Crunchyroll Stars Share the Shows That Made Them Fall in Love With Anime

It’s still cuffing season, and popular streamer Crunchyroll is satisfying all of our desires for fun, action-packed, and, most importantly, romantic anime we can’t get enough of!

In fact, Gold Envelope got the chance to speak with several of the talented voice actors behind the English dubs of some of Crunchyroll’s most love-themed offerings, including Hana-Kimi, a gender-bending romance about a girl attending an all-boys school to get close to her crush; the second season of Hell’s Paradise, a thrilling dark fantasy about a seemingly invincible ninja who would do anything to return to his beloved wife; and You And I Are Polar Opposites, a high school rom-com that proves the age-old adage of opposites really being able to attract each other that hits right in the feels!

With topics ranging from what they like best when it comes to seeing romance unfold in anime shows to what iconic anime series or films from the past that made them fall in love with anime in the first place, Gold Envelope got down to the nitty-gritty with the stars of Crunchyroll!

“It’s amazing, we’re living in a really interesting time for anime,” Katelyn Barr, who plays Hana-Kimi main character Mizuki Ashiya, said about working in a time where so many different kinds of love stories can be told, especially since Hana-Kimi touches on subjects like gender and sexuality. “We can really cover the gamut with different genres, different expressions, different kinds of love. It’s really cool. I’d like to see more of it.”

“It’s a breath of fresh air,” Alejandro Saab, who plays Gabimaru in Hell’s Paradise said about getting to play a character who is so unashamedly in love with his wife, especially in an era where boys are still being taught not to show much emotion. “With a lot of anime, when it comes to shonen titles, there’s like, ‘Oh, we have to do this to save the earth and save humanity,’ or ‘We have to stop the villain,’ but Gabimaru doesn’t care about all that. While everybody’s fighting for the elixir of life or everyone is like trying to get a pardon, Gabimaru is like, ‘I don’t care about the pardon, I don’t care about this, I’m just trying to get home [to my wife].’ And it’s really cool that it’s a motivation that is very relatable and grounded, as opposed to something otherworldly.”

And when asked about whether it was a challenge to play the quiet, reserved Tani to co-star Celeste Perez’s colorful, outgoing, bubbly Suzuki, Brandon Acosta said:

“Getting into his head space was an interesting challenge for me. I’ve never played a character as reserved or as stoic as Tani appears to be. In my mind there’s a lot of stuff going on under the surface that he doesn’t outwardly express. Part of his internal conflict is figuring out how to get that across to people. He and Suzuki have a lot of moments together where he says something and she takes it the wrong way. That’s something I love about their relationship is that he improves on that by being with her.”

Hell’s Paradise, Hana-Kimi, and You And I Are Polar Opposites are all streaming on Crunchyroll!