Author Topic: How would you like to hear your entertainment? (Read 3556 times)

Keiji Dragon · « **on:** July 20, 2009, 08:59:18 PM »

When you play a game, watch a movie or/and an anime, in what language would you listen it to? How would you like your characters portrayed like? Look, stupid obvious question cause I know everyone's gonna say English, but let's say you its for artistic or [insert scenario] reasons.

For example, when I'm playing Mega Man X7, I usually dialog track to Japanese because sometimes I really do find the English dub track to be that god awful. I mean in MMX7, I'll bring out one line for you to sum it up: "BURN BURN BURN TO THE GROUND!!! BURN BURN BURN TO THE GROUND!!!" I mute the TY just so I can survive the terror.

In Anime, I would go for the if-available Japanese track, except for one particular show, Yu Yu Hakusho. Yusuke Urameshi's English VA, Justin Cook, really does know how to freaking do his job as an artist, that's all that has to be said. Plus the Opening and Ending songs sound awesome in English, IMO. I actually prefer YYH in English.

I actually watched a lot of movies in Spanish before, especially Holes and Bolt. For some reason, watching Holes is a lot more enjoyable in Spanish. =P

If you're wondering why I even ask you of this, is because recently I put together a video of Resident Evil about its unused Japanese dialogue track. At first, upon hearing the pieces of the JP track without the scenes, it wasn't very "cool", but then I spliced together scenes from the game with the unused track. To my surprise, the JP voices seemed more "natural" with the characters movement, and the intensity of the cut-scenes, especially Jill IMO. I mean, I know how god-awful and intentionally cheesy the dialogue is, hell I'm a fan of the Jill Sandwich, but I just couldn't stand hearing...

Enrico: Is that Jill?
Jill: Is that voice Enrico's?
Enrico: Yeah?
Jill: Your ALIVE!

What the f*/k? HE'S RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU, YOU DUMB BROAD!!

And...

Barry: "WHAT! WHAT IS THIS?"
(There's a puddle of a red liquid in front of Jill and Barry)
Jill: "What is it?"
Barry: "BLOOD."

No Barry, it's spilled Tomato Soup. =P

Ah, what the hell. I love this game's dialogue XD. I wonder how things would have sounded in Japanese.

It's interesting how the characters are portrayed in other languages. Discuss.

Chupperson Weird · « **Reply #1 on:** July 20, 2009, 09:01:43 PM »

All I have to say is that there are way way way way way way way way way more good dubs than Yu Yu Hakusho (and I can't verify that it has a good dub).

Turtlekid1 · « **Reply #2 on:** July 20, 2009, 09:02:37 PM »

Goku's Japanese voice in DBZ is nigh-intolerable.

In Jak 3, watching the cutscene in which Daxter blasts off riding on an eco missile (in just about any language other than English) is worth a laugh.

Keiji Dragon · « **Reply #3 on:** July 20, 2009, 09:03:14 PM »

Quote from: Chupperson Weird on July 20, 2009, 09:01:43 PM

All I have to say is that there are way way way way way way way way way more good dubs than Yu Yu Hakusho (and I can't verify that it has a good dub).

I'm talking about the FUNimation dub, none of those crappy Ani-maze licensed ones. =P

Chupperson Weird · « **Reply #4 on:** July 20, 2009, 09:04:41 PM »

I've never heard either. I'm just sayin'. Cowboy Bebop, Stand Alone Complex, and Ergo Proxy are at the top of my list of English dubs with no bad acting.
Also, by "more good", I don't mean "better".

CrossEyed7 · « **Reply #5 on:** July 20, 2009, 09:22:33 PM »

For animes, I usually just prefer whichever language I first heard it in. I started watching Death Note in a really good fansub, and it kind of sounds weird anyway for them to say Kira in English, since it's just Engrish for Killer. I haven't heard Gurren Lagaan in English, but I can't imagine it being better than the Japanese. Beck was entertaining in both, though I was mainly watching it for the unintentional humor (so both the "English" songs in the Japanese version and the "F--- the noodles!" line in the English version were great). Right now I'm watching Ouran High School Host Club in English. Haven't tried the subbed version yet, and haven't really felt the need to, because the English acting fits really well. I've heard lots of people complaining that the theme song and credits song aren't faithful enough to the original version, but since I've only ever heard the English ones, they sound like perfectly good songs in their own right. Code Geass was pretty good in English too, as I recall, though I haven't been able to watch the second season yet.

In video games, I pretty much always have to have the English voice acting on if it's available. Somehow I just can't play without voices if they're supposed to be there, even in the first Baten Kaitos. In Sonic Adventure 2 it's really fun to mock the voices, but I've always just found them to be annoying in Adventure 1. Still, I compulsively have to have them on if I ever play it.

Quality voice acting in English is ideal, but if it's not good and it's not so-bad-it's-good, then I'll take a good sub.

I like watching some Spanish TV when I can, but even after five years of it in high school I'm lucky if I understand every tenth word.

Chupperson Weird · « **Reply #6 on:** July 20, 2009, 10:47:12 PM »

Baten Kaitos only failed with the horrific acting of Bianca Allen. Everyone else seemed fine.

WarpRattler · « **Reply #7 on:** July 21, 2009, 12:16:59 AM »

Funny stuff: there are songs on the TWEWY soundtrack that are in Japanese and in English, but the Japanese versions have some lyrics in English that aren't in the English versions of the songs at all. Chupperson will probably chime in to tell me this happens a lot.

I can't really sum up my feelings on this subject because I'm not very consistent on it.

PaperLuigi · « **Reply #8 on:** July 21, 2009, 01:45:12 AM »

I prefer to watch One Piece in Japanese, mainly because a good portion of the American version was dubbed by the notorious 4Kids company.

Suffix · « **Reply #9 on:** July 21, 2009, 02:01:31 AM »

I would generally default to the original language, but there are a few cases where the English dub is too good to pass up. Off the top of my head comes Disney's reproductions of Ghibli films, notably Castle in the Sky.

However, there are some series in which the English dub is so bad it pains me to listen to it.

Glorb · « **Reply #10 on:** July 21, 2009, 10:11:56 AM »

I don't watch anime on anything resembling a regular basis, so I can't be an accurate judge on what constitutes a good dub, but personally I think that RE1's voice acting was awesome in that it fit the cheesy atmosphere. But if that kind of weirdness were to appear in, say, a Silent Hill or some such, the entire atmosphere would be ruined.

Foreign language films generally are fine for me to watch in their original language (an especially good example is the original Spanish version of Quarantine, *REC, which gives it even more of a documentary-style feel).

Chupperson Weird · « **Reply #11 on:** July 21, 2009, 10:33:22 AM »

Live action films are probably usually best left in their original language.

Pt_Peach · « **Reply #12 on:** July 21, 2009, 11:53:48 AM »

I prefer to keep things in their original languages. I honestly would rather read subtitles than hear crappy English dubbing.

Chupperson Weird · « **Reply #13 on:** July 21, 2009, 09:21:30 PM »

Except when the English is not bad!

ShadowBrain · « **Reply #14 on:** July 21, 2009, 11:13:26 PM »

I would like to hear my entertainment with my ears.

But seriously, it's a good dub or all subs for me. I don't really watch anime, anyway.