Interview with Yusuke Onuki and Mamoru Miyano of the spring anime "Detective Furyo Balance: UNLIMITED"] "It's great that we can play with each other," says Onuki, noting their nice combination! Autographs will be given away!

The TV anime "Detective Fortune: Balance:UNLIMITED" will begin airing in April 2020.

This work is based on a series of mystery novels by Yasutaka Tsutsui, "The Rich and Powerful Detective" (Shincho Bunko), which started in 1975 and sold more than 1.12 million copies in total.

Now, 15 years later, it is being adapted into an animated TV series, a new approach. While the drama version was a hit for its bold change of the main character to a woman, the anime version follows the original story, keeping the main character as a man, but moving the stage to the present day and reborn with a new storyline and new characters.

The two actors who will be buddies in the "Detective Bullshit Balance: UNLIMITED" TV anime are Yusuke Onuki, who plays Daisuke Kobe, and Mamoru Miyano, who plays Haru Kato, an original character in the anime. This is Onuki's first attempt at voice acting. We interviewed the two stars for this issue.

─ What was your impression of the film and how did you feel when you were chosen to act in it?

Onuki: I am originally a dancer, so this was my first audition as a voice actor and my first performance as a voice actor.

Miyano: It was an audition for you too, Onuki.

Onuki It was an audition. I have been involved in various activities, but voice acting was an unknown genre, so when I heard about the audition, I wanted to give it a try!　So when I heard about the audition, I thought, "I want to give it a try! So I was very happy when I won the role. Kyoko Fukada starred in the drama version of "The Rich and Powerful Detective," and I co-starred with her in the drama "Lupin's Daughter. I feel it was fate that brought us together.

Miyano: "Detective Fugou Balance: UNLIMITED" is a very innovative work, and I think the anime will open up even more possibilities for it. I myself have been involved in a number of remakes, and I think that taking a masterpiece and giving it a new form as entertainment is a genre that the Japanese animation industry excels in and can be proud of. I am very excited to see how the techniques unique to modern animation will be used to create interesting works.

─ This is your first time as a voice actor.

Onuki: Yes, he is always pulling me along!　I am always surrounded by senior voice actors and I am always learning from them.

Miyano: On the contrary, the voice actors on site are also stimulated by Mr. Onuki. He has a way of feeling the atmosphere and a different approach from the usual. I think that Mr. Onuki's presence enlivens the scene. I remember one of the young actors muttering "exquisite ......" to Mr. Onuki's play (laugh).

─ What did you feel during your first experience of postrecording?

Onuki: Actually, the first three episodes were recorded separately due to stage work. That is why I was surprised at the different tempo of the recording pace when we all participated in the postrecording from the fourth episode. It was reassuring to hear Miyano-san and the other members explain to me some of the industry terms used in the voice-over industry.

Miyano: We Japanese voice actors often gather in the same studio and record together. That seems to be a uniquely Japanese culture. However, the live atmosphere that is created by the interaction between the actors is very important, and the pace of the recording process varies from work to work. Besides, the postrecording process starts suddenly, as if to say, "Okay, let's do it! (laugh), I wanted to support them because they would be very confused at the beginning.

Onuki: They really start with the tension of "Here we go!

Miyano: He has a lot of experience in acting, so I thought it would be a waste if other aspects of his performance were to get in the way of his acting.

Onuki: Every single scene was a discovery, such as recording scenes where voices overlap separately to improve the sound quality. The speed at which the actors' voices interacted with each other was not so different from that of the drama. Also, during the first joint post recording, I was very nervous because there were so many people! I was very nervous, so Mr. Miyano introduced me to everyone.

Miyano: You were really nervous (laughs). I also had no idea what to expect when I first jumped into the world of voice acting, so I know exactly how that feels.

Onuki: At times like that, it was a great relief to have someone talk to me. The first time we did postrecording together, I went to the studio without breakfast and my stomach was grumbling.

─ Were you able to smoothly get in front of the microphone?

Onuki: Yes, I was surprised (at the microphone work)!　（I was surprised (at the microphone work)!

Miyano: Everyone would come in front of three or four microphones and switch between them as they performed.

Onuki: I was also surprised that it was not my own microphone.

─ ─ When you are doing voice acting for the first time, don't you get physically active?

Onuki: Onuki is not a physical person, so his movements are not that big even if he acts naturally.

Miyano: Actually, I am the type of person who moves a lot when I am acting (laughs).

Onuki: Oh, I just pulled out my police identification card!　I thought, "I just pulled out my police notebook!

Miyano: Ha-ha-ha-ha (laughs).

Mutual characters revealed through dialogue

─ ─ What is your impression of each other as buddies, Mr. Miyano and Mr. Onuki?

Miyano: I had seen you on TV, so I was very happy to be able to co-star with you. I was looking forward to meeting him on the set.

Onuki: I first heard the voice of Moon Yagami in the anime "DEATH NOTE" and I wondered who was playing him. Then I happened to see him on a talk variety show and thought he was a very nice and interesting person.

I was very excited when I found out that we were going to perform together this time. I was so happy when we first recorded episode 4 together that I even changed Daisuke's character a little during the test (laughs).

