Why does everyone on youtube hate English dubs?

[Esme]

... it is really long, isn't it?

Yes, it's way too long.

good god

[Florete]

Sigh. I have no friends who prefer subs as much as I do. It's fine if you like dubs, but I don't. On a principled level, I am a purist. I prefer the originals in just about every medium. I have a lot of reasons for that general preference.

I dislike most dubs upon hearing them for a variety of reasons. It's a fact that a lot of voice actors take me out of the flow. I probably prefer subs specifically because it feels more 'in tune' with the animation to me. If I could understand Japanese or dealt with the voices enough, I would probably be pulled out of the series by both. As is, what attracts me about subs is that the original audio has a certain feel to it, which I generally prefer.

There's also the point that many studios attempt to match the original. The cases where they take their own spin on it are far more tolerable. Take FLCL. The dub of that series was done as if it were a completely different adaptation and it turned out well. When the West tries to copy the East, it rarely goes over well, and vice versa.

I loved Avatar: The Last Airbender. It was impeccable to me, in the original English. I doubt it would be as good in any other language. Any attempt to copy the original would only be able to get 'close', and that isn't good enough for me. It has to be at least as great. If I spoke Japanese instead of English, I would most likely prefer a sub to a Japanese dub (this may be a bad parallel since Japanese writing is so complex).

I also prefer to watch live action films in their original languages.

This has nothing to do with the usual things, like Japanese > English or Anime > Cartoons. Please do not liken me to Japanophiles.

See, this is a much better post than "dubs are terrible." I don't mind if you don't like dubs at all. That wasn't my issue.

Also, on your point about studios attempting to match the original: It's a lose-lose situation. If they change too much, fans complain that it's not like the original. If they change nothing, your argument comes up. Best just to stay as true as possible to the original to make it easier with the rights holders (make too many changes and the original companies can get mad, too).

I wonder if there are any "Reverse-Weeaboos", i.e Japanese people who think that English dubs are the shit and Japanese VOs are abysmal.

Don't quote me on this, but I'm pretty sure this is a thing in certain sub-cultures in Japan, though maybe not to the point of thinking Japanese VAs are "shit." Reverse importing has been an actual, legitimate problem and caused delays on several FUNimation releases. There are other factors that could be relevant to this (namely price), but it's worth noting.

[eclipse]

I don't like dubs that do the following:

1. Change things for no reason (JELLY-FILLED DOUGHNUTS, rice balls would've worked better).

2. Dubs that keep various Japanese names and then pronounce them badly (Naruto, I'm looking at you).

After that, it's up in the air. Renaming's eh, but it depends on why it's done (for example, Initial D had some pretty wonky ones, but they sorta fit. . .however, I cringe at the Pokemon name changes, except for Jesse and James).

[BrightBow]

My guess would be that the irrational convection that the original voice acting is always superior is the result of all these dubs from the 90s with absolutely atrocious dubbing and translation quality. Not to mention the ones with censorship and cultural adjustments. But whatever the reason, these days this generalizing conviction is pretty silly.

Though, I would guess that international dubbers do have a pretty hard time to match the Japanese voice acting because the animation wasn't made for their lip movements and translations.

[Emeraldfox]

I'm content with either.

[shadowofchaos]

But then...

then theres this:

I'm KIND OF... KIND OF miffed at you for bringing up "that one dub" I hate with a burning passion. xD

[Kon]

I've always judged these things on a case by case basis. Some dubs are better than subs and vice versa.

Digimon and Beyblade dubs are pure unfiltered shit though

[The Geek]

It largely depends.

There are great dubs like the Gurren Lagann dub

There a shit dubs like the DiC Sailor Moon dub.

There are dubs that are part great and part shit. This category is where most dubs fit, where some of the characters have great voices and others are annoying.

Then there are cases where the dub is mostly good but the translators do something really dumb. For instance, I know this is really stupid, but I hate hate hate hate HATE the dub of the 2006 Fate/Stay Night anime because they ruined the Unlimited Blade Works chant. IT WAS ALREADY IN ENGLISH, YOU DIDN'T NEED TO CHANGE IT!

*sigh*

At least it was fixed in the 2010 movie.

[Wen Yang]

I prefer EVERYTHING in their original language, with subtitles in a language I understand if I don't understand said original language.

In a way, I'm rabidly anti-dubbing, but less because of quality concerns and much more because I simply believe that the vast majority of things out there are best experienced in their original state.

That said, I do tend to have issues with how translators do things (in part because I myself DO translation works on the side from time to time) so that's another point against dubs for me.

[Safyrya]

God I hate subs purists, those guy are the worst. I like to think of preferring subs to dubs as a fetish. Nothing wrong with it, but don't just slap in on everyone's faces or boycott a game just because it hires actors to do the voice work in a language that the targeted people understand.

That said I prefer subs myself

Edited June 5, 2014 by Safyrya

[Naughx]

Since English isn't my native language, I usually don't watch English dubs...

[Vestige]

I think the thing for me, is that if an anime is 'dubbed' badly in Japanese I wouldn't even be able to tell because hell I can't even speak the language so tbh it ALL sounds great to me. (Technically you can argue that if the emotion is lacking it's a bad dub, but shh). With English, it's much easier for me to spot crappy acting. Now, that's not to say all dubs are bad. I personally don't go around Youtube saying "lol dubz sux subs onl3 plz". Because at the end of the day, I don't give a crap unless the dub is really THAT bad.

Hell, there are some anime that I've seen where I actually prefer the dub to the sub. Those being Full Metal Alchemist, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Full Metal Panic, and probably a few other stuff that I'm forgetting.

[Cowboy Karimov]

You know, being the well known "weeaboo" around the forums, I hate both of your views.

Sorry about that. And the late reply.

