Koshimizu Ami on Playing Horo in Spice & Wolf

In an interview on mainichi.jp, Koshimizu Ami talks about playing Horo in the new anime Spice & Wolf. Horo is a wolf-goddess who is several hundred years old but has assumed the form of a 15-year-old girl and is traveling around a medieval countryside with a young trader called Lawrence.

In my opinion, Amisuke is doing a brilliant job. If she continues at this high level, and the anime remains as entertaining as it is so far, this could become a career-defining role. You can tell from the interview that the way she is playing the character is no accident. She has thought about it in just the right ways.

Here is a translation of the interview:

Mainichi: What kind of character is Horo?
Koshimizu Ami: She looks about 15 but is actually hundreds of years old, and uses her knowledge and experience when she and Lawrence are working together. But because she has lived so long she holds deep in her heart an "I don't want to be alone any more" loneliness, and your first impression of her is that her behavior is quite childish. Retaining that youthful feeling in an adult role made it quite difficult.

What was your approach to the role?
It was a real task to get across the feeling of being the elder in the scenes where Horo is leading Lawrence around by the nose. I was quite worried about it -- in a good way. Until now, my roles have mainly been around my own age, so it was my first experience of something like this. Because the feeling is so rich and captivating, even in the most cheerful parts of the script I never forgot the loneliness. How to play the combination of appearing child-like while really being several hundred years old is something over which I do battle with the script in every episode.

Horo uses oiran kotoba ("courtesan speech")
Using old-fashioned courtesan speech, with words like wacchi ("I") and nushi ("thou"), was hard. I studied it from movies and TV dramas. If you overdo it, it becomes too much just like dialect. It's important to find a balance. Although I'm getting used to it, I still feel as if I'm learning.

Do you have a message for the fans?
As someone who has come to love the novels and is absorbed in the role, I feel the pressure that I must not fail this thing I love. And this is a popular work whose many fans all have their image of Horo. As a voice actor, I just can't destroy the image that people have. So for an actor it's a role that is worth attacking with my whole being. Please watch the show.
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Mnemosyne -- Sex, Violence, and a Great Cast

The science fiction thriller Mnemosyne begins airing this Sunday, 3 February. An interview with cast members is studded with words like "violent," "erotic," "mysterious," and "suspense." I may not be a big fan of violence, but when it is as stylish as it seems to be in the trailer, I'll be there for the first episode, at least.

And the cast list is to die for: the series stars (l-r) Ishida Akira, Tanaka Rie, Kugimiya Rie, Noto Mamiko, and Ohara Sayaka. It is directed by Ueda Shigeru (far right), who directed Tales of Eternia and has done episodes of such shows as Fullmetal Alchemist, Fafner, Simoun, Blood+, Seirei no Moribito, and Serial Experiments Lain. It was written by Ohnogi Hiroshi, who was lead writer on Noein and Aquarion and wrote many episodes of Eureka Seven, RahXephon, Toward the Terra, and Skull Man.

A piece published on Animate TV Web describes the show as a high-quality science fiction animation that is erotic and violent. Having seen the trailer, I'd say sadistic yuri might be another description to add.

The setting is Shinjuku in the 1990s, where there are serial killings, assassinations, terrorism with living weapons, illegal experimentation, immortals, angels and gods, woven together in an atmosphere of eros and violence.

In a departure that the article says is attracting attention in the industry, the show will be broadcast in six one-hour episodes, one a month. That will give it the same total running time as a normal 12-13 episode series.

In the Animate interview, Noto Mamiko says that the characters are full-scale humans. Kugimiya Rie says that episode one was difficult to do, that she and Noto-san spent the breaks in recording discussing how to play things. Tanaka Rie says that her character may be the most sadistic she has ever seen, and that she really got into playing her. Ohara Sayaka says the action scenes are amazing, with speed and moves she hadn't seen before. Ishida Akira says that the way people can die and then become immortal angels was one of the most striking things to him.

The entire cast said how much they admired the look of the show, which is animated by Xebec (Fafner, Busou Renkin) and Genco (Zero no Tsukaima, Ikkitousen).

Rin (Noto Mamiko) is a detective trying to solve the murders and strange events that have been occurring. Mimi (Kugimiya Rie) is her assistant. Laura (Ohara Sayaka) is a hunter out to get Rin. Sayara (Tanaka Rie) is a sadistic scientist doing illegal experiments at her drug lab.

