Yamato 2202 activity in June leveled out to the leisurely pace of events, announcements, and products you would expect for a series that has closed up shop. Fan activity bloomed to fill the gap and give us another month of Yamato adoration.

June 5: 1/350 diecast gimmick model, Vol. 19

Hachette continued forward with its huge week-by-week Yamato model. Volume 19 came with another hull plate and parts that allowed builders to secure fiber optics onto the forward deck. (Photo at right posted on Twitter by ncc1701refit.)

See Hachette’s instruction video here.

See an unboxing video here.

June 7: Yamato Crew goods

Yamato 2202‘s theatrical run is finished, but the Yamato Crew website seems intent on continuing to offer the sort of merchandise found in theater gift shops. This time they offered a set of four coasters for release later in July (to Japanese addresses only).

June 8: Syd Mead merch

In May, the Syd Mead art exhibition Progressions Tyo 2019 at Arts Chiyoda was extended due to popular demand, finally closing June 2. On June 8, merchandise sold at the event was opened up to online orders. The Yamato connection was in his development art for Yamato 2520. Related merch consisted of a standard-size clear file, postcard set, mini clear files, and a 128-page exhibition book.

The first three items shipped to customers on June 10, and the book was scheduled to follow on July 20.

June 12: 1/350 diecast gimmick model, Vol. 20

The 20th volume provided a motor and parts that allowed users to secure the first shock cannon turret to the forward deck. (Photo at right posted on Twitter by ncc1701refit.)

See Hachette’s instruction video here.

See an unboxing video here.

June 13: Program book slipcase

On this day, Yamato Crew began shipping out this custom slipcase, handsomely illustrated by Kia Asamiya, to contain the seven theatrical program books for 2202. The art was similar to that of the DVD and Blu-ray storage boxes released in 2017.

June 13-16: International Tokyo Toy Show 2019

Though part of the annual summer hobby show season, this event offers less photo-op due to its comparative lack of Yamato displays. However, Bandai used it to officially announce their commitment to release their first-ever Soul of Chogokin Garmillas vessel, the classic destroyer (renamed Destria in Yamato 2199).

After showing off the prototype at a handful of venues, a release date of November was given. More info would follow later in the month, so keep reading.

June 15: 1/350 Paper model

Paper Model Workshop is a Tokyo-based company that specializes in complex kits of all kinds, as seen on their website here. They sell through mail order, but also occasionally offer models as free PDF downloads. Such is this case with this one, the “Sunken Battleship Yamato.” Consisting of six PDFs to print at home, it can be found here.

This is absolutely no-kidding FREE. Click on the link and poke around for the PDFs and the instructions. This is not actual Space Battleship Yamato merchandise…but you know the score.

Visit the company’s Facebook page here.

Photo posted on Twitter by Moric08

June 16: Yamato Lecture 19

The 19th fan gathering was a continuation of the 18th, part 2 of a discussion about the music of 2202. Host Osamu Kobayashi was joined behind the mics by music writer Ryozo Fuwa and voice actor Mei Ueda. As usual with these things, there was no recording allowed so the conversation is probably lost to the ages. However, the audience went out of its way this time to share Twitter pics of the custom Yamato menu at Shinjuku’s Loft Plus One…

Photo posted on Twitter by Aoi2199

Alcohol drinks, L to R:
Mirror of the Moon (Moscow Mule) • You, Petal (Mohito) • Crimson Red (Redeye) • Lullabye (Calpis Sour) • Great Sum (Rum Melon Soda)

Photos by Aoi2199 and AnalyzerAU09

Non-alcohol drinks:
From Yamato With Love (Garigarikun Soda & cola) • The Rival (Blue Grenadine & pineapple juice) • Teresa Forever (non-alcohol Moscow Mule)

Food:
Pipe Organ of the Silver Maiden (macaroni salad) • Yamato U-Boat Style (sausages)

Photos by Analyzer AU09

Chinese Rice Bowl of Tears (mini rice bowl) • Great Love (omelette) • Dawn of Yamato (fried egg on neapolitan)

Photos by Aoi2199

Dogfight (assorted pickles) • Endless Battle (black sesame pudding with strawberry sauce)

June 19: 1/350 diecast gimmick model, Vol. 21

This volume allowed users to finish installation of the gearbox for the rocket anchors. At this point, the forward deck utilizes three motors for moving parts. And we haven’t even gotten to the bridge tower yet. Photo at right posted on Twitter by Hachi Kuji.

See an unboxing video here.

June 20: Animage magazine anniversary

Today, Japan’s premiere anime magazine marked its 41st anniversary with a look back at the historic first issue, which is now an indelible part of Yamato history. The following article was published on Yahoo Japan…

Starting with Farewell to Yamato!
Examining Animage‘s first issue

The anime magazine Animage was born 41 years ago in 1978, spanning the Showa and Heisei periods and now into Reiwa. Since its inception, Animage has aimed to respond to anime fans’ demands: “I want to see,” “I want to know,” and “I want to read.” Do you know what the content of the first issue was, published 41 years ago? Let’s examine the legendary first issue of Animage.

The cover story of the first issue commemorated Farewell to Yamato, which premiered in the summer. According to writer Yoshiharu Tokuki, who was associated with Animage from the start and writes a serialized column on the official website, the name Animage is a combination of the words Anime and Image, coined by the first editor in chief, the late Hideo Ogata.

The sophisticated Yamato, printed in silver, was drawn by illustrator Nozomu Tanaka. The cover was not printed in the normal four colors (red, blue, yellow, and black) but used a total of 11 colors, such as silver and fluorescent pink. It was displayed for a while at the print shop, Dainippon Printing, as a valuable technological example.

