Lucky Star - Voice Actor Appreciation & Discussion [Archive]

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xris

2007-04-19, 21:15

The purpose of this thread is to discuss, critique and idolize the Voice Actor cast of Lucky Star. Please remember that the discussion should center on their performances as professional voice actors and not on the show content (which can be discussed in the various Episode threads). Please remember this simple rule when critiquing a VA's performance or reading another forum member's critique:
- Don't take it personally.
In other words, you’re free to disagree with another person’s opinion, but don’t flame them if they offer a well written and well thought out analysis that differs from your own opinion. Keep it civil.

- Voice Actors are humans.
Yes, it’s true. They’re human. Therefore, don’t just indiscriminately rip them and their work apart as if they’re inorganic objects. You don’t have to praise them non-stop, but be thoughtful in your criticism.

This thread might duplicate some discussion in the Episode threads, but it can also serve to demystify various VA roles, disseminate VA information (VA Bios, VA photos, etc) and provide cast information of various types as well as discussion about performances.

(Thanks to Catgirls for the above intro)

Pellissier

2007-04-20, 07:02

http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/9112/konatadr6.png Hirano Aya as Izumi Konata

Angel Tales (TV) as Saru no Momo (Monkey)
Bakuten Shoot Beyblade G Revolution (TV) as MingMing
Battle B-Daman: Fire Spirits (TV) as Pheles
Bedaman (TV) as Charat
Busou Renkin (TV) as Mahiro Muto
Canvas2 ~Niji-iro no Sketch~ (TV) as Sumire Misaki
Death Note (TV) as Misa Amane
Eyeshield 21 (TV) as Mamori
Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! (TV) as Mei Etoh
Galaxy Angel Rune (TV) as Kahlua (Tequila) Marjoram
Himawari! (TV) as Shikimi
Himawari!! (TV) as Shikimi
Kiddy Grade (movie) as Lumière
Kiddy Grade (TV) as Lumière
Lucky Star (TV) as Konata Izumi
My Santa (OAV) as Mai
NANA (TV) as Reira Serizawa
Renkin 3-kyuu Magical? Pokahn (TV) as Pachira
School Rumble Nigakki (TV) as Yoko Sasakura
Sumomomo Momomo (TV) as Sanae Nakajima
Tenshi no Shippo Chu! (TV) as Monkey Momo
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (TV) as Haruhi Suzumiya

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/697/miyukilz8.png Endo Aya as Takara Miyuki

Emma - A Victorian Romance (TV) as Mary
Emma - A Victorian Romance Second Act (TV) as Mary
Engage Planet Kiss Dum (TV) as Noa Rukina
Fushigiboshi no Futago Hime Gyu! (TV) as Trowa
Gakuen Alice (TV) as Child (ep 19)
Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo (TV) as Albert de Morcerf (young)
Girls Bravo (TV) as Female Student 2
Inukami! (TV) as Imari
Kiba (TV) as Female Customer (ep 3); Gurauzio (ep 7,8); Sagiri
Lucky Star (TV) as Miyuki Takara
Oku-sama wa Joshi Kousei (TV) as Kasumi Horiguchi
Saiyuki Gunlock (TV) as Rin (Kon's Sister)
Tokko (TV) as Yukino Shiraishi
Zegapain (TV) as Misaki Sogoru

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/750/kagamikq0.png Katou Emiri as Hiiragi Kagami

ARIA The NATURAL (TV) as Pair Undine B (ep 6); Young lady (ep 8)
Demashitaa! Powerpuff Girls Z (TV) as Momoko Akatsutsumi/Hyper Blossom
Eureka Seven (TV) as Ageha C
Fushigiboshi no Futago Hime Gyu! (TV) as Chiffon
Kyo Kara Maoh! (TV) as Doria
Lucky Star (TV) as Kagami Hiiragi
Noein - to your other self (TV) as High School Girl (ep 22)
Pumpkin Scissors (TV) as Maid (ep 2)
Sumomomo Momomo (TV) as Kouji Inuzuka (young)
Tokyo Majin Gakuen Kenpucho: Tou (TV) as Girl (ep 3); Yuuko Kugayama
Tona-Gura! (TV) as Female student (ep 7)
Winter Garden (special) as Female employee C
XXXHOLiC (TV) as Announcer (ep 8); Female High School Student 1 (ep 3); Friend B (ep 1,13); Housewife B (Ep. 24); Maid (ep 4); Shop assistant (ep 17); Voice of flower (ep 16)

http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/3098/tsukasanx1.png Fukuhara Kaori as Hiiragi Tsukasa

Animal Yokocho (TV) as Kumiko "Kuu-chan" Takeda; Mr. Nonko-chan
Bakegyamon (TV) as Kimidori
Lucky Star (TV) as Tsukasa Hiiragi

http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/8420/akirabk9.png Konno Hiromi as Kogami Akira

Air (movie) as Potato
Air (TV) as Potato
Aquarian Age - Sign for Evolution (TV) as Girl A
Bakuten Shoot Beyblade G Revolution (TV) as Matilda
Beyblade (TV) as Bijo A (ep 24); Girl (ep 16)
Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo (TV) as Kopacchi (Ep. 74); Re-zun Onna (Ep. 26); Shaina (Ep. 52-53)
Chibi Maruko-chan (TV) as Akemi; flower shop worker; girl (ep 286); piano teacher
Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid (TV) as Shiroi Kudoh
Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu (TV) as Kozue Ninshino; Shiori Kudou
Gegege no Kitaro (TV 2007) as Neko Musume
Kidou Shinsengumi Moeyo Ken (TV) as Suzaku
Kikou Sen'nyo Rouran (TV) as Rouran
Les Misérables - Shoujo Cosette (TV) as Marie
Lucky Star (TV) as Akira Kogami
Mamimume Mogacho (TV) as Go-gan; Kiiko
Mushrambo (TV) as Kuro (ep 23)
Oshare Majo Love and Berry: Shiawase no Mahou (movie) as Love
Pretear (TV) as B-ko (ep 1)
Re: Cutie Honey (OAV) as Scarlet Claw
SaiKano (TV) as Rie
SaiKano: Another Love Song (OAV) as Female Operator
Sakura Taisen: New York NY. (OAV) as Servant
Sentimental Journey (TV) as Yamamoto Rurika
Shonen Onmyoji (TV) as Taiin
Soreike! Zukkoke Sanningumi (TV) as Yoko Arai
Yamato Nadesico Shichihenge (TV) as Laseine

http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/1430/minorudl3.png Shiraishi Minoru as Shiraishi Minoru

Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo (TV) as Chikuwan; Super Rabbit
D.N.Angel (TV) as Saehara
Fafner (TV) as Kenji Kondou
Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! (TV) as Youth (ep 11)
Jigoku Shoujo Futakomori (TV) as Kazuki (ep 14)
Lucky Star (TV) as Minoru Shiraishi
Negima! (TV) as Seruhiko-sensei
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (TV) as Taniguchi

Hiramatsu Hirokazu as Soujirou Izumi

Burn Up! (OAV) as Kenji
D.N.Angel (TV) as Daiki Niwa (young); Detective Saehara
Heavy Metal L-Gaim (OAV) as Daba Myroad
Heavy Metal L-Gaim (TV) as Daba Myroad
Lucky Star (TV) as Soujirou Izumi

Shimizu Kaori as Tamura Hiyori

A.LI.CE (movie) as Alice
Alien Nine (special) as Kumi Kawamura
Arcade Gamer Fubuki (TV) as Hanako Kokubunji
Banner of the Stars (TV) as Ekuryua
Banner of the Stars II (TV) as Ekuryua
Banner of the Stars III (OAV) as Ekuryua
Best Student Council (TV) as Kuon Ginga
Bokura ga Ita (TV) as Mizu-chin
Boogiepop Phantom (TV) as Boogiepop; Toka Miyashita
Doki Doki School Hours (TV) as Chinatsu Nakayama
Dokkoida?! (TV) as Asaka/Nerloid Girl
Fruits Basket (TV) as Motoko Minagawa
Genshiken (TV) as Keiko Sasahara (eps 6,10,12)
Godannar (TV) as Lou Roux
Grrl Power (OAV) as Riku
Heroic Age (TV) as Aneesha
Hit wo Nerae! (TV) as Matsuri
Idolmaster Xenoglossia (TV) as Chihaya Kisaragi
Inu Yasha (TV) as Asuka; Ken; Shiho; Yuka
Inuyasha the Movie 2: The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass as Yuka
Inuyasha the Movie 4: Fire on the Mystic Island as Shion
Jigoku Shoujo Futakomori (TV) as Seri Mizutani (ep 22)
Kindaichi Shounen no Jikenbo (TV) as female worker; Yuri (ep 100)
Knight Hunters Eternity (TV) as Suika
Lemon Angel Project (TV) as Yui Kono
Lucky Star (TV) as Hiyori Tamura
Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A's (TV) as Signum
Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha StrikerS (TV) as Signum
MÄR (TV) as Flat B
Maria-sama ga Miteru (OAV) as Noriko Nijou
Maria-sama ga Miteru ~Haru~ (TV) as Noriko Nijou
Maria-sama ni wa naisho (special) as Noriko Nijou
Midori Days (TV) as Youko
Munto 2: Beyond the Walls of Time (OAV) as Ichiko
Mushishi (TV) as Michihi (ep 8)
Otogi-Jushi Akazukin (OAV) as Henzel
Otogi-Jushi Akazukin (TV) as Hansel (young); Trude
Queen Emeraldas (OAV) as Lucille
School Rumble (TV) as Akira Takano
School Rumble Nigakki (TV) as Akira Takano
School Rumble OVA Ichigakki Hoshu as Akira Takano
Sentou Yousei Shoujo Tasukete! Mave-chan (OAV) as Sylphide
Serial Experiments Lain (TV) as Lain Iwakura
Spider Riders (TV) as Princess Sparkle
Spider Riders: Yomigaeru Taiyou (TV)
Starship Operators (TV) as Sei Ogino
Strange Dawn (TV) as Yuko Miyabe
Stratos 4 (OAV) as Shizuha Doi
Stratos 4 (TV) as Shizuha Doi
Stratos 4 Advance (OAV) as Shizuha Doi
Stratos 4 Advance Kanketsuhen (OAV) as Shizuha Doi
Super Robot Wars Original Generation - The Animation (OAV) as Lamia Loveless
The Cosmopolitan Prayers (TV) as Takitsu-hime
The Daichis - Earth Defence Family (TV) as Nozomi Daichi

http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/9936/kuroisenseiwo2.png Maeda Konomi as Kuroi Nanako

Case Closed (TV) as Madoka Mitsui (ep 236-237)
Haré+Guu (TV) as Toposte
Ie Naki Ko Remi (TV) as girl (Ep. 12); Pierre (Ep. 14+)
Jungle Wa Itsumo Hale Nochi Guu Deluxe (OAV) as Toposte
Kidou Shinsengumi Moeyo Ken (TV) as Byakko
Lucky Star (TV) as Nanako Kuroi
Yu-Gi-Oh! (movie) as Satoshi
Yu-Gi-Oh! (TV) as Kageyama sister C (ep 15); Kaoruko Bodyguard (ep 19); Poki (eps 26-27)

Kosuge Mami as Takara Yukari

Angelic Layer (TV) as Opponent Deus (ep 2)
Aquarian Age - Sign for Evolution (TV) as Announcer (ep. 1); Girl 2 (ep. 5)
Black Blood Brothers (TV) as Kelly Wong
Canvas2 ~Niji-iro no Sketch~ (TV) as Airport announcer (ep 24); Art club member A (ep 1); Choir member (ep 21); Employee (ep 23); Female student (ep 7); Mother A (ep 12); Nurse (ep 22)
D.N.Angel (TV) as Manami Itou (ep 14); Yuki Suzaki
Grenadier (TV) as Touka Kurenai
Kiddy Grade (movie) as Bonita Gerard
Kiddy Grade (TV) as Armbrust (young); Bonita Gerard
Kokoro Library (TV) as Kaji's Angel (ep 5)
Lucky Star (TV) as Yukari Takara
Mamoru-kun ni Megami no Shukufuku wo! (TV) as PC Voice (ep 1)
Najica Blitz Tactics (TV) (ep.4)
Panyo Panyo Di Gi Charat (TV) as Girl 2
The Melody of Oblivion (TV) as Hecate/Tamakorogashi
The World of Narue (TV) as Bathyscaphe

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/6332/minamixp9.png Minori Chihara as Iwasaki Minami

Dragonaut - The Resonance (TV) as Toa
Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! (TV) as Band leader (ep 11)
Humanoid Monster Bem (TV 2) as Mitsuki Kisaragi
Ikkitousen: Dragon Destiny (TV) as Ekitoku Chouhi
Kyou no Go no Ni (OAV) as Tsubasa Kawai
Lemon Angel Project (TV) as Erika Campbell
Lovedol ~Lovely Idol~ (TV) as Hina Hojo
Lucky Star (TV) as Minami Iwasaki
Major (TV) as Ayane
Saint October (TV) as Seiran (ep 6)
Samurai Gun (TV) as Ohana
Skelter+Heaven (OAV) as Ayaka Matsumoto
Tenjho Tenge (TV) as Aya Natsume (debut)
Tenjho Tenge: Ultimate Fight (OAV) as Aya Natsume
The Law of Ueki (TV) as Memory; Tamako Hanamura (Ep. 3)
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (TV) as Yuki Nagato
Venus Versus Virus (TV) as Sumire Takahana

http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/296/pattyda2.png Sasaki Nozomi as Patricia "Patty" Martin

Bokura ga Ita (TV) as Nanami Takahashi (debut)
Lucky Star (TV) as Patricia "Patty" Martin
Winter Garden (special) as Aiko

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/9623/yuisw5.png Nishihara Saori as Narumi Yui

Lucky Star (TV) as Narumi Yui

http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/1730/yutakaft8.png Hasegawa Shizuka as Kobayakawa Yukata

Aishiteruze Baby (TV) as Namiko (ep 23)
Angel Tales (TV) as Inu no Nana (Dog)
Futakoi (TV) as Ruru Hinagiku
Futakoi Alternative (TV) as Ruru Hinagiku
Inukami! (TV) as Tomohane
Lucky Star (TV) as Yutaka Kobayakawa
Nagasarete Airantou (TV) as Yukino
Rocket Girls (TV) as Akane Miura
Shrine of the Morning Mist (TV) as Tama Hieda
Tenshi no Shippo Chu! (TV) as Dog Nana
Whistle! (TV) as Miyuki Sakurai

Inoue Kikuko as Hiiragi Miki

801 T.T.S. Airbats (OAV) as Sakura Saginomiya
Agent Aika (OAV) as Golden Delmo (Toniya)
Ah! My Goddess (TV) as Belldandy
Ah! My Goddess: Flights of Fancy (TV) as Belldandy
Ah! My Goddess: The Movie as Belldandy
Ahiru no Quack (TV)
Air (movie) as Uraha
Air (TV) as Uraha
Air In Summer (special) as Uraha
Alice in Cyberland (OAV) as Rucia
Angelic Layer (TV) as Shuko Suzuhara
Argento Soma (TV) as Guinevere Green
Ashita he Free Kick (TV) as Gina (ep 30)
Assemble Insert (OAV) as Yoshiko
Ayakashi Ayashi (TV) as Oshino
Battle Arena Toshinden (OAV) as Uranus
Battle Skipper (OAV) as Reika Ayanokouji
Bincho-tan (TV) as Narration
Black Cat (TV) as Sephiria Arks; Adam
Black Jack (OAV) as Sayuri (ep 1)
Black Jack The Movie as Betty McCall
Brave Command Dagwon (TV) as Anna
Captain Tsubasa: Road to 2002 (TV) as Tsubasa (youth)
Cardcaptor Sakura: The Movie as Yelan Li
Case Closed (TV) as Ayaka Yoshino (ep 208); Chianti; Sakurako Tatsumi (ep 192-193); Toda Kiwako (ep 114, 115)
Chobits (OAV) as Chitose Hibiya
Chobits (TV) as Chitose Hibiya
Cinderella Boy (TV) as Alice
Clamp School (TV) as Yukiko Kudo
Code Geass - Lelouch of the Rebellion (TV) as Cecile Croomy
Cosmowarrior Zero (TV) as Lady Emeraldas
Cosplay Complex (OAV) as Ranko Takara (ep3)
Crayon Shin-chan (TV) as old woman A (ep 69c)
D.N.Angel (TV) as Rika Harada (ep 19)
D4 Princess (TV) as Ruridou Doria
Dangaizer 3 (OAV) as Sapphire
DearS (TV) as Mitsuka Yoshimine-sensei
Dirty Pair Flash (OAV) as Kumi Kazamatsuri
Dokkoida?! (TV) as Mizuho Kazami (ep 8)
Dokyusei 2 (OAV) as Misako Narusawa (1st)
Dragon Half (OAV) as Mana
El Hazard - The Magnificent World (OAV) as Rune Venus
El Hazard 2 - The Magnificent World (OAV) as Rune Venus
El Hazard: The Alternative World (TV) as Rune Venus; Yoko (ep.1)
El Hazard: The Wanderers (TV) as Rune Venus
Emma - A Victorian Romance Second Act (TV) as Monica Mildrake
F-Zero Falcon Densetsu (TV) as Jodie Summer
Fake (OAV) as Arisa
Fatal Fury 2: The New Battle (OAV) as Lily McGuire; Elza
Fatal Fury: Legend of the Hungry Wolf (OAV) as Lily McGuire
Fatal Fury: The Motion Picture as Lily McGuire
Figure 17 (TV) as Orudina
Final Fantasy: Unlimited (TV) as Crux; Fabula
Gad Guard (TV) as Catherine Flaubert
Galaxy Angel Z (TV) as Mock Sunfish
Galaxy Fraulein Yuna Returns (OAV) as Genmu
Gall Force: The Revolution (OAV) as Eluza
Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo (TV) as Mercédès de Morcerf
Gate Keepers (TV) as Jun Sanders
Girl From Phantasia (OAV) as Short
Golden Boy (OAV) as Ayuko; Employee A
Green Legend Ran (OAV) as Ran's mother
Guilstein (movie) as Reimei Kanan
Gungrave (TV) as Maria Asagi
GUNxSWORD (TV) as Carmen99
Hai Akko Desu (TV) as Okamoto
Hakkenden: Legend of the Dog Warriors (OAV) as Hikute
Hanappe Bazooka (OAV) as The spirit of the World Tree
Hand Maid May (TV) as Cyberdoll Mami
Happy Lesson (OAV) as Yayoi Sanzein
Happy Lesson (TV) as Yayoi Sanzein
Happy Lesson Advanced (TV) as Yayoi Sanzein
Happy Lesson The Final (OAV) as Yayoi Sanzenin
Happy Seven (TV) as Kokuanten
Hermes - Winds of Love (movie) as Ariadonne
Hime-chan's Ribbon (TV) as Hatsune sensei
Idol Project (OAV) as Corvette Hyers
Ikki Tousen (TV) as Goei
Ikkitousen: Dragon Destiny (TV) as Goei
Inu Yasha (TV) as Inuyasha's mother; Mu Onna
InuYasha the Movie 3: Swords of an Honorable Ruler as Izayoi
Iron Virgin Jun (OAV)
Kara no Kyoukai - the Garden of sinners (movie) as Touko Aosaki
Kekko Kamen (OAV) as Yuka Chigusa
Key the Metal Idol (OAV) as Toyoko Mima
Kiba (TV) as Sarah
Kiddy Grade (movie) as Alv
Kiddy Grade (TV) as Alv
Kikansha Sensei (movie) as Mieko Sako
Kiki's Delivery Service (movie) as Maki (beautiful fashion designer)
Kishin Taisen Gigantic Formula (TV) as Lily
Knight Hunters (TV) as Birman; Kyoko Takaoka
L/R: Licensed by Royalty (TV) as Claudia Eastman
Lucky Star (TV) as Miki Hiiragi
Luna Varga (OAV) as Zena
Magic Knight Rayearth 2 (TV 2) as Tatra
Mahoromatic: Something More Beautiful (TV) as Leesha
Mahou Sensei Negima! (special) as Shizuna Minamoto
Mahoujin Guru Guru (TV) as Lena (Nike's mother)
Mai-Otome Zwei (OAV) as Professor Gal; Yukariko Steinburg
MAPS (OAV 1994) as Rain
Marmalade Boy (TV) as Anju Kitahara
Master Keaton (OAV) as Karen Wolf (ep 38-39)
Master Keaton (TV) as Karen Wolf (ep 38-39)
Megami Paradise (OAV) as Stashia
Mermaid's Scar (OAV) as Yukie
Minami no Shima no Chiisana Hikouki Birdy (TV) as Big Mama
Miracle Giants Domu-kun (TV) as Mayumi Shinjo
Miyuki-chan In Wonderland (OAV) as Queen
Mobile Suit Gundam Seed (TV) as Caridad Yamato (eps 28-29)
Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Destiny (TV) as Caridad Yamato (ep 14)
Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team (OAV) as Aina Sakhalin
Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team, Miller's Report (movie) as Aina Sahalin
Moldiver (OAV) as Brooke
Moonlight Mile (TV) as Flora Beaumarchais
Mouse (TV) as Mei Momozono
My Sexual Harassment (OAV) as Emily
My-HiME (TV) as Yukariko Sanada
My-Otome (TV) as Gal; Laula Bianchi; Old Lady (ep 22); Yukariko Steinberg
Nadia - Secret of Blue Water (TV) as Electra
Nadia of the Mysterious Seas (movie) as Electra (Flashback Scenes)
Nana Toshi Monogatari (OAV) as Chamberlaine
Natsuiro no Sunadokei (OAV) as Yanagihara Tomomi
Negima! (TV) as Shizuna Minamoto
New Cutey Honey (OAV) as Yasho (Ep 6)
Ogenki Clinic Adventures (OAV) as Ruko Tatase
Oh My Goddess! (OAV) as Belldandy
Ojamajo Doremi # (TV) as Majo Ririka (ep 9,27)
Okusama wa Maho Shojo (TV) as Ureshiko Asaba / Agnès
Omakase Scrappers (TV) as Click; Keiko Uda
Omishi Magical Theater Risky Safety (TV) as Raiel
Onegai Friends (Drama CD TV sidestory) as Mizuho Kazami
Oniisama E... (TV) as Third-Year Student C (ep. 6, 15)
Otaku no Seiza (OAV) as Maya
Otaku no Video (OAV) as Misty May; Ueno Yoshiko
Ouran High School Host Club (TV) as Fuyumi Ootori (ep 24 - Kyouya's sister)
OVAL X OVER (OAV) as Glavis; [+ unlisted credits]
Parasite Dolls (OAV) as Angel
Patlabor (TV)
Petite Princess Yucie (TV) as Ercell
Phantom - The Animation (OAV) as Claudia McCunnen
Pipi to Benai Hotaru (movie) as Ruru
Please Teacher! (OAV) as Mizuho Kazami
Please Teacher! (TV) as Mizuho Kazami
Please Twins! (OAV) as Mizuho Kazami
Please Twins! (TV) as Mizuho Kazami
Pocket Monsters: Diamond & Pearl (TV) as Joi (25-/Temporary)
Pretear (TV) as Natsue Awayuki
Princess Minerva (OAV) as Blue Morris Rui Elmitage
Ranma ½ OAV as Kasumi Tendo
Ranma ½ (TV) as Kasumi Tendou
Ranma ½: Big Trouble in Nekonron, China (movie) as Kasumi Tendo
Ranma ½: Nihao My Concubine (movie) as Kasumi Tendo
Ranma ½: One Flew Over the Kuno's Nest (movie) as Kasumi Tendo
Ruin Explorers (OAV) as Princess
Rumiko Takahashi Anthology (TV) as Ruriko Tonegawa (ep 4)
Run=Dim (TV) as Maaya
Rune Soldier (TV) as Melissa
Saber Marionette J (TV) as Panther
Saber Marionette J to X (TV) as Panther
Saber Marionette R (OAV) as Brid
Sailor Moon Sailor Stars (TV) as Sailor Aluminum Siren/Reiko Aya
Sailor Moon SuperS (TV) as Princess Rubina (ep 146)
Saint Tail (TV) as Seira Mimori
Saiyuki (TV) as Yanming (ep 24)
Sakura Taisen: Ecole de Paris (OAV) as Lobelia Carlini
Sakura Taisen: Le Nouveau Paris (OAV) as Lobelia Calrini
Shaman King (TV) as Anisu (ep 47)
Shima Shima Tora no Shimajirou (TV) as Shimajiro's Mother
Shin Megami Tensei Devil Children (TV) as Cool; Doppelganger Kuuru; Kyoko-sensei
Shin Megami Tensei Devil Children: Light & Dark (TV) as Cool; Doppelganger Kuuru; Kyoko-sensei
Sin: The Movie as Jennifer Christina "JC" Armack
Slayers Great (movie) as Rya
Soar High! Isami (TV) as Hanaoka Reiko; Mayuko
Sorcerer Hunters (TV) as Laina (ep 14)
Soreike! Anpanman (TV) as Crystal Hime; Luna
Soreyuke! Gedou Otometai (TV) as Caramel Police (Ep. 3)
Steel Angel Kurumi (TV) as Nadeshiko (eps 17-18)
Steel Angel Kurumi Encore (OAV) as Nadeshiko
Submarine Super 99 (TV) as ZeStrait
Super Atragon (OAV) as Avatar
Tenchi Muyo Movie 3: Tenchi Forever as Haruna
The Adventures of Kotetsu (OAV) as Kuon Miho
The Adventures of Mini-Goddess (TV) as Belldandy (eps 14-48)
To Heart (TV) as girl's mother (ep 11)
Tokimeki Memorial ~Only Love~ (TV) as Incinerator goddess (eps 12,16)
Touma Kijinden ONI (OAV) as Badona Shuri
Uchuu Koukyoushi Maetel ~Ginga Tetsudo 999 Gaiden~ (TV) as Queen Emeraldas
UFO Princess Valkyrie: Toki to Yume to Ginga no Utage (OAV) as Inalva
UFO Princess Walküre: Seireisetsu no Hanayome (OAV) as Inaruba
Urusei Yatsura OVA Series as Girl Student B
Vandread (TV) as Meia's Fama
Vandread: The Second Stage (TV) as Meia no Faama
Violinist of Hamelin (movie) as Queen
Voogie's Angel (OAV) as Shiori
When They Cry - Higurashi (TV) as Akane Sonozaki (ep 25)
World Masterpiece Fairy Tale Series (TV) as Princess Anne (ep 19)
X (TV) as Tohru Magami
Yami to Boushi to Hon no Tabibito (TV) as Ritsuko
YAT Anshin! Uchu Ryokou (TV) as Cordelia
Yumeria (TV) as Nanase Senjyou/Silk
Zoku Zoku Mura no Obaketachi (OAV) as Rero Rero (ep 2)

I'll update the list and submit the pics of the missing characters (or better quality ones) once they'll actually appear in the show :)

Vexx

2007-04-20, 10:56

Konno Hiromi has taken quite a step up from voicing a dog/thing/potato/thing...

and I hadn't connected at all that Shiraishi Minoru was playing himself... so to speak.

