Oooh hoo hoo, standing ovation for Takeo Otsuka 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 He's done a PHENOMENAL job as Jinshi in ep 22!! From his voice alone, I could tell he's no longer the eunuch, but the Moon Prince. The commander of the Forbidden Army.
When Jinshi was posing as a eunuch, he'd usually use a soft, high-pitched, seductive voice thick with flattery. As that saying goes in Malay, "menanam tebu di tepi bibir" ("planting sugarcane on the edge of the lip"), he very deliberately uses sweet words to manipulate people. It sounds very forced and unnatural sometimes.
Around Maomao (and his close circle), however, that all changes. His voice is a tad lower, sounds more natural and childish/pouty. He's using a more masculine/informal first person pronoun and doesn't hide annoyance or frustration. He sounds more like a teenager.
In this episode, as the Moon Prince, his voice is completely different. It's A LOT more masculine now, much deeper and feels authoritative (even if you don't speak Japanese). I'd go so far as to say he sounds like a different person altogether. The confidence, the directness. I felt intimidated, even.
Then the reunion scene came and you see his demeanor changed from being serious and focused as "the Moon Prince" to just as "himself" when he asked Maomao if she was hurt. His voice was soft, gentle and hesitant.
Then he switches it AGAIN when a soldier came in and addressed him as the Crown Prince, back to being authoritative.
(Don't need to note how Maomao's staring at him the whole time but SHE'S STARING AT HIM THE WHOLE TIME)
It's just so cool how well the nuance is delivered by the voice acting, i.e. what each scene required of Jinshi (and his many masks). I am thoroughly impressed. Takeo Otsuka, you are a legend.
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