Anime NYC brought some extremely talented voice actors from Japan to the Javits Center last November. Can you believe it’s already been almost two months since ANYC? I can’t either, but for those who are looking to get into seiyuus or are established seiyuu fans already, you’ve come to the right place.

To preface, “seiyuu” is the term for a voice actor in Japanese. It is a unisex term, meaning both men and women are referred to as seiyuu, and we’ve had some up-and-coming and legendary ones come to the convention. They attended panels and even signed autographs if you paid a certain amount of money or won a free one through the lottery.

Kazuki Ura (Voice of Yoichi Isagi from BLUE LOCK)

The BLUE LOCK panel was so much fun, if not one of the best panels at the convention. The featured seiyuu was Ura Kazuki, the voice actor for the main character Yoichi Isagi. Ura mentioned that it was his first time in New York, and everyone adored how bubbly he was throughout the panel. When the host asked what line was most difficult to perform, he said that it was “hetakuso”, which roughly translates to “donkey” in English. Given the harsh way that Shouei Barou (CV: Junichi Suwabe) says the original line, it’s no surprise that Ura found it challenging.

Copyright:  ©Muneyuki Kaneshiro,Yusuke Nomura, KODANSHA/BLUE LOCK Production Committee

“Sometimes you feel that it’s impossible to win. But you have the possibility of winning if you be yourself,” commented Ura when asked about why BLUE LOCK was so appealing.

Ura told the audience a funny story about what happened while they were recording. “Toward the last episode, there was a scene with Rin and Isagi really wanted to beat him. I felt the urge to beat Rin as I was reading the script,” he said. “In the recording booth I was so into trying to beat him that I read Rin’s line. Nobody noticed it so we just kept on going but after that the staff told me, ‘that was very egoistic of you.’”

I appreciated the host asking questions about Ura’s work as a voice actor, especially about some challenges Ura had faced in the studio.

“Because this character requires what I feel I didn’t have personally, every week before recording, I had to go beyond my ability and my skills, otherwise I felt like Isagi [was] going to leave me behind. I had to catch up. I learned from my senior seiyuus and what they can do and try to learn from them just like Isagi did by looking at other players.”

Ryoya Arisawa, the producer of BLUE LOCK and who was also a guest at the panel claimed that the stakes were a little too high and the team had their doubts, but “looking back, [it] was a fun memory.” “When this anime adaptation story came up, we had the director and the original author of the manga get together and decided that we wanted to make this the number one anime,” Arisawa explained. “Because we went into the production with that spirit, we were always thinking, ‘No, we can do more,’ ‘If you’re going to do that, then I can do this.’ We just kept trying to do better with BLUE LOCK.”

The panel was engaging, and the audience thoroughly enjoyed hearing Ura talk about his experience working on the anime and looking up to Seishiro Nagi’s voice actor, Nobunaga Shimazaki. At the end, they played a video from the artist and voice actor Shugo Nakamura – who sang the first ending theme song and voices Gin Gagamaru – and ASH DA HERO, who sang the second opening. They gave their positive words to the panelists and fans, with Nakamura-san seemed slightly envious that he couldn’t attend the convention.

Ura gave his thanks and the short hour-long panel came to an end. I still feel a slight void to this day and just like everyone else, cannot wait for the second season of BLUE LOCK.

Ichinose Kana and Lynn (Voices of Suletta Mercury and Miorine Rembran from Mobile Suit Gundam the Witch from Mercury)

Attending the Mobile Suit Gundam the Witch from Mercury panel almost made me tear up a bit. It featured the main character’s voice actresses, Kana Ichinose, the voice of Suletta Mercury, and Lynn, the voice of Miorine Rembran

I want to mention that these two are absolutely gorgeous ladies. I won a free autograph from the lottery on Friday and Ichinose even asked who I was cosplaying when she signed my poster!

Copyright: © SOTSU・SUNRISE・MBS

I was too starstruck and replied in my broken Japanese that I was Kyan Reki from Sk8 the Infinity. It took her a few tries, but she finally understood what I was trying to say. Lynn also took the time to try and pronounce my name. It was one of the sweetest interactions I’ve had the entire convention and my first with voice actors.

It was both Ichinose and Lynn’s first time in New York, and they mentioned how they wanted to visit some tourist attractions and museums. Great choices as a native New Yorker, if I might say. I adored the NYC-themed animation they prepared with Suletta and Miorine taking a photo in front of the Statue of Liberty. Lynn said, “We were able to take the same picture doing the same pose at the very same exact location. It was amazing to see the Statue of Liberty up close for the first time! I enjoyed the boat ride to and from Liberty Island as well.” (Check out the photos they took in New York at @ichinose_kana1220 and @lynn.06.01.)

When asked how they felt once they found out they were cast, Ichinose said she was surprised. “I felt tremendous pressure when I received the call that I passed the audition. After all, Gundam is a big title and one of Japan’s nationally known anime. But I knew that if I was preoccupied with feeling pressured, we would not be able to make a good end product, so I tried to reset and enjoy the Witch from Mercury recordings. Then eventually, I was able to enjoy it naturally.”