Simon

2007-04-20, 23:27

Vexx

2007-04-20, 23:50

i don't think there's anything wrong with Hirohashi's rendition... but frankly I think Hirano mutters more like I envision Konata muttering and Konata's karaoke is sublime apocalypse with Hirano.
OTOH... I wish Hirano would play the part a bit more growly.

The other VAs are fine, I particularly enjoy the teacher with her in-character lousy-fake Kansai affectation.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-04-20, 23:53

This might get me labelled a fanboy, but what the heck...

I know there's been some grumbling about Hirano Aya's casting as Konata, and accusations of her being brought in as Market-Friendly VA of the Moment. But I'm absolutely loving her work with this character - so far Konata's personality, character design and voice have matched up perfectly.

In fact, I'm struggling to imagine Konata any other way. As a Haibane Renmei fan I have a lot of respect for Hirohashi Ryō, so I feel like I should buy the drama CD just to hear her interpretation of Konata. How do the two compare?

(And yes I have watched ep2, so I fully appreciate the irony of this question :) )

I think that she was brought in as a lure for new viewers, but that being a fairly hot-blooded and passionate she turned it around and put her absolute best into the role. Hirano makes up for a lack of experience and pure talent by putting as much passion and effort into her roles as possible. When she is playing roles close to her natural self I think she is extremely good.

I don't know enough about the others, but they are doing fine I think, though I would be lying if I said I'm not worried about Chihara Minori. She is like the polar opposite of Hirano-San and lacks any passion in her roles. Even when she's not playing a quiet girl character I find she doesn't seem to be trying hard to emote at all (Which may be why she keeps getting cast in those roles). She's also not particularly talented I find, so this is something I'm not really looking forward too.

WanderingKnight

2007-04-21, 01:27

Hirano makes up for a lack of experience and pure talent by putting as much passion and effort into her roles as possible.

Lack of experience? Heck, she's been around since she was frigging 13, doing major roles in many series. What lack of experience are you talking about? Of course, she hasn't played as many roles as Horie Yui, Yukana, Hayashibara Megumi, Paku Romi, or all those hot-shot seiyuu... but if only those with 25+ roles played are experienced, then you're saying 98% of professional seiyuu are inexperienced...

And heck, if I hadn't know already that Konata was Hirano Aya, I would've never recognized her. And I have quite an ear for identifying VAs.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-04-21, 01:46

Lack of experience? Heck, she's been around since she was frigging 13, doing major roles in many series. What lack of experience are you talking about? Of course, she hasn't played as many roles as Horie Yui, Yukana, Hayashibara Megumi, Paku Romi, or all those hot-shot seiyuu... but if only those with 25+ roles played are experienced, then you're saying 98% of professional seiyuu are inexperienced...

And heck, if I hadn't know already that Konata was Hirano Aya, I would've never recognized her. And I have quite an ear for identifying VAs.

It's not number of roles so much as roles that have put her to the test. She hasn't done enough of those. You don't gain experience by taking roles roles in short fluff series for most of your life do you. You can however turn a lemon (B-Daman, Sumomo, Beyblade) into a lemonade. So that's that, accept the fact that I'm am praising her for her phenomal effort in dealing with light roles for most of her career. I'm not going to lie and say I think she's on the same level as the 4 you have mentioned, except maybe for Megumi Hayashibara, who I think she is better than.

Tell me who this is though (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQ_yDli41iI). I just want to see if you know an ear for Male Seiyuu as much as for female. No cheating. Then just chill and take in the fact that maybe somebody doesn't feel Aya Hirano is as experienced as others do. Keep in mind I also come from an 80's and 90's anime background so my people are in an entirely different generation of Seiyuu. The people I'm most familiar with and have come to respect over time don't include Yui Horie, Aya Hirano, etc. yet. Give it a while.

Vexx

2007-04-21, 01:52

WanderingKnight

2007-04-21, 01:52

It's not number of roles so much as roles that have put her to the test. She hasn't done enough of those. You don't gain experience by taking roles roles in short fluff series for most of your life do you. You can however turn a lemon (B-Daman, Sumomo, Beyblade) into a lemonade. So that's that, accept the fact that I'm am praising her for her phenomal effort in dealing with light roles for most of her career. I'm not going to lie and say I think she's on the same level as the 4 you have mentioned, except maybe for Megumi Hayashibara, who I think she is better than.

Konata seems enough of a test to me. She's got an expression and a pitch she's never used before, and her attitude is completely different from the other characters she's voiced.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-04-21, 02:06

Well... compared to Gotou or, say, Yu Asakawa --- Hirano is a little sprite, still not battleship class. :)
(I kind of miss Yu Asakawa, haven't seen her listed in a while)

Listening to Hirano do "haruhi" versus "konata" scores her some points in actually being able to do different characterizations (they're really very little alike). I'm more impressed by VAs who can actually do different voices or different personalities. If Hirano doesn't blow a gasket under the corporate stress to soar --- she'll really hit her stride in about five years.
Gomen, but I just feel like she *nailed* Konata's karaoke style.

Oh, I won't even deny that I think this is by far the best role she's ever done. She really puts her soul into her characters. She needs to stick with these things she can do and not be forced into some sort of mold by the industry. She's only 19 and she's already had a fainting spell under the stress causing them to mericifully (for her sake) scale back all the conventions to a manageable number.

Oh, and once she can cast of the Haruhi (Her Seinfeld curse, a blessing as well as a stigma, a double edged sword for her career if you will) role once and for all and not be typecast by people to that role ("Oh my god she sounds like Haruhi, she did Haruhi, that's Auto-Win") she'll be free. I can almost picture her being like a female Michael Richards with her being called Haruhi (Kramer in his case) during a live appearance and her pleading that she is Aya Hirano and not Suzumiya Haruhi to deaf ears.

Until then I wish people would give her a bloody break and not force the idol status or unreasonable expecations on her. You'd think people think she is some sort of supergirl or something, but the fainting spell should be the ultimate warning signal that it's just to much. Sometimes I worry that if she doesn't do the Haruhi role again soon people will start harassing her about it in interviews, e-mails and on the internet.

Also, you've got to love her powers of time-travel in getting back to 1985 to do a role in SPT Layzner, 2 years before she was even born. That was amusing, and part of a larger and somewhat amusing case of a misread name kanji.

Vexx

2007-04-21, 02:35

Problem for her is the same for many VAs.... the industry LOVES to typecast them because it means the casting exec doesn't have to THINK ... they just go get the same VA for the "quiet girl" each time or whatever.

The VAs have to push hard to show they're versatile.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-04-21, 03:40

I like what Aaya is doing in this show, and I haven't heard anything like this from her before, but as I keep saying, if you haven't heard her as Layla in NANA, you haven't heard what she can do. It's not particularly naturalistic, but it is very strong as a characterization and in conveying emotion.

Try the first five minutes of episode 35 of NANA. Paku Romi is the first part, Hirano Aya the second. Paku's better, but Hirano's great in the fragile, emotional role of the famous singer Layla. And by the way, that show is like three times the show of anything starting this spring, for me. Just watching that bit again bowls me over.

In my opinion, Aaya is a better seiyuu than Gotuuza-sama (Gotou Yuuko), who does fabulous work in a range limited to comedy. Not that I think range is as important as how well one does the roles one has. But I see Aaya growing in every role, just as a young seiyuu should. I feel as if she is only now beginning to come into her own, at 19. Just FYI, she is now apparently doing some announcing, for an NHK educational show about the body.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-04-21, 04:08

It's not particularly naturalistic, but it is very strong as a characterization and in conveying emotion.

I call it passion. I'm sure you mean the same thing by using emotion so I'm starting to understand what you mean by the emotions conveyed in a particular scene. I had always thought you meant something like the sappy emotion you see on Oprah or something, but I get it finally. It's the ability to put everything you can into a role and to really try your hardest to make it work. If you can do that, even if it isn't the best performance of the day, you know you've pushed your limits and there are people out their that no this too.

Even still I think she has occassionally slipped up during her brief period of overwork in series such as Himawari, which I saw one episode with her character in it. You could tell she didn't like doing a boring quiet character and she would frequently slip into the true Genki Aya Hirano. The Death Note role is best just not to talk about. I don't think even Aya Hirano with all her passion can save a character as poorly written as Misa Amane. I'd blame that one on her agent personally, not her. What was the other one, oh yeah Busou Renkin, where we have the Genki Hirano back screeching for her Onii-Chan. For some reason that was hysterical for me as she deliberately overacted it for comedic effect, not in character and not the best role she's played, but again turning lemons into lemonade where possible.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-04-21, 11:17

I call it passion. I'm sure you mean the same thing by using emotion so I'm starting to understand what you mean by the emotions conveyed in a particular scene. I had always thought you meant something like the sappy emotion you see on Oprah or something, but I get it finally. It's the ability to put everything you can into a role and to really try your hardest to make it work. If you can do that, even if it isn't the best performance of the day, you know you've pushed your limits and there are people out their that no this too. Even still I think she has occassionally slipped up during her brief period of overwork in series such as Himawari, which I saw one episode with her character in it. You could tell she didn't like doing a boring quiet character and she would frequently slip into the true Genki Aya Hirano. The Death Note role is best just not to talk about. I don't think even Aya Hirano with all her passion can save a character as poorly written as Misa Amane. I'd blame that one on her agent personally, not her. What was the other one, oh yeah Busou Renkin, where we have the Genki Hirano back screeching for her Onii-Chan. For some reason that was hysterical for me as she deliberately overacted it for comedic effect, not in character and not the best role she's played, but again turning lemons into lemonade where possible.Maybe I like Oprah-emotion, when I think it's real. In any case, I think Himawari has some of the worst voice-acting I've heard, from almost everyone, so I think it's because of the style the director or sound director got them to do. I only watched a couple of eps of Busou Renkin and I thought she was quite effective there in the minute or two total she appeared, and that the devoted, completely non-ecchi imouto/oniichan they played really worked, and that she got the comedy aspect of it right. Misa-Misa seems to be being played in a bizarre style that is what the director wanted and suits the manga character, but doesn't do much for me. She was nominated as best supporting voice for that role and not Layla, which is something I didn't get at all. I really do disagree about genki being the thing she does best, but "different strokes for different folks." I think Layla is her best work. But I think the "not totally naturalistic" I mentioned is what some people think of as poor acting. Nevertheless, even the crying in that clip of NANA works for me.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-04-26, 17:15

Hirano Aya was interviewed for 40 minutes on NHK's BS2 on Wednesday, by the former editor of NewType, who is also producer of Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo. I've made a blog post about that show (http://hashihime.blogspot.com/2007/04/hirano-aya-interview-on-nhk.html). They even had Aya do a fascinating mock recording session for some scenes from SHnY. The show was on YouTube for a while, but has been removed.

Nary a mention of Lucky Star. She has only mentioned it once on her blog, that I can recall, whereas Sumomo, Death Note, Manabi, even Eyeshield get mentions. Strange. I am hereby inventing the idea that she's uncertain how well she's doing with the role. On the interview, she said that she felt a lot of pressure being the star of SHnY. Maybe she's feeling that with LS, too.

EDIT: A video of the angel-devil photoshoot for the most recent issue of VOICHA magazine is now on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86_ZMHJ3zLk). She's very pretty in it -- much moreso than in the stills -- but mainly uses the super-cutesy artificial high voice that disappeared during most of the NHK interview. She says she was really looking forward to posing like this, although this amount of assuming special poses was new for her. At the end of the shoot, she does mention that she plays Ko-na-ta in Lucky Star and asks people to watch.

Kyuusai

2007-04-27, 12:20

Regardless of performances in other roles, I happen to think that Hirano's voicing of Konata has been a stupendous presentation for the most part. In fact, the only parts I could complain about were times when the animation timing didn't allow for a better presentation.

Aside from just having an adorable and attractive voice (if not speech pattern) for the character, she plays it with an incredible enthusiasm without which the character would be entirely unattractive to the audience. Though the characters and voices are completely different, this is something the Konata role has in common with the Suzumiya Haruhi role: If voiced flat, these characters would be tremendously annoying and aggravating when animated. Instead, thanks to the spirit she puts into their voicing, their nutty traits instead become enthralling.

Now I shall run off to make Konata's "Good job!" from the end of episode 3 my text-message ringtone. :heh:

Vexx

2007-04-27, 14:07

Watched the youtube clip Kaoru linked.... it always brings to the fore just how exhausting photo shoots are... you could tell towards the end of the devil-shoot that she was a bit wobbly tired.

She really is pretty cute and the "devil hair" brings her eyes out nicely. I thought I heard her say something like "this looks like something Konata might wear" but not sure about it (I have a lot of trouble parsing that tiny little voice style ... too busy being stupified by the cuteness and channeling the "Dennis Hopper" character in the Animaniacs spoof of Apocalypse Now).

Hahiru

2007-04-27, 19:33

http://www.hiranoaya.com/cgi-bin/diary/sfs6_diary/782_1.jpg
http://img.youtube.com/vi/7sU5rwQ3WXE/2.jpg

Omg .. I didn't know you could do that shape for real with ones lips. XD

Risaa

2007-04-27, 20:04

Omg .. I didn't know you could do that shape for real with ones lips. XD

I take it you've never seen :3-chan?

http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/2168/3chandy1.th.jpg (http://img409.imageshack.us/my.php?image=3chandy1.jpg)

/off topic

Kaoru Chujo

2007-04-30, 02:20

Surprisingly, with today's uproar about a directorial change, yesterday was the first time Hirano Aya posted much about Lucky Star on her blog. She spent the day at a Comptiq photo shoot for her upcoming photo book, and spent time with the mangaka of Lucky Star, Yoshimizu Kagami.

Yoshimizu-san gave her an illustration of Konata as in the commercial where she just went "MuuuUuuuUuUuu" all the way through, and also a drawing of Konata saying "Hirano-san, thanks for giving me such a fabulous voice."

http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/8571/8121jt3.th.jpg (http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/8571/8121jt3.jpg) http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/9146/8111uy5.th.jpg (http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/9146/8111uy5.jpg) http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/7853/8131ro6.th.jpg (http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/7853/8131ro6.jpg) http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/8665/8141fg4.th.jpg (http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/8665/8141fg4.jpg)

And Aya had some taiyaki:

http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/7176/8101yd4.th.jpg (http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/7176/8101yd4.jpg)

Kaioshin Sama

2007-04-30, 02:48

I take it you've never seen :3-chan?

http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/2168/3chandy1.th.jpg (http://img409.imageshack.us/my.php?image=3chandy1.jpg)

/off topic

HA! That friggin picture. Love It! I found it on Encyclopedia Dramatica once under the AZN entry (Don't ask, seriously) with the caption "Im Clever". It had something to do with real life instances of emoticons.

Samatarou

2007-04-30, 16:34

Aya had some taiyaki:
http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/7176/8101yd4.th.jpg (http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/7176/8101yd4.jpg)
She eats it the same way as Chiyo-chan, head first:
http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/7943/taiyakisk3.jpg

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-04, 12:55

I've made a page showing pictures of all the seiyuu and their characters (http://hashihime.atspace.com/etc/luckystar/charseiyuus.html), with some info about them and links to more info.

I'd heard of people like Endou Aya and Katou Emiri, but knew little about them and had no idea what they looked like. Now I know. Fukuhara Kaori (Tsukasa) says her skills are working at MacDonalds and going through a bottle of Tabasco a week. At 20, she is the closest to Hirano Aya (19) in age. The other main seiyuu range from 23 to over 30.

Here's my blog post (http://hashihime.blogspot.com/2007/05/lucky-star-seiyuu-names-and-faces.html) about the page. I've included the main seiyuu who have appeared so far, and I will try to keep the page up to date as new characters appear.

Vexx

2007-05-04, 15:59

Heh... this is one of those unusual cases where each seiyuu actually looks a bit like their character and even more if their hairstyle matched.

Shiraishi's anime image next to his actual mug is pretty funny. Also sounds like Fukuhara-san knows how easily she could be back honing her first skill if she doesn't give it all she's got :)

So far, I've been completely pleased with all of their interpretations of the characters.

Wavedash

2007-05-05, 23:05

I give credit where credit is due.

While I have been vocal in the past about Hirano Aya's fame being more flash than substance, her recent performance in Lucky Star is doing a lot to turn it around. Her Crayon Shin-chan impression, in particular, shows she has far more range and ability than I thought. Bravo Aya.

Claymore_Obsessed

2007-05-06, 13:54

I'd like to give credit to Konno Hiromi too^^

imho her Akira is simply hilarious, expecially when she suddenly gets upset/bored/bossy/crazy, lol

Kinny Riddle

2007-05-06, 14:09

Kyo-Ani definitely has a thing for casting either relatively new or experienced but little-known seiyuus in lead roles and enhancing their careers.

Recent
Ono Daisuke - Kunisaki Yukito (AIR), Koizumi Itsuki (Suzumiya Haruhi)
Hirano Aya - Suzumiya Haruhi (Suzumiya Haruhi), Izumi Konata (Lucky Star)
Chihara Minori - Nagato Yuki (Suzumiya Haruhi)

(One can also argue for Sugita Tomokazu - Kyon (Suzumiya Haruhi), Aizawa Yuuichi (Kanon 2006), though he did appear in lead roles in Chobits (2002) and SHUFFLE! (2005) before doing Kyo-Ani roles. )

For now, the jury's still out for Endou Aya, Katou Emiri, Fukuhara Aoi, but so far they're doing a good job.

arias

2007-05-06, 23:22

I actually latched onto this series after finishing (just about) my semester by stalking Vexx's profile.. mwahahahaha. Yes ojisan, I do! No I mean, I was bored and thought there might be a good series so I decided to see what you were up to - since you're older I thought that your tastes might be closer to mine.

At first sight Lucky Star looked too... loli... for me.

After watching the first episode, I gobbled up the rest and I have NO IDEA how in the WORLD they get these voice actors. Konata is godly. I just want a daughter like that now. GODLY. GODLY. Oh wow, I just checked Kaoru Chujo's page and she's done by Aya Hirano. Floored am I.

Vexx

2007-05-08, 03:00

What??? Someone actually *reads* those things? (need to update mine)

This is another rare instance where before the first episode I went out and purchased all the manga to-date and was not disappointed either by the manga or its adaptation to screen.

I tend to describe it to non-anime sorts as sort-of modern day Japanese version of Peanuts ... really (seems to work too, I've not had a one not like it).

I don't know who does the casting for their anime --- but they don't pay that person enough :) I think the readings by the VAs are entirely acceptable interpretations of the character personalities.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-08, 12:33

There's an interview with Endou Aya (Miyuki) (http://www.lucky-ch.com/weekly/070428_sp.html) on the official site. There are some photos, and some interesting comments.

http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/3296/spmiyukiayaej2.th.jpg (http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/3296/spmiyukiayaej2.jpg) http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/1469/lsciea07033001w200rc9.th.jpg (http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/1469/lsciea07033001w200rc9.jpg)

The most interesting comment for me was about Konata, comparing her to eating dried squid: the more you chew on her the more her flavor comes out. She said: "You're always thinking: what's she going to be like this time?" I also enjoyed her comments about how she approached acting Miyuki.

Asked what she thought of the comic when she read it, she laughed and said: "It was ordinary." She went on to say that nothing really happened. No-one even used magic. But the descriptions of ordinary events were great. She didn't normally read 4koma, but she just raced through this one. There were silly bits and funny bits, and it reminded her of her own school days. She could sympathize with all the characters, not just Miyuki.

Asked about Miyuki, she said she was tricky. She would do things for people, give them information, would be someone you'd really want for a friend. But she could do horrible things with a smile, too, so you wouldn't want her as an enemy. And she was so moe you could never win against her.

Asked if she resembled Miyuki, she laughed that she wasn't tricky. She said she was quiet like Miyuki in high school, but laughed that the stormy seas of life had changed her. She wasn't clumsy (dojikko) like Miyuki. She didn't have her general knowledge, but had learned things from her in anime. At school she always did her homework at the last minute, unlike Miyuki. But like Miyuki she was afraid of the dentist.

What did she think about when playing the role? Although Miyuki gave a calm impression, like an adult, she also had to get across that she was a high-school student like the others. She couldn't be completely oblivious or dreamy. When she was giving explanations, she just had to give the explanation. When she was being clumsy, she just had to be clumsy. The cast did a lot of ad libs, but there seemed to be very few places where it made sense for Miyuki to ad lib. She was going to look greedily for opportunities in the future, she laughed.

Asked which character she liked, she said Konata. It's like eating dried squid, she laughed. The more you chew on her the more her flavor comes out. You're always thinking: what's she going to be like this time? Kagami seems like the most grown-up, but really she's the most dependent and the one most likely to cry. Those moments are really good, she said. And Tsukasa's naive conversations with Miyuki are so cute.

What were your thoughts watching the anime? I really enjoyed the comic, but it's wonderful to see the characters moving around, she laughed. Although it's just ordinary life and nothing happens, the words just keep bubbling along and I never tire of watching the amusing acting. The hair color and the uniforms are so colorful, too.

What about the OP recording session? It was so high-tension, like rap, that at first I thought I'd just forget about Miyuki as I sang, but I kept thinking things like 'this is how Miyuki would move her tongue.' It was really enjoyable. Except that I could never memorize the words (laughs). Watching such a high-tension opening always makes me think I want to do my very best. The ending is also high-tension. I really enjoy it.

What about Shiraishi Minoru playing the Shiraishi Minoru character?
As for the character, he really tries hard, doesn't he? (laughs) It will be really interesting if he has a conversation with Miyuki. Shiraishi Minoru himself gives a feeling of: "Well, now, let's all work hard together." (laughs) I haven't known him long, but he really seems like a nice guy. In order to relax the atmosphere, he came to the first recording session in a maid's outfit with a mini-skirt. But recently he's been wearing normal clothes (laughs).

Here's my characters/seiyuus page (http://hashihime.atspace.com/etc/luckystar/charseiyuus.html), which has some info about Endou Aya.

Nemo_N

2007-05-08, 14:27

Asked which character she liked, she said Konata. It's like eating dried squid, she laughed. The more you chew on her the more her flavor comes out. You're always thinking: what's she going to be like this time?

LOL. Kagami probably feels like this too.

But she's dead on about Konata; Jason at AOMM said something along those same lines:

Konata seems like one of those wacky evangelists. She rambles and is completely crazy, yet, if you hang around her enough and listen to enough of her nonsense, you’ll start drinking her Kool-Aid too.

Fun stuff.

And Tsukasa's naive conversations with Miyuki are so cute.

The Tsukasa-Miyuki relationship is something I want to see more of; even though Miyuki is (usually) more knowledgeable than Tsukasa, they seem to be in the same wavelenght. Maybe is a Dojikko thing :heh: .

Even though I can't judge a VA based on one character, so far Endou-san's performance (and basically all of the LS cast) has been great.

I hope for an interview to Kuroi-sensei's VA (Maeda Konomi?); that would be interesting :D

Vexx

2007-05-08, 14:41

Fascinating... Endou really did do her homework.

Kagami: "Kagami seems like the most grown-up, but really she's the most dependent and the one most likely to cry."
(yes, Kagami is the one that most needs a hug and a head skritching)

Konata: "Konata. It's like eating dried squid, she laughed. The more you chew on her the more her flavor comes out."
(What a fascinating metaphor :D :D (I used to hate squid jerky.... a few years ago, my brain snapped and I decided I loved it... same with daikon))

Tsukasa+Miyuki: "Tsukasa's naive conversations with Miyuki are so cute."
(More like a collapsing singularity of moe :) They look like insanely cute little bugs during that conversation in Kagami's room when she was sick.)

