Animax’s Blog

THE SIX STEEDS OF GO FROM KOUTETSU SANGOKUSHI

[COPYRIGHT INDICATED IN PHOTO]

If there’s any
anime that deserves the dubious credit for busting my beloved DVD
player while I’m recuperating, thus subjecting a poor sick person to
the dreariness of free TV and cable programming, it has to be Koutetsu Sangokushi (pronounced
"ko-tet-soo san-gok-shi"). Never did I expect that I would find myself
getting so hooked on it that I watched it not just once, but THRICE. As
a result, the DVD player went POP!

Koutetsu Sangokushi belongs
to that genre of anime called "shounen-ai" (literally means "boy’s
love"), which hints at or actually depicts romantic relationships
between boys or men. So, aside from the peasant woman who dies in the
first episode, you won’t find a single female in this anime.

The story takes
place in Ancient China, specifically the war-torn kingdom of Go, which
is being attacked from its borders by rival kingdoms who are hell-bent
on getting the Imperial Seal — an ornate dragon box with a glowing orb
inside that has the power to bestow upon the person it favors the
powerful Flame Armor. Enter Rikuson Hakugen who, as the "Crimson
Warrior", has been traveling all over the country with his Master, the
flamboyant Shoukatsuryou Koumei, helping the oppressed people in the
land. Upon his return to Go, Rikuson has become bitter by the
realization that he could not help everyone. Koumei convinces the young
hero to ally himself with Go, only to have Rikuson witness the
assassination of its King and the Imperial Seal stolen by mysterious
thugs. Before long, Rikuson — together with five other misfit warriors
– pledges to retrieve the Imperial Seal, and defend Go and its new boy
king Sonken from all invaders…one of whom may be his own beloved
Master Koumei.

Most of the anime blog sites who have reviewed Koutetsu Sangokushi
have done it a great disservice by labeling it boring. Far from it!
This is character-driven storytelling at its finest. It may seem to
drag for those who prefer action non-stop and the dialogue
straightforward, but if you want to appreciate this anime to its
fullest, you have to play close attention to the interactions between
the characters. It is such a multi-layered story that you won’t be able
to grasp the numerous messages it wants to convey with just one
watching alone. Stick with it and you won’t regret it!

While Koutetsu Sangokushi may
be considered as a visual treat for the ladies who want their anime
loaded with bishounen ("pretty boys"), credit for its success in
pulling off a very difficult character-driven plotline falls
exclusively on the shoulders of its all-male leads and the seiyuu who
portray them. Mamoru Miyano — who wowed fans with his portrayal of
Light Yagami in Death Note — provides great emotional depth
and heartbreaking vulnerability to Rikuson. Not surprisingly, it is for
this role — and two others — that Miyano won the Best Male Seiyuu
Award at the recent Seiyuu Awards in Japan. Voice actress Mitsuki Saiga
is in her element as the bratty Ryoutou, although her portrayal is
remarkably reminiscent of Wolfram in Kyou Kara Maou! A
particular treat for me was the hilarious repartee between Taishiji
(played with boisterous perfection by Kentarou Itou, who is more known
as Ensei in Saiunkoku Monogatari) and the wimpy Ryomou (portrayed by fan favorite Akira Ishida, who played Hakkai in the Saiyuki anime).
Also brilliant were Takehito Koyasu and Koji Yusa, who portrayed rival
siblings Koumei and Shoukatsukin, respectively. Masaya Onosaka and
Noriaki Sugiyama, who played star-crossed brothers-in-arms Chouhi and
Choun respectively, had me weeping buckets. Oh, my nephew wants me to
mention seiyuu Rina Satou as the irritating tranvestite boy king
Ryuubi. Says Enzo, "An actress who could play such an annoying
character as Ryuubi is darned good in my book." I must admit that the
one seiyuu whose acting really bowled me over was that of Junichi
Suwabe, who played the ex-pirate Kannei. Suwabe is more known to fans
for playing strong male characters — Grimmjow from Bleach, Atobe from Prince of Tennis and Archer from Fate/Stay Night,
just to name a few. So to see him acting out an emotionally vulnerable
character was quite an accomplishment. Personally, I would like to see
him playing more roles like this.

