Yamato 2199 Episode 25 Commentary, part 2

by Luis Cotovio and Daniel George

Back up to part 1

ACT TWO

  

Yamato flies though the subspace corridor with apparent ease. Kodai wonders if they’ve lost the enemy, but Saijo reports the radar is useless once inside the gate.

[LC]: Since the radar is useless inside the subspace corridor, a good preemptive step would be to take a page from the Battle at the Rainbow Star Cluster handbook and place spotters on the several observation ports throughout the ship, just in case they’ve been followed. And opening the shutters would be a great help, too.

 

Just as she completes her sentence, the ship rocks violently, catching everyone off guard. We see several metallic cables anchoring themselves to Yamato‘s hull, launched from above.

[LC]: I’m always amazed at how well even small grapnels like these hold onto anything in the Yamato Universe. That they manage to not only hold onto, but also pull a ship of Yamato‘s size and mass, is no mean feat.

Though in looking carefully at it (as I was taking the screencaps to illustrate this page), some of them go right through some structures of the ship and attach lower on the hull. This is more noticeable in the above shot of the “smoke stack” missile launcher, where two cables go all the way through and attach to the deck and main tower. Lucky they didn’t hit any of the missiles inside. That would have been troublesome.

  

Kodai asks Shima what’s going on, but all Shima can tell him is that the helm has become unresponsive. Sanada orders the switch to “optical combat mode”. As the bridge’s armor plates retract, allowing them direct line of sight to the outside, the crew is shocked by what they see.

[LC]: I love that Sanada has such a convoluted way of saying “Open the goddamned windows!” XD

Keeping the shutters closed this long was counter-productive, but at least allowed for this suspenseful beat. For what it’s worth…

To this day, I still wonder why Okita opens only one eye…!!!

 

The massive Deusler II hovers above them, menacingly. Large hatches open on its surface, revealing an army of Garmilloids which promptly drops down to begin the assault.

[LC]: The interference inside this corridor must be really tremendous, in order to prevent such a massive object to pull up right over Yamato without a single flicker on the radar screen.

[DG]: This is a role-reversal of a scene from Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato where Yamato performs a short warp and rams Dessler’s flagship. The Garmilloids and the background music originated in this scene in the movie.

The way the scene is set up seems lifted right out of the opening acts of Be Forever Yamato, when the Dark Nebula troops rain down on Earth’s capital city.

  

One of the assault groups blows the starboard access gate to the maintenance hangar, with several crew members being sucked out by explosive decompression. A crew member alerts the bridge of the impending invasion moments before the robot soldiers shoot the control cabin’s glass and throw a grenade inside.

[LC]: The Tsukuba, which we first saw at the start of Episode 21, can be seen reflected in the window, alongside its twin boat. As we mentioned before, they were designed by Makoto Kobaiyashi for a Yamato Resurrection cutaway illustration, where they caught the eye of general director Yutaka Izubushi who decided to incorporate it into 2199. Click here for the clean cell art.

 

Other groups attack other access hatches, invading the ship from multiple points. The breaches are monitored from the main bridge, where an increasing number of red spots appears on the ship’s plan.

  

Sanada orders them to seal all the bulkheads and Kodai heads out to take command of the defense forces. As the bulkheads seal, a ship-wide warning tells all crew members to arm themselves and prepare to repel boarders.

 

Yuki and a security escort have take Celestella to Yuki’s quarters. Yuki apologizes that they don’t have a better place to put her and locks the door with a security code. Though displeased, Celestella seems resigned to her fate.

  

A group of invaders is kept at bay by Kato and his pilots, who have erected a barricade with their lockers. Unfortunately, they are vastly outgunned and outnumbered. Kato grows desperate as a large bang from behind catches his attention. Yamamoto and Shinohara have brought one of the Cosmo Zero’s cannons and set it up to lay down suppressing fire.

 

The enemy is mowed down by the large caliber gun and temporarily halt their advance, much to Kato and his gang’s joy. But that joy is short lived as the Garmilloids toss some grenades into the corridor, giving the pilots barely enough time to run for their lives.

[LC]: Here’s the scene I mentioned earlier, where they use one of the Zero’s cannons. Question is, why didn’t they go with it and set up the other five cannons in the same fashion throughout the ship?

Though looking at all the collateral damage, they’re probably better off not using them.

[DG]: This scene was added for the Blu-Ray release, and didn’t exist in the theatrical version. It took some thinking to identify where the pilots got this gun – before I remembered that they’d pulled apart Kodai’s Zero. See more of these “transitional” shots in The Evolution of Episode 25.

