Yamato 2199 Bibliography

Illustrated Book Re: Mechanics

Early release: September 21, 2012
General release: December 10, 2012

This large-format (10″ x 14″) 32-page publication was the first dedicated art book for the series, loaded with animation layouts from the first few episodes that showcase the phenomenal amount of detail that goes into the mecha, almost all of it hand-drawn. It first appeared at special events in September 2012 during the runup to Chapter 3, then went into general release through such sources as Yamato Crew and Amazon.co.jp.

Art Exhibition program book

April 22, 2014

The Yamato 2199 Art Exhibition toured Japanese cities from April 2014 through the end of the year as a way to keep everyone primed for Ark of the Stars. It brought together design art from the Production I.G. vault, model kits, and a handful of newly-painted works (about 200 pieces in total) for their first-ever public display.

Read all about the exhibition here.
See this book from cover to cover here

Yamato Orchestra Big Ceremony 2012
Score Collection

Hustle Copy, March 27, 2013

Many Yamato sheet music books were published in the original production years, so it was only natural that composer/conductor Akira Miyagawa would follow in these footsteps as well. He arranged several 2199 scores for a live orchestra that performed them in November 2012, and this book was published on the same day as the concert CD. Read more about both here.

Yamato 2199 Winds score

Spielen Music, May 24, 2013

Spielen Musik gave Yamato music buffs a chance to stage their own live performance of the main theme when they published this elaborate collection of sheet music for an entire orchestra. Music is arranged for 15 different instruments from piccolo to sax to Glockenspiel with additional parts for timpani and electric guitar, with an accompanying CD with an ideal recording.

This score was performed live in the USA at Anime Weekend Atlanta 2014, and again two weeks later by the Georgia Philharmonic. Read about it here.

Model Sheet Design Collection EARTH

Mag Garden, July 31, 2013

Clocking in at over 260 pages, this book delivers a massive collection of designs, in color where color was originally added. Mecha dominates the book with over 180 pages devoted to Yamato (inside and out), its support vessels, and the Earth fleet. Character design fills about 50 pages with the rest going to Earth settings and extensive interviews. The whole package comes in a cardboard slipcase which opens at the top and can sit vertically on a shelf.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Model Sheet Design Collection GARMILLAS

Mag Garden, October 31, 2013

Formatted the same as the EARTH volume, over half of this book is devoted to mecha design with the rest covering characters, environments, Gatlantis, Iscandar, other planets, and staff interviews. There is also a unique article by the linguist who created the Garmillas language, which can be read here

Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Yamato 2199 Official DVD Guidebook

Mag Garden, April 10, 2013

This was timed to coincide with the TV broadcast debut, a 24-page primer for those who hadn’t yet been introduced to the series. Focused entirely on the setup for Episode 1, it provides an introduction to characters, mecha, and basic concepts. The title comes from its unique bonus feature, a Region 2 DVD containing on-camera interviews with the voice actors for Kodai and Shima, the first half of the first episode, and the 2012 promo trailer for the series.

Order it (used) from Amazon.co.jp.

Yamato 2199 Premium Poster Book

Mag Garden, August 24, 2013

Released with Chapter 7, this publication measures roughly 12×17″. The outer slipcase contains a book that opens to a full 24×17″ and is literally a book of ten posters. Most of the images had been seen before in magazines or other merchandising, but three were completely new at the time: the Yuki Mori cover image, another of Hilde Shulz, and an original Yamato painting.

See photos of the entire package here.
Order it from Amazon.co.jp

Yamato Plan Records Collection

Kadokawa Publishing, October 30, 2013

This book breaks the series down into the same chunks seen in theaters, seven “chapters” with episode numbers. We get a recap with character and mecha model sheets relevant to that episode, but not much in the way of stills. Scattered throughout is artwork [reprinted from other Kadokawa publications such as New Type and New Type Ace.] and model photography that recreates visuals from the series. There is coverage of the various model kits, interviews with key staff, and a nice black & white section filled with charts, graphs, timelines, and more.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Yamato 2199 Pia

Pia Mook, November 26, 2014

This 98-page book was the first to cover Ark of the Stars with new illos and some colorized design sheets along with a collection of Kia Asamiya paintings and promotional material. (Asamiya also did the cover painting, which is reproduced as a foldout poster.)

