Voice Actor Pages and Voting Pages

Oh for the day when I'm famous and can do this for a living, rather than fitting it around my job. But enough whining! Here's some good websites.

The most extensive database site for Japanese voice actors is, of course, Hitoshi Doi's Anime Voice Actors Database. Hitoshi has been compiling information for anime fans for about ten years now, and his seiyuu list has always been the best in the business. I remember downloading the list way back when it was a simple text file of who played who. Now it has evolved into a database so extensive, I couldn't possibly cover it all here. There are individual pages (actually sub-sites) for over 350 voice actors. Each actor page has a picture of the actor and a section covering the actor's roles, not just in anime, but in video games and audio dramas as well, with cross-links for some anime into other areas of Hitoshi's vast database. Other sections detail the actor's CD releases, radio and public appearances, print interviews, and much more. Basically, if it has anything to do with Japanese voice actors, it's probably here. I especially like the page on "seiyuu groups", voice actresses who join together to form singing groups. I had no idea there were so many of them.

Of course, as incredible as Mr. Doi's database is, it's also rather dry, designed to be informative rather than entertaining. For a site that's less extensive but a little more fun, try . There are individual "rooms" for 26 actresses, each with irrelevant but cute info like her favorite food and what kind of men she likes. Some actresses are also given a quick review (in broken English) by the site owner. Nine more actresses are highlighted in the "Fresh Voices" section, featuring young newcomers to the art. The "Songs of Angels" section reviews albums by voice actresses. The reviews are fairly extensive, covering tracks individually and listing the author's favorite tracks. Sadly, the offered music downloads are no longer there. Even sadder, this page has been recently retired, so check it out while it's still there.

The Japanese don't have the only voice actors deserving of a database. What about the growing legion of English-language dub actors? Don't turn up your nose. The quality of the average English "dub" has been constantly improving for years, to the point where a dub like El-Hazard can be judged by many to be superior to the Japanese "original". The quotes are my way of pointing out that there has been more than one so-called dub which wasn't really a dub at all, in the sense of replacing existing dialogue. When the English track goes into production in roughly the same time frame as the Japanese, there's no dialogue to replace. The "dub" is, in fact, a competing vocal track, equally valid (if usually not as good). In fact, I wish we'd drop the use of the term "dub" to refer to the English translation, but I guess we have to call it something.

A great database of dub voice actors is . The unfortunate problem with this site is that it doesn't work with Netscape. If you load one of the alphabetical pages of actors and don't use Internet Explorer, all you'll get is a blank page with the background image. I've been in contact with the site owner, who was unaware of the problem. She's promised to try to fix the bug. This site is, in my opinion, a godsend. For years, I have complained about how the best dubs refuse to give individual actor credits. It's hard to give an actor the credit deserved when you don't know who he or she is. This site, and its legion of contributors, fill in the blanks, I assume by recognizing voices from credited roles and cross-checking the cast list from the uncredited role. Thanks to this site, I at last have some of the names from the incredible El-Hazard dub, although the two best voices, Mr. Fujisawa and Katsuhito Jinnai, remain a mystery. Pictures and trivia are offered for actors where such info is available. I have never seen such an extensive list of English dub actor data. There are only two downsides to this site, not counting the browser compatibility issue. First, the site is in desperate need of a way to access cast lists by series. Currently you can only access by actor, forcing you to search page by page if you're looking for data on a specific series. Second, since so many different people contribute to the page, there are the inevitable inaccuracies. Nevertheless, if you watch anime dubs, I would definitely bookmark this site.

When it comes to shrines to individual actors, few actors get more attention than Megumi Hayashibara, the phenomenally popular voice of female Ranma, Lina Inverse, and other roles too numerous to mention. If you visit , you'll be treated to the story of Hayashibara's career, in manga form! Learn how she bribed the judges with oranges to get her first acting job! The manga is very funny, very well-drawn, and very cute. has a decent amount of info on the actress. The site owner cheats a bit on the CD page by linking to Hitoshi Doi's site, but he does have a large gallery of over a hundred pictures of Megumi. If you just can't get enough Megumi, you may want to consider joining the . The latest issue reported the depressing news for Megumi-lovers that their idol has tied the knot. The club's newsletter is available in both HTML and PDF format, with the latter looking a little better, in my opinion.

Other notable actor-specific pages:

Last but not least in the voice actor category, there is a good site devoted to possibly the most controversial English-language voice actress, Apollo Smile! (erg) This actress, known as "The Live Action Anime Girl" (nng!) has played roles in several anime dubs, as well as performing concerts at conventions (agg!) and hosting "Anime Week" on the Sci-Fi Channel AAAAAAAUUUUGGGHH!! I CAN'T DO IT! I CAN'T DO IT! I can't stand Apollo Smile! She's ditzy and skanky and cheesy and--

NO! Must... maintain... professionalism! Must... give site fair review!

The site I'm talking about is the , which really is a great site, devoted to Apollo (ug) Smile. The home page features fan art of Ms. Smile as a genie coming out of a bottle. (Someone get the cork!) The amount of interesting stuff on this site is truly impressive. There's the mandatory page of stats ("SUPER POWERS: Grooviness" dear God...), an exclusive interview, and a trivia contest based on knowledge of Apollo's roles and career. There's an original fan-fiction featuring the adventures of Apollo Smile ("HOW APOLLO SMILE SAVED CHRISTMAS-Guest Starring: Sailor Moon" please make it stop). You can download her songs (such as "Tite Pants") or interviews in RealAudio-format. And you can contemplate the wisdom of Apollo Smile in the "Apollo's Philosophy" section. "Meet people of all nationalities, tell them about what you love, and then try to groove with them on what they dig." Um, you're gonna have to pardon me for a moment.

RRRRRAAAAAALLLLLLLLLFFFFFFFF!!! Rinse, rinse, spit! Flush!

Okay, I'm feeling better now. Look, I'm sure whoever Apollo Smile really is, she's a really nice person. But I simply cannot stand the character "Apollo Smile". I have never seen anything more ridiculously campy and corny in my life. It appalls me that this is what has been, on more than one occasion, presented to the world as "the face of anime fandom".

But that's beside the point. I may be repulsed by Apollo Smile, but that doesn't change the fact that the is a great site. If you like Apollo Smile, you should bookmark this site (and probably already have). But if you don't like her, tread lightly. I'm still fighting the urge to claw my eyeballs out of my skull.

Okay, let's look at some voting sites. I only found a few.

The is a good segue from our previous topic. I think this is a great idea. Readers can vote on the quality of dubbed anime. If you're like me, someone who prefers dubs in principle but sticks with subs in practice out of fear of bad dubbing, a page like this is a great resource. It needs a little work, though. For one thing, titles are listed even if they've been rated by only one viewer. For another, the comments indicate that many people are voting on the anime itself, rather than the quality of the voice acting.

contains ratings for over 300 anime titles. To assist you in determining how much to trust a given rating, the standard deviation is listed. Follow the "More Stats" link for a more detailed breakdown of the voting, giving you the score for only the last ten votes.

Lastly, many site authors are taking advantage of a service called "FreeVote", which is a quick and easy way to set up voting sites. Sites include the , the , , , and .

Enough sites for one month. Mail time!