How I used to watch dubs exclusively and now I can't stand them, what flipped for you?

I noticed after watching Steins;Gate subbed on a whim last year that the emotional delivery in the original Japanese felt way more natural, and now I wonder if I was just impatient before or if dubs actually got worse.

3 comments

3 Comments

grayc272mo ago

Man I completely disagree with that take! I actually think dubs have gotten way better over the last 10 years, not worse. Shows like My Hero Academia and Attack on Titan have voice actors that put just as much emotion into their roles as the Japanese cast, and I don't have to read subtitles to catch every detail. Honestly Steins;Gate's dub is fantastic too, J. Michael Tatum kills it as Okabe and I think you might just be used to hearing it one way first.

ben_ross511mo ago

Sometimes it's like people miss the whole point of something because they're too focused on one part. I've noticed this at work too, where a patient's family will argue about the temperature of the room or the food on the tray, but totally ignore that their relative is in pain or needs help moving. It's like we get stuck on the surface level stuff. Maybe it's the same with dubs vs subs. Like yeah, both casts can be great, but everyone's brain picks up the little differences in timing or tone differently. And once you've connected with a show one way, anything else just feels off, even if it's technically the same quality. Not saying one is better, just that people don't always realize how much personal habit plays into what they think is "right.

nancygrant2mo ago

Three years ago I sat through a full dub of Sword Art Online and thought it was fine, then I caught the subbed version of episode 14 and broke down crying over something I had barely felt before. @grayc27, I get where you're coming from on MHA and AoT, they have solid English casts, but for me it's less about quality and more about hearing the original creator's intended pacing and emotion. Some dubs still have that slightly stiff delivery where the lip-flap matching takes priority over the actual feeling of the scene, which can kill a tense moment for me. Just a personal hangup I guess, your mileage may vary a ton on this one.

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