FIERCE BATTLE FOLLOWS FIERCE BATTLE! SATOSHI HEADS FOR NEW HEIGHTS!
After an unexpected reunion with Sinnoh region Champion Shirona, Satoshi once again tries his hand at official Pokémon World Championships battles. Even fiercer battles await him in the Hyper Class!
SHIRONA (Voice: Tomo Sakurai): The Sinnoh region Pokémon League Champion and an archeologist that researches Pokémon history. As a researcher she possesses deep knowledge and as a Trainer she possesses abundant experience.
GABLIAS: A Dragon/Ground type Mach Pokémon said to fly through the air at the speed of a jet. Known as Shirona's ace and has a strong bond with her.
WHAT ARE THE CHANCES OF SHIRONA VS SATOSHI...?!
Shirona is also participating in the Pokémon World Championships that Satoshi is trying his hand at, and she's one of the only 8 chosen "Masters Eight". In other word, in order to reach his long-cherished goal of fighting the Champion Dande, Satoshi has to surpass Shirona...!
SHE WAS SO OVERLY HAPPY TO BE REUNITED WITH SHIRONA SHE WAS IN A STATE OF EXCITEMENT WHILE ACTING!!
A SPECIAL INTERVIEW WITH TOMO SAKURAI, THE VOICE OF SHIRONA
(Freelancer, primarily known as Makimachi Misao from Rurouni Kenshin, Mylene Jenius from Macross 7, Meimi Haneoka from Kaito Saint Tail, ++)
I'M SO HAPPY TO PLAY SHIRONA AGAIN!
Q: This is Shirona's first appearance in quite a while. How did you react when you first learned it was happening?
Sakurai: The thing is, I play Koharu's mother Yoshino in the Pocket Monsters TV series, so I learned it from a staff member one day after the dubbing session had concluded. I had abolutely no idea she was going to appear in the show, so I practically screamed with surprise (laughs). Shirona is calm and collected, inquisitive, cultured and good looking... She's pretty much my exact opposite, but she's still a woman I really love and admire. I'm so happy I'm playing her again.
Q: What was your impression of Shirona the way she's portrayed in this return appearance?
Sakurai: It's the exact same as it was of the way she was portrayed in Pocket Monsters Diamond & Pearl and Pocket Monsters Best Wishes! Both her choice of words and her delivery are those of the old Shirona we know and love. She's always calm and collected and never gets agitated no matter what, though I think of her as someone that has a burning passion in her heart that she never reveals.
Q: The current Pocket Monsters anime TV series has two protagonists, Satoshi and Go. What is your impression of them?
Sakurai: Having two protagonists makes everything more lively and fun to watch, doesn't it? Go-kun is not entirely unlike Shirona in that he's very inquisitive about Pokémon. If he were to ask Shirona to teach him about Pokémon, I'm thinking that Shirona might not patronize him at all, but instead treat him as being on an equal level as her, inquire about his thoughts and ask him to teach her things SHE doesn't know.
Q: Is there something you were especially conscious of when you played Shirona this time around?
Sakurai: I showed up to the dubbing session having reviewed earlier appearances of the character, but when I acted the first line and felt it sounded the way it should, the sound director corrected my delivery. "Shirona sounds younger than that", he said, "This is Shirona the Champion! Try playing her as more composed." This made me realize how excited I was to be young again, or in other words, to get to be reunited with Shirona. From that point on I was very conscious of playing her as more composed. I especially found the scenes where Shirona, who's an archeologist, explains something about Pokémon based in her deep knowledge to be a bit difficult to do, since they required me to play her as sounding educated (laughs).
Q: Were there any scenes that truly made you feel that THIS is Shirona?
Sakurai: That definitely has to be when Shirona sent out her Partner Pokémon Gablias. She called out moves, going "Scale Shot!", "Sandstorm!", and then following it up by shouting "Tenku ni mae, Gablias!" in a really cool manner. It made me really excited, truly sensing that Shirona was fighting alongside Gablias. And then the sound director called for a retake, telling me to deliver the lines a bit calmer this time around (laughs).
