Star Blazers - Space Battleship Yamato - Should I?

[T J]

As so often I do, I scan the Trek BBS for references and hints to new and interesting things. Today I caught the mention of an old anime called Star Blazers and Space Battleship Yamato, which if I understand correctly is the same thing. I’ve done a bit of researching but I’m still a somewhat confused. From what little I’ve glimpsed I’m interested.

What I need from ya good folks is information. As in, proper viewing order, I understand there might have been a movie that kicked the whole thing off, I need to watch before starting season 1. I also understand there is a remastered version, do I want the originals or the remastered.

To those that love this show how should I watch it? Is it worth watching or is it kinda lame?

Edumacate me!

[cylkoth]

Yamato is the series that was used as the basis for Star Blazers.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Battleship_Yamato

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Blazers

It (Blazers) was the only major syndicated show of that era I missed entirely-it never ran in my area. Most who watched it then have fond memories of it.

[roguephoenix]

i loved these when i was a kid. i recently tried to rewatch but found myself not in the same frame of mind. i think you have to be open to it's way of story telling and give it a chance. as a kid i thought this was awesome since i hadn't had a lot of stuff that i watched yet.

[cylkoth]

^ Yeah, Netflix has it, and I tried to watch, but couldn't make it pass disc 1.

[Christopher]

I liked it when it originally aired, but I haven't seen it in ages, so I don't know what I'd think of it now. I still fondly remember the music, though.

[Leroy]

Watch the Japanese version the edits aren't there and you don't have to put up with that awful dub.

[Christopher]

I liked the English dub on the first two seasons, though of course it was the only version I knew. There were some good voices there, particularly Mark Venture and Desslok, though some that weren't so good. I didn't care for the dub on the third season, which was done by the people who dubbed Speed Racer. The whole cast was different and much smaller. From what I can tell, there were something like five people doing all the voices, but to my ear, it sounded like there was just one or two men and one woman doing everybody.

[shanejayell]

It's not bad, tho the animation hasn't aged well.

[The Master of Tarquin Hill]

I watched it in the 80's as a kid and loved it. I re-watched it around 2003 or 04 and it was all I could do to get to the last disc. On the upside, I think I resold it for more than I bought it for.

BTW, everything I just said goes for Robotech's first season as well.

[T J]

Well after the first few episodes I have some thoughts. Definitely feeling the 70's vibe from the music to the bell bottoms. The overall story is not bad, certainly would have been better had I caught this when I was 7.

Resurrecting the Japanese warship Yamato... Very strange to see a warship my forefathers blasted into the deep be resurrected like it was all honorable and noble instead of a murderous dishonorable hulk deserving of it's eternal silence. At at least they renamed the bastard!

Of course the science is either thin or non-existent. Continents floating above the clouds of Jupiter, and naturally the evil Galaxy terrorizing bad buys... Look exactly like humans!

Not like I was expecting Star Trek XI or anything.

[J.T.B.]

My comments are similar to what others have said. As a 10 year old c. 1980 "Star Blazers" was great, I used to get up half an hour early so I could watch the show before school on my local UHF station (why they never showed it in the afternoon like "Battle of the Planets" I never understood). It made quite an impression, 25 years later I could still remember some of the names, details and important scenes.

I got it from Netflix a couple of years ago and only made it through three discs. I have to say, however, for a kid show it was pretty good. It had strong characters, some thoughtful themes, a sense of grand scale, alien politics and intrigue, and generally more substance than an average "cartoon." The animation looks crude now, but the compositions were often very cinematic and ambitious. I have never seen the Japanese original, but the US version didn't give me a feeling of being dumbed down.

That still wasn't enough to keep me watching as an adult, but I think it was probably a good influence on me when I saw it originally.

T J wrote:

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At at least they renamed the bastard!

Only for the US version!

--Justin

[arch101]

The first SF series with season-long arc storylines. I was sold on that format immediately because of this show. It's really quite entertaining, especially the first season, which is epic in scope. You'll be surprised how much has been ripped off from this show in future SF productions. I agree with the above poster that you should see the subtitled and unedited Japanese version.

[zakkrusz]

I haven't seen it personally, but for a good reason. I've learned years ago that I tend to hate everything by Leiji Matsumoto, and find series he has written, directed, or was otherwise involved in bore me to death, or are way too preachy for my tastes, sometimes both. I watched Queen Emaraldas and DNA Sights 999 which didn't do much for me. I also got only one volume into The Galaxy Railways and dropped that due to lack of interest. I learned my lesson and try not subject myself to his titles.

Works like these are definitely an aquired taste if you ask me.

[Christopher]

T J wrote:

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Resurrecting the Japanese warship Yamato... Very strange to see a warship my forefathers blasted into the deep be resurrected like it was all honorable and noble instead of a murderous dishonorable hulk deserving of it's eternal silence. At at least they renamed the bastard!

Naturally the Japanese have a different historical perspective on the events. And surely you can't blame a vehicle for the decisions made by the people controlling it.

Anyway, it was discovered in 1999 that the wreck of Yamato is in two pieces, much more badly torn up than Matsumoto presumed. So there's no way it could've been repaired as shown in the series.

[T J]

Christopher wrote:

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Naturally the Japanese have a different historical perspective on the events. And surely you can't blame a vehicle for the decisions made by the people controlling it.

Naturally.