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Yesterday I learned a lesson.

Although the blanket had been ready for a couple of months now, I was only able to gift it yesterday to my pregnant friend.

A few days prior, I was hesitant about giving a hand-made gift.

What if it was not appropriate? What if it was too much? What if she dislikes the color or the pattern? What if she already has too many blankets? What if it ends up fraying or pilling quickly? What if the fibers trigger some weird allergies? What if it sends the wrong message?

So many what-ifs...Some of them ridiculous, I know. I was seriously contemplating only gifting the special lactation cookies she loved. In the end, since the blanket was taking up storage space and I didn't want to waste my efforts, I wrapped it up and gifted it.

My friend loved it. She even messaged me later that evening to personally let me know how touched she was that I hand-knitted a blanket for her baby. She told me that she will treasure that blanket.

I gave an unevenly-stitched fragile blanket, and instead, my friend received a thoughtful loved-filled gift.

Sometimes we need another set of eyes to remind us of the beauty in what we do.

Sure, my stitches would never be as even as a machine's. But every stitch is accompanied by love, prayers and best wishes for her baby. A machine could have easily produced the same-sized blanket in a matter of minutes. Still, each moment working on that blanket was meaningfully spent for someone special. I didn't just create an item. It was a lovingly crafted message of love from me to a dear friend.

We crafters are often our own worst critics. Sometimes we become too obsessed with perfection that it hinders us from communicating our love.

Perhaps next time, rather than focus on the little imperfections, I should step back and see the whole of what I created.

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Almost done with the blanket! It will be ready in a few days~

Here is my attempt to block it.

I couldn't find the right pins, so I used some rust-proof needles (⁠≧⁠▽⁠≦⁠)

I've never properly blocked anything before, so I hope it turns out well.

I read some reviews that Lion Brand Coboo stretches over time. I'm not too worried since this is a blanket. In the future, I'll avoid making any fitted garments with it to be safe.

More valuable knowledge gained!

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"I thought I lost the correct needle so I bought a new one. Now have I have two."

"Time for a new project!"

"I have every shade of green, except the one I need."

"What project can I make with this yarn?"

"New knitting idea! Time to start a new project."

"I lost the correct needle again."

"Don't ask me how many projects I have going on."

"Oh, there's the needle/stitch marker I thought I lost."

"I started a new project to use up my stash...I ended up buying even more yarn."

Welcome to knitting •́⁠ ‿⁠ •̀

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I've been knitting a larger project~

My good friend will have a baby shower soon, and I wanted to make a baby blanket for her. I hope she likes it!

This is my first time using Lionbrand's Coboo, a mix of cotton and bamboo fibers. It's natural, light and soft. It's more expensive than my usual milk cotton yarn, but I think it is worth the price.

I had a hard time deciding which fibers to use. A quick Google search revealed that cotton, acrylic, and wool are okay for babies... I decided to use this blend since it's made of natural plant fibers. It's also not as warm as animal fibers, just right for our warm climate.

I rarely check gauges, but I did it for this project. I used 4.5 mm needles instead of 4.0 mm. I'm once again reminded that I'm such a tight knitter.

I'm excited to finish this project! This will be the first ever blanket that I'll be knitting as a gift.

The pattern can be found here:

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Reblogging...Happy 31st birthday to Saito Souma!

Happy 30th birthday to Saito Soma (April 22)!!!

To celebrate, I tried drawing 30 of his roles (which I've already heard/watched~) I can't decide which role I like best!

Which Saito Soma role made you a fan? I first heard him voice Yamaguchi Tadashi, but what made me a fan was his role as Tsurumaru Kuninaga.

Looking forward to more of his work! How many more columns and rows will I be able to add in the future?

-------------------notes to self-----------------------

Some parts look rushed because it is. My ancient tablet decided to crash every few minutes and then while I was doing the line art. (Ugh, my lines still look shaky)

I don't know how long it took me to finish this... Let's just say I lost track how many times I had Saito Soma's songs on repeat while drawing. (≧▽≦) This took up a lot of time but I have no regrets. I learned a lot while drawing this.

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Continues trend of bringing knitting into all my interests bc it’s the one thing I have some kind of expertise in <3

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| June 8 | HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAMO 💕

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Happy Birthday to seiyuu/singer Toyonaga Toshiyuki (April 28)!

