New technology leads to bigger and better toys from diverse branches of the Bandai family tree from 1999 onward. See them all on these three pages: Banpresto (1999-2001) Popy, Plex, and Megahouse (2001-2008) Bandai toys (2007-2011)
Translated from Matsumoto’s autobiography, The Far Place Where the Ring of Time is Linked. The book culminates with a chapter devoted to Space Battleship Yamato and his second most famous production, Galaxy Express 999. Here is the Yamato portion, which contains the explanation for the book’s unusual title.
Since the resurgence of Yamato toys in the legacy years, advances in toymaking technology and artistry have both worked their magic to expand the definition of “toy” far beyond something kids play with and outgrow. We’re now in the age of the Designer Toy. Two companies in particular stand out in this field, both examined here.
Yamato miniatures have been around since the production years, but as manufacturing has improved, the level of quality and detail has left the originals far behind. Here are four different sets of Yamato miniatures from 2003-2008 made by Sunkus, Nubel, Bandai, and 7-11 to compare and contrast.
Today’s Yamato toys not only outnumber the originals, they surpass them. In the early days, they were made by tradesmen who didn’t know what Yamato would become. Now they’re made by Otaku who are driven to pay homage. That’s a big difference that you can better appreciate when you see the results. [2 pages]
Part 11: The Crown Jewel
In January 2007, the biggest and most ambitious model kit in Yamato history made the record books when Bandai released the game-changing 1/350 scale Yamato. See it from front to back and read about how it came to be.
The creativity exhibited by modelmakers in Japan is enormous, and (in some cases) as imaginative as the original ship designs themselves. In this three-part record, we have the pleasure of seeing Yamato through their eyes. Yamato and fighters | Earth Defense Forces | Enemy Spaceships
Garage kit manufacturers assemble several times a year at various hobby shows to sell their carefully-handcrafted works, and Yamato is always well-represented. The kits are difficult to obtain outside Japan and require high-end expertise to build. For the rest of us, here is an extensive photo-tour of these “Yamato Supermodels.” [2 pages]
Many Japanese garage kits are exquisitely-designed statues of popular characters. Yamato characters haven’t been turned into garage kits as often as those of other anime productions, but enough of them exist — of one standout character in particular — to fill up a skilled modeler’s shelf.
When we last left our heroes, games based on Space Battleship Yamato had just made the jump from paper to pixels, but many years would pass while Yamato took every step down a road that lead to home electronics and the high-end world of pachinko. That journey is fully documented here. [2 pages]
In 1985, previously-unseen Yamato animation appeared exclusively at Taito game centers in Japan, in a now-extinct Laserdisc game based on Final Yamato. It’s no longer possible to play it, but enough pieces survive for us to examine this amazing artifact from beginning to end. [2 pages]
Released by NEC in 1999, this gave fans something they could only dream about during the production years: a virtual Yamato that could be explored at will and a digital database for the first TV series. Examine this groundbreaking masterwork from top to bottom and find out what it took to create it here.
When one considers the gameplay possibilities Yamato offers, typing doesn’t immediately spring to mind, which makes the extraordinary quality of these games even more surprising. These four articles examine each game in detail with animation stills, movie files, and more. Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4
With updated designs and lively new animation this evolution of Yamato might just as well have been a brand new anime. Bandai released three Playstation games from February 1999 to September 2000. They breathed new life into the first and second Yamato stories and laid the groundwork for more to come.
The expanded capacity of PS2 had tremendous benefits; higher resolution, faster processing, and greater data storage did wonders for the rendering and gameplay possibilities. Combine that with an imaginative new take on a classic Yamato story and you have a recipe for greatness.
Yamato games made prior to November 2007 were played at home, but that was the month Japan’s Fujishoji Co. finally brought the saga back to a place it hadn’t been since 1983: the public square. CR [Card Reader] Yamato Pachinko was a take on the journey to Iscandar which took the interactivity to epic proportions.
Maestro Hiroshi Miyagawa, the award-winning pop music composer and creator of the score for Japan’s famous anime series Space Battleship Yamato died of heart failure on March 21, 2006. He was 75. Anyone who has ever listened to his work knows that those words barely scratch the surface.
A tribute to pianist/composer Kentaro Haneda (1949-2007) who assisted maestro Hiroshi Miyagawa, and poet/lyricist Yu Aku (1937-2007) who wrote almost every word in the Yamato songbook.
Events of the Legacy Years, 1984-2007
As of 1984, the Yamato saga was now in the past tense, but the sheer momentum of the production years guaranteed a lively future of public events that kept the passion fed…
Events of the Legacy Years, 2008-2010
The resurrection of Yamato began in 2009, accompanied by a landslide of public events that brought back the spirit of the original production years. This record reviews them all, culminating with the 2010 live-action movie.
Events of the Legacy Years, 2011-present
Fully back in the public eye after the 2009 resurrection, Yamato achieved the status of living legend as the new films circled the globe and yet another new production loomed over the horizon. See the continuing record of public events here.
Weekly Yamato Fact File was published in encyclopedic segments from October 2009 through August 2011. And what an encyclopedia it is; 2,640 pages designed to fill 9 custom ring-binders that command 18″ of shelf space. All of it devoted to the world of Space Battleship Yamato.
Ryusuke Hikawa wrote this column to examine the subtleties of anime. His topic in the April 1999 issue was a complex one indeed: the interplay of thoughts and images as delineated by a single frame of film. It gave him an opportunity to examine various aspects using the evolution of Yamato as an example.
A conversation with three people who took part in Yamato production: Sound Effects Producer Mitsuru Kashiwabara, Sound & Music Producer Mitsuhiro Koyama, and Assistant Producer Shinji Iwamoto. Translated from the 1996 Sound Fantasia CD liner notes.
Animetal USA records the main theme in English, Weekly Yamato Fact File magazine closes out the largest publishing effort ever, a new Andromeda toy, the most expensive Yamatos ever made, Leiji Matsumoto hijacks ship designs for new model kits, a Yamato-themed cafe opens, and much more! [2 pages]
One of the most talented Yamato veterans is the virtuoso manga artist and animation director/designer Yasuhiko Yoshikazu. Here he talks about his Yamato experiences in 1983, shortly after the theatrical releases of Final Yamato and his own feature film, Crusher Joe.
Toyoo Ashida was there for the revolution that transformed anime from kid stuff to mainstream, and he not only rode the wave for great success, but also helped pushed it forward as a designer, animator, and director. What he left behind will embody the joy and energy of this amazing artform for generations to come.
Everyone who sees hand-drawn animation knows intuitively what they’re looking at. But before Kanada came along, few realized the hidden potential of that fact. His gift to the anime industry was to unlock that potential. Space Battleship Yamato was just one of many beneficiaries.
Yamato events are now long over with, but enough documentation remains to provide a substantial and entertaining record of this unprecedented phenomenon. If you were enough of a fan to follow Yamato from place to place Grateful Dead style, this is what your calendar would have looked like from 1975 to 1983.
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.
