The Mikadono Sanshimai wa Angai, Choroi An interview with Hinata Minami, Amami Yurina, Aoi Koga, and Yoshino Aoyama

The TV anime "The Mikadono Sanshimai wa Angai, Choroi," based on the popular manga by Hirakawa Aya currently being serialized in "Weekly Shonen Sunday" (Shogakukan), will be broadcast on TOKYO MX and other stations from Getsuku. It is a home-role comedy depicting the cohabitation of the three Mikado sisters, who are geniuses in the arts, martial arts, and literature, and Ayayo Yu, an ordinary person who is below average in all areas. We spoke to Hinata Minami, who plays Ayayo Yu, Amami Yurina, who plays "arts genius" Mikado Ikki, Aoi Koga, who plays "martial arts genius" Mikado Niko, and Yoshino Aoyama, who plays "literature genius" Mikado Miwa, about their thoughts on their roles and also delved into the "easiness" of the four sisters.

◇Masaya Matsukaze is like a real father!

-What was the most important thing to you while acting?

Hinata-san's focus has always remained the same, and Yuu is a character who thinks about what she can do while spending time with the three sisters, and what a happy family is, so that has always been there for me. I think that's a part that shouldn't change, so I was conscious of changing around that. I had to convey to the viewers that Yuu is pure, so I tried to play the role without leaving any ambiguity there. When the switch is flipped, he suddenly becomes a handsome man and has everyone playing with him, but Yuu isn't doing it on purpose. I tried to express his natural self.

Amami: I wanted to play a woman that other women admire, so I used women I admire as reference and watched videos of the opera company to prepare so that I could play from the same perspective as Ikki. While I had things prepared, some things came out in the dialogue, so I was able to express more than just being cool. I focused on the cool side, but I also enjoyed playing the cute and easy-going side of Ikki. As the story progresses, Ikki's cute side comes out, and I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of reaction it will get from everyone who watches the anime when that cuteness is revealed.

I was happy to be able to play a role like Koga -san. It's a type of character that I haven't played much before, so it's a challenge! I played it while thinking. Niko is a martial artist. She is supported by both girls and boys at school, and is a girl with a strong sense of purpose. I wondered what kind of person is loved by so many people? I watched a karate video and thought about people who fight. On the other hand, she has a maiden side, so if she leans too much towards cool, she won't be cute, so I played her while adjusting the balance. As Amami-san said, some things were born from the dialogue, and it was fun to clash with each other. Matsukaze Masaya, who plays Mikado's father, was like a real father, and every time the test was over, he would say, "That was good!" and "If we did this here..." and discuss it with me. I was grateful that he created a great atmosphere.

Aoyama- san: When I read the original work, I couldn't imagine what the voice of Miwa would be like. So I was full of anxiety until the recording started. As I was acting with everyone on set, our acting unexpectedly became more familiar, and it became like a real family atmosphere, so I realized that I should act with more confidence. I really owe it all to you. Miwa is a girl with a lot of facial expressions, and she can also show mischievous expressions. I was conscious of trying to act in a way that would not lose to the picture. Matsukaze-san sometimes gave me advice, and it was like a workshop. That was also a lot of fun.

Amami-san has a lot of characters, and it was recorded with a large group of people.

There are many unique characters, including the girls in the same club as Koga- san and Niko, and the cast is also unique and really interesting. That's another point I want you to watch.

Hinata: Apart from the four main characters, the others were also fun, and the atmosphere on set was very friendly.

-What did you feel while acting alongside the cast of three sisters?

Hinata-san: I gained something every time. In the first episode, I had a lot of time to create the character of Yu. I had many discussions with the sound director, but the three of them were behind me and created an atmosphere of "It's okay," which was very helpful.

--What was it like recording with Matsukaze and Ai Kayano, who plays Yu's mother, the national actress Subaru?

Hinata-san and Matsukaze-san are like my masters! That's the impression I got. They really have a lot of things to offer, and they taught me a lot. I often record with Kayano-san alone, and I get nervous... When we were recording a quiet scene between parent and child in a large studio, and I got nervous, Kayano-san told me, "It's okay," and "You were chosen for this role, so do it with confidence," and in my mind I was screaming "Mom!"

◇Which is the easiest?

--In line with the title, is there anything that you consider to be "easy"?

Hinata-san basically puts up a wall when meeting people for the first time, but when a junior colleague at the office said to her, "Hinata-san, do your best!", that wall was broken down in an instant (laughs). She's easy to fool.

Once Amami gets used to me, she starts leaning on me and becoming very clingy.

When I realize that Hinata is a kind person, I become dependent on him.

Amami-san, I think I'm the easiest out of the four of us.

Hinata-san has a big heart, just like the sea.

Amami-san also likes being treated roughly. When you meet someone for the first time, you worry about the distance, right? But you try to close the distance as much as possible. When you can get someone to call you by your first name, it's like, "It's here!"

Aoyama: I'm very susceptible to alcohol. After about the third drink, I don't notice anything (laughs). Even if something bad happens, I can forget about it after three drinks.

Amami has three sisters, so the number is three!

Mr. Aoyama, maybe we should go for three drinks in Sangenjaya, Mitsuke, or Shinjuku-sanchome (laughs).

Koga: I also tend to build walls in my relationships. Even if someone is nice to me, I end up thinking, "Sorry for being so nice to me!"... If someone tells me all sorts of things, I feel like I have to give them an equal exchange! And since I'm a "uke" type of person, if someone tells me all sorts of things, I end up being easy to get along with.

The four of us Aoyama-san talked about a lot of things. We did a quiz about my family. My name "Yoshino" is hard to read at first glance, but my family members can't read it either, so we did a quiz about how to read it. So, the three of them know a lot of my personal information (laughs). "The Three Mikado Sisters" is a story about a family, so we ended with a story about the family!