Naoki Tatsuta Replaces Joji Yanami as Kaio/Narrator

[Ajay]

I mentioned it over in the "Official Announcement & Discussion" thread, but I thought it deserved its own place to discuss.

From AnimeNewsNetwork:

Toei Animation announced on Friday that voice actor Naoki Tatsuta will temporarily replace Jouji Yanami as both North Kaiō and the Narrator in the Dragon Ball Super television anime series. Tatsuta is replacing Yanami so that Yanami can undergo medical treatment. The announcement did not specify the reason for the treatment. Tatsuta will replace Yanami starting with the show's 12th episode, which will air on September 27.

Toei Animation added that the company will take into account Yanami's recovery situation and will discuss with him about when he will return to the role. The announcement added that the entire staff wish Yanami well with his recovery, and they thanked fans for their continued support.

I think I speak for everyone in wishing Yanami a smooth road to recovery. It's going to be a strange experience hearing each episode narrated by someone else.

Spoiler:

Source: https://twitter.com/dragongarowLEE/stat ... 5807028224

EDIT: Kanzenshuu has posted their own write-up. It contains a direct translation of the tweet for anyone curious as to what was specifically said -- http://www.kanzenshuu.com/2015/09/25/dr ... -narrator/

[shinmaru]

Hope he goes true surgery without complications and gets well soon.
I wish him the best

[Doctor.]

It's for the best, he was extremely weak as Kaio in Super. It will no doubt be weird to hear another voice as the narrator (and I personally don't think they made the right choice with the replacement actor, but oh well), but hopefully it's just for a short while and he gets better soon. I think he'll never return and just retire, which is unfortunate but most likely just for the best.

[DBZAOTA482]

Wiseful decision but god bless Joji Yanami and that he gets by well.

[Marco Polo]

Hopefully he gets well soon but please keep him out of Super from now on. Kaio's voice was awful.

[Chuquita]

Wishing him a healthy recovery.

[Khin]

Hope he gets well soon

[LuckyCat]

I've been rooting Jouji Yanami on this whole time, but it was easy to see his health was affecting his performance. If he feels like he can reprise his role after he recovers I'll gladly welcome him back.

[fadeddreams5]

I wonder if this means King Kai will soon get the shaft.

[TheBlackPaladin]

Aww...I'm sorry to hear that. As others have said, I hope he recovers!

[LuckyCat]

I wonder if this means King Kai will soon get the shaft.

If they did that, maybe they could replace him with Kaioshin (unfused) as a future guide/narrator.

[VegettoEX]

Hopefully he gets well soon but please keep him out of Super from now on. Kaio's voice was awful.

This is an absolutely disgusting response and I can't fathom for the life of me why you think this would be an appropriate comment to make given the circumstances. Your true character has shown, and it is not representative of what this community should be.

There is a time and a place, and it is not here.

[JulieYBM]

Wishing Yanami well.

Tatsuta's an interesting choice for a fill-in, given he normally doesn't have the opportunity to use his real voice for the franchise. Hopefully he doesn't play Kaiou too silly.

[Gyt Kaliba]

Here's wishing Yanami a speedy recovery. Whether this remains a temporary replacement, or something more permanent, it doesn't matter - being sickly sucks, and therefore I hope he gets to feeling better with the help of friends and family as fast as possible.

I don't think I've ever really heard Tatsuta outside of his role as Oolong, but I love his work there (honestly, especially in early Dragon Ball where the character is more prevalent, I find his presence to be pretty underrated by a lot of fans), so it'll be interesting to hear how he does as Kaio and Narrator. I also appreciate, thematically if nothing else, that they're using another actor who's been there since almost day one to fill in for Yanami.

[Rodimus Prime]

I wish he gets better as soon as possible, I love his voice as Northern Kaio/Narrator.

[Akumaito Beam]

Here's hoping everything goes well and Joji Yanami can recover quickly.

I'm very interested in hearing Naoki Tatsuta's Kaio. I'm used to hearing him do squeaky and nasal voices in Dragon Ball. If they're diverging that much from the established voice this may be a permanent thing.

[Sandubadear]

I wonder how Tatsuta will sound as Kaio. Hope Yanami gets better.

[Gyt Kaliba]

Looking into it via Behind the Voice Actors, it looks like Tatsuta was already Karin (but only in DBZ) and Yamu as well. Does anyone remember very well what he sounds like there? Either of those (especially Karin) is probably closer to what we can expect from him as the narrator and Kaio if I had to guess.

Actually...they've got a clip of his work as someone named 'Mikami' in 'Master Keaton', if you scroll down a bit. Based on what I'm hearing there, I think we'll probably be in pretty good hands.

(Whoa, he was Mikey in one of the overdubs of the first live-action TMNT?! I...I feel like I need to hear this. Coincidentally, Yanami was Splinter in one of those overdubs too.)

[Ajay]

Either of those (especially Karin) is probably closer to what we can expect from him as the narrator and Kaio if I had to guess.

I'm definitely expecting something similar to his Karin -- just with a bit of a deeper Yanami twist to it, I imagine. For anyone unfamiliar, here's a clip from Kai - https://d.maxfile.ro/tchywgeliw.webm Nevermind, that's not him. I'm a fool.

Can't anticipate how his Narrator voice is going to sound, at all. Very eager to hear that!

To echo what many have said already, I'm very glad they're using a voice actor with a deep history with franchise. They'll definitely appreciate just how big the shoes are that they're filling for now.

[Doctor.]

But did Tatsuta voice Karin in Kai?