Kame-Sen’nin…as voiced by…Hiroshi Masuoka

I heard that the one who played him previously was Kōhei Miyauchi-san, and I thought, “ah, I see”. However, I can’t bring out the same flavor that Miyauchi-san could, and I thought that I shouldn’t simply do an impression of him. Because of that, I imagined how I would play him if I had had the role of Kame-Sen’nin since the very beginning. Actually, my role as Masuo in Sazae-san¹, which I’ve played for 30-plus years, I took over from someone else about four-and-a-half years after it started airing². I had experience from that time as well, so when I took over this role, I thought it would be best if I didn’t concern myself with the previous actor’s performance. Kame-Sen’nin’s personality is the uninhibited sort, where he immediately says what he’s thinking, which was a big help. I can play this sort of character relatively easily, so I was able to slip into the role without faltering.

He suddenly blurts out perverted things, so at the beginning, I wondered, “Is it OK to say this sort of thing?” But once I realized that that kind of liberated behavior was part of Kame-Sen’nin’s charm, I worked to say his lines in a loud voice, without holding back. (laughs) I played him the opposite of his age, more childish than a child.

It’s how it’s overflowing with energy to the point of bursting, and gives the people watching a sense of freedom. Also, I believe that life is, in many ways, a series of battles; it’s wonderful how that steadfastly unchanging theme, and an illogical fun, can exist simultaneously. I think that Toriyama-sensei, who made this kind of story, is a truly amazing person.

I like how he wants to see for himself things he doesn’t understand, and tries doing new things without hesitation. With kids these days, even if they have knowledge, they’re lacking in experiences, don’t you think? I would be positively overjoyed if the children who watch this work were to embrace the same attitude as Goku in that respect.

I’m the kind of person who doesn’t watch very much TV, so I didn’t know a lot about it… However, I had heard that it was a very energetic work, and that the cast was top-tier.

I’ve had a respect for Nozawa-san since way back, so it was fun. There are no voice actors with intuition as great as hers. She accurately grasps a role after seeing the character just once. That ability is genius. Also, she laughs a lot. She possesses the emotions of one who looks over every nook and cranny of everything, and derives enjoyment from interesting things several times greater than other people, so that’s probably why she can perform so wonderfully.

The DVDs are going on sale, so by all means, I’d like you to give it another viewing. And, I would be overjoyed if you could feel something from Son Goku’s energetic way of living, and make it into your own source of power. If the opportunity arises, I’d like to play Kame-Sen’nin again³.