Pokémon: Mewtwo Returns
Encyclopedia
Pokémon: Mewtwo Returns, released in Japan as , is an animated film based on the Pokémon anime
, and is the direct follow-up to Pokémon: The First Movie
. It originated as a feature-length TV special in Japan on December 30, 2000 and was released on VHS
and DVD
in Japan on March 21, 2001. It went direct-to-video
in Australia on August 17, 2001 then in the United States
(This is the last film to be distributed by Warner Bros Entertainment, in the US) and Canada on December 4, 2001.
In the American dubbed version, the DVD (but not the VHS) features a second mini-feature in addition to the movie feature named The Uncut Story of Mewtwo’s Origin. This 10-minute segment was originally part of Mewtwo Strikes Back’s running length in the Japanese version, but it was cut from the U.S. release of that movie because it was deemed too dark and morose for the film’s American “G” rating. Taken together with Mewtwo Strikes Back, comprise the life story revolving around Mewtwo
, one of the more popular Pokémon characters particularly due to his rather human-like personality among most other Pokémon species. They are noted in chronological order below.
of the rarest and most powerful of Pokémon, Mew
, which Fuji had found on a previous jungle expedition. Fuji accepts, for he is heavily into the prospect of cloning to create and restore life itself, because of his love for his deceased daughter, Amber. At the time of her tragic death, Fuji was devastated. Rather than trying to overcome his grief, Fuji figured he could instead clone Amber, and was in the process of creating Amber's consciousness in his offshore laboratory. However, his wife, as much as she loved their daughter, could not bear to see Fuji’s misguided drive to tinker with life, and thus she parted with him for good. Fuji then received the order from Giovanni to commence the Mew cloning project, which he continued while trying to clone Amber.
A while passes, and a now physical, but young, Mewtwo
rests in an unconscious slumber of development inside a containment cell, next to a cell containing the glowing conscience of a cloned Amber. Mewtwo stirs in mind and begins to communicate with the artificial conscience of Ambertwo in a plane of limbo, and the two entities grow a personal bond. This exchange is tragically short-lived, however, as the inability of science to recreate souls catches up with the project, and Ambertwo’s conscious fades into the darkness forever with the other prospective clones. She leaves the traumatized Mewtwo with the advice that life is wonderful, and to be alive is the greatest gift he has. Mewtwo, confused by her departure, succumbs to grief and desperately calls out for Amber telepathically, his brainwaves nearly overloading the lab’s systems. Fuji immediately administers a hundred doses of serum, forcing Mewtwo to be subdued into an artificial state of calmness and ignorance of what just transpired. Fuji, emotionally broken by the now-permanent loss of his daughter, is now intent on ensuring that Mewtwo, his brainchild, survives.
Alone in the darkness, and unaware of whatever he apparently lost, Mewtwo develops in size and power, but is tormented in sleep by a single, cryptic question: “Life is wonderful… but why?”
Confused to his surroundings, Mewtwo summons the strength to break free of his tank. But upon learning of the selfish intentions of the scientists and how little they care for him, he destroys the lab and everything in it, beginning "Mewtwo Strikes Back", the first movie.
back in his birthland in the eastern Kanto region, has now traveled to the western region of Johto in search of a location that is unreachable by the prying eyes and harsh judgments of humans for the sake of his band of cloned Pokémon, with whose welfare Mewtwo is solely concerned. He eventually finds the perfect hideaway: a huge mountain named Mt. Quena, surrounded by steep cliffs that are practically impossible to scale, but in its top is a forest and a freshwater lake that makes for a near-utopia for all the Bug Pokémon living there. This is a perfect fit for Mewtwo’s band, so thus they settle in the top of Mt. Quena and begin a new, safe life, with Mewtwo watching over as their guardian, as he feels they cannot belong in the world as they were not born in it (Interestingly enough, he seems particularly close to the Pikachu
and Meowth
clones, possibly reflecting how important their templates were in his change of heart).
