Kyokai no RINNE - I Asked Yoshitsugu Matsuoka, the voice of Oboro! Part 1 & 2

Translation by: Harley Acres

Born in Hokkaido in 1986. in 2011, he made his first starring role as Narumi Fujishima in God's Notepad. Since then, he has starred in a number of films, including Sword Art Online as Kirito and the How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend as Rinya Aki. In 2016, he won the Best Actor award at the 10th Voice Actor Awards.

Please tell us about how you decided to get involved with Kyokai no RINNE?

Matsuoka: Being able to be involved in a Rumiko Takahashi work made me feel a lot of pressure since this is a creator that I’ve known for a long time. To appear in the work of someone that is so well known makes you feel like you shouldn’t do it, or you worry that your voice might leave a different impression from what others had of the character while wanting to make sure you are responding to the desires of the production- it can be scary.

When I went to the recording sessions for RINNE everyone knew me, so that was a relief. At the first recording Ryohei (Kimura) suddenly said, “I like Yoshi’s Oboro.” When I heard that I was so joyful I didn’t know what to say. I was happy just to have heard him say it.

He’s the exact opposite of me! But...

What kind of character is Oboro, who you’re playing?

Matsuoka: The first thing I’ll say is that Oboro is tsundere (hotheaded, temperamental)... it’s the same with Ageha-sama, but he’s like an elementary school student who is mischievous with someone he actually cares for. I’m the sort of person who wants to go through life without making any waves, so Oboro is nothing like me (laughs). But its actually surprisingly easy to play someone who isn’t similar to me.

Since you’re playing a black cat, is the approach to playing an animal any different than when you have played humans?

Matsuoka: No! (laughs) I’ve play the role of an armadillo before, but for that role I couldn’t speak a human language, so I just said “cue cue cue”. In that sense, it’s easier to do this time. However, since Oboro has a tail, I was conscious of how he moved. The tail is a very important part for cats, so when you play a cat, you should be aware of his tail about 10% of the time. It’s a fine nuance, but I’m keeping it in mind when I act. When I perform, I attach a great deal of importance to what the character looks like. The rest is their upbringing and behavior. I work well from those two perspectives.

What sort of things do you think are important when playing Oboro?

Matsuoka: That your words don’t get too harsh. When I’m normally playing him, there are a lot of times when he gets confused and becomes abusive. If I overdo it while performing him, then the audience might think he is seriously trying to hurt Ageha-sama. In the case of Oboro, it’s just that he’s tsundere. I’m very careful to give the nuance that I am not really ranting and raving.

Do you have any memorable events from when you were recording?

Matsuoka: The sound director asked, “what are we going to do about child Oboro?” And I’m thinking, “what does that mean, ‘what are we going to do?’” Does that mean he thinks I can’t do it? No, I want to do it! I can do it! Thankfully it turned out well and they used my voice for that part after all (laughs).

What sort of things do you worry about between the other Shinigami/black cat combinations?

Matsuoka: I really pity Rinne and Rokumon (laughs). Looking at the two of them, even without any money they can be happy. I think they’re a good combination. Rokumon-chan can see the reality of the situation a little more often.

What characters, other than your own, are you interested in?

Matsuoka: It would have to be Suzu. She’s a naughty child, but she’ll be a good woman when she grows up (explosive laughter).

Part 2

What sort of things do you value as a voice actor?

Matsuoka: Getting to really listen to the performance and line-reading of your castmates. You’ve formed a plan for how you’re going to approach your own performance beforehand, even though you know you’ll be doing the recording with your cast, but listening to their performance at the test reading helps. ^[1]

What was your turning point as a voice actor?

Matsuoka: The first time I had a starring role, at the beginning after we had about five episodes completed one of the senior voice actors in the cast said to me, “Your role... anyone could do it,” and “who else could play this role?” We’d been drinking a bit at that point. After that the senior voice actor said, “well if you feel that way about it then next week show me the performance that only you can give.” That was going to be a week later. So I put everything I had into that performance and did it in my own voice as a test. My senior hit me on the shoulder and said, “if I can do it you can do it.” It was from then on that I started to do really great acting, and I put everything I had into it. I started to discuss things with the director and staff as well.

I also had the opportunity to talk with the animation director. “How do you feel about me putting out more than what’s just in the animation?” They said ‘If Matsuoka-san is giving it this much thought then if you do, I’ll fix the animation.” That way I started acting and counting on the rest of the staff as well.

Do you ever feel like you have an occupational disease in your daily life?

Matsuoka: I wouldn’t call it an occupational disease, but if I am at a convenience store and I speak, I’ll get caught immediately. “You’re Matsuoka-san?” Even if I’m just making a phone call in the city, I get called out. Lately when I’m shopping I change my voice (laughs). I’ll put on a super deep bass voice. “I DON’T NEED A BAG” (in super deep bass voice). If they just see my face they don’t know who I am (laughs).

If you could appear on any NHK program what would you pick?

Matsuoka: Hmm, I wonder... (thinks for awhile). There are a lot of characters like Let’s Tensai Terebi-kun (Let’s天才てれびくん). There are tons of characters out there that I’d love to voice, but its tricky when you have to ad-lib.

If you had a time machine would you go to the past or the future?

Matsuoka: Definitely the future, at least a thousand years into the future. I would like to see how much progress we have made. Will there be flying cars? It’s amazing when you think about the progress of the last 20 years. In a thousand years we’ll have some really ridiculous game consoles! (laughs)

What does it mean to Matsuoka-san to be a voice actor?

Matsuoka: I often say it’s “lending a vocal cord to a character”, but it means they can speak freely using my vocal cords. There is a certain sense of diving right in and playing a variety of roles, having people willing to buy into what we’re doing, it's really a dream job, I think that's what people think of voice acting. Of course it's not all fun. I don’t think the term “bringing a character to life” can be taken lightly. A voice actor plays the part with all his heart. At first it was just a job I longed to do.

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Footnotes

• [1] A test reading is an unrecorded rehearsal to ensure that the cast has good chemistry.

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