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The story
The voice actor playing Ryotsu Kankichi in the new Kochikame anime has been recast, and on a 5ch live-thread, a post asking “Does it really not fit, though?” touched off a wave of both criticism and support. Lasalle Ishii had voiced Ryotsu for a long stretch since the series began airing in 1996, and the thread’s discussion expanded beyond just the new actor’s performance to touch on the Doraemon voice cast change (nicknamed “Wasa-Dora”) and Subaru Kimura’s performance as Gian — the kind of “familiarity vs. skill” debate that’s common with long-running anime.
Does it really not fit, though?
Source: video.twimg.com / Original post here
What people said
He was amazing though
It just feels wrong without that voice
Exactly — the new guy's voice ('Welfare-kun,' as some are calling him) is too polished/clean-sounding
Isn't it about time the new cast's been at it longer than Nobuyo Oyama was?
Wasa-Dora already blew past that record
The previous Ryotsu wasn't a pro either
Yeah, can't shake the feeling he's straining to squeeze it out
That happens with literally every piece of media, so it can't be helped
Nah, I never got used to that one
Lasalle was a total amateur going in, but this guy's already got 10 years under his belt and still sounds like this — there's no more room left to grow
The new Nobita was rough right after the switch — he's gotten a lot better lately
Even within Doraemon itself, the rest of the recast cast got accepted just fine
At this point Wasa-Dora defenders can only fight back by branding critics as old fogeys — that's all they've got left. I'm gonna keep bashing it, and I'm fine being called an old fogey for it
Isn't that just because he talks slow enough to be understood?
At the start it was nothing but complaints too
But Kobuhei (the old Katsuo VA) was a walking case of 'this feels wrong' from start to finish
Background and Key Points of This Discussion
Ryotsu Kankichi in Kochikame has been voiced by comedian Lasalle Ishii for a long stretch since the anime began airing in 1996, and it’s the recasting of that role that sparked this discussion. The “Wasa-Dora” reference that comes up repeatedly in the thread refers to Doraemon’s 2005 voice cast change — often cited as a precedent that drew fierce backlash at first but became accepted over the years. Much of the reaction here, too, centers less on the actual quality of the new performance and more on discomfort with a voice that differs from one people grew attached to over many years — a pattern common to this kind of recasting. That said, the thread never clearly established the new voice actor’s name or background, so definitive judgments may still be premature.
*This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Live News General) thread “[Sad News] New Kochikame Anime Gets Slammed Over Ryotsu’s Voice Not Fitting.”
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