The more I listen to Taric's new voice...

... The less I like it. Riot is a big company now and they want to have big talent, sure. Yuri Lowenthal is by no means a bad voice actor, in fact he's quite fantastic, but it's notable that his style and typical casting realm is all quite similar. He's generally at his best in younger male roles, which his history supports. The problem is his delivery now sounds like a late teens guy trying to imitate what he thinks an older man would sound like. A lot of the delivery feels strangely unnatural or unemotional because he's trying to preserve that range that he's been instructed to.

They've nailed previous updates like Sion's VA who was absolutely fantastic for the role or managed to preserve the feel and approach with a new voice such as Nasus. It just makes me wonder what kind of voice and character they were going for with this new Taric, especially when his previous VA is still around. I'm sure they have no intention of wasting the stuff they've gotten so I guess I'll have to deal with this less engaging and enjoyable personality they've thrust upon a beloved character, I just wonder if anyone else has felt the same.

And no, I wasn't looking for fan service and meme pandering out of the update. Honestly one of my least favorite parts of Taric was the "Outrageous" thing since it felt so obnoxious. I liked that old Taric was this firm yet gentle and soft spoken soul that had a level of conviction that one expected of a knightly protector. Yuri Lowenthal's performance feels more breathy and flowy, almost like he's trying to do a gender swapped Janna.