There's two sides to every coin, right? We know there are plenty of people out there that dislike anime dubbing, and that's been very clear for quite some time now. The thing is, how come we never hear anyone talking about how they hate subtitles? This is obviously the preferred method of viewing for most anime fans, but there have to be some people going against the grain out there.
When it comes to traditional cinema in the states, I know that tons of movie-goers out there that don't want anything to do with subtitles. The second they see something where they have to read the majority of content, they want their money back. I'll never forget the negative reaction to subtitles when Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon came out.
I'm guessing that those people don't actually watch anime. At the very least, many of them aren't anime fans. Personally, I know I prefer watching something rather than reading along, simply because I find it easier to take in what I'm watching. I don't mind subtitles, but given a choice I'll take a dub. With that said, I've seen bad dubs before, and they've made me switch over to the subs.
It's time to hear from the minority on this one! I'd love to get some comments from those out there that aren't into subtitles. Let's hear why you like dubs over subs, and feel free to give some examples of the content you enjoy.
You hit the nail on the head with the dubbing comment. I only watch subs when I am forced to, like with Toradora or Hayate the Combat Butler. I just don't want to read the subtitles because it takes away from what I am watching much more than just hearing it in plain English. I always choose dubbing over subbing except for one case when the dub was too painful to listen to. It has to be absurdly bad for me not to listen to it.
ReplyDeleteI think the thing that irritates me more are the sub elitists, where if something comes out with a dub, they bash it into oblivion. Here's the thing. 9 times out of 10 the sub is included with the dub. I only have two series that are dubbed-only. I just don't get why they need to argue about a dub being on the DVD. I've seen subbed-only releases cost just as much if not more than a hybrid release. If you prefer it, it's one thing, but if you bash someone else's preference, it's quite another. This is the main reason I don't participate in fandom much because of the mudslinging each side does. Also, most of the time dubbing is mostly a spoken translation offered by a sub, so what is the difference. A release is only as good as the translation. I know some series (Sgt. Frog, most 4kids shows) take a lot of liberties with the translation, but people focus more on accuracy than on the material itself.
Sorry, this is slightly a touchy subject with me sometimes.
I have a DVD of "The Cat Returns" from Studio Ghibli, and for the most part everything is fine. However, I watched it with dubs first and then subs with subtitles. The problem was, there were no subtitles for the Japanese speech. From what I remembered from watching the movie dubbed, and from the little bits of Japanese I know, I could tell that the subtitles did not properly translate the Japanese speech. That's a reason why dubs and subs on the same DVD can be a problem.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I started watching subs more than dubs within the past year, there are a lot of reasons why dubs can be better. For example, you don't have to be watching a dub all the time. I notice a lot of times that I'm looking at something else while watching anime, but then I have to rewind to read the subs. With dubs, you don't have to do any of that. Also, if a show's speech is in your native language, there are certain emotions and expressions that can be conveyed better because it's what you're used to listening to.
@blarglehop Yeah I noticed that some studios are lazy when it comes to putting up good subtitles. Sometimes fansubbers do a better job :V. I'm watching Lucky Star right now, and all the text is white so I can't tell who is talking when multiple people are talking. All the text overlaps lol.
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