Read translated interviews from Yamato 2199 Pia:
Director Yutaka Izubuchi
Character Designer Nobuteru Yuuki.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Yamato 2199 Complete Works

Published by Mag Garden
Volumes 1 & 2: December 6, 2014
Volume 3 & scripts: May 27, 2015

There are numerous examples of how 2199 directly followed the traditions of the original, with this set being one of the most impressive. The original “silver set” of deluxe hardcovers for Series 1 set a new standard for anime publishing in 1978, and this four-book collection did it again.

Volume 1 (336 pages) covers episodes 1-10 with color stills and model sheets. Designs for Earth characters and Earth mecha are shown in full. Volume 2 (352 pages) does the same with episodes 11-22. Designs for Garmillas characters and mecha are shown in full. (And the English spelling is definitively “Garmillas.”) Extra material consists only of mecha size charts.

Volume 3 picks up where Volume 2 left off, covering episodes 23-26 with color stills and model sheets of characters, mecha, backgrounds and props. This is followed by an section on characters and mecha from Iscandar and elsewhere (Earth and Garmillas were covered in the first two volumes), and a short section on the new elements seen in the compilation film A Voyage to Remember.

Volume 3 then takes a deep dive into Ark of the Stars. Coverage is heavy-duty, with a story digest and all the model sheets you can eat. Out of the book’s 320 pages, 182 are devoted to the film. The book finishes with a gallery of all the 2199 poster and promo art and an event timeline (very similar to those here at Cosmo DNA) that culminates in mid-April 2015.

The fourth volume is of limited interest to non-Japanese readers: a complete screenplay collection of the 26 episodes and both movies. It’s 100% text, and it comes bundled with Volume 3.

If you’re wondering whether or not to invest in these, all you need to know is that there is no more extensive 2199 publication than this set. No matter what else you may have already bought, this has more. Fortunately, you can order them from the ever-so-helpful CD Japan here. It may seem steep at $370, but that gets you a whopping 15 POUNDS of Yamato books. You won’t regret one penny of it once you have them in your hands.

Yamato 2199 Naoyuki Katoh Artworks

Mag Garden, June 30, 2014

In his role as the premiere illustrator for 2199 package art, Katoh created some very striking and enduring images, all of which are collected in this 80-page hardcover. It is divided by product categories: Blu-ray & DVD sleeves, movie program books, paperback covers, etc. Some of the art is shown in layers to better display its individual elements, and there is even a spread that covers Katoh’s three “live-painting” exhibitions. Best of all is a section of new pieces making their premiere in these pages.

See more info here. Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Hyperweapon 2013

Great Japan Pictures, October 25, 2013

This annual publication features the works of artist/designer/modeler Makoto Kobayashi. Some of his best Yamato art from previous editions is reprinted here, and 2199 gets eight pages with designs of the Garmillas capital city and an exclusive look at Yamato‘s twin boats beyond their very brief, blink-and-you’ll-miss them appearances in the anime.

Read the Yamato content here.
Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Hyperweapon 2014

Dai Nippon Pictures, July 25, 2014

Kobayashi is also known for his interesting use of English. The title for this edition, “The Way to Varellous,” contains his own personal rendering of Balerus, the capital city of Planet Garmillas. The book is 126 pages, the bulk of which is packed full of Kobayashi’s background, environment, and mecha designs, chiefly on the Garmillas side of the story.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp

Hyperweapon 2016

Dai Nippon Pictures, July 22, 2016

Yamato content was minimal in this edition, but still significant. Two pages apiece were devoted to Yamato 2199 and Yamato 2202, containing concept sketches seen nowhere else.

See the 2199 art here. The 2202 content can be found here.

Order your copy of Hyperweapon 2016 here.

