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Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato

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Arrivederci Yamato
File:Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato, DVD Cover.jpg
Cover art of the DVD.
Directed by
Screenplay by
  • Toshio Masuda
  • Keisuke Fujikawa
  • Eiichi Yamamoto
Produced byTooru Yoshida[4]
StarringKei Tomiyama
Yoko Asagami
Shusei Nakamura
Music byHiroshi Miyagawa
Production
company
Academy Productions[b]
Distributed byToei Company
Release date
July 14, 1978
Running time
151 minutes
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese
Budget¥360 million[5]
Box office¥4.3 billion[6] ($43 million)[7]

Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato: Warriors of Love (さらば宇宙戦艦ヤマト 愛の戦士たち, Saraba Uchū Senkan Yamato Ai no Senshitachi), also called Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato or Arrivederci Yamato, is the second film based on the classic manga and anime series Space Battleship Yamato (known as Star Blazers in the United States) and the sequel to Space Battleship Yamato (1977). The same storyline was reused and expanded on later in the year on TV in Space Battleship Yamato II, albeit with a more upbeat ending.

Plot

Three years after their destructive war with Gamilas, humanity has largely recovered from the war with Gamilas. Meanwhile in the distant reaches of space, the tyrannical White Comet Empire, led by the Emperor Zordar sets its sights on Earth to conquer and enslave mankind. Dessler, leader of the Gamilas, is revived by them and pledges his loyalty. He vows revenge on the Yamato under the supervision of Comet Empire officer Miru.

Susumi Kodai and Yuki Mori, former crewmates of the Yamato, have since become engaged. Kodai now commands a destroyer in a cargo escort fleet. While returning to Earth from patrol, his ship receives a mysterious and garbled message which they record. Upon his arrival, Kodai, along with the rest of Yamato's crew, commemorate the anniversary of her arrival by assembling at Heroes Hill. Kodai and the others believe that the world has become too complacent with their newfound peace, feeling that people have taken for granted the sacrifices the Yamato endured to earn it. This feeling is further bolstered by the christening of the EDF's newest state-of-the-art flagship Andromeda, which will succeed the Yamato.

With the help of science officer Sanada, the message is analyzed. It warns of a looming threat. Sanada further explains that a comet has been spotted rapidly approaching Earth. Kodai believes the two are connected. He urgently tries to warn the EDF defense council but his concerns are dismissed. When the Yamato's crew is informed that the battleship is to be decommissioned, Kodai inspires them to mutiny and seek the source of the message themselves. Kodai urges Yuki to stay on Earth for her safety, but she secretly boards. Shima initially disagrees, balking at disobeying orders. A group of rowdy space marines commanded by Hajime Saito join them. Kodai helms the ship himself as they launch, but Shima reveals himself and takes his station. Upon reaching space, the ship is joined by the Black Tiger squadron, led by Yamamoto. Encountering a distress signal, the battleship rescues Captain Ryu Hijikata from the wreckage of a patrol fleet that had just been attacked by White Comet Empire forces. The Yamato and her crew are welcomed back into EDF command, and Hijikata is assigned captain.

The Yamato receives another message, which they learn was sent by an alien named Teresa. She is held captive on her home planet Telezart by the Empire. Yamato warps there and fights her way through enemy forces to free Teresa. She explains that she is the sole survivor of her kind who had been wiped out by the Comet Empire, and that the White Comet itself conceals a base inside. The only way to reach it is to destroy its plasma shield, which not even the Yamato's powerful Wave Motion Gun can do. Kodai pleads Teresa to join them but she cannot; She is made of anti-matter, so any contact between her and real matter would cause a massive explosion. She vanishes and prays for Earth's victory.

The Yamato departs Telezart, but is ambushed by Dessler. The Yamato takes the upper hand in the ensuing fight. As Yuki secretly follows him, Kodai infiltrates Dessler's ship and confronts the dictator. Kodai asks him why he continues to fight even after Gamilas's destruction. Dessler replies that it is to avenge the humiliation he suffered from Yamato. In the ensuing standoff, Dessler succumbs to his wounds; Yuki is shot by Miru while saving Kodai, and Dessler shoots Miru dead. Dessler realizes that his spirit was closer to the Yamato then the Comet Empire and asks Kodai for forgiveness. He divulges the Comet's weakness: the spiral core. He urges Kodai to defeat them before voiding himself into space.