I don't know how many VAs read the source material... but points to her for doing that especially when she's not really a 4-koma fan.

Shiraishi must be an absolute hoot with no esteem problems at all :) Again I'm reminded that this is one of the few anime where the VAs could actually get away with playing their parts in live-action without too much trouble as they "look" quite a lot like their characters.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-08, 15:11

Asked about Miyuki, she said she was tricky. She would do things for people, give them information, would be someone you'd really want for a friend. But she could do horrible things with a smile, too, so you wouldn't want her as an enemy. And she was so moe you could never win against her.

That's dangerous thinking there.

Vexx

2007-05-08, 15:25

Well.. after all, "moe" is controlled by Strategic Arms Limitation Treaties. "Moe" for evil could be unleashed on the world otherwise.

Skane

2007-05-08, 20:11

~
What about Shiraishi Minoru playing the Shiraishi Minoru character?
As for the character, he really tries hard, doesn't he? (laughs) It will be really interesting if he has a conversation with Miyuki. Shiraishi Minoru himself gives a feeling of: "Well, now, let's all work hard together." (laughs) I haven't known him long, but he really seems like a nice guy. In order to relax the atmosphere, he came to the first recording session in a maid's outfit with a mini-skirt. But recently he's been wearing normal clothes (laughs).

Here's my characters/seiyuus page (http://hashihime.atspace.com/etc/luckystar/charseiyuus.html), which has some info about Endou Aya.
First off, I am glad to see that she did her homework.

Secondly, I have been reading a lot of articles recently in which male VAs have been cross-dressing. Just like how there is an "Always 17" club for the female VAs, is there a "Crossdressing Club" for male VAs going on? :heh:

Heh.

kenjiharima

2007-05-09, 07:15

OMG!!! Seeing the sieyu's of Lucky Star I can't help myself to think that almost all of them look like the Lucky Star cast, especially Hirano Aya, Endou Aya, Shiraishi
Shiraishi Minoru and ironically he has the same name!!

Vexx

2007-05-09, 10:46

Actually in Shiraishi's case... the name is intentional --- he's playing himself.

But yeah, the cast *does* bear an uncanny resemblance to their characters. Usually, there's no such appearance at all.

MakubeX2

2007-05-14, 07:33

http://img501.imageshack.us/img501/1802/0045bygafak3.th.jpg (http://img501.imageshack.us/my.php?image=0045bygafak3.jpg)

kj1980

2007-05-15, 22:14

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-16, 17:31

I think Fukuhara Kaori's career will skyrocket after this because of her magnificent and oddly interesting ad-libs on par with Sugita Tomokazu. 1. Barusamikosu, barusamikosu~, ahaha barusamikosu~ (heavenly and brain-smashingly denpa wwww) 2. dokonoke? yogurt desuka? mou tatemashen~ (brilliant!)I also love just the sound of her voice. And I agree totally about "barusamiko su." "Brain-smashing," indeed. How do you know these were ad libs? Certainly, both Endou Aya and Shiraishi Minoru have said in their official-site interviews that as the series progresses, the seiyuu are introducing more ad libs.

And can you tell us one ad lib that Sugita is known to have done?

I have added Miyuki's mom to the Lucky Star character/seiyuu page (http://hashihime.atspace.com/etc/luckystar/charseiyuus.html). With Fukuhara Kaori's performance, she will possibly not have to fall back on her "special skill" of being a "MacDonald's onee-san."

kj1980

2007-05-16, 18:48

How do you know these were ad libs?
Read her blog dates May 8th: http://blog.livedoor.jp/kaorin_f/

And can you tell us one ad lib that Sugita is known to have done?
Actually if listen to many seiyuu radios, he is known as a master of ad-libbing by his peers.

Vexx

2007-05-17, 01:11

DJ_RockmanX

2007-05-17, 01:19

"Barusamikosu~" was an ad-lib?!?! That's frickin' genius.

My other favorite line thus far from her would have to be "Onee-chaaaaaaaaaaan!"

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-17, 13:05

Here's a rough translation of the bit from Fukuhara Kaori's blog that kj1980 mentioned, where she talks about what she ad-libbed:

"'Lucky Star' is going quickly. Episode five has already aired.
Are you watching?
The recording is advancing smoothly.
In every episode, we're all putting in ad libs.
We're always thinking: 'Could I get an ad lib in here?'
I won't go into detail because some haven't been broadcast yet,
but in episode 5 all the part about su [vinegar] was ad libbed, lol.
and in episode 4, so were doko no ke ('hair where?' as Tsukasa's understanding of 'Comiket'), [I]yoguruto desu ka? ('is that yogurt?' as her understanding of 'bourgeois'), and mou tatemashen ('I can't even shtand myshelf up," when she was tired from running.)
The standard is awfully high at the recording sessions, but I'm really learning a lot."

Here's another photo of her from her blog (http://blog.livedoor.jp/kaorin_f/):

http://img520.imageshack.us/img520/1918/fukuharakaori3et9.jpg (http://img520.imageshack.us/img520/1918/fukuharakaori3et9.jpg)

And just because I find the photo so fascinating, here's the most recent photo from Hirano Aya's blog (http://www.hiranoaya.com/cgi-bin/diary/sfs6_diary/). Her eye is swollen so she has a patch on it. She says she decided to try out a sort of goth loli look today, wearing a suit jacket with jeans that have a slit patched with lace (posts on 2channel have already shown photos where she wore both of these separately last year). She says that although the look is stylish, she took the photo in the washroom.

http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/9089/8741psks2.th.jpg (http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/9089/8741psks2.jpg)

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-17, 13:44

http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/9089/8741psks2.th.jpg (http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/9089/8741psks2.jpg)

Going for the Ryoumou from Ikkitousen look eh. Wonder what happened to her though. That can't be pleasant. Though I'm not too big a fan of the goth-loli look outside of anime, I'm not sure why she tooks this angle as the casual look suits her best I find (recording in tank tops and what not). Still every time I look at this blog I'm amused by one thing, and that is the sheer number of pictures she has taken of food items. The girl obviously likes her food as much as your's truly.

Shiroth

2007-05-17, 13:46

Going for the Ryoumou from Ikkitousen look eh. Wonder what happened to her though. That can't be pleasant.
I could easily say "going for the Akito look from Air Gear here", thats who she looks more like.

Awesome image though, shame about her eye. ;_;

Another image:

http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/7647/01pk8.th.jpg (http://img521.imageshack.us/my.php?image=01pk8.jpg)

Vexx

2007-05-17, 17:14

meh... she probably has "pink eye" (an infection sometimes caused by having a nasal infection and sneezing up through your tear ducts or by wiping your nose and then touching your eyes) or just a typical eye irritation from some mote. I like the jeans and lace combo though...

And Tsukasa's VA is cute.... I continue to be intrigued by the comparison of looks between the characters and their VAs. That's so unusual (outside of Disney where they actually model some characters after their VAs (like the actors in The Emperor's New Groove, for example).

kenjiharima

2007-05-17, 17:25

is there any full body pic of hirano aya? I wanna compare her figure to kona-chan. They really look alike!!! :heh:

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-17, 18:40

I believe she may have poked herself in the eye or something, since I believe she says she did it to herself. The caption to the pic Shiroth posted is: やっちまいました。腫れてしまったので装着。外すとビフォーアフターです。 My sense is that since recording sessions are scheduled, she has to go, even if she injured her eye. It's what a pro has to do. She just makes the best of it by making it a feature rather than a bug. The look reminds me of Venus Versus Virus, too.
is there any full body pic of hirano aya? I wanna compare her figure to kona-chan. They really look alike!You asked for it. Here are some shots from her photo session in Bali earlier this year. Does her figure look like Konata's? Don't think so, except in that one regard that affords "status." She's not particularly short: 159cm (5'2-5'3") according to one site, but she looks taller on stage.

http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/5372/seiup1178701733023pg1.th.jpg (http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/5372/seiup1178701733023pg1.jpg) http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/4724/seiup1178701692230am3.th.jpg (http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/4724/seiup1178701692230am3.jpg) http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/2738/seiup1178701710736qg8.th.jpg (http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/2738/seiup1178701710736qg8.jpg) http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/2714/seiup1178701747067jh4.th.jpg (http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/2714/seiup1178701747067jh4.jpg) http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/5471/seiup1178701763543vo1.th.jpg (http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/5471/seiup1178701763543vo1.jpg) http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/362/vi7885960422hz1.th.jpg (http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/362/vi7885960422hz1.jpg)

2channel was hoping for a bikini, but she's still pretty modest. And I don't think she looks totally at ease.

Vexx

2007-05-17, 19:02

Lets face it.... when you're most comfortable in a studio behind a mike - having "glamour photo" sessions is always going to be a bit wierd to you.
Actually, quite a few singers who are in the public eye constantly comment that appearing "glamourous" or "sexy" just bemuses them.

Ascaloth

2007-05-17, 20:28

@Kaoru Chujo,

What have you done?! You've unleashed a flood of male hormones on us!!! :p

Shiroth

2007-05-17, 20:38

The look reminds me of Venus Versus Virus, too.
I still say the look is more Agito/Akito from Air Gear. Especially when he wears a wedding dress.

She's not particularly short: 159cm (5'2-5'3") according to one site, but she looks taller on stage.
Wow, i'm happy to know she's the same hight as me --- though i do agree, seeing her in various images, i never would have guessed her to be that hight.

Skane

2007-05-17, 20:56

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-17, 21:26

159cm?! Not exactly Dwarf status, but that's still pretty short! I had an impression that she was taller than that. Man, that would make her shorter than the average female height around here. Cheers.She looks taller to me on stage, so maybe that ja.Wikipedia figure is old. For instance, here (http://youtube.com/watch?v=SaS3ezBf7ws&mode=related&search=) (Manabi Straight cast interviews), or here (http://youtube.com/watch?v=lWNCV3bvFd4&mode=related&search=) (Rune-Angel Tai performance).

I just read an interesting little post on 2channel repeating the thesis that the selling of Hirano Aya has been too fast and too hard, propelled by the sudden success of SHnY. It was in the Katou Emiri thread, saying she should be promoted in a more normal way, starting with handshake appearances, etc., rather than going straight to the full idol seiyuu treatment. I think it's true that the success of SHnY just moved things faster than normal, but it's also true that Aaya has been around for five years, and was in an idol group before. On the one hand, it's clear that the past year has been hard on her. On the other, she has risen to undreamed-of popularity, it seems, so it's hard to say what would be best.

Psychotic_Virtue

2007-05-18, 06:46

A nice array of voice actors, gotta love how they got the voice of Haruhi doing Konata and Yuki Nagato as Minami, also this anime has my favourite female voice actor, Inoue Kikuko! *fanboy scream*

Vexx

2007-05-18, 10:29

well... its not exactly the "voice of Haruhi" but simply the same VA - I'd have to argue she's doing a different style voice (it lacks the higher registers and squeaks that the character Haruhi had - Kona is much lower pitched with different pacing).

As for Minami and Yuki .... we haven't heard Minami yet but I would be surprised if there was much difference other than the character of Minami is much quieter and minimalist than SHnY's Yuki ... if anything Minami might be closer to Sakaki of AzuDa (minimalist grunts) so I'm kind of interested to see if she can handle the subtle differences one might expect.

Ascaloth

2007-05-18, 11:21

I'd say that Konata is what Aaya-chan would sound like if she tried to do Kyon....except Kyon isn't half as evil as Kona-chan is. :p

kenjiharima

2007-05-18, 11:33

I believe she may have poked herself in the eye or something, since I believe she says she did it to herself. The caption to the pic Shiroth posted is: やっちまいました。腫れてしまったので装着。外すとビフォーアフターです。 My sense is that since recording sessions are scheduled, she has to go, even if she injured her eye. It's what a pro has to do. She just makes the best of it by making it a feature rather than a bug. The look reminds me of Venus Versus Virus, too.
You asked for it. Here are some shots from her photo session in Bali earlier this year. Does her figure look like Konata's? Don't think so, except in that one regard that affords "status." She's not particularly short: 159cm (5'2-5'3") according to one site, but she looks taller on stage.

http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/5372/seiup1178701733023pg1.th.jpg (http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/5372/seiup1178701733023pg1.jpg) http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/4724/seiup1178701692230am3.th.jpg (http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/4724/seiup1178701692230am3.jpg) http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/2738/seiup1178701710736qg8.th.jpg (http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/2738/seiup1178701710736qg8.jpg) http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/2714/seiup1178701747067jh4.th.jpg (http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/2714/seiup1178701747067jh4.jpg) http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/5471/seiup1178701763543vo1.th.jpg (http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/5471/seiup1178701763543vo1.jpg) http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/362/vi7885960422hz1.th.jpg (http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/362/vi7885960422hz1.jpg)

2channel was hoping for a bikini, but she's still pretty modest. And I don't think she looks totally at ease.

Yeah!!! Now that's what am talking about! :D

She has mole near her eye, smiles like Konata but as for the figure...Aya has more advantage. She looks taller maybe because of high heel shoes. Her hair looks similar to Haruhi there in the images. It's nice very nice!!! :love:

Nemo_N

2007-05-18, 12:10

Those pictures of Aya in Bali are evil! EVIL I TELL YA!*

(*Translation: she looks damn hot!)

I'd say that Konata is what Aaya-chan would sound like if she tried to do Kyon....except Kyon isn't half as evil as Kona-chan is. :p

She actually voiced Kyon in the Drama CD Sound Around; actually she voiced the entire SOS-dan. It was hilarious :D .

DragoonKain3

2007-05-18, 12:59

I'd say that Konata is what Aaya-chan would sound like if she tried to do Kyon....except Kyon isn't half as evil as Kona-chan is. :p
OT reply, but I guess you haven't heard that one drama CD of Haruhi yet? English translation can be found at http://www12.brinkster.com/stratoct/haruhi.htm, although its meant to be heard (8th track is an absolute riot the moment you hear it XD)

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-18, 13:23

A nice array of voice actors, gotta love how they got the voice of Haruhi doing Konata and Yuki Nagato as Minami, also this anime has my favourite female voice actor, Inoue Kikuko! *fanboy scream*The one I'm looking forward to is Sasaki Nozomi, who played Nana-chan in Bokura ga Ita, and will be "Patty Martin." She's one of the most moe voices I've ever heard. She also had a role in Winter Garden.

We have already heard the great Onee-san (Inoue Kikuko), not sounding a lot like herself, as Kagami and Tsukasa's mother.

For Aaya fans, the big rumble on 2channel today is a rumor that she and Sugita Tomokazu are getting married. This is clearly nonsense, just another wave of mass hysteria rolling through the fan community. The same rumor went by a couple of months ago. This time, it appears to be based entirely on the fact that she is wearing a ring on her left ring finger, something that unmarried girls in Japan and elsewhere sometimes do anyway. As I've mentioned before, Aaya said on Sumomo radio that marriage was just a legal restriction and she never intended to get married but would just live with someone if she ever wanted to. Of course, this was also in a sequence where she was asked what kind of wedding dress she might wear and said she might choose to get married at Disneyland, dressed as Jasmine.

And a photo just showed up from yesterday's recording session for Lantis. Note the ring. The recording was of a character song for a character called Minami, who is part of a set of "trading figures" known as "Railway Girls (http://tetsudou-musume.net/)." See how artfully they have avoided showing her bandaged eye. Reminds me that she plays piano somewhat (played for her school church services), as well as guitar. The photo is from the blog (http://www.lantis.jp/cgi/tutumin/topics.cgi)of someone who I think is a Lantis producer or A&R guy. He says she is playing piano after the recording session.

http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/163/4681ff0.th.jpg (http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/163/4681ff0.jpg)

Nemo_N

2007-05-18, 14:02

For Aaya fans, the big rumble on 2channel today is a rumor that she and Sugita Tomokazu are getting married. This is clearly nonsense, just another wave of mass hysteria rolling through the fan community. The same rumor went by a couple of months ago.

I know this is just another crazy rumor, but everytime I hear the "Tomokazu and Aaya getting married" line, I can't help but smile and think how awesome that would be. Besides, if they have a kid, imagine the kind of VA he/she could be! :p

Enough with the crazy rumor.

The ad-lib talk got me thinking if Aaya did that in this scene:

http://img527.imageshack.us/img527/224/washuwashuff4.jpg
Washu-Washu-Washu-Washu-Ooooh-Washu-Washu... ( :D )

Vexx

2007-05-18, 14:23

The problem with Sugita would be akin to what I'd call the "Robin Williams" syndrome ... it would depend on whether he can be "not on stage" all the time. I understand Mr. Williams can take a lot of energy to be around :)
As far as Sugita, I have no idea what his offstage persona might be ... but I suspect Aya wants to play around quite a bit longer before anything like settling in with one guy. VAs have a nasty tendency to retire after they get married.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-18, 15:44

I know this is just another crazy rumor, but everytime I hear the "Tomokazu and Aaya getting married" line, I can't help but smile and think how awesome that would be. Besides, if they have a kid, imagine the kind of VA he/she could be! :p

I'd prefer not to think about. :twitch: She's far more talented then he is anyway in my opinion so even if it did happen we know who would be wearing the pants in the house so to speak. Likely it's just people having difficulty separating the Haruhi and Kyon roles from the real life people that played them that started the rumour. The Seinfeld Curse type effect of these roles still lingers quite a bit around the two.

@Vexx: I would hope he has a better personality than his onstage one. I would like to think the man is less arrogant than he appears to be in his roles and in his photos, although I've never seen an interview with him to know. I still don't know what Aya would see in him anyway even if he is a decent person. Again, I think people are having trouble separating the fictional Kyon and Haruhi from their Seiyuu.

Vexx

2007-05-18, 15:59

Well... fanboiz love to wax emo over rumors like that..... (there's a recent story arc in Megatokyo concerning fan reactions to the possiblity "their idol" might be romantically attached).

Ffenix Rising

2007-05-18, 16:19

TOf course, this was also in a sequence where she was asked what kind of wedding dress she might wear and said she might choose to get married at Disneyland, dressed as Jasmine.

That sounds hot! :heh:

VAs have a nasty tendency to retire after they get married.

That didn't stop Megumi Hayashibara though.

Risaa

2007-05-18, 16:43

As I've mentioned before, Aaya said on Sumomo radio that marriage was just a legal restriction and she never intended to get married but would just live with someone if she ever wanted to.
*coughs* Way to go, girl. :)

The problem with Sugita would be akin to what I'd call the "Robin Williams" syndrome ... it would depend on whether he can be "not on stage" all the time. I understand Mr. Williams can take a lot of energy to be around :)
When he appeared on Whose Line, I was absolutely annoyed with him - he was hogging all the attention and doing things simply to get attention (like running around in circles, yelling), which I guess a special guest can do, but it just seemed like waay too much over-kill. He was literally on-stage, but there are certain times during the show that you just relax and be "off-stage" ne.

That didn't stop Megumi Hayashibara though.
Hmm, I believe that's why he said they have a *tendency* to though. :p Of course not 100% of VAs who get married would retire (it'd be sad if they all did... No more Megumi?? :( ).

Shiroth

2007-05-18, 18:41

That didn't stop Megumi Hayashibara though.
Even if the world exploded, she'd still find a way to carry on. <3

Vexx

2007-05-18, 19:57

Hmm, I believe that's why he said they have a *tendency* to though. :p

O.o ... thank you :)

Samatarou

2007-05-18, 20:47

OT reply, but I guess you haven't heard that one drama CD of Haruhi yet? English translation can be found at http://www12.brinkster.com/stratoct/haruhi.htm, although its meant to be heard (8th track is an absolute riot the moment you hear it XD)
For my money the best thing on it is the song "The First Goodbye" which is second only to God Knows in the Haruhi song stable, in fact it even gives God Knows a damn good run for its money.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-18, 21:56

For my money the best thing on it is the song "The First Goodbye" which is second only to God Knows in the Haruhi song stable, in fact it even gives God Knows a damn good run for its money.I think it's the best thing she's done as a singer. I also like her character songs for Manabi Straight, especially one called "Ruru de MY Chitsujo."

Here's First Good-Bye (http://youtube.com/watch?v=3JKTLMO7tqM) on YouTube.

Ascaloth

2007-05-18, 22:40

OT reply, but I guess you haven't heard that one drama CD of Haruhi yet? English translation can be found at http://www12.brinkster.com/stratoct/haruhi.htm, although its meant to be heard (8th track is an absolute riot the moment you hear it XD)

Yeah, and for two very good reasons; 1) I'm in Singapore, and wouldn't know where to obtain one, and 2), I wouldn't know what the heck she was talking about, anyway. :heh:

For Aaya fans, the big rumble on 2channel today is a rumor that she and Sugita Tomokazu are getting married.

'Tis poetic justice, ne? :p

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-19, 00:18

I think it's the best thing she's done as a singer. I also like her character songs for Manabi Straight, especially one called "Ruru de MY Chitsujo."

Here's First Good-Bye (http://youtube.com/watch?v=3JKTLMO7tqM) on YouTube.

Wait seriously! She's not doing songs anymore. I can think of quite a few reasons why should would want to stop doing concerts ranging from wanting to focus on school and voice acting (I still think she's a far better Seiyuu than a singer) to tiring of the concert scene and the raving fanboys who tend to get out of control (and when your that popular personal safety can become an issue).

For the others I Also came up with an idea of what the offspring of Aya Hirano and Sugita Tomokazu might be like. Japanese Russel Crowe (Good actor, but heavily prone to flip out and screaming at the cast and crew of his movies) if it's a boy and Japanese Meryl Streep (Good Actress, but has a way of making your skin crawl as she goes through her typecast manipulative woman roles) if it's a girl.

Ascaloth

2007-05-19, 01:15

CrowKenobi

2007-05-19, 01:28

Ascaloth

2007-05-19, 01:33

Given your track record, I don't think you have any credibility on this subject and you should quit while you're ahead. :nono:

Please stop. You are not adding anything to the conversation but veiled insults because of your biases. Can you make comments without insulting the subject? Please?

:cool:

Kinda hard for him, I would say. :heh:

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-19, 02:41

Given your track record, I don't think you have any credibility on this subject and you should quit while you're ahead. :nono:

They are only guesses. Also things change in regard to one's track record.

Please stop. You are not adding anything to the conversation but veiled insults because of your biases. Can you make comments without insulting the subject? Please? :cool:

If you insist...very well, there isn't much more to say.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-19, 02:43

Wait seriously! She's not doing songs anymore. I can think of quite a few reasons why should would want to stop doing concerts ranging from wanting to focus on school and voice acting (I still think she's a far better Seiyuu than a singer) to tiring of the concert scene and the raving fanboys who tend to get out of control (and when your that popular personal safety can become an issue). For the others I Also came up with an idea of what the offspring of Aya Hirano and Sugita Tomokazu might be like. Japanese Russel Crowe (Good actor, but heavily prone to flip out and screaming at the cast and crew of his movies) if it's a boy and Japanese Meryl Streep (Good Actress, but has a way of making your skin crawl as she goes through her typecast manipulative woman roles) if it's a girl.Aaya is doing a big Galaxy Angelune concert on Sunday, as it happens. She recorded a character song Friday for a line of figures ("Railway Girls (http://tetsudou-musume.net/)") and did new character songs for Sumomo mo Momo mo last week. She continues to "do songs." I expect another single or an album to come.

I agree she's a better seiyuu than singer, and can see why "raving fanboys" might be hard to take, but it doesn't seem to be stopping her. She thinks of herself as a multi-talented entertainer, and so do I. And from the amount of work she seems to do, judging from her blog, and from the fact she never mentions school, I think she's concentrating on her career right now, and putting college off.

I have heard nothing of Sugita Tomokazu ever "flipping out." On the contrary, I think he is known as a mild and considerate guy with a lot of friends. I don't see why any child of his would turn into Russell Crowe. And Meryl Streep is the acting goddess, in my book, even if she is more a technical than a method actress, so I don't want to hear any bad-mouthing of her, lol. Yes, there's her role in Devil Wears Prada, but on the other hand there's Prairie Home Companion.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-19, 02:47

I have heard nothing of Sugita Tomokazu ever "flipping out." On the contrary, he is known as a mild and considerate guy with a lot of friends. I don't see why any child of his would turn into Russell Crowe. And Meryl Streep is the acting goddess, in my book, even if she is more a technical than a method actress, so I don't want to hear any bad-mouthing of her, lol.

That was just a bad and ill considered joke on my part...heh.

Sheba

2007-05-19, 05:26

Sugita cosplayed as Mai (just like how Shirashi dressed up as a girl), I like him. :D

DragoonKain3

2007-05-19, 09:13

I know Shiraishi cross-dress cosplays sometimes (he did Haruhi before he did being a maid in this series), but Sugita? Man that's unexepected. Got any pics for us to lol @? ^^;

Sheba

2007-05-19, 10:56

I know Shiraishi cross-dress cosplays sometimes (he did Haruhi before he did being a maid in this series), but Sugita? Man that's unexepected. Got any pics for us to lol @? ^^;
Check your PM, I do not want to distract from the actual discussion.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-19, 14:31

I have no qualms about distracting from the discussion. I don't have any shots of Sugita in drag, but there are some interesting shots of Shiraishi with last week's interview on the official site (http://www.lucky-ch.com/weekly/070511_sp.html). Such as this one:

http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/3967/spminoru02wx0.th.jpg (http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/3967/spminoru02wx0.jpg)

Access to all the interviews -- Endou Aya, Shiraishi Minoru, and now Hirano Aya -- is here (http://www.lucky-ch.com/weekly/).

