Cast Interview - Rei Sakuma (Shampoo) x Toshihiko Seki (Mousse)

Translated by: Harley Acres

In the first season of the anime, the romances of Ranma and Mousse become even more complicated with the return of Shampoo, who loves Ranma but hates Mousse. In the newly launched second season, Mousse, a childhood friend of Shampoo, appears and follows her. We spoke to Toshihiko Seki and Rei Sakuma, who play some of the most popular characters in the series, about their relationship and the course of their love.

Interview and text: Motoki Kurata Photo: TOWA

Seki: Playing Mousse for the first time in over 30 years, I felt something new. Even though he courts Shampoo so many times and gets completely ignored, he still keeps trying without giving up. That's so endearing.

Sakuma: So you didn't think that much of it before?

Seki: I felt sorry for him, but I didn't find him endearing, I guess (laughs). Plus, he doesn't give up even though he knows Shampoo likes Ranma. He's a truly admirable guy. ...Well, all the characters in this work have thick skin, you know. Even if they fail, they seem to forget about it the next moment.

Sakuma: No matter how clearly she says, "I hate you!", he's an extremely positive thinker and interprets that as "she doesn't really mean that" (laughs). On set, people often say to me, "When you read the lines, Shampoo sounds really horrible."

Seki: But you can't sense any malice in Shampoo's words.

Sakuma: That's right. She's not saying that out of hatred or dislike for Mousse. If anything, she just isn't interested in him.

Seki: That's sad too (laughs).

Sakuma: But I think that's because they're too close. Maybe they're just childhood friends. When you fall in love with someone, you feel like you want to get to know them better. When I think about it that way, I think she knows too much about Mousse, and doesn't even think of him as a romantic partner in the first place.

Seki: That's why, no matter how much he says "I love you," it doesn't have any effect on her.

Sakuma: To Shampoo, when Mousse says "I love you," it's the same as saying "Good morning" (laughs).

Seki: That's so sad (laughs). That said, it seems like Mousse just ignores the terrible things Shampoo says to him.

Sakuma: But I'm sure she's an important person to him. At random moments, she shows signs of protecting him.

Seki: That's right. Sometimes she's kind to him, which makes it even more frustrating. "I can't leave you like this!" (laughs).

Sakuma: I love the scene where Mousse gets beaten up and Shampoo gently picks him up.

Seki: It's the part where Shampoo looks after Mousse, who has turned into a duck and is covered in wounds.

Sakuma: At that moment, Shampoo's eyes were as if she was picking up something incredibly important.

Seki: After that, I was hoping that there might be some progress between the two of them.

I'm starting to love the unrequited Mousse more and more. (Seki)

Sakuma: But it's such an unexpected turn of events, and in a way, it's packed with “that certain something,” so I really hope you'll watch it (laughs).

A world filled with strange people, yet strangely harmonious

Seki: This work has Ranma and Akane at the center, and they really create the story, right? That's why roles like ours are so free, and it's a lot of fun to play.

Sakuma: We're not the main dish, but it's like a spice that would leave something missing without it (laughs).

Seki: That's right. And yet it has its own unique flavor. Like cilantro in Vietnamese cuisine (laughs).

Sakuma: I think our characters have value in stirring up the story. What's interesting is that everyone, including the supporting cast, acts however they please and gets in Ranma and Akane-chan's way. But the more they interfere, the closer the two of them get.

Seki: If anything, you could say it's the interfering characters, the characters that help their love grow (laughs).

Sakuma: What's more, one eccentric character after another appears, and they all do completely unconventional things, but not a single one of them disrupts the worldview of the story. In fact, despite all the crazy developments, it all works together in harmony.

Seki: That's true. Shampoo caused a lot of trouble in the first season, but then she came back in the second season, this time as a cat and messing around with Ranma.

Sakuma: Shampoo as a cat is so cute, too. When she sulks, she uses her new weapon to bully Ranma, who hates cats. But no matter how cute she is, she can't compare to the impact of a duck (laughs).

