Here’s a release in honor of the late, great Leiji Matsumoto (January 25, 1938-February 13, 2023). Thanks to Dougo13 for providing the rare old recording from his collection. Get it from Nyaa or Mega.
It’s hard to put into words just how important this man’s work has been to me for nearly 40 years. In 1984, a friend of mine returned from a visit to Canada with episodes of the French dubbed “Albator, le corsaire de l’espace.” Thanks to video rental stores I was able to watch a competently dubbed tape of Captain Harlock episodes 1 and 9, and a heavily edited version of the first Galaxy Express movie. A crackly, faded multi-generation VHS copy of Arcadia of My Youth with burnt-in English subtitles solidified my obsession with the Matsumoto universe. Years later I would discover that Dougo13 owned the original Arcadia tape that spawned those myriad lower quality copies that were going around the collectors circuit in the 1980s, recorded by a friend of his from a Vancouver cable station. Cap’n Dave recently discussed this movie on his excellent Let’s Anime site, you can read that here.
The fictional universe Matsumoto created will live on in all the wonderful works he gave us. Rather than wishing that he rest in peace, I prefer to imagine his soul now traveling eternally among the sea of stars. Be Forever, Matsumoto-sensei.
THE SKARO HUNTING SOCIETY 
Thanks muchly for this, Nanto. Forever in the sea of stars.
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Matsumoto’s passing hurts me deeply. His universe was my favorite. From Captain Harlock, to the lovely Emeraldas, the amazing train called the Galaxy Express 999, and so much more, it gave me nothing but joy. My PC icons to this day are his characters whenever I install Windows and it’s Maetel this time around.
I’m sure he’s traveling on the sea of stars watching over us all. Farewell Matsumoto-sensei, we will miss you!
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What a wonderful and absolutely one-of-a-kind tribute to Matsumoto-sensei.
(Where else could we find an original broadcast treasure like this but from Nanto?)
My all-time favorite TV series will always be Queen Millennia (which I first saw in the Harmony Gold mash-up with Space Pirate Captain Harlock).
Somehow Matsumoto imbued that tale with more pathos and sensitivity than anything else in the space opera genre.
Thank you, Nanto (and Dougo13), for allowing us to enjoy a glimpse of anime the way we used to see it, fresh from a coveted recording … as close to the original source as possible.
Nothing could be more natsukashii and fitting as a tribute to the man who’s works launched us into a lifelong enjoyment of anime so many years ago. *sniff*
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