As the Yamato desperately races back to Earth, the Comet Empire starts its attack on Earth. The EDF fleet led by the Andromeda easily fends off the first wave. The Yamato warps to Earth in time to see the EDF fleet decimated by the White Comet itself. The Yamato takes aim and fires at the Comet's spiral core with the Wave Motion Gun, seemingly destroying it. But the massive base, Gatlantis, is revealed. Yamato quickly advances and sustains grievous damage, Most of her crew including Dr. Sado, Analyzer, Captain Hijikata and Yuki are killed.

Kodai, joined by Sanada and the space marines, pilots a fighter and leads the Black Tigers to infiltrate Gatlantis. Suffering even more losses, they fight their way to Gatlantis's core, where Sanada and Saito stay behind to plant explosive charges. Kodai escapes as Sanada and Saito sacrifice themselves to destroy the core. Back on Yamato, a determined Kodai orders her to open fire and greatly damages Gatlantis. The alien base cracks open and reveals a massive/ powerful battleship hidden inside. Zordar boasts at Kodai, declaring himself the ruler of the universe. Crippled beyond repair and hopelessly outmatched, Kodai confers with the spirit of Captain Okita, who tells Kodai that he has one more weapon to fight with: his life.

Kodai orders the few surviving crewmen to leave the ship. Shima and the crew realize his intentions and protest, but Kodai convinces them, stating that by sacrificing himself for Earth, he will not truly die. The crew disembarks and salutes him as he steers Yamato into a collision course with Zordar's battleship. Teresa appears before Kodai and is inspired to sacrifice herself as well, amplifying the Yamato's power with her anti-matter body. Kodai sees himself surrounded by the spirits of his crew, including Yuki. The Yamato vanishes in a bright flash, and the White Comet Empire is defeated.

Voice cast

Production

In 1977 the first film of the series, Space Battleship Yamato, outperformed Star Wars at the Japanese box office. This led to the production of Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato, which was released in 1978. It was originally intended to conclude the story, but a third film, Be Forever Yamato, was released two years later.[8][9] Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato had a total budget of ¥510 million ($5.1 million), including ¥360 million ($3.6 million) for production and ¥150 million ($1.5 million) for advertising.[5]

Notes

  1. ^ Credited as Animation Director (アニメーションディレクター).
  2. ^ The studio went through numerous name changes, which are listed as follows for the sake of consistency with other articles listing the studio: Academy Productions (April 1973–July 1980); Tokyo Animation (July–August 1980); Office Academy (August–October 1980); Nishizaki Music & Video Corporation (October 1980–April 1983); West Cape Corporation (April 1983–August 1997).

References

  1. ^ さらば宇宙戦艦ヤマト 愛の戦士たち [Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato: Warriors of Love] (motion picture) (in Japanese). Event occurs at 6:27. 監督 - 舛田利雄 [Director - Toshio Masuda]
  2. ^ さらば宇宙戦艦ヤマト 愛の戦士たち [Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato: Warriors of Love] (motion picture) (in Japanese). Event occurs at 6:04. 監督 - 松本零士 [Director - Leiji Matsumoto]
  3. ^ さらば宇宙戦艦ヤマト 愛の戦士たち [Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato: Warriors of Love] (motion picture) (in Japanese). Event occurs at 6:08. アニメーションディレクター - 勝間田具治 [Animation director - Tomoharu Katsumata]
  4. ^ さらば宇宙戦艦ヤマト 愛の戦士たち [Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato: Warriors of Love] (motion picture) (in Japanese). Event occurs at 6:08. プロデューサー - 吉田達 [Producer - Tooru Yoshida]
  5. ^ a b "Farewell to Yamato Production Data". Cosmo DNA. July 2, 2013.
  6. ^ "なにかとんでもないことが起こりそうな「宇宙戦艦ヤマト2202 愛の戦士たち」". シネマズ PLUS (Cinemas PLUS) (in Japanese). 2017-02-06. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  7. ^ "Yamato in 1977: how history was made". CosmoDNA. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
  8. ^ "The Making of Farewell to Yamato, Part 1". StarBlazers.com. Archived from the original on April 2, 2012. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  9. ^ "The Making of Farewell to Yamato, Part 2". StarBlazers.com. Archived from the original on April 2, 2012. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
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