Uchuu Senkan Yamato

In the year 2199, Earth is a mere shell of its former glory after a vicious bombardment by the Gamilas Empire. The inhabitants have been forced underground to escape the irradiated surface, but the deadly radiation inches closer and closer to the retreating population. With only one year before complete and utter extermination, time is fast running out and hope is in short supply.

So far, any attempt to escape or retaliate has been instantly annihilated by the alien empire—until an emergency transmission from the planet Iscandar in a neighboring galaxy offers a glimmer of hope to save the doomed planet. Covertly, Earth's Self Defense Force constructs a faster than light engine for a journey to Iscandar. Armed with new weapons and a determined crew of fearless navy men, the World War II era battleship Yamato is reborn as Space Battleship Yamato. She and her crew set out on a perilous journey across the stars to save their home and the entire human race.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Okita, Juuzou Main

Naya, Gorou Japanese

Kodai, Susumu Main

Tomiyama, Kei Japanese

Desler, Aberdt Main

Ibu, Masatou Japanese

Mori, Yuki Main

Ichiryuusai, Harumi Japanese

Sanada, Shirou Main

Aono, Takeshi Japanese

Shima, Daisuke Main

Nakamura, Shuusei Japanese

Domel, Elk Supporting

Kobayashi, Osamu Japanese

Analyzer Supporting

Ogata, Kenichi Japanese

Sado, Sakezou Supporting

Nagai, Ichiro Japanese

Kodai, Mamoru Supporting

Hirokawa, Taichirou Japanese

Matsumoto, Leiji Director, Original Creator

Ishiguro, Noboru Director, Storyboard

Ashida, Toyoo Episode Director, Animation Director

Iuchi, Shuji Episode Director

Reviews

Nov 21, 2010

Criffis

Recommended

Well, this is my first review, so please go easy on me.

I came to be interested in the anime, since I like naval-related stuff, therefore, the name Space Battleship Yamato made me think about the very well known Battleship Yamato, the Imperial Navy's pride during WW2. I did not know ANYTHING about the anime before deciding to watch it. Now I know about it's well renowned reputation as a pioneer in the science fiction genre. It was also one of the first (if not first!) anime being broadcasted in the US (with a LOT of modifications). Luckily, I watched the original Japanese version. So ... here is what I think of it:

Story:

The Journey to Iscandar? I really asked myself what that could mean before I watched the anime. Well, I am not going to ruin the story, so all I am going to say is that the plot is pretty convincing (although there were some mistakes and WTF moments that were mentioned at the credits after each episode, provided by the subtitle company). Earth in danger of extinction and the revival of a WW2 battleship to help her survive? I wanted to see that! The bla bla part and the good action scenes are very well balanced and the actual bla bla parts are actually pretty interesting and (sometimes!) heart moving. The ending, although a little bit too fast I would say, makes you want to watch more of the anime and (thank God) many movies and 2 other seasons were made for it. I give the story a well deserved 9.

Art:

I had (still have) watched few animes before this one, but the first thing that shocked me when I started to watch is the artwork. It is so different from what anime is today! I could not stop laughing about the funky-retro-70s pants that the crew used and the relative simplicity of the artwork in general. But oh well, this was just in the first episode. I got used to that. In fact, the way Queen Starsha was first presented, for example, gave her an aura of mystery, which really suits her. The most amazing thing though is the design of the Yamato and the battle effects. Although pretty simple at first sight, they are good enough to give you a feeling of YAY VIOLENCE, EXPLOSIONS PEW PEW, which (despite the fact that I wasn't even born in those days) could have been very difficult and innovative in those years (it was 1974 after all, no Star Wars, no Gundam Wing, no nothing!). The exterior and interior design of the Yamato is also very very interesting and creative. I give art also a 9.

Sound:

The sound... just one word: WOW. The opening already pumps you up and is already a good intro to the anime's epicness. The lyrics are perfectly suitable for the anime and we can't just forget the amazing voice of Isao Sasaki, an artist totally unknown to me before this anime. I watched many videos of him performing the Yamato theme (still today! he is almost 70 years old!) with the same enthusiasm everytime. I read that the opening theme became so popular, that it was informally taken as an anthem for the real Japanese Yamato. Anyways, back to the anime. The ending song (Makka na scarf) is as good as it's opening. Again, performed by Sasaki. Regarding the ambience music in the anime, it could not be better. They did a great job creating a space atmosphere around the Yamato. Battle themes, drama, happiness,... I really recommend to look for the whole Soundtrack CD. It is simply amazing! Sound deserves a perfect 10

Characters:

The ship cannot navigate itself, obviously. The Yamato's crew is as epic as it's ship. The swiss-clock-precise Shima, the rebellious Kodai, the intelligent Sanada... Every crew member shows a complete different personality and talents, which leads to a very rich environment in the bridge of the Yamato and also in the rest of the ship. Yuki is not the common tv show girl. She is the only one aboard the Yamato, but she is responsible for Life Support and also the Medical Bay (together with the funny doctor Sado). She is not the regular woman that falls in love instantaneously with the main character, but she evolves together with him to actually reach that point. Queen Starsha's mysterious personality and history is something that makes her very intersting, even atractive to some point (her beauty is very different to how anime women are presented today). She is obviously very important, since the Yamato actually travels to hear her advice. Lord Desler is also very different from today's villian. Although cruel, he is extremely intelligent. He also sees the Yamato with respect and holds to a certain point a clean fight with the ship. A very interesting character indeed. Last but not least, Captain Okita. Without a doubt, the most misterious character. Always calm and even more intelligent than Lord Desler, he is in charge of leading the Yamato and it's crew. His unorthodox methods scare sometimes scare Kodai or Shima, but his authority is never questionated. Will he succeed? Ok, character gets a 9 from me.

Enjoyment

From start to end, the anime made me laugh, be anxious, angry (Captain Okita's decisions and other stuff). I enjoyed every second of it. Whether Desler planned his strategy, the Yamato just blew everything up with the Wave Motion Gun or Analyzer teased Yuki, everything made the anime be watchable and worthy of my time. I did not toally like the ending though. Although it was good, it had a very WTF moment (which I shall not spoil) and I think the final parts were also a bit short. Anyways, enjoyment also gets a 9.

Overall

Retro anime, funky clothes, aliens attacking humanity, space battleships, guns and explosions? Hell yes! The anime, although it may look boring for today's anime fans, is still enjoyable and worth of watching. The depth of the story is also pretty astonishing, in my case at least. I recommend any sci fi or navy fan to watch this great time joy. I do strongly say you should watch the Japanese version, since the US one (known as Star Blazers) cut a lot of "inapropiate" scenes in that time (today, Space BB Yamato could be a good PG-13 as hardest measure, PG-7 I would say). The thing that makes me mad though is, that they renamed the Yamato as "Argo" which drops the epicness of the ship. Anyways, a must see!

(Note: English is not my native language. I'm sorry for any grammar / spelling errors).

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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Aug 30, 2017

ps1917

Recommended

I first saw this series as a kid in the early 80s. It was branded in the U.S. as "Star Blazers" and I would wake up extra early on Saturday mornings to watch it. Along with (but vastly superior to) Battle of the Planets and Speed Racer it was my intro to anime and it sparked several lines of interest in my life that have continued to the present.

It basically brings the outline from the Jason and the Argonauts myth and updates it into a very entertaining space drama.

This is a classic series and as such the artwork, music, and characters are not nearly ... as well polished as something more modern. But taken for what it is it was an astonishingly good work for the time period. The recent "Space Battleship Yamato 2199" is a completely updated re-make for those of you who can't get past the dated nature of the original. There was also a recent live action film that was so-so. The original series spawned many sequels which range from excellent to terrible.

If you like space opera and military anime you can't really go wrong with this series.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Oct 21, 2014

Glass-moon

Mixed Feelings

Space battleship Yamato does not live up to it's reputation for me, however I see why people like it a lot.

Story (5.5)- For the most part the story's your stereotypical humans vs. aliens story. Though there are times when it rises above that. You might think the Yamato's plot amour (which was done to conserve the anime's budget) would sink the show however for the most part it uses interesting tactics to get out of the sticky situations the Yamato is put in. The aliens also have a concrete reason as to why they are attacking Earth. Yamato has influenced countless si-fi titles ... as shown by some interesting points occasionally like for example " Is it fair how the losers are treated ?", "Are the Gamilluans really that different form humans ?".

Characters (7.25)- Most of them are one note, however for the most part they are well written though. Kodai is a well developed character. Okita is the captain that supplies the interesting tactics that keep the Yamato's plot amour in check, and becomes a mentor for Kodai. Descular is the leader of Gamilon it's interesting to see his very authoritative aggressive personality sometimes create a paradox with his respect for the Yamato. Starsha could have been very interesting, however her character is not explored much. Mori was the worst character very little depth, and development, plus the bits of fan service.

Sound (7)- voice acting acting is good. The music is your standard 70's anime soundtrack.

Art (7) and Animation (8.5)- Animation is pretty impressive for the most part considering how old it is, though there are some odd facial expressions sometimes. The art looks fine.

Enjoyment (6.5)- The story occasionally is able to rise above, the characters are solid, good voice acting, and impressive animation and art for the time: made Yamato worth my time. Though it certainly has problems.

Overall (6.4)- The story is most of the time average, has a lot of bland characters, sometimes the Yamato plot armor is not kept in check, occasional animation mistakes, and the generic music hold it down. But the well written characters, and some standout characters, a story that occasionally becomes something more than usual, and impressive animation for its time: make it worth watching.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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