At the end of the first movie, Mewtwo erased all memory of the events from all those involved. However, due to his not being on New Island at the time, Giovanni has not forgotten about Mewtwo, and has been concocting a military plan of assault upon wherever Mewtwo has settled to take the Pokémon back for himself. He at last locates Mewtwo in his new mountain retreat and begins his operation to assault and capture Mewtwo and bend his will to Giovanni’s. The Team Rocket combat unit heads towards Mt. Quena.
Ash and his friends and Pikachu, on their Pokémon journey as always, are now passing through the area around Mt. Quena, but complications with the weather and the bus service force them to stay at a cabin at the foot of the mountain, where they would meet the Pokémon naturalists Luna Carson (voiced by Amy Birnbaum
) and Cullen Calix (Scottie Ray
) and the spunky girl Domino (Kerry Williams
) who works for a Pokémon institute. But then a break-in and attempted thievery of Pikachu by the classic antics of the Team Rocket trio Jessie, James, and Meowth, and soon a series of turbulent events involving a scuffle on a hot air balloon, leads everyone into the airspace of Mt. Quena.
There everyone sees the approaching Combat Unit, and Domino, revealing herself in league with Team Rocket Organization as elite Agent 009 (or, as she calls herself, The Black Tulip), pops their balloon and sends everyone else plummeting onto the mountain while she returns to Giovanni to report on Mewtwo’s status. Giovanni’s operation to capture Mewtwo begins in earnest, with Ash and his friends and nemeses caught up in the core of it. Giovanni eventually succeeds in capturing Mewtwo with the threat that the other Pokémon clones would be his to capture and experiment if Mewtwo didn’t comply. With Ash and the Pokémon Clones in custody, Giovanni’s operation is successful, and he immediately capitalizes by ordering the construction of a new Team Rocket base on the mountain.
The characters and all other cloned Pokémon that attempted to protect Mewtwo are then locked away in a prison cell, along with two mother Pokémon attempting to protect their offspring. While in the cell Meowth translates what the other Pokémon are saying: They’re coming... and they’re very angry. They’re mad at whoever is polluting the lake and they’ve come to stop them. Domino eventually releases Jessie and James and puts them to work cleaning the new base.
Giovanni’s greed for new Team Rocket bases becomes his worst mistake; without warning, a swarm of furious Bug Pokémon (that Meowth was referring to) from the mountain sabotages the Team Rocket base that is polluting the freshwater lake, and the ensuing chaos allows Ash and everyone with him to escape and scatter. Ash rushes over to Mewtwo, believing that this is the first time he’s seen Mewtwo, and he and Brock try to free Mewtwo from the machines that are suppressing his mind and body, partly as thanks for Mewtwo protecting Pikachu earlier. However, Mewtwo is weak from using what was left of his power and strength to destroy the machines that held him, putting his life force in jeopardy, but Ash carries Mewtwo away from Giovanni’s battle while Brock, Misty and the other clones along with the bug Pokémon keep Team Rocket occupied.
Mewtwo asks Ash why he’s helping him, to which Ash replies that you don’t need a reason to help someone in trouble. Mewtwo reflects that Ash may be one-of-a-kind, but Ash says that everyone is. As they reach the heart of the mountain, Ash throws Mewtwo into a healing spring that restores his power, prompting Mewtwo to finally accept that he is a real Pokémon, as the water affects him just as it affected others. The Pokémon clone rises and uses all his psychic powers to move the lake and the spring underground, and then uses his mind-erasing powers to clear Giovanni’s mind of Mewtwo, the clones, and Mt. Quena. Team Rocket are transported away from the mountain, with the exception of Jessie, James and Meowth, who had hidden in a cave during the battle.
Ash, Meowth and various Pokémon convince Mewtwo not to erase their minds as well, because though Mewtwo would mean well to do so to keep knowledge of this natural sanctuary hidden from the destructive tendencies of humanity, Ash assures that he would permanently keep the mountain’s secret unrevealed at any rate. Mewtwo agrees and personally thanks Ash for all his help and understanding, and he departs on his own as all the Clone Pokémon leave to lead life as natural Pokémon in the wild, sending Ash and co. in a Pikachu balloon and Jessie, James and Meowth in their normal balloon. As Ash, Misty and Brock were walking through a city, Ash hears Mewtwo’s voice. The Narrator concludes the movie with the rumors of a Pokémon who traversed the city at night.
