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Mekakucity Actors Audio Commentary #5

Act 5 – Kaien Panzermast

Translation of the second audio commentary that comes with the DVD/Blu-ray of Mekakucity Actors. Raw version here. Please consider purchasing the original copies and feel free to message me about possible corrections. If there happens to be any issues with the link, please contact me on my main blog!

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Jin: Hello to everyone listening to the audio commentary of “Mekakucity Actors Act 5 – Kaien Panzermast”. Eh, I’m the creator and screenplay writer, Jin.

Hoshii: Yes! Aaand... eeeh, I’m the voice of Seto Kousuke, Hoshi Souichirou. Pappy~!

(T/N: For those unfamiliar with it, “pappy” is Hoshi Souichirou’s catchphrase. He’s been using it as a greeting since the late 90’s.)

Jin: ‘Ello~!

Hoshii: ‘Ello!

Suzuki: And I’m the process supervisor this time as well.

Hoshi: Oh!

Suzuki: I’m Suzuki Kenta from Aniplex. Please take care of me.

Hoshii: Counting on you for it!

Jin: Please take care of us!

Hoshii: Yes~!

Everyone: *claps*

Suzuki: It’ll be a pleasure.

Hoshii: Yay! For sure!

Suzuki: We have Hoshi-san with us.

Jin: He came over!

Suzuki: Actually, no, you made me come over!

Everyone: *laughs*

Jin: So that’s where we’re starting from? That’s where we’re starting from?

Suzuki: Nope, nope, nope.

Hoshii: Not really. I think the listeners don’t know what we’re going on about. Welp, thank you very much.

Jin: Anyway, this is disk is the fifth volume.

Suzuki: Yup!

Hoshii: Ah, wait! It’s been a while.

Jin: It sure has! Ah, ‘cause the recordings are over, right?

Hoshii: Yeah. After they ended, I became like this.

Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: Like this?

Hoshii: Is that okay? Is it? Hum, about Seto-san in the main story...

Jin: You’re the one who voices him!

Hoshii: For the people who know him, this must be one hell of a sudden change.

Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: That’s okay! It’s okay! This is a corner where we can enjoy more and more of these things.

Hoshii: ‘Kay!

Jin: All right! We’ll be in your care.

Suzuki: We’re in your care.

Hoshii: My! Ah, I’m so nervous. We usually do these things with fellow cast members.

Suzuki: That’s right.

Jin: Yes, yes.

Hoshii: When it’s between cast members, the topic can get dumb.

Jin: Yes, yes!

Suzuki: *laughs*

Hoshii: But if we’re with the creators or directors, as expected, they explain the story very properly, so I get super nervous and clam up.

Jin: Nah, nah, nah.

Hoshii: Therefore, I guess I’ll keep quiet today too.

Suzuki: No, no, no. It’s best to do things like you usually do.

Jin: Do it like you always do! Seriously! I have been invited to all the other four volumes do to the audio commentaries.

Hoshii: Yep!

Jin: And we’ve hardly had any chance to do any proper talk!

Hoshii: *laughs*

Jin: Basically, the topic disconnects all of a sudden and then we go, “Ah, time to wrap up! Byeee!”

Suzuki: Aaah, true. There’s no difference. Hoshi-san, you should act like you usually do.

Hoshii: Ah, but actually, right before this audio commentary started, I talked to Jin-san about this.

Jin: We had a general discussion.

Hoshii: There was a little bit of wait time, after all.

Jin: We’ve already asked what we wanted to ask at large.

Hoshii: We had a separate talk.

Jin: I already asked what I wanted to ask.

Suzuki: But if there’s a part of it that we can deliver to everyone, that’s good too. If you could talk about it once again...

Hoshii: Yup, yup.

Jin: The cast-off skin of it.

Suzuki: The “cast-off skin”!

Hoshii: “Cast-off skin”!

Jin: Like, the evil part of it.

Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: We’re hoping to hear about it from you!

Hoshii: All right. So, how did you like Mekakucity’s—erm... fifth episode?

Jin: Yes, fifth episode.

Suzuki: We’re in the fifth.

Hoshii: How was it for you?

Jin: About the fifth episode... the previous one was precisely “Kagerou Days”.

Hoshii: The rumored one!

Jin: Exactly – the one that happens within a sort of mysterious place.