 

Another breach point is hangar three, where Enomoto and his men are also trying to repel the enemy. Mortally wounded, Toyama falls to the ground. Iwata goes to his friend’s aid but is forced to duck for cover beside his friend’s body.

[LC]: This scene made me sad the first couple of times I saw it but now it just pisses me off. WHY did they have to kill poor Toyama and Iwata? I get that they had to make this incursion real and show us how high the stakes are. Killing only random crew members wouldn’t cut it so they pulled the tried-and-true trick of killing a couple of secondary characters that became well known and liked during the series. But did they have to kill them both?!

And for those in doubt… yes, they died. This is confirmed in a brief glimpse of a casualty list in the next episode. So long, Toyama and Iwata. You were more than just comic relief in my book. You did Chief Enomoto proud.

[DG]: While Iwata doesn’t appear to get shot at any point in this scene, we know it doesn’t end well for him.

Well, we see several shots on the floor around him. I think it’s meant to infer he was hit, along with Chief Enomoto’s emotional reaction. Apparently there seems to be a “no shots on characters allowed” order in this episode, even if they end up dead from those shots. We will see this again, in an even more grievous instance, later in the episode. It’s strange because they haven’t shied away from showing it before; Ito and Zoellik are prime examples. But in this episode they just have shots fired and characters collapsing. Maybe they ran out of time to draw holes in them… XD

 

Chief Enomoto calls out to his men but to no avail. Realizing their demise, all he can do is continue to fire and try to hold the line.

[LC]: It’s curious that in the previous versions of the episode, before the animation in this scene was improved, the cruder expressions on Iwata’s face actually conveyed the pain of being shot better.

Another slight alteration between versions sheds light on a question that comes up in this final shot. The Garmilloids all seem to be firing from the lower levels of the hangar. So how come we see shots on the floor of the upper level? And how could they have hit Toyama and Iwata from there? In reality, there are Garmilloids at the end of the upper walkway. Before the Blu-Ray adjustments, the cross-dissolve into the Deusler‘s bridge happened just a little later, allowing us to spot the gun flashes from those Garmilloids. The change in timing causes them to be nearly imperceptible among the screen graphics.

On a different topic, it appears that the Type 100 “04” is in its stowage position on the floor of the hangar bay. This is consistent with the design drawings of the hangar bay on page 96 of the Official Design Works: Earth book (top left image).

 

Aboard the Deusler, Lecter observes the troop’s progress. He sends Teams 1 and 2 to take over the engine room and dispatches the remaining forces to attack the bridge. Dessler tells Talan the operation seems to be going well, saying he will leave the rest to him.

[DG]: The console being used to control and monitor the Garmilloids’ movements is a much more modern-looking incarnation of the version in Farewell to Yamato. The original had an analogue look to it, with the Garmilloid movements being controlled by giant oversized chess pawns. This time the round chess board and the pawns are graphical on a computer screen. Click here for a side by side comparison.

[LC]: I have to admit that until Daniel told me about the chess board from Farewell, I hadn’t noticed it in the screen graphics. It’s amazing that after three years and dozens of viewings, there are still details to be found.

 

As he leaves the bridge, Talan asks him where he is going. Dessler says he’s just going to have a word with Yamato‘s captain. Talan is surprised but dispatches Dessler’s guards to protect him.

[LC]: Surprising that Dessler’s guards had to be ordered to follow him.

 

Analyzer reports that there are no life signs among the invading troops. Sanada surmises that they’re fighting Garmilloids. Niimi suggests that they should “use it.” Sanada gives her permission and Niimi leaves for the technical section with Analyzer in tow.

 

In Yuki’s dimmly lit quarters, Celestella sits silent on the floor, looking at some photographs tacked to a small wall board, showing a variety of happy moments of day-to-day life aboard. Her attention is caught by one of the guards shouting at approaching Garmilloids, followed by a hail of gun fire.

[LC]: Nice set of photos, including a remake of the classic Yuki-pinching-Kodai’s-hand, which was featured in the original Episode 23. We’ll actually see that and the one of Yuki and Yamamoto being taken in Ark of the Stars.

  

The Garmilloids invade the corridor, systematically opening doors and firing inside to weed out anyone in hiding. They hack Celestalla’s door’s control panel and override the security code. The door opens, but the robot’s programming prevents it from firing; facial recognition software locks onto Celestella and identifies her as a high-ranking Garmillan officer. Unfazed by this turn of events, she only asks them who their commander is.

