Tag Archives: Hiroshi Kamiya

Reminiscing: Honey and Clover

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Oh boy! Reminiscing about old anime and manga gets me thinking about the music that I’ve come to love because of it! Below Rekka’s gonna gab a little bit about the Honey and Clover TV series from 2005. Wow! Has it really been that long…???

▶︎ Overview

Honey and Clover is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Chica Umino. It was serialized in Takarajimasha’s shōjo manga magazine Cutie Comic from 2000 to 2001, before being transferred to Shueisha’s josei manga magazines Young You (2001–2005) and Chorus (2005–2006); its chapters were collected in 10 tankōbon volumes. The series depicts the lives and relationships of a group of art school students who live in the same apartment building.

An anime television series adaptation by J.C.Staff was broadcast for two seasons on Fuji TV. The first 24-episode season aired from April to September 2005; the second 12-episode season aired from June to September 2006. It is also the first show to premiere on the Noitamina programming block. The series was also adapted into a live-action film premiered in July 2006, and two separate live-action television dramas in 2008, one broadcast in Japan on Fuji TV from January to March 2008, and the other broadcast in Taiwan on CTS from May to August of the same year.

Wikipedia

Speaking of the TV drama, I remember watching this as well, although I thought that the anime told the story much better. Still, I was a fan of Toma Ikuta at the time, so… yeah. He was also in another drama with Satoshi Ohno from ARASHI, a series that had the soundtrack composed by none other than Hiroyuki Sawano! You can find the soundtrack here on Amazon.

I’m finding so many weird connections right now, it’s not even funny…!! We’re gonna have to reminisce about multiple things in this post, but let’s get back on track first with Honey and Clover.

Looking at the cast list again, I realized that Hiroshi Kamiya played the role of Takemoto, the lead character, but this was before his motorcycle accident, so his performance feels quite a bit different here than after. He has such a great voice, and his older performances feel somehow unique and young (obviously). Plus, Tomokazu Sugita played the role of Mayama.

▶︎ Music by Spitz

▶︎ SPITZ – Yoru o Kakeru

It was this show that got me really into music by SPITZ, and I especially loved the vocals by Masamune Kusano. He has such a gorgeous voice, I can listen to him sing for hours. And back when I was still living in Nagoya, I went to one of their concerts and absolutely sobbed when they played the song below, “Yoru o Kakeru”.

https://open.spotify.com/track/6cJXx1rxJKNWxobeGWSb8A?si=37ab809bcf884cc2

▶︎ SPITZ – Sakana

▶︎ SPITZ – Supika

▶︎ SPITZ – Gerbera

Another song of theirs that has remained a favorite of mine, although I’m not sure if it played in the Honey and Clover anime, is the next song below, “Gerbera”.

▶︎ Other Music

▶︎ SUNEOHAIR – Waltz, Honey and Clover ending theme

▶︎ ARASHI – truth, opening theme song to the 2007 drama 魔王 dEVIL

I found the first episode on YouTube, so I’ll share it below. Just watching a little bit of this again after such a long time away made me remember how funny of a show it was. I really miss it. Maybe I need to watch the whole thing again sometime soon!

And regarding animation production artwork, I managed to snag this gorgeous set many years ago of one of the best scenes between Morita and Hagu. So happy!

▶︎ Related Links

Awesome things about rewatching the “Towa no Quon” movies

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I recently rewatched three of the last Towa no Quon movies, and I’m impressed with how well it still stands up today, over ten years later. The following are just a few points that still impress me even now.

▶︎ THE MUSIC

Kenji Kawai (川井憲次) – Some of the earliest music that I remember by him were the Bakuretsu Hunters and Gulkeeva soundtracks. He’s done so many more amazing soundtracks besides these two, but they’re the ones that stick out the most in my recent memory, besides his work on the Quon soundtrack. If you’re not familiar with him, please do yourself a favor and look up some of his works– maybe you’ve already heard some of it already! Also note that the English wiki doesn’t always list everything, so if you really want to know the details, I’d check out the Japanese version or take a look at his official website, which has been kept up to date within the last couple of days!

Hironobu Kageyama / LAZY (影山ヒロノブ) – Hironobu Kageyama and his long-running band LAZY performs the ending theme to Towa no Quon, which you can hear below:

If you are an anime fan, then you must have heard at least some of his other music. His most famous song is probably the opening theme to Dragon Ball Z, “Cha-La Head Cha-La“, but he has done so many other classic anison as well. Here’s just a short list of some of my favorite songs (includes solo work and other bands such as JAM Project in which he sang):

▶︎ THE ART

  • Toshihiro Kawamoto (character design, chief animation director) – Kawamoto is known for his work on many classic anime titles such as Cowboy Bebop, Escaflowne, Wolf’s Rain, and many many more. He is co-founder and director of the anime studio Bones.