Hoshii: Yes, that one.

Jin: It became a bit serious but the scenario has changed once again to the protagonist, Shintarou-kun.

Hoshii: Now it’s a peaceful everyday life, huh~!

Jin: Yes, a peaceful everyday life. Ah, here’s Ene-chan. She shows up in this one. Anyway, it’s a slice-of-life episode. Everyone’s frolicking about.

Hoshii: And then... hm? Seto had a pretty normal amount of lines in this episode, I guess. Didn’t he?

Jin: Probably, in the third episode, when they went to that department store—

Hoshii: Ah, the third episode?

Jin: They all went there together.

Hoshii: Ah, that’s right! Yes, yes, yes!

Jin: He did have lines back then, but this time, his cute side is on display.

Hoshii: So he has a cute side, huh?

Jin: I hope the people listening to this audio commentary will have expectations for Seto after this episode.

Hoshii: Oh! That’s great.

Jin: It’s kind of a goal. I want them to enjoy him.

Hoshii: That’s right.

Jin: We’ve ended up talking about this earlier, but...

Hoshii: We did.

Jin: Seto-kun is not only in the anime, but also in the novels, music and other mediums.

Hoshii: Yes.

Jin: Yet he doesn’t show up much.

Hoshii: He doesn’t?! Aaah!

Jin: He doesn’t.

Hoshii: I see. If I were to say it, I guess he has less appearances than the other characters.

Jin: That’s right, he’s a bit retreated to the background.

Hoshii: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Jin: He’s kind of—oh, it’s the opening sequence.

Hoshii: He’s at the side.

Jin: We did things like, for example, right there on the anime’s title, the first syllable, “Me”, is painted in his theme color.

Hoshii: Yup, yup, yup.

Jin: Hum, in the anime, we’re...

Hoshii: Ah, so you’re sort of—

Jin: We’re sort of... lifting him up a little as a character in the anime, so to say.

Suzuki: I see. You were trying to make him stand out.

Hoshii: Ah, as expected, this green color is pretty nice.

Jin: “It’s pretty nice”! Well, we’ve already talked about this earlier, but as a character, he’s kind of like a big brother.

Hoshii: That’s right!

Suzuki: Aaah...

Jin: He’s a character who has it together and who goes “there, there” when something happens, and yet...

Hoshii: Hm?

Jin: ...he’s a character that doesn’t come forward much.

Hoshii: He doesn’t play dumb too often, huh.

Jin: Exactly, exactly! We can’t make him act dumb that much. He’s the one that has common sense.

Hoshii: Yes.

Jin: Now, as for the opening song that’s playing at the moment...

Hoshii: Yes?!

Jin: ...I just recently released a CD with it. And there were autograph sessions for it.

Hoshii: Autograph sessions!

Jin: I went around to some areas of the country to give out my signature.

Suzuki/Hoshii: Oooh!

Jin: And, hum, when I’m writing down autographs, well, I feel like chatting.

Hoshii: With each person that comes, right?

Jin: This time, I keep throwing them the question, “Do you have a favorite character?”

Hoshii: Eeeh~?

Jin: And it turns out...

Hoshii: Yes?

Jin: ...nearly all of them answered “Seto-kun”!

Hoshii: For real?

Suzuki: Oh! What a surprise.

Hoshii: That makes me happy.

Jin: Seriously, there were so many Seto-kun fans that he’s by far the decisive favorite!

Hoshii: Even though Seto-kun is so inconspicuous!

Jin: Despite that!

Hoshii: *laughs*

Jin: I wonder what it is that—it’s probably the way he makes people feel.

Hoshii: Heeh? Aah, he’s comforting to them.

Jin: He is.

Hoshii: Ah, indeed, just looking at him heals you. He can comfort people even without talking.

Jin: He can!

Hoshii: *laughs* As long as there’s an artwork of him. Just an artwork!

Jin: You can heal just from looking at it.

Suzuki: So Seto is popular, huh?

Jin: Absurdly popular.

Suzuki: Heeeh~?

Hoshii: Ah, I’m so glad.

Jin: Therefore, I wanted to report this huge popularity of his to you.

Hoshii: Aaah, thank you! I’m so happy!

Suzuki: That’s wonderful.

Jin: I thought of using this occasion for it, but I ended up revealing it earlier, actually!