I mentioned before how varied his characters' singing sound. Here are a few examples of his singing. Got to admire how he can sing in different voices!

The difference between Matsuoka Shun and Kaneshiro Goshi was just wow. It also takes talent to intentionally sound bad at singing.

Tumblr limits video uploads to 5 mins so I had to cut the video short...

I don't know if I should still post the continuation...it's not totally related to this video...(but the credits are there) hmmmm

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Happy 30th birthday to Saito Soma (April 22)!!!

To celebrate, I tried drawing 30 of his roles (which I've already heard/watched~) I can't decide which role I like best!

Which Saito Soma role made you a fan? I first heard him voice Yamaguchi Tadashi, but what made me a fan was his role as Tsurumaru Kuninaga.

Looking forward to more of his work! How many more columns and rows will I be able to add in the future?

-------------------notes to self-----------------------

Some parts look rushed because it is. My ancient tablet decided to crash every few minutes and then while I was doing the line art. (Ugh, my lines still look shaky)

I don't know how long it took me to finish this... Let's just say I lost track how many times I had Saito Soma's songs on repeat while drawing. (≧▽≦) This took up a lot of time but I have no regrets. I learned a lot while drawing this.

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Okay, in some parts of the world April 21 has not yet ended. I am not too late!(≧▽≦)

Happy Birthday to seiyuu Shimono Hiro!!

Here's a compilation of clips that make it extra hard to believe that he is a man in his forties. ✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧

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Okay this post is a bit different...

Made some almond tofu~

maybe, just MAYBE this can entice a certain someone to join our adventures in Teyvat.

I used the recipe from https://youtu.be/YtjyvKH_nfU

Out of all the recipes I found, this one was the simplest. It's probably not the most authentic recipe, but, hey, it works.

Since I only had jasmine flowers, I used those instead of osthmanthus. I also substituted agar agar for gelatine. I skipped on the goji berries too. I am lazy okay. The less energy I spend in cooking, the more energy I have left for eating.

Not the best presentation, but I love the taste and texture ( ꈍᴗꈍ) I could see why a certain adeptus is fond of this dessert.

I will add more agar agar next time though. The almond tofu looked like it had an identity crisis--am I solid or a liquid?

Wishing everyone better gacha draws!

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It arrived yesterday~ (☆▽☆)

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30-day seiyuu challenge/appreciation week 4 + 2 days

Finally got the time to post this!  Got really delayed because so many things got in the way...my computer decided to stop cooperating...tumblr also decided to whisk part of my draft away...

Anyway! here’s the last week for the challenge~ I don’t even know if what I typed makes sense.

Hey, if you guys want to do the 30-day seiyuu challenge (whether mine or someone else’s), can you please let me know? I want to read more appreciation posts for seiyuus~

If you want to see more posts filled with fangirling and my opinions, here is the link to week 3.

22. Seiyuu with fastest voice change

Shimazaki  Nobunaga

Just listen to his character Kaido Shun…

And this guy… 

You'll know what I mean.  The way he shifts in pitch is near instant.  

23. Seiyuu with best main character roles

Nakamura Yuuichi

He doesn’t get casted as those typical loud, heroic, shounen main characters, but you'll want to root for his characters.  (hmm, actually you'll like his characters even though they're support characters.)

He just… "owns" the character he voices.  Once I hear him voice a character, I can't really imagine that character being voiced by anyone else. 

 I feel that his voice really improves the character too; adding depth to the character.  

Special Mention: Hanae Natsuki I'm personally not a fan, but I have to admit that he is talented.  

He is given a lot of main character roles and he excels at it. He is given a lot of main character roles and he excels at it.

24. Seiyuu with best support roles

Kimura Ryohei

I don't know why, but I tend to like his characters more when they're not the main lead.  

His characters tend to make others shine and become more memorable.

25. Favorite seiyuu duo/ combination

Kimura Ryohei + Nobunaga Shimazaki

I'll go ahead and say it, I was very biased for this item.  They don't really get much projects together unlike other seiyuu duos (Kamiya Hiroshi + Ono Daisuke, Fukuyama Jun + Sakurai Takahiro)  but they're dynamics as theGreed pair just worked so well for me.

