 Renowned voice actress Atsuko Tanaka, best known for her role as Major Motoko Kusanagi in Koukaku Kidoutai (Ghost in the Shell), died on Tuesday. She was 61.In a heartfelt statement, Tanaka's son, Hikaru Tanaka, expressed his deep appreciation for the fans who supported his mother and the colleagues who stood by her throughout her career. At her request, he noted that the specific illness she faced would remain undisclosed. Although their mother-son relationship had been kept private, Hikaru regretted having to disclose it in these circumstances. Born in November 1962, in Maebashi, Gunma, Tanaka aspired to be an actor from a young age. After graduating from university, she worked at an office recommended by her father for six years, while attending classes on weekends and at night at the Tokyo Announcement Academy. Tanaka was greatly inspired by voice actress Yukiko Nikaidou, the first voice of Fujiko Mine in Lupin III. Tanaka debuted as a voice actress in the Kobo-chan anime series as Noriko in 1992. She landed her first major role as Karen Korinsky in Lupin III: Lupin Ansatsu Shirei (Lupin III: Voyage to Danger) the following year. Tanaka gained widespread recognition for her portrayal of Major Motoko Kusanagi in the Koukaku Kidoutai (Ghost in the Shell) franchise, a role that became synonymous with her name. Tanaka's performance as the strong, enigmatic leader of Section 9 won her a legion of fans and solidified her status as one of the most respected voice actresses in the field. Her other notable role include Konan in Naruto, Caster in Fate/stay night, Lisa Lisa in JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure), Karura in Utawarerumono, and Flamme in Sousou no Frieren (Frieren: Beyond Journey's End). She recently voiced Rose in Chiyu Mahou no Machigatta Tsukaikata (The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic) in Winter 2024. She was also the voice of Bayonetta in the Bayonetta franchise. Source: Oricon News, Sankei Shimbun |
VindstotAug 21, 6:50 PM
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| Words cannot describe how sad and shocked I am about her death . I didn't know her personally (of course) and I haven't seen or heard her interviews so I didn't know how she was as a person outside her anime career(so I won't be hypocritical about it), but one thing I know for sure that we lost one of the greatest voice acting talents who offered us many unique experiences through her roles . Thank you for bringing Rose to life and countless other characters with your calming and powerful voice !!!! |
| Rest in peace lady. |
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| Beautiful voice. Rest in peace and thank for making my life cooler. |
私が見たのが、ブギーポップだったのかどうかは分からない。 |
| Love her roles and voice, rest in peace legend. |
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Nooooooo....... |
| The world of anime has lost another legendary seiyuu. I will miss her voice. I hoped to hear her in the upcoming GitS anime. :( |
| I was sad all yesterday when I heard the news of her passing. It's a shame, because I was hoping to hear her voice once more in the Ghost in the Shell remake. |
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| 61... Rest in peace. |
| RIP Atsuko Tanaka, gone too soon. 🙏 Loved your voice as Caster. |
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| Rest in peace 🙏 ... |
| I was surprised to hear this from someone today. She did a really great job as Rose and I was actually concerned that she would retire (given her age) but this is much worse. When looking up her other VA roles, I was surprised to hear she also did Caster and Karura, both were characters I really enjoyed and she brought them to life. Rest in peace. |
| and the cycle of dying between 30-70 continues :/ |
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| Rest in peace, today the world lost another legend... |
| HEWWO :3 |
| One of the greatest of all! Besides being a brilliant voice actress, she had one of the most charming voices in Japan. Rest in peace Atsuko-san.🙏 |
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| Man this news broke me now tonight. I'm sad here. She had voiced Flamme recently... I am shocked. |
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| Rest in peace! Obviously I didn't know about her illness and to be honest it took me by surprise. I was just recently discussing one of her new shows and noticed that she voices one of the central characters. She worked right up until the last moment, so I hope that her latest roles will leave new viewers with the same good memory of her as her main legacy. |
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| She was just 61, damn. Taken way too soon. RIP. |
| People on MAL refuse to actually enjoy watching anime. Your taste in anime isn't a personality trait. MAL is literally just anime Twitter as its own website lol. |
| Man, 61 yrs is a bit young to pass away... May you rest in peace 🙏 |
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| Rest in peace.... |
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| I hadn't realized she had so many great and important roles. She was still so active, too. RIP :( |
Bum Bum Dum Dum |
Reply to malvarez1
I hadn't realized she had so many great and important roles. She was still so active, too.
