Japan is twelve hours ahead of me, so Snivy and I wanted to be the first in my time zone to wish “the Little Great One” Ms. Hanako Oku-san a HAPPY BIRTHDAY tomorrow (today) on March 20! She is lucky — her Birthday is always the Spring Equinox.
Ms. Oku has always been one of my favorites. Of course, Snivy is a huge fan. The adorable and talented Ms. Oku has written the opening theme song “Kimi No Hana” for the romance anime “Seiren” currently streaming on Crunchyroll.
The marketing geniuses at the Pony Canyon record company have blocked any and all Hanako Oku music videos in Unova, so it is difficult for us to share the song over YourTube, or Twatter, or Glueggle +, etc. One of these links might work however.
https://en.musicplayon.com/Hanako-Oku-Kimi-No-Hana-635494.html
http://www.jpopasia.com/hanakooku/videos/62181/kimi-no-hana-%E3%82%AD%E3%83%9F%E3%81%AE%E8%8A%B1/
It is a pretty good anime theme. A good anime theme always gets you in the right frame of mind for the show. The song certainly does have its moments where Snivy and I are in our “Hanako Heaven”.
Something else is notable about the show. Hanako Oku also makes her voice acting debut in the series! She plays a pancake house server in the ninth episode. I freeze-framed her line in the photo below. The Little Great One’s only line was “Here’s your next plate” (in Japanese).
The next day, Snivy kept saying “Here’s your next plate … Here’s your next plate”. The cute little guy.
You only get to see the animated-Oku’s hand as she delivers another plate of pancakes to the main character at an all-you-can-eat pancake buffet. Perhaps this will mark the beginning of larger voice acting roles?
Starlight: HAPPY BIRTHDAY HANAKO OKU – BORN MARCH 20, 1978!
Denny Sinnoh 
Comments on: "Happy Birthday to “The Pancake House Girl” Hanako Oku!" (11)
12 hours ahead? Dang. Anyway, happy birthday to Hanako Oku.
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Yes, 12 hours. I’m clinging to a data buoy somewhere in the North Atlantic Ocean.
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Really? That’s really far near Japan.
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Hmm, I haven’t reached episode 9 yet; I’m still on episode 6. Looking forward to it, then!
You’re right, this is probably her first voice acting role. However, it’s not her first acting role in general. Remember Yukipon no Oshigoto (“Working Cat a Go! Go!”)? She had a minor acting role as a waitress there in one of the episodes.
Thanks for reminding me that Dailymotion exists. I’ve replaced the video in my post. It makes me wonder if Pony Canyon knows about my site and uses it to track down “copyright violations”.
Happy birthday, Oku Hanako! My post should up in about 14 hours.
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RE: It makes me wonder if Pony Canyon knows about my site and uses it to track down “copyright violations”.
Just to be sure, I will let you borrow the tin-foil hat that I use to keep media corporations from reading my mind.
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Reblogged this on Thoughts on Oku Hanako and commented:
I reblog Denny’s birthday wishes to Oku Hanako every year, and this year will be no different. Sure, I reblogged them in previous years because I forgot to make a post, but I didn’t forget this year! My post will go up in about 13 hours so that the post is dated “March 20”, but in the meantime, to make up for the time zone difference, here’s Denny wishing her a happy birthday.
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Oh, look at that. We got noticed:
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I attempted a reply in Japanese. The intended meaning is “Thank you! However, I didn’t write most of that post. The post’s author is actually Denny.”
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Thanks, I’m happy another fan was able to enjoy Snivy’s card.
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I like this post. Your Oku fandom is so pure it brings a tear to the eye! Also, it reminds me that I haven’t watched any anime in a long time!
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Snivy could be a parrot Pokemon as he likes to repeat lines almost as much as I like the idea of pancake buffets.
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