Barriers of Anime: Subbed Vs. Dubbed

Anime is a style of Japanese animation that is characterized by colorful animation, and high levels of violence, sex, and/or drama. Because all "true" anime is made in Japan, distributors must alter the program so that those who do not speak Japanese can understand what is happening. It is the methods for this alteration that spark so much conflict in the anime fan communities.

The first, and most well known method outside of the dedicated communities, is dubbing. This is when people, usually a company, remove the Japanese dialogue and replace it with English dialogue. These companies must often alter the translation slightly so that the animation of the characters mouth matches the new dialogue. Also, when dubbed anime is aired in the United States, dubbing companies must remove certain content such as blood, gore, and sexual images.

The second, less mainstream method is known as subbing. Subbing is when people (usually fans, but sometimes companies) keep the original audio track and simply add subtitles to translate the dialogue, and any on screen Japanese characters where necessary. When this method is used, content is rarely or never cut out.

Both of these methods have disadvantages and advantages that anime fans must consider before choosing which to follow. Much of the decision lies in the personal preference of the viewer. Also to consider are the circumstances and abilities of the viewer.

One major advantage of dubbing is the ease of understanding. This advantage stems from a major disadvantage in subbed anime. Reading the subtitles and following what is happening on screen is an acquired skill, that often leaves watchers confused and behind, or forced to pause frequently to read the subtitles. When the characters are speaking in your native language you don't have to work at understanding what's happening, and can simply appreciate the show.

With the ease of understanding that comes with dubbed anime, there comes an unfortunate side effect. As I mentioned earlier, the translated dialogue often suffers within the process of synching it to the animation. This is the main argument of those who support subbed anime. They feel the mistranslation affects the nature of the characters and plot. For example the directly translated line of "Hey you, go get that" has slightly different connotations than a potential dubbed translation of "Hey kid, go get that would you?." While the basic meaning stays the same, the implied relationship between the characters is different.

Another disadvantage to dubbed anime is the issues with voice acting. Often the dubbing companies cannot afford voice actors that are as good as the Japanese ones. And even if the voice actors are talented, the producers of the show picked the Japanese voice actors because that is the way they imagined the character sounding. No matter how talented an American voice actor is, he or she cannot match the original voice.

In Japan all of the voice actors in a particular scene are in the same room as they are recording. This gives a more realistic sense of interaction as you watch the anime. The practice for American voice acting is to record each actor's lines separately and edit them together. This often produces a choppy sound. These voice-acting issues were more of a problem on the early days of dubbed anime when dubbing companies had less money for quality voice actors, and technology to combine the separately recorded dialogue

The cutting of content by dubbing companies such as 4Kids is another main issue in this debate. The "true" anime fans that usually support subbing, argue that these companies are slaughtering these pieces of art for the sake of its definition of decency. In America the general cultural mindset is that animation is for children. As such, dubbed animes are often marketed towards children. Because children are watching these programs U.S. broadcasting law requires that networks or dubbing companies censor certain content. Though this does expand the anime audience, some argue that small children shouldn't watch such mature programming. Even when blood and gore are removed, some of these programs, such as "Naruto" are still very scary and intense for young children.

Much of the true, dedicated anime fans support subbing because it is a purer form of the anime. Because of this the subbed anime community is much larger and generally older. This gives fans much more opportunity to discuss the show on a higher, intellectual level. Animes typically have more complicated plots and characters than traditional cartoons, so an older, more intelligent fan community is a great boon to the thoughtful fan. Fans of subbed anime also produce more quality fan works like art and fiction.

Because the Japanese episodes are often months or years ahead of the English dubbed ones, those that follow the dubbed episodes on TV, are forced to avoid the internet sites for the show for fear of finding out plot details of episodes before they air in the States. If you follow the dubbed episodes then you are essentially denied a fan community experience.

The subbed animes that are subtitled by fans, known as fansubs, are widely available for download and viewing on the Internet. While this is technically illegal, the companies that produce the anime often look the other way because subbed versions of animes are often not available legally, and it help to promote the show. The convenience of being able to download and view episodes whenever you wish is obvious, but there is an advantage to watching the episodes on TV. This is something I like to call an "event mentality".

When you watch the show as it premieres on TV, it is an event you've been waiting the entire week for. You have planned your evening around it, and you know thousands of other fans are watching it at the same time as you. If you watch the subbed episodes, the different fansubbing communities finish subbing at different times. You can't have online chats as the episode airs. The community as a whole becomes aware of the episode gradually, instead of all at once, in one television event.

Both subbed and dubbed anime are an important part of the anime community. Most anime fans are exposed to anime for the first time in its dubbed incarnation. The dubbed animes provide publicity for many quality programs that would otherwise go unnoticed. The subbed versions provide the most dedicated of fans with a more original version of the animes they love. The debate will still continue over which is best, and neither of them will ever disappear, all adding to the life and vibrancy of the anime community.