There are voice actors who, when working on many roles, are bound to remain closely associated with a character. Something similar cannot be missing when this character is one of the most famous in the world, protagonist of the manga of records. It's about Mayumi Tanaka, voice of Luffy in ONE PIECE.
Mayumi Tanaka has played Luffy for many years, and the relationship between the fictional character and the voice actress is unique, perhaps only comparable to what Masako Nozawa has with Goku. Tanaka will still have many years of work to do considering that the ONE PIECE manga won't be finished in three or five years according to Eiichiro Oda's estimates, and The anime certainly won't be outdone, rather. However, the voice actress has clear ideas about what to do next.
In a recent interview Mayumi Tanaka has stated that she will be retiring after the end of ONE PIECE and thus also after the end of her role with Luffy.. Tanaka, born in 1955, is 67 years old and may need to dub his character until he is 73-74 years old. Obviously, that moment will be some time away, and he might still decide to take a cue from the voice actress of Goku, who's still in business despite being 20 years older.
Either way, the conclusion of ONE PIECE will be a cathartic moment, not only for fans, but also for those who have worked on it for years.
