Suzumiya Haruhi English Voice Auditions

I really don’t think that coming back from Japan a week ago is any excuse for me to have been so slow on the up-take in regards to Suzumiya Haruhi No Yuutsu (The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya), especially after my “boss”, xenocrisis, over at A-S exasperatedly reported on the miracle that is the English licensing of Suzumiya Haruhi No Yuutsu by none other than Bandai. To be honest, though I loved this anime with all possible awestruck giddiness I could give, this news did not make me wet my pants in joy. Rather, I was calm and collected about it. Not because I was doubtful of the job that the dubbing would do, or fearful that the series would be ruined by translation. If any series should get the royal treatment, this is definitely one of them. For me, I suppose it has been a while since the final episode fanfare for this anime ended, and now, very similar to the Naruto sensation, America is going to now experience what so many other hardcore subbing fans continue to be enraptured by for months after the last episode. I find it to be a bit disconcerting somehow…Anyway, far be it from me to place any judgment on English dubs, since I haven’t willingly partaked in one for at least four years, but as someone who has an ear for music and an obsession with Japanese VAs, I find the following news to be quite exciting and worth blogging my opinions about.

Anime News Network has linked to an English voice audition poll for two of the five characters for the dubbing of Suzumiya Haruhi No Yuutsu. Yuki Nagato and Mikuru Asahina are probably the most difficult characters, aside from Haruhi, to play; Yuki for her deadpan, monotone voice that, even still, contains much personality, and Mikuru for her whiny, high-pitched cries, and her soft, casually alluring/cute conversational tone that she takes up often with Kyon. This is my first time ever seeing a public poll for voice actors before. Whomever came up with this idea, kudos to them. I often feel that voice actors in anime are so underminded in what some views consider a worthwhile viewing experience. For this particular anime, if the VAs sucked, I hardly think that the viewing experience would have been as spectacular as the 10/10 that it was given over at A-S. At least not for me.

I carefully listened through Yuki’s four English auditions twice, and only listened through about four seconds of Japanese Yuki’s voice to get the tone and persona refreshed in my mind…

• 1st voice: On my first listen, this one seemed very promising. Pronunciation of Haruhi’s full name was on target, and the tone retained enough personality to warrant a vote. However, upon my second listen, I realized that the voice was openly lined with femininity that does not fit with Yuki’s character.
• 2nd voice: On my first listen, I noticed not only a tinge of femininity on ending syllables, but she rushed through a bit of her lines as well. On my second listen, there was no question of writing her off for horrible Japanese pronunciation.
• 4th voice: Only two seconds into the recording, this voice failed for even worse Japanese pronunciation. Upon playing through a bit more, I could tell that she was trying much too hard to replicate the Japanese VA’s style, and sounding like a robot doing it. No flow. No personality.
• 3rd voice: Though I did listen to the voices in order, it was this voice that I voted during my second listening. There’s a definite flow with her voice, as well as an underlying depth that the other voices did not have. Though there are pauses, they are well timed pauses and do not affect the flow, but rather move with the current of English pronunciation. Obviously, she was on target with her Japanese pronunciation as well. Upon picturing Yuki’s mouth movements matched with this voice, I knew she could become Yuki.

Unlike Yuki’s auditions, Mikuru’s auditions I am writing as I sample…

• 1st voice: On my first listen, I liked it, but didn’t like it. I liked it because it was characteristic of Mikuru, in that it encompassed the innocence and passive allure that the Japanese voice had. I didn’t like it because I found the squealiness to be over-the-top which cancelled out the ideal cuteness that Mikuru should have.
• 2nd voice: My first impression? Perfect. Not coming on too strong, and the level of squealiness just made me want to go “awww, you know she likes it.” In other words, there was moe. This voice captured the essence of Mikuru’s allure and cuteness beautifully. I can say in confidence that this voice would be capable of the same performance in later, more serene scenes. Circle takes the square ^^
• 3rd voice: At first, I thought to myself, “didn’t I just hear this voice actress?” That quickly faded as the squealing began. Overall, this voice is too “woman.” What do I mean by that? The undertones propagated by this voice are something like that of a middle-aged woman being scared by a mouse in the kitchen. The sound being released through the shape of her mouth is of a tall oval (like this: “0″ but thinner). The mood of youthful fear permeates the nervous beginning, but everything after that “squeals” everything that is not cute, moe, or even innocent.
• 4th voice: …Ew. No seriously. What was that? That’s NOT Mikuru at all! The voice exhibits the same general effort I pointed out with Yuki’s 4th audition. She is trying MUCH too hard to sound cute and childish, and is now coming off as a whiny preschooler who likes to “wring out” the last syllable of their words. She is unable to balance her tones between squealing and yelling out in pure embarassment. Mikuru isn’t someone who needs to be babied, nor is she some chibified character from one of those painfully annoying American cartoon shows I remember from my childhood. In any case…thumbs way down.

