Your watching experience on Toonami

[YoungDefender]

As a Canadian fan we of course didn't have Toonami as DBZ aired on YTV(typo corrected) and the end product was a mishmash of the Saban sub, the original funimation dub and finally the westwood dub from somewhere in the middle of the Cell Games onward. Having said that we were still exposed to "toonamiisms" whenever we bought home media releases on VHS or DVD and of course the dubbed video games.

At the time I had no idea who the different dubbing studios were or which voice actor was which. I remember collecting those Beckett Dragon Ball Z collector magazines which had neat articles and sometimes interviews with voice actors and I remember pairing up with the voice of Brian Drummond with this "Chris Sabat" guy pictured in the magazine as that is what I had come to know as Vegeta's voice at the time.

The confusion of course makes sense in retrospect but as as a kid growing up with the franchise in Canada while the internet was still mostly in its infancy it was hard not to be confused with sudden noticeable changes in voices on TV or why the VHS had a different opening and ending theme than what I saw on TV. I just chalked it up to "they must have made unique intro/outros for home media, IDK".

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

The YTV airings are quite unique, not only were they the only channel outside of Europe to air the Westwood and Blue Water dubs but for episodes 53-167 of Dragon Ball Z, when the Funimation inhouse cast was still being heard on Canadian TV you got a separate cut of that dub than what Toonami US got.

Basically, as evidence suggests from recordings Ocean were provided with Funimation's raw materials like the individual Faulconer Productions tracks, sound effect tracks, different takes the actors performed (for example on Toonami US airings Dende says "Don't piss off the God of Love" but on YTV he says "Don't tick off the God of Love") and scripts (which was likely what led to Ocean having the same scripts as Funimation to use for the Westwood dub of the corresponding episodes) and assembled them as you see fit. There are also some better performances from the actors, like you would hear a more soft spoken Dale Kelly, which I liked as it showed a more mature side to his voice with greater texture than the typical monster truck announcer voice. So on YTV airings the placement of the Faulconer Productions score differs from what was heard on Toonami US, and even some of Ocean's own sound effects can be heard in Funimation's dub, a few different lines, and some superior performances from the actors. It's a subtle difference, but its an interesting historical curiosity about Dragon Ball on Canadian TV.

[Cure Dragon 255]

As a Canadian fan we of course didn't have Toonami as DBZ aired on YTZ and the end product was a mishmash of the Saban sub, the original funimation dub and finally the westwood dub from somewhere in the middle of the Cell Games onward. Having said that we were still exposed to "toonamiisms" whenever we bought home media releases on VHS or DVD and of course the dubbed video games.

At the time I had no idea who the different dubbing studios were or which voice actor was which. I remember collecting those Beckett Dragon Ball Z collector magazines which had neat articles and sometimes interviews with voice actors and I remember pairing up with the voice of Brian Drummond with this "Chris Sabat" guy pictured in the magazine as that is what I had come to know as Vegeta's voice at the time.

The confusion of course makes sense in retrospect but as as a kid growing up with the franchise in Canada while the internet was still mostly in its infancy it was hard not to be confused with sudden noticeable changes in voices on TV or why the VHS had a different opening and ending theme than what I saw on TV. I just chalked it up to "they must have made unique intro/outros for home media, IDK".

I feel so sad Defender wont be able to correct this post to YTV.

[YoungDefender]

The YTV airings are quite unique, not only were they the only channel outside of Europe to air the Westwood and Blue Water dubs but for episodes 53-167 of Dragon Ball Z, when the Funimation inhouse cast was still being heard on Canadian TV you got a separate cut of that dub than what Toonami US got.

Basically, as evidence suggests from recordings Ocean were provided with Funimation's raw materials like the individual Faulconer Productions tracks, sound effect tracks, different takes the actors performed (for example on Toonami US airings Dende says "Don't piss off the God of Love" but on YTV he says "Don't tick off the God of Love") and scripts (which was likely what led to Ocean having the same scripts as Funimation to use for the Westwood dub of the corresponding episodes) and assembled them as you see fit. There are also some better performances from the actors, like you would hear a more soft spoken Dale Kelly, which I liked as it showed a more mature side to his voice with greater texture than the typical monster truck announcer voice. So on YTV airings the placement of the Faulconer Productions score differs from what was heard on Toonami US, and even some of Ocean's own sound effects can be heard in Funimation's dub, a few different lines, and some superior performances from the actors. It's a subtle difference, but its an interesting historical curiosity about Dragon Ball on Canadian TV.