Miyano: When I am with you for interviews like this, I can tell that you have a very keen sense of sensitivity. He is always trying to absorb something on the spot, and his ability to grasp the essence of what he is doing is amazing. We also act while feeling this, so it is very smooth and comfortable for us.

───What do you find interesting about each role and what are the highlights?

Miyano: It's hard for me to say, but I think our dialogue is great. (laugh)

Onuki: It feels good, the sense of balance.

Miyano: Daisuke and Kato are opposite in character, but we feel very comfortable playing them together. Kato used to be an ace but has fallen a bit, but he has a great sense of justice. I think he has a realistic image of a middle-manager who tries his best even though he can't do what he wants to do.

Onuki: There are many unique characters in this work, but Daisuke is a character who should not be pulled down by them because of his own pace. So it was very difficult at first to maintain a sense of wealth and self-sufficiency. Since he does not have a large range of emotions in his appearance, it is very interesting to see how much he expresses his emotions and how he expresses them.

Miyano: I feel that we were able to see more of the characters we play in each other's roles through our shouting matches. Daisuke is cool and cute, so please look forward to his performance.

──This is a great cast with a lot of interesting characters who have their own quirks and quirks. Please tell us about the characters you liked, the ones you found interesting, and your co-stars.

Miyano: Everything was impressive, but I never thought I would be able to play with Akira Kamiya in my career as a voice actor, so it was a dream come true. I was very happy!　The weight of every word he said was amazing.

Onuki: Actually, I was planning to tell Kamiya-san's story too. At the beginning and end of each episode, there are memorable lines by Mr. Kamiya. I was impressed by the core or power of her voice. I was very moved.

Miyano: She is a very humble person, and it was a very precious experience for me to be able to be there while watching such a wonderful senior.

─ What was impressive about the characters?

Miyano: The director (Yukihiro Shimizu) played by Kozo Shioya is really exquisite. He is very kind, but at the same time he is very appropriate (laughs). He makes you wonder if he is okay, but at the same time, you are drawn to him by the hint that he has a past, too. ...... Chosan (Chosuke Nakamoto), played by Kamiya-san, also appears to be a sympathetic detective, but apparently there is more to him than that. I think it is fascinating that each character has a backbone.

Onuki: I really like the voice of Ms. Mahoro Saeki (CV: Rena Ueda), a member of the Gendai HQ (Modern Crimes Task Force Preparation Office), and it is very soothing. I was impressed by all the different nuances in her voice during the call-out scenes, and her voice itself was soothing.

Miyano: That softness is very hard to achieve, and it's exquisite, Rena Ueda.

Onuki: I was also surprised by the power of Maaya Sakamoto's voice, which took the world by storm right out of the gate.

Miyano: They are all amazing people. Maaya's character is a mysterious woman who is very interesting, so please look forward to her.

What if the two were to appear in a live-action detective drama?

───The latest gadgets appear in the film, which is also unique to this work.

Onuki: Daisuke has an AI butler, an earring-shaped butler. When you give it instructions, it makes payments in the hundreds of millions of dollars (laughs). (Laughs.) I was amazed when I heard that this was technically feasible.

─ Did you two grow up watching detective dramas or detective novels like this?

Miyano: "Odoru Daisousasen" (Bayside Shakedown)!

Onuki: "Abunai Detective.

Miyano: You watched "Abu Deka"?

Onuki It was a rerun (laughs). Even as a child, I liked Kyouhei Shibata because he was so cool.

─ Detectives have various personalities, but if you two were to act in a detective drama, what type would you be, the physical type or the brainy type?

Miyano: I think I'm more of a glib type. (laughs)

Onuki: Isn't that exactly like Moon Yagami (from "DEATH NOTE")?

Miyano (laughs). (laughs) Yes, if I were a detective, I would be a negotiator.

Onuki: I am already a physical person!　I want to do "Die Hard.

Miyano: I would like you to be in charge of action. We have said that we would like to do a live-action version of "Rich Detective Balance: UNLIMITED" (laugh), and if that happens, I will go after Mr. Onuki for action as well!

Onuki: You are free to say so (laughs). Daisuke is not a physical person, so it is fun to think about what would happen if it were live-action.

─ ─ The broadcast is coming soon. Lastly, what are the highlights of your work?

Onuki: One of the good things about a series is that there is a flow and mystery throughout the series. The action is exhilarating and interesting, of course, but I also hope that viewers will enjoy the shadows of each character and the gradual unraveling of the mysteries of the story. Please also pay attention to how Daisuke and Kato, who are initially disparate, become buddies.

Miyano: I think this is an exhilarating and entertaining work. I think that people who like the original work will enjoy the new charm of the film, and at the same time, the mystery element of the original work is at the core of the film and supports the work. Please watch it!

(Interview, text, and photos by Kiri Nakazato)

One lucky winner will receive a signed copy of the TV anime "Detective Balance: UNLIMITED" signed by Yusuke Onuki, who plays the role of Daisuke Kobe, and Mamoru Miyano, who plays the role of Haru Kato!

<Prize
Yusuke Onuki and Mamoru Miyano's autographs from "Balance: UNLIMITED".

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