You Elitist Bastards!

[Wolf Kanno]

This is for anime fans mostly...

What's up with this whole "the Japanese version is better!" sentiments. I have several acquaintences that insist on only watching stuff in subtitled format cause the japanese version is always superior in their minds. I watch both sub and dub and like both and feel the quality of the voices ranges in both. I like some shows dubbed (Fruit Baskets, YuYu Hakusho, and Irresponsible Captain Tylor) and I like some shows better in the original (Cardcaptor Sakura, X/1999, and One Piece) and some shows really don't matter cause both versions are equally good (Cowboy Bebop)

But still people insist that the Japanese version is always superior Do you have any idea what it's like watchinG Furuba in Japanese where half the cast squeak and sound like they were all done by the same VA just cause your friend refuses to watch it otherwise?

Hell I can't even play video games with these people. I was showing FFXII to a friend and his girlfriend (a mutual friend actually and she's a purist when it comes to japanese voices) she heard a few lines from the game, said it was horrible, and automatically assumed it would have been superior in it's original Japanese format which got her on her rant about how bad english VA are and how the Japanese version is always superior:rolleyes2

So tell me... what makes one version superior to the other? I feel it varies and neither is actually superior to the other. I don't assume one will always be better than the other. I know alot of it has to do with watching the series before it gets translated. I watched most of Naruto before it got dubbed and though I still prefer the Japanese cause I'm use to it, I recognize that the dubbed version is actually pretty good.

[Necronopticous]

The self-proclaimed American "otaku" crowd will prefer the Japanese versions of Japanese media every time because:

A) It's cooler to like the Japanese version.
B) They don't understand Japanese, so they can't tell if the VA is bad or not.

[Renmiri]

B) They don't understand Japanese, so they can't tell if the VA is bad or not.

QFT!!!


Some shows are better in Japanese because the English translation is just goofy (One Piece?) but some are excellent!

[Tavrobel]

The self-proclaimed American "otaku" crowd will prefer the Japanese versions of Japanese media every time because:

A) It's cooler to like the Japanese version.
B) They don't understand Japanese, so they can't tell if the VA is bad or not.

QFMFT

[tailz]

well the only animes i've watchted or am watching are naruto, crono crusade and susuka

The reason why I like the japanese version more is because i got used to them. the only reason I dislike dubs are because they leave stuff out.

for example.

sonic X, season 3 ending.

the part where tails needs to fire the big baddass gun to destroy a planet. but the problem is cosmo is on the planet so he cant fire the dammed thing. or atleast in the end he does but after a lot of tears and doubts.

the didnt put this scene in the dub. wich is something I detest. It was a great scene it should have been in it. but instead they leave it out because it implies death wich in the mind of the dubbers isnt something kids can handle.


now for the voice acting thing, its more the problem that we atach (sp?) the voice to a character and if we here it in an other language its a complete different voice wich is annoying to hear (look at krillin in the dub he had like 3 different voice overs and dont tell me you didnt find that anoying.)


bottom line. I have nothing against dubs as long as they leave the eps the way they are.

[DK]

I prefer the subbed version just because I like watching it in its original form. It's a Japanese show, so I just prefer the Japanese voice acting. Other than that I'm not really fussed, although in some cases I've seen that the original Japanese voice will suit a character much more than the dubbed voice. (One that stands out is Mugen from Samurai Champloo, I thought the original perfectly suited his personality and style but the dubbed version was way off.)

Cowboy Bebop has a very good english dub, however.

[fire_of_avalon]

I admit that I prefer to watch most anime with subs. The the voices are interesting to hear, and for me tend to reflect vocally what the character is doing physically. Movement and stature are a part of culture, and this is reflected in art and animation. I feel that often, American/English voice actors sound like they're trying to hard.

Additionally, more removal of content takes place in a dub than a sub. For example, in the show Beck, a central trait of the main character is the fact that he speaks english very poorly. Because they obviously can't demonstrate that while he's speaking English, they just write that part out of the show, and it alters the storyline in certain episodes.

Of course there are exceptions to this. I like the dubbed version of Cowboy Bebop and Tenchi Muyo. And I do think American video game voice actors are better than what I've heard of their Japanese counterparts. I think your friend just has a stick in her butt.

[Renmiri]

The Ghost in the Shell dubbed voices sound just like the original to me. At least for the Major and the other main characters

[blackmage_nuke]

I dont think it's the fact that it's japanese rather the fact that it's the original.
It's like a remix or cover of a song, it may be nice to listen to but in the end the original is the most appealing.
But I always like the Chinese dub better than any of them if there ever is one

[Araciel]

lohl voice actors trying to hard...i like harding as much as possible.

lohl typos

also, anime sucks. the fact that someone likes dubs or subs seems immaterial when i think like that. a lot of animes nowadays (coming from limited experience here) seem to have pretty damned good voice actors, some of them even famous in hollywood. i think that since this form of entertainment has become so popular that we see the translated versions are becoming more high quality than...oh i don't know...the old 3X3 eyes translations which were my first animes.

[riallews]

I like a good healthy mix. It mostly depends on what language i see/hear the anime in first, though I tend to favour the japanese, just because they usually seem to 'get' the characters more. Saying that there are a few animes i have on dvd which I love the english dubs for - gungrave, ghost in the shell, elfen lied, and the ghibli films for example.

But it all comes down to personal taste. However i still get irritated by those who are so close-minded that they cant accept people enjoying a different version to them. When they just take it for granted that the japanese version would be better, it really burns my brain.

*just remembered a note on my life-to-do-list... must learn japanese.....*

[Germ Hamee]

For me, it's not just anime. I prefer to watch any foreign film in it's original format with subtitles. To do it any other way doesn't make any sense to me. By the time it's available dubbed, I've more than likely already seen it subtitled and have the original voices attached to the characters, so I can't possibly take the dub seriously. It almost seems like a parody.

I will say that English dubs fail 99% of the time when it comes to comedy. It's probably just because I don't fully understand Japanese, but the standard hyper anime style comedy sounds ridiculous when shouted in English.

[Vermachtnis]

I can either, personally. I'd prefer it in English cause I can understand it. I'll take subs in place of Dubs like Cardcaptors and One Peice, but mainly cause they really, really messed up. For one thing it's Cardcaptor Sakura, staring Sakura not the boy. At least One Peice got picked up by a another company so it'll be better to watch.

Tenchi Muyo is the best way to do it. Even the censored Toonami version isn't bad. They even dubbed the songs, which is really hard.

[Discord]

Originals are always better, be they English, Japanese, German, French or whatsoever. And then, listening to different languages on a regular basis ensures that you don't forget them as quickly (~5 years) as you learned them (providing you know those languages).

On the behalf of anime in particular, I think the Japanese female actors just sound more appealing then the English ones. This is, of course, absolutely subjective and is my personal quirk. But then my girlfriend is Japanese, so I could understand why.

[Anaisa]

The Japanese voices usually just sound better, an fit the characters better. So I prefer Japanese with subtitles. An I hate it when they get celebritys to do the voices. Their not looking for people's voices that fit the character, they're just hoping the celebrity voices will attract a wider audience, which is pathetic.