I just really, really love their tandem as Licht and Lawless!  

I loved it even more when I saw clips of the live Servamp event.

I hope to see more combinations like this in the future.  

Another duo I like is Nakamura Yuuchi + Fukuyama Jun.  Ratio and Birthday was a great tandem.

26. Seiyuus you always mistake for the other

Hatano Wataru and Konishi Katsuyuki 

The sound so similar to me.   

I actually thought these guys were voiced by Hatano Wataru until I checked the credits.

 Well, they were actually casted as son and father once (the Yaotomes in Idolish7)

I guess I'm not alone in thinking that they do have some similarities?

27. Underrated seiyuu

Kimura Subaru I don't think he gets much main voice acting roles.  (Well at least Hypmic got an anime now.)  He has this unique voice which sounds refreshing.    

I myself didn't really notice him before until someone pointed out to me how great he was in voicing Terasaka and Kanba.

Furukawa Makoto

Aside from Saitama (One-Punch Man) people rarely talk about his roles.

I think he deserves more recognition for his voice work. 

I was a bit disappointed when Taiju only got appearances in the earlier episodes of Dr. Stone.  I hope he gets a bigger role in the next season!

Did you know he did the narration in the Saiki Kusuo Psi-nan anime?  

I like his voice as Hatsuharu too.

28. Seiyuu who deserves better roles

Ono Yuki

His voice range is so flexible! 

I always get pleasantly surprised when I find out that he was the voice behind a character. He's one of those seiyuus who make you remember the character, not the voice actor.   

Sadly, I feel like everytime he is one of the main characters, he ends up getting outshined or forgotten...because other seiyuus are more popular.

Kawanishi Kengo

Really impressive work in 3an-gatsu no lion!

I think he deserves more leading roles!  He did get the lead role in Junjo no Magmell.  The anime had so much potential, but I felt that it could have ended better.

He was also perfect as Asagiri Gen in Dr. Stone!

29. Seiyuu who works well with other seiyuus

Miyu Irino

I can't really describe it well.  But Miyu Irino (both character and voice) just blends into whatever role is given to him.  

Classic example is Tachibana Chizuru from Kimi to Boku…like...he just established himself in their circle.

I guess he does get a lot of “outsider” characters who find their way in becoming a core part of a group.

One minute it’s “look at this wild card” and the next minute it’s “since when did you guys get all so chummy?!”

As expected of an experienced voice actor!  He can make his voice work in any genre, any character, with any cast.  

Hosoya Yoshimasa

He works so well with various tandems.

I have a friend who likes the Shimazaki Nobunaga + Hosoya Yoshimasa combi.

While I prefer the Miyano Mamoru + Hosoya Yoshimasa combi~

Whichever combi you like, there’s no denying his talent.  He has a good range of character types!

30. Seiyuus who gives characters life

Suzumura Kenichi

I'm not just talking about making the character lively. (like this adorable furball)

Whether the character is energetic or not, young or not, Suzumura Kenichi makes the character so believable and real.  

It seems to me that, no matter how minor, he makes each character memorable.

and that’s a wrap for the seiyuu challenge~ (for now ^ ^ ) I did have fun doing this and now have even better appreciation for the work they do.  I hope I can repeat this challenge in the future~ there are still so many impressive seiyuus out there!   

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I am delayed in posting my “30-day seiyuu challenge” so please accept this as an “apology”...also Tumblr wouldn’t let me post this yesterday...so...  [I tried to cut the clips to avoid giving spoilers... but there might still be hints and traces of them (especially for Fruits Basket 2019 S1 and Kanata no Astra). ]

Happy Birthday to seiyuu Nobunaga Shimazaki (12-06)! 

This seiyuu does amazing work and deserves more appreciation! (like our Apologetic Mushroom)

Here is a compilation of his characters “apologizing” throughout the years.  

I’m not sorry for compiling this...

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30-day seiyuu challenge/appreciation week 3

My posts are getting later and later.  I'm more than halfway now with only 9 items to go.  hmmm...should I combine the remaining nine in one post? or split them into two more posts? I’ll think about it...

click here for week 2.

continue reading for more doses of my fangirling and opinions

15. Seiyuu with the kindest voice

Uemura Yuuto

He has this voice that will make you trust him with your life.  Don’t you agree?