Q: It's been a while since your last battle scene, what did you think of this one?
Sakurai: There was no battle between Trainers in this episode, but the battle that was there truly made me feel that Gablias is Shirona's most dependable partner. Shirona also observes her opponent very closely and uses clever fighting styles that she varies according to who she's fighting; She has a very strong desire to research and learn about all kinds of Pokémon, but this desire is also filled with a deep love. While she may not look that way at first because of her composed and collected demeanor, there's all kinds of scenes that made me realize that she approaches absolutely every single Pokémon with love.
Q: Who did you have your dubbing session with?
Sakurai: With (Daiki) Yamashita-san, who plays Go. Satoshi's voice actress Rica Matsumoto-san was there as well, though not in the same booth as us, so I got to perform my lines while listening to Satoshi's voice. It's really been ages since I last saw Matsumoto-san, so I went over to her booth to say hi, and she gave me the biggest smile as she thought back to our shared history. That smile made me so happy and truly made me feel like I had come to "Pokémon", so I really felt at ease throughout the session. The story Shirona appeared in this time was a wonderful tale depicting the bond between people and Pokémon, so I was able to put this sense of hearing the cast's sobbing and beating hearts into my delivery!
Q: Shirona is currently participating in the Pokémon World Championships, and it's been revealed that she's one of the Master Eight...
Sakurai: That's right! In the Masters Eight there are Trainers like Dande and Kibana that are really passionate about battles, but despite that, I believe Shirona always remains composed, fighting without missing the slightest opportunity to catch her opponent off guard and turn the tables on them. After all, she raises her Pokémon with love and is always strengthening her bonds with them, so they respond in turn. Shirona never aims for strength alone, but has an understanding and a love for Pokémon that leads to her strength. I believe she's so strong because she's brimming over with love for Pokémon.
Q: There's a possibility of Shirona fighting Satoshi in an official battle in the future too, isn't there?
Sakurai: As long as Satoshi keeps aiming upwards, I'm sure the day will eventually come when he gets to fight Shirona. Being a Champion, Shirona can never allow herself to lose, but I'm sure that if she eventually got to battle Satoshi, she might fight him without focusing too much on the final outcome. If that day DOES arrive, I do wonder who would win... though Satoshi has definitely grown a lot during his long journey thus far, and I think Shirona probably has a strong desire to watch over that growth. Even if she did lose to him in such a battle, I think she'd be delighted at how much he'd grown and congratulate him with a smile on her face.
Q: Shirona is depicted as a character brimming over with love for Pokémon, but do YOU have any personal favorite Pokémon?
Sakurai: That has to be Shirona's ace Gablias, doesn't it? It's strong, and as you'd expect from Shirona's Partner, rather calm and composed. It has excellent chemistry with Shirona when they fight together and is able to make all kinds of judgments in an instant. You can FEEL their bond...! I instantly associate the word "Pokémon" with Mewtwo, but Dialga and Palkia are strong and cool as well! Pikachu is of course indispensable, and Hikozaru is cute too. I also really like Pochama because its voice and the way it moves around are such a perfect match. My nephew and niece are actually collecting the stickers that come with Pokémon Pan, and it made a big impression on me to see the tea cabinet in their house being completely covered in Pochama... (laughs)
Q: Finally, now that the expectations for Shirona's appearance are rising, we would like you to give a message to our readers.
Sakurai: I want to thank those of you who are always watching Pokémon for your support. This time I'm going to be in the Pokémon anime as Shirona for the first time in ages. I want to sit in front of the TV as a Pokémon fan myself, excitedly looking forward to Shirona's appearance alongside all you supportive fans! Please look forward to the further continuation of the Pocket Monsters TV series!