Actually, Snow is the best! Interview with Kaede Hondo as Snow Hosokawa in "Chio-chan's Way to School

Chio-chan's Way to School," a new type of extreme school comedy that has been the talk of the town, will begin airing in July 2018!　Because of her personality that can get along with anyone, Chio-chan and her friends live in a different world (!?). She is the "top of the school caste" and has a secret ......?　We talked to Kaede Hondo, who plays Snow Hosokawa!

There are many things we can relate to! Snow of the "School Caste Topmost"!

--First of all, please introduce the character of Yuki.

Snow is a classmate of Chio-chan's, and although she and Chio-chan do not usually have much contact with each other, she becomes deeply involved in the story when she talks to Chio-chan on the way to school one day. Yuki-chan herself is always natural, and I think that her atmosphere has made her popular with those around her and consequently pushed her to the top of the school caste.

-It is also important to note that she belongs to the track and field club.

Hondo: She wears a separate, revealing uniform for her club activities, but in the PV of the anime, for some reason, we see Yuki-chan in her uniform on her way to school. At first you may think, "Oh, there's a nice girl," but I hope I can turn that around (?) in a good way. I hope I can turn that around.

--Do you have any similarities between yourself and Yuki?

Hondoh: First of all, I have short hair (laughs). Also, I actually like running a lot, and when I was a student, I always did a "30-minute run" before club activities, so I am confident in my stamina!　I can't say it too loudly, but there were many things I could relate to (laughs).

--I can't say it too loudly, but there were a lot of things I could relate to.

Hondo: I think it is definitely a gag piece, but it is difficult to describe. ...... I felt that it was drawn in an amazing way. I felt that "the way you drew them was amazing." There were scenes where Chio-chan and her friends were in amazing positions, and on one page they had cute expressions on their faces, and on the next page, their expressions became grotesque. I thought it was a work that made me want to change the facial expressions of the characters (laughs).

--I heard that the work also tests your ability to improvise.

Hondo: That's right!　Every episode has an "eye-catcher" and a "preview for the next episode," and I am always asked to play the role after I arrive at the recording studio. Every time I would have a hard time deciding whether I should play along with the flow of the story or not, or whether I should just stay in character. I also thought a lot about how I could be aggressive as Yuki-chan.

As each episode progressed, Director Inagaki would ask me, "Can you do something more interesting? I was terrified (laughs), but it was a very rewarding experience.

--(Laughs) But it was a very rewarding experience.

There was an episode in which Yuki-chan helped a fellow runner lose weight. I was a little worried. There was an ad-libbed scene where she and another person were talking about dieting all the time, but it was based on a sound theory, so I thought, "Oh yeah, I'll give it a try too" (laughs).

The OP theme with happy lyrics!

--Then, what was your impression when you first heard the OP theme "Danger in my School Road," in which you also participate in singing?

Hondo: At first, I honestly thought, "Did I open a different music folder?" (Laughs) But, just like the work, it had a very unusual feel to it, so I felt it fit in somehow.

--How did you feel when you actually sang it?

Hondo: Naomi Ozora (who plays Chio-chan) and Chiaki Omigawa (who plays Manana) recorded the song before I did, so I was able to listen to what they recorded. I was wondering how I should enter the song as Yuki-chan, but I think Yuki-chan is "normal" in "Chio-chan's way to school". I wouldn't say that she is idolized, but rather that she just acts friendly and is popular in the class.

--The two girls from the lower ranks of the school caste (laughs) were also great shouters, weren't they?

Hondowatari: Both of you sang seriously, and it was amazing (laughs)!　As for me, I was very happy that the lyrics "I want to live more nakedly" were written with Snow-chan in mind.

--Mr. Hondo, do you have any memories of your commute to school?

Hondo: When I was in high school, I was interested in my current job, so on days when it was raining so hard that I couldn't hear the sounds around me, I would think of the cars coming in my direction as "enemies" and say, "Ei!　Tei!　Tei!" I was practicing my "attack" with a voice like "Ei! When I think about it now, I was acting just like Chio-chan. ...... (laughs).

--Chio-chan plays Western games incessantly, but have you ever devoted yourself to anything before?

Hondo: I have an elaborate nature. ...... When an animated film finishes, we sometimes present colorful papers to the staff members who have helped us, and for one film I took the initiative to do it. I was so excited that I decided to take the lead in making a booklet, and I made three copies of it, with each page signed by a cast member and a message, including my own subjective opinions and impressions of the characters.

It was so hard that it affected my life, but in the end, with the help of everyone around me, I managed to complete the project. It is a good memory now.

--Lastly, do you have a message for our readers?

Hondo: How many episodes of "Chi-o-chan" have you seen in this article?　I imagine with a grin (laughs). I have a longing for Chi-o-chan, saying that I envy her for having such a lively everyday life. After I decided to realize my dream, I stopped worrying about what others thought of me, but before that, there was a part of me that spent my time worrying about what others thought of me like Chio-chan did, and I sometimes think that if I had exposed myself (in a good way) earlier, I could have had a fun commuter life with many friends. I have a lot of thoughts.

As for my role as Yuki-chan, I can only say one thing: "Please watch the movie until the end. I have planted seeds little by little in the process leading up to that point, so please pay attention to that as well (laughs)!

(Interview and text by Atsushi Saeki)