Short summary of the special stage show that took place in AnimeJapan 2025 today (March 22).
Minori Suzuki (Liko's VA) and Terasaki Yuka (Roy's VA) were hosting the event. Yashiro Taku (Friede's VA) and Horie Shun (Amethio's VA) were also participating.
There was a part that focused on the VAs picking episodes that left a strong impression/impact on them. They also showed a few clips of other scenes in the anime and discussed them.
I'll write a general outline and notes for future reference, etc. I only watched the stage once, so I might be forgetting a few details and this isn't meant to be a detailed post of everything that went on during the stage show.
They showed the teaser for the upcoming Mega Voltage arc at the beginning. Minori Suzuki and Terasaki Yuka commented on how it (the beginning of the clip) reminded them a bit of the first episode of the series.
Onto the episodes the VAs picked that left a strong impression on them.
Minori Suzuki (Liko's VA) picked HZ056 as her choice. They showed clips of the beginning of that episode when Chili was trying to make Liko relax, and the end of the battle when Liko started crying after her loss. Minori Suzuki mentioned being moved by Chili's kindness in this episode.
Terasaki Yuka (Roy's VA) picked HZ069 as her choice. They showed clips of Roy and Achigator switching bodies because of the Synchro Machine, and when they both worked together to heat up food at the stall. Terasaki Yuka mentioned that this kind of episode fits Roy and Achigator and couldn't have been done with anyone else. It was also an interesting episode to be made in terms of voice acting with Achigator's VA, Daiki Yamashita.
Yashiro Taku (Friede's VA) picked HZ018 as his choice. They showed clips of Friede and Lizardon deciding to fly up to the sky with Cap and witnessing the sun rising together, and Friede extending a hand to Cap and suggesting they travel the world together. Something that left an impression on me is when Yashiro Taku said that in this episode, Friede was trying to know more about Cap. It wasn't really about "human" and "Pokemon", it was about "I want to know you" regardless of their status.
Horie Shun (Amethio's VA) picked HZ065 as his choice. They showed clips of Liko and Amethio talking in the cave, Amethio saying he wants to live up to Gibeon's expectations, Liko saying that maybe the two of them are following the same path, "there are things you'll never understand unless you talk", the scene when Amethio says they should get out of the cave. They also showed a clip of a scene towards the end of the episode, which was when Liko suggested that the RVT and the Explorers should cooperate and Amethio turning down her offer. The whole episode left a strong impact on Horie Shun.
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As for the scenes they showed later on during the stage show.
They showed clips of HZ082, when Roy managed to get Rayquaza back to his Pokeball. Minori Suzuki commented on how good the title of this episode was, and the VAs agreed, mentioning the fact that it's a lyrics from Halo.
They showed clips of HZ083, when Amethio resolved to save his grandfather and reaffirmed his bond with Soublades and Zir and Conia. Horie Shun commented on the kindness in this episode (the bond between Amethio and the characters around him).
They showed clips of HZ086. They showed bits of the Friede vs Spinel battle, when Friede managed to outsmart Spinel with his intuition.
They showed clips of HZ088, when Liko resolved not to give up and encouraged Nyarote, and Nyarote's evolution in Masquernya and everyone reacting to it.
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This is most of what I can remember right now. The stage show was fun. I loved hearing everyone's thoughts on the characters and the story. Their insights are always interesting.
There were some funny bits, like Horie Shun (Amethio's VA) commenting that sometimes, he feels like he wants Amethio to get on the ship. He looked at Friede's VA while saying this too, like he wanted his permission ww Also pleased that his choice of ep was the Liko and Amethio episode, because same, this ep also left a strong impact on me and I'll never forget it.
Minori Suzuki (Liko's VA) is also brimming with enthusiasm about the series in general and always has a lot of things to share.
Quick summary of the talk show that took place at AnimeJapan today (March 23), it was divided in three parts ("growth", "friends", "battles").
First part focused on Liko, Roy, and Dot and their VAs talked about their characters and the ways they've grown. They showed a clip show of HZ016 when the trio was fighting Spinel to illustrate the theme. Yoshino Aoyama (Dot's VA) also talked about how she feels about playing Dot and growing alongside her character.
Second part mostly focused on Orio, Mollie and Murdock. They showed a clip show of HZ021 when Orio and Murdock argued about the state of the ship and eventually shook hands to show Mibrim they had made up. They shared a behind the scenes story. Kenta Miyake (Murdock's VA) was apparently the one who came up with the pun "nakayoshi namakobushi" in that episode and asked Sakura Ayane (Orio's VA) for cooperation when they voiced their lines.
Third part focused on Friede, Amethio and Spinel. They showed a clip show of the battle at the castle in HZ025 between Friede and Amethio. Yashiro Taku (Friede's VA) and Horie Shun (Amethio's VA) shared their impressions and feelings about the characters and their dynamics. They also showed a clip show of the battle between Friede and Spinel in HZ044 (that just aired yesterday!) and Makoto Furukawa (Spinel's VA) shared his thoughts as well.
They revealed the VAs for the Elite Four in Paldea. Saiga Mitsuki will voice Chili, and it's the second time she voices a green-haired character in the anime (because she was Shuu's VA back during the Advanced Generation series).
