After visiting Anime News Network today, I am happy to tell you, the Space Battleship Yamato/Star Blazers fans in North America, that Space Battleship Yamato: Resurrection (2009), the first theatrical film installment of the Space Battleship Yamato franchise since Final Yamato (1983), will finally be getting a North American DVD release soon, though no date is yet mentioned. According to ANN, Funimation Entertainment will handle the Region 1 DVD distrubution of the film itself, thus making Yamato Resurrection the first SBY film to be distributed on DVD by a North American company other than Voyager Entertainment, owner of the SPACE BATTLESHIP YAMATO and STAR BLAZERS trademarks within North America.

For a couple of years, I was worried that no more Space Batleship Yamato features would be comercially distributed in North America due to the apparent lack of SBY fanbase within the same continent, but I thank Funimation for making my wish come true, because Space Battleship Yamato is a stuff of anime legend, and where would anime be today if not for that legend? After all, SBY was what helped Japanese Animation be the medium of its own right it is today since it started off with a series where the entire content is anime medium-originated and not for kids. Though I'm happy for this news, I hope that the men and women at Skydance Productions continue to try get the rights they need to make their U.S. live-action film based on the Americanized "Star Blazers" dubbings of SBY (not the original Jpaanese verison of it), just in case Space Battleship Yamato: Resurrection bombs in North American DVD sales, because that way, at least there will still be the attempts to bring the sci-fi classic back into the North America, and yes, I look forward to the U.S. live-action film too, if the rights are granted (no offense, anime purists).

4:34 PM Canada EST