Interview] "The image of an astronaut is 'orange'! Murotsuyoshi appeared in the new E-television animation "Uchu Nanchanara Kotetsu-kun" as a narrator and mascot character!

The web cartoon "Uchu-nanchara Kotetsu-kun," created by popular creator Yuji Nishimura, depicts cute and humorous human-like characters such as "Gokigen Panda" and "Konezumi," and has been adapted to a TV animation series! It airs every Wednesday from 6:45 p.m. on NHK E-television.

Kotetsu, the main character of the TV animation "Uchu nanchara Kotetsu-kun," is a first-year pilot student at the Space Academy, aiming to become an astronaut. The story depicts his encounters with his friends who are also aiming for space, his casual life at the academy, and the importance of working hard toward one's dreams at the Space Academy.

Akiba Research Institute interviewed Mr. Muro Tsuyoshi, who narrates the story and voices "DAXA-kun," the character who teaches various knowledge about space in the "What's New Today" corner in the main anime. He talks about his narration skills, how he created the role of DAXA-kun, his favorite parts of the film, the theme of the film "Dreams," and his theory on theater!

Muro: How did you feel about the offer?

Muro: I was very happy because I have had a budding desire to do something for children since I entered my thirties. I also love the loose and fluffy worldview. I also like the idea of people working together and cooperating with each other. I grew up on Shonen Jump, so I have learned the importance of working hard together in the spirit of "friendship, effort, and victory. Although our worldviews are different, I thought this work taught me that it is important to work hard together. I hope to softly convey the message that it is good to have dreams.

-- What was the director's request for the role of DAXA?

Muro: From the images I saw on film, I imagined that he would be cute. But what I heard on the set was, "An old man who works at DAXA disguises himself as a character to give trivia to children. He tries his best to make the children understand the information and speaks in a high-pitched voice. The request was that the character not sound like a character, but rather be loose. DAXA's voice gives the impression of being ungrounded. But please understand that it was all calculated (laughs).

-- What kind of preparation and image building did you do before listening to the requests on site?

Muro: This time, I would be doing both the narration and the voice of "DAXA-kun," so first I considered whether it would be better to separate the two images. Thankfully, I was given the opportunity to narrate a documentary for NHK. I was a little confident in my narration, having received praise from the director there, but the first thing he said to me was, "Please don't do it too well. (Laughs.) I was asked to relax my shoulders, because it was important to have a "just kidding" feel. What I had prepared did not work at all for this project. Just kidding narration seemed to be the watchword.

-- The animation has a pleasantly loose feel to it, but the setting was not loose, was it?

Muro: It was very easy to do because the setting was very clear. I was thinking a lot about how to separate the narration and DAXA-kun. However, it was surprisingly difficult to do a fake narration. I tended to relax my shoulders and give the impression that I was relaxed. I had just experienced narration, so I tried to convey the message. Of course, I had a role to play in conveying the message, but it was difficult to find the right balance between giving up my experience in narration and doing it in a fake way, while still conveying the content of the message.

Q: Did you have any difficulties with DAXA's voice?

Muro: DAXA's voice was set up to sound like an old man who was a little too high-strung, so I was able to play around with it as much as I wanted. During the postrecording of episode 4, I was told to use the voice from episode 1, saying, "Please use this image" (laughs). I was so joking around that Muro was beginning to flicker, and instead of the old man speaking in a high-pitched voice, he became Muro speaking in a high-pitched voice. I changed the narration every time, but when I ran out of ideas, Muro would show up, so I felt like I was in a maze every time I did the postrecording. But I hope you will enjoy the experience of being in that maze as well. I think it is also interesting that it is shown on E-television without an answer, because it is so loose.

-- Muro, what do you feel is the charm of this work?

Muro: There is a good looseness, including the characters. Kotetsu-kun has a dream of becoming an astronaut and spends his days at school, but he says, "Let's have a dream! Let's work hard toward our dreams! It is not like "Let's have a dream! The characters who have dreams move forward in a relaxed manner while having fun with their friends. I think this "looseness" is one of the main attractions of this work.

-- DAXA is a character who teaches us about the universe. Do you have any trivia about space that you gained from the work, including the narration?

Muro: When you come back from the moon, you leave things behind to make the return flight as light as possible. I was surprised at how primitive or short-sighted the idea was, even though we were supposed to have flown using the latest technology. But it also showed me how difficult it is to return safely. Unlike putting up a flag to commemorate landing on the moon, I would leave things behind to lighten the aircraft. Of course, I was a little worried that the moon would be upset, even though there were reasons for it, but I learned a lot.

-- I'm looking forward to learning a lot.

Muro: There was one thing in today's recording. In the days when astronomy was not an academic discipline, astrology was part of the study. It seems that in predicting the orbits of the stars, there was astrology to predict the future, and all astronomers could tell fortunes. When I thought that astrology, which has statistical significance, also has a historical component, I decided to avoid looking at astrology more and more. I would have no choice but to trust it (laughs).

-- You have experience as a voice actor in the "NINOKOKU" and "Boss Baby" series, but is there a difference in your approach as an actor in film, drama, or stage?

