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”