Well, if you want to make sure that the voice you deem positive makes the cut, please vote. This is one heck of an important investment in terms of producing an anime. I don’t want those who did not have the pleasure of following it from start to finish like I did to be cheated from a quality voice that would come through best in English translations. For the record though, according to the vote stats, those who have voted are on the same path as me. Take my critique into account if you want, but in the end, it’s on the entire anime community — whether you’re a “purist” (watch anime only in Japanese), a “dubbist”, or just entering anime fandom. If anymore auditions are voted on, I’ll make a point not to miss it, since this news is already a few days old.

Currently Listening To: Skankfunk – Air Gear Original Soundtrack – WHAT A GROOVY TRICK! – “Skygrinder”

A Chat of Obsessions

While I was idling on Gmail as I was deciding what I was going to buy from Play-Asia.com, Rob gave me an IM. Always enjoy chatting with this guy as long as it’s just me an him. When you add another gamer into the mix, I just get left out in the cold. Anyway, he’s still in Osaka, and will be for another semester. Since I referenced the permeating atmosphere of otakuness in a previous entry, I decided to share our most recent chat, which is mainly just him gabbing about all his new swag, and me being at a loss on account that I’m not in Osaka anymore.

me: hey

Rob: just saying “sup”
so
sup?

me: that’s cool. nothing much. about to eat and watch.
how’s it with you?

Rob: pretty good
i got bored so i went to denden
since nobody is here really except Daniel and the two Davids

me: when did you get bored, seeing as how it’s 2:30 AM

Rob: well
last night
so i was like “hmm, ill go to denden in the morning”
i literally planned going the night before
its awesome

me: Planning is usually a good thing

Rob: though since its winter break
and i have pretty much no plans
i can do that sort of things
thing
and its the first time i went alone, so i was able to take my time in some stores, and not bother with other stores

me: Yeah. That’s another thing

me: I was just about to order a CD from Play-Asia, but then I decided to check an IRC site I usually frequent for new music from Japan, and lo and behold it’s there >_>

Rob: well, IRC has everything ^_^

me: Yeah, usually. So…I’m gonna dl it even though I scowered DenDen & Akiba for it.

Rob: wow, still didnt find it?
i have yet to really not find anything in denden

me: Yeah, it was like it was never released. But it was release 8/23 I just found out

Rob: weird

me: Yeah.

me: So is having a storyline driven doujin dream about Saber and Shirou and then finding out that the Saber Character Image Cd just came out 2 days ago

Rob: thats just friggin luck
cause dreams about saber
are good
i usually have stuff like
i was walking down the street and i saw a dude that looks really creepy look at me and then my hair caught fire and suddenly i was watching “Married with Children” with Dolly Parton

me: Man. That sucks.

Rob: not that exactly
but about as random

me: Heh

Rob: not too often do i have anime dreams

me: It’s been a while since I had thought of my [heart] for Saber too. I’ve been afflicted these past few days so my dreams have become more vivid somehow.

Rob: heh
i realized that my favorite anime character
has to be Haruhi by far
just cause i feel like a fanboy
whenever i see anything haruhi
i bought ANOTHER haruhi shirt today

me: haha

Rob: a white polo

me: Nice
We need more Ciel.
I do at least.

Rob: says “haruhi-ism” on it on the left side of the chest
ciel is so cool
but her figures are so expensive

me: Yeah, because she’s so cool. I will invest in one somehow though.

Rob: good luck

me: Haha, just need to save some.

