The romantic comedy MARRIAGETOXIN anime produced by Bones Film is out, and at Sakura-Con, Haruki Ishiya, the Japanese voice actor of protagonist Hikaru Gero, spoke with Anime News Network. The story by Jōmyaku and Mizuki Yoda, serialized on Shonen Jump+, focuses on Gero, the formidable assassin who also has no idea how to talk to women. Despite his fears and insecurities, he must find a wife to save his sister from an arranged marriage. Thankfully, he finds a way to partner with marriage swindler, Mei Kinosaki—and the two find themselves entangled in action, romance, and comedy, trying to navigate this world of dating and assassins.

ANN: What did you think of the manga?

Ishiya:
The art was very pretty! When I first read chapter one, I didn’t think I was going to be playing Gero, but as I read along, he turned out to be really cute and cool, an assassin, and also made some attempts at getting a girlfriend. And along with the beautiful art, I think those are the best parts of the manga.

Why are you excited to play the main character in this story? Interesting to hear you didn’t think you’d be playing Gero.

Ishiya:
When I got the audition, I was pretty confident with my portrayal of him, but I still wasn’t sure if I was going to get it. I was very happy when I got it. Because I usually play characters that are much younger than Gero. Gero is a lot taller, and he looks a lot older. So that was also the reason I was super happy to be able to play Gero. I felt that it was a challenge, but I really enjoyed playing the role.

What did you think about the beginning of the story? It’s frightening, action-packed, and romantic. A lot is going on.

Ishiya:
I think the fact that it’s battle-centric, but it’s also him trying to find the ultimate marriage. That is a perfect marriage. I’m pretty sure you didn’t think that at the beginning of the first episode that the guy would physically be sitting on humans – and then the cigarette burn! I think that scene perfectly gives you an idea of what world MARRIAGETOXIN takes place in. You’re going to see a lot of unique characters, but the world itself is very unique. And while in that world, Gero dreams of a normal marriage, probably one of the charm points of the story. And I think all the craziness coming from all sides in episode one perfectly encapsulates MARRIAGETOXIN– giving you a very good feel of what the rest of the series is going to be like. So I think people can watch it over and over. I’ve actually watched it about five times already.

Mei says they’re a guy! We find out that Gero, who looks super cool, is actually insecure, and he has his weaknesses. Why do you think that this anime stands out from others? It is these very vulnerable characters, but also a very strange, wacky world, too!

Ishiya:
A lot of anime centers on high school life, but you don’t really see a world where being an assassin is a normal life. And now this world has very different aspects of someone trying to find a partner and then, you know, the world of being an assassin coming together, like a marriage. So when the assassin world and the other world come together, I think that really defines MARRIAGETOXIN. And then you’ll see a lot of unique characters pretty much making a mess in the whole world.

What do you enjoy about Gero’s relationship with Mei?

Ishiya:
I really like the part where Gero asked Mei, “You’ll help me get married.” They talk about being true to each other, and Gero immediately follows through with that, and Kinosaki’s showing him how things are done, and then you start seeing this relationship of teacher and student, and it evolves from there. Kinosaki obviously isn’t very helpful in the battle scenes, but you get to see the roles flip with Gero being much more powerful in that regard. I really enjoy the fact that their relationship is like Othello, where the chip keeps flipping black or white. You especially see that in the proposal scene.

This story represents all kinds of people, each falling in love in their own way and confronting their past and who they truly are. Or why do you think it’s important to see stories like this?

Ishiya:
Gero always wanted a connection with another person. He wants someone to ask him when he sleeps, how his day was, or if anything is wrong. I’m sure if you’re alone, you always want to have someone you can lean on. So when you’re alone too long, you just stiffen up and don’t get to connect with others. So once you’re able to connect with others and have that kind of relationship, you also become stronger and a better person.

This series, I think, is very important in the fact that it shows that no matter what world you’re in, connections are important.

What’s your favorite voice line so far?

Ishiya:
It’s in episode one when Yosuke, with the pellets in his mouth, says, “(my big bro is) saying he’ll take over the family cleaning service,” and then at the end, he’s like, “Being a cleaner doesn’t sound so bad.” I don’t think I’ve ever seen a villain exit like that!

How did you find the voice for Gero? It was interesting to hear you say that you haven’t played characters like this before. So how did you find this voice?