The Art of Nobuteru Yuuki

Published by Anime Style
Early release: August 15, 2014
General release: September 15, 2014

This-two volume set collects the original and modified animation layouts by character designer Nobuteru Yuuki. Almost all of his work on the series is contained in these books, which makes them HUGE. Volume 1 runs 392 pages and volume 2 runs 502. That tallies up to an incredible 894 pages of pure Yuuki. Stacked on top of each other, they are 2.25″ thick.

The set was first released for direct sale at Comiket 86, then through commercial outlets a month later. Read more about them here

Order it from Amazon.co.jp

Yamato 2199 Rough Illustration Book

Published by Nobuteru Yuuki
Early release: December 27, 2014
General release: January 27, 2015

Mr. Yuuki surprised everyone with another hit at Comiket 87. Similar in concept to the 2-book set, this one was a substantial collection of Yuuki’s rough drawings from various stages of the production, all presented chronologically. There are five sections devoted to different drafts of character design (including a section of his unused designs for Yamato Resurrection), an “Idea Sketch” section with random concepts, and a “Main Visual” section full of rough drawings for posters, magazine spreads, and product packaging.

Unfortunately, this book is no longer available through commercial sources. Read more about it here.

Ark of the Stars Retouch a Picture Collection Volumes 1 and 2

Published by Nobuteru Yuuki
Vol. 1: Aug 12, 2017 (160 pages)
Vol. 2: Dec 30, 2017 (208 pages)

These are the only two books devoted solely to Ark of the Stars, containing Yuuki’s animation layouts for practically every scene in the film involving characters. Color reproductions of his work sits side by side with stills from the finished scenes they belong to. Volume 1 takes us to the sighting of IJN Yamato in the Shambleau jungle, and Volume 2 takes us to the end, concluding with a joint interview with Yuuki and Director Yutaka Izubuchi.

These books were initially sold at back-to-back Comikets in 2017, then went to the second-hand market.

Space Battleship File, Anime Edition

Gakken, May 27, 2014

Gakken Publishing launched this remarkable paperback seemingly out of nowhere, a full-color, 224-page compendium that delivers exactly what it promises. Starting with all the ships of Yamato 2199, it crosses several anime territories to cover the Mobile Suit Gundam fleets and all the highest-profile SF anime from the 70s to today, including the works of Leiji Matsumoto. Each vessel gets its own page or two-page spread.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp here or CD Japan here.

Understanding Astronomy in Yamato 2199

Seibundo-Shinkosha, December 9, 2014

Astrophysicist Toshihiro Handa served as 2199‘s science advisor and also gave a series of planetarium lectures that used the show as a gateway into astronomy. His presentation was expanded and published in this remarkable paperback. In 192 full color pages, Professor Handa tracks the entire voyage to Iscandar and back with concise 2-page or 4-page entries for each topic. The text is all in Japanese, of course, but it’s a visual feast from start to finish.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Yamato 2199 Hyper Mechanical Detail Artworks

Mag Garden, July 31, 2015

The literal translation of the title is a mouthful: Warship Precision Machinery Illustrations. But the English subtitle gives us what we really want to hear: Hyper Mechanical Detail Artworks. The promo strip ups the game with the phrase “God is in the details” (in both Japanese and English) and Chief Mechanical Director Masanori Nishii is credited for the text. Small wonder – this book is a treasure trove of the work he personally supervised for 2199.

Totaling 128 pages, it is filled with full color, large-format stills that isolate the most spectacular mecha images from the series. Characters, backgrounds, special effects, and camera cropping are eliminated to show off the exquisite work of the mecha team. As stated in one interview after another, any scene in which a ship was not moving received extra attention; a CG render became the foundation for highly enhanced, hand-drawn and digitally-painted works that are worthy of gallery exhibitions (as we saw last year).

Re: Mechanics covered similar territory, but stopped at the pencil-renders. This one picks up from there to showcase the fully finished pieces with nothing to distract from their astonishing precision. Half the book is devoted to Yamato itself, followed by 20 pages of Earth mecha with the balance given to Garmillas and text features.