MURO: I find it difficult to work only with my voice. Usually, I stand in front of people and perform a play with some part of my body on display, so my body language also becomes information for the audience. I am not saying that I am a stick figure, but there is a type of acting in which it is considered good to speak the lines without hesitation. But if you do that with voice actors, nothing is conveyed. Because of my experience in many plays that do not use only voice, there is a part of me that cannot throw that away, and just because it is a voice play does not mean that there is a switch to switch from one to the other. That is the difficult part. Even though I can say the lines in accordance with the movements of the character's mouth, am I able to convey all the information to the audience? When I listen to the voice actors' performances and compare them to my own, I often feel that I am not giving enough information. However, I think it is really great that the actors are able to show the backbone of the performance, not just the emotions of frustration, sadness, and happiness. On the other hand, there may be parts that are conveyed because I am an actor, but as one of my challenges, I am thinking about it and trying various things.

-- So you are always experimenting?

Muro: Yes, I am. But for the narration and DAXA this time, I didn't need to think about anything difficult at all (laughs). (Laughs.) I don't know how I can say this after talking so passionately about it, but I think it's a good thing that you are not a narrator. ...... I honestly feel that the narration and the character with the high voice of an old man are in a completely different place from what I have done as a voice actor.

How do you feel about the voice-over work, including narrations?

Muro: I have been told that I have a good voice, but I have never believed it. When I hear my own voice, I often think, "My nose is stuffy. I've never had anyone else tell me that, so maybe it just sounds that way to me, but doesn't it sound kind of nasally to you?　I don't think I have a unique voice. I would like people to actually hear my voice once, like Issei Takahashi or Hiroshi Tamaki. I want people to hear their voices in real life. I would like people to hear their voices in real life. If I were offered a role with a good voice, I might think, "Why me? I might think, "Why me? But even with such a voice, I've been asked to narrate for Kotetsu-kun and NHK, so I'm going to go for it with confidence (laughs).

(Laughs.) Do you find anything "enjoyable" about narrating?

Muro: In documentaries, when the content is interesting, I sometimes put a little bit of emotion into the narration. I've heard that the narrator or newscaster shouldn't put in any emotion or feelings, but I'm the type of person who does it.

But I'm the type of person who does it.

Muro: Thank you very much!

Muro: What do you think of when you hear the word "astronaut"?

Muro: "Orange. Like Kotetsu, everyone is dressed in orange. Is there anything other than orange?

Muro: There is also blue, isn't there?

Muro: That's right. Kotetsu-kun's image is too strong, so I came out with orange. But that's not the kind of answer you were looking for, right?　I could feel it through the mask. It's not that kind of answer, it's more like, "I don't have any more..." (laughs)

Muro - No problem with orange either, but ...... (laughs).

Muro: "Astronauts = chosen people," right? I hear that the training is very hard, and I don't think it is easy for anyone to become an astronaut. I don't think it is easy for anyone to become an astronaut.

Muro: No, that's not true.

Muro: No, that's not true. I'm not trying to be cool, but when you rent a theater and stand on the stage, you are an actor. I've been told that I can memorize the lines very well.

Muro: Of course, of course!

Muro, please decide on the performance. Please decide on the role. (If you say so) I can definitely memorize the lines. Because I don't want to be embarrassed. I think it's an amazing ability to memorize. I think it is an amazing ability. It may not be a good thing to say, but there are child actors, but there are no child doctors. In other words, we are doing something that even children can do. We must never forget this. That's all for now, this is Murotsuyoshi!　What do you think?　What do you think?

T: The difference in enthusiasm (laughs). But I love this kind of story, even though it is far away from the universe!

Muro: Ahahaha. I guess I got away from it. In that case, if you could add a fictitious question and summarize it well (laughs).

Muro: I have no problem with the flow of the question, but I'll try to make it a question that you can answer more comfortably. Have you ever had a longing for space?

Muro: Yes, I have. I would like to go to the side where I can see it with my own eyes, instead of watching movies on the news. I want to make sure that I am really living on the earth. What I can see from the sky on an airplane is the land where I live. I have never seen the outline of the earth, and I want to see with my own eyes if the earth is blue.

Muro: So you want to see and believe with your own eyes?

Muro: Yes, I want to see and believe with my own eyes. I want to see it with my own eyes and believe it. I'm going to say this twice, so please leave it here (laughs).

The theme of this talk is "the importance of having a dream and challenging yourself to achieve your dream. Please tell us about the dreams you have fulfilled or the dreams you would like to fulfill.

Muro: The dream I have fulfilled is to be an actor who can eat. I told myself that once I became an actor who could eat, I should try out my favorite plays. Now that I am an actor who can eat, I am sure my past self will tell me that I can do any play I want from here on out. From now on, I will consider it as a form of self-expression. I want to put emphasis on what I think is interesting. So, I guess I am in the middle of my dream. I don't know how things will turn out in the future, and there is no guarantee that I will be able to remain an actor who will be able to eat. But I am thinking about what it means to be a good actor in my own way, and I hope that I will be able to do it from tomorrow onward.

Muro: That's a wonderful comment.

Muro: Isn't that right?　It was better than Orange, wasn't it?

I like orange, too.

Muro: Thank you very much (laughs).

(Interview and text by Shinobu Tanaka)

Film Information

Space Nunchaara Tekotsukun

Airing on NHK E-television every Wednesday from 18:45

Director: Hazum Sakuta

Original Story: Yuji Nishimura

Animation Production: Fanworks

Theme Song: RHYMESTER