Quote:
Originally Posted by VanTango
i think it doesnt matter whether it is a sub or a dub, it is whether the essence of the anime is kept.
Studio Ghibli dubs are so good after watching any of their movies i can't remember what language it was in.
I do prefer subs though and if i have a choice i will always watch subs because dubs lose soooooooo much of the japanese culture and references to other japanese popular culture.
Naruto does NOT say "believe it"
that is the lamest catchphrase ever. and the dubbed voice is way too annoying.
bad dubs is why mainstream pop culture sees anime as just kids shows because the american versions of many good animes are just that. dumbed down for kids. its sad.
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What you say is true, but you also have to take into consideration the fact that the dubbing process not only includes translation, but also the modification of the script so that it fits the mouth movements of the characters.
For example, Naruto has this tendency to end his sentences with "-ttebayo" as in "Dattebayo!" Although it's just a colloquialism, they can't have Naruto saying nothing during those parts; it would just look odd.
So, just like in the Kenshin dub they replaced the "de gozaru" he adds to the end of his sentences with things like "that I am" or "that it is," they have no choice but to replace "dattebayo" with something. And it has to be only three syllables long. Of course, I think they should have picked something OTHER than "Believe it," but I can understand their reasons for doing so.
Sometimes once licensed and a company is working on a dub, they make certain judgment calls; some are bad, and some are good. For example, for the anime Sorcerous Stabber Orphen (and the sequel series Revenge), I like the dub far more than the subtitled version.
Why? In the original version, nearly half of the sorcerer (and main character) Orphen's lines are spent with him calling out spells (i.e. "Sword of Light, whom I do release!"). Now this wouldn't be too bad; in fact it's pretty cool the first time around... But after the second, third, fifth, tenth, and twentieth time, you get kind of sick of it!
So, when the anime series was licensed, the company made a judgment call: they decided to take 90% of Orphen's spells out of the script. As a result, they had plenty of room to develop the character's dialogue and really crank up the humor (making it one of my favorite humorous fantasy anime) and the voice actor didn't go crazy having to say "Sword of Light" or "Shield of Infinity" countless times over the course of 50 or so episodes. Rather, he got to sound quite cool saying several badass lines while kicking the enemies's butts with his magic ^_^.
Of course, the anime I used as an example is a fantasy, and as a result does not have much of the Japanese cultural references that are oftentimes lost in the dubs of other anime. But if one is so keen on absorbing those cultural elements, I would suggest picking up the manga rather than watching the anime, because just like material is lost when the subbed version is converted to the dubbed version, a TON of material is lost when the manga is converted into the anime. And, if we were to follow this train of thought, much material is lost when the manga is translated from it's original Japanese ^_^;;;
So, if we were to look at it this way, unless you read the original Japanese manga, then you will be missing stuff no matter what. Things are always lost and fall between the cracks when something is translated into any form, be it Japanese to English (or other language) or drawings to animation. And in my personal opinion, to generalize and say that one is better than the other would be a mistake. "At least give it a try," is what I always say when arguing with my friends about watching anime; I've argued for dub, sub, AND original (In Japanese with no subtitles).
Ara, look how much I've rambled! ^_^;;; Sorry for the long post; I hope what I've said makes sense.