Manatsu

2007-05-20, 05:55

OT reply, but I guess you haven't heard that one drama CD of Haruhi yet? English translation can be found at http://www12.brinkster.com/stratoct/haruhi.htm, although its meant to be heard (8th track is an absolute riot the moment you hear it XD)

For anyone interested, there's a subtitled version of the Sound Around drama CD on youtube which makes for easier listening and understanding. The scripts seems to be the same one too.

On topic... inspired by kj1980's post about Fukuhara Kaori's potential... I'm kinda excited by the prospect of seeing more young, talented but obscure seiyuus making it big to one day claim the title of the next generation seiyuu queen or something. I mean it's not an everyday chance that you get to watch a young seiyuu gaining fame and popularity to become a household name even to the less-informed fans right as it is happening. And to some fans who have an eye for spotting talent when they are still raw, there ought to be plenty of satisfaction in watching them realize their potential and saying "I knew it!"

Ultimately, these are just common mentality for fandom found in a lot of places especially sports, and it's one that is well founded though it does not necessary applies to everyone. So I guess I speak for myself really, Megu-chan and Hocchan both got popular when I didn't had access to digisubs and the information that is the internet. Personally I like Aya and I think she's a great seiyuu. She can be said to be the first seiyuu sensation (not counting Mizuki Nana because I noticed her only after starting Nanoha A's later than every one else) that I'm able to follow and witness first hand, though when I say follow I'm not even half as dedicated as Kaoru Chujo. :heh:

kenjiharima

2007-05-21, 13:06

Why do all comedian men dress up in drag?!! O.o LOL but that pic and on the official site is damn funny. :heh:

houkoholic

2007-05-21, 14:08

to tiring of the concert scene and the raving fanboys who tend to get out of control (and when your that popular personal safety can become an issue).

Both Aya and her management knew that her skills as a singer is nowhere near what it takes to put her in the top tier of seiyuu singers after comparing the sales of her personal single "Ashita no Prism" to that of the Haruhi ones (it's more than a ratio of 1 to 10 btw) . "God Knows" and "Lost my music" where one-offs that just hit all the right buttons and rode on the Haruhi hype. As a singer, the other seiyuu in Haruhi, Chihara Minori, is actually way more skilled than Hirano Aya.

Also being a seiyuu is not that prolific in Japan. Most seiyuu still rides the train and all that, which is something you won't see normal celebrities do. Heck I've ran into Mizuki Nana and Shimizu Ai at different times both at the Shinjuku station just last year, they were dressed quite normally (no sunglasses or big hats etc) and they were not even trying to hide themselves. I went up to Mizuki Nana and greeted her and she was surprised that someone recognized her (let alone a foreigner). Shimizu Ai OTOH even wore lolita which made her stand out even more than the OLs that ran through the station. I think it's safe to say that both of them are at least as popular as Hirano Aya and in fame for longer as well, so if they are okay with it I don't see what makes Hirano Aya any different.

EDIT: I've also ran into Chiba Saeko at a festival in Shibuya (even snapped a picture (http://www.sentxd.net/~houkoholic/saeko_mikoshi.jpg)) and stood next to Kuwashima Houko on the yamanote line, neither even tried to hide their faces with any accessories. So yeah, seiyuu are quite down to earth compared with your "normal" celebrities.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-21, 16:44

I've translated the Hirano Aya interview from the official site (http://hashihime.blogspot.com/2007/05/hirano-aya-lucky-star-interview.html), and posted it on my blog.

Great post from houkoholic. For more info about a seiyuu's life, people should have a look at this post by kj1980 (http://forums.animesuki.com/showpost.php?p=482166&postcount=31) and other posts in the thread in General Anime on The Industry - Lifestyle and Wages. I can't blame Hirano Aya for wanting to be more than just a seiyuu: seiyuus are near the bottom of the entertainment industry pecking order. Aya rode the train to the Suzumiya Haruhi concert in March, apparently without getting bothered.

Hey, houkoholic, how come I never read your great blog before? Stupid me. Even if I disagree with you on Aya in Lucky Star, I know you'll have good reasons. I think this is one of the memorable performances. Though as I mention in the blog piece, I'm not sure Aya agrees. What you say about Aya as a singer is true enough, but Ashita no Prism was just not as good a song as God Knows, either. Or as good as a couple she's done since.

Good to see that Chihara Minori is getting her due as a singer. I remember seeing photos of her doing one-woman street shows with her guitar early last spring.

Wavedash

2007-05-21, 20:57

houkoholic, I just may have to visit Japan and ride the train round the clock if you occasionally run into seiyuu by pure coincidence. :)

Thanks for the interview reading, Kaoru. Your fandom is nearly unmatched even among those of us who live, eat, and breathe seiyuu news. Somehow didn't see Hirano as the type to read manga, even in her time off. Her thoughts on the part, while not surprising to me, nevertheless show she at least puts some effort into research.

Raki Suta

2007-05-22, 05:08

So there is a big announcement coming in May 25th at the Anime Expo website, and the heavy rumour out is that Hirano Aya will be a guest of honor.

It's obvious Bandai is cooking something up with Anime Expo to make it Haruhi weekend.

If the rumour is true, it'll be very interesting to see how Aya reacts to American audiences and fans.

Skane

2007-05-22, 06:14

DragoonKain3

2007-05-22, 08:39

ROTFL @ cardboard. Ahh, Saimoe, those were good times. ^^

Yeah, I can understand seiyuus not making much money. If the animators alone are being payed next to nothing...

Well, at least Hirano's eye looks better now. Good to see.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-22, 10:09

...Well, at least Hirano's eye looks better now. Good to see.The pics with the interview were probably taken before the eye problem. However, these were taken Sunday/Monday:

http://img519.imageshack.us/img519/7458/8791kb0.th.jpg (http://img519.imageshack.us/img519/7458/8791kb0.jpg) http://img504.imageshack.us/img504/7586/8801bq2.th.jpg (http://img504.imageshack.us/img504/7586/8801bq2.jpg)

First is with the "Angel Brigade" (from Galaxy Angelune) at their encore at the concert on Sunday. The second is what she wore during the day Monday. Time to go ride the trains, lol.

kenjiharima

2007-05-22, 11:07

Aya is the only girl looking damn hot in that group :love:

houkoholic

2007-05-22, 15:23

I've translated the [
Hey, houkoholic, how come I never read your great blog before? Stupid me. Even if I disagree with you on Aya in Lucky Star, I know you'll have good reasons. I think this is one of the memorable performances. Though as I mention in the blog piece, I'm not sure Aya agrees. What you say about Aya as a singer is true enough, but Ashita no Prism was just not as good a song as God Knows, either. Or as good as a couple she's done since.

Half of my problem I have with Aya in Lucky Star is that she makes too much unnecessary little noises in her delivery, which sort of goes against Konata's image of a lazy and slow delivery style of speech. The other half is her (bad) habit of putting too much emphasis in the last syllubal of the sentence. One episode of when Kagami and Tsukasa imagining Konata mumbling at her part-time work is what Konata's imagine should be like - someone who doesn't even want to waste energy in talking in something she has no interest in, so both habit of Aya's delivery is not really suited to Konata's character IMO, and I think Aya herself knows it too and is having a hard time matching her skills to the character, hence her own impression on her delivery which is not as smooth as it could have been.

As for her singing, I'm fairly certain that both Aya and her management is working very hard on improving her appeal. Anisongs are getting a lot of attention lately and is being heavily invested in, not to mention as a seiyuu personal CDs and concerts is where the money is in thus they surely will not overlook this area.

Good to see that Chihara Minori is getting her due as a singer. I remember seeing photos of her doing one-woman street shows with her guitar early last spring.

Her appearance in Animelo this year will certainly be a milestone for her as a singer.

houkoholic, I just may have to visit Japan and ride the train round the clock if you occasionally run into seiyuu by pure coincidence. :)

It's probably not that hard I reckon. I have friends running into seiyuu at stations before as well. They usually carry with them some baggage so it's easy to spot, as it's common that they have to provide their own clothings for photo sessions and events and what not. A lot of female seiyuu also talk about their experience with gropers and being hit on by drunken salarymen on the train.

The only female seiyuu that I know of who doesn't seem to use the train much is Tamura Yukari, instead she uses taxis and she tells stories about how she regularly ran into some taxi drivers who refuse to accept her business due to the way she dresses, which they mistaken her working in those kinds of "services", heh.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-22, 16:47

Half of my problem I have with Aya in Lucky Star is that she makes too much unnecessary little noises in her delivery, which sort of goes against Konata's image of a lazy and slow delivery style of speech. The other half is her (bad) habit of putting too much emphasis in the last syllable of the sentence. One episode of when Kagami and Tsukasa imagining Konata mumbling at her part-time work is what Konata's imagine should be like - someone who doesn't even want to waste energy in talking in something she has no interest in, so both habit of Aya's delivery is not really suited to Konata's character IMO, and I think Aya herself knows it too and is having a hard time matching her skills to the character, hence her own impression on her delivery which is not as smooth as it could have been....Fascinating points. I was liking those extra little sounds as feeling like a sloppy otaku. I have no real previous image of Konata to go against, but I can see your point, which is probably what the director was getting at, too, when he told her to go slower. I'll listen for the emphasis on the last syllable.

My own opinion is that Aaya is not a "pro" in the way of Horie Yui, say, who is very flexible and in control of everything she does, but whom I sometimes find too professional, too smooth, and a bit -- not mechanical, but something like that. Not that I don't enjoy her work. Aaya is rough in some ways, and can repeat herself (like with that final emphasis, or with the way Layla's voice drops), but is now doing especially interesting things. Including Konata, which is a style of voice I can't remember hearing before. And especially Layla, for me.

I always have to factor in the fact that I have never lived in Japan to soak up the subtleties of how people really talk and to learn Japanese better. I tend to like the extremes. I'm always disappointed to hear Yahagi Sayuri trying to sound more normal and not giving us her own extravagant voice, the one she used in Karin and Kyoushirou. And I love Sasaki Nozomi's voice. My favorite seiyuu, however, would come from among Kuwashima Houko, Paku Romi, Tanaka Rie, Kawasumi Ayako and Orikasa Fumiko, with Koshimizu Ami, Yahagi Sayuri and Aaya coming up fast. In homage to your avatar, I'll add that I'm enjoying Nana's work in Darker than Black.

Grv

2007-05-22, 18:23

Can anyone tell me which VA does the preview narration at the end of episode 6? I love that voice and I'm sure I know it, just can't remember who! It sounds like Fumihiko Tachiki but I can't be sure.

kj1980

2007-05-22, 18:49

Can anyone tell me which VA does the preview narration at the end of episode 6? I love that voice and I'm sure I know it, just can't remember who! It sounds like Fumihiko Tachiki but I can't be sure.

All hayaku (non-essential characters and narrations) are done by either Tachiki Fumihiko and/or Kujira. So not only did Tachiki Fumihiko does the narration at the end of Ep. 6, but for others as well.

Manatsu

2007-05-22, 19:53

I would agree with houkoholic's points if not for the fact that this is just one side of Konata's character and one which I think is getting little screentime thanks to the expanded characterizations that the anime has brought along with it. Quite frankly, my feeling with each passing episode is also that Aya's delivery of Konata seems to be slipping more frequently to a outgoing and at times impish personality, but I think that is logical progression relative to how the anime is portraying her to be one who enjoys the times she spends teasing and having fun with her friends and the otaku life that she lives at other times. I suspect Aya is enjoying this impression of Konata far too much though, hence your impression that she is overdoing it, but other than that, I think she has done well.

Vexx

2007-05-23, 01:29

Casual japanese involves a lot of noises to express things... the impish noises are not out of line... but I kind of figure Kona spends a little more time in the "Marvin the Android" kind of monotonic voice --- but that should recede as the series progresses and she adapts more of the mannerisms of her 'new' friends. I like the noises... but I also feel like Kagami's VA is hitting her personality a touch more precisely in any given instant.
"Nani to?"

Fortunately, its rare I break out of immersion during an episode to worry about that. Which means they're doing their job --- otherwise my immersion breakages are usually when they do an obvious riff like the Initial D sequence.

Fascinating points. I was liking those extra little sounds as feeling like a sloppy otaku. I have no real previous image of Konata to go against, but I can see your point, which is probably what the director was getting at, too, when he told her to go slower. I'll listen for the emphasis on the last syllable.

My own opinion is that Aaya is not a "pro" in the way of Horie Yui, say, who is very flexible and in control of everything she does, but whom I sometimes find too professional, too smooth, and a bit -- not mechanical, but something like that. Not that I don't enjoy her work. Aaya is rough in some ways, and can repeat herself (like with that final emphasis, or with the way Layla's voice drops), but is now doing especially interesting things. Including Konata, which is a style of voice I can't remember hearing before. And especially Layla, for me.

I always have to factor in the fact that I have never lived in Japan to soak up the subtleties of how people really talk and to learn Japanese better. I tend to like the extremes. I'm always disappointed to hear Yahagi Sayuri trying to sound more normal and not giving us her own extravagant voice, the one she used in Karin and Kyoushirou. And I love Sasaki Nozomi's voice. My favorite seiyuu, however, would come from among Kuwashima Houko, Paku Romi, Tanaka Rie, Kawasumi Ayako and Orikasa Fumiko, with Koshimizu Ami, Yahagi Sayuri and Aaya coming up fast. In homage to your avatar, I'll add that I'm enjoying Nana's work in Darker than Black.

Wavedash

2007-05-23, 09:08

Vexx

2007-05-23, 13:04

I like the discussion going on here.

I agree that Hirano does seem to slide into impish mode, which she does wonderfully and with that touch that makes it truly humorous, but it could very well be intentional on both her and the directors' parts. Konata seems to be a mostly flat character, defined by her otakuness of singleminded devotion to anime, manga and games. This works fine in 4 koma which you read, laugh, then put away in 10 seconds. To make her more appealing and entertaining in a 20 minute format, I think the staff have chosen to develop other previously unseen qualities in Konata.

Vexx, I also agree that Kagami is more on the money, but she also has an easier and better defined part to play. Tsundere/tsukommi are commonly understood concepts, but there has been no such development along the same archetype for "lazy otaku girl".

I will say they *aren't* pulling Kona's personality out of thin air. This is pretty much the way she acts in the comics and its left up to the reader to decide how its voiced. So Aya's interpretation isn't really off because Kona isn't a *standard* otaku anymore than Kagami is a standard tsundere/tsukommi or Tsukasa is a standard moe-ditz.

So I'm giving them all some pointage for understanding the variations from the "standard archetype" these characters have.

houkoholic

2007-05-23, 14:39

Casual japanese involves a lot of noises to express things... the impish noises are not out of line...

The noises Aya injects are quite unlike the ones that you hear during usual conversations - she is delibrately adding a lot more breathe noises, pauses, throaty sounds etc, it's not really just in Lucky Star but she does that in Haruhi as well, those are not the type of sounds which you hear very much even in anime, let alone in RL. It's a habit of her delivery which makes her acting unique in a way and it worked very well in some cases, but in Lucky Star she does it a lot more than usual and IMO it's way overboard to the point of making the delivery sound awkward. I can understand if they want to make the delivery sounding less smooth, but now it's done so much it has even more of an artificial feel to it.

Risaa

2007-05-23, 14:51

Aah, I understand now. I thought you meant the little mumblings and I couldn't really see why that was a problem at all. :heh:

I have noticed that Kona has a lot of extra breathing sounds, though I didn't notice them at all in Haruhi... Sometimes it *is* a little weird, but sometimes it also seems to fit real well (like the sounds Kona makes when sneaking to put soap behind Miyuki... though she wasn't talking at the same time). In any case, it hasn't bothered me, but I also haven't been looking for it... now that I know Hirano has a habit of doing this, I'll probably end up noticing it more and more... As long as it doesn't become outright distracting, I don't mind.

Vexx

2007-05-23, 15:45

The noises Aya injects are quite unlike the ones that you hear during usual conversations - she is delibrately adding a lot more breathe noises, pauses, throaty sounds etc, it's not really just in Lucky Star but she does that in Haruhi as well, those are not the type of sounds which you hear very much even in anime, let alone in RL. It's a habit of her delivery which makes her acting unique in a way and it worked very well in some cases, but in Lucky Star she does it a lot more than usual and IMO it's way overboard to the point of making the delivery sound awkward. I can understand if they want to make the delivery sounding less smooth, but now it's done so much it has even more of an artificial feel to it.

Yeah, its rather compressed and extreme (but then Kona is a rather compressed and extreme character). .... - but you must stand near different people than I do in public places and have different sorts of relatives? I hear a substantial amount of nonverbal sounds compared with, say, english, spanish, or german. My current japanese instructor jokes that 25% of casual japanese is made up of wordless sounds.

houkoholic

2007-05-24, 02:17

Yeah, its rather compressed and extreme (but then Kona is a rather compressed and extreme character). .... - but you must stand near different people than I do in public places and have different sorts of relatives? I hear a substantial amount of nonverbal sounds compared with, say, english, spanish, or german. My current japanese instructor jokes that 25% of casual japanese is made up of wordless sounds.

I'm not talking about the usual etto ums and ahs grunts, the kurukuru kirakira and all that, I'm perfectly aware of these wordless sounds.

Just say for example, a normal sentence, but written in English for the sake of readership, like this:
I like curry, because I think it's tasty, and I like tonkatsu the best.

If talking about meaningless words and sounds in Japanese, it would sound something like this:
I like curry, (er pause) because I think it's (um pause) tasty. (etto pause) and I like tonkatsu the best (um yeah).

Aya's delivery of a sentence will usually go like this:
I like curry (heavy exhale on last syllabal), because I (throat noise emphasis) think it's tasty (another throat noise on syllabal), (little breath inhale) and I like tonkatsu the best (emphasis on "t" sound).

For characters like Haruhi and Misa who are hyper and talks really fast it works good because you can picture someone always talking so fast and with much force in their speech needing the exchange of breathes etc, and actually giving it a more natural feel. But for someone like Konata where you can listen to every syllabal she speaks, it's very grating for me personally. And I really think she needs to tone it down.

I hope this clears up what I mean. :)

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-24, 03:27

What houkoholic just said is what I thought he meant and what I hear, too. The difference is that I like it. The excess breath and spit-filled mushiness makes a unique and funny character for me. And I think the breathy hesitancy she uses for Layla is very emotionally expressive, even if it isn't totally naturalistic. I didn't like the whole way Misa was presented, myself, so I never got to the point of considering voice qualities.

Like I said, I sometimes think pro seiyuu are too smooth. They can seem like announcers rather than actors. It sometimes seems to me that they are trying to match a standard voice, rather than communicating a character or creating something new. But I even go so far as to like some totally untrained voices, so.... In any case, I can see why someone might think Aaya kind of unsubtle and extreme, particularly here. But I like it.

Vexx

2007-05-24, 04:17

@houkoholic: Ah...... I see :)

There's probably some wonderful linguistics symbology that describes that perfectly...... (just spun through a few Kona lines of dialog... yeah, she could tone it down....) Just noticed she was even doing the straw slurp noise at the fast food joint, but that I'll label 'attention-to-detail'.

Wavedash

2007-05-24, 22:46

Thanks for the clarification Vexx, was not aware that happened in the comic.

I think the strange speaking mannerisms actually work here for Konata. Her mush-filled mouth is distinctive and belongs to a socially stunted nerd. To go along with what Kaoru was saying, sometimes pro seiyuu start being too good at it...like Hocchan and her moe. With her television appearance on Hey x3 lately and her Suzu in Airantou, she sounds like she's too conscious of the moe appeal and dials it in with intent. But as Shingo of Heisei Demo once noted, moe is best when you can believe it comes from someone utterly ignorant of her own appeal and after a decade of doing it, Hocchan doesn't give quite that anymore.

Long story short, Hirano is approaching it as a relative neophyte, which gives it some moe credibility (and I think she is supposed to be very moe), and the mannerisms work in that Konata sounds twisted.

robertness

2007-05-24, 23:01

Konata's odd breaths, grunts, and mushy speech remind me of the poor speech habits of many a male geek. I think when they come from a cute girl, it emphasizes her unique character.

Kyuusai

2007-05-25, 00:21

Konata's odd breaths, grunts, and mushy speech remind me of the poor speech habits of many a male geek. I think when they come from a cute girl, it emphasizes her unique character.

(This post is kind of rambling. That'll teach me to post this late.)

I was thinking the same thing, but there was something else I notice.

Konata intentionally tries to make her own speech delivery more interesting, not just through her choice of mangling words but through her extra sounds and intonation. She does it a lot less when she's alone, though. Just like her desire to annoy Tsukasa, she takes her daily interactions as an opportunity to perform for her own amusement (probably because she'd find human interaction boring otherwise).

I'm much the same, although it manifests in a different way. I just learned to tone it down around "normal people". :p

Without seeing her speech patterns from the manga, I'm not sure how much of this character trait is unique to the anime, but as "performance-inclined" as Konata is, I get the feeling it's not just Hirano trying to sound unique for the role, but genuinely trying to portray the character. After watching different interviews with her at different times, I get the feeling that Hirano is much like this herself, though (her widely-varying "real voice" is a good indicator of that). She says that pretty much her first shot at the voice after reading the manga is what they used (aside from frequently having to make it sound more lethargic), so she probably picked up the idea that Konata might sound that way from the manga itself.

Vexx

2007-05-25, 01:05

It is fairly difficult to translate what Kona is saying in the manga at times because she intentionally mangles her words and grammar so much. Given what I've been able to absorb from the manga -- Aya's doing a fair job. This *is* one of the reasons I prefer japanese seiyuu's to most english VAs .. they actually take the time to research their characters. I rarely get that sense from the english dubs.

If I were doing "read aloud story time" with the comic, I'd probably be coming up with much the same wild variation in tone (depressed monotonic, almost manic, doing 'voices', etc)

houkoholic

2007-05-25, 02:25

I think the strange speaking mannerisms actually work here for Konata. Her mush-filled mouth is distinctive and belongs to a socially stunted nerd. To go along with what Kaoru was saying, sometimes pro seiyuu start being too good at it...like Hocchan and her moe. With her television appearance on Hey x3 lately and her Suzu in Airantou, she sounds like she's too conscious of the moe appeal and dials it in with intent.

That's not it. The aim of Heyx3 and the tsukkomi combo host on it is to make fun of the guests. The trend in Japan right now is "hey look at how weird these otakus are!", so they snipped a 30minute long interview and took the worst possible 5 minutes to televise.

Like Mizuki Nana's first appearance on Heyx3, Hocchan got caught out. Both Nana-chan and Hocchan were acting the way that they would in front of their fans thus making them perfect make fun of material in the eyes of normal people, Aya (or her management) is the one that's playing smooth here where they got her to switch into a different mode to play the innocent cutie.

There's an article I've wrote in my blog comparing the first Nana-chan appearance with the Aya appearance, you can read it here. (http://www.seiyuu3.net/2006/07/06/168/)

Long story short, Hirano is approaching it as a relative neophyte, which gives it some moe credibility (and I think she is supposed to be very moe), and the mannerisms work in that Konata sounds twisted.

I'd argue otherwise, Aya is the one that's trying to play neophyte, which is why I say her delivery is artificial in Lucky Star. She's a pro already with more than 10 years of entertainment experience (she started acting at the age of 9, her debute seiyuu role was more than 5 years ago) and now she's trying really hard, too hard in fact, to undo/hide those experience and that's why I'm calling it artificial.

A pro in any field delibrately trying to act amateur is very very hard, and the result is usually awkward. That's the feeling I get with Aya in Lucky Star.

Wavedash

2007-05-25, 11:33

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-25, 11:44

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-25, 11:51

I actually agree with houkoholic that Aaya isn't inexperienced. I think the roughness of her delivery is just her style. I was contrasting it with the smooth "pro" delivery of a Hocchan, but I didn't mean she wasn't a pro. However, what Wavedash says in his most recent post is also true: she is only now really devoting herself to her profession.

I think it's a bit much to count her experience back to the age of nine, when she was put into a kids' drama troupe, but she has been doing at least one anime a year since she was 14. And there are lots of clips around from her brief stint as part of the idol unit Springs. However, I think she has really been learning a lot over the past year. But I would be really disappointed if she homogenized her delivery so as to make it more standard and acceptable. I hear some of that from Yahagi Sayuri and Saitou Chiwa recently and it seems a shame to me to not hear their very individual voices.

I don't know how much Aaya fakes things, but my sense is that she is a very tense and nervous person and never quite sure of herself. She may not be an amateur, but I think she's still "young" psychologically. I feel certain there is a "stage mother" in the background somewhere, although she never talks about her family. She seems physically and mentally vulnerable, although I don't know how much of that might be an act. I don't think much of it is, but I don't know. The collapse last November was real, and her weeping is clearly real, when you see or hear it. I thought it was telling when she said that she just enjoyed all her voice-acting when she was younger, but since Haruhi she feels more responsibility and it's more nerve-wracking.