RIP
:(
RIP
:(
| @malvarez1 She probably kept everything a secret from her colleagues too. Like David Bowie, who continued to perform for a year or six months while secretly terminally ill. |
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| Damn, another legend has left us. RIP. |
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| Easily one of my favorite VAs, so I’m very… very sad to hear this. Truly a Major loss! R.I.P 🙏 |
| Words can't describe how shocking and painful this news is for me. She was my most fav VA and she will be forever in my heart for her amazing performances for many of my fav characters. RIP. |
| Sad to hear about this. Yes, she was a legend and an amazing VA. 😔 |
| Yesterday my heart has jumped as I read the shocking and sad news on social media, it was unexpected for me to read one of my female voice actresses' passing and I am still feeling heartbroken and in denial of the fact that she has gone. May she rest in peace, I loved her voice... 😭 |
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| R.I.P legend. :,( |
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| Rest in Peace 🕊️ |
| "I think I wanted to attack something. Like betraying people or hurting people. And, well, it's not exactly nice, but hurting the readers too... In all honestly, I feel that's what I really wanted to do. For me, as a reader, when I think, "this manga will remain in my heart," it means, for example, it phenomenally hurt me: It's those kinds of experiences I'm after." - Pajime Hisayama (My favourite hurting author). |
No words to describe how sad and painful the news of her passing is to me. Rest in Peace Atsuko Tanaka, you are a legend and you will be deeply missed.  |
JurassicOtaku212Aug 21, 2:46 AM
| Damn, she was still very much active and I'd even say in her prime. Some open projects even. I wonder who will replace her as Rose. RIP |
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| rip major and flamme of frieren |
| RIP, her va roles: Motoko and Kyrie from Umineko will always be place in my heart. |
| Knew it from yesterday, but still hurts. I knew of her health problems since she got into hiatus a while ago, but I never thought it would end like this, especially given she was still active this year. She had such a distinct mature voice that will hardly be replicated, this is a huge loss for everyone, her family, the industry and anime fans. She's also the first of the original Fate/stay night main crew to pass away, meaning Caster will have another voice in the future, and after more than a decade with Tanaka being her seiyuu it won't be the same . May she rest in peace. |
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| Way too soon, and so much talent gone. :( Really loved her voice acting as Rose in recent The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic, and I was looking for more as season 2 was announced. From gaming I remember her from Bayonetta and Reina from Yakuza Kiwami. |
| o7 Legend and Caster from Fate/Stay Night |
  What Does Pot of Greed do?  |
| Forever in our hearts. Rest in peace, Atsuko Tanaka. |
| Really sad to hear. Rest in peace. |
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| RIP. Thank you for making the voice of Konan and Kusanagi. |
| Rest in peace. T_T |
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| One of the saddest news for me, one of the best voices in the medium. |
| So incredibly sad. My favorite voice actress. Had the chance to meet her at a convention in Paris a long time ago. Beautiful and regal in person as her voice indicates and yet so polite and kind with fans. Got taken away way, way too soon. RIP sweet queen. |
| "Perhaps there is a universal, absolute truth. Perhaps it justifies every question. But that's beyond the reach of these small hands." Mamoru Oshii There is a cult of ignorance (...) nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that “my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.” Isaac Asimov |
| Saw the news yesterday, rest in peace |
    Summertime days, passing gentlySunlight, leading to an encounter; Dreams that don't want to end Continue onwards toward the next day While she waits in the air. |
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