 

At that very moment, their commander makes an unceremonious entry in one of the ship’s corridors, through a breaching tube. As his guards secure the corridor, Dessler steps aboard with a smug look on his face.

  

Kodai arrives at the central deck where he destroys two Garmilloids that were firing at Hoshina and his men. He asks them if they’re okay before receiving a report from Aihara that more boarders have entered in deck 4. Kodai heads there.

 

Meanwhile, on deck 4, Yuki comes upon a fallen security guard. As she hears the warning about the approaching invaders, she inspects the guard for vitals but… there are none. She hears the sound of gunfire and holds up her gun, but she’s knocked down by the explosion of a nearby bulkhead. Her gun is knocked out of her reach.

[LC]: Yuki is back to her old habit of wandering aimlessly through the halls to wherever the plot needs her.

  

She picks herself up from the blast and looks at the gaping hole on the bulkhead, hearing the sound of slowly approaching footsteps. Dessler’s imposing figure comes into view, much to her shock. He looks at her and seems pleased to cross paths with the “false princess”.

[LC]: Fan-service much?! These gratuitous shots serve no other purpose.

 

Celestella runs toward deck 4, pleased to know Dessler is still alive and coming aboard. Dessler grabs Yuki by an arm and lifts her up, saying he is honored to see her again, and demands that she take him to her captain.

  

Defiant, she says the captain would never meet with the likes of him. Dessler is pleased by her strong will. Before he can say anything else, Celestella comes around the corner. Her joy in seeing him is such that she releases a telepathic energy wave that strikes Dessler.

[LC]: I will give Yuki points for sheer guts in this scene.

 

Caught off guard, the Garmillan emperor reacts, turning toward her and firing his gun. As he drops Yuki to the floor, she witnesses the wounded Celestella fall to the floor, her eyes flooded with tears. Dessler himself seems shocked by what has happened.

[LC]: Here’s where the Celestella plot thread goes totally off the rails. First off, what is that?! Sure, Jirellans have some weird mental powers. But having her give out some random burst of rainbow happiness seems way out of character, no matter how happy she is that Dessler is alive.

It wasn’t even necessary to cause Dessler to shoot. Anyone in his place and with the finger on the trigger on a hostile ship would turn around and fire if anyone came shouting around the corner. No need for some “sympathetic wave” to cause that. It’s just an unnecessary gimmick.

On the other hand, Dessler seems genuinely shocked to have shot her. First time we see him without the usual smug look on his face.

  

His guards run toward the unconscious Jirellian, saying how rude it was of her to release sympathetic waves when she saw Dessler, a problem common with the Jirellians. Yuki looks at the unfolding drama, shocked and dismayed, while Dessler stands motionless and silent.

  

In the engine room, Tokugawa is pinend down behind a console by enemy fire. Kamo and Yamazaki, holding the door at the other end, tell Tokugawa to run for it. As Yamazaki fires on the enemy soldiers, Tokugawa tells him to stop, as he might damage the engine.

[LC]: Jeez, those Garmilloids have worse aim than Storm Troopers. Machines should be capable of hitting anything they lock on to. Not that I want them to kill Tokugawa. But that’s truly a messed-up targeting system.

Tokugawa is worried Kamo might hit the engine. The Garmilloids don’t seem to have such qualms.

 

Yuki asks Dessler why he did it; firing on someone who loved him so much. Tears flow from her eyes and fall to the floor. She tells him there was no need for Earth and Garmillas to fight. Both worlds could have cared for one another… they could have loved one another… she tries to go on with her plea but can’t as the tears and sadness overwhelm her.

[LC]: Why?! Because he’s a tyrannical sociopath bent on galactic domination! That’s why!!! Get with the program, Yuki!

These lines spoken by Yuki are as close as 2199 came to Kodai’s cathartic “victory tastes like ashes” speech from the original series.

 

Dessler responds that war is necessary. He holds his gun, staring at it with a strange and saddened look in his eyes. He continues, saying that it forces worlds to obey and brings salvation to the universe. And to the only woman he truly loves…

[LC]: Trivia: the engraving on Dessler’s pistol reads “SMALTEI PP7”.

[DG]: A nonsensical statement by a madman trying to impress the woman he loves by doing the complete opposite of what would impress her.

Dessler’s words mirror Starsha’s usual message, which we’ve heard a couple of times, but notice the subtle changes that completely distort the original intent and meaning.

I don’t know what is worse, the maniacal version of Dessler or this emo shtick!