In ancient Greek mythology, Mnemosyne was a titaness, the personification of memory. By the god Zeus, she became the mother of the muses, who inspired artists. And Mnemosyne was also the name of river in the underworld. Most people drank from the River Lethe, which enabled them to forget their past lives. Initiates of a mystery religion drank from Mnemosyne, to remember.

The show is the AT-X TV channel's tenth anniversary production.
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Hirano Aya In New Lupin III OVA

Hirano Aya will play Yukiko in a new Lupin III OVA, Green vs. Red, which is due out in April.

This is the 40th anniversary production for the classic franchise, which includes numerous manga, TV anime, feature films, direct-to-video releases, television specials, music CDs, video games, and a musical, as well as a Hollywood movie, slated to come out in 2009.

This spring, Aya will also be in a Fist of the North Star OVA, as well as the series Zettai Karen Children.

She is currently hosting Moegaku 5, a language-learning program for kids, five days a week on TV. Starting February 1, she will co-host a weekly variety TV show about movies, called Cinema Renaissance -- Aaya City 「キネマルネッサンス　あ～や城」 on Midtown TV on the web TV channel GyaO.

She is in the game Appreach Majyan (associated with Final Approach 2) of which a preview is now available for free download from Princess Soft. She is billed fifth in the cast, after Katou Emiri, Sendai Eri, Toyoguchi Megumi, and Hisakawa Aya.

She does the voice of a cat (or maybe cats) in the film Honjitsu no Nekojijyo, which comes out on DVD 22 February.

She plays Ilona in the animated part of the film Renaissance, which is now on sale in DVD.

She plays the fairy Emily in a Hello Kitty anime now on TV in Japan on Kitty's Paradise: Apple Forest - Parallel Town.

And she is host or co-host of three different current radio shows: Animelo Mix, Say Good Luck, and the radio show for the game Ramen Angel Pretty Menma, in which she is Menma.

She will appear in a Galaxy Angelune live show on 27 February. And she will have her own mini-lives for last fall's CD singles on march 1 in Osaka and March 15 in Tokyo.

And there are more versions of Suzumiya Haruhi games coming out. There was a wild rumor that she was giving up the character Haruhi, but her presence in the new games puts the lie to that. Rumors are that the second Haruhi anime series will start either this fall or next spring.

All these bits and pieces add up to a lot of work, but it is not straight anime work. Cast lists for spring anime are just appearing, so she may be in more than one show.

Her idol work continues apace, however. She is in Guam right now for some kind of photo-shoot.

The photos on her blog have suddenly become larger. She says that she has a new cellphone, and by checking the posted photos with the program Exif Reader, I can say that it is an NTT DoCoMo N905i, which features a 5mpx camera with face detection.

I found out about Exif Reader from the 2channel Aaya thread, where someone used it to show that the photos of a Christmas party she posted on Christmas Day were actually shot December 21. The poster and others came to the conclusion, from other blog posts, that she spent Christmas alone, eating Italian food. Lol. What a world is 2channel.
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Anican's Readers Pick Top Seiyuus of 2007

Anican have published their readers' choices for top seiyuus of 2007. Fukuyama Jun and Sugita Tomokazu are the favorite males, and Horie Yui and Hirano Aya the favorite females. The favorite up-and-comers are Inoue Marina and Miyano Mamoru, and the top seiyuu groups are Aice5 and the Lucky Star crew.

Male
１ Fukuyama Jun　２２１８ votes
２　Sugita Tomokazu　１１１６
３　Houshi Souichirou　９２１
４　Miyano Mamoru　８４６
５　Sakurai Takahiro　７７５
６　Ono Daisuke　６４６
７　Seki Tomokazu　６１９
８　Wakamoto Norio　５２６
９　Kamiya Hiroshi　４９３
１０　Yoshino Hiroyuki　４７７

Female
１　Horie Yui　２４８９　
２　Hirano Aya　２２７６
３　Mizuki Nana　２２０２
４　Tamura Yukari　２０８５　
５　Kugimiya Rie　１２５４
６　Nakahara Mai　７１５　
７　Chihara Minori　６４２
８　Noto Mamiko　６１５
９　Hayashibara Megumi　５５３
１０　Nonaka Ai　５２７

