I wonder if getting a re-cap show after 5 episodes is a good sign? I hope it is, because this week’s Alice & Zouroku is a recap. But it’s more than just that — we get to meet the principle voice actors, too, as well as glimpse into part 2!
Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious!
Thoughts
I’ll skip the recap, since if you’re reading this, you’re probably either following the series and/or have read my previous reviews (links at the bottom of this post!). So, I’ll focus on the other highlights:
I enjoyed watching the voice actors Owada Hitomi (Sana), Otsuka Akio (Zouroku), and Matsukaze Masaya (Kouichi Kitou, the director of the research facility). The latter acted as the emcee. Hitomi exuded so much energy that she practically bounced as she spoke. Akio looked and sounded like a slightly younger version of Zouroku.
Akio said that playing Zouroku was easier than he expected. “I mean, I’m basically an old man myself,” he joked.
Hitomi enjoyed the scene from the first episode, at the shrine, where Sana lightly tugs on Zouroku’s elbow. Both actors felt the scene showed Zouroku opening up to Sana. I was surprised that two voice actors would choose a scene so light on dialogue. They must really enjoy the show!
Akio shared that he’s found it difficult being so gruff, even as a voice actor, to Sana. As he became more and more sympathetic to her plight, he wanted to be comforting, but the sound director kept pulling him back.
Masaya announced two new characters for Part 2: Shikishima Hatori (voiced by Uchida Shu, the same voice actor who voiced Cleo), who’s a young woman who’s disturbed by her new-found status as a Dream of Alice; and Miho Ayumu, voiced by Takahashi Minami), who’s Hatori’s soccer-playing tom-boy friend.
For some reason, Akio was shocked that Ayumu was a girl! He had the impression when he read the script that she was a he.
Masaya displayed the key visual for Part 2, which featured Sana and the two new characters in the foreground with Zouroku and Sanae in the background. Sana looked much happier than she did during the first couple of episodes!
The key visual also shows a small rabbit wearing a top-hat. Hitomi and Akio said it’s “sort of a key.” Given the playing cards floating around the rabbit, it seems like the writers are keeping up the Alice in Wonderland references.
When asked to share their last messages for the fans, Akio encouraged the viewers to stay with the series, because “…to quit halfway would be crooked!” Hitomi has a more conventional thank-you for watching and a hope that viewers will continue with the series.
So, it looks like the series is going to explore the implications of the Dreams of Alice within both family settings (Sana and Zouroku as well as the new Hatori and her “complicated family situation”) and potentially in the broader community, perhaps in school, with Hatori’s friend Ayumu. I’m looking forward to it! How about you? Let me know in the comments!
Other Posts of Interest
- Titans, Heroes, Queens, and Swords: Spring 2017 Anime Preview Part I
- Aliens, Gears, Game Creation, and Worlds in Collision: Spring 2017 Anime Preview Part II!
- Alice & Zouroku Episode 1 Review: The Red Queen Escapes
- Alice & Zouroku Episode 2 Review: Dreams of Alice
- Alice & Zouroku Episode 3 Review: Cards
- Alice & Zouroku Episode 4 Review: Something Not Human
- Alice & Zouroku Episode 5 Review: A Home to Return To
- Alice & Zouroku Episode 6 Review: The Kashimura Family
- Alice & Zouroku Episode 7 Review: Friends
- Alice & Zouroku Episode 8: The Evil Witch
- Alice & Zouroku Episode 9: Where the Cheshire Cat Smiles
- Alice & Zouroku Episode 10: The Little Queen
- Alice & Zouroku Episode 11: The Queen and the Witch
- Alice & Zouroku Episode 12: I’m Home