Please...they deserve all the happinesses.

He is able to voice soft-spoken characters so well.  Please be my friend.

Special mention: Saito Soma I really like his kind voice.  It's sounds like the voice of a nice and supportive friend who will listen to all your troubles.

16. Seiyuu with the cutest voice

Yamashita Daiki

If you haven't seen him or heard his deeper voice, you might think he is an actual kid.  

I only know a handful of seiyuus who can sound so cute and young.  Yamashita Daiki gets bonus points because of Midoriya Izuku. hihihi

His "younger"/"shounen" voice sounds so natural too~  

I like to describe him as the "eternal shounen."  Can we adopt him?

17. Seiyuu with the creepiest voice

Sakurai Takahiro

I’m naming him without any doubt or hesitation.

So far, he was the only seiyuu to ever make me jump from my seat. 

Makishima Shougo’s level of creepiness is too much.

Sakurai-san has this image of a white-haired villain...

I have already associated him with creepy or traitor characters.  I can no longer watch an anime with Sakurai Takahiro without being on guard. 

18. Seiyuu with the most annoying voice

Hanae Natsuki

Don't get me wrong.  He is talented and I appreciate his 'main character voice'.  He did an amazing job as Hikari (Nagi no Asukara) and Kamado Tanjiro (KNY).

When voicing characters that are meant to be annoying, his voice work make me want to punch the screen.

Can anyone beat this scum of a character? (pun intended)

Arghh… I want to strangle them both.  

These characters are beyond redeeming. 

Special Mention: Fukuyama Jun When he speaks normally, he sounds like a really nice person.   It's hard to believe that he voices these characters that are so good at taunting/ teasing people.

I really love Korosensei though~

19. Seiyuu with most calming voice

Nishiyama Kotaro

so soothing… It's the kind of voice you want to listen to when you're upset.

He is just perfect for the role of Kashima Ryuucihi (Gakuen Babysitters)!

and Horimiya Eichi(Tsukipro)...you are a mama bird indeed

don’t forget Shinkai Kanata (Enstars!)

If Nishiyama Kotaro releases a CD where he reads bedtime stories, I would be so willing to buy them.

20. Seiyuu with best animal sounds

Matsuoka Yoshitsugu

What can his vocal chords not do?

I cant remember if I already posted my compilation of the noises he makes.  Oh I did.  (you might want to wear headphones for this there’s a lot of screaming)  here’s the video link

Well, these are not really animals.  But Belkia is a vampire…so partly bat?  And Inosuke has part of him that is a boar?

21. Seiyuu with best embarrassed voice

Maeno Tomoaki

His characters are the first one I think of, for some reason.  He usually gets casted as a serious character too, so it becomes extra cute/funny.

I really like how he portrayed Yamanbagiri Kunihiro~

Special mention: Shimazaki Nobunaga The transitions.  The cringe.  It’s just so entertaining.  

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30 day seiyuu challenge Week 2

Hello~ This post is for the 2nd week of the ongoing seiyuu challenge (or should I say Seiyuu appreciation?)

click here for week 1

Due to the nature of questions, there might be a bunch of minor spoilers here (in GIF or video form) for various anime (like Robotics;Notes, Nanbaka, Assassination Classroom, Danshi Koukouse no Nichijou, Psycho-pass 3, Kuroko no Basuke, Tada-kun wa Koi Wo Shinai, etc).  If you absolutely hate spoilers, you may want to skip or proceed with caution.

If you don't particularly care about minor spoilers and have nothing better to do, you are most welcome to take a plunge in this long post filled with my opinions and fangirling.    

8. Seiyuu with most impressive range (character types)

Fukuyama Jun

I was debating whether I should swap my answers for number 7 and 8.  Ishida Akira and Fukuyama Jun both have impressive ranges in terms of pitch and character types.  I just decided to go with my original answers.

You can tell that he is an experienced voice actor.^^  He has a variety of characters that'll make you go: "Wait, that was HIM?"  "How can these two characters have the same voice actor?!"

