The famous seiyuu for such popular anime characters as Tamahome from Fushigi Yuugi and Heero Yuy from Gundam Wing wowed the fans at Otakon with his charm at his very well attended panel. The room that was to originally hold Hikaru Midorikawa's panel had to be moved to a larger room to accommodate the MANY fans that squealed and beamed at the chance to see and speak with Midorikawa.

He started out the panel with a question from one of the fans "Are you married?" and to the fans' sadness he was recently married. Midorikawa was flattered by the question, but let the fans know to keep on supporting him. He was very amiable to the fans with all the questions they posed to him, even the more embarrassing ones.

Midorikawa fell in love with anime with the original Gundam where he would mimic the sword slashing effects from the show. He does not have a favorite character, but every one of the characters he does is special to him. He also spoke about the time when he had finally got the main role in a Gundam series, which was his dream since childhood. Midorikawa had a high fever, but yet continued with his work regardless of his illness. Talk about dedication! One of the biggest hurdles in his life as a seiyuu is that he had to overcome his "country accent" that he had from living and growing up in Tochigi, a rural area of Japan.

He entertained the fans with small sound bytes of his voice doing voices from Utena, Fushigi Yuugi, and other roles. With each phrase spoken, the fans squealed and screamed in delight. Midorikawa was definitely a fan favorite at Otakon. His only autograph session had lines upon lines of fans waiting for his coveted autograph. Midorikawa was nice enough to stay a bit longer to let everyone get his coveted autograph.

He replied to a fan about his musical work and whether he enjoyed singing on his own or with a group. (Midorikawa is part of E.M.U (Electronic Music Unit), a seiyuu pop group) He replied that he prefers working on his own, but does also enjoy the experience of working with a group. Midorkawa was asked about his mention from Koyasu Takehito (Hotohori in Fushigi Yuugi) in an interview in a magazine. Apparently, Koyasu is a bit strange and likes Midorikawa's "cute" voice and said so in a recording session.

This trip to Otakon was Midorikawa's first time in America and the second time out of the country. He was shocked about the wideness of the roads in America and noted that the streets in Japan were a lot narrower.

Midorikawa is definitely loved by his fans as was evidenced by his panel and the enthusiastic response from his fans. He had mentioned that there was going to be a new Fushigi Yuugi series. He was going to reprise his role as Tamahome as soon as he got back from America. As a fan of Midorikawa, I can't wait for his newest work.