For example, the background looks solid black, but if you look closely you’ll see Yamato line drawings printed with black lines of a different density on the black background. The cover image of the first issue is rather well known, but since you don’t notice the details until you see the real thing, many people are unaware of it. In addition, the first issue consisted of 120 pages and cost 580yen.

The frontispiece consisted of sketches and comments by industry people to commemorate the first issue. The first feature was the cover story on Farewell to Yamato, then “Animation World” presented highlights, synopses, and design materials for one month’s worth of TV animation. It would go on to become a regular feature to introduce the broadcast schedule of the current month. Special features continued with an article on the Space Pirate Captain Harlock TV series.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

There was a spotlight on Akira Kamiya [Kato in Yamato], who was a popular front-line voice actor at the time, and this feature became serialized in the next issue with the title “Voice Actor 24:00.” Various voice actors were introduced therein, and it can be said that this was an opportunity that lead to the “voice actor boom.”

Other regular features included “Encore Anime” which introduced a nostalgic anime masterpiece (the first being the feature film The Great Adventure of the Sun Prince Horus) and “Production Visit” which introduced a production company (the first was Tokyo Movie, now known as TMS Entertainment).

In a section titled “Anime College,” five serialized columns started: Anime Cram School, History of Animation, Akira Hio’s Mechanical World, A Small Word from Makoto Tsuji, and Voice Actor Guide. A serialized manga titled Golden Warrior by Yuki Hijiri (creator of Locke the Superman) was also published.

According to Mr. Tokuki’s column, “The idea of the content and planning page [in the first issue] became the basis for the later video magazine mania. The policy of the editor, who wasn’t an animation expert, was an attitude of learning the basics and the fun of animation from the same perspective as the readers.” Whether or not this editorial policy worked, sales of the first issue seemed to be quite strong.

Thus, the long voyage of Animage got off to a smooth start.

– Animage Plus Editorial Department

See the Yamato coverage from Animage #1 here.

June 26: 1/350 diecast gimmick model, Vol. 22

This week it was all about the electronics with the installation of a power distributor to the fiber optic lights in the forward hull. Photos posted on Twitter by Hachi Kuji.

See an unboxing video here.

June 26: Yamato Crew goods

More products were announced at Yamato Crew for release in July. This time, it was a set of six rubber “strap mascots” for your purse or bag…

…and a pair of clear files using artwork that appeared in issue 3 of the fan club magazine.

June 26: The Alfee album release

This entry is a sort of “honorable mention.” The Alfee is a Japanese glam/rock group that goes all the way back to 1974. They’ve performed more than one song for anime, finally crossing streams with Yamato when they wrote songs for Resurrection in 2009. This new disc doesn’t contain any of those songs, but they certainly didn’t hide their admiration with this choice of cover art and title.

Order the disc at Amazon.co.jp or CD Japan.

June 27: Bandai announcement

On this day, the Tamashii Nations division of Bandai launched a website to officially announce the forthcoming release of Soul of Chogokin model GX-89, the Garmillas Destroyer. At 9.5″ long, it is scaled to match the GX-86 Yamato. It includes diecast parts with light and sound gimmicks that are programmed to interact with those of Yamato.

GX-89 is scheduled for release in November. Visit Bandai’s homepage and see bunches of prototype photos here.

June 28: Yamato 2202 Complete Works Script Collection

Kadokawa published the third book in the 2202 Complete Works series, which is entirely devoted to the writing of the anime.

It’s one of those volumes for hardcore collectors only, consisting of 100% text with no images other than the cover art. At 352 pages, it contains a LOT of material. The episode scripts fill the first 217 pages. These are the production drafts, which went through additional evolution in the storyboarding and editing phases, so they don’t precisely match what ended up on screen.

The next section of the book (84 pages) presents all of Harutoshi Fukui’s development memos from his first proposal in April 2014 through several iterations, culminating in November 2015. This material corresponds to the major text features found in various Academy hardcover books from the original production years, and is ripe for translation here in the future.

Next comes an intriguing addition, the “draft zero” scripts for Episodes 17 and 18. Scriptwriter Hideki Oka described these as the initial compendium of ideas that would be fleshed out over time into the production draft. These were the first two episodes of the Earth vs Gatlantis battle, and they were obviously chosen for a reason. Future translations may reveal it.

The book concludes with full staff/cast credits and a pair of interviews: one with Fukui and Scriptwriter Hideki Oka, and the other with Producer Shoji Nishizaki. Read the Nishizaki interview here.

If 100% text is not a barrier for you, order your copy of this book from Amazon.co.jp or CD Japan.

June 29: Cosmo Tiger II kit announced

Bandai isn’t quite done with Yamato 2202 model kits yet. In August we’ll get a Mecha Collection mini-kit of the Neu Balgray and October we’ll see a new version of the Cosmo Tiger II. This one will come with option parts to build the 2-seat version with rear gun turret.

June 29: Mecha Collection model #13

And that’s not all! The same day they announced the Tiger, Bandai reissued the Mecha Collection Dreadnought. The kit is unchanged from its earlier release, but comes with two bonus items: a new sheet of decals and extra clear parts that allow a modeler to connect two 1/1000 Dreadnoughts to a 1/1000 Andromeda for the “TAG” booster configuration.

Some modelers were dismayed to learn that the connector parts required glue for stability, but made the best of it with temp use. Photos posted on Twitter by Maichanfu and Pancyooo.

June 30: Box art

Yamato Crew closed out the month with one more product announcement, a storage box for all three of the Yamato 2202 Complete Works books with new wraparound art by Kia Asamiya. It was offered for preorder, scheduled to ship in July (to Japanese addresses only).

---