When she came on stage for the NHK interview last month, she did the super-high-voice-genki thing. It took about 20 minutes for her to settle into a much lower voice and a more serious presentation. I think her normal voice is a mid-range one -- somewhere between super-genki and Layla -- but once again it's hard to be sure.

houkoholic's blog entry was great. I'm now going to look for the Nana and Hocchan Hey3 interviews. I'm not sure how Aaya's people could have rigged the audience to get more girls in it, but it was a great inspiration if they did. As for her true character, I thought it showed a bit on one interview: when guest and hosts drew something, and she was clearly frustrated and embarrassed (but trying to hide it) that her drawing was not as well done as the other woman's.

Now, on a less serious note, here are three photos from Aaya's blog over the past few days: two wearing her Death Note outfit (she says she wants to use it for a live event sometime), and one in twintails (she said it was the first time she had ever succeeded in doing them herself). She was grabbing a bite to eat as she rushed from one meeting location to another, when the location was changed. She says the past nine months working on Death Note have been tremendously enjoyable.

http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/6427/8881sr4.th.jpg (http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/6427/8881sr4.jpg) http://img166.imageshack.us/img166/2909/8891vs1.th.jpg (http://img166.imageshack.us/img166/2909/8891vs1.jpg) http://img116.imageshack.us/img116/7504/8861nv7.th.jpg (http://img116.imageshack.us/img116/7504/8861nv7.jpg)

Vexx

2007-05-25, 12:51

Since some people have hinted that I should try saying something more positive for a change....I will:

This is about the Seiyuu they've chosen for Konata's father, his name is Hirokazu Hiramitsu. I'm probably one of if not the only people here familiar with who he is and his only major past role in Daba Myroad from Heavy Metal L-Gaim. Daba Myroad was a character kind of like Luke Skywalker (They both even have Light Sabers), who suffered immense hardship, but instead of angsting about it or letting it control him or defeat him, he turned his sorrow into strength almost instantly. Through this he was able to conquer not only his own weaknesses, but win over the respect and loyalty of other's in his rebellion against an emperor who used the power of Bio-Relation to remain immortal and invincible (Daba's power to relate to other lifeforms suffering through empathy was more than likely the true Bio-Relation and that is how Poseidal the emperor fell). This is the kind of character Hirokazu Hiramitsu portrayed and I think this is a perfect fit for Konata's father who despite losing his spouse, has turned his loss into the strength to give extra love to his daughter, and she seem's to have learned this too as she has not let her mother's death get to her as we have seen.

So extremely good casting choice, kudos.

Here is also what he might sound like (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8Jj3MtAwX0) once he get's to speak, but it has been almost 25 years (He's the guy with the black hair and red scarf, ignore the Fairy).

Kona's dad is one of the more interesting tier two characters in Lucky*Star. There's a very rough resemblance in description to Yotsuba's dad in Yotsubato (he works out of the house, writing and translating, tends to loaf about in the least clothing possible -- though Kona-dad prefers a raggy yukata whereas Yotsuba-dad loves boxers and t-shirt). Kona-dad is quirky and basically Kona picked up many of her hobbies and activities from him. I'd call the voicing pretty good casting if Hiramitsu sticks with his usual voice.

He adores loli .... his wife (Kona's mother) was just as petite as Kona (mom looked much younger than her age). As a result, he's protective of Kona and she sort of walks on water where he's concerned. His 'faults' .... the loli - he's fascinated by women Kona's age and likes to hug her friends anytime the opportunity arises. He has a bad tendency of being unaware and leaving the water closet door open (causing occasional trauma for visitors). Kona is often accusing him of harboring much worse thoughts than he does.

What he doesn't know is that mom's spirit checks up on him occasionally :)

We'll see how much of that sort of thing is adapted to the screen.

Hopefully, they'll give us some good screenshots of him and Kona-mom during a photo-album browsing. I suppose this will be the real test of "where are the male characters" in this sort of show... he does have a significant presence in the manga.

@Kaoru: what is Aya eating in that last picture? The wrap looks like a manju pancake thing but I can't figure out what the filling is.

houkoholic

2007-05-25, 12:56

While your perspective on Hey x3 is appreciated, it still doesn't really address what I was saying. Let me clarify my previous post. No matter what the intention of the management of Hey x3 is, they still had a 30 year old woman come on and have her do cutesy, 17 year old things without a hint of embarassment but rather a sense of "been there, done that".

That's because it's a seiyuu's job to be like that. And as Hocchan has said, for a seiyuu they can be loose with their age, and that's because they, for the most part for work, have to act like they're younger than they are, but most of them just prefers to stay mentally young and act young since you have to be like that to be involved in a job like being a seiyuu, in fact it's probably not even that different to being a real actor when they have to suddenly act dumb and not fluster. Even Inoue Kikuko, who's 43 and has a 7 year old kid acts all moe moe as she was the cult leader of the "I'm 17 years old" crowd. This of course makes it perfect foddle for the Heyx3 people to make fun of such that they specifically requested her do that "act" live, as this act in the eyes of normal people it makes them seem catering to a strange crowd, and it was Heyx3's sole intention to bring out this part of the job of these seiyuu as otaku sensationalism is what sells on TV right now. You feel Hocchan was catering because they've done their job in making you feel that way.

If you ever get a chance, check out Nana-chan's second appearance on Heyx3, in that one they stopped making these "otaku traps" for Nana-chan and it turns out to be a very normal interview, an interview where Nana-chan even make a few comebacks on the hosts.

she hasn't worked on it full time until recently because of education.

She hasn't worked on as a fulltime seiyuu because she's been doing an idol group call Springs for the last few years. If you want catering to moe, Aya definitely knows it better because she's been a professional idol, which is more than you can say for even the most famous idol seiyuu.

I don't know how much Aaya fakes things, but my sense is that she is a very tense and nervous person and never quite sure of herself. She may not be an amateur, but I think she's still "young" psychologically. I feel certain there is a "stage mother" in the background somewhere, although she never talks about her family. She seems physically and mentally vulnerable, although I don't know how much of that might be an act. I don't think much of it is, but I don't know.

I have a feeling that part of it is because her management is requesting her to act in this way (actually the moe way that Wavedash is talking about) against her own will. If you look at the incident of how she dyed her hair against the order of her management, the way she talks on radio etc, she's quite a spunky girl despite her petit figure. Heck I would almost call her a Shibuya-kei - those teenage girls who are into the latest fashions, gossips and being cool - and the problem is most otakus despise Shibuya-kei, and her management knows it, thus they're forcefully regulating how she behaves so that she would not damage the "dreams" of her fanbase.

Frankly I would rather have her act more to her own image, but sadly that's not how the idol industry works.

The collapse last November was real, her weeping is clearly real

Her collapsing is simply her being way over-worked. It happens when you have to juggle 6 regular roles with full time university, and she reportedly only survived on 3 hours sleep per day. Not even the healthiest teens can live, nay, survive on being worked like that.

As for the weeping, I hate to stereotype but Japanese people weep a lot. Most of it has to do with them not seeing weeping as a sign of weakness but instead they like the geniue display of emotion. I've seen many seiyuu cry, male and female, and that's not an overstatement.

I'm not sure how Aaya's people could have rigged the audience to get more girls in it, but it was a great inspiration if they did.

Oh it's quite easy since I went through the application process. :)
To apply for the audience you send in an email to Lantis (not Heyx3) and in it you have to specify your sex and age, they would also double check on your identity on the day of entry because they specifically said you must bring a photo ID to confirm that you're said person if you won the lottary. A 2ch poster also said on the day the producer delibrately moved all the girls to the front seats as well. It's all plan, a little too well planned in fact. ;)

Also don't forget that Heyx3 is a mainstream music show, the audience aren't necessarily drawn from the Aya lottary as some attendents are fans of other musicians.

FWIW, neither the Nana nor the Hocchan one had these requirements, so draw your own conclusions.

Finally, while I may sound like I'm ranting against Aya, I must say that I do in fact like her a lot, I just don't like how her management is handling her in this specific way which is pushing a certain very well crafted image of her which I don't know is the real her or not. It feels like they are handling her like a normal celebrity and frankly if I want normal celebrity I wouldn't be looking for one in the seiyuu circle.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-25, 13:07

Kona's dad is one of the more interesting tier two characters in Lucky*Star. There's a very rough resemblance in description to Yotsuba's dad in Yotsubato (he works out of the house, writing and translating, tends to loaf about in the least clothing possible -- though Kona-dad prefers a raggy yukata whereas Yotsuba-dad loves boxers and t-shirt). Kona-dad is quirky and basically Kona picked up many of her hobbies and activities from him. I'd call the voicing pretty good casting if Hiramitsu sticks with his usual voice.

He adores loli .... his wife (Kona's mother) was just as petite as Kona (mom looked much younger than her age). As a result, he's protective of Kona and she sort of walks on water where he's concerned. His 'faults' .... the loli - he's fascinated by women Kona's age and likes to hug her friends anytime the opportunity arises. He has a bad tendency of being unaware and leaving the water closet door open (causing occasional trauma for visitors). Kona is often accusing him of harboring much worse thoughts than he does.

What he doesn't know is that mom's spirit checks up on him occasionally :)

We'll see how much of that sort of thing is adapted to the screen.

Hopefully, they'll give us some good screenshots of him and Kona-mom during a photo-album browsing. I suppose this will be the real test of "where are the male characters" in this sort of show... he does have a significant presence in the manga.

@Kaoru: what is Aya eating in that last picture? The wrap looks like a manju pancake thing but I can't figure out what the filling is.

Okay it will be a huge loss if his part isn't given justice as from what you've described he is potentially one of the funniest characters in the series whose only handicap is that he is a man. The fact that he has finally appeared on screen leads me to believe that we should be seeing him talk within the next couple of episodes. Can't wait as I am kind of getting bored of the same 4 girls (Yui hasn't done much, let's face it) and you can only go so far with the same old cast members. I say give Daba......er pops a chance.

Vexx

2007-05-25, 13:37

I have a feeling that part of it is because her management is requesting her to act in this way (actually the moe way that Wavedash is talking about) against her own will. If you look at the incident of how she dyed her hair against the order of her management, the way she talks on radio etc, she's quite a spunky girl despite her petit figure. Heck I would almost call her a Shibuya-kei - those teenage girls who are into the latest fashions, gossips and being cool - and the problem is most otakus despise Shibuya-kei, and her management knows it, thus they're forcefully regulating how she behaves so that she would not damage the "dreams" of her fanbase.

Frankly I would rather have her act more to her own image, but sadly that's not how the idol industry works.

I'd like to take the "dreams of her fanbase" and punt-kick them so we could get some variety in the gene pool there... I suspect their "focus group" studies make the same fatal errors that such things do everywhere --- they end up playing it toooooo safe and suck the life of the situation.
Funny that many otaku despise that which they themselves are prone to in their own way :) :)

I rather like the variants like Aya (I get the impression that Asakawa Yuu also thumbed her nose at convention at times -- particularly in her music)

Houkoholic ... a lot of your posts seem to point to some of the more acidic spears from Megatokyo being on target in some respects.

((lets see... 1) a land of heartstoppingly cute women who want to be all kinds of different things 2) a land of guys who seem stuck on one stereotype alone for the "perfect" mate 3) plummeting marriage and birth rates 4) QED: a land of opportunity for any guy with a clue about what women want :) :) --- the preceding was only partly in jest))

Wavedash

2007-05-25, 23:55

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-26, 00:02

As usual, houkoholic's posts are fascinating and largely accurate, as far as my knowledge goes. I see constant tension between Aaya as she is and Aaya's old public image, which 2channel posters keep lamenting the loss of (the black hair in particular). But I don't see Aaya being sold as moe-kitten any more, at least on her blog or in this year's interviews. For me, spunky professional keeps coming through, even somewhat in the Voicha video, where she is at her most moe.

I'll certainly be more skeptical of the vulnerability, but it seems to be real to me. I think what has happened since December is that she dropped out of college and cut back on public appearances and number of concurrent roles, so as to avoid falling over again. But she's still working hard, making a final run at stardom before going back to school full-time.

I think that the agency was in the past pushing her as a moe-kitten, but that they have now given her a female manager who is helping her aim more for sexy than moe, as she herself would prefer. On the other hand, I think she is not a real rocker, more a middle-class wannabe. But that may be good enough in Japan. I'm not trying to be snide, just asking the question, really. She certainly would prefer to be a star as an idol or an actress, since those are more respected and more remunerated, but she probably realizes that her talent is as a seiyuu, and she is working to become famous for her verbal skill and to improve her voice-acting all round.

As for what otaku want, that's a problem. But Aaya may be solving the problem in her own way, by creating the image of a very pretty nice-girl rocker professional seiyuu with special talent. Her style and talent are not of the kind otaku normally like, but she seems to be creating her own fanbase, at least so far. The "Hirano should just die" posts on 2channel seem further apart these days. But maybe that's just because there are more posts about how cute she is and what people would like to do with her, lol.

There is a list of largely fake or out-of-context quotes about her going around, to make it look like she despises otaku and other seiyuu. They are spurious, and I don't hear her really doing anything but appreciate her otaku fans, but I thought it was pretty telling that when they asked her in the NHK interview what kind of guy she liked, she said: "One who looks good in a suit." Maybe that was mainly for the consumption of NHK and its general audience, but I get the feeling it might be true.

I should add that I am not putting down any other seiyuu or even making comparisons. I like Hocchan's work, for example. But I enjoy Aaya's verbal style more, and she is the first seiyuu whose jump from mid-rank to apparent stardom (maybe temporary, we'll see) I have been able to observe fairly closely, so I find her fascinating. I guess Koshimizu Ami is doing it now, too, but no-one seems to hate her the way some do Aaya, so it's less interesting. I know Yahagi Sayuri is not going to be any kind of idol, and will have to do it on the strength of her ability alone.

EDIT: As for sleeping three hours, she apparently said on a Galaxy Angel radio show not that long ago that she normally slept from 4am to 7am. The others said they got between 4 and 6 hours' sleep. The timing of her posts to her blog suggests 4am is true. Maybe that's just her metabolism. If she really is studying late and still going to school...kowaii!

@Vexx: I don't know what's in the wrap/bun. As I understood it, a post on 2channel said it made her look like she was from Nagoya, so maybe it's a Nagoya specialty of some kind. It looks like a small American-style pancake with some kind of cream in it, but I don't know, and she didn't say.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-26, 00:23

houkoholic, please give me some credit for having at least half a brain. What I described was not astonishment at seeing her cater to otaku, but rather my own reaction at how easily she slipped into it and the impression it made on me of being old hat for her. Even if it's her job to do that, the fact remains that the thought crossed my mind that it's very calculated on her part.

For those who don't know my opinions well, I am not a big Aya fan. In fact, I think she's one of the biggest sensations to be nearly shoved down our collective throats lately. While she has potential to develop into a good seiyuu, I don't see her having many skills right now.

You have to do it if you want to be successful I think. I admit it is somewhat annoying to have anything seem forced on you (See my talk about Shrek, Borat and Spiderman). Once the whole Otaku Goddess thing winds down I think we'll be able to see the real Aya Hirano as she finds her place in the industry. I've often talked about the industry using her as a commodity, but I mean it's up to her what she wants to be.

I kind of wanted to discuss some of the other Seiyuu in the series as well.

I personally like Aya Endo as Miyuki. The deeper voiced female character is something you don't see nearly often enough and she does a great job of conveying a character who is wise beyond her years. Plus she's the only character whose voice has never grated on me once (Even her out of character Ending bit in the one episode was nice). So yeah a nice calm voice, no outbursts, no manic moments and just a straight up delivery perfect for the character.

Emiri Katou the person looks kind of cute and she does an alright job. There are other things I think she could probably do with Kagami, but the simple approach is never a bad one either.

Kaori Fukuhara is alright too I guess. Again a simple approach to the character, do the cute moe stuff and get out of the studio.

Hiromi Konno, you can blame it on the character of Akira, but I find her to be a bit annoying in both modes. One you have her screaming her head off and the other is just kind of grating. Oh well :(.

Minoru Shiraishi is pretty good. Too bad he doesn't get to talk half the time because Akira starts blabbing. I find him to be the funnier part of the duo in the Lucky Channel bit, but you know he never really gets to talk much so his part is extremely limited even within the confines of his potential 3 or so minute bit.

So out of everybody I think I like Aya Endo's Miyuki the best. She does everything she needs to do and even nails the panicky moments without overselling it.

Well everybody can go back to discussing Aya Hirano now I guess. Just wanted to contribute to the conversation a bit regarding the rest of the cast. :upset:

Vexx

2007-05-26, 02:45

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-26, 03:36

Actually, I think my *favorite* voicing is that of Nanako-sensei (Konomi Maeda) and the loud raunchy accent she bludgeons the class with so faux-badly. Of course, I'm also watching the series Lovely Complex with its dialectical hilarity.

Oh she is fun too. I had forgotten her, but you covered pretty much what I would have imagined myself saying.

Shiroth

2007-05-26, 05:45

Actually, I think my *favorite* voicing is that of Nanako-sensei (Konomi Maeda) and the loud raunchy accent she bludgeons the class with so faux-badly. Of course, I'm also watching the series Lovely Complex with its dialectical hilarity.
Yeah, it helps being able to accept the two, when watching the two.

We can't be leaving out Yui, who's played by Konomi Maeda. Just hearing her voice alone makes me have a huge smile.

Pellissier

2007-05-26, 06:36

Actually, I think my *favorite* voicing is that of Nanako-sensei (Konomi Maeda) and the loud raunchy accent she bludgeons the class with so faux-badly. Of course, I'm also watching the series Lovely Complex with its dialectical hilarity.
Nice catch. I also found myself when I watch Lovely Complex saying: "where is Kuroi-sensei?". I mean, that should be her natural habitat :)
At the beginning I felt quite uneasy with that accent (both in LoveCom and LS), but it quickly grew on me and it's now something I wouldn't renounce.

My favourite seiyuu perfomance in Lucky Star is that of Katou Emiri (Kagami). I already explained in the favourite main character poll how my liking for Kagami is due to her voice on a consistent percentage ratio. I don't know, she might not be putting out the most difficult of the interpretations, but whenever she's called to show a different side of her character, she never fails once. And I find it amusing that a simple "nanda to?" can crack me up that much.

I like the other voices too, but not as much as Katou Emiri. I didn't know she voiced the young Koushi-dono in Sumomo^6 , I must pay attention the next time I'll watch it. (though if my memory serves me right, there's not much to listen actually).

By the way, I can see only one possible opponent for her on the incoming cast. That's why I'm looking forward for the anime to introduce Patricia Martin, whose seiyuu is none other than the moe goodess Sasaki Nozomi, aka my beloved Nana-chan in Bokura ga Ita :)

Shiroth

2007-05-26, 07:42

That's why I'm looking forward for the anime to introduce Patricia Martin, whose seiyuu is none other than the moe goodess Sasaki Nozomi, aka my beloved Nana-chan in Bokura ga Ita :)
It shall be awesome to hear her again, though this time in a complete different role --- like Yazaki Hiroshi (Yano) in Heroic Age. He plays one awesome moe Age. <3

houkoholic

2007-05-26, 10:57

Houkoholic ... a lot of your posts seem to point to some of the more acidic spears from Megatokyo being on target in some respects.

Well Japan is hardly roses all around. And once you start working in the industry you learn more and more about these things.

houkoholic, please give me some credit for having at least half a brain. What I described was not astonishment at seeing her cater to otaku, but rather my own reaction at how easily she slipped into it and the impression it made on me of being old hat for her. Even if it's her job to do that, the fact remains that the thought crossed my mind that it's very calculated on her part.

Why would that even be a surprise would be my question. As I've said, it's her job for acting like that whenever she has to face her fans, she's done it thousands of times. It's no different to when an actor having to put on a special act, or a comedian asked to do his most famous impersonation. There's also no calculating on her part because as I've stressed, she was merely responding to the request of the host to act out that very act. What else do you think she will do? Decline the request or make a big fuss about not wanting to do it? She was being professional for doing an act at the request of the host even though it was clearly a trap, that is not the same as being calculated.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-26, 11:43

...[Hirano Aya] hasn't worked on as a fulltime seiyuu because she's been doing an idol group call Springs for the last few years. If you want catering to moe, Aya definitely knows it better because she's been a professional idol, which is more than you can say for even the most famous idol seiyuu....While it's true that she has been in an actual idol group ("Springs (http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/Springs)"), I don't think it's true to say she did it for "the last few" years. All of their singles and their one album appear to have been released in 2003. I think it's more accurate to say that she was briefly in an unsuccessful idol group. By the way, people can see some of their performances and interviews on YouTube (http://youtube.com/results?search_query=springs+%E5%B9%B3%E9%87%8E%E7 %B6%BE&search=Search). Aaya wasn't the lead singer, as far as I can tell from videos. But she had already done several TV commercials and some anime before she was in the group.

As for the rest of the cast, they all seem to do a good job to me, but the only one who has made me sit up and take notice is Fukuhara Kaori ("Kaorin") as Tsukasa in the last 2-3 episodes. Moe may be common, but moe of that intensity and interest is not. I actually find Katou Emiri's delivery as Kagami kind of rushed or awkward, so that I don't get the force of her lines. But that may just be me, since so many other people seem to like her delivery. Tsundere is one of my least favorite types.

Yui's VA, Nishihara Saori, is almost 40, and this is her first credited anime role. She has been doing commercials and narration before. More info about the seiyuus here (http://hashihime.atspace.com/etc/luckystar/charseiyuus.html). And of course, Sasaki Nozomi is who I'm waiting for, too. I have nothing bad to say about Chihara Minori, and I like her singing, but her role as Yuki was so limited that it didn't prove much, and I haven't seen her previous work.

"Japan is hardly roses all around" (houkoholic) seems like a bit of an understatement to me. The Japanese news seems full of corrupt commercial and political machinations of various kinds. I get the sense -- perhaps unjustified -- that certain worlds in Japan are really the "war of all against all." My sense is that Japanese courtesy hides intense and generalized interpersonal competition. Is this true?

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-26, 12:07

"Japan is hardly roses all around" (houkoholic) seems like a bit of an understatement to me. The Japanese news seems full of corrupt commercial and political machinations of various kinds. I get the sense -- perhaps unjustified -- that certain worlds in Japan are really the "war of all against all." My sense is that Japanese courtesy hides intense and generalized interpersonal competition. Is that true?

Well I've always had the impression that Japanese politicians have huge egos and wish to satisfy them in whatever way they find necessary. Shinzo Abe for one is said to be extemely nationalistic and he has even been accused of attempting to censor the NHK to avoid any unflattering portrayals of Japan. This can be read about here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinzo_Abe#Response_to_mass_media). Also you would imagine that Japan would have a corruption index of the lowest caliber being a developed nation, but it is only ranked 21 (http://ww1.transparency.org/cpi/2005/cpi2005.sources.en.html) of the least corrupt countries making it one of the lowest ranked nations of any developed country.

Also you saw what happened with the Yukana incident in the Zeta Gundam movies right. After it become clear that neither would budge it just disintegrated into mudslinging and well I'm glad Yukana came back from it, but what the heck girls.

One last thing, if you are Korean and in Japan, I've heard you are treated extremely poorly, though Romi Paku has managed against all odds to transcend this. She is of Zainichi Korean descent, which you can read up on here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zainichi_Korean#Integration_into_Japanese_society) . Although she was born in Japan I doubt she had an easy time growing up.

About Chihara Minori, I have seen other voice work of hers and I have to say I think that her role as Yuki wasn't limited, but that that was about all she can do. It's no surprise that she has seemingly been cast in this type of role again. She just doesn't seem to have any drive or passion in her roles, whether she's doing a quiet character like Yuki or a cutesy character like Aya Natusme or Toua in the upcoming Dragonaut the Resonance. She's just kind of boring really and as such I'm not expecting much from her and I don't think Kyoto Animation is either judging by the limited role they've given her. She'll probably do an ending song and that is why she's here, because she can do that quite well. Otherwise I can think of at least three people including Misato Fukuen, Omi Minami and Naoko Watanabe who would fit the bill far better.

Vexx

2007-05-26, 15:31

Konata-chan

2007-05-26, 15:33

It looks like Aya Hirano (along with Yuko Goto and Minori Chihara) will be at AX as guests of honor. I can't believe I'm going just because of Aya Hirano. She does an awesome job voicing Konata, and it is because of Konata and not Haruhi that I like her.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-26, 21:38

Not to derail... but any study of Japan that doesn't include the unpleasant aspects is just drowning by roses. All societies have their "backdoors" and "alleyways" :) Abe is the nicely painted cover for a nasty clique of ultra-nationalists and a few corporate/clan interests. Much like Bush was painted up to distract that he only actually pays homage to a select inner circle of modern robber barons and you're deceived if you think there's any actual conservative or religious philosophy to it.

The courtesy does put nice icing over corruption (the eyewinks tween yakuza and police, for example), price fixing, clan domination (often concealed by name differences: e.g. the average consumer has no idea that KFC and Taco Bell are the same company -- no real competition).

<shrug> one can understand all those flaws and still love the country and the people. Japan is just historically fascinating for a lot of reasons.

After all, everyone likes the Canadians and they're full of problems under the radar :) :) :) (damned ninja assault moose :) ).