Pokémon (anime)
, abbreviated from , is a children's TV anime series, which has since been adapted for the North and South American, Australian and European television markets...
, and is the direct follow-up to Pokémon: The First Movie
Pokémon: The First Movie
Pokémon: The First Movie, originally released as , is a 1998 Japanese animated film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama, the chief director of the Pokémon television series. It is the first theatrical release in the Pokémon franchise...
. It originated as a feature-length TV special in Japan on December 30, 2000 and was released on VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
and DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
in Japan on March 21, 2001. It went direct-to-video
Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video is a term used to describe a film that has been released to the public on home video formats without being released in film theaters or broadcast on television...
in Australia on August 17, 2001 then in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(This is the last film to be distributed by Warner Bros Entertainment, in the US) and Canada on December 4, 2001.
In the American dubbed version, the DVD (but not the VHS) features a second mini-feature in addition to the movie feature named The Uncut Story of Mewtwo’s Origin. This 10-minute segment was originally part of Mewtwo Strikes Back’s running length in the Japanese version, but it was cut from the U.S. release of that movie because it was deemed too dark and morose for the film’s American “G” rating. Taken together with Mewtwo Strikes Back, comprise the life story revolving around Mewtwo
Mewtwo
is a fictional creature in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon media franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, it first appeared in the video games Pokémon Red and Blue and their sequels, and later appeared in various merchandise, spinoff titles, as well as animation adaptations of the franchise...
, one of the more popular Pokémon characters particularly due to his rather human-like personality among most other Pokémon species. They are noted in chronological order below.
The Uncut Story of Mewtwo's Origin
The devious leader of Team Rocket Organization, Giovanni, has a fervent ambition to take control of the Pokémon world through both financial and military means. To achieve his military needs, he covets a Pokémon stronger and more adept than any other, a veritable living war weapon, so he enlists a scientist named Doctor Fuji to create this being from the DNADNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
of the rarest and most powerful of Pokémon, Mew
Mew (Pokémon)
is one of the fictional species of Pokémon creatures from Nintendo's and Game Freak's multi-billion-dollar Pokémon media franchise—a collection of video games, anime, manga, books, trading cards, and other media created by Satoshi Tajiri...
, which Fuji had found on a previous jungle expedition. Fuji accepts, for he is heavily into the prospect of cloning to create and restore life itself, because of his love for his deceased daughter, Amber. At the time of her tragic death, Fuji was devastated. Rather than trying to overcome his grief, Fuji figured he could instead clone Amber, and was in the process of creating Amber's consciousness in his offshore laboratory. However, his wife, as much as she loved their daughter, could not bear to see Fuji’s misguided drive to tinker with life, and thus she parted with him for good. Fuji then received the order from Giovanni to commence the Mew cloning project, which he continued while trying to clone Amber.
A while passes, and a now physical, but young, Mewtwo
Mewtwo
is a fictional creature in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon media franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, it first appeared in the video games Pokémon Red and Blue and their sequels, and later appeared in various merchandise, spinoff titles, as well as animation adaptations of the franchise...
rests in an unconscious slumber of development inside a containment cell, next to a cell containing the glowing conscience of a cloned Amber. Mewtwo stirs in mind and begins to communicate with the artificial conscience of Ambertwo in a plane of limbo, and the two entities grow a personal bond. This exchange is tragically short-lived, however, as the inability of science to recreate souls catches up with the project, and Ambertwo’s conscious fades into the darkness forever with the other prospective clones. She leaves the traumatized Mewtwo with the advice that life is wonderful, and to be alive is the greatest gift he has. Mewtwo, confused by her departure, succumbs to grief and desperately calls out for Amber telepathically, his brainwaves nearly overloading the lab’s systems. Fuji immediately administers a hundred doses of serum, forcing Mewtwo to be subdued into an artificial state of calmness and ignorance of what just transpired. Fuji, emotionally broken by the now-permanent loss of his daughter, is now intent on ensuring that Mewtwo, his brainchild, survives.
