September 12, 2013
Mahoraba, Railgun, and Satomi Arai
Way back when, while reading the first site I ever used for reliable reviews, I discovered the value in trying out a series because I liked the main voice actors or actresses. Steven made a comment in his Railgun review and I hope he doesn't mind if I paste it here:
Things to watch for:Or listen for, anyway. Kuroko is a wonderful character, varied and complex, yet absurdly funny at times. Kuroko's seiyuu was in love with the character, and did an amazing job with the part. Kuroko is not my favorite character in the series, but there's no doubt that her's was the best seiyuu performance. (seiyuu is the Japanese term for voice actress)
I had never thought about looking at a series before from that perspective which, for a former drama major seems rather silly. It was his note about the seiyuu being in love with the character that got me interested in Satomi Arai in particular. I had seen other series in which she played usually supporting characters, including the recent Mondaiji-tachi ga Isekai kara Kuru Sou Desu yo and, umm, To Love Ru. Her versatility is both evident and amazing. Then I came across Mahoraba: Heartful Days.
In a nutshell, the female protagonist has multiple personality disorder. How the male protagonist adjusts to it and works towards developing the different relationships he must make to this same person is the major plot direction in the show. It is difficult for a voice actor(actress) to establish a convincing character in any series, especially an animated one. To have five different, distinctive characters, when you have limited "stage time" for each is nigh on impossible.
Because we do not have the physical presence of the actor, the voice becomes much more important in convincing us successfully to believe the character. The animation needs to be "right" for the voice and vice-versa. The level of anxiety we hear, or affection, or anger all help us believe the story. It helps drag us in.
The timbre (or tone quality) of a voice is generally a constant, whether the voice is speaking in a light tone, a romantic tone, a violent tone, etc. This is good, because it ties a sound to the character and impresses us in sub conscious ways. We identify the tone with the character, and it gives us a perspective - a mental image of sorts so they don't have to start from scratch in every new scene. This doesn't always work out for the best, because there are some voice actors I just don't like listening to and it was a real distraction for what might have been an otherwise interesting story.
In Mahoraba, Satomi Arai does such a wonderful job with the different characters and their very different voices, that by the middle of the series, I was able to tell which personality was emerging before the camera could reveal it. Each character was not only distinct, but identifiable. The "hail fellow" voice of one was so different from the shy retiring voice of another, to the utter childishness of a third. The timbre helped anchor all these together. You knew the same "body" was saying these lines because of the timbre.
Considering that most of her personalities don't have an awful lot of screen time, it takes a special talent to make this work. Ms. Arai establishes these characters quickly, and believably at the outset. Each character addresses the world and the characters in it in complete, yet completely different ways. Without her talent, what is one of my favorite series would be a sad attempt at a nice idea, and I have seen enough of those.
She is truly a gifted performer.
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Things to watch for:Or listen for, anyway. Kuroko is a wonderful character, varied and complex, yet absurdly funny at times. Kuroko's seiyuu was in love with the character, and did an amazing job with the part. Kuroko is not my favorite character in the series, but there's no doubt that her's was the best seiyuu performance. (seiyuu is the Japanese term for voice actress)
I had never thought about looking at a series before from that perspective which, for a former drama major seems rather silly. It was his note about the seiyuu being in love with the character that got me interested in Satomi Arai in particular. I had seen other series in which she played usually supporting characters, including the recent Mondaiji-tachi ga Isekai kara Kuru Sou Desu yo and, umm, To Love Ru. Her versatility is both evident and amazing. Then I came across Mahoraba: Heartful Days.
In a nutshell, the female protagonist has multiple personality disorder. How the male protagonist adjusts to it and works towards developing the different relationships he must make to this same person is the major plot direction in the show. It is difficult for a voice actor(actress) to establish a convincing character in any series, especially an animated one. To have five different, distinctive characters, when you have limited "stage time" for each is nigh on impossible.
Because we do not have the physical presence of the actor, the voice becomes much more important in convincing us successfully to believe the character. The animation needs to be "right" for the voice and vice-versa. The level of anxiety we hear, or affection, or anger all help us believe the story. It helps drag us in.
The timbre (or tone quality) of a voice is generally a constant, whether the voice is speaking in a light tone, a romantic tone, a violent tone, etc. This is good, because it ties a sound to the character and impresses us in sub conscious ways. We identify the tone with the character, and it gives us a perspective - a mental image of sorts so they don't have to start from scratch in every new scene. This doesn't always work out for the best, because there are some voice actors I just don't like listening to and it was a real distraction for what might have been an otherwise interesting story.
In Mahoraba, Satomi Arai does such a wonderful job with the different characters and their very different voices, that by the middle of the series, I was able to tell which personality was emerging before the camera could reveal it. Each character was not only distinct, but identifiable. The "hail fellow" voice of one was so different from the shy retiring voice of another, to the utter childishness of a third. The timbre helped anchor all these together. You knew the same "body" was saying these lines because of the timbre.
Considering that most of her personalities don't have an awful lot of screen time, it takes a special talent to make this work. Ms. Arai establishes these characters quickly, and believably at the outset. Each character addresses the world and the characters in it in complete, yet completely different ways. Without her talent, what is one of my favorite series would be a sad attempt at a nice idea, and I have seen enough of those.
She is truly a gifted performer.
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1
Happy days when she wasn't yet as typecast as in 2010. Same happened to Kugyuu, too, who actually broke out in Shingu. Hard to imagine!