Hoshii: Ah! Yeah, I heard about it just now.

Suzuki: *laughs*

Hoshii: No, but it’s okay, hearing it twice. Two, three times even.

Jin: You’d wanna hear about Seto-kun’s popularity two, three times!

Suzuki: Because it’s a good topic.

Hoshii: It’s a good topic. I wanna hear it as many times as I can. And next time, too, I wanna hear it as many times as I can.

Jin/Suzuki: *laugh*

Jin: So in the sixth audio commentary too?

Hoshii: Oh, but speaking of Seto-kun, at the beginning...

Jin: Yes?

Hoshii: I honestly had no idea how to go about him.

Jin: Ah, I see, I see.

Suzuki: Oooh...

Hoshii: During the recording of the first episode, the art wasn’t in very good condition, you know?

Suzuki: Ah, that’s right.

Hoshii: Which is normal nowadays. That’s the state that the recordings are in lately.

Jin: My deepest apologies!

Hoshii: But for some reason, even though this most certainly never happens, there were no facial expressions on the characters!

Suzuki/Jin: *lose their shit*

Hoshii: Is this a thing?!

Jin: It’s not!

Hoshii: Just impossible, isn’t it?

Jin: Impossible.

Hoshii: The facial expressions are decided in much earlier stages!

Jin: Right.

Suzuki: *still losing it*

Hoshii: There were no expressions on the characters, so I looked at the illustrations of the original work and other such things for reference.

Jin: Ah, geez, I’m so very sorry for that...

Hoshii: But to be frank... at first, I was just fumbling around.

Suzuki: Oooh...

Hoshii: Like, “Whoa, what should I do?”

Jin: Hmmm...

Hoshii: But when I watched it on air, surprisingly, it matched.

Jin: Ah, that’s right!

Suzuki: As expected!

Hoshii: *laughs*

Suzuki: You’re amazing!

Jin: Yes, amazing!

Hoshii: I was relieved. Glad that I went for that approach.

Jin: Ah, so something like that happened?

Hoshii: It did!

Suzuki: Hoshi-san, you did ask about it later, didn’t you?

Hoshii: Ah, right, right.

Jin: I was like, “That’s exactly how he should be!”

Hoshii: I’m glad. Well, I was sort of uncertain about it.

Jin: Yes, yes, yes.

Hoshii: So I asked the sound director, Tsuruoka-san, “Is it okay like this?”

Jin: Yes.

Suzuki: Ooh...

Hoshii: I did it after confirming that with him.

Jin: Yes!

Hoshii: So, well, I thought it wouldn’t be too out of place.

Jin: Yes.

Hoshii: But... but, you see...

Jin: Yes?

Hoshii: Something I was at loss about is that, right after this, we recorded a promo.

Jin: That’s right!! The... the one for the CM.

Suzuki: Yup.

Hoshii: Well, I did record it, but... his personality was different.

Jin: *laughs*

Hoshii: I was like, “Eh, is this okay? He’s a completely different character!”

Suzuki: *laughs*

Hoshii: It was pretty quick.

Jin: That’s right.

Hoshii: When I thought about it, I got a really bad feeling.

Jin: I see.

Hoshii: I was like, “Could it be that it’s okay for him to act like this in this situation?”

Jin: Yes, yes.

Hoshii: Like, “Will he go this way or will he go that way?”

Suzuki: Oooh...

Hoshii: It was the hardest time I’ve had amongst all of my job experiences until now.

Jin: Ah, I see!

Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: The possibility of you getting a terrible job!

Hoshii: Yeah! In regards to stamina, I thought to myself, “I’d hate if this job turns into a hassle” and had such a bad feeling, but when the series started, turns out he was an uplifting character.

Jin: Ah, that’s right.

Hoshii: Maaan, I sighed in relief.

Jin: I’m sure.

Suzuki: He might’ve been the character that shook you off the most!

Jin: He just might!

Hoshii: Back then, y’know, I kinda... on Nico Nico... Nico Nico...

Jin: “Nico Nico Douga”.

Hoshii: On Nico Nico Douga, they were writing terrible things about me!

Jin/Suzuki: *laugh*

Jin: Just like that?!

Hoshii: Honestly, even though I did so much for this character all on my own... it was the first time I got such horrible comments!