[Safyrya]

I think the thing for me, is that if an anime is 'dubbed' badly in Japanese I wouldn't even be able to tell because hell I can't even speak the language so tbh it ALL sounds great to me. (Technically you can argue that if the emotion is lacking it's a bad dub, but shh). With English, it's much easier for me to spot crappy acting. Now, that's not to say all dubs are bad. I personally don't go around Youtube saying "lol dubz sux subs onl3 plz". Because at the end of the day, I don't give a crap unless the dub is really THAT bad.

Hell, there are some anime that I've seen where I actually prefer the dub to the sub. Those being Full Metal Alchemist, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Full Metal Panic, and probably a few other stuff that I'm forgetting.

That's actually pretty spot on to why I usually prefer japanese dubs. My opinion on annoying purists still stands though

[Makaze]

I've always judged these things on a case by case basis. Some dubs are better than subs and vice versa.

Digimon and Beyblade dubs are pure unfiltered shit though

Great for laughs.

Don't even get met started on the Brazilian dub.

Edited June 5, 2014 by Makaze

[FrostyFireMage]

I really don't understand the minds of weeaboos and I don't plan to try.

[Azura]

I prefer subs because, as a non-native speaker, quickly spoken English can be hard to understand for me. Subtitles are easy to read, and when a word I don't know pops up, I can translate it without having to figure out the correct spelling. Plus, 99% of official Danish dubs are horrible, and I guess that they left their mark on me.

I might also be marred by the general Danish consensus that dubs are for kids that have not learned to read subtitles yet. Animated films and movies directed towards children are usually the only ones to get dubs, and Disney films like Frozen will more often both shown in a dubbed and subbed version in cinemas.

Edited June 5, 2014 by Azura

[Original Alear]

Excel Saga is funnier in English.

I heard that they had to change Excel's voice actor because the original one damaged her voice trying to talk all hyper and shit.

[Silver Lightning]

I love both dubs and subs; I find myself watching dubs more often if they are available (especially if from FUNimation) because I like hearing things in a language I understand and I have a visual processing disorder where it takes slightly longer for me to process what I'm reading, like subs (which I can still watch more or less ok, just a slight preference). If I really like what I watched dubbed, that usually makes me want to watch it again subbed just to get the best of both worlds from an anime I enjoyed. Same vice versa if I watch an anime subbed first and then watch the new dub later when it comes. I have some preferences towards each on a case by case basis like everyone else, but I'm never prejudiced toward either simply because I've seen horrid dubs or subs in the past (and I have seen a fair few growing up).

My current favorite anime ever Steins;Gate has IMO a perfect and divine dub/sub, but the dub in particular really hit home with me thanks to the absolutely amazing script and how they handled the cultural changes from Japanese to English. The sub was just as fantastic but I personally got the humor and cultural jokes more thoroughly in the language I understand, rather than trying to understand some joke/meme that I'd only get if I were living in Japan. I feel that this is the kind of things that dubs were meant to do and sometimes this is unappreciated.

Like, I just wish people can be allowed to enjoy what they enjoy, y'know? I can't remember how many times I've been slammed for liking dubs at all. I really like both and really love having the option to enjoy both if I want. Just my humble opinion, I suppose...

[Moira]

I don't recall ever watching anything dubbed actually. A lot of stuff I watch doesn't have a dubbed version anyways??? I just enjoy reading and I probably can't notice any bad acting in subbed. I've heard dubbed after I watched a version subbed and it's sounds really awful but that's just because it's not the voice I'm expecting.

[shadowofchaos]

I really don't understand the minds of weeaboos and I don't plan to try.

So what are your guys' opinions on people that watch RAWs instead of subs?

Edited June 6, 2014 by shadowofchaos

[Original Alear]

So what are your guys' opinions on people that watch RAWs instead of subs?

They're fucking HARDCORE

[Florete]

So what are your guys' opinions on people that watch RAWs instead of subs?

They're raw.

[Rehab]

It sometimes depends on the show. I don't think you're going to find a lot of people who wouldn't say they prefer the Street Fighter II V dub on youtube, for example.

Also yeah, I think Alb said it, a lot of dubs used to not only change the script around but bowdlerize it. People 90's kids are still making 4kidz jokes.

I'm a lot more tolerant now of language dubs that change the writing to fit the language. Frankly, some things that might sound great in Japanese people sound pretty damn lame in English ("I'll never forgive u" => "lmao ok guy"), so I imagine it might be hard to make a truly great dub without changing the writing some (unless the original's writing was also really unique enough that the dialogue could translate without losing the intended meaning to the audience). I personally kinda agree with Makaze about the "often tending to sound somehow derivative" bit.

Yes, it's way too long.

good god

(male) necks can actually be a lot longer than people tend to notice, though

I wonder if there are any "Reverse-Weeaboos", i.e Japanese people who think that English dubs are the shit and Japanese VOs are abysmal.

it's not quite what you meant, but there are, uh, Americaboos, certainly. though I get the sense that it might be more "western/american styles are cool" than "[pro-American cultural screed]" for them. (though that's probably more true overall for a lot of people who'd get called weeaboos, too)

Like, look up Hideo Kojima's fucking twitter. the guy bought, and wore, a Drive jacket

hell, look at Hideo Kojima in general. He has some very obvious Japanese influences/tics in his work IMO, but, fucking, just look at the whole Metal Gear series for like ten seconds

Edited June 6, 2014 by Rehab

[Makaze]

God I hate subs purists, those guy are the worst. I like to think of preferring subs to dubs as a fetish. Nothing wrong with it, but don't just slap in on everyone's faces or boycott a game just because it hires actors to do the voice work in a language that the targeted people understand.

That said I prefer subs myself

Do people actually do this?