Popular anime you've heard Nami's voice in

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 Pokémon.

• Okamura showcased versatility playing roles such as Paninya in Fullmetal 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 stems from a number of things, such as her design and her personality. But there is another thing that has helped Nami stand out. It is the Japanese voice actress who brings her to life in the anime, Akemi Okamura.

Although Okamura has voiced Nami for over 25 years, she has also made appearances in other popular anime, using her beautiful voice to portray many other characters. She has not participated in as many projects as her colleague One Piece co-star, 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

Porco Rosso

Akemi Okamura may be known for portraying Nami these days, but back in 1992 she was given the opportunity to voice Fio Piccoloone of the main characters in Porco Rosso. Landing a lead role in a Studio Ghibli film is one of the most prestigious things a Japanese voice actor can achieve and, at just 23 years old, it's this role that put Okamura on the map.

What is particularly strange is that Fio shares many similarities with Nami. They are both young women with short orange hair and carefree personalities. As a result, Okamura's performance is similar to her work as Nami, just 7 years earlier One Piece started broadcasting. Fio has a soft and kind voice, but can raise it when she gets angry or serious. While neither Eiichiro Oda nor Toei Animation have ever mentioned Fio Piccolo as an inspiration for Nami, it almost feels like they cast Akemi Okamura for the role based in part on this legendary performance.

5

Mito Freecss

Hunter X Hunter (1998 Pilot)

Akemi Okamura worked on another iconic IP from Weekly Shonen Jump a year before One Piece was broadcast on TV: She voted Mito FreecssGing's cousin and Gon's foster mother, in the 1998 OVA Pilot of Hunter x Hunter. She was eventually replaced by Akiko Kimura in the series in 1999, likely because Okamura had begun work on One Piece around that time.

Oddly enough, Mito is another female character who looks and acts a lot like Nami. Okamura's performance made her feel like the kind-hearted but protective mother figure that she is. It would have been satisfying to hear Okamura about this in either of the two Hunter x Hunter adaptations, but that wasn't the point.

4

Kido

Zach Bell!

After One Piece began airing and the world got to hear Akemi Okamura's excellent performance as Nami, the talented voice actress went on to work on another of Toei Animation's animated adaptations of a classic Weekly Shonen Jump manga. Interestingly, her colleague, Ikue Ōtani (Tony Tony Chopper's voice actress) also portrays the titular character in Zach Bell!.

Okamura's performance as the mamodon known as Kido is separate from most of her other roles. While she usually specializes in voicing young but mature women, this time she got the chance to portray a little boy. Still, she managed to pull it off, making Kido sound innocent and youthful, proving that, like Ikue Ōtani, she can voice small and adorable characters.

3

Saturn

Pokémon

Akemi Okamura has actually voiced many female characters in Pokémon anime throughout its extensive run. However, one role stands out above the rest. That is Saturnone of Team Galactic's main commanders i Diamond & Pearl series.

Again, it's a surprise to hear Okamura's signature voice from a male character, especially considering Saturn is a villain. But she could make him sound malicious, ambitious and despicable, with a hint of misguided innocence, as he is one of the youngest members of Team Galactic. Okamura returned to the role in 2022, when Saturn reappeared Chronicles of Arceus TV special.

2

Panini

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is one of very few shows that featured a fair amount of Straw Hat's Japanese voice actors. There's Kazuya Nakai (Zoro/Miles), Kazuki Yao (Franky/Yoki) and, of course, Akemi Okamura as the voice of Panini. Although this is a minor character with fewer appearances, Okamura still managed to make the character memorable with his excellent performance.

Paninya is a thief from Rush Valley who made her debut in the anime when she stole Edward Elric's watch. After befriending the brothers Elric and Winry, she becomes a trusted ally and a good friend to them. That's right, Paninya is a petty thief with a tragic background who eventually turns out to be very kind. She's so similar to Nami that it almost feels like Okamura was cast in this role on purpose, and she ended up doing a great job.

1

Akemi Hinazuki

Deleted

Most of Akemi Okamura's voice roles have been for nice and/or innocent characters from fairly light-hearted shows. Even Saturn, who is supposed to be a villain, is not that dark or serious. However, this changed in 2016, when she voted Akemi Hinazuki in Deleted. This groundbreaking role proved that Okamura has an impressive and versatile voice.

Akemi Hinazuki is one of Was deleted main antagonists, but this isn't a fantasy shōnen anime that One Piece or Full metal alchemist. This show is quite serious and grounded in reality. Hinazuki is notorious for being Kayo's abusive and manipulative mother. Every time she appears, the mood changes and everything becomes disturbing and eerie. None of this would have been possible if it weren't for Okamura's superbly creepy performance. It's pretty amazing to think that such a despicable character shares a voice actress with Nami. This is undoubtedly one of the best roles of Okamura's entire career.