Megumi Hayashibara laments "loss of 90s Ambitions"

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usamimi
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Megumi Hayashibara laments "loss of 90s Ambitions"

Post by usamimi »

In a recent interview, iconic seiyuu Megumi Hayashibara talks about how the voice acting industry has changed over time, and how a lot of anime coming out today seems to be trying too hard to be like old hits. An interesting read: http://en.rocketnews24.com/2016/05/25/l ... -ambition/
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Re: Megumi Hayashibara laments "loss of 90s Ambitions"

Post by llj »

One could say there were a lot of 90s anime that were derivative of anime in the 80s or 70s. Evangelion was avant-garde, but I can't think of a lot of other avant garde 90s shows. In fact I can't say a lot of my favorite anime were from the 90s. Which is not to say they weren't good.

There were a lot of ambitious shows in the early 2000s, and there are a couple today. I would say today's problem is more a lack of variety. I'm a huge "hard" action fan and I'm seeing seinen-styled action shows really disappearing lately. There's also seems to be a move away from darker themes and emotions.
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Re: Megumi Hayashibara laments "loss of 90s Ambitions"

Post by usamimi »

llj wrote:One could say there were a lot of 90s anime that were derivative of anime in the 80s or 70s. Evangelion was avant-garde, but I can't think of a lot of other avant garde 90s shows. In fact I can't say a lot of my favorite anime were from the 90s. Which is not to say they weren't good.

There were a lot of ambitious shows in the early 2000s, and there are a couple today. I would say today's problem is more a lack of variety. I'm a huge "hard" action fan and I'm seeing seinen-styled action shows really disappearing lately. There's also seems to be a move away from darker themes and emotions.
I agree, Eva had references to lots of things that came before it, but was weaved in a new different way. And there for sure is cool new stuff being made now, but you do have to wade through some stuff that looks very similar xD it's a mixed bag, but on the whole, there's way less action/sci-fi/fantasy stuff being made...so that does give the impression of less ambition, if everyone just wants to do high school/harem/slice-of-life stuff most of the time. So I get where she's coming from.

I had wondered for a while about current seiyuu culture, and she pretty much confirmed my suspicion that most modern seiyuu are now being treated similarly to idols...which is kinda sad, that means they're fixating on their looks as well as their sound, seeing how marketable they can make them. :/
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Re: Megumi Hayashibara laments "loss of 90s Ambitions"

Post by labsenpai »

Hayashibara was definitely a favorite of NT magazine; I have one booklet that was just about what she likes to do in Summer.
Here is another role montage:
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Re: Megumi Hayashibara laments "loss of 90s Ambitions"

Post by usamimi »

What's great spread! Thanks for sharing this :D
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Re: Megumi Hayashibara laments "loss of 90s Ambitions"

Post by llj »

It's amazing to me that many younger fans today don't even know who Megumi Hayashibara is. I mean, there was a time when EVERY anime fan knew who she was. She basically defined an entire era of anime. Look at all the iconic roles she's done, and yet here we are in 2016 and for most people. she's basically a footnote now. That's entertainment, I guess. As Heidi Klum would say: one day you're in and the next day you're out. :lol:
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Re: Megumi Hayashibara laments "loss of 90s Ambitions"

Post by usamimi »

So true. I was excited when she was announced as a character in Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju (which she was great in!) But you don't hear her in much anymore. I guess she'd still be known for Rei in the Eva Rebuild movies? But other than that, I'm sure you're right & a lot of younger fans prolly don't know who the heck she is. Sad, really, as I always liked her. I keep thinking eventually I wanna do some podcast episodes on Seiyuu of that era, just so I can do one on her :lol:
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Re: Megumi Hayashibara laments "loss of 90s Ambitions"

Post by Akage »

It also seems that male seiyuu are able to stay in the industry for a lot longer than female seiyuu. I can name several ol' school seiyuu, like Tohru Furuya, that are still around and still very active in current anime. I have a much harder time naming female seiyuu that were around in the 1980s & 1990s that are still voicing new characters. While I'm sure some of that is due to family dynamics & child rearing, it seems that once a female seiyuu marries (or there's a scandal), her career is over.
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Re: Megumi Hayashibara laments "loss of 90s Ambitions"

Post by usamimi »

Yeah, that's very true. I know Megumi Ogata is still around, she doesn't get huge roles like she did before but she's still fairly active...I think you're right that once these women settle down, they work FAR less, or quit altogether? That would make sense but I agree it's very disappointing. I miss a lot of these actresses!
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Re: Megumi Hayashibara laments "loss of 90s Ambitions"

Post by llj »

Don't forget that they are marketed as "idols" as well and often have cross-platform appeal. Not only do they do voice work, but they often sing and do live appearances on TV so their image (i.e. being young and pretty) may have a lot to do with how their careers play out. You could say this is sexist, but I suppose this is the case for the entertainment industry in general. I mean, how many 40 year female old pop stars are there in the U.S.? Hell, Britney Spears and Avril Lavigne are only in their early 30s are they're already considered old and washed up by many.

Voice acting in the U.S. seems to not have the same marketing obligations as Japan, though. Of course, they get paid far less as well.
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