Let’s Fix Your Fat Face and Ugly Hair…
Reflecting on Saito Chiwa’s recent ‘image change’, I’ve been wondering since when I started bothering about seiyuu looks, their image etc.
A cleaning lady?
I mean, I used to think all seiyuu looked like cleaning ladies. That was something like 6-7 years ago after the trauma of discovering that the people behind the voices of my beloved Mahoro (Kawasumi Ayako) and Kirika (Kuwashima Houko) rather resembled the motherly matrons in my boarding house.
Nowadays all seiyuu have to regularly attend live events and appear on anime TV shows & DVD specials so there’s no way they can avoid not showing their faces. So they better stop munching on those Pockies if they don’t wanna be stuck with all the fat jibes. Or lose a role because their face is ‘too fat’.
I think you pretty much know where this is leading - a visual before/after study seeking to explore the wonders of concealer, foundation and eye-shadow. Let’s get cracking.
Chihara Minori
Everyone goes KYAAA!! about Minorin now, but it wasn’t always that way. Back when I was still in HATE MINORIN MODE I used to think of her as looking like the gingerbread man, or a bit like Momoi Halko (no offence intended, Momoi fans) - I think it was the short hairstyle and round cheeks that doomed her.
It was only after Haruhi got her a whole lot more attention that Minorin started pouring the tightening cream on her face I think. I mentioned this on staappy’s blog a while ago xD
Inoue Marina
I didn’t give Marina a second look until when she was in Yakitate! Japan when she’d lost all that puppy fat.
But now I’m sort of alarmed to see how thin she is these days. Like a stick insect.
Koshimizu Ami
A good example of how gawky teenager can turn into pretty young lady…
…but she still resembles a horse. 馬顔だ！
Mizuki Nana
A trip to the dentist was in order to achieve a symmetrical smile. Who knows if Colgate may come a-calling?
But Nana never got her crooked front tooth fixed. Maybe it’s one of her charm points?
Kitamura Eri
Flat pancake face, big nose.
Make-up can make otaku look pretty. Gotta perfect the moody pout too.
Horie Yui
Hocchan hasn’t really changed that much over the years.
In fact, I think she looks much better now that she’s older. Oh hang on, I forgot that she’s always 17. Always. And forever. No wonder she looks like my kid sister.
Tamura Yukari
Er, I try to pay as little attention to how Yukarin looks as possible. She just don’t appeal to me.
At least she’s gotten better at camouflaging those jug handles ears.
Fukuyama Jun
The guy’s a chameleon, basically. I’ve never seen him with the same look twice -_- I used to think Fukuyama looked like a loveable geek when I first heard him in Angelic Layer (like this) but now I think he’s just a vainpot who spends too much time standing in front of the mirror fixing his hair.
Sakamoto Maaya
Maaya always looked like a cross between Utada Hikaru & Kuraki Mai to me.
…does she actually look rounder these days or what? Doesn’t matter, Maaya definitely ages well. Like fine wine.
Kugimiya Rie
Not much difference between Rie 5-6 years ago and Rie now - still stick thin as ever.
Hairstyles are much better these days though. She needs to smile more!! Show off those tiny teeth of hers!
Nakahara Mai
People say Mai has had plastic surgery done.
She’s probably had a face transplant.
Kuwashima Houko
Kuwashima is probably the only person going backwards ^^; Her music career seems to have been put on the backburner so I guess she has no reason to get dolled up for photoshoots so much these days… get back in the kitchen, Houko.
October 7th, 2008 at 12:17 am
woah! I actually didn’t see Nana’s “crooked front tooth” until you mentioned it..! She definately has become more appealing than before, if those really were her past photos… Her midddle After photo looked a little scary though, with her eyes opened THAT wide… o_O”
I guess we all learnt something today: Everyone can look good with plastic surgery!! Well, what are you all waiting for? xDDD
Wonders if Haruka-chan would look 10x better in a few years~~
October 7th, 2008 at 12:48 am
Nana looks way better now. Kinda like how Sakamoto Maaya ages. Nana just seems to look better with age.
