Yes, there is... someone behind the curtain!

“What is your favorite program?”

　When asked that, well, how should I answer? Honestly, I struggle with it a lot. I’ve been a huge TV fan since I was a child.

　This is a story from when I was about two years old.
　One midnight, my parents suddenly woke up to find their son missing from his bed! They searched in a panic, only to find me sitting in front of the TV in the pitch-black living room, staring intently at the screen where the broadcast had ended and only static remained. With a big smile on my face... It was just like a scene from the movie Poltergeist! Perhaps that was when I became possessed by television (laughs).

　After graduating from university and going through various twists and turns, I started working in voice acting. For over a quarter of a century, I have been involved in numerous programs, mainly as a narrator. There were sessions that were fun every time, and others that were honestly grueling due to super-tight schedules. Compared to today, I feel like there were particularly harsh production environments everywhere before the 2000s (this is just my personal opinion). It was common for narration recording to take place in the middle of the night. When I went to the studio long after the clock had struck midnight, I often saw staff members looking like corpses in the hallways or break rooms.

　A story from a certain program I was involved in during the late 90s.
　It was a late-night shift as usual. We were way behind schedule, and I was just waiting in the studio for the VTR editing and the narration script to be finished. I think three hours had already passed without me doing anything. Back then, there were no smartphones or easy access to the internet. To kill time, I would read books or just stare blankly into space.
Then, an assistant director kindly asked me,
“Would you like me to buy you something?”
I replied,
“Sure, maybe a coffee to wake me up.”
“Understood. I’ll be right back.”
He went to a nearby convenience store with just his wallet, smiling. However, that was the last time I ever saw him. He disappeared just like that, leaving everything behind. Even though other staff members searched for him, there was no sign that he had returned home or to his parents' house... His whereabouts were only revealed about half a year later. It turned out he had been moving from one friend's house to another outside the industry. He said, “The work was so painful that I ran away on impulse.”
　Thankfully, I don’t hear stories like that anymore. The programs I’ve been involved with in recent years all have a healthy atmosphere. Of course, it’s still a tough job, but I feel the nature of that “toughness” has changed significantly with the times.

　Oops, I’ve gone way off track. I need to talk about my “favorite program”!

　Having worked not only as a narrator but also as a voice actor, I have appeared in many TV anime series. Among them, there is one major work that became a turning point and caused the number of people who recognize me as a voice actor to skyrocket.

“The Prince of Tennis,” commonly known as “Tenipuri”

　If asked about my “favorite program,” I certainly cannot fail to mention this one.
　Even if you aren't familiar with manga or anime, you’ve probably heard the title, right? The original manga began serialization in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1999. The TV anime started in 2001 on TV Tokyo and its affiliates. This work became a massive hit that far exceeded expectations, and in response to the passionate voices of fans, the broadcast period was repeatedly extended, lasting about three and a half years in total.
But wait! That wasn't the end. The original manga serialization continued, and the fans' passion showed no signs of cooling down. So, an original video anime series depicting the continuation of the story began! Since then, the work has continued to expand endlessly, and before I knew it, the era had changed from Heisei to Reiwa. Then, in 2022, a completely new anime series (one cour) based on the original work was produced, making a surprising return to terrestrial television! And in 2024, a sequel series broadcast has also been decided... Tenipuri, you scary child!
　The character I am deeply involved with, Keigo Atobe, was in his third year of junior high school when I first met him. More than 20 years later... he is still in his third year of junior high! He is “still in middle school” rather than “already in middle school.” Even though I am steadily getting older (laughs).

Note: The manga “The Prince of Tennis” is currently being serialized in Shueisha’s “Jump SQ” under the title“The New Prince of Tennis.”The anime series is also officially titled“The New Prince of Tennis.”

　Before I knew it, variety shows started being packaged and archived, but in the past, they were “disposable” items that were rarely even rebroadcast. In contrast, anime is almost certainly preserved as a “work” for future generations. My voice, my acting—not just for a lifetime, but forever and ever. If the storage environment is good, even if humanity were to perish for some reason, it would continue to exist on Earth as a record of pre-history.
　To be able to carve out and leave behind my work, proof that I was there... there is nothing more grateful than that. Come to think of it, anime I watched a long time ago still leaves a deep impression on my heart.

Never forget the weight of “responsibility”

　This is a thought I have always kept in mind while performing. I try to face the character I am entrusted with firmly and express even the subtleties of their emotions carefully. I believe that is the courtesy I owe to the original author, the fans of the work, and all the staff involved in the production (and, of course, the work and the character themselves). (Naturally, I read narration with the same care!)
　If the things I poured my heart and soul into, sacrificing my body and mind, can live on for a long time in someone’s heart as part of their memorable “favorite program,” there is nothing happier than that.

Junichi Suwabe
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