  

Yuki is surprised by this last revelation. Before she can process it, Kodai arrives. He spots Yuki but must jump for cover as Dessler’s guards open fire on him. He calls out to her and asks if she’s okay. As she prepares to respond, events take a violent turn…

[LC]: Kodai really loves shouting Yuki’s name… If we made it into a drinking game, we’d be wasted by now.

  

A gun fires, striking Dessler in his left shoulder, making him step back. His guards turn their attention away from Kodai and toward Dessler’s attacker: Celestella. Dessler looks at the Jirellian, pointing Yuki’s gun at him. She pleads for him to stop.

[LC]: Why would Celestella shoot Dessler? We could say that being shot by him and hearing him profess his love for another woman, while she laid on the floor bleeding, drove her into a homicidal rage. But that’s not what we see here or what her words convey. And shooting someone in order to talk them out of something is usually frowned upon. But the worst bit of Celestella’s final act is coming next so brace yourselves.

 

She lowers the gun, only to raise it again, pointing it at her own head. She professes her feeling for Dessler as she takes one last glance of his face, just as his guards take aim.

[LC]: Now explain to me what the logic is here. Why would the guards open fire on Celestella?! When she points the gun at Dessler they’re oblivious and allow her to hit him on the shoulder. Had they returned fire at that point… okay, I could live with that. But she’s turned the gun on herself! She’s going to kill herself!!! What is the point, here?! Don’t kill yourself or we’ll open fire???!!! Had she kept the gun pointed at Dessler, this would at least make sense. Celestella, wanting to end her life but unable to do it herself, pulls a “suicide by cop” move. But this way, it’s just stupid.

 

Yuki reacts, trying to stop Celestella from taking her own life. She jumps toward her, attempting to grab the gun… just as a hail of fire is unleashed from the imperial guards’ weapons. Both women are struck down, Yuki landing on top of Celestella’s tearful body.

[LC]: All this serves only to get Yuki fighting for her life in the finale. I accept it and it will provide some of Kodai’s most standout moments of the series. But they could have done it in a simpler way, even if they had left Celestella completely out of it. When Kodai comes running into the corridor, just have the guards fire and Yuki push him out of the way. It would add an extra twist to the finale, as Kodai not only grieves for her but feels the burden of guilt. And Celestella could have been used in a lot more effective way in some future story, maybe even in Ark of the Stars.

  

A eerie silence fills the corridor as the two women lie motionless on the floor, a pool of blood growing under them. Kodai looks at the aftermath, horrified. He shouts Yuki’s name.

[LC]: Another shot in our “Kodai shouting Yuki!” drinking game.

Also, considering there’s not a single puncture wound, there’s an awful lot of blood pooling below them. Also amazing: it fails to stain any of their clothing.

 

In the technical section, Analyzer completes the setup for whatever they plan to use against the Garmilloids, and Niimi activates it.

 

Reunited with Yamazaki and Kamo, Tokugawa can only watch as the invading soldiers access his console and release the lock of the Wave-Motion Core chamber. Though they can guess what the Garmilloids intend to do, there’s nothing they can do to stop them.

[LC]: Not a single shot hits between the doors and takes one of them out… I call BS on this.

[DG]: Again, reminiscent of the fabled aiming disability of Star Wars‘ stormtroopers. Maybe it’s ae tribute.

Were Dessler still sane and rational, obtaining the wave-motion core would probably have been the primary goal of Dessler’s incursion. Even the destruction of Yamato would have paled in comparison to getting that.

  

As if in response to Tokugawa, something unexpected happens. As a Garmilloid tries to hack the chamber’s access panel, it is hit by a surge of energy. He stumbles back and crashes to the lower level. The remaining Garmilloids all seem out of control, stumbling and firing their guns uncontrollably. Eventually, they all fall to the ground, much to the engineers’ surprise.

[LC]: I keep wondering if the virus was transmitted wirelessly throughout the ship or actually transmitted through that panel to this single Garmilloid, infecting their collective network…

Despite the out-of-control Garmilloid’s lack of trigger discipline, not a single vital console or system is hit by any of those stray shots. Come on!!!

[DG]: Once more, the Storm Trooper Effect comes into play. All of these Garmilloids firing and characters dying despite not appearing to be shot reminds me of that meme that goes around the internet all the time – “In a battle between a Storm Trooper and a [Star Trek] red shirt, the stormtrooper misses with every shot. The red shirt dies anyway.”

 

The scene is repeated throughout the ship as all Garmilloid soldiers are taken over by an unknown force and disconnected. Aboard the Deusler, Lecter informs Talan that the soldiers have been infected by a computer virus. Talan’s efforts to reverse it are useless.

