Two
Japanese voice acting roles define Ryo Horikawa, one well-known to
English-speaking fans and another popular with those who appreciate
anime of the 1980's. Ironically, those who watch the Dragon Ball series
on the Cartoon Network are more familiar with Horikawa's major role,
Vegeta, than with his voice in the role, since most people have been
exposed only to the Dragon Ball Z series through cable television.
While Vegeta has had at least two actors for the English-language dub,
Horikawa had that role for the entire run of the series. It came when
Dragon Ball would have a fresh villain every couple of weeks, and
Vegeta seemed as if he would be just another bump in the road for Goku.
"I decided I would go all out," Horikawa recalled. "I wouldn't be
another run of the mill bad guy. I'd make him the boss of the bad guys.
I'd make him pious and haughty." Horikawa said his Vegeta voice
performance must have impressed Akira Toriyama, the creator of the
Dragon Ball manga who had a major voice in the animated version,
because Vegeta never completely disappeared from the series. He died a
few times, but each time he'd be written back to life and start
fighting again. "I never thought it would be a recurring character -
I'm a lucky guy."
That
other major role is Rinehart in Legend of Galactic Heroes, a series not
released in the United States but beloved to those U.S. fans who have
discovered its melodramatic plots and characters. Rinehart is a key
player in the long battle between the series' Empire and Alliance.
"There was no play for a TV series at first, there was only a movie
version," he said. Rinehart's way of speaking is very archaic, kind of
like Middle English when compared to modern English. It's very flowing,
almost like poetry...A character in the role would use flowing
language. I didn't want to play the role like readying poetry, but I
tried to be flowing with my language during the audition. I guess they
liked it and I got the role. I played the role with dignity and class."
Horikawa has more roles than those two, of course, all the way from Dr.
Slump to Doraemon, with some movie dubs and stage plays included. "I am
an actor at heart, and I believe that an actor's job is to play
multiple roles if you get too involved in one role, you deny yourself
opportunities. I'm always trying to play new characters. Even in the
future, I'll try to challenge myself with new roles."
Two
Japanese voice acting roles define Ryo Horikawa, one well-known to
English-speaking fans and another popular with those who appreciate
anime of the 1980's. Ironically, those who watch the Dragon Ball series
on the Cartoon Network are more familiar with Horikawa's major role,
Vegeta, than with his voice in the role, since most people have been
exposed only to the Dragon Ball Z series through cable television.
While Vegeta has had at least two actors for the English-language dub,
Horikawa had that role for the entire run of the series. It came when
Dragon Ball would have a fresh villain every couple of weeks, and
Vegeta seemed as if he would be just another bump in the road for Goku.
"I decided I would go all out," Horikawa recalled. "I wouldn't be
another run of the mill bad guy. I'd make him the boss of the bad guys.
I'd make him pious and haughty." Horikawa said his Vegeta voice
performance must have impressed Akira Toriyama, the creator of the
Dragon Ball manga who had a major voice in the animated version,
because Vegeta never completely disappeared from the series. He died a
few times, but each time he'd be written back to life and start
fighting again. "I never thought it would be a recurring character -
I'm a lucky guy."
That
other major role is Rinehart in Legend of Galactic Heroes, a series not
released in the United States but beloved to those U.S. fans who have
discovered its melodramatic plots and characters. Rinehart is a key
player in the long battle between the series' Empire and Alliance.
"There was no play for a TV series at first, there was only a movie
version," he said. Rinehart's way of speaking is very archaic, kind of
like Middle English when compared to modern English. It's very flowing,
almost like poetry...A character in the role would use flowing
language. I didn't want to play the role like readying poetry, but I
tried to be flowing with my language during the audition. I guess they
liked it and I got the role. I played the role with dignity and class."
Horikawa has more roles than those two, of course, all the way from Dr.
Slump to Doraemon, with some movie dubs and stage plays included. "I am
an actor at heart, and I believe that an actor's job is to play
multiple roles if you get too involved in one role, you deny yourself
opportunities. I'm always trying to play new characters. Even in the
future, I'll try to challenge myself with new roles."
