Following this, the program infiltrated the annual special live event held by voice actress and artist Megumi Ogata in December 2025 and conducted an exclusive interview. Raised in an environment where both parents were classical musicians, Ogata aimed to become a musical theater actor through fate but switched to voice acting after injuring her back. She debuted in 1992 as Kurama in the anime 'Yu Yu Hakusho' and began her singing career in 1994. In 1995, she played Shinji Ikari in 'Neon Genesis Evangelion', experiencing the biggest turning point in her career. At the live event, she performed the opening theme song of 'Neon Genesis Evangelion', "A Cruel Angel's Thesis." During the interlude, she also performed using Shinji Ikari's voice, and the venue showed tremendous excitement. Regarding her struggles in performing, Ogata confessed, "I thought I couldn't lose the sense of being 14 years old in order to play a 14-year-old role" and "I felt that my value existed only in continuing that."
The only person who understood Ogata's struggles was Hideaki Anno. After recording the scene where she goes to save Rei Ayanami, Director Anno rushed to Ogata, who had collapsed on the floor exhausted, and said, "Thank you for continuing to hold onto the feelings of a 14-year-old. This work exists because of that attitude." Ogata reflected on those times, saying, "Only Anno-san noticed, and at that moment, I thought it was good that I had done it."
Furthermore, Ogata stated, "Director Anno is someone who values 'live feeling' both then and now. 'Evangelion' was a live performance for everyone involved." Episodes that revealed glimpses of her passion for the work and her deep bond with Anno were candidly disclosed. In the next concluding episode, they will delve deeply into a popular character from 'Jujutsu Kaisen 0' in which Ogata appears, and will also deliver plenty of footage from the special live event held in December 2025.
In addition, 'SHIBUYA ANIME BASE' #72, which also introduced the latest anime work 'Iron Wok Jan!' directed by Aoki based on the legendary cooking battle manga drawn by Shinji Saijou with total series circulation exceeding 10 million copies, and the anime 'Dark Moon: The Blood Altar' produced by Aoki's studio "TROYCA" and featuring ShibuAni monthly guest Shugo Nakamura, is currently available for free catch-up streaming on ABEMA.
Additionally, the January cours ending theme for 'SHIBUYA ANIME BASE' has been decided as "Poppin Bambi," a song from Yurika Kubo's 2nd album 'Shikanoko' to be released on January 28, 2026.
In the next broadcast of 'SHIBUYA ANIME BASE' #73 on Friday, January 16th, they will welcome Sakura Matsuo and Mitsuki Ohta from Hinatazaka46 as guests to deliver a special feature on new winter anime. The third season of 'Oshi No Ko' and the second season of 'Frieren: Beyond Journey's End', as well as footage from the Shaft 50th Anniversary Exhibition, are scheduled to be released.
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