Thread: Dubs or Subs?

Dubs, unless there is no dub
It also depends on the show
Funimation? I'm in
4kids? I'm out.

I like to watch subs for the uncut content and dubs so that I can focus on what is happening without having to read the subtitles.

Subs, definitely. All of the dubs I've seen can't hold a candle to the atmosphere portrayed in the Japanese version.

I chose it depends on the show because if I have watched the series for a long amount of time on TV, like Pokémon and Dragonball Z, I watch it in English but if it is a new series to me which I bought on DVD I would watch it in Japanese with subtitles.

As long as the dub doesn't scrape my ears, I'm okay with watching it. I also thought the Code Geass dub was pretty good.

Dubs.
Not because of the voice acting... I never watch the Japanese version so I don't have anything to compare it to anyway. However, the 4Kids One Piece had horrible voices compared to what I imagined them sounding like when I read the manga so I just didn't watch that at all.
I don't know Japanese so the dub is what I understand. Subtitles are alright except they might divert your attention from the actual animation or if it goes by too fast then you can completely miss something important, whereas if it's in English you can just listen for it. Sometimes I turn on subtitles, even when watching it in English, just to make it easier to hear. What I don't like is that depending on the anime, the subtitles don't even correspond to what's being said. It's as if the subtitles are a literal translation from Japanese and not the words that are being spoken.
And that's another thing... when it's being translated, there are some phrases that a literal translation just doesn't carry the right meaning (which is a problem with subtitles since a lot of times subtitles use literal translations). The dubs have the freedom of changing up what is actually being said so that it makes sense to a Western audience. Sometimes they don't do a good job though (such as "zuruzuru zuruzuru" being translated to "Dilly dally shilly shally" in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, but then again, that would be a hard phrase to translate either way).
My one beef with the dubs is that, depending on the show, they might do other things to it besides "dubbing", such as altering the animation or cutting entire scenes. Sometimes this is good, like removing Japanese text or changing it to English, but other times its pointless (like in Yu-Gi-Oh! they once removed ENGLISH text from a scene) and sometimes its just stupid (like in Yu-Gi-Oh! changing the guns to people pointing their index fingers in a "threatening" manner).

The thing is that with dubs, there are usually edits that most of the time are unnecessary. Like, if someone got punched in the face, then EDIT! I just don't get why they feel the need to get rid of the dramatic stuff. It annoys me. But if it was an American cartoon and someone got punched, then it's okay. It's strange and not cool. Not cool at all.

Originally Posted by NfiNity

The thing is that with dubs, there are usually edits that most of the time are unnecessary. Like, if someone got punched in the face, then EDIT! I just don't get why they feel the need to get rid of the dramatic stuff. It annoys me. But if it was an American cartoon and someone got punched, then it's okay. It's strange and not cool. Not cool at all.

I'm not exactly sure why they find it necessary to make edits like that, but it might have something to do with the nature of anime style vs. American cartoons. Anime is usually portryed more realisticly, and "realistic violence" is worse than "cartoon violence". For example, a lot of times blood may appear in anime, whereas you'd never see blood in the same circumstance in a Bugs Bunny cartoon. If a person is shot in an anime then usually (depending on the anime) that person is dead or at least seriously injured. If someone gets shot in a Bugs Bunny cartoon then he usually gets a hole in him or turns gray temporarily or something and then walks away unharmed. If you take an American kid's cartoon that is done in a more realistic style (for example, the old Nickelodeon show "Doug" or "Rocket Power") then you'll find that any violence / fighting that is in there is really toned down... there's even less violence in them than there is in most censored anime. That doesn't explain any censoring done to anime targetted toward older audiences though.

Originally Posted by dannyjenn

Originally Posted by NfiNity

The thing is that with dubs, there are usually edits that most of the time are unnecessary. Like, if someone got punched in the face, then EDIT! I just don't get why they feel the need to get rid of the dramatic stuff. It annoys me. But if it was an American cartoon and someone got punched, then it's okay. It's strange and not cool. Not cool at all.

I'm not exactly sure why they find it necessary to make edits like that, but it might have something to do with the nature of anime style vs. American cartoons. Anime is usually portryed more realisticly, and "realistic violence" is worse than "cartoon violence". For example, a lot of times blood may appear in anime, whereas you'd never see blood in the same circumstance in a Bugs Bunny cartoon. If a person is shot in an anime then usually (depending on the anime) that person is dead or at least seriously injured. If someone gets shot in a Bugs Bunny cartoon then he usually gets a hole in him or turns gray temporarily or something and then walks away unharmed. If you take an American kid's cartoon that is done in a more realistic style (for example, the old Nickelodeon show "Doug" or "Rocket Power") then you'll find that any violence / fighting that is in there is really toned down... there's even less violence in them than there is in most censored anime. That doesn't explain any censoring done to anime targetted toward older audiences though.

Makes sense. But yeah, you're last point is right. I don't know why they make those changes to anime that is targeted for older fans.

Subs all the way. They've got the original voice actors, plus some of them avoid bad scripts and annoying edits.

For me, I prefer to watch the original episode without any subtitles at all, in the original Japanese, but also I wish that the subtitles could be turned on and off like in DVD's (online I don't have that option) so I can at least one time I can understand whats going on what the characters are saying. Subtitles to be in a language I understand (English or Spanish)

It really depends on the show. I prefer Pokemon episodes with no subs and in Japanese. Of course I also follow the dub but not as punctually as I follow JP raws.
For Naruto, I prefer subbed episodes. And last, One Piece, I wouldn't mind the Japanese with subs but right now, I am following the funimation dub.

I really don't mind either way. If the anime has a dub, I'll watch the dub, simply because it's simpler than reading subs, and sometimes dubs can be very amusing. However, if the anime doesn't have a dub, then I have no problems with watching the sub. I'll honestly never understand people who start hate wars over subs and dubs, it makes no sense.

yeah subs are the best.

My Japanese isn't that good, but it's enough to understand the anime I like, so lately I only watch raw. I only get subbed when I can't understand anything.