Japanese anime “The 100 Girlfriends” sets record for longest monologue ever

A Japanese anime series has achieved a Guinness World Records title for the longest monologue in a Japanese animation.

The length of the text in question? 7,453 characters. This is equivalent to around 3,000 words!

The anime series, entitled Kimi no koto ga Dai Dai Dai Dai Daisuki na Hyaku-nin no Kanojo (The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, REALLY Love You), is about the story of a high school student named Rentaro Aijo.

After failing to get a girlfriend 100 times in intermediate school, he went to a temple to ask for one. There, a god of love tells him he will meet 100 people destined to fall in love with him.

But there's a catch - and it could mean he dies!

It's kind of a rom-com/parody mix, only anime style.

The record-breaking scene appeared at the end of the final episode of Season 2 (Episode 24). This "declaration of love" is one of the series' most memorable scenes, where Rentaro passionately expresses to 11 loves-of-his-life about the things he loves about them. The sheer volume of dialogue created a huge buzz after the episode aired.

(Note: he has not met all 100 yet.)

And so goes Rentaro's "Discourse on Love":

Guinness World Records presented an official certificate to Wataru Kato, the voice actor who plays Rentaro Aijo, to commemorate this achievement.

We interviewed Kato about the behind-the-scenes details of recording this "declaration of love"...

When did you first learn that you would be performing this lengthy monologue?

I had read all of the original manga before recording, so I thought this scene might appear in Season 2. However, the cast doesn't know which parts of the manga will be covered in the next episode until we receive the script, so recording progresses without that knowledge.

Season 1 followed the original episodes fairly sequentially, but Season 2 wasn't in order. When different episodes were structured for the episode number where this scene should have appeared, I felt both disappointed and relieved, thinking that scene couldn't be picked up after all.

Then during the recording of Episode 11 of Season 2 (Episode 23), the staff told me "It's coming next time" and I thought, "Okay we're doing it!"

What was the actual recording like on the day?

Given the massive amount of dialogue, I thought this scene would surely be recorded separately, but I couldn't believe it - all the voice actresses playing the girlfriends sat in the back seats watching me read the entire thing.

After that, we all shouted the final lines together, in the order of the script. It brought a lot of emotions. Right after I finished reading, all the voice actresses playing the girlfriends applauded and rushed over to me. Just receiving positive words from people I respect filled my heart and made me feel it was truly worthwhile.

Were there any particular difficulties in performing it?

You definitely can't do all that volume of text in one breath, and your throat gets dry. That monologue is a scene where Rentaro naturally lets his feelings overflow as he talks about what he loves about everyone equally, so I was worried that if my own condition as a performer declined partway through while conveying everyone's charm...

I didn't want there to be any difference in power. So when I simply felt I needed more hydration, I'd stop once to drink water, restart from a couple of lines before I stopped.

After reading through this long monologue, what kind of character do you think Rentaro Aijo is?

He's a "person of love". Actually, tears started welling up while I was reading. It wasn't because reading was difficult or performing was painful, but when you actually voice that volume of text, you feel moved by how much someone can think about others.

Realizing how much Rentaro loves everyone made me feel really touched. So I think Rentaro can be summed up as a "person of love".

Now that you've been recognized by Guinness World Records, do you have any message for those who might challenge records in the future, or for those attempting challenges even if they won't be recorded?

I don't have any advice to offer. This might not be appropriate for the question's intent, but I feel something close to the concept of peace in how Guinness World Records recognizes individuality and certifies excellent, unique, and humorous things as records.

Not everyone needs to aim for a record, nor should they, but when you're recognized and honoured like this, and when people say "That's amazing" or "That's interesting" - it feels gentle, peaceful, loving, and wonderful.

If I were to leave a message, I'd say: have a look at the various Guinness World Records titles on the website and let yourself feel wholesome and kind.