 

Sanada explains that the virus they’re using was created with the data they gathered during their brief encounter with Alter, saying they should thank the Garmilloid. Analyzer and Niimi celebrate as the panel shows all Garmilloid activity has stopped.

[DG]: While some may argue that this whole Garmilloid countermeasure thing is somewhat reminiscent of the horrible deus ex machina of the deflection shield in the original Episode 26, it’s a lot more feasible. They had access to Garmilloid technology, unlike that of the Reflex Gun satellites, and writing a computer virus requires fewer resources.

[LC]: It’s always nice when some apparently stand-alone story ends up paying off 16 episodes later. XD

I can’t help but laugh at Analyzer’s “victory dance” here. And that’s an uncharacteristically happy Niimi. I don’t remember ever seeing her laugh like this before.

  

On deck 4, Dessler’s guards escort him to the boarding tube. Kodai holds Yuki in his arms and calls out to her, but to no avail. The guards aim their guns at him but Dessler orders them to stand down.

[LC]: So… Dessler didn’t even try to stop his guards from tearing Celestella apart with their guns, someone he practically raised and who was one of his most loyal followers. But Kodai, an enemy soldier he just met in a corridor in enemy territory… yeah, let the guy live. We have a few more episodes to go through and then we’ll become besties. So leave him alone… Yeah.

When you think about it, it’s funny that Dessler came on board to invade the ship and have words with captain Okita, but he never actually left this deck. XD

 

Kodai pulls Yuki down the corridor, keeping his own gun aimed at them. The lead guard begs “her Lord” to hurry. Kodai hears this and realizes the man before him is none other than the Garmillan emperor, Lord Dessler.

[LC]: Wow. These uniforms are really stain- (and apparently “bullet”) proof. Yuki was lying in a pool of blood, over a puncture-filled corpse, and yet there isn’t a single drop in her uniform. Or a single hole from all the blasts she took. Impressive!

  

Dessler looks at Kodai, then turns and leaves, his guards quickly following. Kodai is left alone with Yuki’s unconscious body.

[LC]: On a more serious note, this is the first de facto encounter between these two. Depending on how this continuity goes, it might just be the first of many.

 

Lecter reports His Lordship is back on board the Deusler and they release the anchor cables. The ship’s guns are raised and open fire as the dreadnought rights itself.

  

However, the energy beams quickly dissipate, due to the subspace corridor’s unique characteristics. Talan chastises Lecter for firing without orders and explains normal energy weapons are useless in there.

[LC]: You’d think a guy who was entrusted with the command of the Imperial flagship would know his beam weapons would not work in there. Good thing they don’t or, let’s be honest, Yamato would be in serious trouble.

 

He’s interrupted by Dessler’s arrival and shows relief at the safe return. Dessler overrides his statement by saying that the Dessler Cannon will work.

  

Nanbu reports the enemy ship is falling back, to their rear. Sanada realizes that they intend to use their Wave-Motion Gun against Yamato.

[LC]: Yeah, Sanada… I think the big pink glowy thing in front of the ship kinda gives it away…

 

The Dessler Cannon is quickly charged and approaches criticality. Talan pleads with Dessler to stop it, saying that using the Cannon inside the subspace corridor is suicide. He steps back and goes silent as we hear a gun unlocking.

[LC]: I wonder what Talan’s rationale is here. Sure, beam weapons are affected inside the warp corridor. But the Dessler Cannon is powerful enough to destroy Yamato, even if the corridor’s interference reduces its power and range considerably. We’ve seen no sign that the gun would turn on them. This line makes no sense unless Talan is aware of some unknown factor, like the weapon causing the corridor to collapse, in which case he should just say so.

Though truth be told, at this point, Dessler is so far off the reservation I think he would fire it anyway.

Did anyone else have a “Hyss moment” here? For a split second I thought Talan was as good as dead.

Okay, Dessler’s line, right there… badass. Crazy… but badass.

  

One of the crew reports their target is turning around. On the screen they see Yamato turning hard to port, just as the Dessler Cannon’s charge completes. Dessler gives the order to prepare to fire. With a wicked smile, he sets the trigger mechanism and the target is locked. Just then, the image on the screen shows several flashes; Yamato has fired artillery shells from the main cannons.

[LC]: For all those who thought carrying standard artillery shells when they have beam weapons was stupid… suck! it! Those shells have proven themselves an asset before, but never as much as here.

I do think the amount of damage caused by each round is a bit over-the-top… but man, that is wicked.