Jin/Suzuki: *still laughing*

Jin: I’m truly very sorry.

Hoshii: No, no, no! Well, the result was just fine in the end, so it’s okay.

Jin: Yes.

Hoshii: But, hum, everyone made me super anxious. *laughs*

Jin: They were like, “‘Deer’? ‘Deer’?”

Hoshii: Indeed.

Suzuki: The promo was supposed to be like a series of character studies.

Jin: Yeah, that was the plan. And, well, also to promote the anime.

Suzuki: Going by order, Seto was... hum...

Jin: Erm, if I’m not mistaken, he was the eighth.

Suzuki: The first ones had already done their promos properly, but the ones that came later were gradually... *laughs*

Hoshii: I mean, I wasn’t told anything! Especially about his attitude and such.

Suzuki: *laughs*

Hoshii: I didn’t know when the episodes would be coming out.

Jin: True.

Hoshii: And hadn’t done any publicity for it before.

Jin: Yeah. Especially the “It’s a deer! A deerrrr!” part was rather...

Hoshii: I turned all of the fans of the original work into my enemies.

Jin: Eeeeh?!

Suzuki/Hoshii: *laugh*

Jin: It’s not like that! The fans of the original were like, “Aight. It’s okay like that.”

Hoshii/Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: Me too! Hum, when I watched it on TV, I went to Twitter and such to see how it went, and it was just... all about this “deer” thing!

Hoshii: *laughs*

Jin: My timelines in my social media were all like, “deer”!

Suzuki: It was trending!

Jin: It became a trend!

Hoshii: Ah, but Mekakucity trends a lot with every episode, doesn’t it?

Suzuki: Yeah.

Jin: That’s right. It’s a mess in many ways when it becomes a trending topic, though.

Suzuki/Hoshii: Weeeell...

Jin: But it does trend.

Hoshii: Maaan, I’m so happy that I voice such a popular character...

Jin: Ah, hum, you had your worries, but now that the recordings are over, turns out you voice the number one favorite character!

Hoshii: My, my, thank you very much. So this is what “godsend” means.

Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: That’s right. And the people who come to the autograph sessions are, as expected, very hardcore fans.

Suzuki: Oh...

Hoshii: Ah! Must be.

Jin: They not only buy the CDs but also want them signed, after all.

Hoshii: I heard that the fans of this work are incredibly hooked into it.

Suzuki: Yuuup.

Jin: Ah, true!

Suzuki: They’re very passionate.

Jin: I’m very thankful for that.

Hoshii: Ah, crap! What should I do? I ended up saying these things in the audio commentary...

Suzuki: Oh?

Hoshii: It might be too late to ask, but should we have gone with this route?

Jin: Eh, what?

Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: What’s gotten into you all of a sudden??

Hoshii: Maybe the people who didn’t know about it would be like, “Eh, he’s different from what I’d imagined” when they listen to this.

Jin: That’s not gonna happen! Not at all.

Suzuki: If it’s now, you might still have a shot at taking it back!

Hoshii: *laughs*

Jin: We only talked about good things, yet you want to redo it?

Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: Like, “Okay, anyways—”

Hoshii: If I do that, I might be able to hear from the autograph sessions again.

Suzuki: Ah, that’s right.

Jin: Ah! So that’s what it was about!

Suzuki/Hoshii: *laugh*

Jin: “Seto is so popularrr!”

Hoshii: Ah, I’m so happy.

Jin: You are? Thank you very much!

Suzuki: Hoshi-san has been recovering his HP several times by now.

Hoshii/Jin: *laughs*

Hoshii: Like, “Oh, is that so?”

Suzuki: Just flat-out.

Jin: Just flat-out! *laughs* But, well, Seto-kun is a memorable character for me.

Hoshii: Aaah, thank you so much for creating him.

Jin: Hum, I couldn’t flesh him out much in the original work, so I hoped he could have lines in several parts of the anime at the beginning.

Hoshii: He didn’t appear much, but at the end, it was pretty good.

Jin: It waaas!

Suzuki: Yuuup.

Hoshii: That’s what I thought. But it’s hard to get him out there.

Jin: It is!

Hoshii: Yep.

Jin: But that’s because I think he’s one hell of a fine man.

Hoshii: He really is. And surprisingly big, isn’t he?

Jin: If I’m not mistaken, he’s two—I mean...

