Of the four different Final Yamato novelizations, the one most strongly remembered was published by Tokuma Shoten in the “AM Juju” library. Written by Keigo Masaki and illustrated by animator Yoshinori Kanada, it is presented here chapter by chapter in English.
As the first official Final Yamato publication direct from the home office, this was the most comprehensive one available when the film premiered in March 1983, with slick color images, many new stills and paintings, and extended essays. See it from cover to cover with translations here.
Final Yamato was the last chance for a publishing bandwagon, and everyone was determined not to be left behind. It was the culmination of everything that had come before with each major publisher pushing for the highest quality they could achieve. In other words, it was a good time to be a fan.
In 1983, West Cape was still head and shoulders above all others in terms of its publishing quality. Other publishers bent over backward to flood the market with their best work, but they simply couldn’t compete with the home office. Here, are the last of the high-end Yamato publications from the production years.
Akira Hio was early out of the starting gate since his first manga volume would come out before the movie, so it was adapted from a script that was still somewhat volatile. Fittingly, it helped the Final Yamato manga to follow Hio’s well-established tradition of preserving scenes that would later be cut from the film. See them here.
A collection of the many novelizations of the film published by Asahi Sonorama, Shueisha, and Tokuma Shoten, 1982-83. Also featuring an examination of the story and unique artwork in the Tokuma Shoten edition.