If you’re waiting for a recommendation, consider it given three paragraphs ago. Order it from Amazon.co.jp here.

At right: a trading card that came with copies ordered from Yamato Crew.

Hyper Mechanical Detail Artworks, volume 2

Mag Garden, April 30, 2016

At 128 pages, this one is the same length as the previous volume. The first half picks up with images from the TV series (primarily the later episodes) and the second half gives lavish attention to Ark of the Stars with the most glorious Gatlantis ship art we’ve gotten so far, and plenty of new angles on Yamato herself.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp.


Hobby Books

Yamato 2199 Modeling Guide Launch Edition

Ascii Media Works, September 30, 2013

Spanning 144 pages, this collection of articles from Dengeki Hobby magazine covers episodes 1-6 and is broken down into several sections: character figures, photo-features on models of Yamato, Earth ships, and “stage 1” Garmillas vessels, dioramas built by superstar modeler “Wild River,” and various scratch-built ships made before their Bandai releases. A bonus section contains blueprints of all the ships featured in the book.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Yamato 2199 Modeling Guide Return Edition

Ascii Media Works, August 28, 2014

Identical in size and format to the Launch Edition, it regroups material published in Dengeki Hobby and sprinkles in a few new items. This time, the new item is a scratch-built 1/1000 Deusular II. The book contains new illustrations by manga artist Michio Murakawa and focuses on the climax of the series from the Rainbow Star Cluster battle through the end. Another set of blueprints is also included.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Yamato Mechanics 2199

Dai Nippon Pictures, November 7, 2014

Model Graphix finally joined Hobby Japan and Dengeki Hobby when it collected its 2199 coverage into this full-color 112-page book. The title is based on the now-legendary website of mecha designer Junichiro Tamamori, who pioneered his own updated Yamato visual world and eventually got hired to redesign the Earth mecha for 2199. The book’s major text feature is reprinted from issue #352 of the magazine, which can be read in full here.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Yamato 2199 Fleet Model Collection

Hobby Japan Mook 554, March 13, 2014

This is a full-color, 96-page compendium from Hobby Japan magazine containing reprinted articles on all the Bandai model kits through the beginning of 2014, a few scratch-builds, and some additional product info.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Yamato 2199 Fleet Model Collection
Ark of the Stars

Hobby Japan Mook 627, January 31, 2015

This volume is devoted to Ark of the Stars as you can see from the striking cover, which perfectly recreates a movie poster with model kits. The book comes in at slightly under 100 pages, a large percentage of which consists of reprints from the monthly magazine. However, some of the articles are appended with additional material, and a product catalog in the back brings us right up to date.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Yamato 2199 Fleet Model Collection
Garmillas Gathered Fleet

Hobby Japan Mook 650, April 17, 2015

This is the third compendium of color photo features from the magazine, totaling 112 pages. The first 80 are devoted entirely to Garmillas ships with the balance going to Yamato and other items. It closes with a record of all the Bandai kits released as of the month of publication.

Order it from Amazon.co.jp.

Space Navy Yard: Illuminated Spaceship Modeling Guide

Dai Nippon Kaiga, March 31, 2016

One of the best parts of being a Yamato fan is being surprised, especially with a product you didn’t see coming. In this case, it’s a lavish 104-page book from Dai Nippon Kaiga and the editors of Model Graphix magazine. The topic is photography and internal lighting for spaceship models from a number of well-known sources: Macross, Battlestar Galactica, Yamato 2199, Crusher Joe, and Star Trek (TNG & DS9).

The 2199 material fills 28 pages with exquisite photos of Yamato, Kiska, and Mirangal. Order your copy of Space Navy Yard at Amazon.co.jp here.

As the source of all the model kits, it was only natural for Bandai itself to join the ranks of 2199 publishing with these product catalogs given away in movie theaters and public events.

Yamato 2199 Complete Guide

24 pages, April 26, 2013

See content here

Yamato 2199 Plamodel
Official Guidebook 2014

12 pages, December 6, 2014

See content here

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