It revolves around the character Susumu Kodai (Derek Wildstar in the English version) and an international crew from Earth, tasked during an interstellar war to go into space aboard the space warship Yamato, derived from the World War II battleship of the same name, in response to a message of aid from the planet Iscandar in order to retrieve a device which is able to reverse the radiation infecting Earth after being bombed by the Gamilas (Gamilons).
The first ideas for what would eventually be Space Battleship Yamato began in 1973 by producer Yoshinobu Nishizaki, but the project underwent a number of revisions and overhauls before settling on the final design.
The team responsible for the creation of Space Battleship Yamato consisted of Yoshinobu Nishizaki, Keisuke Fujikawa, Eiichi Yamamoto and Aritsune Toyota.
A continuing story, it featured the declining health of Yamato's Captain Okita (Avatar in the Star Blazers dub), and the transformation of the brash young orphan Susumu Kodai (Derek Wildstar) into a mature officer, as well as his budding romance with female crewmember Yuki Mori (Nova Forrester).
[12] In the year 2199, an alien race known as Gamilas (Gamilons in the English Star Blazers dub) unleash radioactive meteorite bombs on Earth, rendering the planet's surface uninhabitable.
[14] The inhabitants of Earth secretly build a massive spaceship inside the ruins of the gigantic Japanese battleship Yamato which lies exposed at the former bottom of the ocean location where she was sunk in World War II.
Enormously powerful, it can vaporize a fleet of enemy ships—or a small continent (as seen in the first season, fifth episode)—with one shot; however, it takes a brief but critical period to charge before firing.
This second season featured additional plots such as a love story between Teresa (Trelaina) and Yamato crew member Daisuke Shima (Mark Venture), and an onboard antagonism between Kodai and Saito (Knox), leader of a group of space marines.
In the film, later modified into a theatrical movie, Dessler sees his homeworld, Gamilas, destroyed by the grey-skinned aliens, and its twin planet Iscandar next in line for invasion.
The theatrical movie Be Forever Yamato, set in the year 2202, sees the Black Nebula Empire launch a powerful weapon at Earth, a hyperon bomb which will annihilate humanity if they resist a full-scale invasion.
In place of Leiji Matsumoto, American artist Syd Mead, known for works such as ∀ Gundam, and Blade Runner, provided the conceptual art.
Due to the bankruptcy of Nishizaki's company West Cape Corp (former Academy Productions), and legal disputes with Matsumoto over the ownership of the Yamato copyrights, the series was never finished and only three episodes (out of ten) were produced and released on home video.
American series expert Tim Eldred was able to secure a complete package of art, mecha designs, and story outline at an auction over Japanese store Mandarake in April 2014.
The opening narration of Final mentioned the Bolar/Galman conflict, implying that the date for Yamato III was to be regarded as some time between 2202 and 2203 (making for an unrealistic and compressed timeline).
It is not known if this change was due to the lackluster response to Yamato III, the production staff's dissatisfaction with the truncated series (additionally, Nishizaki and Matsumoto had limited involvement with it), or a mere oversight.
[35] Seven Seas Entertainment licensed the manga in 2017 and released it in English as hardcover omnibus Space Battleship Yamato: The Classic Collection on April 9, 2019.
[38] Space Battleship Yamato was a 1985 Japanese exclusive Laserdisc video game designed by Taito which was based on the television series of the same name.
The player can move a few places on the battlefield at a time, and, if they encounter an enemy, it will start a shoot 'em up section that they must complete without losing all their Cosmo Tigers in order to advance.
[39] Released in 1999 for the PlayStation, the game's story is based on original Yamato series, but incorporates events from Leiji Matsumoto's manga.
[39] Released in September 2000 for the PlayStation, this game is an original series fan disc based on the Leiji Matsumoto's 1976 manga Eternal Story of Jura.
Starting in 1974, many Yamato-themed products have been sold, including clothing, tableware, stationery, and models of the characters, with the Cosmo Tigers and Yamato itself receiving particular attention.
[53] Bandai was responsible for most of the merchandising, and their choice to sponsor Space Battleship Yamato at such an early stage of its production is considered influential in the company's financial success.
[55] Initially, Space Battleship Yamato was ignored – the original 1974 anime was forced to halve its episode count due to low ratings and viewership.
Its turn towards more serious themes and complex storylines influenced future works in the sci-fi and mecha genre, including Gundam, Evangelion,[60] and Macross.
[64] Yamato was also the first anime series or movie to win the Seiun Award, a feat not repeated until the film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984).
[68][69] Game designer Takashi Nishiyama also credits the Wave Motion Gun as the origin of the Hadouken move in the Street Fighter series.
[70] The Space Battleship Yamato series generally involves themes of brave sacrifice, noble enemies, and respect for heroes lost in the line of duty.
This can be seen as early as the second episode of the first season, which recounts the defeat of the original battleship Yamato while sailors and pilots from both sides salute her as she sinks (this scene was cut from the English dub, but later included on the Star Blazers DVD release).
Dessler, the enemy defeated in the first season and left without a home or a people, recognizes that his foes are fighting for the same things he fought for and, eventually, becomes an important and loyal ally to Earth.
This romanization has appeared in Japanese publications because Nishizaki, a sailing enthusiast who owned a cruiser yacht, ordered that this translation be used out of love for his boat.