Don't forget that the courtroom is set up to deal Texas Justice. Basically the odds of you winning a lawsuit or criminal case are about the same as the roll of a dice during a game of craps. Sometimes you get Snake Eyes and some judge with an agenda or hidden bias (Konami Entertainment Japan v. Ichiro Komami) comes in and deals a verdict with judicial reasoning that will make your head spin (Shiori Fujisaki the Tokimeki Memorial character won a punitive damage lawsuit because her[this is a fictional character mind you] "Pure Image" was damaged by her being featured in an H-Doujin that Komami made).

Oh and we don't have a Ninja Assault Moose that I know of, but apparently we have some uber strike force team that was once actually spotted in Montreal by accident with a helicopter landing on a rooftop in the dead of the night and a dead body being lifted into it only a minute later. And then they were gone. Apparently they are something akin to MI6 and answer only to the Prime Minister. Rumours only though.

houkoholic

2007-05-27, 03:25

While it's true that she has been in an actual idol group ("Springs (http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/Springs)"), I don't think it's true to say she did it for "the last few" years. All of their singles and their one album appear to have been released in 2003. I think it's more accurate to say that she was briefly in an unsuccessful idol group. By the way, people can see some of their performances and interviews on YouTube (http://youtube.com/results?search_query=springs+%E5%B9%B3%E9%87%8E%E7 %B6%BE&search=Search). Aaya wasn't the lead singer, as far as I can tell from videos. But she had already done several TV commercials and some anime before she was in the group.

The point being that she's been on more TVs than even the most idolised seiyuu can claim, which means that she has way more experience in handling these situations and protarying a certain image to maximise her appeal. Despite being in a rather minor idol group, it is still a teenage girl idol group aiming for the general population, which is unarguably selling out their teenage moe at millions of pervy Japanese men (what else CAN they do besides that?), and that makes her experience in "calculated moe" leagues higher than the majority of the seiyuu. Thus that's the reason that I found saying that Hocchan is more calculated in her moe than Aya is a totally laughable claim.

I have nothing bad to say about Chihara Minori, and I like her singing, but her role as Yuki was so limited that it didn't prove much, and I haven't seen her previous work.

I like Minorin more for her singing, though I think she has the potential to be better as a seiyuu. Normally she has a pretty hyper and exaggerated personality, which makes her getting the role of Yuki a bit of a surprise actually. I predict that when Kadokawa gets their lazy arse (yes, contrary to popular believe, it's got nothing to do with Kyoani as Kadokawa is the one calling the shots as they spearhead the project, and currently they are very happy in just milking the cashcow without the need to actually do any *new* work, plus they now have another cash cow that is Lucky Star to milk) around to do the rumored 2nd season of Haruhi based on the "Disappearance" novel will we really see what Minorin is capable of.

"Japan is hardly roses all around" (houkoholic) seems like a bit of an understatement to me. The Japanese news seems full of corrupt commercial and political machinations of various kinds. I get the sense -- perhaps unjustified -- that certain worlds in Japan are really the "war of all against all." My sense is that Japanese courtesy hides intense and generalized interpersonal competition. Is this true?

Competition is not really the right word I would use. The courtesy Japanese displays, especially in a business situation, is really a mean for them to help each other out to avoid direct responsibility as then everyone's hands becomes dirty and everyone shares the same blame if things goes wrong. The problem with Japanese culture in general is that it is an extremely reactive society due to this mentaility. It's no exaggeration that they will not do anything until shit hits the fan and they can no longer cover it up.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-27, 03:55

Competition is not really the right word I would use. The courtesy Japanese displays, especially in a business situation, is really a mean for them to help each other out to avoid direct responsibility as then everyone's hands becomes dirty and everyone shares the same blame if things goes wrong. The problem with Japanese culture in general is that it is an extremely reactive society due to this mentaility. It's no exaggeration that they will not do anything until shit hits the fan and they can no longer cover it up.

Like those wacky cults out in the countryside. I remember reading a newspaper article a while back about some cult that put tin foil on their vehicles to protect them from brainwashing waves sent by communists (There words, not mine). Apparently they also decide the world was going to end in 2003 when I read the article when the Earth was struck by an unseen meteor. Anyway the article went on to ponder why Japan just allows these cults to exist without trying to do something about them, lest another case like the Aum Shinrikyo subway attack happen. It's a good question that unfortunately has no good answer.

Unfortunately, like I've said though, I see nothing really remarkable in Chihara Minori as a Seiyuu. I'm surprised to hear she is an extroverted person as get anything but that impression from her roles in anime seeming like cold reads. This comes from hearing he in Haruhi, Tenjho Tenge, Dragonaut (Trailer). The exception was Ikkitousen where I just found her voice raspy and unpleasant.

Minami isn't likely to do anything to change this impression either, here's what Wikipedia has to say about her:

Minami is a very quiet girl who does not show much emotion, hence her being often mistaken for being cool, but she is very kind at heart. She comes from a wealthy family, and her home is in the same neighborhood as Takara. She owns a very large white dog and has a parasol in her yard. Minami was admitted to Ryōō Gakuen High School along with Yutaka who she met during the admissions exam and is also in her class; Minami is the class health officer. Afterwards, she helped Yutaka go to the nurse's office when she became sick. Once there, she gave Yutaka her handkerchief. Minami has short mint-green hair and her eyes are blue and are slightly slanted upward. She is very slender, though she is worried about her small chest size. She gets along with Miyuki since they have similar tastes and are from the same neighborhood. Also, Minami likes to read books and play the piano.

So great, we basically have a slightly more extroverted and active Yuki Nagato character. Counting the similarites there's the quitetness, lack of emotion, the book reading, the small build, the hidden compassion. I think it's kind of obvious why Chihara Minori is playing this role, it starts with it being the only thing she seems fit for and it further serves to remind one of the extremely popular Yuki Nagato. In fact I would think comparison between the two characters is far more justified than comparison between Miyuki and Mikuru Try as you might they are making it really hard not to compare a lot of the aspects of Lucky Star to those of Haruhi. Let's wait and see how it goes down. Should be interesting I hope.

P.S: Japan needs to work on its nicknames. Minorin, Gotozou (There's actually a story behind this one so it's actually kind of creative), Aaya, Hikki. They're just kind of variations on their names with an extra vowel or consant tacked on. You might as well just refer to them by their given name in that case. Though why not something that conveys something about them as a person. I'm not a native Japanese speaker so I can't really make any recommendations, but people should know what I mean. The Duke, The Boss, King of Pop, Queen of Soul, The Red Comet, The Crimson Lighting, The Lighting Count, those are some examples of nicknames that are based on recognition of a persons achievements. It doesn't have to be achievement, but whatever, just use your imagination. Think of the possibilities. Ootakkami for Aya Hirano, there's an example combining the prominence of the Haruhi role in her career and making it a mock title of sorts for fun in regards to her popularity among Otaku (think like Otakon from Metal Gear Sold).

Kaoru Chujo

2007-05-27, 13:04

The point being that she's been on more TVs than even the most idolised seiyuu can claim, which means that she has way more experience in handling these situations and portraying a certain image to maximise her appeal. Despite being in a rather minor idol group, it is still a teenage girl idol group aiming for the general population, which is unarguably selling out their teenage moe at millions of pervy Japanese men (what else CAN they do besides that?), and that makes her experience in "calculated moe" leagues higher than the majority of the seiyuu....Agreed, except to add that Aaya is more natural with it, so for me it is much more effective. Hocchan looks calculated in ways that the younger Aaya does not (partly just because she's younger). Even the NewType cheerleader video that just showed up, while the photo-shoot it shows is 100% calculated moe, has a direct, real atmosphere about it. And maybe a bit of irony, or at least an appearance of innocence and irony, rather than pure pretense and exploitation. Aaya's ability to do the dance steps so easily is clear evidence of her idol past. But I still think that you have to distinguish between the experience of a woman in her 20s and the experience of a teenaged child star.

The NewType photo-shoot is calculated moe, but the video has a realish feel about it, as they do the moves for the shoot. The contrast between the businesslike calculated moe of the NewType shoot and the comparative reality of the NHK interview and other things is a vivid illustration of the tension between Aya packaged as a normal moe idol seiyuu and Aya as more herself, which I find more attractive. Other people do ordinary moe better than she.

I have now seen the Nana videos you mentioned, and find her really attractive as a personality. I didn't find the first one that bad. They seemed to me to be making fun of otaku (not her) in a way that was fairly good-humored. Except for the little "onii-chan, tai-suki," I suppose. Which was, as you say, something they primed her to do. The singing clips made me realize again how good a singer she is.

Wavedash

2007-05-27, 18:41

Rapidly diverging off topic, but I shall attempt to steer it back after I have my turn at the rudder.

Having not paid much attention to Chihara Minori's career until about 3 months ago, I can't style myself an expert like houkoholic. What I've seen, though, is more consistent performing and a smoother singing style than Hirano (think of the comparable Sakura Mao to God Knows). She could very well rise above Aya if only they didn't have their breakout roles working against/for them.

Now for topic.
Konata's dad was heard for the first time in any capacity in this new ep. A good, if short reading, with great chemistry between father and daughter. Thankfully I have no prior associations with this seiyuu.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-27, 21:39

Vexx

2007-05-27, 21:46

Minami isn't likely to do anything to change this impression either, here's what Wikipedia has to say about her:

Minami is a very quiet girl who does not show much emotion, hence her being often mistaken for being cool, but she is very kind at heart. She comes from a wealthy family, and her home is in the same neighborhood as Takara. She owns a very large white dog and has a parasol in her yard. Minami was admitted to Ryōō Gakuen High School along with Yutaka who she met during the admissions exam and is also in her class; Minami is the class health officer. Afterwards, she helped Yutaka go to the nurse's office when she became sick. Once there, she gave Yutaka her handkerchief. Minami has short mint-green hair and her eyes are blue and are slightly slanted upward. She is very slender, though she is worried about her small chest size. She gets along with Miyuki since they have similar tastes and are from the same neighborhood. Also, Minami likes to read books and play the piano.

So great, we basically have a slightly more extroverted and active Yuki Nagato character.

Actually, what comes to my mind is Azumanga Daioh's Sakaki --recast as a tall slender bit of moe rather than an amazon. Quiet, kind, interested in medicine, loves a large white dog - attaches herself to a very small character in the series.

@Kaoshin: No, I think Wavedash said Kona's dad was handled well by his VA ... we just don't get enough of him in this episode to pass any sort of judgement yet (as I waits for the subs).

Kaioshin Sama

2007-05-27, 23:34

Actually, what comes to my mind is Azumanga Daioh's Sakaki --recast as a tall slender bit of moe rather than an amazon. Quiet, kind, interested in medicine, loves a large white dog - attaches herself to a very small character in the series.

@Kaoshin: No, I think Wavedash said Kona's dad was handled well by his VA ... we just don't get enough of him in this episode to pass any sort of judgement yet (as I waits for the subs).

Hmmmm, well this nothing even remotely like his part in L-Gaim (In which he's a heroic gentleman that turns down the advances of every woman that comes at him in the series) of which I've seen 13 episodes so even I'm not sure. Kona-Pops Is a complete reversal of his role in L-Gaim, because there he's a younger man who often has older women vying for him and he only considers them comrades, whereas Kona-Pops is some learing old man that has a thing or the younger girls.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8Jj3MtAwX0&mode=related&search= That's him. And before anybody get's any thoughts, thats a fairy with him not a loli.

Vexx

2007-05-28, 00:44

I won't dispute the "leering" ... but he more accurately has a thing for waifish people (like his wife, Kona-mom). The 'gag' is that the girls think he's a bit worrisome but not seriously scary. He doesn't come off quite so leering in the manga so we'll just have to see what they do with him in the anime.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-06-07, 21:34

First photos I've seen of the four main VAs together, at a Friday photo-session for Voice Newtype. From Hirano Aya's blog (http://www.hiranoaya.com/cgi-bin/diary/sfs6_diary/) (left) and from Fukuhara Kaori's blog (http://fukuhara-kaorin.com/) (center). At right is a shot of Kaori with her drawing of herself and her "twin". She says they were shooting in an elementary school and that everything seemed so small, but the smell was nostalgic:

http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/2120/9511am2.th.jpg (http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/2120/9511am2.jpg) http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/1875/8fa3f5edsx5.th.png (http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/1875/8fa3f5edsx5.png) http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/9065/3472c41ddj6.th.png (http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/9065/3472c41ddj6.png)

(l-r) Fukuhara Kaori (Tsukasa), Hirano Aya (Konata), Katou Emiri (Kagami), Endou Aya (Miyuki). Below is a shot of Kaori with her drawing of herself and her "twin":

Vexx

2007-06-08, 12:47

@Kaoru ..... O.o (oh the cuteness) ... do *any* o them crack the five foot mark in height? Fukuhara-san is an absolute doll...

edit: apparently Fukuhara-san is exactly five foot (153cm). The positioning of the blackboard made them look even smaller (American blackboards are hung lower I guess).

Her website banner graphic animation is pretty cute and points for her web layout (so often I visit japanese websites and think "wtf? who teaches them these hideous web design styles?")

Kaoru Chujo

2007-06-30, 15:55

In watching the credits for ep13 of Darker than Black, I find that Katou Emiri (Kagami) plays the role of the detective's (comic) sidekick in eps 13-14, and in a previous ep I can't remember the number of.

AVPlaya

2007-07-04, 22:20

edit: apparently Fukuhara-san is exactly five foot (153cm). The positioning of the blackboard made them look even smaller (American blackboards are hung lower I guess).

Her website banner graphic animation is pretty cute and points for her web layout (so often I visit japanese websites and think "wtf? who teaches them these hideous web design styles?")

I've notice the trend of seiyuu being cuter and cuter. I think they're really trying to make real star out of the seiyuus and looks are becoming important.

153 is average in Japan.. you'll have to be below 145cm to be considered short. If a girl cracks 150 she's considered average, if they crack 160 they're tall. if they crack 170, they can be considered models. Any taller and people start to question your ancestry. :)

Vexx-kun, many Japanese websites have mobile users in mind as most people browse the web on their phones. Thus unless you're a major site with enough cash to develop a phone version of your site, you tend to keep it really simple in term of graphics or layout. Look at sites like Mixi and you'll see some great layouts. PC ownership in Japan is extremely small compare to handset penetration, it's natural when they design a site they have mobile users in mind first.

Risaa

2007-07-05, 00:47

AVPlaya, I just wanted to say thanks for making me feel tall. Thanks! :)

Vexx

2007-07-05, 01:43

...

153 is average in Japan.. you'll have to be below 145cm to be considered short. If a girl cracks 150 she's considered average, if they crack 160 they're tall. if they crack 170, they can be considered models. Any taller and people start to question your ancestry. :)

Yes, my 149cm wife (of japanese heritage) has a special bank account she plans to empty when we visit Japan because the stores there actually carry her size (she's about to slide under size 0 here because they keep "upgrading" the sizes so people can pretend they aren't fat). Most of her cousins of the female persuasion run about "five feet".

When I saw the picture, I actually thought the seiyuu were smaller because the blackboard is set higher than blackboards are in America. When I looked up their heights, I realized I was incorrectly using the blackboard as a visual reference.

Vexx-kun, many Japanese websites have mobile users in mind as most people browse the web on their phones. Thus unless you're a major site with enough cash to develop a phone version of your site, you tend to keep it really simple in term of graphics or layout. Look at sites like Mixi and you'll see some great layouts. PC ownership in Japan is extremely small compare to handset penetration, it's natural when they design a site they have mobile users in mind first.Hmmm, whatever... I could throw a few hints at them because its pretty simple to learn what browser is being used and adjust the website appropriately. Hell, my teenage sons can do it :)
I suppose its somewhat like Korean websites that tend to be Internet Explorer - limited (as in broken for other browsers) ... that's due to the overwhelming dominance of MS-IE in that country.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-08, 15:57

Kagami and Tsukasa's seiyuus (Katou Emiri and Fukuhara Kaori) were on the A&G Anisupa radio show on Saturday and Washizaki Takeshi and Asano Masumi, the hosts, gave them a cake for their characters' birthday.

I've made a blog post (http://hashihime.blogspot.com/2007/07/luckystar-kagami-and-tsukasas-radio.html) about it, with photos. There are more pics on the show's site, which is linked to from the blog post.

Vexx

2007-07-09, 13:28

I still think its kind of cute that the VAs could actually sort of pull off playing their characters in live-action. :) :) :)

Your Youtube links to the karaoke EDs from the new CD had me spewing my coffee (especially cha-la head cha-la).

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-09, 15:59

I've updated my characters/seiyuus page for Lucky Star (http://hashihime.atspace.com/etc/luckystar/charseiyuus.html) to add photos and info for Yutaka (Hasegawa Shizuka) and Minami (Chihara Minori).

It turns out that Hasegawa started in show business even earlier than Aaya, having done commercials at two months of age, and then they both debuted as seiyuu in the same show, Tenshi no Shippo, in 2001. She is a year younger, and just graduated from high school (Horie Yui's old high school), as student council vice-president.

Minorin's father is a baseball coach and manager, and Minorin herself is apparently a decent infielder. That would explain why she made a point of going to a Dodgers game when she was in LA last week. Minorin started in show business late (23) as an assistant on a radio show, and was unknown enough to do one-woman street shows in Akihabara with her guitar until early last year. Now her agency, Avex, is pushing her for all it's worth. Here's a photo of her at the ball game. She commented admiringly on how big all the players were.

http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/8850/chihara0707034oh5.jpg

Vexx

2007-07-09, 16:54

Heh, they're still batting pretty high in "their VA could play the character in live-action because they carry enough of the look of the character"
(with some hair and makeup work).

Kagami's VA "having some guts" eating what *looks* like the biggest riceball that can be made with two hands :) --> http://blog.livedoor.jp/clovercafe/ (sorry, couldn't get my usual image servers to respond, check the profile box).

AVPlaya

2007-07-09, 17:17

Minorin's father is a baseball coach and manager, and Minorin herself is apparently a decent infielder. That would explain why she made a point of going to a Dodgers game when she was in LA last week. Minorin started in show business late (23) as an assistant on a radio show, and was unknown enough to do one-woman street shows in Akihabara with her guitar until early last year. Now her agency, Avex, is pushing her for all it's worth. Here's a photo of her at the ball game. She commented admiringly on how big all the players were.

That's cool... but Yuki's also a good catcher. :) At least someone in SOS-dan actually knows something about baseball... How did she stay unknown after last summer in AKIBA? The otaku's can't recongnize Yuki? That's almost hard to believe. She is a pretty good singer (Yuki's CDs were my favs) and pretty darn cute as well, Avex should push her musically to the non-otaku.

*aya*

2007-07-09, 20:41

I like Hirano Aya's voice in this manga,and I also like Konno Hiromi's voice^_^
I like its OP and ED..^^I feel so loveliness>_<

I'm new here,and my English is poor,I would appreciate your comments.^^

Vexx

2007-07-10, 00:29

@*aya*: your english in that post was done well.
The second sentence was awkward but conveyed your thoughts well.

The sad part is I can't think of a grammatically proper english way to express "I feel so loveliness" without losing what you clearly meant.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-10, 05:51

EDIT: I've done a couple of blog pieces involving Hirano Aya and Chihara Minori: one about their appearance at Animelo (http://hashihime.blogspot.com/2007/07/hirano-aya-and-chihara-minori-at.html) over the weekend; one showing Aya's little dramas involving figures from Galaxy Angel 2 (http://hashihime.blogspot.com/2007/07/hirano-aya-plays-with-galaxy-angel.html).

...How did she stay unknown after last summer in AKIBA? The otaku's can't recongnize Yuki? That's almost hard to believe....She was doing those street shows "until early last year," as I said. After Suzumiya Haruhi hit, in April 2006, she became too well known, just as you say. I remember seeing photos of her doing a street show during the time she was playing Erika in Lemon Angel Project, maybe in February or March.

I think Minorin is the most capable singer of the women in the SOS-Dan. I may enjoy listening to Aya more sometimes, but not because she's more professional. At the Animelo show last weekend at Budokan, Minorin had two songs and was one of the originally invited singers, whereas Aya only had one and was a "special guest," invited only a few weeks before the show.

And Aya, thanks for posting. I agree: I like Hirano Aya's voice in many shows, but especially here. She is hilarious. I also like her a lot in the serious role of Layla in NANA.

Your English is good enough. Please post again. One small suggestion:
漫画 = "manga"
动画 = "anime"
Or did you mean you think Aya's voice suits the character from the manga?

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-13, 01:34

Two images of Hirano Aya just posted to 2channel: one for Lucky Star, one for the game Trusty Bell (http://namco-ch.net/trusty_bell/index.php). And something completely different from her blog, done up for a photo session for Seiyuu Grand Prix mag today. 2channel is thrilled with the pony tail effect.

http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/511/vi8430355556id1.th.jpg (http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/511/vi8430355556id1.jpg) http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/1528/vi8430349327ql6.th.jpg (http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/1528/vi8430349327ql6.jpg) http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/2204/10661nl0.th.jpg (http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/2204/10661nl0.jpg)

Vexx

2007-07-13, 03:30

She does a remarkable job of looking totally goofy and cute at the same time.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-07-13, 11:24

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-13, 12:05

The first two shots were professional studio photos. The third one, I'm pretty sure, was her holding her cell-phone camera at arm's length. The wide angle, as well as her more informal humorous expression, gives that charming goofy look.

Having found Hoshino Aki's home page with Google, I can see what you mean, Kaioshin. Although she doesn't look like Aaya in many other ways, attire or lack of it not least.

By the way, there's a long vid from Trusty Bell on nicovideo (http://www.nicovideo.jp/watch/sm454153). Aya plays Polka, the blonde girl in the red skirt. Overacted, perhaps, but effective.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-14, 13:41

Big doings in the world of Hirano Aya otaku. Tomorrow (i.e., today in Japan) at 5pm, there is a "handshake meeting (http://otasuke.new-akiba.com/event/3114)" with all four main seiyuus from Lucky Star, in honor of the release of the second DVD. It's at the Animate store in Omiya (http://www.animate.co.jp/animate/map/east/omiya/omiya.html) (photo below). All places in line have already been assigned (by a draw).

http://img166.imageshack.us/img166/8039/omiyainht2.th.jpg (http://img166.imageshack.us/img166/8039/omiyainht2.jpg) http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/7615/akiba200707115755gr2.th.jpg (http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/7615/akiba200707115755gr2.jpg)

But at the same time, a big typhoon is bearing down on the region, so there is lots of discussion on 2channel of whether or not the event will be cancelled. So far, no cancellation. And there is some possibility the typhoon will bypass the area.

Braving a typhoon to meet Aaya has a lot of attraction for the Aya-ota, who are no doubt getting their raingear on as we speak.

There is also an announcement on the SOS-Dan page (http://www.haruhi.tv/fanclub/camp0707/) about a special "Super DVD" you can get if you buy all three of: (1) the Suzumiya Haruhi live event DVD that goes on sale at the end of this month, (2) the Hirano Aya photo album that goes on sale at the same time (photo above right), and (3) the new issue of Voice NewType that features Lucky Star. It has also been announced that you get a free separate photograph of Aya (http://akiba.kakaku.com/hobby/0707/11/180037.php) when you pre-order the photo album. The photo appears to be the one with the choco-coronet that I posted a couple of days ago. And Seiyuu Grand Prix (http://seigura.com/news/news/123) magazine is asking people to send in questions for Aaya that could be asked for a big feature they plan for next October, to coincide with her 20th birthday. The publicity machine rolls on.

Wavedash

2007-07-15, 17:20

Wow, that's nearly enough to make me sick. Talk about selling an icon.

stormy001_M1A2

2007-07-15, 21:01

Wow, that's nearly enough to make me sick. Talk about selling an icon.

Consumer society rely heavily on icons to identify themselves as unique individual. Nothing surprising here.

Vexx

2007-07-15, 21:20

ARgh.... o well... at least their "idols of the moment" have some talent skills (mostly). Americans keep coming up with "and why are we paying obsessive attention to these people?" types like Paris Hilton or Donald Trump :)

aorta

2007-07-15, 21:22

AVPlaya

2007-07-15, 21:47

Wow, that's nearly enough to make me sick. Talk about selling an icon.

Hmmm.. eh, that's really normal in Japan. Hand-shaking meetings are common place in the world of idols. Arashi and V6 do them all the time (so dies Momusu, until their fanbase became mostly 30-plus wotas) . It's a nice way of meeting your idol without having them just signing all day long. Most idols actually enjoy them, since most Japanese are polite and won't really shake very hard. Plus the person you touch are usually your fan for life. You have to really know J-POP culture to know that they're really not doing anything unusual.

ARgh.... o well... at least their "idols of the moment" have some talent skills (mostly). Americans keep coming up with "and why are we paying obsessive attention to these people?" types like Paris Hilton or Donald Trump :)

At least Japanese idols are actually CUTE and usually do not like to flash their privates in public. :)

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-16, 01:08

To tell the truth, I find something charmingly innocent and homey about these little promotions. I mean, a free photograph? It seems so far from the big-time -- and it is. In money terms, this is nowhere near the world of even Gackt, to say nothing of Paris Hilton or Brad Pitt. Can you picture either of them at a "handshake meeting" at a Blockbuster video store?