Alone in the darkness, and unaware of whatever he apparently lost, Mewtwo develops in size and power, but is tormented in sleep by a single, cryptic question: “Life is wonderful… but why?”
Confused to his surroundings, Mewtwo summons the strength to break free of his tank. But upon learning of the selfish intentions of the scientists and how little they care for him, he destroys the lab and everything in it, beginning "Mewtwo Strikes Back", the first movie.
Mewtwo Returns
Mewtwo, his heart having been softened by the selfless example of the human named Ash KetchumAsh Ketchum
Ash Ketchum, known as for all appearances in Japan, is a fictional character in the Pokémon franchise owned by Nintendo. He was created by, and named after, Satoshi Tajiri as the protagonist of the anime and manga series, as well as on various merchandise related to the franchise...
back in his birthland in the eastern Kanto region, has now traveled to the western region of Johto in search of a location that is unreachable by the prying eyes and harsh judgments of humans for the sake of his band of cloned Pokémon, with whose welfare Mewtwo is solely concerned. He eventually finds the perfect hideaway: a huge mountain named Mt. Quena, surrounded by steep cliffs that are practically impossible to scale, but in its top is a forest and a freshwater lake that makes for a near-utopia for all the Bug Pokémon living there. This is a perfect fit for Mewtwo’s band, so thus they settle in the top of Mt. Quena and begin a new, safe life, with Mewtwo watching over as their guardian, as he feels they cannot belong in the world as they were not born in it (Interestingly enough, he seems particularly close to the Pikachu
Pikachu
is one of the species of Pokémon creatures from the Pokémon media franchise—a collection of video games, anime, manga, books, trading cards, and other media created by Satoshi Tajiri. As do all Pokémon, Pikachu fight other Pokémon in battles central to the anime, manga, and games of the series...
and Meowth
Meowth
Meowth, known as in original Japanese language versions, is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, Meowth first appeared in the video games Pokémon Red and Blue and subsequent sequels, later appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and...
clones, possibly reflecting how important their templates were in his change of heart).
At the end of the first movie, Mewtwo erased all memory of the events from all those involved. However, due to his not being on New Island at the time, Giovanni has not forgotten about Mewtwo, and has been concocting a military plan of assault upon wherever Mewtwo has settled to take the Pokémon back for himself. He at last locates Mewtwo in his new mountain retreat and begins his operation to assault and capture Mewtwo and bend his will to Giovanni’s. The Team Rocket combat unit heads towards Mt. Quena.
Ash and his friends and Pikachu, on their Pokémon journey as always, are now passing through the area around Mt. Quena, but complications with the weather and the bus service force them to stay at a cabin at the foot of the mountain, where they would meet the Pokémon naturalists Luna Carson (voiced by Amy Birnbaum
Amy Birnbaum
Amy Birnbaum is an American voice actress, who works on the properties of 4Kids Entertainment.She has done many voiceovers for cartoons, mainly dubbing for English versions of anime. Her works can be found in anime dubs such as Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Kirby: Right Back at Ya!, Sonic X , Magical...
) and Cullen Calix (Scottie Ray
Scottie Ray
Scottie Ray , sometimes credited as Scott Rayow, is a voice actor who normally voices characters for properties of 4Kids Entertainment, Central Park Media and NYAV Post...
) and the spunky girl Domino (Kerry Williams
Kerry Williams
Kerry Williams is a voice actress who works on the properties of 4Kids Entertainment.Kerry Williams grew up in the Tidewater area of Virginia and has worked in Florida, Japan and California as a dancer prior to pursuing a Seiyū career in New York City.She is most famous for voicing Nami in One...
) who works for a Pokémon institute. But then a break-in and attempted thievery of Pikachu by the classic antics of the Team Rocket trio Jessie, James, and Meowth, and soon a series of turbulent events involving a scuffle on a hot air balloon, leads everyone into the airspace of Mt. Quena.
