The TV anime "Hell Mode: A Hardcore Gamer Dominates in a Discarded Alternate World," based on Hamu-o's light novel, will begin airing on TOKYO MX, MBS, BS Nippon TV, and AT-X from January Getsuku. The story follows Yamada Kenichi, a 35-year-old single salaryman with no girlfriend, who stumbles upon an unnamed online game by chance and tries to play it on the highest difficulty setting, "Hell Mode," only to be reincarnated as Allen, a serf boy in another world. Allen will be played by Tamura Mutsumi, who is renowned for his roles as young boys. We spoke to Tamura about the behind-the-scenes story of the recording, which took place in Hell Mode.
◇Is the amount of dialogue okay?
The work is a light novel that originated on the novel submission website "Shosetsuka ni Naro," and has been published as a book by Earth Star Novel (Earth Star Entertainment), with a comic adaptation also gaining popularity. The series has sold over 2.5 million copies in total. Allen, played by Tamura, is a boy who lives in a small, nameless pioneer village and is a serf. On the surface, he is described as "talentless," but in fact he possesses a unique talent in the world: summoner. In his previous life, he was an avid gamer, and with the experience and enthusiasm he has gained from clearing unreasonably difficult games, he takes on the hellish alternate world. Tamura himself says, "I've never thought about playing difficult games..." and has no experience with hellish modes in games.
"I was amazed and impressed by Allen's ability to think so clearly. I don't have that kind of way of thinking, so that's what's interesting to me. In other world reincarnation, I had the impression that something happens, the person dies, and is reincarnated, but Yamada Kenichi doesn't die. I thought that was new. When I play a difficult game, I want to give up right away, but he keeps trying through trial and error, which is really amazing. Allen is smart and has guts!"
In the beginning, Allen gives the impression of talking constantly, including monologues.
"I guess that's what you'd think... That's right. I'm constantly talking. When I read the original work, I didn't really think about it, but when I read the script, I was surprised to see that it was always my turn (laughs). I think that's quite a lot. Up until now, I've been appearing in the web commercials and voice drama for "Hell Mode," and I had said, 'If they make it into an anime, I'd love for them to be in it!' But when it actually got made into an anime, I remember being a little hesitant, wondering if it would be okay. The other cast members who I'm recording with also encourage me, saying, 'Do your best!' and the atmosphere is warm, like a club activity."
In the first episode, Tamura also plays the newborn baby Allen. He played the growing-up Allen all by himself, and the amount of lines he had to say was insane.
"In the past, the baby role has sometimes been played by someone else, but in this film it's all me! That was a surprise. There are more characters, so I thought I might have fewer lines this time, but I actually ended up talking a lot (laughs). There are a lot of explanatory lines, but I was told to do so freely, so I didn't feel any pressure, and it was a really nice set to work on. This may be my own prejudice, but I had the image of gamers as people who play games fairly calmly and are calmly happy when they succeed, but with Allen I was told to 'get excited when there are times when you want to get excited,' so he does have some high-energy moments. Also, Allen was well-raised by his parents, so Allen (Yamada Kenichi) is very attached to this world and lives in it. When his friends are treated unfairly, he gets angry, and he shows a wide range of emotions."
As the story is set in the world of video games, there is some difficult technical terminology. There is a lot of dialogue, but we carefully checked it as we proceeded with the recording.
"There are many difficult phrases and a lot of lines, but I thought it would be better not to practice too much at home, so I went to the set without preparing too much. I value the excitement at the time so that it doesn't seem fake. I'm very grateful to be entrusted with a role that requires so much talking, but when you actually do it, you feel very tired. So the beer after it's over is really delicious (laughs)."
Allen will be a summoner and will be able to use summoned beasts, which will be played by a variety of actors in dual roles.
"I did a little bit of it myself, but it's mainly a male cast, so you can hear a variety of voices. I was also asked to make it sound like a motorcycle engine. Ali also seemed to have a difficult voice, so it might sound like sound effects, but we all performed together. In fact, the director also did it, and it was really fun."
◇The joy of playing a boy
Tamura has played a variety of young boys in the past. When asked about the joys of being a female voice actor playing a young boy...
"When a woman plays a boy, it's a play, so it's a lie. But because it's a lie, I think she can incorporate her own ideal, the ideal image of a boy from a woman's perspective. When a man plays a boy, he ends up sounding like a man, which is cool. But I think the best thing about being a woman playing a boy is that it's different from that."
Does Tamura himself have a boyish heart?
"This is just my personal opinion, but I think that female voice actors tend to have a cool, manly mindset. Among them, I have the impression that female voice actors who are good at playing boyish roles tend to be straightforward and honest. They have no hidden agendas and are open-minded, and I too am straightforward, in both a good and bad sense (laughs). I say whatever I want."
◇ Things I'm surprisingly bad at
We also asked Tamura about his own experiences of what he felt was Hell Mode.
"I rarely have the opportunity to dance because of my job, but on the rare occasions when I do get the chance to do it, I find that my body won't move at all during practice, I can't understand anything, and I feel frustrated, wondering what I'm doing. However, a friend from elementary school who choreographs dance gave me lessons. He praised me a lot, and that motivated me to keep going."
I had always imagined Tamura to be a good athlete and capable of anything, so this was a surprise.
"People often say things like, 'You look like you could play basketball,' or 'You look like you're fast.' But I can't play basketball, and I'm a slow runner. It's not that I don't have good athletic ability, but I don't have the stamina. It's surprising, even though I'm saying it myself (laughs)."
"Hell Mode" is also an "unexpected" work that is different from previous isekai anime.
"There are many different types of stories about reincarnation in another world, but it's truly hellish from the start. The way Allen gets confused without understanding the system is carefully depicted, the world view is easy to understand, and the reasons why Yamada Kenichi is reincarnated into this world and wants to save it are also clearly portrayed. It's not a case of "I'll save the world because I'm strong!", but rather a really good story that shows the path of effort as he wants to protect everyone's lives and smiles, the growth of his heart, the relationships with the characters, and heartwarming moments. It's a story that is somehow comforting and makes you want to try your best, so I hope you will watch it." (Anima Mitsuru/MANTANWEB)
