Sep. 3 is Kaji Yuuki-san's birthday.
He debuted as a voice actor in the mid-2000s, and has played the main character in various titles. He received the Best Rookie Actor Award in the 3rd Seiyu Awards and won Best Actor in Leading Role for the 7th and 8th.
In 2020, he has taken part in works, such as the film “Psycho-Pass 3: First Inspector” and “Uchi Tama!? ~Uchi no Tama Shirimasen ka?~”. His starting a YouTube channel also brought much attention.
We at Anime!Anime! have conducted the same survey as last year asking, “Who's Your Favorite Character Voiced by Kaji-Yuuki-san?” to celebrate his birthday. There were 195 votes during the voting period from Aug. 18 to Aug. 25.
The voters were mainly female with a gender ratio of 20% male to 80% female, and the age range was on the younger side with 65% under 19 and 20% in their 20s.
■Characters from popular series dominated the higher ranks!
1st Place
1st place was taken by Todoroki Shouto from “My Hero Academia” with roughly 15% of the votes, keeping him at the top for 3 consecutive years.
“Using two elements, fire and ice, is so cool! I love how he is always cool, but sometimes becomes a bit silly”, and “I love how well he portrays the passion he has under his cool attitude”, are comments that show the duality of the character, who uses fire and ice, fascinates the fans.
There were also some comments pointing out the drama described in the story, “It makes me happy to see him confronting his past to become who he wants to be”, and “I loved the story of him overcoming his hatred towards his father”.
2nd Place
Coming in 2nd was Eren Yegar from “Attack on Titan” with roughly 13% of the votes. He kept 2nd place for two consecutive years.
“His performance perfectly portrays the emotions of Eren”, and “I love his reckless yet pure sense of justice. It's a great treat for a protagonist”, are comments from fans who were fascinated by his emotional performance.
There were also comments such as, “This character lets you enjoy Kaji-san's acting skills”, and “Each line of his shows how much passion he has for the character”.
The main character from the popular series, which has “The Final Season” coming up, made the list.
3rd Place
3rd place wnt to Kozume Kenma from “Haikyuu!!” with roughly 10% of the votes, moving him up from 5th place last year.
Kozume Kenma is the setter of Nekom High. “I believe it was Kaji-kun's achievement that Kenma, who speaks emotionlessly with a small voice, left such a strong impression”, and “He nailed both the quiet, elusive Kenma and the Kenma with a passionate glare”, were the comments for the shy but talented character.
The 2nd cour for the 4th season will start in October.
■Here are some comments for other characters!!
For Zeldris from “The Seven Deadly Sins”, “He also plays the protagonist Meliodas, and it's amazing how he expresses the darkness of the younger brother Zeldris while performing both of them in a similar voice.”
For Kuro from “Servapm”, “As a cat, he speaks in a high pitched cute voice, and as a human, he speaks in a deep cool voice. Kuro is an amazing character that lets us enjoy both!”
For Shindou Arata from “Psycho-Pass 3”, “He usually is a wishy-washy character, but he's so cool when he uses his skills as a mentalist to solve cases. This is exactly what “gap moe” (being attracted to the gap) is! Also, the acrobatic parkour never gets old!!”
There were also votes for a new character from an anime broadcast from late 2019 to 2020, Nora from “Uchi Tama!? ~Uchi no Tama Shirimasen ka?~”, “Though he is a typical strong, smart, cool, lone-wolf, stray cat character, he also has a kind heart that cares about his friends. The ending theme song also expresses his feelings towards his former owner, and Kaji-san's heartful singing shook my heart”.
Popular titles with several series ranked high in the 2020 survey. Many of them have a new series coming up, hyping up the fans for the characters' further achievements.
■Top 20
[Who's Your Favorite Character Voiced by Kaji-Yuuki-san? 2020 Edition]
1. Todoroki Shouto “My Hero Academia”
2. Eren Yegar “Attack on Titan”
3. Kozume Kenma “Haikyuu!!”
4. Alibaba Saluja “Magi”
5. Meliodas “The Seven Deadly Sins”
6. Isara Mao “Ensemble Stars”
6. Nishikata “Teasing Master Takagi-san”
8. Shindou Arata “Psycho-Pass 3”
9. Narumiya Mei “Ace of Diamond”
10. Ichinose Kazuya “Inazuma Eleven”
10. Clemont “Pokémon the Series XY”
10 Fudou Myouou “Inazuma Eleven”
10. Mochizuki Souta “Kokuhaku Jikkō Iinkai” “Itsudatte Bokura no Koi wa 10 cm Datta.”
10. Yukine “Noragami”
10. Julian Mintz “Legend of the Galactic Heroes: The New Thesis”
16. Asahina Wataru “Brothers Conflict”
16. Kirishima Ayato “Tokyo Ghoul”
16. Kurumatani Sora “Ahiru no Sora”
16. Sabito “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba”
16. Souma NTonomo “Hakuouki”
16. Totsuka Tatara “K”
16. Naruhodou Ryuuichi “Ace Attorney (TV series)”
16. Nora “Uchi Tama!? ~Uchi no Tama Shirimasen ka?~”
16. Hama Shuichirou “Nintama Rantarou”
16. Hilmes “The Heroic Legend of Arslan”
16. Fuyunyan “Yo-Kai Watch”
16. Mabuchi Kou “Ao Haru Ride”
(Voting Period: Aug. 18 to Aug. 25, 2020)