Rob: the new Haruhi figure came out tho
and i saw it and it was one of those really happy but really sad moments
cause its so awesome, but i knew i couldnt buy it
cause large figures + no packing space = bad

me: yup

Rob: but i bought a shirt that came with a phone card and a bookcover in a cool haruhi bag instead

me: XD

Rob: man i actually went to denden
thinking i wouldnt spend a lot of money

me: You don’t always have to. It’s best to have a plan anyway.

Rob: well i went there with only one thing in mind to get
and that was Shikigami no Shiro 3 for the PC
it was 4500 yen
which, for a new game that im gonna play the crap out of
isnt too bad

me: What platform?

Rob: PC

me: I meant game-wise

Rob: ooh
its a shooter
like

me: Ah

Rob: a vertical
shooter
but yeah, quite awesome and fun

me: Ah sounds like the game I bought.

Rob: its called “Castle Shikigami” back in the states
1 and 2 are released there i think
but 3 is only here in arcades and on PC
im a huge fan of 2
i recently bought 1 for the PS2
and i played 3 in arcades for a bit
but last night i found out it was released for the PC

me: heh

Rob: so i figured denden would be a good place to try to find it
and yeah
of course
its denden

me: Well, I plan on going back to Osaka anyway, so Den-Den is on my list
No time soon though

Rob: heh
thats good that you plan on hittin up the DDT again
but yeah, i found a new store
has a bunch of various anime goodies
so i picked up some pins for my bag, a haruhi mousepad for only 500 yen
a new mouse since my old one is pretty broken
and of course CDs and cards from them to sell online to people
[grin]

me: Heh yeah. Wishing I still had that luxury.

Rob: yeah, i figure if im still here
im gonna take advantage of it

Rob: and yeah of course i saw a buncha new stuff
like the haruhi shirt
and the new store

me: Makes sense. I’d do the same like I was doing. That’s great that you’re finding a bunch of new deals.

Rob: yeah
and i picked up some doujin for good measure
XD

me: It’s strange that I didn’t find any doujin I HAD to buy. The one that I bought was pretty worthless and degrading to Ciel in my opinion. Of course, I had my doubts about it, but I hoped it wouldn’t veer in that direction. But it did…a lot.

Rob: heh
ah well
two of the 5 i bought
i knew already
which is why i got them
two of the other ones i got cause they were haruhi and cheap
and one was a cheap negima one
i think i spent a total of 1800 or so for all 5?

me: Not bad

Rob: yeha
i wanted a good haruhi one
but like
i just kinda went the “whats cheap” route
and bought based of that and a pretty cover

me: That’s typically my strategy.
Being super picky doesn’t do much except waste other people’s time.

Rob: yeah
which is why i was glad i was alone

me: But I’m super picky…

Rob: cause if i wasnt, well, i wouldnt have even started looking
cause just finding the section that has what i want to look through
takes a while
then looking through
then deciding

me: yup yup
Well it’s already the start of the afternoon. I need to get some food in me, and watch a good anime.

Rob: alright, good talking to you

me: You too dude.

In any case…I seriously did buy a heck of a lot of stuff from Den-Den Town and Akiba.

Currently Listening To: Skankfunk – Air Gear Original Soundtrack – WHAT A GROOVY TRICK! – “Needin’ U”

Glimpses of Tokyo

The following are some very short clips I took with Shaian’s digital camera. They are from my time in Tokyo. I was trying to be discreet. So sorry for the blurriness.

A preadolescent is getting a train ticket in the largest station in Japan: Shinjuku Station.

Outside Akihabara Station – JR side

A game center in Ikebukuro

Pictures will eventually come in the form of a Flickr account. Just don’t know when. I took a lot.

ｱﾚｸｼｴﾙ･Works: Kisetsu Remix

As I said I would in my previous entry, here is the larger version of this.

• Original Image: View
• CG Design: View
• Design Name: Kisetsu (Season) Remix
• Usage: Anime-Source Fall 2006 Season Summary
• Approx. Perfectionist Timespan: 4 hrs.
• Software: Photoshop 7.0
• Hardware: Kana-Chan laptop
• Description: See previous entry — This still has flaws because I had to finish up before I left in the morning, but as it is now is really all I could manage anyway. Honestly wasn’t something I put my all into. So, as I said my last entry, I was surprised it was use-worthy…and said that it looked good.
• Creative Epiphany: I need to learn new self-CGing techniques…
• Foolhearty Sacrifices: All-nighter session