I remember laughing so hard when I learned that Kazuma's(Noragami) seiyuu is the same as Lelouch's(Code Geass)…and then I saw Assassination Classroom.

Now I don't get too shocked.  My reactions are more on the lines of…"Oh? Cool! As expected of Fukuyama Jun.”

9. Seiyuu with best character singing voice

Toyonaga Toshiyuki

Toyonaga Toshiyuki already has a nice singing voice.  It is even more amazing that he can sing in different voices.  

It's no surprise if a seiyuu can sing well.  Sometimes, though, in character songs, I tend to hear the seiyuu rather than the character.  [Hmm…I can't find the right words to explain this…It is like…Say for example I listened to Seiyuu A's character songs from various anime, it would sound like it came from the same person--which is understandable, since it is much harder to voice act while singing (Don't get me wrong please, I'm not trying to criticizes other seiyuus.  I'm just trying to show better what I admire about Toyonaga-san.  I'm also no authority on voice acting/singing.)]

What makes Toyonaga Toshiyuki's singing special is that even when singing, his characters sound different from each other.  Other seiyuus are able to do this too, but I think that Toyonaga Toshiyuki's range is much wider.  

Note: I do have a video compilation of Toyonaga Toshiyuki's character songs, but it might take me a while to post it.  Stay tuned~

In the meantime, here is a nice compilation I found on Youtube:

Can we admire how he can change his tone & voice quality and still sound good?  

   10. Seiyuu with best inside voice

I couldn't think of the right word then, but what I meant was inner monologue.

Sugita Tomokazu

Need I explain this?  

THIS IS just one of the reasons  WHY:

This is just a fraction of his voice acting prowess.  But I just love the contrast between the character's inside voice and speaking voice.

11. Seiyuu with best drama/ crying

Nakamura Yuuchi

When his character cries, you'll want to cry to.  Personally, I don’t react much when watching anime (I usually watch with someone else).  But Nakamura Yuuchi's powers are too strong. And it's not even the strong emotional outbursts/bawling yet.  

Maybe the reason why it's so effective is because he usually gets casted as a tough character.  So when his character cries, you know that it’s really serious.

How can he express so much sadness with minimal crying noises?

12. Seiyuu with best laugh

I know some seiyuu are known for their unique, contagious laughter (like Shimono Hiro).  I decided to focus on voice acting laughter^^

I never gave much thought to how much information about a character’s personality is communicated just by the way he laughs.  Seiyuus are amazing. 

Kakihara Tetsuya

His character laughs are just lighthearted, pleasant to listen to AND contagious. even when it’s supposed to be annoying  

He also does great creepy evil laughs.

Special mention: Nakamura Yuuchi

His laughs sound different for each character, and they never sound awkward.

13. Seiyuu with best scream

Kimura Ryohei

Similar to Okamoto Nobuhiko, Kimura Ryohei's screams sound controlled and real.  Plus, he also delivers the necessary emotions.

Can we please appreciate how Kimura Ryohei delivered this scream of shock and anguish? (in Robotics;Notes)

I like how “carefully measured” his screams/shouts/miscellaneous noises sound.  No matter how loud/emotional, it doesn't hurt my eardrums.  He is so good in controlling the intensity of his voice.

PS. His voice sounds really good when you listen through headphones.

Special mention: Uemura Yuuto

Impressive performance as Yuliy Jirov, Jyugo, and Atsushi Nakajima.  (He is really good with calm characters that are part beast :P) 

14. Seiyuu with best English

Miyano Mamoru

It is expected that seiyuus who spent years outside Japan would have much better English pronunciation (seiyuus like Ayumu Murase, Hino Satoshi, Wataru Komada etc).  But I chose Miyano Mamoru for biased other reasons.

For a non-native English speaker, Mamo-chan's English is pretty good.  It's not perfect, but it does sound that much effort was put behind it.   Have you heard him speak English as Asano Gakushu (in Ansatsu Kyoushitsu, the sports festival episode)?  That really got my attention.

Or as Rin Matsuoka in Free! Eternal Summer? 

Please appreciate his clear pronunciations and proper pauses.

And he also knows enough English that he can intentionally sound bad at it.

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30-day seiyuu challege week 1

Hello! My extra long post has somehow made it to your feed.  

