2199 activity dropped in January 2016 but any 2199 activity at all is a good thing. The Battlefield Infinity mobile game continued to find new ways to entertain fans, Hobby Japan unrolled new coverage, and a long-awaited Cosmo Fleet miniature arrived. Here’s the complete January roundup.
They’re Here
They arrive at the distant Large Magellanic Cloud. The Space Wolf is unleashed. His eyes are like fire, his fangs like swords. Each wields their knowledge against the other to further their ends.
December 2015 brought the year to an end with a drumbeat of activity that has been remarkably consistent since the end of anime production. Here’s everything the last month of 2015 had to offer.
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Over the Black Light
Balun. A lighthouse in space. The center of a network that connects the galaxy. A gigantic enemy fleet gathers, numbering 10,000 in all. Yamato sets a course straight through for the Large Magellanic Cloud.
A complete record of all the 2199 1/1000 model kits from Bandai in 2014 and 2015, from the Garmillas carriers up to the massive Domelaze to the last Yamato, the first Gatlantis vessel, and all points in between.
The original Yamato Mecha Collection mini-models were the products that put Bandai on the map, and many are still in production today. When Bandai became a primary sponsor for Yamato 2199, it was only natural for this famous line to be revived with up-to-date technology.
November 2015 was a particularly good month on the fan activity radar, and the latest issue of Ship’s Log brought us some more official news about Series 2. But the real winners this month were players of the Battlefield Infinity mobile game. Here’s the full rundown.
Out of the Forest of Memories
The ancient gate: a bridge between the stars that hangs suspended in the void. Kodai and his team infiltrate a control satellite to activate the gate. There, they hear a story of the past, and the door to that time will now be opened.
Despite a slow start, 2199 activity in October 2015 was slightly up over that of September. Fan activities are always a reliable place to find the blood still pumping, and this month also gave us a handful of announcements to maintain the anticipation. Here’s the full rundown…
A Choice for the Future Yamato weighs anchor and rests its wounded body upon an Earth-like planet. This is a place longed for by those who will soon be extinct. A conspiracy raises its head, and we are asked what path we should take.
Despite this being the long slow fade-out phase of Yamato 2199, September 2015 activity was still about the same as the previous three months. Online action, new manga, a pair of hobby shows, and other odds and ends continued to keep the flame lit. Here’s our roundup of the month.
August 2015 was enlivened by news of upcoming products and punctuated by two reliable summer events: Comiket and Chara Hobby. Add in a revival of 2014’s traveling Art Exhibition and a historic SF award, and it starts to look like what we’ve all grown accustomed to over the past few years.
Point of No Return
In the vast space between galaxies, a trap is laid by a patient enemy. Yamato is surrounded. With hell ahead of them and hell behind, there’s no turning back. Yamato, escape this deadly trap!
From the Yamato 2199 Concert 2015 program book: music writer Ryozo Fuwa’s essay on the making of the 2199 music, culminating with Ark of the Stars. He reviews composer Akira Miyagawa’s personal achievements and examines the challenge of not only remaking, but surpassing his father’s work on the original saga.
From the Yamato 2199 Concert 2015 program book: Composer Akira Miyagawa followed in the footsteps of his father Hiroshi Miyagawa to create the music of Yamato 2199, and sound director Tomohiro Yoshida is a self-proclaimed Yamato fan. They talk about the music of both Yamato and Concert 2015.
Going into July 2015, it looked like very little was in store in terms of new activity. A new art book was promised for the end of the month, but there wasn’t much to bridge the gap. But as the month went on, things got progressively more interesting – and then a MASSIVE news flash made it a month we’d never forget.
The Whisper of the Witch
A siren’s song lures ships to their doom. Snow falls in the emptiness of the void, where a shadow of evil prowls. Yamato is shipwrecked. And inside, no one is to be found. What will Kodai and the others see there?
Michio Murakawa’s adaptation of The Whisper of the Witch goes far beyond the anime, using dreamscapes to provide glimpses of the crew’s lives on Earth prior to the mission. Those sequences are described here so that non-Japanese readers can share Murakawa’s thoughtful passion for these characters.
From Dengeki Hobby Web: this interview with 2199 Mecha Director Masanori Nishii was published to mark the arrival of Yamato 2199 Hyper Mechanical Detail Artworks, the ultimate mecha art book on the series. He discusses the demands of creating Yamato mecha AND prepping it for the printed page.
This record encompasses everything from mooks and manga to novels and specialty publications that takes the 2199 experience beyond the screen. Use this as a checklist for your own library, find links to buy what you’re missing, and discover the real-world literature that plays a role of its own. [2 pages]
June 2015: activity dropped after the video release of Ark of the Stars, but there were still news announcements, an interview with the director, the last music release, a new manga chapter, and plenty of action in the Twitter-verse. It’s all rounded up here.
From Hobby Japan, July 2015: Yamato 2199’s Chief Mechanical Designer talks about the use of CG in the anime and many of the decisions behind the on-screen action in the movie, including the creation of the Gatlantis ships rendered in CG for the first time.
The Wolf From Another Dimension Yamato hides, wounded. The eyes of a hunter search for it. The shadow of an invisible enemy, sharpening its fangs. Is there any way to escape those fangs? A howl resounds through the emptiness of space.
The arrival of a new movie on home video means we all get to take a big step forward into the next chapter in Yamato history. That’s what May 2015 was all about – the end of the worldwide wait for Ark of the Stars. And it was surrounded by the kind activity that Yamato fans live for. [2 pages]
This interview with Yutaka Izubuchi was featured in the booklet that came with the home video release of Ark of the Stars in May, 2015. The booklet is included in its entirety.
What Lies Beyond
Those who come from beyond the horizon. Two worlds. Truth and fact. Two truths each create their own sense of “right.” Is there any hope to be found beyond them? Yamato presses forward, across the galactic seas.
In April 2015, some very lucky fans got to see the upgraded version of Ark of the Stars at special theatrical screenings of the “Blu-ray edition”, Yamaket 5 brought fans together for a day of celebration, and other interesting news flashes pointed the way to the future.
A World I Once Saw
Everyone lives with secret feelings. It takes courage to reflect on a horrible past and one’s own mistakes. But look toward to the future. Now is the time to go forward. Yamato advances on an unimaginably long journey.
March 2015 was peppered with interesting developments on multiple fronts as the home video release of Ark of the Stars got another month closer. From Concert 2015 to several unique products and events, here’s everything that crossed the radar scope. [2 pages]