Ishiya:
My first impression from the manga was that he’s still inexperienced, but he develops as the story goes along. So I’m matching with that and starting inexperienced and trying to grow with Gero with my voice. The more he tries to find a partner, the more he’s going to grow. So I’m also making the role or perfecting the role with him, as he grows. However, the side of him that’s an assassin is already perfected. So I wanted to do my best to make him sound cool, and that was a little hard to try to find that perfect voice of being that awesome assassin.

Did any scenes make you get super emotional? I know when I saw Gero step in for his sister, saying I don’t want my sister to make this sacrifice. I thought that it was a really nice change of pace since a lot of the show was really funny and action-packed, but then it had this very emotional part.

Ishiya:
I think that’s true. It is emotional for me as well. He not only respects his younger sister, Akari, but his family is also very important to him, and he wants a normal life. The fact that he was finally able to say it himself was very emotional to me. It’s the scene where he was finally able to tell someone all these feelings he had bottled up. So he was finally able to tell them.

When I recorded this part, I was okay if my voice changed slightly or if there was a squeak or crack. I don’t know if people were going to get that part, but I still wanted to do it. And it’s a scene that is very important to me.

You talked during the panel about Gero not being able to smile, and the reaction in the cold open after the title card appears took five tries for you to try to plug your nose during scenes. It sounds like you had a lot of fun. Can you talk about some of the best parts while recording?

Ishiya:
The voice acting for the Itabashi brothers in Episode 1 was really funny. The older brother, Tomohisa, was speaking while wine was dripping from his mouth, and the younger brother, Yosuke, was drinking a drink with lead pellets. At first, you couldn’t tell what they had in their mouths. The voice actor was very seriously discussing with the directors about what sound it would make with lead pellets in his mouth, and that was really entertaining.

Gero has no idea how to talk to women and has no idea what to do when it comes to romance. Do you think that a lot of people will find that relatable? Did you find that relatable at all?

Ishiya:
It feels like I am watching myself from middle school. I am the oldest of four boys. I had not really interacted with girls. Basically, when a girl approached me at school, I didn’t know how to respond.

Mei drops a lot of incredible knowledge about friendships and relationships. What lessons have you learned from this story?

Ishiya:
In the first episode, we see two people come together by both being truthful, and that’s how you establish a connection. People are different; they need to get to know each other and adapt to each other, and that makes marriage very hard. I also thought that for Gero, he’s a much better at being an assassin than finding romance. We’re all different, and this is a story that affirms that those very differences are what make each person appealing.

Balancing the cool and the pathetic, and how he did that? You see this super cool assassin with the mask, and then we see him walk into a pole.

Ishiya:
I flipped for both sides, just like putting on a mask and taking off a mask, is what it felt like. I think everyone has more than one mask. So it just pretty much feels like I put on one mask or took off one mask.

Gero also has something he likes and is very good at, and he has stuff that he’s not very good at, but I think reflecting on both of those sides makes him more human. So, I personally wanted to respect both sides and make sure both of them were coming through. I gave my all to do the pathetic side and also the cool side – I was conscious of staying within the boundaries of who Gero is as a character.

When you were in the recording booth, when you were playing one side of Gero, was your physicality different?

Ishiya:
My body doesn’t move much, but my facial expressions are very animated. I’ll open my mouth wide, and my expression changes to match whatever the character is going through. And I hope people can hear that in Gero’s lines.

Anything you want to say to the fans?

Ishiya:
When you’re reading this, it’s probably after you’ve seen episode one, but you’ll be seeing some very powerful enemies. And Gero will have a more difficult time finding possible partners. The mission to get a partner is pretty much his biggest hurdle. The battle scenes are going to be more intense, but so are the scenes with him trying to meet someone. Let’s all watch over Gero and hope that he can get over this wall of being able to talk to a girl or not. And also, to go along with that, all the battle scenes are going to be even more amazing, so please look forward to that.

We know Gero likes cleaning and DIY candy kits. What’s your thing?

Ishiya:
I collect whiskey; there are 250 bottles at my home. I also like going to whiskey distilleries.

You said this is a huge role for you, and this is a departure from roles you’ve played in the past. So what does it mean to you to be able to step into this main character role, and it’s such a deeply beloved manga already?

Ishiya:
I’ve been voice acting for 14 years now, and I feel like the fact that I get to voice a character like Gero is a milestone in my career, and I get to show my hard work. So I’m going to grow with Gero-kun and also try to grow enough to do all other roles as well.
You rarely get a role that you get to grow with in all the roles that you get to do. So I hope that people support Gero and me as well. I really, really hope that MARRIAGETOXIN is a series that remains in people’s hearts. Thank you.