This is week one of the 30-day seiyuu challenge.

Here is the link to the one I compiled/made-up: https://miniaturestitches.tumblr.com/post/633578545834311680/soive-seen-some-30-day-seiyuu-challenges

I'll try to keep this short and simple (but I might end up fangirling) >>*these are just my personal thoughts and opinions-duh…<<

1. First character voice that impressed you.

Kamiya Hiroshi

He is one of the first seiyuu I knew about.  (The very first anime that I watched in Japanese dub was Durarara!!)  Orihara Izaya's crazy laugh was really impressive.  

2. Voice that is easiest to recognize

Tsuda Kenjiro

This man's voice is so easy to recognize.  Probably because of how deep and guttural(?) his voice is…or maybe just because he gets typecasted a lot?    I can easily tell it's his voice from just a phrase.

The way he speaks usually sounds like his teeth are gritted. 

Oh...maybe that’s why...

Special mention: Suwabe Junichi

His voice also has a unique, husky quality.  But unlike Tsuda Kenjiro, I tend to have small doubts if it's really him (especially when he is voicing younger roles.)

3. Voice that is hardest to recognize

Terashima Takuma

Okay, so this guy has a tendency to disappear behind his roles.  And I mean that in a good way.  He is able to voice each character uniquely that you forget that there is a voice actor lending his voice to them--I mean all good voice actors are like this…but even the greatest ones have habits or something unique that makes them recognizable.  So far, I still haven't figured out how to identify his voice.

4. Seiyuu with the most number of favorite roles

This is probably one of the hardest for me to respond to.  (I just like a lot of characters) I had to make a list and limit only one favorite character per anime.

Well…out of 50+ voice actors, first place goes to Miyano Mamoru, with 16 favorite characters.  Not really surprised about that.  He is casted in most of the earlier anime I had watched.  To name a few: Kida Masaomi (Durarara!!!), Suoh Tamaki (Ouran High School Host Club), Yogi (Karneval), Death the Kid (Soul Eater), etc.  I guess this is why he's one of the first to make it in my "Top 5 male seiyuus". I love his more recent roles too!  

A close second is Kimura Ryohei with 15 favorite characters. (I actually thought he would take first place) He's also in my "Top 5", but it's the opposite case for him though. I have a suspicion that these characters became my favorite because it is Kimura Ryohei who voiced them.

5. Seiyuu with the best stoic characters

Ono Daisuke

He just excels at these characters… Heiwajima Shizuo (Durarara!!), Killer T Cell (Hataraku Saibou), Kujo Jotaro (JoJo), Hirato (Karneval), Midorima Shintarto (Kuroko no Basuke), Sebastian Michealis (Kuroshitsuji),etc.

Okay maybe not really stoic, but more of the cool and quiet types…the ones that we'd love to see get embarrassed/annoyed.

Special mention: Ishikawa Kaito

He doesn't have much roles as OnoD yet, but I was really impressed with his work in Zankyou no Terror, Sakurada Reset, and Tate no Yuusha no Nariagari,

6. Seiyuu with the best noisy characters

Okamoto Nobuhiko

I don’t think this needs much explanation.  

I feel scared for his vocal chords.

What I like about his screams and shouts is that it sounds "controlled" but at the same time "real" I mean anyone can scream their heads off, but not anyone can sound good while doing it.   I've heard him  do angry noisy, passionate noisy, happy noisy, excited noisy, and crazy noisy!

7. Seiyuu with the most impressive range (pitch)

This kind of overlaps with the next item(character types), but anyway…

Ishida Akira He is so good that it's so scary.  I've heard a lot of voice actors with a "normal/adult voice" and a "younger voice".  But Ishida Akira's range is way wider: from a young child to an elderly person--BOTH MALE AND FEMALE VOICES.  His voice may not be as deep as some voice actors.  But considering also his older age it is impressive that he still voices teenagers.

Special Mention: Shimazaki Nobunaga His voice acting range probably isn't as wide as Ishida Akira, but his voice has gone way higher than other male voices I have heard.  

...and that’s it for week one!  This took longer than I thought. I regret deciding to post weekly.  Wow you made it this far? I hope you at least got entertained.