Seiyuu Groups
１　Aice5　２０５４ (Horie Yui, Kanda Akemi,Takahashi Chiaki, Asano Masumi, Kimura Madoka）
２　"Izumi Konata, Hiiragi Kagami, Hiiragi Tsukasa, Takara Miyuki"　１２０６ （Hirano Aya, Katou Emiri, Fukuhara Kaori, Endou Aya, from Lucky Star)
３　STA☆MEN　７７４ （Kishio Daisuke, Suzumura Kenichi, Suwabe Junichi, Takahashi Hiroki, Toriumi Kousuke, Yasumura Makoto, Yoshino Hiroyuki)
４　THE IDOLM@STER　６６９ (Wakabayashi Naomi, Hirata Hiromi, Nigo Mayako, Shimada Asami, Hasegawa Akiko, Takahashi Chiaki, Imai Mami, Kugimiya Rie, Ochiai Yurika, Nakamura Eriko)
５　Kurobara Hozonkai　５４７ (Horie Yui, Furuya Mitsuo, Kashiwada Keiichi, Suwa Masaru, Konno-san)
６　Nana Kana　４２５ (Inoue Nana, Sakai Kanako)
７　SOS-Dan　４０２ (Hirano Aya, Sugita Tomokazu, Chihara Minori, Gotou Yuuko, Ono Daisuke)
８　GRANRODEO　３３４ （Taniyama Kishou, Iizuka Masaaki）
９　Daizu　２５８ (Kishio Daisuke, Mizushima Takahiro)
１０　Zetsubou Shoujotai　１９８ （Ootsuki Kenji、Nonaka Ai, Inoue Marina, Kobayashi Yuu, Sawashiro Miyuki, Shintani Ryouko)


Up-and-coming artists
１　Inoue Marina　１０２９
２　Miyano Mamoru　７８５
３　Chihara Minori　７０７
４　Ono Daisuke　５７１
５　Fujita Saki　４９８　
６　Yonaga Tsubasa　４５６
７　Nakamura Yuuichi　４２２
８　Kobayashi Yuu　２８４
９　Katou Emiri　２３５
１０　Shiraishi Minoru　２２３

I wonder where Hanazawa Kana and Takagaki Ayahi are among the newcomers. Inoue Marina is good, but I still haven't found her that special, even in Minami-ke. Miyano Mamoru, Ono Daisuke, and Nakamura Yuuichi? Sure. Chihara Minori? Yes, although more as a singer than as a seiyuu for me, so far. I like Hatsune Miku, the android voice based on samples from Fujita Saki, but I haven't heard Fujita-san in anything that has really turned me on. And I would certainly include Yahagi Sayuri and Sasaki Nozomi, but that's just me. The young seiyuu with the brightest future, in my opinion, is Hayami Saori, but she's only 16 and has had only two named roles.

As for the main seiyuu rankings, Fukuyama Jun is good, but I don't enjoy him as much as I do the two Tomokazus, Ono Daisuke, Miyano Mamoru, Sakurai Takahiro, or Kamiya Hiroshi.

Much as I like Hirano Aya, there are a number of female seiyuu not on the list that I would rate higher than anyone on it: Paku Romi, Kuwashima Houko, Kawasumi Ayako, Kobayashi Sanae, Yajima Akiko. I'd put Sawashiro Miyuki and Yukino Satsuki in there somewhere, too. And where the heck is the marvelous Koshimizu Ami?

But Japanese seiyuu fans see and hear a lot more of these people as personalities on radio and TV than I do, so I expect that factors in to their choices.

Source: Watch! Seiyuu-san.
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January 2008 Anime -- Popularity on 2channel in Japan

After 2 or 3 episodes, the new season of Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei seems to lead the pack, with true tears, Yattaman, and Shigofumi next, but far behind.

Spice & Wolf, Persona, and Rosario to Vampire come next, with others strung out behind. It's hard to gauge how popular Minami-ke O-kawari is, since it is simply continuing the original series' threads (and is on its 96th).

Here is a rough list showing which thread each show is currently on. Each completed thread represents about 1000 posts.