By the way, the session went off without a hitch -- the weather cleared up at the last minute, giving 2channel a chance to say that Aya is a good-weather girl whose presence brings fair skies. Only Aya has so far posted a photo, although all four ladies have thanked the fans for coming despite the typhoon and have said they will add more later. Shiraishi was there, too, apparently quite manic. (l-r) Endou Aya (Miyuki), Fukuhara Kaori (Tsukasa), Hirano Aya (Konata), Katou Emiri (Kagami). (in front) Shiraishi Minoru.

http://img412.imageshack.us/img412/1531/10711yg4.th.jpg (http://img412.imageshack.us/img412/1531/10711yg4.jpg)

Apparently there were handshake sessions at both the Animate and Gamers stores in Omiya, and next weekend there will be sessions at the main Animate and Gamers stores in Akihabara. There appears to be at least one site (http://otasuke.new-akiba.com/monthly/2007/07) that tracks celebrity appearances of interest to otaku.

AVPlaya

2007-07-16, 01:53

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-16, 03:07

Kano Yui, who was co-winner with Aaya of an award for best young seiyuu of 2006, for her role of Momoko in Sumomo mo Momo mo, will appear briefly in ep16 of Lucky Star, according to her blog (http://blog.livedoor.jp/yuiyum/archives/51021315.html) and Seiyuu Watch (http://blog.livedoor.jp/blur66430/). From mentions in their blogs, it seems that the Aaya and Yui have fun together, so maybe this was Aaya's suggestion in some way.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-16, 19:10

I made a blog post (http://hashihime.blogspot.com/2007/07/lucky-star-vas-meet-their-fans.html), with more pics, about the handshake events.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-07-16, 19:22

kenjiharima

2007-07-17, 07:33

http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/2204/10661nl0.th.jpg (http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/2204/10661nl0.jpg)

This one reminds me of Ougie from GENSHIKEN though it's not. Aya Hirano is truly great when ever she cosplays and models for anime and games. :)

AVPlaya

2007-07-17, 10:29

The industry is forcing her into it though really, I mean she'll be burnt out before she's 30 [...]

Most idol burn out before they're 20, so she's already has a leg up. :) Believe me, this is her second chance at real idol-hood and she'll do everything she can to really make it. She will gladly give all her otaku success for a "real" #1 single or album. I think it's less what the industry wants from her, rather than what she wants for herself. She's got a chance with that voice; given a great song, she can probably do well mainstream.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-17, 12:39

Most idols burn out before they're 20, so she's already has a leg up. :) Believe me, this is her second chance at real idol-hood and she'll do everything she can to really make it. She will gladly give all her otaku success for a "real" #1 single or album. I think it's less what the industry wants from her, rather than what she wants for herself. She's got a chance with that voice; given a great song, she can probably do well mainstream.I agree with this 100%. As I've said before, it seems to me that Aaya is at least as ambitious for herself as her agency could ever be on her behalf. Her ambition may or may not be psychologically or physically beneficial for her, but I think she has it. It's another reason that I compare her to Judy Garland -- that and the fragile emotionality in her voice.

She has been in show business since she was nine, and is devoted to succeeding in it. She was in commercials in her early teens, then became a seiyuu in Tenshi no Shippo and Kiddy Grade, then was in the idol group Springs. When that failed, it looked as if she would have to settle for being a seiyuu or just going to college and forgetting about it. Than Haruhi came along. Unfortunately, "seiyuu" is nowhere near the level of real show-business success in Japan, and she is working with her agency to use Haruhi as a springboard to greater things. Don't laugh, but really I think she'd like to be Avril Lavigne.

Vexx

2007-07-17, 16:05

I've followed a few seiyuu who've managed to go "mainstream". Hirano has the good fortune of riding a slow shift of rising respectability for anime (very slow.. but with the government recognizing that anime is appreciated globally it is shifting). Therefore I'd say her chances of becoming a generally recognized multi-skilled talent are improving every day. I keep thinking of Kimiko in Megatokyo though..... it could blow up for her or her nerves might fray so keeping a hand on the steam valves is paramount.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-18, 02:07

Miyuki (Endou Aya) shows Konata (Hirano Aya) the right way to eat a choco-coronet:

http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/6639/vi8473432454dg7.th.jpg (http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/6639/vi8473432454dg7.jpg)

From Voice NewType, I suspect, via 2channel.

Vexx

2007-07-18, 02:28

I'm sure that pic got many a fanboy "hot and bothered" .... o the fandom of it all :)

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-18, 14:45

I've updated my characters/seiyuus page for Lucky Star (http://hashihime.atspace.com/etc/luckystar/charseiyuus.html) to include pics and info on the seiyuus for the two new characters who appear in ep15. Aizawa Mai, who plays the quieter of the two, is among the shortest of all seiyuus, at 145cm (~4'9"). According to ja.Wikipedia, she likes robot anime and pro wrestling.

Vexx, I'm sure the mangaka knew exactly what he was doing when he wrote that segment on eating a choco-coronet. So did Yamakan when he started the series with it. And now Voice NewType takes advantage of the meme.

dodgethis_sg

2007-07-18, 21:11

she likes robot anime and pro wrestling.

Relevant to my interests :D

AVPlaya

2007-07-18, 22:10

Vexx, I'm sure the mangaka knew exactly what he was doing when he wrote that segment on eating a choco-coronet. So did Yamakan when he started the series with it. And now Voice NewType takes advantage of the meme.

It's more sexually suggestive than a melon-pan :)

Plus it's GOOOD! I think all Aya-ota should be eating one once a day now. Sales must have gone through the roof.. heck, even I buy 2 cronets (sorry I like custard cronets better) every week from our local JP supermarket.

Chujo-sama, I must give you prop for your dedication to seiyuu news. You are an inspiration to watch.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-19, 23:11

Xiaolang

2007-07-20, 00:01

An 11-minute video (http://www.nicovideo.jp/watch/sm664313) of the four stars' Voice NewType photo session is now on nicovideo. It includes the choco-coronet session, as well as them drawing on the blackboard (which is lower than it looked in the photos), shots on a rooftop, etc.

Nice find man, but ugh... thank god you can turn the comments off. I like reading the comments from Smile Video, usually watching non-Japanese made MAD and AMVs. However, when I see a video with Aya Hirano in Smile Video, there are quite a lot of disturbing remarks about her. It's as if they make her out as Paris Hilton or something... I mean, at least Hirano-san is actually doing something with her life!

Well, I guess that's the Internets for you, the power of anonymity compels you!

Anyway, now that it's out of my system... On the other hand, there are favorable comments about Kagamin's voice actor Emiri Katou. Also, I guess now everyone is calling our resident four-eyed moe character "Miwiki" (I mean, it's not surprising, since word of mouth these days spreads faster than the California wildfires).

Also, did I just see an "Ai Ai Gasa" (Love-Love Umbrella), with Tsukasa and Konata's names written? Or is it something else?

It's funny how the voice actors all drew their personal version of what Kagamin looks like; except for Aya Endo, I think she drew Miwiki right?

Even though I couldn't capture every word, and the video as a whole is just the actors playing around, it's still weirdly compelling to watch.

Thanks Kaoru-kun!

Noriko

2007-07-20, 00:16

159cm?! Not exactly Dwarf status, but that's still pretty short! I had an impression that she was taller than that. Man, that would make her shorter than the average female height around here.

Cheers.Asian girls still tend to be smaller in standards, especially the one growing up in Asia. For a japanese young woman, being around 1m47 is considered short but not the kind of "short" that would be considered "weird"...whereas in Occident, I would think it's quite unusual. Being 1m59 in Japan wouldn't be "tall" but definitely not amongst the "short people", that would be still reserved for people under 1m55
That's it for the off-topic :p

I'm currently training to be able to make the special mouth of Konata

Vexx

2007-07-20, 02:51

I seem to recall Skane is in Singapore .... so I think he knows about at least *some* asians :) Average height of women in the various asian countries does tend to differ by 5cm or so

Bah... nico won't let me watch the video (at least for now) unless I upgrade to "premium member"..... blah.
It is saying something about a 24 hour restriction...... perhaps I just need to wait a day (I just registered).

edit: Oh... I think its saying I can use it between 0200 and 1900 japan time??? ... except that its 1700 local japan time at the time of this posting....

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-20, 12:56

Purely in the interest of further knowledge.... The mass-market weekly tabloid magazine Friday (http://www.bitway.ne.jp/kodansha/friday/scoopengine/)has published a four-page selection from the photo-book of Hirano Aya that is to come out in a week's time:

http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/6595/iup422116bl4.th.jpg (http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/6595/iup422116bl4.jpg)

The magazine describes Aaya as the "popular seiyuu of Suzumiya Haruhi...whom all anime fans would know." This makes it clear that most other people do not know of her. These are the most erotic photos of Aya yet, but she continues to keep herself fully covered, not even going as far as a bikini.

I think that is one of the things that annoys many otaku about her. She seems to act (and be) socially above other seiyuu. One of the most popular seiyuu of all with 2channel otaku is Ochiai Yurika, whose career has stalled, and who is doing features like "Yurishii's Maid Cafe (http://www.nicovideo.jp/watch/sm560949)" to keep things going, while publishing in her blog (http://yaplog.jp/yurisii/) about her amazing troubles, including having her electricity cut off, etc. (Her blog really is great: she wears her emotions on her sleeve.)

On the other hand, Aya never even had to expose herself to the evident perils of a seiyuu training school, and went to high school and at least started university at an exclusive private institution (http://www.tamagawa.jp/).

The continuing campaign to make Aya more generally popular remains this side of indiscreet. Especially with the current sexual harassment scandal, they are being quite careful. And perhaps Aaya herself is uncomfortable with anything that would prevent her being a honorable member of higher-class society in the future.

But the publicity still is riding the prurient interest that the scandal is generating. Two magazines have had articles recently, making it sound as if the seiyuu agencies -- and the anime world in general -- are rife with "pillow business" (and who ever doubted it), handing out roles on the basis of sexual favors to managers, producers, sound directors, etc. Aaya's agency, Spacecraft (http://www.spacecraft.co.jp/html/topics.html), is more an idol and TV/film/commercial agency than a seiyuu agency, and she has been with them since she was a child.

The articles suggest that one member of the Haruhi cast encountered pillow business earlier in her career, and say (by initials) that two of the top idol seiyuu have been involved. It's all quite likely, but the two top seiyuu hinted at are so good at their jobs that I don't see why it would have been necessary for them.

Xiaolang

2007-07-20, 13:30

That's the entertainment business for you. When a once unknown actor suddenly became famous, there'll be fanatics who will think unreasonably and irrationally and will lash out. While many will reasonably argue that if it wasn't for Haruhi Suzumiya, Aya Hirano wouldn't be as popular as she is today. As far as I can remember, when Megumi Hayashibara landed the role of Ranma, she got more main character roles later in her career and became THE seiyuu of the 90s. But that doesn't mean that she didn't work hard to keep the role. Also, if it's not Aya, it'd be someone else who'll be lucky. So blaming Aya or anyone who would've landed Haruhi's role is totally unjustified.

Aya Hirano's timing and luck involving Haruhi Suzumiya couldn't be more perfect, but unfortunately, when you reach a certain amount of fame, there will always be some form of backlash. It's like Satoshi Kon's Perfect Blue all over again... I mean, wow, I'm not surprised that Aya is good looking enough to have her own photo album, but jeez. I really hope she knows what she's doing, or at least she gets paid big time just to compensate for the possible ramifications.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-20, 14:27

I think the notion that she was just lucky to get Haruhi and Haruhi made her rather than the other way around is simply wrong. It helped her, but she helped it, too. It is certainly true the role was a good one and the show was popular, but her performance helped make it that way: Haruhi could have been played either too harsh or too soft, but she played it just right, with her combination of sharpness and sweetness, and the hint of melancholy that is natural to her voice. It's reasonable for people who don't like her work to come to the conclusion that she is unjustly praised, but I disagree. And I think many anime fans don't even realize how much effect good voice-acting has on how much they like a show. It gives the characters a lot of their life.

I think she improved dramatically in doing Haruhi, but it was the first role she got after she graduated from high school and began to concentrate more fully on her career. And she is only 19 even now. It's reasonable that she is changing and improving quickest during these years.

I hasten to add that I think some criticism is justified. I like to say that her acting is not always very "naturalistic." Some people say "not very good." I think she conveys emotion excellently, but some people find it hard to believe. Layla is a case in point: I think it's her best role, but some people find it overdone.

I guess I'm biased in her favor now, but I certainly wasn't when I first started to like her, which was when I heard her as Layla. I think many people are biased against her, particularly among otaku in Japan.

As for the photo book, I have to say I was fairly shocked when I heard it was coming out. She and her handlers are definitely walking a fine line. She is doing narration for an NHK educational show right now, and I think that somewhat high-toned atmosphere is fairly natural to her -- she says she spends her days off sleeping and reading. I think the NHK direction makes sense for her, and she doesn't want to queer that pitch. But she is ambitious, and really wants to be an idol, or even a pop singer, and the photo book is part of that world.

Vexx

2007-07-20, 14:48

She's probably hoping to tread the line of a few multi-talents who manage to keep their clothes mostly on while providing the "cute" factor in photo books.

I gotta say though she needs some better help in the "what I'll wear" department. I don't think she wants "dress clown" as part of her resume.

Xiaolang

2007-07-20, 14:56

I think the notion that she was just lucky to get Haruhi and Haruhi made her rather than the other way around is simply wrong. It helped her, but she helped it, too... (removed the rest, to make it short.)

Sorry if I made the wrong impression in my last post; I certainly did not intend to discredit Aya Hirano's capabilities as an actor. For the record, I actually like Hirano-san a whole lot. For the longest time, I haven't been this excited about a voice actor since Megumi Hayashibara, Ai Orikasa, Chisa Yokoyama, Kikuko Inoue and Sakura Tange (that's a bunch of actors from the 90s eh?). Maybe I'm blinded by her looks, but Aya's role as Haruhi solidifies my admiration for her work. I mean, sure there's Rie Kugimiya, Yui Horie, Mamiko Noto and many more great actors in the past five years, but since Aya is so ambitious about being in the limelight, she definitely put herself above the rest.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-20, 15:51

Sorry if I made the wrong impression in my last post....And I'm sorry if I gave the impression I thought that you were criticising her. I was just addressing what some other people do say.

For the record, my actual top favorite voice actors are Kuwashima Houka and Paku Romi, but Aya is catching up. I'd like to see her in more serious roles, like Layla. But her stunning comic transformation in LS probably pushes serious further into the future.

Kaioshin Sama

2007-07-21, 00:52

My liking of Aya Hirano is inversely proportional to how much I feel she is being thrust in my face. I'm the kind of person who likes to decide thing for myself, and when I'm feeling pressured to adore a certain person I am almost immediately turned off. When there isn't some huge blogoff about her peerlessness or something like that I find myself more accepting and enjoy her work for what it is. It's not a matter of popularity and wanting to be cool and stand alone, but a matter of choosing to reserve my individual choice. I'm sure nobody likes to have anything forced at them, but unfortunately that's what is happening with her right now, and it's really annoying. I hope the media blitz peaks very soon so it can be over with and I can be my own judge of her voice. If not it's hard to say what I'll think of her a year or so from now. Probably nothing good or bad just indecision thanks to the constant newsfeed rendering her a saturated commodity.

Currently my favourite new voice is Rie Kugimiya who I find to have a very impressive range, to be amusing to listen to, and to be Moe and Gar at the same time. Moegar! Also I think she may be a complete loon and that's the type of person I like.

I gotta say though she needs some better help in the "what I'll wear" department. I don't think she wants "dress clown" as part of her resume.

So I'm not the only one who thinks that some makeup/outfit combinations of her kind of make her resemble a clown.:heh:

Vexx

2007-07-21, 01:12

I love her simple garb, her gothy stuff, even her "top hat" outfit ... but some of the stuff she's been photographed in is just clownish. Problem is I usually actually blame the photographer. I know a few minor celebs who say photographers always show up with the most ridiculous crap for them to wear "in the name of art". I don't know how assertive Aya is on a photo-shoot but she may not draw the line as far forward as she should :)
OTOH, she may just view the clown stuff as fun and not take it too seriously.

AVPlaya

2007-07-21, 03:33

KC-sama, Aya-chan is not known AT ALL outside of the otaku world. Her real exposure was that brief appearance in HEYx3 when the Haruhi CDs were white hot; it's the first time Japanese media really treated anime music as real music. I asked a few non-ota J-friends and none of them have heard of her. One of them has heard of Haruhi, but know nothing about it. One told me it's been 20 years since he saw an anime (it was probably doraemon). The strange thing is, they all read manga.

In the real Japan, Koda Kumi is a real POP celeb. Hirano Aya is a celeb wanna-be. But now with her spread in Friday, it's a very good starting point. Yes Friday will print any good looking women near naked, but I must say this is a very good start for her. Friday is the best selling news weekly in Japan and a LOT of non-ota will read about her.

I may have completely different take from you guys since I really started out from the Pop culture of Japan and then move into anime only a few years ago. From an mainstream popularity point of view, a Friday spread is a MAJOR WIN. And she didn't even get there via a scandal. But truth be told, if any scandal involving her is print worthy in Friday, boy she has made it. I guess she secretly wishes if she caught doing something naughty Friday will put her on the front page like a member of Momusu. Right now, that's not going to happen. I'd say ganbare to Aya-chan, and hope she become the first real celeb to have come from the otaku world.

Shiroi Hane

2007-07-21, 22:47

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-22, 03:06

I really wish I had bothered to register for that place back when I first heard of it (http://matthew.animeblogger.net/archives/2007/03/07/youtube_2ch_nico_nico_douga.php) :(
Between then and now I'd pretty much forgotten about it and now I can't get in...

BTW, I've been meaning to ask for a while now - where did all this "Aaya" stuff originate?1. If it's like when I registered, it took a few weeks for the system to grow enough to be able to let my higher number in.

2. I don't know how "Aaya" (あーや) started, except that Japanese Wikipedia says it's her nickname. It's used quite a bit on blogs and 2channel.

Risaa

2007-07-22, 13:25

1. If it's like when I registered, it took a few weeks for the system to grow enough to be able to let my higher number in.
Same here, I just recently (few days ago recently) was able to get in after waiting a few weeks.

Konata-chan

2007-07-22, 18:06

I thought with Nicovideo, you're automatically granted access only for certain time hours, and you're restricted from viewing videos when it's late at night Japan time. So they barred people from accessing it altogether? I guess I'm pretty lucky to register in time.

Shiroi Hane

2007-07-22, 20:24

It did say something about hours but I couldn't follow it.

shiro83

2007-07-23, 10:00

Kinny Riddle

2007-07-23, 10:08

I was thinking of posting this in the episode 16 thread, but I figured that it is better off here...

I am not sure how Hirano Aya does it but how exactly does she switch from Konata's voice to Haruhi's voice so easily? Obviously from my ears, they sound so different and yet they belong to the same voice actor.

Do the anime makers use voice mixers or whatever-you-call-it that can change the tone of a voice? :confused:
I think Hirano simply switched from being Kona-chan to being Haruhi just like that, it is just that simple for her.

I've seen this video where it showed Hirano being interviewed in person, and she suddenly switched from her high-pitched voice she uses in public appearance to a lower-pitch mature voice, so I'm not surprised if she could switch between the two characters so quickly.

shiro83

2007-07-23, 10:18

I think Hirano simply switched from being Kona-chan to being Haruhi just like that, it is just that simple for her.

I've seen this video where it showed Hirano being interviewed in person, and she suddenly switched from her high-pitched voice she uses in public appearance to a lower-pitch mature voice, so I'm not surprised if she could switch between the two characters so quickly.

Wow... voice actors sure has the abilities... ;)
Maybe it is time for me to practice to see if I have a second voice. :D

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-23, 12:47

This ability to switch back and forth suddenly between wildly different voices appears to be something not many VAs have. It's a special talent of Hirano Aya's that she has displayed to great applause on TV interview shows in Japan.

She's now doing narration for a serious NHK educational show and her voice sounds totally different again, like a standard Japanese old-fashioned voice-over. It's amazing and a little creepy.

Having said all that, I can still hear that it's her, no matter what register she's in. She's not a VA who can make you forget entirely who she is, at least not yet. There is a certain timbre in her voice that gives her away.

Mashimaro

2007-07-24, 03:27

I was told that the high pitched voice is her real voice?

Vexx

2007-07-24, 12:17

Luminisk

2007-07-24, 12:46

Most Japanese VAs are basically actors like any Hollywood actor. They don't "affect" voices very much (remember Kevin Costner's wildly swinging accent in Robin Hood?). They just emote their roles. Japanese VAs who can actually *DO* voices are much rarer (ala Billy West, Rob Paulsen, etc).

I've lost count of how many bad Robin Hood movies I've seen; probably the only good one was Robin Hood: Mens in Tights but I don't think that really counts, but yeah back on track. Billy West is amazing I was pretty surprised when I learned that he played the 4 voice parts in Futurama; those characters are varies pretty far in terms of voice and personality and for him do switch back and forth like that multiple times, sometimes all 4 in one episode, have my respect.

As for Aya I would say that her voice acting alone, in the Cosplay cafe ordering scene, was my highlights for the episode. For her to be switching between the two voices and personalities seamlessly like so; I just simply can't get enough of it.

Xiaolang

2007-07-24, 12:55

That switching ability is something the good American VAs have and it is MUCH rarer to see it in Japanese VAs. If Aya can indeed do that, it puts her in a rather small uber-category.

Most Japanese VAs are basically actors like any Hollywood actor. They don't "affect" voices very much (remember Kevin Costner's wildly swinging accent in Robin Hood?). They just emote their roles. Japanese VAs who can actually *DO* voices are much rarer (ala Billy West, Rob Paulsen, etc).

I never really thought about "voice characterization" (like Mel Blanc) in voice acting. The only other Japanese seiyuu that comes to mind that can do this is Kotono Mitsuishi (e.g. Sailor Moon, Excel and Misato Katsuragi). Then again, I think there are a few things why Japanese voice actors usually don't do voice characterization. One main reason, based on my personal observation, is that most of roles in anime are based on "realistic" portrayals of people. (I placed "quote marks" on realistic because it's not completely real, but it's not completely stereotypical or stylized portrayals.)

In any case, it is an aspect in voice acting that people tend to forget about, but I hope people don't think that because a lot of VAs don't do voice characterizations doesn't mean they lack the ability to do so.

Vexx

2007-07-24, 13:47

If you ever get a chance there's a Billy West interview floating across the Web somewhere. He switches voices from sentence to sentence without missing a beat. Its like MPD but funnier.

Clarification: I wasn't implying that "single voice" japanese VAs weren't *good* at their craft, only that their skill was in projecting realistic feelings into their work rather than affecting a variety of character voices.

Shiroi Hane

2007-07-24, 15:31

Yukari Tamura is someone who can do wildly different roles - at different ends of the spectrum (and alphabet) we have the two Michirus: hyper-genki in Air and ultra-demure in Uta Kata.

There's also Rika's biploar behaviour in Higurashi (and, to an extent, Nanoha's White Devil mode)

If you ever get a chance there's a Billy West interview floating across the Web somewhere. He switches voices from sentence to sentence without missing a beat. Its like MPD but funnier.

I don't actually know who that is.. but I remember seeing an interview with Neil Morrissey who does half of the voice in Bob the Builder and would have pages where he'd sit there talking to himself. For that matter there's stuff like Postman Pat and Fireman Sam where one guy did all the voices, women included...

Vexx

2007-07-24, 15:57

Billy West is probably most recently known for his work on Futurama (he plays 4 male voices on that show) but he's got a fairly long list of credits. Some of them:
--Ren&Stimpy > Stimpy
--Futurama > Fry, Farnsworth, Zoidberg, Zapp
--Space Jam > Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd

Some other multi-faceted VAs include:
Rob Paulsen is probably best known for Yakko on Animaniacs but is also a man of "several hundred voices"
Maurice LaMarche is best known for Brain of P&tB (of which Rob Paulsen is Pinky) but has a few dozen names to his credit
Tress MacNeille is Dot, Babs Bunny, and few dozen other voices.
Frank Welker is almost a monopoly on verbalized animal soundtalk.

Most of the other American VAs I can think of are 'one voice' actors. Very good at what they do but more at the mercy of the casting director.

Someone who apparently wants to remain anonymous (?) shared these youtube links where you can watch the Simpson VAs execute their skills. The clips unfortunately cut to cartoon imagery when they should be focusing on the actors more but eh... its still funny. I just love watching professional VAs do their thing especially when they have their own sense of humor:

Part One, (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nK_j1Kmb5A)
Part Two (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HbGoS1FUhk0&mode=related&search=),
Part Three (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yaU4u-wvSXc&mode=related&search=).

AVPlaya

2007-07-24, 23:46

I don't really buy the notion that voice changing is that rare with Japanese VAs.. we just never get to hear it. Aya love to show off and she did it on Heyx3 with that "Dame da yo, Hamada-san", so she's known for it. Given how Japanese thinks, this is probably a little showy. Maybe her 3 years in the US got enough gajin in her. :)

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-25, 03:09

I was told that the high pitched voice is her real voice?I think she has several, like any voice actor and any Japanese woman, but she sounds most at ease to me in the deeper one you hear in some interviews. Or at least that seems to be the one she uses when she's being serious. The high high one sounds forced to me, even accounting for cultural aspects. The one you hear in most short interviews is on the high side, but not her highest.

