Yamato 2 Bibliography

Following in the gigantic wake of Farewell to Yamato put Yamato 2 at somewhat of a disadvantage in terms of dedicated publishing. With so much of its content already covered in the enormous number of Farewell books, it was not an automatic choice for many publishers to present that same material again under a different name. Despite this, there was still plenty to choose from for fans who were willing to hunt for it.

Not included in this bibliography are the Yamato 2 novelizations, which can be seen here.

TV Guide

5.75″ x 8.25″ (A5)
Tokyo News Agency, Oct. 1978

Yamato earned its second cover story on Japan’s TV Guide for the week of October 21-27, which would have put this issue on newsstands immediately after Yamato 2‘s premiere on the 14th. The series got 9 pages of full-color coverage, which can be seen here.

Yamato 2 Big Compendium

20 pages, approx. 7.25″ x 10″ (B5)
Shogakukan, April 1979

This full-color pamphlet was an insert from Shogakukan’s Terebi Kun magazine which provided an episode guide for the first 12 episodes of Yamato 2 and featured unique cutaway drawings of 4 ships: Yamato, the Cosmo Tiger II, Dessler’s Battleship, and the Comet Empire fighter. See all four drawings here.

TV Anime Complete Works Part 2

310 pages, approx. 4″ x 6″ (A6)
Akita Shoten, Oct. 1979

This second volume in the ongoing series picked up where the first left off, covering an enormous number of anime TV programs and devoting almost half its pages to voice actor profiles. Naturally, Yamato 2 received much attention. Subsequent volumes carried on this format, concluding with volume 5 in 1986.

Space Battleship Yamato
Complete Collection

94 pages, approx. 10″ x 11.75″
Tokuma Shoten, Jan. 1979

This spinoff of Tokuma Shoten’s Terebi [TV] Land magazine came in an unusually large format and was a true feast for the eyes. Pages of several different sizes were all bound together into individual sections that examined the mecha of the first series and Farewell to Yamato. Characters were also covered to a lesser extent, with some artwork from Yamato 2. Of special note was a unique cutaway drawing of the Andromeda and several pages that examine the internal systems of Yamato, which (though highly speculative) made for some interesting viewing.

Space Battleship Yamato 2
Roman Album No. 31 Deluxe

122 pages, 8.25″ x 11.75″ (A4)
Tokuma Shoten, March 1980

TOP TEN PICK

Tokuma’s third Yamato Roman Album was yet another milestone in the evolution of anime publishing. The line had gained momentum since the Farewell to Yamato edition, with another 20 volumes being published over 18 months. Now labeled as an Animage Special (to cross-promote Tokuma’s highly successful monthly magazine), Roman Album 31 offered unparalleled coverage of Yamato 2 with a full-color episode guide, a feature on production history up to The New Voyage, extensive staff essays, model sheets, and even some pages from recording scripts. It also had the distinction of being the first Yamato Roman Album published after the debut of Star Blazers, which made it a particularly hot commodity for English-speaking fans.


Terebi [TV] Land Magazine

7.25″ x 10″ (B5)
Tokuma Shoten

Terebi Land was primarily filled with manga based on popular TV shows (both anime and live-action), and also ran articles on whatever was hot. Naturally, Yamato 2 received a steady dose of coverage and was also the subject of special bonus products. In the December 1978 issue, the bonus was a “Mechanic Bromide” set of spaceship cards and a box to keep them in.

Terebi Land coverage continued into 1979 with more bonus items. These issues (for January and February) included a “Secret File” mini-binder and a set of “Deluxe Trump” playing cards, both shown below.

The “Secret File” was a simple binder cover with two pocket sleeves; the secret part was not overtly apparent. The playing cards were a bit more involved; hearts were hero characters, spades were hero spacecraft, clubs were enemy characters, and diamonds were enemy spacecraft. And Zordar made a perfect Joker.

The March ’79 issue may have carried Terebi Land‘s last cover story for Yamato 2, commemorating the showdown with Dessler and the climax of the series.