Hoshii: Two meters tall?!

Jin: Ah, no, no! The second tallest of the Mekakushi Dan.

Hoshii: You said “two”!

Suzuki: *laughs*

Hoshii: You said “two”, so...

Jin: The way he’d be viewed in the series would change a lot.

Hoshii: If he were two meters tall?

Jin: He’d be in the basketball team or something.

Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: The character named Konoha is probably the tallest one.

Hoshii: Ah, yeah. You’re right!

Suzuki: Hmmm...

Jin: And the second is Seto-kun.

Suzuki: Ah, I see.

Hoshii: But Konoha is voiced by Miyano-kun, so it’s no shock that he’s huge. However, the mic is positioned too high up when Miyano-kun is there, so I can’t go into the booth with him!

Jin/Suzuki: *laugh*

Hoshii: Gotta avoid that spot at all costs!

Jin: If I’m not mistaken, this happened on this episode too. With Kaida-san, I guess.

Hoshii: Yes.

Jin: Hum, her shoes—Ah, no, it was Nakahara-san, maybe? She said that the mic is too high up when when Miyano-san is around.

Hoshii: It is!

Jin: So she puts on high-heeled shoes for it. She said something like that.

Suzuki: Ooh, I see, I see.

Hoshii: But Kaida-san is quite tall too, so she can fit.

Jin: Right.

Hoshii: It becomes Miyano-kun and Kaida-san’s mic.

Jin: Aaah, man!

Suzuki: I see, I see.

Jin: A mic for two people.

Hoshii: And I go to the shorter people’s side. Hum, like... Hanazawa-san’s mic.

Suzuki/Jin: *laugh*

Suzuki: To that side?

Hoshii: Ah, but, when it comes to conversations between Seto and Mary, we gotta avoid that.

Suzuki: Ah, that’s right.

Jin: Right.

Hoshii: Like, “Whose turn is it now?”

Everyone: *laughs*

Jin: “Should I go to the right? To the middle?”

Hoshii: “Whose mic should I go to?”

Jin: “Whose mic”! “The middle one, maybe?”

Hoshii: *laughs*

Jin: Ah, this is it. Speak of the devil, the tall Konoha-kun has come up.

Hoshii: Yep! Man, this one was terrible for Miyano-kun.

Jin: It sure was!

Suzuki: It was the worst.

Hoshii: The result was good, but he had a hard time.

Jin: It was horrible for him...!

Hoshii: Sure was.

Suzuki: He had to voice three characters with different personalities, after all.

Hoshii: He did. Man, I’m so glad I didn’t get Konoha!

Everyone: *laughs*

Hoshii: Seto is great!

Jin: And on top of that, the characters didn’t have facial expressions! Yet it’s three characters!

Hoshii: Right??

Jin: He must’ve been so busy... Ah, but, about this episode... for example, during the promos and the main story, a lot of characters come up.

Hoshii: Yup!

Jin: I was very uneasy as to whether or not I’d be able to explain to you guys what each of them are about. And I was wondering if you wouldn’t find it super difficult to understand, no matter how much I explained.

Hoshii: Aaah...

Jin: But it was amazing how, on the first try, all of you performed the characters exactly the way I imagined they’d be like.

Suzuki: Hmmm...

Jin: Yes. So I’m very sorry about that and, as expected, I wish I’d explained properly!

Hoshii: No, no, no! The way you did it was enough!

Jin: But, aaah, it was wonderful! I was like, “It’s perfect like this!”

Hoshii: I see.

Jin: Yet, in contrast, Miyano-san was like, “Is this all right?”

Hoshii: I guess we actors do get iffy about it, like, “Was it really okay?” because we didn’t yet have a proper image of how it was going to turn out.

Jin: My, it must��ve been truly hard. And it was over in a blink of eye.

Hoshii: Exactly.

Suzuki: Yeah.

Hoshii: The songs were also finished in a blink of eye.

Jin: They were.

Hoshii: It went by so fast.

Jin: It did!

Hoshii: I kept looking forward to it every week.

Jin: Ah, thank you very much, really!

Suzuki: Thank you so much.

Jin: I also kept looking forward to it every week.

Hoshii: Hm!

Jin: Oh, here it is. The scene we were talking about earlier. The one that’s kinda cute.