Zoku Zetsubou Sensei 67
True Tears 17
Yattaman 13
Shigofumi 11
Spice & Wolf 9
Persona 8
Rosario to Vampire 8
Hakaba Kitarou 7
KimiAru 7
ARIA the Origination 6
H2O 6
Hatenkou Yuugi 3
Major 4 3
Ayakashi 2
Moegaku 5 1

• true tears is getting the attention I think it deserves.
• Yattaman's popularity shows the effect of its long history.
• With all its faults, I enjoy Ayakashi more than 2channel does.
• Hatenkou Yuugi's low popularity is a further demonstration of 2channel's allergy to any anime that can be classed as shoujo.
• Moegaku 5 is more an educational variety show than an anime show, even though it has an anime element.
  
• A show or two may be missing since I included only the top 100 most recently posted-to threads.
• thanks to tj han and to the geek by any other name for various corrections.
  

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Hirano Aya Hosts Moegaku 5, Will Star in Spring Anime

This winter, Aaya is hosting a daily 15-minute language-learning show ostensibly for kids called Moegaku 5 もえがく★５. Not something that will keep you glued to the screen, but amusing and useful in its way.

And next April, she will star in a new "action comedy" anime called Zettai Karen Children. In between, of course, she will be in the new one-episode Fist of the North Star OVA that comes out in late March. A new Suzumiya Haruhi series is expected either this fall or early next year.



Moegaku 5 starts with an anime of about 7-8 minutes, set in Akihabara. The anime features foreigners speaking words from a foreign language: Monday English, Tuesday Korean, Wednesday Spanish, Thursday Chinese, Friday French. Aaya voices the big maid character.

Then Aaya sits down with a child who is a native speaker of the language but also knows Japanese and the child teaches her three words or expressions from the anime, correcting her until she gets them right. Finally, there is a session with a team of rope-skippers, in which they and Aaya and the child dance and skip as they repeat the words learned on the show.



Here's Aaya learning Spanish, from YouTube. And here's the anime for the first week's French lesson, including the anime OP.

The words taught seem to be either very idiomatic or direct approximations to Japanese, and not the usual words you see in language teaching. Such as Spanish "hasta la proxima" or Chinese "chuci jianmian 初次见面 (that "ci 次" gave Aaya a lot of trouble）. I think the value of the show could be mainly in making young kids familiar with the idea of a foreign language, and with some foreign sounds. The skipping and chanting in particular, weird as they seem, may be useful.



As Aaya said in her blog when these first episodes were being recorded late last year, the kids can be hard taskmasters. The little Chinese girl in particular wouldn't let her get away with pronunciation that was too bad. In fact, I think Aaya is doing okay -- with everything except pronouncing Chinese. It ain't easy for any non-Chinese, so she can be forgiven.

The kids are not the greatest dancers -- again with the exception of the little Chinese girl, who is clearly a ball of fire.

Especially in the opening, Aaya uses her highest and most artificial voice. I personally can't stand it, but it follows a Japanese norm for manic entertainments of this kind. The manic presentation comes down a bit when she is sitting there actually trying to get the pronunciation right, so there is hope.

Aaya also wrote in her blog that she was exhausted from the rope-skipping and dancing. She clearly takes the easy way out in the little bit of skipping she does on-screen.

In news of a possibly more interesting show, Aaya will star in a new "action comedy" this coming April. It is Zettai Karen Children 絶対可憐チルドレン, which is from a popular manga involving three girls who have super-powers, and the young man who manages them as they solve mysteries and problems.

Aya will be the main girl, Kaoru, who has telekinetic powers and can also teleport herself short distances. The pic is from the manga's official site. No news yet of who the staff will be.

Starring with her will be Kamiya Hiroshi (Zetsubou Sensei), Shiraishi Ryouko, and Kanda Akemi.
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January 2008 Anime -- First Impressions

Based on one or two episodes, here are some first impressions:

true tears -- After two episodes, this is the cream of the crop, for me. Beautifully directed, with interesting characters, and silences full of meaning. The animation is almost KyoAni-level. Takagaki Ayahi is outstanding as the electric Noe, and Nazuka Kaori equally outstanding as gentle, complex Hiromi. Nishimura Junji, the director of Simoun, and Okada Mari, one of its writers, have taken the original game and completely re-imagined it. EDIT 4Feb.: On track to be a masterpiece.

Spice and Wolf -- I hoped that the "wise wolf" Horo would become a classic role for Koshimizu Ami, and episode one makes me think my wish just might come true. Horo is a powerful thousand-year-old wolf-goddess posing as a 15-year-old human, and her archaic speech and playful character really give Amisuke something to sink her teeth into. Horo's travels with the merchant Lawrence show promise. This may give the staff a chance to wipe out the memory of their previous show, Cosmopolitan Prayers. Best OP of the season. EDIT: Good in itself, but Ami makes it excellent.

