Celebrating Numakura Manami's birthday! Who is your favorite character? 2020 Ver. Will Ganaha Hibiki from "THE IDOLM@STER" be on top for two consecutive years!?

Numakura Manami's birthday is on Apr. 15.

Numakura Manami made her voice acting debut in the late '00s. Since then, she'd been playing many characters in various titles.
In 2019, she announced that she got married to the voice actor Osaka Ryouta, and in Feb.2020 she performed her final live, “Minna de!”, gathering a lot of fans.

To celebrate Numakura Manami's birthday, here at Anime!Anime!, we conducted an annual reader survey asking, “Who is your favorite character played by her?”. During the survey period between Apr. 3 to Apr. 10, a total of 137 responses were received.
There were more male respondents with the gender ratio being 65% male and 35% female. The age group was about 30% for those under the age of 19, and about 35% for those in their 20s, mainly focusing on youngsters.

2019 Results: https://animeanime.jp/article/2019/04/15/44875.html
■Hibiki, the debut character, is on top for two consecutive years!

The 1st place goes to Ganaha Hibiki from “THE IDOLM@STER” with an approval rating of about 30%.
Hibiki is an innocent and cheerful idol from Okinawa. Many comments were received about her voice acting debut, such as “I fell in love with this charming character with her bursting smile, her ability to sing both cute and cool songs, and the fact that she says she's perfect but is actually a hard worker”.
She has played her for many years, which is another reason why Hibiki has become an unforgettable character; “As being her debut character, she is considered a familiar voice for more than 10 years. When I think about Numakura-san, Hibiki is the first character that comes up to my mind”.

The 2nd place goes to Toudou Yurika from “Aikatsu!” with an approval rating of about 12%.
The voice actress was praised for her thorough and accurate performance of the character; “I was fascinated by Numakura-san's performance as a diligent girl and her vampire character”, and “It was cool to see Yurika-sama with her cute natural face! She always protects her character and cares about her fans”.
A comment was received about her famous line, “I love when she says, 'I will suck your blood!'”.
Some of the fans commented about her appearance in the latest series “Aikatsu on Parade!”, “I'm so glad I was able to see her on the stage again!”.

The 3rd place goes to Takao from “Arpeggio of Blue Steel -Ars Nova-” with an approval rating of about 9%.
The gradual growth of Takao, who appeared initially as an enemy, was appreciated by many fans, “She loved the Captain but only shows to be single-minded in her beliefs. She is cool, cute, funny, and very human”, and “Takao's love, affection, and the bond with her friends are a big theme of this work”.

Let's introduce other comments!
Kohaku from “Dr. STONE”, “She is strong-minded with a hot-cold personality, and you can also see a glimpse of her cute feminine side”.
Nakamura Rio from “Assassination Classroom”, “Despite her cute appearance, she has a spirited and frank personality, and her sleaziness attracts a lot of boys. I like her being sincere and straightforward”.

Narberal Gamma from “Overlord”, “I like the gap between her being loyal to Ainz and having a derogatory attitude toward humans”.
Fans also voted the young boy Oga Akita from “Shinkansen Henkei Robo Shinkalion THE ANIMATION”, “He's a cool and smart sniper. His sweet tooth and deep knowledge of sweets are adorable. I was also impressed by the pet phrase 'Hanashi wa yometa' (I can expect what this is about)”.

The survey features titles that were broadcast in 2019, such as “Dr. STONE”. The rankings are different from the last year, with nine characters tied up in 10th place.

■Top 10
Who is your favorite character played by Numakura Manami? 2020 Ver.]
1. Ganaha Hibiki “THE IDOLM@STER”
2. Toudou Yurika “Aikatsu!”
3. Takao “Arpeggio of Blue Steel -Ars Nova-”
4. Kamoi Tsubame “Uchi No Maid Ga Uzasugiru!”
5. Kohaku “Dr. STONE”
6. Oga Akita “Shinkansen Henkei Robo Shinkalion THE ANIMATION”
6. Narberal Gamma “Overlord”
8. Retoree “SHOW BY ROCK!!”
9. Nakamura Rio “Assassination Classroom”
10. Kurahashi Riko “Love Lab”
10. Endou Saya “Dagashi Kashi”
10. Enami Kiyose “Slow Start”
10. Hiyama Akane “Love Tyrant”
10. Brandish μ “FAIRY TAIL”
10. Alfarid “The Heroic Legend of Arslan”
10. Clarion “Pandora in the Crimson Shell: Ghost Urn”
10. Towa Kuon “White Cat Project”
10. Imamura Sora “Age 12”

(Survey period: Apr. 3 to Apr. 10, 2020)

* The questionnaire is part of an attitude survey related to the interest of the readers towards the current anime works and characters. Regarding the results, there is no intention to determine any kind of relative merit of any character or production. We hope that this article will be an opportunity for you to get to know new works and characters, and also deepen your understanding and interest in them.