Yamato Forever REBEL3199, which began in 2024, has finally reached its end. The final installment, Chapter 7 "Rainbow Reincarnation" (Nijiiro no Rinne), began its theatrical run in Japan on Friday, October 30. On the same day, Bandai Namco Music Live released Yamato Forever REBEL3199 Original Soundtrack Vol.02 (2-UHQCD, LACA-19201–19202, 4,180 yen incl. tax), which mainly collects the score from Chapter 5 onward, along with a Theme Song Collection (LACA-25307, 3,300 yen incl. tax) featuring the opening theme and each chapter's ending theme.

The music credit reads "Akira Miyagawa, Shu Kanematsu / Yasushi Miyagawa." Yasushi Miyagawa wrote the music for the original Space Battleship Yamato; Akira Miyagawa is his son; and Shu Kanematsu represents a younger generation. Those three names, joined by a single slash, sum up the music of REBEL3199 better than anything else.

Vol.01 with Chapter 5, Vol.02 with Chapter 7: Albums Timed to Opening Days

As a recap, the previous album, Original Soundtrack Vol.01 (LACA-19161–2), was released on February 20, 2026, the day Chapter 5 opened. Vol.02 arrives on Chapter 7's opening day. In other words, the soundtrack was delivered in two parts, each on a day when the story took a major turn. You can hear the music in the theater and listen to it again at home that same day, which is a welcome arrangement for anyone who has followed the series.

The packaging shows plenty of care as well.

  • Jacket: Newly drawn by Kia Asamiya, who creates the series' image artwork, depicting the Arizona-class battleship Arizona and the Grand Reverse.
  • Format: A 2-disc UHQCD set like Vol.01, playable on standard CD players.
  • Special Limited Edition (LACZ-10377–10378, 15,180 yen incl. tax): Comes with two 333×333mm canvas boards featuring the Vol.01 and Vol.02 jacket art. Sold only through A-on STORE, YAMATO CREW, and theaters.

"Without the Melody, It Isn't Yamato": Inheritance Across Two Generations

In a conversation between Akira Miyagawa and Shu Kanematsu published by Real Sound in August, the two spoke in concrete terms about how they built the music of REBEL3199. Miyagawa placed the inheritance of his father Yasushi Miyagawa's melodies at the core of the work, saying in effect that melody is the heart of Yamato, and that losing it would mean it is no longer Yamato.

Kanematsu, for his part, said he started by studying the old scores and recordings and re-creating the original soundtrack, absorbing the spirit of the source before writing new music. He also observed that melody-driven music has become less common in recent anime and drama scores, with vocal songs and underscore drifting apart. That is exactly why Yamato's melody-led score, which carries the story on its tunes, feels so valuable today.

Their working process is interesting, too. Sound director Tomohiro Yoshida organized a menu of the music each chapter needed, but the most inspiring moments came from meetings where chief director Harutoshi Fukui narrated the story. Miyagawa said he aims to capture the "soul" of Yamato rather than simply fitting scenes, writing pieces that can stand on their own, and that the directors told the composers to "swim however you like." Track titles name characters and situations rather than cue numbers.

Miyagawa's description of the arrangements was memorable: "they seem like variations, but they aren't variations." They appear to vary familiar themes, yet each stands as an independent piece. The conversation also included Miyagawa praising Kanematsu's "Desarium String Quartet." On Vol.02, which covers the later chapters where the story of Desarium comes to a head, how this "music of the enemy side" sounds will be one of the highlights.

The Final Song Grows from 1980's "Birth of a New Galaxy"

Then there is the final chapter's ending theme. "Haruka e, Towa e," sung by Junko Yagami (lyrics: Yohei Matsui; music: Yasushi Miyagawa and Akira Miyagawa; arrangement: Akira Miyagawa), is built on the melody of "Shin Ginga Tanjo" (Birth of a New Galaxy), which Yasushi Miyagawa wrote for the 1980 film Yamato Forever, newly arranged by Akira Miyagawa.

In 1983, Junko Yagami recorded her own song "Love Supreme ~Shijo no Ai~" for Final Yamato with an orchestra conducted by Yasushi Miyagawa. More than 40 years later, she now sings a song bearing the names of both father and son. That one song alone tells you what REBEL3199 has been carrying forward.

The Theme Song Collection also includes Isao Sasaki's "Space Battleship Yamato (3199 OP Ver.)," Hiromi Iwasaki's "Ginga Densetsu," Daisuke Ono's "Reach for the Star," and TRUE's "Eureka." Listen to the 2-disc score and the song collection back to back, and you can retrace the whole seven-chapter journey through sound alone. At this major milestone for the remake series that began with 2199 in 2012, take your time with the "sound of Yamato" played together by two generations of one family and the generation that comes next.