Koutetsu Sangokushi,
for all its complexity, is a story about love in all its forms. You
have love for one’s sibling, love for power, the love that a student
has for his teacher, love for one’s country, and — yes, the hints are
too strong to be ignored — even love between two men. It’s a
compelling story of how love can be used to achieve one’s selfish
gains. But on the other hand, it is also love that can right all
wrongs, even if it entails a noble but heartbreaking sacrifice in the
very end.

Scott Evans with his anime counterpart Van from Gun X Sword.

[PHOTO CREDITS: © 2005 AIC • Team DannChester/ Gun Sword Partners]

Sorry,
but I’m sick right now. Really sick. Have on and off high fever for the
past ten days, and chest-bursting coughing spells that make it
difficult for me to breathe. Doctor said I had fluid in my left lung,
so I now have this long drain sticking out of my chest and need to stay
in the hospital for four more days. To those who have been pestering
for a new blog, some consideration for God’s sake! Thankfully, my
nephew Enzo is here to man the fort. It’s not as if I have any choice.
He and his siblings have been begging me for weeks to post this, so I
thought I’d let them do it, especially since they are HUGE fans of this
Animax voice actor.

When Scott Evans
joined the team of Animax VAs, he had a monumental task ahead of him.
He was put in the unenviable position of being the replacement for
Darren Pleavin (a.k.a. Louis), who is much loved by the channel’s
viewers. However, Scott took it as a challenge, and at present has been
playing lead roles, which include Hanamichi Sakuragi in Slam Dunk, Van in Gun X Sword, and Ovan in .Hack//Roots. (Check the program sked for this shows.) Get to know a little more about Scott in this interview…

What prompted you to decide to become a voice actor? Did you get formal training and for how many years?

I’m
trained as a sound engineer. When I came back to Hong Kong to live, I
had the opportunity to work with various dubbers and voice-over artists
throughout Hong Kong. It struck me as a challenging and exciting job,
one that had more creative outlet than just sitting in the studio
control room. I learned how to dub and act by exposing myself to more
talented people than me, and really trying to get better and better.
Being a musician for the past 16 years, I’m no stranger to having a
microphone in front of me, and it felt like a natural progression to go
from the mixing desk to the dubbing table!

You joined the Animax voice talents when you took over the role of Sano in Law of Ueki
from the original voice actor who portrayed the character. Given that
Animax fans have a tendency of being overly critical, did you feel any
pressure in taking over a part that was played by one of the early
voice talents of Animax?

You’re
definitely aware of the fact that people are going to notice. The
people who enjoy anime are fairly discerning, so you know that there
are going to be people out there who don’t like the fact that one of
the voices in their favourite show has changed. I also took over the role of Yamcha in Dragon Ball
from the same voice actor, so I had two pairs of shoes to fill. It’s
very much a part of the industry though. Not just dubbing, but regular
television as well. Actors have lives too, and sometimes that means
moving on and creating new opportunities.

Among
the characters you have voiced for Animax, who is a) your favorite, b)
the most challenging you’ve ever done, and c) the most memorable, and
why?

(A)
I would definitely have to say Hanamichi Sakuragi has been one of my
favourite characters up to date. The rest of the characters in the show
are pretty straight forward, very much in the style of most of the
anime sports shows. Hanamichi is completely off the rails though.
Laughing, crying, screaming and completely unaware of his limitations.
That makes it pretty fun. (B) He would also be the most challenging
character that I’ve ever had to play. Mainly because all that screaming
and laughing is very hard to keep up in an 8-hour day. He’s a
particularly difficult character to dub because he’s so unpredictable
too. We may have a script, but it’s not always possible to write down
exactly what he’s doing. So some scenes require more takes than others,
just because I have to watch what he’s doing a few times before I can
actually do it. (C) Train Hartnett from Black Cat would have to be my most memorable character because it was the first time I got to play the main character in a series.