▶︎ THE VOICE CAST

Several of my favorite voice actors do amazing work in these moves. Here’s a short list of who to watch out for:

▶︎ THE TEASERS

The teasers are some of the best put together clips that really make you want to see what happens next. This is my favorite of the teasers for Movie 4 which has a massive cliffhanger at the end…

▶︎ MOVIE CLIPS

Although these are completely in Japanese, there are still several videos that are available to watch online for free. Check them out and maybe see if this is a series you’d like to watch!

▶︎ First Couple of Minutes (Movie 1-4)

▶︎ Bonus Videos

Favorite Voice Actors – Hiroshi Kamiya

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As I was discussing on Twitter, I’d like to showcase my favorite voice actors, or seiyuu, here as well! So, let’s take a look at the first voice actor on my list (it’s not a ranking, though!) with Hiroshi Kamiya!

▶︎ Trivia

  • He is married with one child.
  • He loves cats and has a Russian Blue cat named “Nyako-sensei”.

▶︎ Traffic Accident

While reading a little more into his biography, I discovered that he had a serious traffic accident back in 2006. This may not seem like very pertinent information to discuss here, but I think it could very much play a role in his terrific career as a voice actor. In fact, I feel like I can appreciate his work much more knowing he went through this very difficult time in his life.

According to Wikipedia, on August 7, 2006, he was hospitalized following a traffic accident while riding a motorcycle; however, details about the accident were never disclosed by his agency. He was in a coma for nearly a month, during which time he also faced life-threatening moments, including cardiopulmonary arrest. Nevertheless, he made an amazing recovery and was discharged from the hospital on September 29th of the same year.

He continued rehabilitation after leaving the hospital and eventually made a comeback as Thelma Kamioka in the final episode of “Bakukyu Hit! Crash B-Daman,” which aired on December 25th. During his hospitalization, friends gave him a cross necklace as a symbol of hope for his recovery. He wore it almost every day after leaving the hospital and still keeps it in his bag to prevent damage.

▶︎ Favorite Role

Towa no Quon
Quon

Towa no Quon is a Japanese animated supernatural film series from 2011, consisting of six films directed by Umanosuke Iida. The series began with the release of its first film in theaters on June 18, 2011, and concluded with the last installment on November 26, 2011. Sentai Filmworks holds the North American licensing rights for the film series, which features character designs by Toshihiro Kawamoto (Wolf’s Rain, Blood Blockade Battlefront, Jyu Oh Sei), animation by BONES, music by Kenji Kawai, and ending theme “Reckless” by LAZY (Hironobu Kageyama).

This is my favorite role of Kamiya’s because because Quon is such a sweet and caring leader who willingly puts himself on the line for others, time and time again. He also silently carries quite a bit of sorrow and regret from his past that makes him a really admirable character.

▶︎ Story Synopsis

In the not-so-distant future, there are individuals, both boys and girls, known as “gifts.” They’ve involuntarily awakened to supernatural abilities, all while remaining hidden from the general public. However, there exist a group of people known as “Attractors” who offer support and protection to these gifted individuals.

At the center of the story is a young man named Quon, who possesses the unique ability to transform his body into a mysterious entity known as “Insania.” Quon’s mission is to continue his fight against the clandestine organization known as the “Order.” This organization labels those with abilities as “Vestia,” holds them in contempt, captures them, and seeks their extermination. Quon also contends with the cyborg unit “Custos”.

The protagonist, Quon, has lived for over a millennium. He was born in a village that harbored the first Attractors, and Quon’s extraordinary abilities became evident when he witnessed the brutal massacre of his family and village. Fueled by rage, he sought vengeance but soon realized that his fury led to the unintentional killing of innocent people as well. From that point on, Quon has dedicated himself to paving the path toward a future of peace and acceptance.

What sets Quon apart from other Attractors is his ability to demonstrate multiple powers, which include a transforming into a mysterious combat form, which Custos have labeled as Insania. In this state, Quon exhibits exceptional speed and strength, the ability to manipulate water, metal, including mechanical objects, and possibly even control over nature itself, all while possessing self-regenerative capabilities.

There are some aspects of the story that resemble that of the TV series HEROES, but I thoroughly enjoyed the show. I especially remember how horrible of a cliffhanger part 4 had at the end. I will never forget almost verbally moaning in the theater out of complete shock and horror.

If anyone is interested in checking out the films, it was released in English by Sentai Filmworks.

▶︎ Other Great Roles

  • BLACK/MATRIX2 (2002) – Reiji
  • Xenosaga Episode 2 (2004) – Kanan
  • Togainu no Chi (2008) – Yukihito
  • The Earl and the Fairy (2008) – Paul Ferman
  • Karneval (2013) – Gareki