Summary
There are many reasons whyTanjiro Kamado, the protagonist ofDemon Slayer, has become one of the most popular anime characters of the current generation, including his solid design, his kind personality, and his incredible battle abilities. But there’s no denying that his presence was elevated in the anime adaptation, thanks to the excellent performance of his Japanese voice actor,Natsuki Hanae.
Hanae is a legendary performer who has been working in the anime industry for almost 14 years. He’s so talented that he has been featured in countless shows, including some very popular ones. Hanae’s career is filled to the brim with excellent performances, but the following are his best so far.
8Ken Kaneki
Tokyo Ghoul
While Natsuki Hanae has been working as a voice actor since 2013, his involvement in the 2014 adaptation ofTokyo Ghoulis one of the many roles that put him on the map. He voiced the main character,Ken Kaneki, a young, timid boy whose life changes entirely after he’s turned into a cannibalistic ghoul.
Hanae often excels at voicing two types of male characters: shy but kind boys, and edgy monsters. This is exactly why his portrayal of Ken Kaneki works so well. This character undergoes a massive change in personality and appearance after his encounter with Aogiri Tree, and yet his voice actor seamlessly adapted to all those changes.IfTokyo Ghoulgets a new, more faithful, animated adaptation someday, Hanae should definitely be cast as its main character once again.
Curiously enough, thirteen years after his breakout performance as Ken Kaneki, Natsuki Hanae voiced yet another main character with black hairnamed Ken whose life changes after he gains supernatural powers. The only difference is thatDandadanis a much more lighthearted series thanTokyo Ghoul, and thus,Ken Takakura (AKA Okarun)is a lot less tragic and serious than Kaneki.
Okarun is a character with many layers: he can be goofy and passionate (especially when he’s talking about aliens), but he can also be very caring and romantic. Needless to say, Hanae delivered yet another impeccable performance that feels and sounds like a combination of Kaneki and Tanjiro. His chemistry with Momo Ayase’s voice actress, Shion Wakayama, is perfect and the foundation of their characters’ adorable dynamic.
Natsuki Hanae made a surprise appearance in the fourth season ofAttack on Titanas the voice ofFalco Grice, an Eldian child warrior working for Marley. Curiously enough,his personality, role within the narrative and the Titan powers he eventually obtainsmake Falco feel like the quintessential protagonist of a shōnen action series, which was definitely intentional by the author of the original manga.
Since Hanae already had experience voicing kind but tragic shōnen characters, he did an amazing job as Falco. He worked especially well alongside Ayane Sakura, the voice actress of Falco’s friend and love interest, Gabi. Hanae did an excellent job duringAttack on Titan’smany emotional scenes, like the moment in which he was turned into a Titan while his brother Colt died by his side.
Some anime fans may have already forgotten that Natsuki Hanae was involved in the production of MAPPA’s excellent adaptation ofChainsaw Man,where he voicedBeam, the Shark Fiend. In just a few minutes, the legendary voice actor delivered an incredible and fun performance that felt very different from anything he had done before.
Beam is an eccentric, sadistic, passionate fiend who can be seen enjoying himself while he kills countless hordes of zombies. Surprisingly enough, Hanae’s raspy voice fit him very well, as it made him sound truly insane. Even though this was a brief role, he still did an amazing job with it. Fans of the manga can’t wait to hear him as Beam once again in the upcoming Reze Arc movie and in subsequentChainsaw Manseasons.
Whether it’s kindhearted heroes or edgy anti-heroes, Natsuki Hanae almost always voices good guys in shōnen action anime. There has been a prominent exception, however, in the recent adaptation ofBleach: Thousand-Year Blood War.Here, he lent his voice toGremmy Thoumeaux,one of the most powerful Sternitter in Ywhach’s army.
With his overpowered Quincy ability, named The Visionary, Gremmy can turn any fantasy into reality. This, in turn, has made him a ruthless and prideful antagonist, especially during his intense encounter against Kenpachi Zaraki. Much to the surprise of anime fans who are used to his more heroic roles, Hanae was able to deliver an incredibly villainous performance. He made Gremmy easy to hate, but also made him seem quite pathetic when his true form is revealed at the end of the battle.
Natsuki Hanae has not only worked on high-octane shōnen action series. Aside fromTokyo Ghoul’sKen Kaneki, the other anime that made him an icon was the romantic dramaYour Lie In April, in which he voiced one of the main characters,Kōsei Arima. Since this anime has a slower pace, it required Hanae to deliver a more subdued and romantic performance, without screaming as much as he does when he voices Tanjiro or Okarun.
Needless to say,he did an incredible job that helped cementYour Lie In Aprilas one of the most popular animated dramas, not to mention that he had a lot of chemistry with Risa Taneda, the voice actress of Arima’s friend, Kaori Miyazono. He even got the chance to display his incredible musical voice, since he sang a beautiful melody for the show’s soundtrack, titled “Sentimental Rain.”
Another prominent and memorable role in which Natsuki Hanae has excelled in recent years isYoRHa No.9 Type S(AKA9S) inNier: Automata Ver1.1a. Like most of his characters, this scanner-type android with the appearance of a young boy is smart, curious and overall a nice person, not to mention that his relationship with 2B is nothing short of fascinating.
But, like everybody else in the world ofNier: Automata, 9S is a complex character with many layers and dark secrets. As always, Hanae did an incredible job bringing him to life, which shouldn’t be much of a surprise, considering thathe also voiced 9S in the Japanese dub of the video game that this anime is based off of,NieR: Automata.
While Natsuki Hanae has displayed his incredible acting chops and his diverse vocal range throughout his extensive career, he’s one of those Japanese voice actors that is relatively easy to recognize whenever he’s involved in the production of a new anime. However, there is one performance that is so bizarre yet amazing that it has to be heard to be believed:Hiroshi Odokawa, the main character ofOdd Taxi.
Odokawa is not a young boy or an optimistic anime hero, but a middle-aged anthropomorphic walrus who works as a taxi-driver in Japan. He’s reserved and quiet, but still cares a lot about other people, so his voice perfectly reflects these prominent aspects of his personality. This is the most impressive performance of Hanae’s career, since it’s almost impossible to discern that he’s actually voicing such a strange character, which is solid proof of how incredibly talented this performer is.