Hoshii: Ah!

Jin: It’s coming up. The one where Seto-kun...

Hoshii: That’s the one I did for the audition.

Suzuki: Aaah!

Jin: *laughs*

Hoshii: That was the one.

Jin: This... This... Hum, yes, yes. We had you do it in the audition and for the radio commercials. It was exactly this scene.

Suzuki: Right, right.

Hoshii: Yeah. So, since he’s different from his usual calm self in this scene, I was wondering if it was okay like that.

Jin: Aah.

Hoshii: I might’ve performed the wrong side of him.

Suzuki: Hmmm...

Hoshii: So I was like, “Are the people who like the comforting side of Seto-kun going to be okay with this?”

Jin: Well, the older female audience was like, “He’s so cute~!”, so...

Hoshii: Yeah... but he leaves!

Jin: That’s right!

Suzuki: *laughs*

Hoshii: He offs to somewhere! Like... he goes away to see some nature.

Jin: He kinda fades out.

Hoshii: Yeah.

Jin: Hum, after this, in the eighth episode, everyone goes back to the hideout and there’s a part where they’re talking.

Hoshii: Yes.

Jin: In it, he says, “I’m gonna go looking for him” and just like that...

Hoshii: He leaves.

Jin: ...he goes away.

Hoshii: That’s right...

Jin: During the course of the main story, both in the anime and the novel, he’s always like this.

Hoshii: Hmm...

Jin: In some way or another, even when he should be there in the novel, everyone’s like, “He isn’t here right now because he has work today.”

Everyone: *laughs*

Jin: All the time, it’s like, “He’s got work so he isn’t here.” *laughs*

Hoshii: Well, there are people like that.

Jin: He doesn’t show up at all!

Suzuki: *laughs* No, but maybe it might be best to keep people in suspense about him.

Jin: Right.

Hoshii: Like, to make them use their imagination?

Suzuki: Exactly. Like, “What’s he doing behind the scenes?”

Jin: I wonder what.

Hoshii: “Went out to see some deers, maybe?”

Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: If he did go out to see deers, people would say he isn’t around but in the joke kind of way. There are fans who enjoy this gag.

Hoshii: Yes.

Suzuki: Hmm.

Jin: On the other hand, since he’s so absent, some people are like, “Isn’t he the mastermind behind all of this?!”

Hoshii: *gasp* Reading between the lines!

Jin: Like, “Isn’t he the leader of the bad guys or something like that?!”

Hoshii: Reading too much between the lines!

Suzuki: I see...

Hoshii: That kind of thing is possible.

Jin: They conclude that it’d be bad to put him together with everyone else.

Hoshii: It happens sometimes.

Jin: So maybe he’s a villain.

Hoshii: It happens, it happens.

Jin: But that’s not his case at all!

Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: Let me borrow this space to say it – he’s not like that at all!

Hoshii: There was no such thing. I’m so glad! I’m so glad that he was a good person!

Jin: He is.

Hoshii: I’m also glad that he wasn’t killed in the end!

Suzuki: *laughs*

Hoshii: He almost got killed, though.

Jin: He almost did.

Hoshii: Also, during that flashback about the past...

Jin: Yes?

Hoshii: ...I voiced one of the villagers.

Jin: Ah! The villager! The villager!

Suzuki: Aaah...!

Hoshii: I think a lot of those people were just villagers.

Jin: Yes, yes. I believe they were ordinary villagers.

Hoshii: Even so... I was asked to voice one.

Suzuki: You, Hoshi-san?! *laughs*

Jin: WAS THAT OKAY?!!

Hoshii: No, it’s fine! I’m okay with it!

Suzuki: *laughs*

Hoshii: It’s nothing much! I can do it! I can voice a nameless character, no problem. I can, because he does have a relation to Seto.

Suzuki: Everything here has a proper reason behind it.

Hoshii: He’s related to Seto-kun, everyone! Think about it for a second.

Jin: Looking at the character name “Villager C” must’ve been the worst!

Suzuki: *laughs*

Hoshii: Their faces look alike, don’t they?

Jin: Yes, yes. They look exactly the same.

Hoshii: Don’t misunderstand, everyone.

Jin: That’s right. That was, hum... something like an ancestor.

Hoshii: Yeah. Is it okay to reveal that?

