AyreonMaiden said:
UberNoodle said:
It's not about 'subbed vs dubbed'. It's about watching the film or anime in as close a state as it was conceived by its creators. Regardless of the perceived 'quality' of any voice track, the only factor to take into account is that simple factor. And the idea that the dubs remove 'annoying voices', is like saying that dubs can remove annoying languages, culture or creative strokes. Go for it, if that's how you feel, but in the end, the original voices is how the film or show was conceived by its creators, and they are cultural reflections. That's how it should be watched. I'm just waiting for customised versions of the Mona Lisa.
Show me someone who denies that Fullmetal Alchemist, Trigun, Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo or Baccano! were at least 50% inspired by Western sensibilities and I'll show you a big fat fuckin' weeb. I also wanna know how many Japanese characters and locales are in Black Lagoon compared to other nationalities.
But anyway, the point is that I really don't think anyone can speak for the author's intent and I think fans take too seriously the "cultural reflection" crap. I say watch what you enjoy because I'm sure anime studios appreciate ALL their fans, no matter what language they experience their work in. Not everyone wants to create "cultural statements" or "cultural reflections" about their homelands. Sometimes all they want is to tell a story about boys, girls, good and evil, or maybe about nothing at all.
I mean, ask the greatest Hispanic novelist, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, how he felt about the English version of his Nobel-prize winning magnum opus "Cien años de soledad": http://www.amazon.com/dp/0811216659, under "Product Description."
I somehow get the feeling that most of the really awesome artists don't really give a shit at all about translations so long as the original intent isn't butchered outright.
First paragraph - so what? Does that mean they are 'supposed to be' in English then? Well, the Matrix should be in Chinese, or Japanese then.
Second Paragraph - sure, we can't speak for the author, but its logical and fair to assume that voices they chose, and probably spent some time and energy choosing and auditioning for, are the ones they wanted. And you have taken what I said about cultural far too literally. There is cultural reflection in every single thing produced by a culture, even if they are 'just telling a story'. You read far too much into that statement.
Third paragraph - so what? Good for him. As you already stated, you can't speak for the author, and that comment is being used for promotion. If he'd said he was unhappy, it wouldn't be good. And I'm pretty sure that there is much that is no longer present in the story now that it is no longer in his voice and in his language.
In the end, as you said, we should watch what we enjoy, and that's what I do. I don't enjoy third party dubs. I love to listen to foreign languages. I prefer to experience a product in its original form or as close to it as possible. If you don't, then that's you and your value system. This thread is, after all, asking for our personal opinions.
I don't want to hear the voices of people who were not involved in the original and have been called upon perhaps years later to overdub. For me, it's not about what's a better or more 'location suitable' track, because for me, what's better is exactly what the artists did, and nothing more or less. If some dubber does the performance of the century, well that's great. I sure hope he or she can do that again on some original project.
For me, good, bad, warts and all, and original voices, score, music, etc, is exactly the total of what I want to experience, and it is the only reason I sought to experience it in the first place.