There everyone sees the approaching Combat Unit, and Domino, revealing herself in league with Team Rocket Organization as elite Agent 009 (or, as she calls herself, The Black Tulip), pops their balloon and sends everyone else plummeting onto the mountain while she returns to Giovanni to report on Mewtwo’s status. Giovanni’s operation to capture Mewtwo begins in earnest, with Ash and his friends and nemeses caught up in the core of it. Giovanni eventually succeeds in capturing Mewtwo with the threat that the other Pokémon clones would be his to capture and experiment if Mewtwo didn’t comply. With Ash and the Pokémon Clones in custody, Giovanni’s operation is successful, and he immediately capitalizes by ordering the construction of a new Team Rocket base on the mountain.
The characters and all other cloned Pokémon that attempted to protect Mewtwo are then locked away in a prison cell, along with two mother Pokémon attempting to protect their offspring. While in the cell Meowth translates what the other Pokémon are saying: They’re coming... and they’re very angry. They’re mad at whoever is polluting the lake and they’ve come to stop them. Domino eventually releases Jessie and James and puts them to work cleaning the new base.
Giovanni’s greed for new Team Rocket bases becomes his worst mistake; without warning, a swarm of furious Bug Pokémon (that Meowth was referring to) from the mountain sabotages the Team Rocket base that is polluting the freshwater lake, and the ensuing chaos allows Ash and everyone with him to escape and scatter. Ash rushes over to Mewtwo, believing that this is the first time he’s seen Mewtwo, and he and Brock try to free Mewtwo from the machines that are suppressing his mind and body, partly as thanks for Mewtwo protecting Pikachu earlier. However, Mewtwo is weak from using what was left of his power and strength to destroy the machines that held him, putting his life force in jeopardy, but Ash carries Mewtwo away from Giovanni’s battle while Brock, Misty and the other clones along with the bug Pokémon keep Team Rocket occupied.
Mewtwo asks Ash why he’s helping him, to which Ash replies that you don’t need a reason to help someone in trouble. Mewtwo reflects that Ash may be one-of-a-kind, but Ash says that everyone is. As they reach the heart of the mountain, Ash throws Mewtwo into a healing spring that restores his power, prompting Mewtwo to finally accept that he is a real Pokémon, as the water affects him just as it affected others. The Pokémon clone rises and uses all his psychic powers to move the lake and the spring underground, and then uses his mind-erasing powers to clear Giovanni’s mind of Mewtwo, the clones, and Mt. Quena. Team Rocket are transported away from the mountain, with the exception of Jessie, James and Meowth, who had hidden in a cave during the battle.
Ash, Meowth and various Pokémon convince Mewtwo not to erase their minds as well, because though Mewtwo would mean well to do so to keep knowledge of this natural sanctuary hidden from the destructive tendencies of humanity, Ash assures that he would permanently keep the mountain’s secret unrevealed at any rate. Mewtwo agrees and personally thanks Ash for all his help and understanding, and he departs on his own as all the Clone Pokémon leave to lead life as natural Pokémon in the wild, sending Ash and co. in a Pikachu balloon and Jessie, James and Meowth in their normal balloon. As Ash, Misty and Brock were walking through a city, Ash hears Mewtwo’s voice. The Narrator concludes the movie with the rumors of a Pokémon who traversed the city at night.
