A popular anime in which you heard Nami's voice

Summary

• Akemi Okamura voices Nami in One Piece, but has also portrayed many iconic characters in other anime.

• Some of the projects she has worked on include: Porco Rosso, Hunter X Hunter, Zatch Bell! and Pokemon.

• Akamura has shown versatility in roles such as Paninya in The Noble Alchemist and Akemi Hinazuki in Erased.

Nami from One Piece is one of the most iconic female characters in anime and manga. The talented navigator of the Straw Hat Pirates is very popular, and her reputation is due to many things, such as design and personality. However, there is one more thing that helped Nami stand out. She is the Japanese voice actress who brings her to life in the anime. Akemi Okamura.

While Akamura has been voicing Nami for over 25 years, she has also appeared in other popular anime, using her wonderful voice to portray many other characters. She did not act in as many projects as her colleague One Piece actors, but she still had a large number of memorable roles to choose from. The following are the best of her extensive career.

6

Fio Piccolo

Ross' whipping

Akemi Okamura may be best known for her role as Nami these days, but back in 1992 she had the opportunity to voice Fio Piccoloone of the main characters Ross' whipping. Landing the lead role in a Studio Ghibli film is one of the most prestigious things a Japanese voice actor can achieve, and at the age of just 23, it's the role that put Akamura on the map.

What is particularly interesting is that Fio is similar to Nami in many ways. They are both young women with short red hair and carefree personalities. As a result, Okamura's performance is similar to her performance as Nami, only 7 years ago One Piece the broadcast began. Fio's voice is gentle and kind, but can raise it whenever she is angry or serious. Although neither Eiichiro Oda nor Toei Animation ever mentioned Fia Piccolo as the source of inspiration for Nami, it seems that they cast Akemi Akamura in the role based in part on this legendary performance.

5

Mita Fricks

Hunter X Hunter (1998 pilot)

Akemi Okamura worked on another iconic IP from Weekly Shonen Jump a year ago One Piece on television: She voiced Mita FricksGingo's cousin and Gon's adoptive mother, in the 1998 OVA Pilot Hunter x Hunter. She was eventually replaced by Akiko Kimura in the 1999 series, most likely because Akamura had begun work on One Piece around that time.

Interestingly, Mito is another female character who looks and acts a lot like Nami. Okamura's performance made her feel like the kind yet protective motherly person that she is. It would be nice to hear Akamura about it in either of the two Hunter x Hunter adaptation, but it was not meant to be.

4

Kido

Zatch Bell!

After One Piece aired and the world heard Akemi Okamura's excellent performance as Nami, the talented voice actress went on to work on another animated adaptation of Toei Animation's classic Weekly Shonen Jump mango. Interestingly, her co-star Ikue Ohtani (the actress who voices Tony Tony Chopper) also plays the main character in Zatch Bell!.

Akamura's performance as the mamod known as Kido different from most of her other roles. Although she usually specializes in voicing young but mature women, this time she got to play a little boy. Still, she pulled it off and Kido sounded innocent and young, proving that like Ikue Ohtani, she can voice small and adorable characters.

3

Saturn

Pokemon

Akemi Akamura did voice many of the female characters in the Pokemon anime throughout its wide release. However, one role stands out above the rest. That means Saturnone of the main commanders of Team Galactic in the A series of diamonds and pearls.

Hearing Akamura's trademark voice coming from a male character again was a surprise, especially considering that Saturn is the villain. However, she was able to make him seem angry, ambitious, and despicable, with a hint of misguided innocence, seeing as he's one of the youngest members of Team Galactic. Akamura returned to the role in 2022 when Saturn reappeared in the Archean chronicles TV special.

2

Mrs

Steel Alchemist: Brotherhood

Steel Alchemist: Brotherhood is one of the few shows to feature a significant proportion of the Straw Hat Japanese cast. Kazuya Nakai (Zoro/Miles), Kazuki Yao (Frankie/Yoki) and of course Akemi Akamura as the voice Mrs. Despite being a minor character with fewer appearances, Okamura still manages to make the character memorable with her excellent performance.

Paninya is a thief from Rush Valley who made her anime debut when she stole Edward Elric's watch. Befriending the brothers Elric and Winry, she becomes a reliable ally and good friend for them. That's right, Paninya is a petty thief with a tragic history who turns out to be very good. She looks so much like Nami that it feels like Akamura was chosen for the role on purpose and she did a great job as a result.

1

Akemi Hinazuki

Erased

Most of Akemi Akamura's voice acting roles have been for good and/or innocent characters from fairly light shows. Even Saturn, who is supposed to be the villain, is not so dark and serious. However, that changed in 2016 when she voiced Akemi Hinazuki Art Erased. This groundbreaking role proved that Okamura has an impressive and diverse voice.

Akemi Hinazuki is one of the Erased the main antagonists, but this isn't a fantasy shonen anime One Piece or Steel alchemist. This show is quite serious and based on reality. Hinazuki is infamous for being Kayo's abusive and manipulative mother. Every time she appears, the mood changes, and things become unsettling and creepy. None of this would be possible if it weren't for Okamura's wonderfully creepy performance. It's pretty mind boggling to think that such a vile character shares a voice actress with Nami. This is undoubtedly one of the best roles of Okamura's entire career.