  

The shells strike the Deusler II with devastating results, setting whole sections of the ship ablaze. Talan asks what is going on. The crew reports Yamato is firing cannon shells. Yamato‘s cannons continue to fire in quick succession, laying an impressive artillery barrage. As the Deusler II begins to shake violently, Dessler calls the Terrons barbarians.

[LC]: Sure, they might be barbarians, but they have working weapons and you don’t. So… there’s that.

[DG]: This is, by far, my favorite change to the final battle with Dessler from the original. Gone is the aforementioned deflection shield, replaced with Yamato‘s ability to fire regular old analog shells. Dessler’s defeat goes from a hastily-contrived deus ex machina to a more decisive tactical battle where Yamato wins due to its versatility.

The irony of Dessler’s branding of the Terrons as barbarians, meanwhile…

  

Just then, the blast of a nearby strike engulfs the bridge. Amid the smoke, Talan and the rest of the crew lie unconscious on the floor. Though injured, Dessler still stands, holding the Dessler Cannon’s trigger.

[LC]: And here we’re left to wonder if Talan is dead or not. Since they split the original Talan into two characters and Ghader (who resembles the Yamato 2 Talan) is safely back on Garmillas… my bet’s on Velte being dead, though I actually hope he’s not.

As a final note about Velte Talan, I always thought he would be the one left with Dietz while his brother would be here at this point, given how friendly he was with Domel and Dietz early on. But in the end, Velte wound up on this side of the equation, perhaps to be the voice of reason that will bring Dessler back to normalcy. Only the future can tell.

 

Dessler lifts his head, remembering Starsha and the promise he made to her… to save the universe. He says he will fulfill his promise… for her. He presses the trigger.

 

As he does, the Cannon’s energy erupts from the dreadnought’s hull, ripping the ship apart. Deusler II blows up in a massive ball of fire and raw energy.

[LC]: Some might say that this is what Talan feared would happen, but I have to say no. At the point Talan spoke that line he couldn’t even imagine the Deusler II would be riddled by the catastrophically-damaging shells. The gun explodes more due to that than any environmental influence.

[DG]: So, will we see Dessler in Yamato 2202? And if so, in what capacity? Relations with Gatlantis aren’t likely to be cordial, given that Gatlantis and Garmillas are at war, and the less technologically advanced Gatlantis of the 2199 universe shouldn’t be able to magically resurrect him if he is dead.

I’d go as far as to say Dessler appearing in 2202 is unnecessary from a plot point of view. His story in Yamato 2 was a journey of redemption. That’s not going to happen this time around. Dessler is a war criminal and a traitor to his own world. Should he survive, he would likely face trial and execution by his own people for his crimes in Episode 23.

Eagle-eyed viewers will notice that the Deusler Core Ship is ejected by the blast as the weapon’s platform explodes. So don’t count Dessler out just yet.

He only has the Deusler II core ship now, so his one-man war seeking revenge against Yamato would deter from expanding the Yamato 2199 universe further. 2199 found room to expand the story from the original by cutting out superfluous story elements (Balanodon and living bee people for example) to open up room for things like Gatlantis appearing earlier.

It really comes down to a question of whether his presence or lack thereof would be felt by fans as strongly as it was with the original saga. If they can somehow manage to do it without sacrificing the storytelling Yamato 2199 has established, fine. Otherwise, keep him out of it. At the time of writing there’s been no mention of Dessler returning, so if they’re going to bring him in, I’d be surprised if it was prior to Chapter 2 at the earliest. You can bet a bottle of Dr Sado’s finest sake that his announcement will be a booming voice-over of a classic Dessler line in a teaser for the chapter he returns in.

 

The explosion expands rapidly, eventually reaching Yamato, which is engulfed by it. The Milky Way’s warp gate comes to life, ejecting a plume of energy and smoke. We hear the roar of Yamato‘s engine as it breaks away from the plume, apparently unscathed. Before them, the welcome sight of our home galaxy awaits.

[LC]: Judging by Yamato‘s exit from the warp gate, we must assume they were relatively close to the Milky Way exit when the Deusler II exploded and the blast pushed them into the “whirlpool” column. Lucky they weren’t warped to some other gate, right?

[LC]: I wonder if those whirlpools have some kind of leveling capability for larger ships. When they entered the Balun gate backward, they were straightened on the Magellanic side. Now, they’re hit by a massive blast which pushes them sideways, and again they exit facing the right direction. Unless Shima managed to straighten the ship before entering the exit column, this might indicate some unknown mechanism at work inside those whirlpools.