Porfy no Nagai Tabi -- This year's show in the World Masterpiece Theater series is directed by Mochizuki Tomomi (YKK, Zettai Shounen, Princess Nine) and got off to a good, but typically slow, start in the first two episodes. High-class family drama, involving a Greek boy who will lose his parents in an earthquake and travel around Europe trying to find his sister. EDIT: Maintains its quality.

Hatenkou Yuugi -- Reverse-harem shoujo adventure, with a fascinatingly unpredictable lead shoujo played by the great Kobayashi Sanae. Her bishounen henchmen are played by Sakurai Takahiro and Miki Shinichirou. Could degenerate into monster of the week, but not bad through two episodes. EDIT: I've lost interest.

H2O Footsteps in the Sand -- I will probably have finished watching this show by the time I decide if it is worth watching. I enjoy it enough so far, with its mysteries and its determined lead guy. But it seems crudely constructed, somehow, like Myself;Yourself. And like that show it tries to shock us with unexpected violence. EDIT: A couple of episodes were as bad as anything I've ever seen, but then an episode came up in which there was some emotion. Very, very poorly made, but retains some shreds of interest.

Persona Trinity Soul -- This much psychic angst and violence are too much for me, but it seems like a strong, well-made anime. EDIT: Dropped.

Shigofumi -- This show is the love-child of Shinigami no Ballad and Jigoku Shoujo. The plot through the first two episodes seemed a bit clunky, but worked. Ueda Kana is beginning to display her vocal chops in ep2. EDIT: Gets better and better. Combines epsiodic plots with a continuing plot, and brings in Asano Masumi as a major continuing character.

Minami-ke O-kawari -- Another helping by another studio with the same VAs. It's okay, I guess. I was never as amused by the first version last fall as many others were, and they are not as happy with this version as with that one.

Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei -- More more of the same. But this time it really is the same. Shinbou by Shinbou. Smart, beautiful, weird.

ARIA the Origination -- Even more. It looks great and sounds great. Lovers of the franchise like it. I admire it, but I hardly ever seem to get through a whole episode. If you are an ARIA fan, however, then be sure to watch: this is probably the last ARIA anime, since the manga itself is drawing to a close.

Hakaba no Kitarou -- I was going to pass on this one until I read the AnimeSuki thread. Wonderful animation and music and a charming (?) story, through ep1 at least -- as long as humorous, knowing urchins from beyond the grave are to your taste. I should have known that Noitamina would not bore us.

Noramimi -- Well-made low-impact family comedy with Doraemon-like character design. Worth a look.

Ayakashi -- Poorly made, but somehow quite entertaining. I could have said the same about this director's previous show, Lamune, which involved pure romance rather than supernatural violence and teens with special powers. Good cast includes Mizuki Nana, Kishio Daisuke, Matsuki Miyu, Shimizu Ai, Yukino Satsuki, Sugita Tomokazu.

Gunslinger Girl - Il Teatrino -- I found the first episode quite lame, and so did lovers of the original series. They say this substitutes standard moe for the original impassive lolis. Bad move.

They Are My Noble Masters -- A terrible waste of some great VA talent. At least Hayate is occasionally watchable. This is Hayate with very limp humor. EDIT: I've changed my mind completely on this show: it is hilariously outrageous and has some great characters. I just didn't get it at first.

Rosario to Vampire -- A real disappointment. Mizuki Nana is good as the lead girl, but the plot, animation, and personalities are deeply boring, through two episodes.

Sisters of Wellber 2 -- It was lovely to hear the dulcet tones of Takahashi Mikako again, but this just feels poorly made and dull.
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Hirano Aya in Fist of the North Star OVA

Hirano Aya will play Sara in a new Fist of the North Star OVA called Fist of the North Star: The Legend of Toki (真救世主伝説 北斗の拳 トキ伝 Shin Kyūseishu Densetsu Hokuto no Ken: Toki-den), which is scheduled to go on sale on March 26, 2008.

