Interview with Voice Actor Soma Saito on the Contrast Between "Hathaway and Lane" and "Reality vs. Ideals" [Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway: The Sorcery of Nymph Circe]

The movie Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway: The Sorcery of Nymph Circe is currently in theaters. Positioned as the second chapter of the trilogy following the 2021 release of Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway's Flash, this installment depicts the protagonist, Hathaway Noa, taking full-scale action as Mafty Navue Erin, the leader of the anti-Earth Federation movement "Mafty." It portrays his struggle as he becomes trapped by the weight of his choices and past traumas.

While the story deeply explores the drama of characters like the mysterious Gigi Andalucia, who possesses near-prophetic insight, and Earth Federation Forces Colonel Kenneth Sleg, there is also Lane Aim—the test pilot of the new Mobile Suit Penelope sent by Kenneth. In this second chapter, The Sorcery of Nymph Circe, Lane boards the newly constructed training unit, the TX-ff104 Alseus.

In this article, we interviewed Soma Saito, the voice of Lane Aim. We bring you his thoughts on the relationship between Lane and Hathaway, as well as his approach to the role.

——One of the surprises in this film was that Lane’s machine isn't the Penelope from the previous entry, but the new unit, Alseus. Including that change, what were your impressions of Lane’s positioning in this film when you first read the script?

Saito: Until I received the script, I obviously didn't know how the original novels would be adapted into film, so my honest reaction was simply, "Oh, so this is how the story is being structured this time."

I felt that having someone in Lane’s position creates a contrast with Hathaway Noa’s imperfection—that side of him that has a strange, detached worldliness yet also possesses a certain level of immaturity.

——Lane has a very memorable line, "There's no way Mafty would be at a tourist spot!", which felt like an act of defiance against Kenneth. Compared to the main cast like Hathaway, Gigi, and Kenneth, I felt Lane might be the most honest person in the work.

Saito: I agree. Lane is green and straightforward; he’s the kind of person who still believes in dreams and ideals. If there's a change in him from Chapter 1 to Chapter 2, I think it’s that facing Hathaway and losing in the first film made him start thinking about the gap between ideals and reality.

——I felt this film was consciously made to be a "Gundam for adults," but Lane serves as a contrast to those adults by being properly "a kid."

Saito: Even when faced with the "adult world," he holds onto an "ideal world" where he vows not to become like them. When contrasting reality and ideals, Lane is starting to notice reality, but he doesn't want to become like the adults who move based on calculation and self-interest.

Even if it’s a pipe dream, that youthful desire to choose ideals is a change in Lane, yet also a consistent part of him since Chapter 1.