Jin: It’s totally okay! So, this was an ancestor and—

Suzuki: Like I said, everything has a proper reason behind it.

Jin: Yes, yes! I also thought this was in order.

Hoshii: Thank you very much.

Jin: But for some reason, I felt like being playful when writing the screenplay, so I granted Seto’s voice to Villager C.

Hoshii: Right?!

Jin: I should’ve made it Villager A.

Hoshii: *laughs* Indeed!

Jin: I put him in a sort of low position on purpose.

Hoshii: Aaah~!

Suzuki: I see, I see!

Hoshii: Eh, but there’s no helping it. A is the leader, as you’d expect.

Jin: Yes, A is the leader. And B is the second in command.

Hoshii: No helping it.

Jin: Hence, Villager C.

Hoshii: I can totally voice just a Villager C, though!

Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: That’s riiight!

Suzuki: As expected, there’s a proper meaning to it.

Jin: Yes, yes.

Hoshii: Right.

Jin: But when you do an audition and people instruct you on how to voice a character, it’s not so that you can be “Villager C”!

Hoshii: *laughs*

Jin: That Villager C really did have a meaning to him.

Hoshii: No, hum, thank you so much, really! Speaking of auditions... I only did it for Seto.

Jin: That’s right.

Hoshii: For these kinds of things, you usually get, for example, the protagonist... some sort of main role.

Suzuki: Ah, that’s right.

Hoshii: And only then do you get another character. So this pin-point was kind of rare. Was it like that for everyone?

Jin: Ah, erm, I created the images of all the characters from the very first chapter of the original work.

Suzuki: Hmm.

Hoshii: Oh!

Jin: I did a lecture expressing how each character was supposed to be, like, “This is how I imagined them.”

Hoshii: Heeh...

Jin: I also had the names of all of them.

Suzuki: That’s right.

Jin: Yes, that’s how I asked them to perform.

Hoshii: Hm.

Jin: Back then, I also had several discussions with Tsuruoka-san – hum, the sound director, Tsuruoka-san.

Hoshii: I see.

Jin: And ultimately, we decided to have Hoshi-san do it, by all means.

Hoshii: No, no! Thank you.

Jin: That’s how it went.

Suzuki: So actually, Jin-san, you and the others had the image of the characters so clear in your heads that there wasn’t a single person who messed up.

Jin: Ah...

Suzuki: Each and every one of them did well.

Jin: No, but it was hard for them, wasn’t it?

Hoshii: For real...

Suzuki: Hm, indeed. But it paid off, right?

Jin: Yeah...

Hoshii: Honestly, it was the first audition that I passed in a while, so I was very happy.

Jin: Eeeeh??

Suzuki: No way!

Hoshii: *laughs*

Jin: For a moment there, I was kinda like, “Ah?! Ah!!”

Suzuki: That’s not possible.

Hoshii: It’s true, it’s true! To tell the truth, I don’t get approved very often.

Jin: Ah, is that so?

Suzuki: Aaah...

Hoshii: It’s because there’s actually a lot of people who take part in auditions.

Jin: Ah, thought so.

Suzuki: Hmmm...

Hoshii: So I hardly pass them.

Jin: But Hoshi-san, as expected...

Hoshii: I was happy!

Jin: Ah, geez, thank you. And yet, you got Villager C! It’d make anyone go, “Hey!!”

Hoshii: *laughs*

Jin: I’m really sorry.

Hoshii: No, no, no! It’s okay, really.

Jin: But, well, other than the Villager C, Seto-kun had quite a few appearances in the anime.

Hoshii: Ah, well, I was always there for the recordings of the latter half.

Suzuki: Yuuup.

Jin: Right. But if we’re speaking about just Seto-kun as a character, there was also a mini-arc in the past where a small Seto-kun had a lot of screen time.

Hoshii: Ah, that’s right! But voicing a small Seto-kun would’ve been difficult for me...

Jin: Well, yes. We did a voice switch.

Suzuki: Yeah.

Hoshii: I didn’t do an audition for little Seto or anything like that!

Jin/Suzuki: *laugh*

Hoshii: It’s not like I auditioned and failed! I didn’t audition for it at all!

Suzuki: Indeed.

Jin: Tsuruoka-san had decided on from the very beginning.

Hoshii: Yeah, yeah. Although, depending on the anime, they use the original voice actors for that.