I
received a lot of positive feedback from anime fans (I personally
thought you were fantastic!) about the way you performed the stirring
monologue in that scene from Gun X Sword wherein
Van came close to losing his sanity in that abandoned town (with those
church bells). How did you prepare yourself – both acting-wise and
mentally – for that heavy scene?

Acting-wise,
I approach most scenes pretty much the same way. As a dubber, it’s
important to take cues from the original Japanese version. They were,
after all, the original actors in the scene. So being aware of the mood
and scope of the scene helps to give an authentic performance that
people find credible. It also helps to understand the show in a larger
context than just the episode you’re working on. This reduces character
twists from taking you by surprise and allows you give a consistent
performance throughout the scene, the episode and ultimately the whole
series. The emotional side is quite different though. If you’re doing a
scene like the one you mentioned in Gun X Sword, you want to
put more of yourself into it. It’s obviously very important to try and
feel the way the character feels to the best of your ability. But I may
deviate slightly from the original Japanese version in order to give
the best performance I can in my own style. I think with the really
emotional stuff, being yourself is the key to coming across as
convincing to the audience. Anime fans are pretty smart, they can tell
when you’re displaying genuine emotion or not.

Hanamichi Sakuragi of Slam Dunk
is also quite a challenging character to play. Did portraying this
well-loved anime icon present any problems for you and how did you
overcome them?

Hanamichi
presents daily problems in terms of just being able to make my words
fit his mouth! That’s definitely what I find so fun about the character
though. I’d say the challenge is just working with the director to make
each performance as funny, energetic and fast-paced as the original.
He’s by no means the only character in the show though, so I guess not
accidentally spitting on my colleagues while in the middle of a
trademark Hanamichi tirade would be the second challenge!

In
your opinion, why do you think that considerable attention is now being
given to voice actors compared to past decades? Do you feel any
pressure from a much divided anime "fandom" who can’t seem to get along
on which is better – subtitled or dubbed anime?

I
think the companies behind the really famous animation shows over the
decades realize that the people watching are actually interested in the
people portraying their favourite characters. Voice acting used to be
considered a fairly lowly position to have in the animation process,
and only recently have the more famous voice actors been given the
credit and exposure that their talent deserves. As far as the divide
over the “Subtitle VS Dubbing” debate, I think it’s just important that
people have a choice. There’s always going to be people who want to
keep everything as it was originally created, and that’s important. But
I think dubbing a an anime into another language allows the viewer to
see the anime a way that’s a bit closer to the original experience, in
terms of having someone act the scene to you, instead of reading
subtitles. As long as people have the choice, I think everyone will be
happy.

David Adam Bridges side by side with one of his anime counterparts — Le Chevalier D’Eon’s Durand

[PHOTO CREDIT  © TOW UBAKATA • Production I.G/ Project Chevalier 2006]

It should be said that one of the reasons why The Count of Monte Cristo became so popular was because of David Adam Bridges,
the voice actor who stirred fans’ hearts with his heart-rending
portrayal of Franz D’Epinay. Although he later on did a wide variety of
dramatic and comedic characters, he remains, in the opinion of many
anime fans (including yours truly!), to be THE voice actor who could
portray death scenes with great intensity. Just see how he handled Le Chevalier D’Eon’s Durand so marvelously.

Let’s get to know Animax voice actor David Adam Bridges in this week’s blog…

Honestly, I found
this job online. I’d never done it before, but I did have some acting
experience both professionally and leisurely. But it’s not something
I’d never even considered until I saw the advertisement. But as soon as
I did, I thought I’d be good at it and it’d be a lot of fun. And as it
turns out, I was and it is. So here I am now.

Many
fans have the impression that anyone could become a voice actor. Some
have even gone so far as to say that "Voice actors are born and not
made." Is this true or not? And why? 

