{"id":42619,"date":"2024-12-18T12:24:52","date_gmt":"2024-12-18T20:24:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/?p=42619"},"modified":"2026-01-14T22:25:52","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T06:25:52","slug":"093b","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/093b\/","title":{"rendered":"Yamato<\/em> Year 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Though the first TV series marked its 50th anniversary in October 2024, most of the celebration took place throughout 2025. The band leaders were Hideaki Anno’s two organizations, Studio Khara and ATAC [Anime Tokusatsu Archive Centre], which produced a dazzling exhibition that brought original production materials into the public eye.<\/p>\n

But that was only part of the big picture. Commemorative products, a record number of live concerts, and a prodigious amount of online activity kept the lights on all year long. Here is a huge roundup of everything that made it one of the best Yamato<\/em> years ever.<\/p>\n

Jump to individual topics:<\/p>\n

Studio Khara activity<\/a> (2 pages) | Media<\/a> | Music<\/a> | Yamatunes<\/a> | Events<\/a> | Products<\/a> | Fan activity<\/a><\/p>\n

Each page links to the next for continuous reading<\/p>\n

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Cosmo DNA<\/em> Highlights<\/h2>\n

Editor Tim Eldred here: it was a true pleasure for me to fulfill Cosmo DNA<\/em>‘s highest purpose, helping the English-speaking world to keep up with the rapid pace of activities in Japan. While all that was going on, I took every opportunity to continue the mission of historical research. Here are some of the places that mission took us in 2025…<\/p>\n

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Eiichi Yamamoto and the end of Mushi Pro<\/h3>\n

Eiichi Yamamoto, one of the first writers to get involved with Space Battleship Yamato<\/em>, recounted his years at Osamu Tezuka\u2019s Mushi Productions in a 1989 autobiography. In an emotional excerpt from the pivotal year 1973, he tells of the end of one dream and the first step toward another. Read it here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Series 1 PR presentation, September 1974<\/h3>\n

Whenever new TV series were announced by a network, a presentation package was distributed to affiliate stations and media sources for publicity. Click here<\/a> to read the original package for the first Yamato<\/em> TV series, distributed in September 1974.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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50th Anniversary Complete Records Exhibition<\/h3>\n

It\u2019s hard to imagine a more comprehensive, more inspired, more lovingly curated presentation than what fans in Tokyo got to see from March 15 to 31. Presented here<\/a> is a simulated walkthrough of the entire exhibition, made possible by the many fans who shared their photos on social media.<\/p>\n

The exhibition reopened in Osaka from July 19 to August 3. As before, cameras were given all-area access, so fans shared what they saw generously online. Presented here<\/a> is a photo walk-through of the event space and surrounding points of interest.<\/p>\n


\nPhoto published on Mapdate<\/a>, 2019<\/em><\/p>\n

O.G. Superfan Ryusuke Hikawa<\/h3>\n

As a Yamato<\/em> fan from day one, Mr. Hikawa has been the most outspoken ambassador ever since, single-handedly (at times) preserving the past for the sake of the future. It should come as no surprise that we heard from him many times in 2025.<\/p>\n

From the pages of Spectator<\/em> magazine, August 2024: Hikawa discussed the birth of Yamato<\/em> fandom in Japan with an unprecedented level of detail, including his visits to the production studio and what he did with the treasures he was given. Read the interview here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Writing under the penname “Roto-san,” Hikawa transcribed a series of college lectures into a monograph back in 2019. In these lectures, he went through Series 1 episode by episode to relate stories and trivia from the production studio. With his kind permission, this material was translated to English for Cosmo DNA<\/em>. Read it all here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Yamato<\/em> in 8mm, 1977<\/h3>\n

Publisher Asahi Sonorama became the very first source for Yamato<\/em> anime-on-demand when they released a set of three 8mm film reels on November 1, 1977. Each included sound and color with a running time of 10-12 minutes. Thanks to modern technology, the 8mm films can be seen again here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Italian Star Blazers<\/em> products<\/h3>\n

A little over a year after Star Blazers<\/em> premiered in America, it burst onto TV screens in Italy with a different theme song, a localized dub, and a wave of unique merchandising seen nowhere else. Fortunately, it\u2019s been preserved for posterity. See it here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Music history<\/h3>\n

Symphonic Suite Yamato<\/em> was back in the news thanks to sound engineers who revived and remixed the classic 1977 album. What did it take to make a revered masterpiece sound even better? Find out here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

When Symphonic Suite<\/em> was released to the world in December 1977, it revolutionized the field of anime music. The liner notes presented a conversation between the two men most responsible for making it happen. They are translated here<\/a> to enhance your appreciation of this amazing body of work.<\/p>\n

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Vintage Report series<\/h3>\n

Keeping up with today’s news is one thing; investigating the original production years with the same diligence is something else. This ongoing effort covered a lot of ground in 2025, moving from December 1980 (the midst of Yamato III)<\/em> all the way through February 1983 (the last month before Final Yamato)<\/em>. Rare artifacts and new translations greatly expanded our knowledge of this fascinating time.<\/p>\n

See the series here<\/a><\/p>\n

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Yamato Millennium<\/em>, 2017<\/h3>\n

From 2016-18, a \u201csecret project\u201d was in development at the fringes. So secret that it went practically unknown to fandom at large until almost ten years later. That project was called Yamato Millennium<\/em>, and thanks to a unique chain of events, you can see it here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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The making of the Star Blazers<\/em> comics<\/h3>\n

One website wasn’t enough in 2025. Separate from my work on Cosmo DNA<\/em>, I published some “bonus content” on my archival site ArtValt<\/em>. I watched Star Blazers<\/em> so obsessively when it first arrived on TV that entered my bloodstream. When I got the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to turn it into a comic book, it felt like one of those moments I was made for. Now you can read each issue I worked on and also read the story behind them with previously-unseen production artifacts.<\/p>\n

Find this entire series of articles here<\/a><\/p>\n

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Hero’s Hill<\/h2>\n

Please stand and salute the heroes we lost in 2025…<\/p>\n

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March 13: In memoriam<\/h3>\n

On this day, the Twitter account for ATAC [Anime Tokusatsu Archive Centre] posted the following:<\/p>\n

A memorial service was held for sound effects specialist Mitsuru Kashiwabara. On display were 6mm tapes containing sound effects created by him, which are stored at ATAC, as well as some of his favorite equipment.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

In addition, the Kashiwabara Sound Gallery, where 20 different sound effects could be heard, featured the sounds of his famous works such as Yamato<\/em>‘s Wave-Motion Gun ringing out throughout the venue. Thank you, Kashiwabara-san, for the wonderful sound.<\/span><\/p>\n

See the original post here<\/a><\/p>\n

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November 11: RIP Tatsuya Nakadai<\/h3>\n

The dramatic voice that brought the classic Yamato<\/em> years to an end with all the gravitas a human can muster, was silenced on this day. He made his acting debut in the 50s and regularly appeared in several of Akira Kurosawa’s films before taking the role of narrator for Final Yamato<\/em> in 1983 (above left). Also on his long list of memorable performances was the epic 2005 feature film Men of Yamato<\/em> (center) in which he played the elder version of a survivor (much like the elder Private Ryan).<\/p>\n

Read more about his extensive career here<\/a><\/p>\n

Watch Men of Yamato<\/em> on Youtube here<\/a><\/p>\n

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Continue to next page: Studio Khara activity<\/a><\/p>\n

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