Suzuki: Oooh...

Hoshii: There’s actually a ton of problems with that, but they’re like, “Can you do it?”

Suzuki: I see, I see!

Jin: Hum, Hoshi-san, I have watched some of the works that you’re in. There’s one that has several episodes set in the past. It’s a series that I’m quite fond of.

Hoshii: Ah, I see! That one. That one, right?

Jin: Everyone performs in the flashbacks just like they do in the present! *laughs*

Suzuki: Aaah, I see...

Hoshii: Well, how should I put it? This way of doing it is also a thing.

Suzuki: Hm, hm.

Hoshii: It’s like a gag.

Suzuki: Hmmm.

Hoshii: It doesn’t go the realistic route. So it’s okay like that sometimes.

Suzuki: Yep.

Hoshii: But man, this series is so mysterious. The atmosphere of it, that is.

Jin: Ah...!

Suzuki: Hmmm...

Hoshii: I also feel that Director Shinbou’s direction matched it very well too.

Jin: Indeed, that’s right. Not even I thought it’d turn out like this.

Hoshii: Right?!

Suzuki: Yuuup.

Jin: Hum—Ah! Anyway...

Hoshii: Ah, it’s over!

Suzuki: The ending song...

Jin: The ending arrived in a blink of eye!

Hoshii: In a blink of eye!

Jin: We really couldn’t talk about the main story at all!

Suzuki: *laughs*

Hoshii: We did, a little.

Jin: At least till the part where Seto gets startled.

Hoshii: And leaves.

Jin: That’s right.

Hoshii: Aah, it’s going to end.

Jin: It is.

Hoshii: But there’s still more.

Jin: There’s still the C part.

Suzuki: There is, at the very end.

Hoshii: Speaking of the ending, LIA-san’s voice is so graceful that it heals you.

Jin: True.

Suzuki: Ah, that’s right.

Jin: The song is mine, by the way.

Hoshii: Ah!

Jin: I think I managed to create a good melody with it.

Hoshii: Yup! That’s right!

Suzuki: As expected!

Jin: But y’know, hum, we always cut right through the story every single time and arrive to this point.

Hoshii: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Jin: So the image I have of this song is always like, “Eeeeh?!!”

Hoshii: Ah, I see.

Jin: It’s become a song that makes me go, “It’s already here???”

Suzuki: *laughs*

Jin: It’s unbelievable... So, we have reached the ending theme song of the episode once again. About the people who watch the series, I wonder how they do it. Do they listen to the audio commentary right after watching the episode?

Hoshii: Ah, but it might be like this, for example – when they buy the DVD, they first of all watch the series. I feel like that’s the majority.

Suzuki: Ooh...

Hoshii: Like, they watch the episodes on TV first.

Jin: That’s right. Maybe that’s it.

Suzuki: Yeah.

Hoshii: That’s probably it.

Jin: Indeed. Well, with that being said...

Hoshii: Yes?

Jin: Hum, if there’s anyone who’s going to watch the series once again after listening to this, we’re sorry for not elaborating on the contents of it!

Hoshii: Yeah!

Suzuki/Hoshii: *laugh*

Suzuki: Well, time has gradually come.

Hoshii: Yes.

Jin: Yes!

Suzuki: We’re going to be doing this over again, but please, do leave a message.

Jin: All right!

Suzuki: Could Hoshi-san go first?

Hoshii: Yeah! Eeeh, I’m happy to have participated in “Mekakucity Actors”! Eeeh, it really was a blink of eye, but as expected, I myself would like to get involved with Seto-kun even more.

Jin: Aaah...!

Hoshii: And with everyone else. I wanna get involved with them, so I’ll do my best. Jin-san, too, by all means, please take care of me from now on too.

Jin: Ah, thank you very much!

Hoshii: Everyone, thank you for your support!

Jin: Thank you so much!

Suzuki: Jin-san, you too.

Jin: Yes! Well, let’s see... Just like Hoshi-san said, I would like to have everyone gather up once again after this.

Hoshii: Yes.

Jin: If there comes a chance for it, I’d love to do it too.

Hoshii: Yes!

Jin: Is this really something we should be saying at this point in the game?!

Suzuki/Hoshii: *laugh*

Jin: But we already said it, so...

Suzuki: No problem, no problem.