Aya reports in her blog that she went to the atelier of mangaka Hara Tetsuo 原哲夫 to shoot video for the DVD extras. This was a big deal for her, since Fist of the North Star has been one of her favorite mangas. Lines from the series were apparently a running gag on the set of Suzumiya Haruhi. Sugita Tomokazu is supposed to have given Gotou Yuuko her nickname of "Gotuuza-sama" in imitation of the names in Fist.

     

At the door to Hara-sensei's workshop was a life-size golden statue of Kenshirou. Aya said that Hara-sensei was very nice and gave her a lot of Fist of the North Star goods.

Aya will have good company in this one-episode OVA. The other main female role, Lin, will be played by Sakamoto Maaya. And the music will be by Kajiura Yuki.
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True Tears ep2: Made in China?

I loved the first ep of True Tears, and I liked the second ep at least as much. The outstandingly detailed animation of episode one was hardly diminished in episode two. Imagine my surprise when I read the end credits and found that the names of the entire key-animation staff, as well as the animation supervisor and even the director of the episode all looked Chinese.



Now, I'm not going to go as far as some on 2channel and call this a Chinese anime: the director and writer and much of the other staff are Japanese. And director Nishimura Junji did the storyboard for the episode. But it is promising for consumers, and perhaps threatening for Japanese animators, that both Chinese and Korean animation has risen to the level that outsourcing to either country does not necessarily involve any drop in quality. I should add that most of the names of animators, though in Chinese characters, might also be Korean, as a comment says.



Now we see how P.A. Works plans to keep up the high level of detail they gave us in episode one. The studio has been around for a while, but always assisting the main production studio. This is the first show they have taken on themselves.

They grabbed a good director from Studio Deen, Nishimura Junji, and he brought in a top writer, Okada Mari. They established a high standard in episode one, using Japanese animators. And now they plan to maintain that standard using less expensive Chinese animation staff that they have perhaps developed themselves over years of assisting other companies.
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Koshimizu Ami and Friend(s)

Koshimizu Ami 小清水亜美 started this new year right. She got a good fortune during her temple visit on New Year's Day, then she and her friend Sanpei Yuuko 三瓶由布子 went on a trip to Kyoto, and finally she and Sakakibara Yui went to Matsuki Miyu's house for a dinner.

Amisuke's depth of feeling for her old friend Pe (Sanpei Yuuko) shows up in the fact that pretty well all the photos from Kyoto are of her. And when Amisuke talks about others, she always adds something about Pe. I myself think Pe is one of the most attractive seiyuu of all, so I can sympathize with Ami's fascination. (click photos to enlarge)



After the trip, they had a meal with some friends from high school. Amisuke and Pe met in the first year of high school. Ami said that their high school friends were all so cute they looked like models, even though some were already housewives. The left-hand picture below is from their beautiful winter meal.

They also got together with college friends of Pe's to play Mah Jong. They were all cute, too, and with Pe there, Ami joked that it seemed like a harem.



And finally, Ami went for dinner to Matsuki Miyu's place. Sakakibara Yui ("Yui-nyan") was also there. Ami made sure we realized that Pe was invited but had something else she had to do. Dinner was Itarian food: Napa cabbage, onion, green onion and chicken in a tomato-based sauce, with penne. Delicious, says Ami.

The right-hand picture is Yui-nyan's leg, showing all the cat-hair from MiyuMiyu's cats, Bonta and Chii. Yui-nyan is starting to turn into a cat herself, says Ami.

Last New Year's, Ami got a fortune of "misfortune," and that seemed to hold true, she has said. She had terrible stomach trouble that even kept her from sleeping sometimes, and she once said she was losing her high voice range. But she is very optimistic about 2008. Her fascinating performance as Horo the goddess/wolf in Wolf and Spice is a great start. I have hopes this will become a signature performance for her. But she ended 2007 with good performances, too: as Nanaka in late episodes of Myself;Yourself, and as Yoshino in episode 13 of KimiKiss.

Pe and Ami are now both with the big Production Baobab talent agency. Pe was Renton in Eureka7 and is Cure Dream in Precure5. The two will star together for the first time since Eureka7, in the three-episode OVA My-Otome 0~S.ifr~, which begins in late February. (Thanks fr the correction, anonymous.)

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true tears -- seiyuu pics & info

Based on one episode, true tears is my favorite show of the new season. Some of the voice-acting is particularly good. I finally get why Takagaki Ayahi has suddenly become so popular. Her voice did little for me as Ruchia in Venus Versus Virus, but she gives Noe real character. And Takahashi Rieko's brief turn as the protagonist's mother was sharp and vivid.

