Ok I know I said I would post about Mai HiME, but I've become too busy to do a proper post. I'll put something up after the series ends on the 31st. Here's a riposte of something I stuck on the AnimeAcademy forums, regarding Makino Yui, the seiyuu for Sakura Kinomoto of CCS fame in CLAMP's upcoming crossover filled anime, Tsubasa Chronicles (ツバサ・クロニクル):

Although Makino Yui hasn't done much work in anime, she has done a few things as a "seiyuu in training," including the voice of a character in a 1996 NHK mini-animation called "Book on Babel," 「バベルの本」, which apparently won several awards. She has also made a number of TV and commerical appearances, and has done a few voiceovers for CMs. I do agree though, she is relatively unproven as far as seiyuu go. This wary sentiment seems to be shared across the Pacific, based on my brief survey of a small selection of bbs postings by a number of disgruntled otaku in a language I can't fully understand.

Nonetheless, I read up on her; she seems reasonably talented at the very least. Here's a brief profile I have scraped together based on my attempts to dechiper Japanese websites. Incidently, this may very well now be the most comprehensive English profile on this aspiring young talent! And if she turns out to be decent, all the better! 頑張って、由依ちゃん!

Name (First/LAST): Yui MAKINO
Kanji: 牧野　由依
Birthdate: January 19th, 1986
Origin: Tokyo
Height: 154 cm
Size: B 83 W 60 H 85
Blood Type: O
Hobbies: Cooking, Bassoon, English Conversation, Swimming
Specialty: Playing the piano (She started playing at the age of 4)
Favourite Colour: Pink, Pastel colours
Dream for the Future: Be a person who does musical activities, and an actress! (rough translation)