AV Watch article, March 15 2025

“Without Yamato, there would have been no Gundam“

Hideaki Anno’s Space Battleship Yamato Complete Records Exhibition opens

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On the 14th, the day before the opening, a ribbon cutting ceremony and a media preview were held with Hideaki Anno and others on stage. Anno said, “I’ve heard that some young people are watching the first Gundam because of GQuuuuuuX. If Gundam is okay, Yamato will be okay too, so please come and see it.”

At the beginning of the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Keiichi Kosaka, president of Tohokushinsha, said, “We are able to hold the complete Records Exhibition thanks to the cooperation and support of many people, including Mr. Anno. I hope that you will feel how wonderful Space Battleship Yamato is.”

Yoko Asagami, the voice actress who played Yuki Mori and also works as a storyteller under the name Shunsui Ichiryusai, said, “It’s hard to believe that such a day has come 50 years after that day, and I’m really happy about it.”

Many of the people who contributed to Yamato have passed away during that time. She mentioned two people who could be called the creators of the work, saying, “I imagine how happy it would be if Leiji Matsumoto-sensei (director) and Yoshinobu Nishizaki-san (original creator) were here and shook hands. I imagine that they are doing that in the sky right now,” and added, “I’m sure Kodai-kun, Shima-kun, Sanada-san, and the captain are watching over us.”

Mr. Anno said, “Space Battleship Yamato was an epoch-making animation that had a huge impact not only on me, but also on people of my generation who watched it in real time. I think it’s truly a one of a kind work. Yamato is Yamato. So it didn’t end up like Gundam, but that was Yamato‘s fate, and I think that makes it a great work.”

“You can see from the exhibition that the originals of the designs and other things remain. I’m really happy that we were able to take this opportunity to unearth various (materials) and show them to everyone. I think Yamato is a work that can be passed down for another half century or more, so I hope that people will continue to talk about it as we approach the 100th anniversary, even though I’ll no longer be around.”

“We’ve received cooperation from many people, but these (exhibitions) also have a commercial aspect, so they wouldn’t be possible without the support of the fans. I’m happy that we were able to realize this project thanks to all of you. To put it in Yamato terms, it’s ‘Thank you. That is all.’ Thank you so much.”

Mr. Anno (right) and anime commentator Ryusuke Hikawa (left)

The impact of Yamato. “Everything felt new, and I was thrilled by it.”

After the ribbon cutting, an interview was held with Mr. Anno and anime commentator Ryusuke Hikawa, where they talked about the highlights of the exhibition and what Space Battleship Yamato means to Mr. Anno.

In a comment released in conjunction with the opening of the exhibition, Mr. Anno said, “I don’t think I would be who I am today if I hadn’t encountered the epoch-making work that is Space Battleship Yamato.” Mr. Anno spoke about the importance of the work, saying, “It changed what was called ‘TV manga’ at the time to the term ‘anime.'”

“The spaceship was drawn in such detail that it was unthinkable at the time, and it was so cool that it moved while maintaining its shape. It showed me things I had never seen before, including a hard-hitting human drama that was different from previous children’s TV manga. Everything felt new, even the detailed designs, and I was thrilled by it.”

Next, when asked about the highlights of the complete exhibition, Anno said, “There are background paintings on display that have not been published in magazines or anywhere else. These were provided by the families of the staff members. I had never seen them before.”

“There are original, hand-drawn versions of the designs. There are also drawings by Leiji Matsumoto-sensei on display, so I hope you will come and see them for yourself.”

“I would have liked to display as many originals as possible, but some are large, so considering the size of the venue, the number of pieces that could be exhibited had to be reduced. We are exhibiting high-resolution scans of many originals, which allows us to increase the number of pieces, so we are showing them that way. Still, we did our best to stick to the originals as much as possible.”

Hikawa also said, “The colors of the background paintings are truly wonderful. They were created by art director Hachiro Tsukima, who came from Mushi Productions, but he passed away just before the release of Farewell to Yamato, so I don’t think he had a chance to receive recognition until now. I think the background paintings convey something like the ‘aesthetic sense’ that supports Yamato, so I hope you will feel that.”

“In the past, many copies of the original drawings and designs were published in print, but the originals seem to have soul in the brush pressure, line work, and fine details. I think that you can get a sense of it by seeing the original version, so I hope you enjoy that as well.” He also mentioned that the storyboard for the fourth episode, created by Mobile Suit Gundam director Yoshiyuki Tomino, is also on display.

Talking about Yamato‘s relationship to Gundam, Hikawa said, “Many people think that Yamato and Gundam are unrelated, but that’s not true.” He explained that the popularity of Yamato led to a plastic model series called “Mecha Collection” becoming a hit around the time of Farewell to Yamato (1978), which later became the roots of Gundam plastic models.

Anno described it as “the father of Gunpla” and promoted the special exhibition by saying, “You can also see that history. The Mecha Collection is the father of Gundam model kits. I think you can understand that without Yamato, there would have been no Gundam. You can feel the great history of animation, the flow of ‘this was there, so that was there.'”

Finally, Anno called on fans to “convey the greatness of Yamato to as many people as possible.”

“It’s a work from half a century ago, so it’s inevitable that it feels old to young people. However, I’ve heard that a lot of young people are watching the first Gundam because of the work we (Studio Khara) are making now,Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX. If Gundam is okay, I think Yamato will be okay too, so please watch it. The TV series is only 26 episodes. If you think the drawings are a bit old, watch the remake series Yamato 2199. The remake series is full of Yamato‘s appeal.”

Document exhibition area on the 7th floor

There is also an exhibition to enjoy the 1/100 Yamato ship and “sound.”

The exhibition consists of two areas: the main material area on the 7th floor, and the second floor area, which features a “chronology space” that looks back on the 50th anniversary of Yamato, a giant 3-meter model of the ship, and merchandise.

Display related to the “sound” of Yamato, including 6mm tape containing sound effects created by Mitsuru Kashiwabara.

Rough drawings of mecha such as the Cosmo Zero are also on display

In the exhibition area on the 7th floor, there are proposals, design materials for episode 26 of the TV series, a model showing the internal structure of Yamato, and other exhibits that allow visitors to enjoy the “sound” of Yamato, such as the Wave-Motion Engine, main gun, and Wave-Motion Gun. The sound of the Wave-Motion Gun in particular was played a lot during the preview.

Exhibition area on the 2nd floor. On the wall is a timeline summarizing the 50 years of Space Battleship Yamato.

In the exhibition area on the second floor, a 1/100 scale Yamato ship is enshrined in the center. On the wall is a timeline of the TV series, the live-action version starring Kimura Takuya, and the remake series.

Original products will be sold at the goods area, and the 1/700 model of Space Battleship Yamato “50th anniversary Hideaki Anno version” will be on display, with reservations starting at 10:00 on March 15th.

A wristband as a special admission bonus. A total of six designs will be distributed randomly.

Special bookmarks and wristbands will be available as admission bonuses to the Complete Records Exhibition, and wristbands must be worn to enter the exhibition area on the second floor.

In addition, during the exhibition, the LED vision at the main entrance of Seibu Shibuya will be changed to exhibition specifications, a photo spot will be set up on the landing of the stairs, and plastic models will be displayed in the 5th floor passageway between buildings A and B. A collaboration cafe menu will also be available at 365cafe on the 4th floor.

The LED vision at the main entrance of Seibu Shibuya will be in exhibition mode