Posted by: Pete Zaitcev at October 09, 2013 10:19 PM (RqRa5)
2
Ugh, I'm sorry I missed your comments. Your the first!
Because of Steven's review I watched Shingu and was hooked. I'm guessing that Kugyuu is another name for Kugimiya Rie?
Because of Steven's review I watched Shingu and was hooked. I'm guessing that Kugyuu is another name for Kugimiya Rie?
Posted by: topmaker at November 02, 2013 12:07 AM (2yZsg)
3
Correct. Sorry, these nicknames are not always obvious... Portmaneu like Kojiharu is one thing, but for example Asami Imai is called "Mingosu", I have no idea why.
Posted by: Pete Zaitcev at November 02, 2013 04:35 AM (RqRa5)
4
I started watching Fairy Tail about the same time as my second Shingu watch. I recognized her voice as Happy, but I was not prepared for the stereo typing you mentioned, such as Shana, Louise, Aria, etc. She does seem to have quite a bit of that to her name.
On the other hand, Karin and Nemu in Bleach? That was a surprise, as well as Cassie Lockheart in Freezing (yes, I watch that).
I wonder if these actresses regret the typecasting, or if they see it as steady income? Maybe both, I guess.
On the other hand, Karin and Nemu in Bleach? That was a surprise, as well as Cassie Lockheart in Freezing (yes, I watch that).
I wonder if these actresses regret the typecasting, or if they see it as steady income? Maybe both, I guess.
Posted by: topmaker at November 02, 2013 07:59 PM (2yZsg)
5
Speaking of Mahoraba, I had some notes at the time.
Posted by: Pete Zaitcev at January 04, 2014 05:13 PM (RqRa5)
6
Pete,
I'm reading your notes as we speak. I have a couple of questions/comments, but first:
Unrelated to your posts, I think Mahoraba is a great example of a show that left the manga, but had wonderful alternatives on its own. The whole Prince Princess story is pretty much series original, was telegraphed all the way through, and resulted in as satisfying a conclusion as a series could get that was ongoing. Almost a masterpiece in my opinion.
The manga will always be one of my favorites.
First question:
you wrote this down the line:
- scale: resolves all :: resolves nothing
Haibane Renmei
Azumanga Daioh
Stellvia
Banner of the Stars
Mahoraba -- continues for a limited time (residents leave)
Tenchi Muyo OVA -- continues indefinitely
Fruits Basket
? Dai-Guard, Chobits, Someday's Dreamers
It seems to be the future of certain shows. Did you ever finish what was listed?:
Haibane Renmei - the world continues, most characters move on - or somesuch?
Second - you made a note about the world of Someday's Dreamers and Gummint control. I think that part 2 took care in minimizing all that. The rules seemed more like strong suggestions, since there were several instances of using magic without permission. Also, the bureaucracy seemed well behind the scenes and they concentrated more on Sensei - student.
Third - I can't believe I missed the Bottle Fairy point. I have not seen that series yet, but I have read Steven's review. If I remember, I think Steven may have gotten the idea from someone else, but it was an interesting viewpoint, sad as it is. Good catch!
Fourth, I'm not sure if Tammami fully knew whether the alts needed to be destroyed or not, but she knew that something needed to be done. On the other hand, wasn't she was one of the most enabling residents, especially with Chiyui, the cosplay designer? Do you see her as a better friend before but not after Shiratori?
Sorry to bother you with these. Don't bother if you don't have time. I enjoyed both of your pages of notes. Thanks for pointing them out.
I'm reading your notes as we speak. I have a couple of questions/comments, but first:
Unrelated to your posts, I think Mahoraba is a great example of a show that left the manga, but had wonderful alternatives on its own. The whole Prince Princess story is pretty much series original, was telegraphed all the way through, and resulted in as satisfying a conclusion as a series could get that was ongoing. Almost a masterpiece in my opinion.
The manga will always be one of my favorites.
First question:
you wrote this down the line:
- scale: resolves all :: resolves nothing
Haibane Renmei
Azumanga Daioh
Stellvia
Banner of the Stars
Mahoraba -- continues for a limited time (residents leave)
Tenchi Muyo OVA -- continues indefinitely
Fruits Basket
? Dai-Guard, Chobits, Someday's Dreamers
It seems to be the future of certain shows. Did you ever finish what was listed?:
Haibane Renmei - the world continues, most characters move on - or somesuch?
Second - you made a note about the world of Someday's Dreamers and Gummint control. I think that part 2 took care in minimizing all that. The rules seemed more like strong suggestions, since there were several instances of using magic without permission. Also, the bureaucracy seemed well behind the scenes and they concentrated more on Sensei - student.
Third - I can't believe I missed the Bottle Fairy point. I have not seen that series yet, but I have read Steven's review. If I remember, I think Steven may have gotten the idea from someone else, but it was an interesting viewpoint, sad as it is. Good catch!
Fourth, I'm not sure if Tammami fully knew whether the alts needed to be destroyed or not, but she knew that something needed to be done. On the other hand, wasn't she was one of the most enabling residents, especially with Chiyui, the cosplay designer? Do you see her as a better friend before but not after Shiratori?
Sorry to bother you with these. Don't bother if you don't have time. I enjoyed both of your pages of notes. Thanks for pointing them out.
Posted by: topmaker at January 04, 2014 08:22 PM (i0rVe)
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