I don't see Aya as a seiyuu with tremendous range -- although Konata is showing me something -- but she does seem to be able to slip from register to register comparatively easily. At least I don't remember hearing other seiyuus do that. I don't think it's that easy to do smoothly. Other seiyuus do have various registers they can use, however. Interesting point by Vexx about voice characterization vs. acting.

Interesting point by AVPlaya about the TV parlor trick seeming a bit show-off. I think the show-off aspect is one of many things about Aya that turns some otaku off. Much as they enjoy the blog, for example, there are comments on 2channel that she's showing off in it. Otaku are actually pretty conservative sometimes, it seems to me. There is even some disappointment about Aya doing the slightly sexy photo book. As if it is below their high moral standard (lol). Of course, I think otaku sense she is not really their kind of girl. She did say that the kind of guy she likes is one who looks good in a suit. And there is a set of anti-otaku quotes from her floating around (most fake or out of context).

By the way, a new drama CD called "Kikinosuke Gomen (http://www.animate.tv/news/detail.php?id=atv070724c)" is coming out today starring a bevy of well-known voice actors and Aya: Ono Daisuke, Morikubo Showtaro, Morikawa Toshiyuki, Fujiwara Keiji. It's apparently set in a modern version of "Edo." (In the cast pic there, I think the front row (l-r) is Fujiwara Keiji, Morikubo Showtaro, Ono Daisuke, Aya, Morikawa Toshiyuki.)

houkoholic

2007-07-25, 13:56

I don't see Aya as a seiyuu with tremendous range -- although Konata is showing me something -- but she does seem to be able to slip from register to register comparatively easily. At least I don't remember hearing other seiyuus do that.

Actually I would say "flipping" is pretty much a required skill.
A good place to go to check various seiyuu "flip between register" is actually Arts Vision and I'm Enterprise's (heh) official homepages (here (http://www.artsvision.co.jp/index.php) and here (http://www.imenterprise.jp/)), where you can go down one by one and sample the voice sample from each seiyuu as they do various voices and personalities in one long recording. Ironicly for the scandel involved, they are actually very good in presenting what their seiyuu are capable of compared with the other production companies' webpages.

For example check out Kugimiya Rie's here. (http://www.imenterprise.jp/data.php?id=12)
Or Kuwatani Natsuko's here. (http://www.artsvision.co.jp/data.php?id=559)
Nakahara Mai (http://www.imenterprise.jp/data.php?id=20).
Saito Chiwa (http://www.imenterprise.jp/data.php?id=13).
Takahashi Mikako (http://www.imenterprise.jp/data.php?id=16)
Takahashi Chiaki (http://www.artsvision.co.jp/data.php?id=602)

I just picked these out at random, you can go through more yourselves. :)

Like I said in my blog before, the only reason that Aya woahed the crowd on Hey^3 is because she went from a squeaky voice to an adult voice. But really, IMNSHO any seiyuu worth their salt should be able to do it.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-25, 14:49

Actually I would say "flipping" is pretty much a required skill. A good place to go to check various seiyuu "flip between register" is actually Arts Vision and I'm Enterprise's (heh) official homepages (here (http://www.artsvision.co.jp/index.php) and here (http://www.imenterprise.jp/)), where you can go down one by one and sample the voice sample from each seiyuu as they do various voices and personalities in one long recording. Ironically for the scandal involved, they are actually very good in presenting what their seiyuu are capable of compared with the other production companies' webpages.... Like I said in my blog before, the only reason that Aya woahed the crowd on Hey^3 is because she went from a squeaky voice to an adult voice. But really, IMNSHO any seiyuu worth their salt should be able to do it.Great idea to listen to the samples. I've only checked three of them, but none of them jumped as suddenly or as far as Aya does in her parlor trick or in the songs. The suddenness -- and the high to low,as you say -- are what make the impression. The voice samples on these and other pages are more separated and orderly, which makes sense for the purpose.

Lots of people have different registers (though few have registers as widely separated), but Aaya has made an impression with being able to switch in a beat. Others could probably do it, but I haven't heard them do it. It's certainly not what makes me like her work, but it's entertaining in the songs.

And it is definitely ironic that an agency that seems to actually do pretty well by its better seiyuus, at least, should be the one caught in the scandal. I wonder if it really is any worse than a lot of the others.

Finally, thanks for reminding me of your great blog. I wish it was registered on AnimeNano (http://www.animenano.com/), so that I was reminded of it whenever you posted something new.

EDIT: I notice that the 2channel Hirano Aya threads are exploding right now, probably because of the recent handshake sessions and the photo book that comes out this week. Another kind of "idol seiyuu." Or has there been this sort of gravure cross-over before?

Vexx

2007-07-25, 15:24

Its fascinating and yet tragic to watch what many japanese otaku get to harumphing over in terms of what "their idols" should or shouldn't do.
One wonders how Gotou manages her rowdy self and still not be unseemly to the young codgers.

PieWhatWhere

2007-07-25, 22:16

Kaioshin Sama

2007-07-25, 22:18

Great idea to listen to the samples. I've only checked three of them, but none of them jumped as suddenly or as far as Aya does in her parlor trick or in the songs. The suddenness -- and the high to low,as you say -- are what make the impression. The voice samples on these and other pages are more separated and orderly, which makes sense for the purpose.

Lots of people have different registers (though few have registers as widely separated), but Aaya has made an impression with being able to switch in a beat. Others could probably do it, but I haven't heard them do it. It's certainly not what makes me like her work, but it's entertaining in the songs.

And it is definitely ironic that an agency that seems to actually do pretty well by its better seiyuus, at least, should be the one caught in the scandal. I wonder if it really is any worse than a lot of the others.

Finally, thanks for reminding me of your great blog. I wish it was registered on AnimeNano (http://www.animenano.com/), so that I was reminded of it whenever you posted something new.

EDIT: I notice that the 2channel Hirano Aya threads are exploding right now, probably because of the recent handshake sessions and the photo book that comes out this week. Another kind of "idol seiyuu." Or has there been this sort of gravure cross-over before?

Well if you count Jr. Gravure Idol Ryo Shihono's extremely short-lived stint as a Seiyuu for two roles, one in a hentai ova, and another in Lemon Angel Project for which she was panned mercilessly out of the industry, it does happen. Rarely does it seem to be successful. Another example is uber-popular gravure bikini idol Aki Hoshino's one shot as a singer that was about as successful as Shaquille O'Neil's rap career. Also I'll confess I look at Gravure idol pictues, and those aren't really gravure pictures for Aya Hirano. I'd think of them more as Glamour photos of the kind you'd find in people magazine.

I also agree with Houkoholic about voice flipping being something of a minimum requirement for legitmacy among seiyuu. I mean even I can do voice flipping in the middle of a conversation from low baratone to squeaky high pitched and back again.

One last thing, on that Imenterprise link, Rie Kugimiya looks like she's giving me the evil eye.

AVPlaya

2007-07-26, 01:45

I looked Lucky Star up on wikipedia today and it says Kuroi Nanako speaks in a "fake" kansai accent and it got me curious to which part of her accent is "fake"
If any Japanese speaking comrades would care to enlighten me please do.

I'm not kansai-ban expert, but I thought her "hen ya" has a different pitch than normal osaka-ban. I thought it was annoying at first, given how much I love kansai everything, and hated the fact kandou folks makes fun of them (like Osaka in AzuDai), but I've grown to enjoy it.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-29, 13:45

I've updated the hashihime characters/seiyuus (http://hashihime.atspace.com/etc/luckystar/charseiyuus.html) page to include pics of and info about the new characters from ep16 -- Patty Martin and the Miyakawa sisters -- and their seiyuus.

The seiyuus are pretty good: Kano Yui as the younger sister, and Takaguchi Yukiko, who did such a great job as Sunako in Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge (The Wallflower). And of course, Sasaki Nozomi as Patty Martin.

Kano Yui has a very nice blog (http://blog.livedoor.jp/yuiyum/), and I just discovered Sasaki Nozomi's blog (http://ameblo.jp/19830219/). She fills it with good poetry and average photos. She is posting at least daily, rising into Hirano Aya territory for frequency -- although not quite up to Ochiai Yurika's several times a day, lol.

Now that I'm more familiar with the seiyuus here, I have to give a lot of credit to KyoAni (Yamakan?) for their selections. They decided they couldn't get or couldn't afford the drama CD cast, but the people they have selected are not chopped liver: they are young seiyuus who already have some accomplishments, and each of which brings something special.

By the way, the fact that a Hirano Aya x Sasaki Nozomi CD (http://www.yodobashi.com/enjoy/more/i/72875130.html) will be coming out is like a dream I never dared to have. Those are two of the voices I love best, at least as seiyuu. I hope they sing well together.

Vexx

2007-07-29, 15:32

Saw clips and pics of Aya and gang's performance at the recent convention.

Seems like the less happy the otaku are with her antics the more *I* like her.
:)

On Nanako's kansai affectation: yeah, the only 'fake' I can discern is her pitch control and she's not nearly as growly. However, I've encountered enough variation to know that "official" kansai-ben is a bit mythical. Kind of like there are actually 4 or 5 Texas accents, not just one.

truehappiness

2007-07-29, 23:21

Wouldn't drama seiyuu be cheaper to hire? :O

Xiaolang

2007-07-29, 23:39

Wouldn't drama seiyuu be cheaper to hire? :O

Or maybe, KyoAni didn't want the cast to be too much of a KyoAni "All-Star Reunion" of sorts.

They could've kept both Yuko Goto (who played Ayano Minegishi in the drama CD) and Satsuki Yukino (who played Patty Martin in the drama CD AND also played Kaname Chidori in Full Metal Panic!).

Hmm... that would've been a very interesting line-up now that I think about it.

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-30, 03:31

Wouldn't drama seiyuu be cheaper to hire? :OI think the same seiyuu are cheaper to hire for a drama than for an anime. In this case, the seiyuu who did the drama were an all-star cast of experienced top pros: Nakahara Mai, Koshimizu Ami, Shimizu Ai, Asano Masumi, Saitou Chiwa, Matsuki Miyu, Yukino Satsuki, Nonaka Ai, Noto Mamiko, Tamura Yukari.... That would make them more expensive than the comparatively young and inexperienced seiyuu who are actually doing it. At least, that's my understanding.

nadare

2007-07-30, 19:04

I just saw the haruhi concert and I must say... I was shocked what Hirano Aya wore when she sang Bouken Desho Desho?.

Xiaolang

2007-07-30, 20:31

I just saw the haruhi concert and I must say... I was shocked what Hirano Aya wore when she sang Bouken Desho Desho?.

Yeah, it was a shock, but I did see images of her wearing that shirt before the DVD came out... I guess they should fire either the wardrobe department OR someone should tell her what the shirt really means. :D

I really must buy this DVD, but I'm out of cash since Vivienne Westwood and Dior Homme took my money.

SatanicZero

2007-07-31, 11:12

i was amazed by Minori's singing....but i got kinda distracted by the weird hand movements

Kaoru Chujo

2007-07-31, 15:41

i was amazed by Minori's singing....but i got kinda distracted by the weird hand movementsI loved the hand movements. Loved them. And loved her singing. And her face.
I was shocked what Hirano Aya wore when she sang Bouken Desho Desho?I was a bit shocked and a bit pleased. I can't imagine she and her handlers didn't know what it meant. But I'm not sure what the reaction of a Japanese audience would be, whether they would understand it and whether they would be shocked or not. Can anyone here who is more familiar with the culture tell us?

She said at the beginning of this year that she was aiming to become more sexy, and she has been doing it. But she is getting there without actually wearing anything that revealing, even in her photo-book.

AVPlaya

2007-07-31, 16:09

I loved the hand movements. Loved them. And loved her singing. And her face.
I was a bit shocked and a bit pleased. I can't imagine she and her handlers didn't know what it meant. But I'm not sure what the reaction of a Japanese audience would be, whether they would understand it and whether they would be shocked or not. Can anyone here who is more familiar with the culture tell us?

What was she wearing? I've not seen the concert.... yet.

Xiaolang

2007-07-31, 16:31

What was she wearing? I've not seen the concert.... yet.

It was a fitted pink t-shirt, with the print "Did you cumtwice, too?" Personally, I think that's hot! Though maybe too hot for the average Japanese, otaku or not.

Speaking of which...

She said at the beginning of this year that she was aiming to become more sexy, and she has been doing it. But she is getting there without actually wearing anything that revealing, even in her photo-book.

Maybe you're falling for her? :D All kidding aside, she's a natural beauty (or the very least, a natural cutie; and this is before the role of Haruhi), and since she has more money to spend and probably has a plethora of make-up artists and designers, she can afford nicer clothes that accentuates her looks and body.

Chihara Minori is also good looking enough to be in idol photo shoots as well, if only she lands that breakthrough main character role like Aya did with Haruhi.

AVPlaya

2007-07-31, 16:54

It was a fitted pink t-shirt, with the print "Did you c** twice, too?"

Personally, I think that's hot! Though maybe too hot for the average Japanese, otaku or not.

Oh wow, no I don't think they would know that word without looking it up. It's not a normal Japanized-English. I have a feeling she doesn't really know what it meant; people wear engrish shirts all the time without knowing the meaning (if any) anyway.

If she does know what it meant, well it matches her adventurous and showy nature I guess. Kinda wild for a girl. If the audience knew, well I think they would find it hilarious. If her charas are mainly quiet, moe-types, yeah it maybe a bit much.. but for Aya I think it's fine. I mean, she played Tsunderes, lolis who's into lolicon, and girls like REIRA. I think the guys will love her more for it. Sexual terms are not that vulgar in Japanese, and many young people openly talk about sex with their friends. It's no biggie.

Vexx

2007-07-31, 17:08

Heh... welcome to "not from your neighborhood" way of thinking. I guess people from even more repressed countries would just blow a brain artery.

Shiroi Hane

2007-08-02, 16:30

Heh... welcome to "not from your neighborhood" way of thinking. I guess people from even more repressed countries would just blow a brain artery.

You think (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6560371.stm)? :p

Kaoru Chujo

2007-08-02, 19:21

This is not about Lucky Star, but it is about one of its voice actresses. I've just discovered Aya's song on the third character song CD for Sumomomo Momomo, and it blew me away. She sings jazz, believe it or not, soaring and swooping, using her voice more fully than I've ever heard before. Like her comic work in the LS karaoke EDs, she riffs away freely. Perhaps she's finding her voice.

I have a blog piece (http://hashihime.blogspot.com/2007/08/hirano-aya-jazz-singer.html) about it, with a link to the song on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4OkQ9xdWiA). And she treats us to a long scat section in English. Not understandable English, mind you, unless you have the lyrics, which I posted in the blog piece.

Nice link from Shiroi Hane, there. It's a big, big world.

Xiaolang

2007-08-02, 19:33

This is not about Lucky Star, but it is about one of its voice actresses. I've just discovered Aya's song on the third character song CD for Sumomomo Momomo, and it blew me away. She sings jazz, believe it or not, soaring and swooping, using her voice more fully than I've ever heard before. Like her comic work in the LS karaoke EDs, she riffs away freely. Perhaps she's finding her voice.

I have a blog piece (http://hashihime.blogspot.com/2007/08/hirano-aya-jazz-singer.html) about it, with a link to the song on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4OkQ9xdWiA). And she treats us to a long scat section in English. Not understandable English, mind you, unless you have the lyrics, which I posted in the blog piece.

How... Megumi-like. I'm sorry if I'm getting ahead of myself, but to me, it seems like Aya is striving to become the next Megumi Hayashibara. I'm not saying that's what Aya really thinks. However, I can't help but feel that Aya Hirano is trying to break free from the "seiyuu shell," much like Megumi Hayashibara was back in the 90s.

Anyway, that's just how I see it.

nadare

2007-08-02, 19:40

Is that hirano aya singing english on the 3:44 minute mark?

Kaoru Chujo

2007-08-02, 19:49

Is that hirano aya singing english on the 3:44 minute mark?Yes. Or speaking it. And she's speaking/singing in English from 4:00 on, too. You can almost make it out if you have the words in front of you. I think the singing is excellent, but the English is fairly bizarre -- and bizarrely enjoyable.

And xiaolang, I'm such a newcomer that I'm not very familiar with Hayashibara Megumi (although I just watched the first ep of the 3x3 Eyes OVA), so I know she's good. But I can imagine two fairly successful young seiyuu who like to sing feeling the same urge to break out into a larger realm, one that is better paid and more respected. In Aya's case, I have the feeling that she is really exploring herself and the world right now. And I think her agency and various producers are responding with some different things for her to try.

nadare

2007-08-02, 20:24

Yes. Or speaking it. And she's speaking/singing in English from 4:00 on, too. You can almost make it out if you have the words in front of you. I think the singing is excellent, but the English is fairly bizarre -- and bizarrely enjoyable.

And xiaolang, I'm such a newcomer that I'm not very familiar with Hayashibara Megumi (although I just watched the first ep of the 3x3 Eyes OVA), so I know she's good. But I can imagine two fairly successful young seiyuu who like to sing feeling the same urge to break out into a larger realm, one that is better paid and more respected. In Aya's case, I have the feeling that she is really exploring herself and the world right now. And I think her agency and various producers are responding with some different things for her to try.

I can make out most of the english on the Sanae Rap, not to mention, the song is addictive!

Btw, if you are new to Hayashibara Megumi you should check out Her Autobiography-manga "Megumi toons" (http://www.nnanime.com/megumi-toon/) .

Xiaolang

2007-08-02, 20:30

And xiaolang, I'm such a newcomer that I'm not very familiar with Hayashibara Megumi (although I just watched the first ep of the 3x3 Eyes OVA), so I know she's good. But I can imagine two fairly successful young seiyuu who like to sing feeling the same urge to break out into a larger realm, one that is better paid and more respected. In Aya's case, I have the feeling that she is really exploring herself and the world right now. And I think her agency and various producers are responding with some different things for her to try.

Megumi was very idol-like and really is prolific -- well from an historical standpoint anyway. Although Megumi was all about being a seiyuu first, she did want to try other things. Her music started out with pop, then a bit of rock, then ballads and now more adult contemporary. She's also a radio host/disc jockey, earned a nursing degree, and an author.

If you haven't read "Megumi Toons (http://www.nnanime.com/megumi-toon/index.shtml)", you should, it's her autobiography in manga form (and it's translated in English). =)

(Funny little timely tidbit: Megumi was part of Arts Vision, the same agency with the sex scandals.)

Now, with Aya, she kind of rekindled my admiration for voice actors and what they are capable of outside of voice acting. I feel that many of today's voice actors just lend their voice to one character, but when the series is over, they just move on to the next role. To me, Aya IS Haruhi, much like Megumi IS Ranma AND Lina Inverse AND Faye Valentine. But of course time will tell. Maybe in another decade, Aya will become as prolific as Megumi Hayashibara is today.

Edit: LOL! Nadare, we think alike.:heh:

Vexx

2007-08-03, 10:54

You think (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6560371.stm)? :p

I used to be quite open to a variety of belief systems because I thought the majority of a population bought into theirs, whatever it was. However, the older I get and the more I learn - the less tolerant I am of repressive psychotically abusive patriarchal .... um, mindrot? It is rather difficult to call it "thinking".

SatanicZero

2007-08-04, 06:02

it's good that Aya break out from the Seiyuu realm, i don't mind her pursuing a singing career....

Ashita no prism is currently stuck in my head

dodgethis_sg

2007-08-04, 06:36

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h51/dodgethis_sg/P1010278.jpg

SatanicZero

2007-08-04, 06:41

is that really minoru???

he's really daring....

shiro83

2007-08-04, 11:28

is that really minoru???

he's really daring....

Now he is all out to prove why he is the number one in the character vote... :heh:

AVPlaya

2007-08-06, 19:58

I guess Shiraishi wants to be in a Visual Kei band...

Vexx

2007-08-06, 22:04

Visual kei...... never have I found something to look so good and sound soooooo syrupy blah bad :)
Mostly my bad but with those sorts of garb I was expecting ambient/trance/goth/electronica/something ... not bambi-sugar-pop.
Pardon the derail... carry on.

SatanicZero

2007-08-06, 22:28

Visual kei ain't really me kind of bands...

but i can't help imagine Shiraishi with X-Japan looks...

AVPlaya

2007-08-06, 23:10

Visual kei ain't really me kind of bands...

but i can't help imagine Shiraishi with X-Japan looks...

I think he really wants to be in this band (http://psycholecemu.jp/):

http://img464.imageshack.us/img464/944/655140rj6.jpg

Kaoru Chujo

2007-08-10, 15:07

This is pure celebrity rumor, but it has inflamed 2channel to the extent of 1000 posts in less than 12 hours, so I thought I'd pass it on.

There are rumors of a relationship between Hirano Aya and 32-year-old seiyuu Taniyama Kishou (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/people.php?id=8073). Kiiyan is just about the freakiest-looking seiyuu of all, the singer of a hard-rock band called GranRodeo, and known as a conqueror of ladies. His friends say he has never failed with a woman he went after. He rose to prominence as the lead in Kimi ga Nozomu Eien, was Ken-chan in Lamune, Takeya in DearS, Tsukimori in Corda D'Oro, and Kittan in Gurren Laggan. He has also done a lot of boys'-love CDs. Here are some of his band's numbers on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=GRANRODEO+&search=Search).

It was the two photos below left, from Aaya's blog, that started the rumor. She, along with other female seiyuu, attended the band's concert in Yokohama last weekend. Kiiyan (Kishou's nickname) is in the middle. The guy in white is his musical partner, Iizuka Masaaki. Right is another interesting shot of him from Aaya's blog a couple of months ago, at an after-after party for Busou Renkin:

http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/7956/11201eo8.th.jpg (http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/7956/11201eo8.jpg) http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/2092/11211qx2.th.jpg (http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/2092/11211qx2.jpg) http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/6528/seiup21181648107087li6.th.jpg (http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/6528/seiup21181648107087li6.jpg)

Then there was a blog post (http://mohitoyura.blog99.fc2.com/blog-entry-92.html) from someone who claimed to have seen them together in Shinjuku, holding hands and "flirting." All this doesn't add up to much, in my opinion, but it's possible, I suppose. Kiiyan is apparently a bit of an unstoppable force. I saw him totally dominate a cast interview with the cast of Lamune (including Gotuuza-sama). But people say he seems like a nice guy, beneath the wildness.

The day after the concert, Aya wore a GranRodeo tatoo and tank top and called herself a "Rodeo Girl." Aya fans on 2channel are weeping, and anti-Aya elements are posting salacious ascii art and insults to make them weep more. People are thinking back to when Aaya started to become a rocker and trying to date the relationship to then, etc.

It's probably just a wild rumor with no basis in fact. Aaya may even be posting those photos as a way of making herself look more like a rocker than she really is. I think he is likely just a fun senpai who gives her advice about voice-acting and the business and likes the same kind of music. My opinion if it's true? They should do what they like. It makes some sense since they are both, in their own ways, supremely attractive. It could be fun for both of them, as long as it didn't interfere with any careers. It wouldn't affect my opinion of anyone, anyway.

Vexx

2007-08-10, 15:59

Just another example of how no matter how satirical Megatokyo is about otaku... they always seem to be even more disconnected in real life about the objects of their worship.

Aye..... the only anxiety I have about idols and VAs getting coupled up is that the japanese still retain a nasty tendency for the wife to "retire to being a homemaker" and we'd lose that talent on the scene.

Heh, Masaaki has a whiff of Lov*Com's 'Umeboshi' or whatever he's called in the series.

Teiran

2007-08-10, 16:23

Ah, I always wondered who did the voice work for Takayuki in KgNE. And, yeah, maybe I've been watching too much LoveCom... but slap a knit cap on Iizuka and he'd make a passable Umibouzu.

Xiaolang

2007-08-10, 16:25

Then there was a blog post (http://mohitoyura.blog99.fc2.com/blog-entry-92.html) from someone who claimed to have seen them together in Shinjuku, holding hands and "flirting." All this doesn't add up to much, in my opinion, but it's possible, I suppose. Kiiyan is apparently a bit of an unstoppable force. I saw him totally dominate a cast interview with the cast of Lamune (including Gotuuza-sama). But people say he seems like a nice guy, beneath the wildness.

The day after the concert, Aya wore a GranRodeo tatoo and tank top and called herself a "Rodeo Girl." Aya fans on 2channel are weeping, and anti-Aya elements are posting salacious ascii art and insults to make them weep more. People are thinking back to when Aaya started to become a rocker and trying to date the relationship to then, etc.

I'm sorry but, I laff at the fanatics. :p

It's probably just a wild rumor with no basis in fact. Aaya may even be posting those photos as a way of making herself look more like a rocker than she really is. I think he is likely just a fun senpai who gives her advice about voice-acting and the business and likes the same kind of music. My opinion if it's true? They should do what they like. It makes some sense since they are both, in their own ways, supremely attractive. It could be fun for both of them, as long as it didn't interfere with any careers. It wouldn't affect my opinion of anyone, anyway.

Throwing more gasoline into the fire -- maybe the two are trying to continue their sordid love since Kiddy Grade!*

*Okay that was obviously baseless, but I did notice that Kiiyan played a role in Kiddy Grade. So I tried to put two and two together, even though it's way off... or is it? :D