Contradicting this theory is the fact that Shinohara was ejected from the Balun gate totally out of control. But maybe there’s a minimum mass required for it to work and craft as small as a Czvarke have to right themselves. This might seem counterproductive, but it’s way easier for a smaller craft to maneuver itself to a correct position than a larger-sized ship.

 

Ota reports they have successfully completed their transit through the warp gate system and reached the Milky Way’s outer rim. As the shaken crew pick themselves up, Kodai’s voice is heard through the PA system. He begs Yuki to wake up and come back to him. Shima looks up and whispers his friend’s name, sensing something terrible must have happened…

[LC]: Why is Kodai’s voice coming through the PA? Was Aihara shoved into his console by the blast and just happen to patch Kodai’s comms through? Or did someone just hit that big red “Plot Service” button?

 

Alone in the corridor, Kodai holds Yuki’s inanimate body. He calls out to her, but this time there may be no hope. As Yamato approaches the Milky Way, Kodai’s cries echo throughout the ship.

[LC]: Still no blood. Did Dessler’s guards even hit her?

This is the third time Kodai shouts her name like this. I wonder if they recorded Ono’s voice one time and then just replayed his angst filled scream when necessary…

 

[LC]: Despite the setbacks that besieged this episode’s production, the decision to leave part of it out of the theatrical release, this was better than ending up with rushed, sub-par episode like Episode 22.

The full episode is filled with great moments and the resolution of some plot threads, while leaving others dangling for a sequel. The resolution of Yamato‘s “final” battle with Dessler is a lot more plausible than having Sanada pulling some unseen reflector shield out of thin air, instead using the enemy’s temporary weakness and the battleship’s unique capabilities to win the day.

The second act is an action tour-de-force, and like many action films, the less you think about the plot the better. You may have noticed I used a lot of snarky remarks in this second half, exactly because I realize the nature of the beast. I know sometimes things just have to happen a certain way for the plot to go where it’s intended. But neither I nor Daniel can just let these slide without a nod. Overall, this episode may have a lot of “dumb” plot points in it, but they’re balanced by other stuff that is truly awesome, resulting in a thoroughly enjoyable episode. Good thing, too, because the finale is a true tear-fest. So we might as well get our laughs on now before the emotional – and IMHO – brilliant finale.

[DG]: I got to see this episode in both its raw form in a Tokyo cinema and then again with all the bells and whistles on the Blu-Ray. I still wonder how much the compressed timeframes for the last two chapters affected this episode’s plot as well as production values. But on the upside, it did improve some story elements that I loathed in the original, as well as giving additional value to Episode 9 and plot devices from other parts of the Yamato franchise.

They had no idea when they were producing this episode that 2202 would happen, so they left the gate open as well as paying enough of a tribute to the original if turned out to be the end of the line.

PREVIEW:

An epic journey. A long, long voyage. Yamato returns to its home galaxy, and its journey is about to end. New life is born as other lives come to an end. This is not goodbye, but a new meeting. Dreaming of the green hills of Earth…

Last Episode: Memories of the Blue Planet.

The journey will never end.

BONUS QUOTE (Sorry, I just had to do this one! XD)

RELATED LINKS:

Official website of Yamato 2199
Yamato Crew website
Chapter 7 Teaser Promo
Chapter 7 Trailer

Episode 25 credits

Screenplay: Sadayuki Murai
Storyboard: Masahiko Okura
Directors: Masahiko Okura, Noriyuki Nomata
Chara Animation Directors: Mitsuru Ishihara, Shinichi Yamaoka, Hiroki Takaki
Chara Chief Animation Directors: Akihisa Maeda, Nobuteru Yuuki
Mecha Animation Director: Yu Kato
Mecha Chief Animation Director: Masanori Nishii

Series credits

Original Story: Yoshinobu Nishizaki
Planning: Shoji Nishizaki, Mitsuhisa Ishikawa, Satoshi Kono
Original Character Design: Nobuteru Yuuki
Guest Character/Prop Design: Shinichi Yamaoka
Mecha Design: Junichiro Tamamori, Yasushi Ishizu, Kiminori Yamane, Yutaka Izubuchi
Set Design: Takeshi Takakura, Makoto Kobayashi, Takashi Watanabe
Concept Design Support: Kazutaka Miyatake
Chief Director: Akihiro Enomoto
Director of Photography: Takashi Aoki
Art Director: Minoru Maeda
Video Editing: Emi Onodera
Color Correction: Rumiko Suzushiro
Music: Akira Miyagawa, Hiroshi Miyagawa
Sound Director: Tomohiro Yoshida
Sound Effects: Mitsuru Kashiwabara
Chief Mecha Animation Director: Masanori Nishii
CG Director: Takashi Imanishi
General Director: Yutaka Izubuchi

Production: Space Battleship Yamato Production Committee
Production IG, Bandai Visual, Xebec, Bandai, Bandai Namco Games, Voyager Entertainment,
Tohoku Shinsha Film Corporation, Shochiku Co. Ltd., OLM, Lantis Co. Ltd.

