Soramimi Project #24: Ikeda Shuuichi 池田秀一

First heard: Natsume Shin (Tenjo Tenge)

First noticed: see notes below

Memorable characters: Char Aznable (Gundam, Z Gundam, ZZ Gundam, CCA), Kou Shouka (Saiunkoku Monogatari), Gilbert Dullindal (Gundam SEED DESTINY), Margarette (Ueki no Housoku)

Image character: Char Aznable (Gundam, Z Gundam, ZZ Gundam, CCA)

Discernment rate: high; visual

Number of works seen: 21

I'm sure the first thing that comes to mind to any Gundam fan when they see the name of Ikeda Shuuichi is: Char!! Same here. XD

Out of the 21 works I've heard him, 12 are Gundam, of which he played Char in all but two. Even for the two where he's not Char, he's close friend with a Char-like character and died in a sunken space fort with the woman played by the ex-wife of Amuro's seiyuu.

Despite his strong presence in the Gundam universe, I actually first heard him in Tenjo Tenge, which is a martial fighting-themed show where the most advanced technology is the cell phone. His voice and acting as Natsume Shin left an impression on me, but I didn't know anything about UC Gundam except for the title of the series and who the main characters were. I did not know I was in the presence of the Red Comet since I had yet to know who voiced Char or what he sounded like.

Then came news of a SEED sequel, which I started following on NewType (also explains the various SEED DESTINY goods I have) before it aired. Then, I learned that the seiyuu for the chairman was no other than the seiyuu for Char...! And the rest is pretty self-explanatory. XD

To be honest, his voice hasn't changed that much since his Char days, so it's almost the same pitch for most of the characters I've heard him as. But he's quite good at acting, so I can easily forget that it's Char's voice when I listen to his other characters.

There's one character that I liked but didn't list as a memorable character, and that's Yappi, an anime original character that appeared for one episode, from World Destruction. Frankly, I almost forgot about this character until I was looking up his list of works on ja.wikipedia. But this furry creature is definitely worth a mention, mainly due to his interaction with his rival/best buddy Toppi played by Amuro's seiyuu. I'm sure all Gundam fans viewed it as a teddy bear version of Char vs. Amuro and awwwed while watching. I did. XD

Seeing how he's not so young anymore, he's probably not gonna be too active. But I would definitely love to hear more of his works, old or new.

それでは、勝利の栄光を君に！