This is someone's notes about the Magic Knight Rayearth announcement show. Since the video was geo-restricted, I couldn't record it.... But this is nice to have. Here's the transcription;
*(From here on, this is a transcription while watching the stream.)*
*(It has not been cleaned up.)*
*(Words have been supplemented for clarity, so the content may differ slightly from the actual remarks.)*
**Q: How did you feel when you were chosen for the roles of Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu?**
**Ayane Sakura (Hikaru):**
"Before the audition, I went to the CLAMP Exhibition and took photos of *Rayearth*. So when I heard there was an audition for *Rayearth*, I thought, 'If I fail, these memories will turn bitter.' While going through the audition, I acted out how I would play Hikaru in my current state. When I got the call saying I got the part, my manager called me and asked, 'Sakura, is anyone around you?' because they knew I’d scream. When they said 'You got it,' I just went 'Uwaaah!' That’s about it. I thought there would never be a chance in my life to participate in a CLAMP work, so I’m overwhelmed with emotion. But I have to remind myself that this isn’t the goal [the journey continues]."
"It seems like I’m saying the exact same thing... I’ve been reading *Nakayoshi* magazine since I was old enough to understand things, and I watched the Heisei-era anime too. I was using *Rayearth* toys and stationery around the time I entered elementary school, so my otaku life has walked hand-in-hand with CLAMP from the very entrance. *Rayearth* was my starting point. Back then, Umi-chan was my absolute favorite. Among all female characters in all of CLAMP’s works, she is my number one. I love her.
Two years ago, I went to the CLAMP Exhibition and the *Rayearth* Exhibition. When the anime adaptation was announced, I hadn’t auditioned yet... Often, by the time things are announced, auditions are already over, so I asked my manager, 'Is it still happening?' Because I had such passion, my agency shared that with the production side. Since I hadn’t auditioned yet, they made it happen.
On the day of the announcement, I was at the agency when a new junior manager asked, 'Do you have a moment?' When I went in, my main manager and a whole line of people were standing there. They said, 'You’ve been decided as Umi.' I cried silently without making a sound.
I tried not to think about the possibility of failing after buying so much merchandise at the CLAMP exhibitions and treasuring those items. But to think the day would come where I could wear them like this... *(gestures to accessories she is wearing)*. Even now, it feels like a dream. However, I am resolved to face Umi and *Rayearth* not just as a fan, but as an actress."
**(Host: It means voicing the person you look up to, after all.)**
**Okubo:** "The recording sessions are so blissful."
"Even at the audition stage, I thought the characters were cute, but I didn’t know the script. What I did know was that Okubo-san is a huge otaku. Because I knew that, I realized, 'This is a work that people who really love it cherish deeply.' So I immersed myself in the original manga. It was so interesting; I’m glad I could get this far without spoilers. After reading the original and taking the audition, I was asked, 'Are you okay right now?'
I was on the side of the road, so I went to a corner to take the call. When I heard I passed, Rumi-san [Okubo] flashed through my mind. I wondered, 'I wonder how Rumi-san did?' I was so happy after passing. Moreover, doing this together with Sakura-san makes me feel so secure. Thinking 'Let’s do our best, the three of us' felt incredibly reassuring. I steeled my resolve."
**Host: Are you recording together?**
**Cast:** "Yes, all together."
"We three originally get along well and have co-starred quite a bit."
**Okubo:** "It’s almost like I’m supervising. They ask me when they don’t understand something. But we discuss things among the three of us first, then propose our ideas to the Sound Director to decide; we don’t decide things arbitrarily."
**Sakura:** "What I found cute was that we went to recording wearing colors representing our characters. In Episode 1, it was heavy on Hikaru, with Umi and Fuu in the background. In Episode 2, Hikaru was restrained, and it was heavy on Umi and Fuu."
**Sakura:** "Since it came at me so hard [in Ep 1], I was hesitating!"
**Okubo:** "We have to keep up with Hikaru!"
**Host/Talk:** "The people participating here truly love *Rayearth*. The cast announcement was held here, so there’s no need to be this nervous. Even the staff’s hands were shaking for the first time. We feel the pressure from everyone, and we accept it."
"Here is the latest visual. Three important characters! Ah, two? And one creature? One Mokona! It’s okay to mention Mokona now, right? The effort to catch up with the number of lines in CLAMP’s art is amazing, like the frames and such."
**Message from CLAMP-sensei**
*(Okubo looks like she’s about to cry, sweating profusely. Sakura encourages her.)*
**Okubo:** "What is going on?"
**Host:** "There is a newly drawn illustration from CLAMP-sensei."
**Cast:** "We can’t handle this. Is this *Rayearth*’s [???]???"
*(At this point, a newly drawn illustration of Clef appeared, causing the author to faint for a while.)*
**Sakura:** "*Rayearth* is always painful, isn’t it? But we will grit our teeth and do our best."
**Cast:** "I love their gem-like eye shapes. I’m so happy to see them in the Reiwa era."
**Okubo:** "Where does CLAMP-sensei’s talent end? I wonder when they’ll be satisfied."
**Okubo:** "Recently, there was a Converse collaboration, and even in this current era, they are so active. CLAMP-sensei really adapts their art style. It’s great to see new illustrations."
**Messages from the Cast**
🟩 **Rie Takahashi (Fuu):**
"Surely many of you here in the venue and watching the stream have many memories with *Rayearth*. I do not think for a moment that the story we are about to walk is intended to overwrite your memories. Step by step, we want to walk forward so that even new viewers can say, 'Oh, there was a work like this.' We will proceed alongside your memories."
"First of all, truly, even before the cast was announced, so many of you came today. This shows the power of the *Rayearth* work. As an actress and as a fan, let me say thank you again. Thank you very much.
I also loved it dearly as a child; I watched the anime so many times the tapes wore out. I love Hikaru and Fuu-chan too, and I loved the work itself.
Is it okay to say this?... Even when I passed the audition and during the first recording, I thought to myself, 'Huh?' Because I loved the Heisei *Rayearth* to the point of wearing it out, I caught myself thinking, 'Is this okay? Isn’t my voice different?'
But as we repeated the tests, I realized I am here as an actress and voice actor. As we worked on it, the recording became one where I felt, 'Only this cast could play Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu, and the other characters. No one else could do it.' I hope you all will feel the same way.
By the way, I had sealed away my *Rayearth* goods until now, but starting today, I will wear them everywhere I go."
🟥 **Ayane Sakura (Hikaru):**
"I never thought the day would come where I’d introduce myself like this. I was born in 1994, the same year as *Rayearth*. So in real-time, I was 0 years old and didn’t watch it, but as an adult, I touched various CLAMP works. To think this was serialized in *Nakayoshi*... Does 'CLAMP-ness' never relax its grip, even in *Nakayoshi*? I fell completely for it.
From there, hearing *Rayearth* would become an anime, I knew many people had various feelings. I’ve been running while worrying that I might be causing anxiety among you all.
But standing here today, I’ve made my resolve: 'Ah, I am allowed to name myself Hikaru Shidou in the Reiwa era.' So, not just for the recording, but as someone entrusted to convey *Rayearth*, I will give it my all, body and soul."
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