Seki: Hahahaha! I'm so happy. In the first place, Mousse turned into a duck because he lost his footing and fell into the Spring of Drowned Duck in Jusenkyo. And that was on his first step. This misfortune really tells us about his sad life.

People who can tweak things but can't negotiate

Sakuma: Come to think of it, the number of animals is steadily increasing. Pandas, pigs, ducks. Ranma 1/2 is a romance and battle story, and before I knew it, it had become an animal story too! I was surprised (laughs). ^[1]

Seki: Of course, there are more human characters, too. And there are some new cast this time compared to last time. Shampoo's great-grandmother (Cologne) has also been replaced by Ako Mayama, from Miyoko Aso. ^[2]

Sakuma: That's right. To me, when I think of great-grandmothers, Aso-san is the one and only. So I was wondering who would be playing the new role, and I was delighted to hear that it would be my beloved friend Ako-chan. While the voice is obviously different from Aso-san's, I immediately felt a strong bond between Shampoo and her new great-grandmother.

Seki: Kaori Nazuka-san, who took over from Hiromi Tsuru as Ucchan (Ukyo Kuonji), was also fantastic.

Sakuma: Amidst all that, it's interesting that Kazuhiko-san (Inoue) is the only one who has changed roles.

Seki: That's right. Last time he played Mikado Sanzenin, but this time he's playing Happosai, replacing Ichiro Nagai-san. ^[3]

Sakuma: He looked like he was having so much fun playing Happosai (laughs).

The unconventional characters that appear one after another bring Ranma and Akane closer together (Sakuma)

Seki: What makes me laugh is that even though it's a romantic comedy, the elderly are incredibly aggressive, which adds a nice spice to the romance in the story. I think this is where Rumiko-sensei really shines.

Sakuma: Also, while the attention tends to be on the slightly eccentric characters, the peaceful-looking Tendo family is actually quite good. Even Kasumi-san's gentle tone when Kikko-chan (Kikuko Inoue) says, "Well, he's a pervert," brings tears of laughter to my eyes. Even during filming, all the other cast members were secretly applauding him, saying, "He's doing a great job!" (laughs).

Seki: The second daughter, Nabiki, is also a mysterious presence. Because there's no normal person in the story, her deviousness comes into view.

Sakuma: And yet, what's great about it is that everyone is so light-hearted. None of their love lives or rivalries are murky at all.

Seki: That's right. There's no need to read between the lines or read too much into them.

Sakuma: They're all good at scheming, but they're not good at bargaining (laughs). That's why there are always misunderstandings and miscommunication.

Seki: Hahahaha! That's funny! But you're right. It's that easy-to-understand nature that makes it so loved by so many people, even across the ages.

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Toshihiko Seki: Born June 11th in Tochigi Prefecture. Voice actor. Notable works include Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba (as Muzan Kibutsuji), Nintama Rantarou (as Hansuke Doi), Mashle: The Divine Awakening Candidate Selection Exam Arc (as Adam Jobs), and Pluto (as Pluto).

Rei Sakuma: Born January 5th in Tokyo. Voice actor and actor. Notable works include Anpanman (as Batako-san), Moomins (as My), Onegai My Melody (as My Melody), and Kiki's Delivery Service (as Jiji).

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Footnotes

• [1] Takahashi states in an interview the idea of people turning into animals was appealing to her as it seemed like something from a fairytale.
• [2] Cologne is voiced by Ako Mayama. Mayama's original stage name in the 1990s was "Rin Mizuhara" (水原リン), the name she was billed under when she appeared in the original Ranma 1/2 anime as various unnamed background voices. Since her time on the original Ranma 1/2 she has gone on to specialize in a number of old lady roles. Miyoko Aso, Cologne's original actress, passed away in 2018 at the age of 92.
• [3] Kazuhiko Inoue was Ichiro Nagai's protege and he mentions being very pleased to take on the role from his mentor who passed away in 2014 at the age of 82.

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