Hocchan and Yukarin on the other hand…I swear they have an anti-aging device hidden somewhere. Or maybe the fact that they are 17 has something to do with their youthful looks.
Kugyuu has always had that matured and composed look on her, and people are interested in her voice rather than her looks so its fine. Nakahara Mai on the other hand…man, I want to know what she did to her face.
October 7th, 2008 at 1:04 am
Lol is that really Asakawa Yuu? Totally mom-mode. I don’t know why I always imagined her with long hair…
With the addition of makeup, I noticed that the lighting and angles they were shot from also helped improve their look. And of course their hair style. The framing of the face will always matter. Minori Chihara looks much better now that they allow her hair to accentuate her big cheeks instead of blocking them in. Same goes for Kugimiya Rie, letting her long face have some space.
Nakahara Mai’s second and fourth pic have similar faces. It doesn’t look like she had plastic surgery. Maybe her cheekbones grew or she got thinner.
Love Jun-kun’s megane look. And I wish we’d get more Houko, her strong tone and feminine lisp are always so refined.
October 7th, 2008 at 1:53 am
LOL I actually made the connection when you said Sakamoto Maaya looked like a cross between Hikki & Kuraki Mai. That first Hocchan picture you have… scared the *bleep* outta me…
(BTW your pingback got our blog like… 20 hits in an hour… wow 0_o Thank you~)
October 7th, 2008 at 2:10 am
[...] was writing a reply for j1m0ne’s another interesting post on seiyuu’s face fixes but somehow ended up having fun putting the pics together.. so I feel like I must display all of [...]
October 7th, 2008 at 4:38 am
Yui Horie looks like some kind of Native American in her first picture. I can’t believe she used to be that tan! And is it just me, or does Sakamoto remind me of some kind of ghost in her first picture? Also, I think Fukuyama looks good in all of his pics.
It’s not just makeup that can make a seiyuu look good. It can also be the lighting used in the pictures. Maybe that’s why Sakamoto looks so pale.
October 7th, 2008 at 10:40 am
You know who else ages well? Kikuko Inoue. Like Horie, maybe this is a 17yo club sekrit?
October 7th, 2008 at 11:22 am
@omo: ..or maybe not (wrinkles!)?
I forgot to include Oririn in my post. She doesn’t age too (and I think she’s pretty).
I wished Makkun had done one role in anime so it could be an excuse to promote her anti-aging face.
@others: Nana never look bad. *biased mode on*
October 7th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
I must ask, where the heck you get Marina’s old n new piX…all so pretty…
I agree, I miss her puppy fats back in Cosette period…
She’s so kawaii + moe~ during the interview with Mami-chan.
About Minorin, I was like “Who the heck is this? Voice act of Nagato Yuki? No Way!!” back in Suzumiya Haruhi lol… Now she’s an angel~ I take back my wordies…
Nakahara Mai gives me a gaigokujin’s look…Is it not?
Lol with the Ami still 馬顔だ！
Htok > I agree with Jun’s megane look…
Still lol with the Minorin’s “gingerbread” you described haha…
PS. I want more Marina’s piX~ pretty please…
October 7th, 2008 at 3:34 pm
I need to find out the 17-squad’s beauty secrets since I’m 24 but probably look about 40. And awww, give Kikuko-nee a break. She’s got a kid, and that would put 10 years worth of wrinkles on anybody’s face…
October 7th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
Hmm seems like as years go by, several seiyuus have changed their look from the cute innocent girl next door look to sex appeal look (*stares at Minorin’s pic*).
Nakahara Mai got her nose done and inserted a few extra supporting metals for her cheekbones XD. Just kidding…but…saa…we never know…
Would be fun if one fine day someone just expose out all the plastic surgeries done by seiyuus hehehe. Though I still prefer to believe that most of them “age gracefully”.
Btw, Hoc-chan’s my imouto. Stay away. XD.
