The Eminence in Shadow's Star Unravels the Surprising Reason for Anime's Success
The Eminence in Shadow's Cid Kagenou voice actor Seiichiro Yamashita talked about anime's surprising success during Anime Expo 2023.
The Eminence in Shadow has made major waves with fans with the first season, and as it prepares for the release of its second, the voice star behind the anime's main character has unraveled the surprising reason for anime's success around the world! The Eminence in Shadow quickly got fans' attention when it premiered its first season some time ago as its main character, Cid Kagenou, is really just playing at being an all-powerful hero not knowing that everything he's said so far has been true to everyone around him. It's a much different take on Isekai anime projects than fans have ever seen in action before.
It was no surprise to see The Eminence in Shadow confirmed for a second season, but anime's success around the world has been a surprise in and of itself. Speaking with ComicBook.com's Megan Peters during Anime Expo 2023 earlier this Summer, The Eminence in Shadow voice star Seiichiro Yamashita (who voices Cid Kagenou in the anime) opened up about the rise of global demand in the anime over the years with the likes of The Eminence in Shadow becoming much bigger as a result thanks to the blend of cultures between Japan and international territories. It's made the global anime audience "powerful" as a result.
Eminence in Shadow Star Speaks on the Anime's Success
"I feel like I am representing Japan, lol," Yamashita began. "I am here in [Los Angeles] for the first time, and seeing the culture, it is so different – just walking around and interacting with people. There is a difference in personality, and I could feel that directly. Japanese personality is detail-oriented, craftsman. Which culture is better – doesn't matter Japan takes something and polishes it. I think that has allowed anime to spread everywhere with its quality. The Internet is obviously huge. It is amazing now to see the community there and the demand is there for [Eminence in Shadow]. The demand is global and is received with a lot of laughter. At walking around [Anime Expo], I was so impressed to see the anime community. It is powerful."
That success will likely continue when The Eminence in Shadow Season 2 premieres this October as part of the Fall 2023 anime schedule. HIDIVE will be exclusively streaming the new season when it airs in both English subtitled and dubbed releases, and they tease The Eminence in Shadow as such, "Even in his past life, Cid's dream wasn't to become a protagonist or a final boss. He'd rather lie low as a minor character until it's prime time to reveal he's a mastermind...or at least, do the next best thing-pretend to be one! And now that he's been reborn into another world, he's ready to set the perfect conditions to live out his dreams to the fullest. Armed with his overactive imagination, Cid jokingly recruits members to his organization and makes up a whole backstory about an evil cult that they need to take down. Well, as luck would have it, these imaginary adversaries turn out to be the real deal – and everyone knows the truth but him!"
How do you feel about The Eminence in Shadow's success so far? Let us know all of your thoughts about it in the comments! You can even reach out to me directly about all things animation and other cool stuff @Valdezology on Twitter!