I don’t know. I
certainly think that anyone can do anything if they try hard enough.
The thing is, some people would have to try and practice a lot harder
than others. For me it was that I could just do it from the start, but
of course since then, I’ve grown and learned more and experimented with
different voices and things. There’s a lot more to it than just
speaking though. You have to be able to read the other actors you’re
working with to know who’s going to do what and when. You have to be
able to read the script, interpret, then speak with the right meaning
and inflection in your voice in an instant while at the same time
trying to sound interesting. You need range in voice to be able to do
it, as is so often needed — a big tough mean sounding deep gruff guy
for this line, a high soft airy lighthearted boy for that line, an
confused old man for this, a nerdy kid for that, a heroic strong yet
cool guy for the other and something random for a guy in the crowd. And
then you have to remember the exact voices you’ve done for the next
week after having done three other cartoons in between. It’s easy in a
way and you get used to it, but it’s tiring sometimes as you can
understand. So, what I mean is, though I believe anyone could do it, if
they practiced and trained and trained and practiced, it takes a
special kind of person to be able to do it well from the start.

That’s a hard
question. Do you know just how many characters I’ve done over the
years? ‘Cause I don’t. Probably almost a thousand if you count all of
them. And personally I don’t have a lot of favorites. Just things I
like and things I don’t as much. But let’s try. My favorite. Alright,
you’re not going to like this but two of these are going to be from the
same cartoon. My favorite would be Master Roshi from Dragonball.
He was a super fun character to play because 1. He was so strange and
quirky all the time and 2. He’s like Yoda. He’s the ultimate master who
never loses. He sometimes gives up of his own accord to teach a lesson,
but you just know he’s the man regardless. I can’t think of any
specifics for the most challenging, but it would definitely be a
character who’s realistic and emotional. Funny and goofy is easy, but
realistic is hard. Especially if that character has a very serious
personality. I’m not a serious person in life so seriousness is
something that really takes it out of me. And when I act emotional I
really feel that emotion and sometimes it’s hard to recover from that.
Crazy psychotic bad guys like Creed Diskenth from Black Cat who I did. Most memorable would be grown up Goku, also from Dragonball just
because he’s my favorite anime character from my favorite show. I was
so psyched to be able to play him. So I’m sure he’ll be the character I
remember most.

In the
past, you have moved TV viewers with your heartbreaking acting as Franz
in "Count of Monte Cristo", in particular, the climactic death scene in
the anime. Your acting chops were also put to the test in your role as
Durand in "Le Chevalier D’Eon". Some fans have said that when it comes
to angst or dying characters, you are obviously the "Master". How do
you prepare yourself - both acting-wise and mentally - for such heavy
scenes?

Gosh, The Master
of Angst, eh? That’s a pretty cool title. Hehe. Well, as an actor, and
especially a voice actor where anything could happen, you just have to
be ready to play any type of person. But when it comes to major roles
like these where the characters are so serious, I just have to put
myself into their world and, as I said before, literally feel as an
actor what they feel as a character. It does make me uncomfortable to
do that (no one likes to feel sorrow or anger or helplessness), but
it’s not about me, is it? It’s about the audience. So I give what I
can.

Right. This one’s easy. It’d have to be the later Dragonball
chronicles as Goku. I only got to play him for a few episodes as he was
a little kid for most of the series we did and was played by Andrea.
But that’d be what I’d like to do most. Goku, Dragonball. My favorite character.

Hmm. After work I
usually just go home. But if I really want to unwind, I’ll go catch a
movie or something. I try to practice Muay Thai regularly if I can be
bothered and I’ve recently taken up bowling, usually with David Lee
McKinney and Emily Woo Zeller, and golf, or I go hang out with Scott
Evans, all of whom are other voice actors I work with. They’re all cool
people though, everybody I work with including the boss and the
technicians at the studio.

Yeah sure, why
not? If you can do it well and it comes naturally to you, if you enjoy
it give it a shot. It’s pretty low stress, you’re an integral part of
production and, for the most part, it’s fun. Voice actors are like any
other actors. They’re not your average run of the mill employees. A
voice actor needs to seek perfection in his (or her) craft and has to
stay on his toes, is always ready for a challenge and is versatile in
character. He’s got to be focused but relaxed and calm yet energetic.
And, just like any actor, has to be able and willing to put himself in
anyone’s shoes.

[Catch David's performance as Goku in Dragonball, Ryota Miyagi in Slam Dunk, and Gord in .Hack//Roots. Just check your local listings for the schedules of these shows.]