#aramaki

Major Motoko Kusanagi

I really liked Suzie Yeung's take on the Major! She manages to perfectly portray this version of Motoko's cattier, pettier, and overall more emotionally expressive and vibrant personality. I'll still love Mary Elizabeth McGlynn's Major from SAC, but I suppose her voice more fittingly matches a Motoko who's a far more reserved, collected, and well-respected consummate professional compared to the gremlin we have now. Can't wait to hear more of her for sure!

2. Batou

I think Batou's new VA does a solid job! He has a nice baritone to him that really does match Batou's character, but oof, this one cuts me deep, cuz Richard Epcar's performance was perfect.

Yeah, I really love OG Batou, man. Probably one of Epcar's best performances to me. Still, this IS a different take on these characters altogether so I'm gonna let them cook. I do have a lot of faith in the dub, and like with the Major, I'm definitely interested to see how Bill Butts handles Batou's goofier side!

3. Togusa

Crispin Freeman is one of my all time favorite voice actors ever and Togusa's always been one of his most notable staple characters. That said, it is absolutely hilarious how young Togusa sounds in this new anime. It's actually perfect cuz they could not have found a voice that screamed "greenhorn" better than what we have now. Actual kudos!

4. Aramaki

A solid performance from ProZD! Another vastly different take on the Section 9 Chief that's way less composed and in control of the situation (just like the Major), and so far, Sungwon's really hitting it out of the park competently.

I will, however, really miss the late William Frederick Knight's performance as the highly respected and reasonable Aramaki who puts complete faith in his team and takes control of any political backdoor operations with impeccable ease. And he just had such a natural crotchety old man voice to him, too. God rest his soul.

And that's pretty much it. While I've grown to love the SAC cast near and dear to my heart, it's a new era, so it only makes sense that some changes happen. I'm eager to watch more and hear from the cast, that's for sure!