October 7th, 2008 at 6:16 pm
Always scheming a way to show off your seiyuu images, you. ;P
Longer hair seems to be the trick for most of these girls, which often contributes to a youthful look. Long hair with a sort of fringe, that is. Not to mention the addition of bronzing with cutesy, girly hairstyles. The 17 forevers look 15, really… (no girl in my class looks like that, even us asian girls).
It’s possible Minorin has loss some weight in the face area, but it’s a little ambiguous since longer hair tends to lessen the round effect, as HtoK has said before. If Kanda Akemi should prove anything, hairstyles always matter. And now that Minorin is bringing in the big monies, they can afford to book her with more professional stylists and photographers.
… Though, her photos for Parade make look kind of old… Erk >__<
Her face may be a bit round, but she definitely has a fit body (thanks aerobic classes?), especially back then. Phoar.
It’s not just makeup; I know what we use a lot more now versus before: Photoshop.
…
That picture of Asakawa Yuu really floored me, by the way.
October 7th, 2008 at 9:39 pm
lol, I was wondering why Minorin looks so good compared to her old days.
けど、あみすけは可愛い馬顔だ！
Hocchan and Yukarin look like they don’t age with the images j1m0ne showed ’cause the new ones are from magazines that have improved its photography and make-up applying as time passes~ lol; you can see their age if you compare videos.
You can’t hide there…kinda. They still look good for their age, though. I guess. 
It took me a long while to get what everyone meant with ‘is that really Asakawa Yuu?!’…O_O
@townberry: Your waifu is your imouto as well?! O_O!
October 11th, 2008 at 6:12 am
I still love you Kuwashima Houko xDD
Still don’t get the horse thing with Koshimizu Ami *goes off to raid older posts*
lol Fukuyama Jun xDD
October 12th, 2008 at 9:34 am
This is a great post, although for name-idiots like moi, I would have worshipped the ground you walk/type on if some of the seiyuu’s more well-known roles were included next to their name. Apologies in advance for this newbie post, which I really needed to make to link pics with names.
I happened to recognise “Kuwashima Houko“, since I just think her voice is so so amazing! I remember her most in Denno Coil, Claymore, Noir, and even Bamboo Blade. Whatever her looks, her voice is something special!!
And for Chihara Minori, I was like… HOLY NO WAY is she Yuki Nagato from Suzumiya Haruhi!
Ami Koshimizu = Kallen in Code Geass/R2, but as I was more impressed with the seiyuu of Lelouch and C2, um…
Mai Nakahara = Nagisa in Strawberry Panic and was also in Bamboo Blade
Kugimiya Rie = I never realised I’ve heard her voice in so many things. Kagura in Gintama (she’s really good in this one by the way) Elric in FMA etc.
Maaya Sakamoto = Bamboo Blade again (struggling to remember her character name) Death Note, Soul Eater
Nana Mizuki = Well impressed by her credentials; Fate Testarossa from Nanoha, Hinata in Naruto and Riful in Claymore. I’m SURE Riful is male in the series (clearly it’s been a long time) but woah.
Eri Kitamura = Fewer roles, but apparently she was a major character in Seto no Hanayome (which I have seen) so will have to recap.
Yukari Tamura = Nanoha in Nanoha, Tenten in Naruto, Kanon and Sketchbook amongst others. Very impressive list.
Yui Horie = Fruits Basket and Kanon (I don’t really remember her)
Last but not least, Fukuyama Jun = I nearly did a little fan-girl scream when I went through the credits, but he is LELOUCH!! Shame on me for not remembering his name, but yes, his voice is hot!
I wonder if you would consider looking into people like Fumiko Orikasa (or Rukia from Bleach and Yasako from Denno Coil - everyone should WATCH this anime by the way), Yuriko Fuchizaki (Himemiya Anthy from Utena) and Takehito Koyasu (Hellsing, Initial D, Gundam, Macross 7, Utena, Evangelion) and Tomokazu Sugita (Gintoki in Gintama and Kyon in Suzumiya Haruhi) please?