Cast
| English Name | English Voice Actor | Japanese Name | Japanese Voice Actor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ash Ketchum Ash Ketchum Ash Ketchum, known as for all appearances in Japan, is a fictional character in the Pokémon franchise owned by Nintendo. He was created by, and named after, Satoshi Tajiri as the protagonist of the anime and manga series, as well as on various merchandise related to the franchise... |
Veronica Taylor Veronica Taylor Veronica Taylor is an American voice actress. Taylor is best known for her dubbing work in English-language anime adaptations, in particular for voicing Ash Ketchum in the English dub of the Japanese anime, Pokémon.... |
Satoshi | Rica Matsumoto Rica Matsumoto is a Japanese voice actress and J-pop singer who was born in Yokohama, Japan. Her name is also sometimes romanized as Rika Matsumoto. She was one of the original members of the popular vocal group JAM Project. After the way of the stage, she embarked on voice acting and a singing career... |
| Pikachu Pikachu is one of the species of Pokémon creatures from the Pokémon media franchise—a collection of video games, anime, manga, books, trading cards, and other media created by Satoshi Tajiri. As do all Pokémon, Pikachu fight other Pokémon in battles central to the anime, manga, and games of the series... |
Ikue Ohtani | ||
| Brock Brock (Pokémon) Brock, known as in Japanese versions, is a video game character in the Pokémon franchise. In the Pokémon video games, he is the Gym Leader of Pewter City and mainly uses Rock -type Pokémon; in the anime series, he left his position as a Gym Leader to travel alongside Ash Ketchum and become a... |
Eric Stuart Eric Stuart Eric Stuart is a voice actor, voice director, singer, songwriter, and guitarist. As the lead singer of his own band, the Eric Stuart Band , he is an award-winning independent artist with a growing US and international fan base.Stuart gained acclaim as a voice actor not only because of his... |
Takeshi | Yūji Ueda Yuji Ueda is a popular Japanese seiyū.He is most known for the roles of Sagara Sanosuke , Akito Tenkawa , Takeshi , Horohoro , Johannes Krauser II and Keitaro Urashima .... |
| Misty Misty (Pokémon) Misty, known as in Japanese versions, is a fictional character in the Pokémon franchise. She has appeared as a Gym Leader in the Pokémon video games, several seasons of the Pokémon anime, The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga, the Ash & Pikachu manga, toys, books, and other media.-Design:Misty's... |
Rachael Lillis Rachael Lillis Rachael Lillis is an American actress and voice actress. She studied acting in Boston and New York City and has appeared in various theater and independent films.... |
Kasumi | Mayumi Iizuka Mayumi Iizuka is a Japanese voice actress and J-pop singer who was born in Tokyo and grew up in Taiwan and Yokohama. Iizuka is a member of Gekidan Wakakusa and Tokuma Japan Communications.... |
| Domino | Kerry Williams Kerry Williams Kerry Williams is a voice actress who works on the properties of 4Kids Entertainment.Kerry Williams grew up in the Tidewater area of Virginia and has worked in Florida, Japan and California as a dancer prior to pursuing a Seiyū career in New York City.She is most famous for voicing Nami in One... |
Domino | Kotono Mitsuishi Kotono Mitsuishi is a prolific Japanese voice actor from Tokyo. As a young girl, Mitsuishi lived in Nagareyama, Chiba. Mitsuishi graduated from high school in 1986, and entered the Katsuta Voice Actor's Academy. While attending the academy, she began working part time as an elevator girl in the Sunshine 60 building... |
| Jessie | Rachael Lillis Rachael Lillis Rachael Lillis is an American actress and voice actress. She studied acting in Boston and New York City and has appeared in various theater and independent films.... |
Musashi | Megumi Hayashibara Megumi Hayashibara is a Japanese voice actress, singer, radio personality, and lyricist from Tokyo. She is currently affiliated with Aksent. Her nicknames include: Megu-san, Megu-nee, Bara-san, Kakka, and Daijin... |
| James | Eric Stuart Eric Stuart Eric Stuart is a voice actor, voice director, singer, songwriter, and guitarist. As the lead singer of his own band, the Eric Stuart Band , he is an award-winning independent artist with a growing US and international fan base.Stuart gained acclaim as a voice actor not only because of his... |
Kojirō | Shin-ichiro Miki |
| Meowth | Maddie Blaustein Maddie Blaustein Madeleine Joan Blaustein was an American voice actress... |
Nyarth | Inuko Inuyama |
| Mewtwo | Dan Green Dan Green (voice actor) Daniel Alexander Green , is an American voice actor, voice director and script adapter who has worked for 4Kids Entertainment, DuArt Film and Video, NYAV Post and Central Park Media... |
Mewtwo | Naoto Takenaka Naoto Takenaka is a Japanese actor, comedian, singer, and director from Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture affiliated with From First Production. He is married to idol singer and actress Midori Kinouchi.-Director:*Munō no Hito *119... |
| Narration | Ken Gates Ken Gates Rodger Parsons is an American voice actor, who has appeared in various films. While he is well known for being the current narrator of the Pokémon anime, he is better known in New York voice over circles as a versatile vocal character performer... |
Narration | Unshō Ishizuka |