi Fukui, Director Naomichi Yamato, and Scriptwriter Hideki Oka. Since it was their first chance to finally speak publicly about “the last minute,” they were immensely relieved to get it out in the open.
This led to a spoiler-filled report, so decide how much you want to know about it before you click here.
Photo at right posted on Twitter by AnalyzerAU09
February 20: Chapter 6 promotion
Customarily, the debut of a chapter in theaters triggers the Youtube release of the first teaser video for the next chapter. But owing to the shock of “the last minute” in Chapter 5, no teaser appeared until the beginning of March to keep spoilers at bay. However, we did get the teaser poster with some rather shocking art by Kia Asamiya.
Keeping with the “colors” theme, the title for Chapter 6 is Azure Labyrinth, and the release date is set for June 26. The caption at upper left reads, Everyone, turn black.
The image doesn’t function as a spoiler for Chapter 5, but certainly raises questions for what’s coming next. Its appearance kicked off sales of the first advance ticket voucher, which came with a B2 size version of the poster.
See a larger version of the new art at the end of this page
February 20: Staff members on Twitter
One more entry for opening day: two members of the animation staff posted original art in commemoration of the premiere. The captions read as follows (click on their names to see the original posts):
Chizuru Kobayashi
Random doodle for the release of Yamato 3199 Chapter 5 today! I was the animation director and partial animation director for Episode 17, and one of the animation directors for Episode 18. Thanks to so many people, I was able to get through it! I worked hard on it, so I’d be grateful if you could watch it!
Kio (Edakio) Edamatsu
Chapter 5: The Incandescent Galactic War premieres today, February 20th. I’m helping with prop design, mecha animation direction, and art settings. Thank you for your support…!!!!!!
February 21: Festival float
From the Chunichi Shimbun [Newspaper] website:
Space Battleship Yamato float makes an appearance at the first Konpira Yoi Festival in Kamioka, Hida
On the 21st, the “Hida Kamioka First Konpira Yoi Festival” took place in the center of Kamioka Town, Hida City, featuring a procession of handmade floats and other items. Residents paraded through the streets, praying for prosperity in business and safety in their homes. The town was filled with energy amid signs of spring.
The festival originated in 1956, when the local fire brigade paraded to Dounji Temple, performing Edo-style kiyari (wooden tunes) learned from the Edo Firefighting Memorial Association, the birthplace of firefighting. At the departure ceremony, Ryota Masuda, head of the festival’s duty committee, said, “Drink, laugh, and have fun. Cherish this time. I pray for prosperity in business and safety in your homes.”
February 22: Second stage greeting
Two days after the premiere, fans swarmed the Shinjuku Piccadilly again for another stage greeting, featuring three of the primary voice actors. This one stayed spoiler free, so it’s safe to read if you haven’t seen the episodes yet.
Click here to read it
February 23: Today’s Science Beginners video Vol. 13
The light-hearted 3199 companion series resumed with Tokugawa and Isidore learning about “Phase energy and its strategic utilization,” which references the power source for Dezarium’s Digablas fortress. In case you’re following these, the side-issue with Isidore losing a popularity poll against “Power Saver-kun” is still a pain point for him, especially because “Power Saver-kun” isn’t much of a host. Perhaps he’s not what he appears to be…?
Watch it on Youtube here (closed captions and auto-translate ON)
February 23: Cast comment video
The second comment video for Chapter 5 featured Harutoshi Fukui and the voice actors for Tokugawa and Isidore. Since they are the lead characters in the Science Beginners series, that was the subject of their conversation.
See the video here
February 23: Voice actor interview
Mantan Web has broken ground by interviewing voice actors we haven’t heard from yet, and their latest meeting was with Motoki Takagi to discuss his character Toru Hoshina, possibly the most secretive operative on Earth.
Read what Takagi had to say about Hoshina here
February 24: Hobby Japan Web
The online version of Yamato Mechanics Part 16, featuring the Cosmo Falcon, was posted today on the Hobby Japan website.
See the post here
Read the article here
February 24 & 28: Mantan Web articles
As premiere month drew to a close, Mantan Web published two VERY spoilery articles about “the last minute” with comments from Harutoshi Fukui.
Read them here if you’re ready
February 24: Utacon TV special
Utacon [Song Con] is a music series on NHK that brings performers together around a theme. For this episode, the theme was to commemorate the great lyricist Yu Aku on what would have been his 89th birthday. He happened to be responsible for most of the Yamato lyrics from the classic era, including the famous opening theme. And when it needs to be sung live, you go to one guy: Isao Sasaki.
The website for the Chunichi Shimbun [Newspaper] had this to say about it:
Singer Isao Sasaki (83), who suffered a serious illness last year, appeared live on the music program Utacon on the 24th. His stunning rendition of his signature song Space Battleship Yamato garnered a huge response online, with “Isao Sasaki” trending highly on X (formerly Twitter). He received praise online with comments like, “Welcome back,” “I’m moved by his unchanging singing voice,” and “Amazing.”
This day’s Utacon featured renowned Showa-era lyricist Yu Aku. Sasaki performed alongside Sayuri Ishikawa, Shinichi Mori, Hiromi Iwasaki, and Akira, the former lead vocalist of Finger 5, and performed the full version of Yamato. Sasaki miraculously recovered from a life-threatening condition caused by an acute exacerbation of interstitial pneumonia. His singing voice, which was as good as ever, captivated the audience, making it hard to believe he had been forced to take time off work.
He performed at an age that didn’t sound like he was 83. He was showered with praise, with comments such as “That voice is incredible,” “You’re back?! That’s great!”, “Welcome back. Your voice hasn’t changed at all. I was moved,” “You’re 83? Your pitch, volume, sense of rhythm – everything is perfect, I was amazed,” and “I was honestly a little worried when I heard you’d just recovered from an illness, but the moment you started singing I thought ‘Oh, you’re fine,’ and it was amazing.”
See Sasaki’s performance here
Continue to part 3: The rest of the story