Anyhow, the comments really made me laugh, so a big thank you. A very interesting post!
Some of them really do age well, like Koshimizu Ami and Sakamoto Maaya.
p/s: I’ve not seen any anime with Inoue Marina yet.
October 12th, 2008 at 3:15 pm
@Milo
You forgot that Horie Yui’s (in)famous role as the violent Narusegawa Naru.
Another noted role for Sakatamoto Maaya is the lead role of Kanzaki Hitomi in Tenku no Escaflowne for her debut.
Kugimiya Rie is probably known primarily for the roles of Shana and Louise, ie those tsundere roles, as well as the new Toradora (another tsundere).
——
Interestingly though, Sato Rina hasn’t done much to her face, which I think qualifies as a “fat face”. She tied up her hair in the Minami-ke live event (as opposed to letting it down as per normal), which helped somewhat.
October 12th, 2008 at 6:50 pm
@Milo
God. I often forget that there might be ppl reading the blog who don’t know too much about seiyuu names and all that =_= Apologies, I will have to remember to try to include roles with names next time.
Kitamura Eri was Tatiana in Last Exile, Saya in Blood+ & Rin in Kodomo no Jikan. I don’t think that many people would know Seto no Hanayome anyhow.
IMO male seiyuu don’t really change that much weight (except Morikawa Toshiyuki) or image wise - the most they’ll do is update their hairstyles -_-
@MT
Mmm. Rina I think, has improved her fashion sense somewhat these days but doesn’t look a whole lot different from 4-5 years ago. I don’t think she’s the sort to be under much pressure from either her agency (Haikyo) or her record company (indie label Chambers) to adopt an ‘idol’-type look.
October 13th, 2008 at 3:53 pm
Gotta love these posts, always interesting to put a face behind the voices. I never thought that Ayako Kawasumi looked like an obassan though, I always thought she looked pretty good.
@Milo: Takehito Koyasu is not really much of a looker, especially with his horrible, horrible teeth, even if he’s the most prolific and easily recognizable male seiyuu around.
October 14th, 2008 at 5:54 pm
I think we kinda spoiled j1m0ne with the way most of us were reading her blog for a long time and got used to the names that she slacked in the role naming department.
October 15th, 2008 at 9:06 am
I guess you can’t have a perfect beauty. If she sounds good, there’s a huge chance she’s not much a looker. If she sounds bad, there’s a possibility she’s really sweet-looking.
But some of the Seiyuus age well, really well. Horie Yui & Tamura Yukari are just 2 of the many examples. Their eyes seems to shine much brighter even when watching their live DVD. As for the one about Kawasumi Ayako looking like motherly matron of a boarding house, not much comment to that. lol~ But she is pretty talented, having graduated from Music College and so on.
Saito Chiwa…. She looks the same. But maybe she might wanna get her teeth fixed. Then again, that’s also one of her beautiful points or alternatively, she can learn to smile like Horie Yui…. ie, never revealing her teeth.
November 1st, 2008 at 3:01 am
As long as a seiyuu has a gorgeous voice and excellent acting skills, it doesn’t matter what he/she looks like. I don’t see anyone criticizing screen actors’ voices. If looks matter most to you, don’t be a seiyuu fan.
November 1st, 2008 at 4:13 pm
[...] was somewhat amused to see this reply to my post about the fat face issue: Quoth [...]
November 7th, 2008 at 4:50 pm
I don’t mind that much about their looks, though sometimes it’s a nonsensical point of interest/humour/curiosity thing.
The way they look generally doesn’t match the way they sound/voice act XD
Some of them, like Nana and Ami, remind me of female schoolmates. Must be the gawkish look.
Scary thought: imagine Fukujun speaking in his Lelouch voice *insert flashy gesture* while fixing his hair in front of the mirror …
December 18th, 2008 at 11:30 pm
[...] in handy for stealing archived images :3 Oh, and I’m not saying any of them are fugly or have fat faces or anything. I just like to see how an oyaji can get turned into an ikemen with a pair of scissors [...]