In memory of 2010 part 2: Anime Revived the Radio Star

Of course, that’s not really true. The era that gave rise to that classic song can never be regained, and we will never again have a true radio star, methinks, no matter how interesting a personality may be (can I nominate Nakamura Yuuichi though?). Nor can I really say that it was anime that revived interest in radio shows – the impression I’ve been getting from seiyuu anecdotes and ‘episodes’ from at least two anime titles is that Japanese people have never really lost interest in them.

And 2010 certainly wasn’t the year I started listening to radio shows – that was 2005, way before I even learnt Japanese. But from chatting about DGS with my students and friends from work, to giggling over Seki Tomokazu’s dirty jokes and Nakamura Yuuichi’s crazy ad-libbing…radio shows have now become my standard listening fare for walks and bus rides.

Of course, it won’t appeal to most, even those who can understand Japanese. Whilst there’s the occasional juicy tidbit about a particular title, whether it’s going moe over Hanazawa Kana or Yuuki Aoi or swooning over Kamiya Hiroshi and Ono Daisuke, anime radio is almost purely for the seiyuu fan. Its main draw is the personalities, but that’s what radio shows have always been about in the first place anyway, right?