Terebi [TV] Kun Magazines

8.25″ x 10.25″ (A4 trimmed)
Shogakukan Publishing
January-March 1979

Very similar in scope to Terebi Land, this was Shogakukan’s monthly journal for anime and live-action. It also kept pace with Yamato 2 on TV, which gave it a continuing presence on the covers along with such contemporaries as Gatchaman, Zendaman, and Ultraman. Shown above are the issues published from January to March, 1979

Terebi Kun was also a good source for bonus items, such as a “Bromide” book (included with the April ’79 issue) and a cardboard pencil case (from October ’79).

Items like these usually came in a flattened and unassembled form, which gave them a build-it-yourself vibe that readers found irresistible. Below is a better look at the fold-up pencil case, which had a very creative interior design.

Yamato 2 Poster Magazine

7.25″ x 10.25″ (B5)
Shogakukan, March 1979

Released near the end of Yamato 2‘s broadcast, this was another insert from Terebi Kun. Coverage was somewhat thin, and the poster was a montage image from Farewell to Yamato. See the whole thing here.

The New Voyage
Roadshow Special Edition

112 pages, approx. 8.25″ x 10″ (A4 trimmed)
Shueisha, Oct. 1979

Following the format of the previous Roadshow specials for Farewell to Yamato, Shueisha turned in another winner with this one. In addition to movie coverage, it contained an excellent episode guide for Yamato 2.

Space Battleship Yamato 2
Terebi-Kun Specials #3 and #5

68 pages each, 8.25″ x 10.25″ (A4 trimmed)
Shogakukan, March & June 1979

These two volumes provided the best collection of full-color stills that could be found anywhere. The first volume covered episodes 1-12 with a support section of mecha art that included the four cutaway drawings from the ‘Big Compendium.’ The second volume followed up with coverage of episodes 13-26 and a section of battle maps and character profiles.


Yamato 2 Earth Defense Forces Foldout Poster

Approx. 30″ x 14″
Akita Shoten, April 1979

This was a bonus insert in Adventure King, the monthly manga magazine that serialized Leiji Matsumoto’s Farewell to Yamato manga. This 2-sided foldout poster featured Earth Defense Force spacecraft on one side and a unique Yamato painting on the back. It appears to have been commissioned solely for use by Tokuma Shoten, since it never appeared anywhere else.


Yamato 2 Comet Empire Foldout Poster

Approx. 30″ x 14″
Akita Shoten, May 1979

This one came in the next issue Adventure King, giving the same treatment to the enemy ships. The issue was released shortly before the end of the TV series.

Space Battleship Yamato 2 vol. 1 & 2
Anime Cartoon Masterpiece series #10 & 12

40 pages each, approx. 7.5″ x 8″
Shogakukan, May & June 1979

This all color, two-volume retelling of the TV series was formatted with minimal text and color stills. Shogakukan utilized this format for many other children’s books based on movies and TV shows, including both anime and live-action. There were a total of 7 Yamato volumes up to and including The New Voyage.

3rd Grader and 4th Grader Magazines

Shogakukan, April & June 1979

Even more coverage from Shogakukan, which seems to have been the front-runner in terms of Yamato 2 publishing, was to be found in their monthly children’s magazines. Yamato was certainly not a newcomer to these pages; 4th Grader, 5th Grader, and 6th Grader featured episode guides and custom-drawn “picture stories” for the first TV series back in 1974. Read more about them here.

Space Battleship Yamato 2
DVD Memorial Box Preservation File

48 pages, approx. 5.5″ x 7.5″
Bandai Visual, Jan. 2001

Compiled and written by longtime Yamato fan Hideaki Ito, this amazing volume came packaged with the DVD Memorial Box for the second TV series and covered a wealth of topics in incredible detail, from the making of the anime to its many forms of merchandising. This book and its companion volumes have provided valuable research for this website, and are highly recommended for serious collectors.

Related links:

Read about Yamato 2 novelizations

Continue to the New Voyage bibliography

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