The show also features Nazuka Kaori (Cossette, Eureka) and young Iguchi Yuka, who is gradually getting more and more good roles. The protagonist's friend is played by the handsome and talented Yoshino Hiroyuki, who was Zedd in Kiba.

I've made a page with pics of the main characters and their seiyuus, including background info on the seiyuus.



And here's a cast photo from an interview with them on the official site. Back l-r: Ishii Makoto (Souichirou), Yoshino Hiroyuki (Nobuse); front l-r: Nazuka Kaori (Hiromi), Takagaki Ayahi (Noe), Iguchi Yuka (Ai):



In the interview, Nazuka Kaori says the show has an adult flavor, and is the first show so much to her own taste that she's done in a long time. On her blog, she wrote that the emotions are painful, but there is a lot of subtlety in the acting, and that each episode requires study. She spoke of having to suppress emotions, and of the need to work on breathing. Takagaki Ayahi says she was so impressed with the script during the audition, that it doesn't have a contemporary feeling, but has a nostalgic Japanese atmosphere.
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Hirano Aya in Hawaii and Other Photos

Hirano Aya made a quick trip to Hawaii last weekend for a photo-shoot. She found it beautiful, but a bit chillier than she expected. Click photos to enlarge.



She enjoyed some bits of American commerce (below): a hamburger as big as her head, and a big Disney store, where she bought pajamas, among other things. "I want to be a kid again." She says that girls' sizes for 8-10-year-olds or 10-12-year-olds seemed to fit her.



Below left is her New Year's picture, with which she wished everyone a happy new year on January 1. And here are a couple of pics from late December: one from a photo-shoot, and one that shows her eating dinner at a restaurant. Is that the "real" Aya?



All these photos are from Aya's blog. There were some great shots in late December.



The eyepatch shot is from 31 December, when she had a sty on her eye -- and was thinking like Garnet (the role she plays in Dragonaut).



She even did a photo-shoot as Alice in Wonderland. She wrote that she once won a costume contest at a Sesame Street theme park dressed as Alice so she feels a connection with her. I believe that was when she was a toddler, living in the US. She laughed that the right-hand picture is "disgusting."



Finally, here are some pics of Aya with her family's dog Chibi-chan ("Midget"), also known as Chibi Taikun ("Lord Midget"). She says it's a seven-year-old male "wiener dog," and she loves it, and it loves its "big sister" Aya. Personally, I find kissing dogs fairly disgusting, but since it's Aya....



Besides the continuing stream of TV appearances and photo shoots, Aya's main work this month is as host of Moegaku 5 (もえがく★５), a daily 15-minute TV show that teaches kids languages. She also voices a character in the animated part of the show.
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Miyazaki Ui's New Year

Miyazaki Ui 宮崎羽衣 gets my vote as prettiest of all active seiyuu.

The characters for Ui are the same as for the mythical hagoromo, the feather mantle 羽衣 of a goddess. There is a legend that a mortal stole the mantle while the goddess was bathing, trapping her on Earth. Ui's mother gave her the name after a trip to the place where the event is supposed to have taken place (Mihono Matsubara).

This year, Ui-chan (also known as Ui-ui) went to her grandparents' place in the country, in Ibaraki, north of Tokyo, to see in the new year with them and her cousins. Her grandfather, who is convalescing from an illness, had a banquet of sushi brought in. She and her cousins embraced as she left, sad to part again.

But once back in Tokyo, she found she had a cold. There was no heater on the second floor of her grandparents' home, where she slept. She ended up spending four hours under a futon in Tokyo, shivering uncontrollably. But she is off on another trip tomorrow.



Ui says she wants to "shrink the distance" between her and her fans this year, by means of her fan club, Ui Love You. She has a fairly active photo blog, all the photos here were posted there over the past few days. She has done a lot of radio work, and is known as a "dumb blonde." She says she never throws anything out and has a very messy room.

Here's her home page. She was born on 23 August 1981 inTokyo. She was Kirino in Gift ~Eternal Rainbow~, and Iroha in Sumomo mo Momo mo, and did a nice job starring as Erisu in Night Wizard. Japanese Wikipedia. English Wikipedia. Anime News Network.
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