“I have loved the Gundam series since I was a child, and even after becoming a voice actor, I have always wanted to voice a major character in the series,” said Lynn, who found out on her birthday. “So when I got the role, it was like a dream come true for me.”

“For those who haven’t seen Witch from Mercury,” Lynn said, “There are a lot of fascinating characters and cool Mobile Suits. It can also be enjoyed by those who have never seen Gundam since Witch from Mercury is set in a school setting.” Ichinose finds the relationships between the characters appealing, as she said, “I like how each parent and child find and shape their own form of relationship with one another.” I love some good character growth; now I’m inclined to watch it myself.

Copyright: © SOTSU・SUNRISE・MBS

Suletta Mercury is also the first female protagonist for the Gundam franchise. Ichinose was “surprised thinking ‘The first female protagonist…!’, but even in the first Mobile Suit Gundam, there were women piloting Mobile Suits and fighting on the battlefield, so nowadays it would not have been surprising to see a woman as the main character of a Gundam series.” Congratulations to her for such an accomplished feat!

Ichinose brought out her shy side when voicing Suletta, even running around while speaking when practicing at home. “It’s quite difficult to speak while out of breath, isn’t it?” she added. Miorine, on the other hand, was a different role than Lynn was used to. “I had difficulty grasping how to voice and express Miorine until around Episode 3 and there were a few scenes where I had to be led into the right direction. In the process, I realized that the way I thought Miorine should be expressed when I first read the script is not always the correct interpretation, so I sought out different ways to speak and show emotion in ways I had never tried before,” she said. “Miorine was definitely a very hard character to voice.” Despite the difficulties, they both have done fantastic jobs voicing Suletta and Miorine!

They talked about their favorite takeaways and themes from the series, mentioning the characters’ interpersonal relationships. “The relationship between a parent and a child is one of the themes, showing that parents sometimes make mistakes or fail to communicate well because they are human beings as well,” said Ichinose. Lynn said, “In all these human connections, one of the themes of Witch from Mercury is being ‘independent’ while being supported by loved ones and I think it’s very fascinating to see the characters moving forward and growing in such a way. I hope that Witch from Mercury gives strength to anyone who watches it.”

The panel ended with a live reading, which is something I’ve always dreamed of seeing. After watching the first episode before the convention, nothing could have compared to seeing voice acting performed in person. I was so amazed watching Ichinose and Lynn read from the script that I couldn’t even pay attention to the corresponding animation on the screen. Even if I don’t know Japanese, I knew they put their all into the five-minute short of Suletta and Miorine in a heated debate. They bid their farewells, and I left the panel awe-inspired and eager to watch more of their work.

Ishiya Haruki and Kawanishi Kengo (Voices of Beryl Gut and Scandinavia Peperoncino  from Fate/Grand Order) 

The voice actors of Beryl Gut, Ishiya Haruki, and Scandinavia Peperoncino, Kawanishi Kengo, were the seiyuu representatives for Fate/Grand Order. Their Q&A portion was quite short, as the rest of the panel was the CEO discussing the upcoming features of the game that would be released the following week.

Copyright: https://www.anime-planet.com/characters/beryl-gut https://anilist.co/character/154539/Scandinavia--Peperoncino

When asked what made him want to become a voice actor, Ishiya explained that he suffered from a sports injury and during his recovery watched an anime. He was inspired since then and started from there. Kawanishi always wanted to work in entertainment and decided to use his voice to be a part of the industry.

Kawanishi said that it is common to view the character’s illustration before voicing them and that it’s important that the character and not himself stands out. Erasing himself from the equation and channeling everything into the character is the ultimate method when it comes to voice acting. Ishiya agreed, stating that understanding the character in their setting and how they’ll be conveyed to the audience is something he keeps in mind when providing his voice.

Peperoncino and Beryl are minor characters in Fate Grand Order. Because of this, Ishiya said it was a challenge but was enjoyable as he was able to voice a character that he usually doesn’t get to play. There was limited information on the characters but through playing the game, Kawanishi was able to get a sense of Peperoncino’s character and mentioned that voicing him was a collaborative effort.

For those thinking about becoming a voice actor, Ishiya and Kawanishi had some words of advice. Ishiya noticed that there were a lot of people at Anime NYC who put passion into what they love, which is anime. He advises for everyone to put that passion into what they love doing which can potentially develop into a career. Kawanishi said something similar encouraging the audience to have fun with it and that there’s no right answer to voice acting.

Now I’m inspired to become a voice actor myself! Imagine the endless possibilities that arise when you apply pressure to your passions. Ishiya Haruki and Kawanishi Kengo are perfect examples of that.

I felt a sense of completion, having seen all of the voice actors I wanted to see at Anime NYC. I hope next year will bring even more amazing VAs to the convention. See everyone in August!