REBEL 3199 Chapter 4: Pale Blue Maiden (Sasha)
Opening Day Stage Greeting Report
Published at the official website. See the original post here
Date/Time: October 10 (Fri) 9pm (after screening)
Location: Shinjuku Piccadilly
Panelists: Harutoshi Fukui (Chief Director), Naomichi Yamato (Director), Hideki Oka (Screenplay), Eriko Nakamura (MC / voice of Mikage Kiryu)
Facing an audience fresh from watching Chapter 4, Oka began nervously, “Now that Chapter 4 is out, I’m half thrilled and half anxious, wondering if I’ll get yelled at. Sasha has such strong expectations from everyone, so the bar is set high. Did I manage to deliver? That nervousness still lingers.”
Director Yamato followed, showing relief: “We’ve finally reached the halfway point of the entire series. Making it this far brings me half relief.”
Chief Director Fukui added, “I hate to say it every chapter, but we barely made it. This time was cutting it really close too.” He continued, “Plus, that ‘certain big thing’ appeared at the end of Chapter 4. We have no choice but to fight it in the next chapter, so it’s going to be incredibly demanding. But honestly, we’ve learned our lesson by Chapter 4. We should have prepared it earlier. Usually, on the first day of release, the next chapter’s artwork is almost completely blank. But this time, we already have a quarter of Chapter 5 done. So, please rest assured next time!“ he called out to the audience.
Voice actress Eriko Nakamura, who plays the role of Mikage Kiryu and served as the MC, also smiled and said, ”Everyone, please rest assured. We only have to make the remaining three-quarters. Ah, thank goodness!”
Director Yamato highlighted Chapter 4’s key attractions as “places never seen before,” such as Garmillas’ new home planet Galman and Hokkaido. “We commissioned new layouts and shot materials, but the challenge was aligning our visions. It took considerable effort, but with everyone’s cooperation, we finally built it and can now show it to you.”
However, several locations painstakingly created in this manner cease to appear as the story progresses. Chief Director Fukui lamented repeatedly, “Where did the elementary school we built last time go…? The art museum appeared only to be blown up…” This stems from their intense dedication to the project. Yet, when Director Yamato echoed these sentiments — “Even though we scouted locations…” and “Even though we worked so hard…” — the audience couldn’t help but laugh.
Furthermore, Screenwriter Oka revealed a story of meticulous dedication behind the creation of this series. According to him, a brainstorming session with key staff was held at Director Fukui’s home in 2020, generating so many ideas that it resulted in extremely thick meeting minutes. However, the project was temporarily suspended. When production fully restarted in 2022, Director Fukui had significantly altered the original content.
“At that point, a story emerged that none of us knew about,” Oka revealed, surprising the audience. “That story is the 3199 you’re all seeing now.” “I bet many of you are wondering, ‘What is Dezarium?’ right now,” Oka laughed. “But we experienced it firsthand in 2022.” He added, “That’s the magic of Fukui.”
What will the next Chapter bring? Director Fukui mentioned the “massive something” that appeared at the end of this film. “There was this incredibly huge thing, right? That thing is at least 70km in length,” he revealed. Oka supplemented, “70km is roughly the distance from the Boso Peninsula to Shizuoka. After all, Cosmo Tigers are flying around inside it. It has to be that big for that to work.” This suggests Chapter 5 will unfold on an unprecedented scale.
Oka further revealed two elements they decided “absolutely had to be done” during the initial idea meeting: “having Alphon and Kodai face each other” and “the assault on the intermediate supply base.” Regarding this, Chief Director Fukui teased fans, stating, “The next chapter resolves both of those elements at once.”
When asked for a final message, Oka stated, “Space Battleship Yamato is a work with a long history. We’re creating this together, building upon the original works from over 40 years ago. I feel like we’ve finally managed to repay the audience halfway. From here, the expanded story will unfold in ways we can’t yet predict. Please stay with us until the very end.“
Director Yamato also said, ”The battles on the production front continue, but visually, how will we resolve these crises? How will we respond? The series will continue. First, please enjoy Chapter 4, and we sincerely ask for your continued support.“
Finally, Chief Director Fukui stated, ”The original Be Forever featured the famous ‘Warp Dimension’ scene. Midway through the film, the screen ratio changes from Vista size to the widescreen Cinemascope format. This symbolized the story breaking through barriers, expanding our perspective, and drawing us in more deeply. Something comparable happens at the end of Chapter 5. Please look forward to seeing what it is!” he said, heightening audience anticipation.
REBEL 3199 Chapter 4’s Highlight is “Deer”
Mika Akitaka’s Soul-Infused Ra-Jendora Also Featured
Published at Mantan Web, Oct 11, 2025. See the original post here
Noting that depicting animals in anime is challenging, Fukui commented on the ‘deer’: “Classic anime masterpieces used to feature horses and birds as a matter of course, but now fewer people can draw them. Animators poured their hearts and souls into drawing them. Seeing the deer made me think, ‘Chapter 4 is going to be great!’“
Chapter Four also features the Ra-Jendora, which has become a talking point. Fukui mentioned, ”The final design took a while to come together. Mika Akitaka (the designer) poured his heart and soul into it,” highlighting the meticulously crafted design as another key attraction.
The grown-up Sasha also appears. The reason for her sudden growth is explained in the story. Mr. Oka seemed to have struggled, saying, “Chapter 4 is finally Sasha’s debut, right? Because everyone has expectations for Sasha, the bar is set high.” Regarding her future role, he stated, “Sasha will have to navigate various challenges ahead.”