7 thoughts on “Yamato 2199 Episode 25 Commentary, part 2

  1. I really would like Yuki to been writen better overal.. they started really really good with her in 2199 seriously upgrading her from “chick of the show” and “ocasional damsel in distress and coffee bringer” to a character on her own with a potential backstory ..also while we all knew she and Kodai would end up a couple.. their start being cold wich each other meant a more interesting developing..

    unfortunatelly they seemed to really forget about her character after mid series.. she wanting Kodai seemed reduced to him saving her life and her backstory is so far undeveloped and only working as to justify the “they both look identical” plot.. (and Sanada inconveniently didnt finished that line about why she had the capsule).. a pitty.. still she is imho quite superior to her original counterpart.. with 2202 about the corner hopefully she will be treated better (in some years i might write here “nope… she didnt” )

    Dessler will definitily be back.. tought this time and given how diferent things went with everyone (Gamillas still is there with its entire population.. the Gamillas fleet still exist mostly .. Earth is allready a “friend” with Gamillas.. earth has allready encountered Gatlantis and became defacto enemies with them, Dessler is now a traitor to his own people.. and not just one of the last survivors).. actually he might be picked by Zwordar and considered an ally as Dessler would be a common enemy of the current Gamillas.. Dessler might still have with him a fleet of loyal ships to him , be arrested and finally make peace with the humans and return to his people as a saviour if he has any role in defeating Gatlantis .. (and asuming Gamillas doesnt get toasted by Gatlantis this time)

    Also its shamefull that they killed off Toyama and Iwata .. specially like this.. they have been the comic relief of the series.. and they aparently only server to be just killed off by the end .. its even worst as if you might renember Iwata was actually married.. he had a wife back home and he was denied right to call her home when the Yamato exited the heliosphere unlike the rest of the crew.. they both get constantly overworked and yelled at.. only to end like thrown away characters to not kill others… poor use there…poor use..

  2. Yeah, the story arc with Celestella and Yuki really jumped the shark in this episode…. Her sucide made little sense, the blond guards of Dessler had no real reason to shoot both ladies considering one of them was about to take her own life! And Dessler, despite having some good moments was really unconvincingly mad to the point I wish some character development from the original was used or at least something that made sense… This makes his potential return to Yamato 2202 pointless considering the mess he left….
    As for the deaths of Toyama and Iwata, I agree their loss was sad but then again there has to be a few redshirts to die. Even if they were quite memorable…
    On the bright side, seeing Yamato performing a traditional crossing the T maneuver against Desular II was old-school bad-@$$! Especially when she used traditional AP shells against the blue super-dreadnought! It reminded me of Andromeda’s attempt to block Yamato from going rogue out of the Solar System from the original series only this time did the ship that performed the classic maneuver unleashed those devastating broadsides! Boy did I cheer when that happened!

    • Oh, yes, the tactic of crossing your opponent’s T in order to rake the recipient with good old fashioned projectiles. If we consider that there is no air resistance in a hyper-dimensional corridor and practically no gravity, all the shots fired at Desular II will undoubtedly be nasty damage unless they get bounced by angled surface deflection (fat chance as most seem to hit at a 90 degree deflection from the surface, which means a punch smack into the armor). But why didn’t anyone throw missiles at Desular II before the boarding happen?!

      • Or why the Deussla didnt fired missiles at the Yamato.. it seems to have lots of torpedo ports.. again just like most Gamillas ships and then they seem rarelly used (unless its a destroyer)

  3. I don’t think that the artillery damage at the Deusler II is over-the-top.
    18 inch guns at point-blank-range are deadly. No realistic amount of armor can stop those shells from such a short distance… on Earth or in deep space. And the caliber of the Yamato’s guns is even bigger than the original IJN battleship…

  4. Say what you want. Elaborate as you please.
    I will never understand the whole Celestella’s sequence involving Yuki.
    The whole sequence is cheap drama and it is what spoiled an otherwise perfect episode.

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