Oh wow, I knew there were different Canadian broadcast cuts for the funimation dub but had no idea there was this much to it! Owning the original funimation singles still gives me enough of that nostalgia to where it's "close enough" but man what I would give (or pay) for a westwood release in any format, DVD, SD Blu ray, what have you. I have to hold out hope that the right person will come along at crunchyroll or whatever powers that be that own the distribution rights and make it their hobby horse project but until then!

I feel so sad Defender wont be able to correct this post to YTV.

And I would have never noticed! DBZ, YTV, YTZ, it's all the same, eh?

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

what I would give (or pay) for a westwood release in any format, DVD, SD Blu ray, what have you. I have to hold out hope that the right person will come along at crunchyroll or whatever powers that be that own the distribution rights and make it their hobby horse project but until then!

I've wanted a home release of the Westwood dub for so long too, the frustrating thing is that Funimation could have easily put it out on DVD at any time, because Ocean had the rights to all the Canadian dubs, kept the master tapes and would have been able to work something out with them no problem. But yes a shakeup at Crunchyroll would be much needed, get more MediaOCD/Discotek-type home video staff who have ambitions and want to produce the best physical releases possible. If the Westwood or Blue Water dubs went up for pre-order they would have my money now. The Ocean edits of Funimation's Dragon Ball Z dub could even be included as additional audio tracks for episodes 108-167 (edited numering) which would sync with the Westwood dub episodes that aired exclusively in Europe perfectly (same cut).

[Cure Dragon 255]

The YTV airings are quite unique, not only were they the only channel outside of Europe to air the Westwood and Blue Water dubs but for episodes 53-167 of Dragon Ball Z, when the Funimation inhouse cast was still being heard on Canadian TV you got a separate cut of that dub than what Toonami US got.

Basically, as evidence suggests from recordings Ocean were provided with Funimation's raw materials like the individual Faulconer Productions tracks, sound effect tracks, different takes the actors performed (for example on Toonami US airings Dende says "Don't piss off the God of Love" but on YTV he says "Don't tick off the God of Love") and scripts (which was likely what led to Ocean having the same scripts as Funimation to use for the Westwood dub of the corresponding episodes) and assembled them as you see fit. There are also some better performances from the actors, like you would hear a more soft spoken Dale Kelly, which I liked as it showed a more mature side to his voice with greater texture than the typical monster truck announcer voice. So on YTV airings the placement of the Faulconer Productions score differs from what was heard on Toonami US, and even some of Ocean's own sound effects can be heard in Funimation's dub, a few different lines, and some superior performances from the actors. It's a subtle difference, but its an interesting historical curiosity about Dragon Ball on Canadian TV.

Oh wow, I knew there were different Canadian broadcast cuts for the funimation dub but had no idea there was this much to it! Owning the original funimation singles still gives me enough of that nostalgia to where it's "close enough" but man what I would give (or pay) for a westwood release in any format, DVD, SD Blu ray, what have you. I have to hold out hope that the right person will come along at crunchyroll or whatever powers that be that own the distribution rights and make it their hobby horse project but until then!

I feel so sad Defender wont be able to correct this post to YTV.

And I would have never noticed! DBZ, YTV, YTZ, it's all the same, eh?

No, the channel is YTV. If you are talking about your experiences then the terminology MUST be correct. Otherwise why not just say "I saw it on some channel in Canada" if you wanted to take the easy route.

[YoungDefender]

what I would give (or pay) for a westwood release in any format, DVD, SD Blu ray, what have you. I have to hold out hope that the right person will come along at crunchyroll or whatever powers that be that own the distribution rights and make it their hobby horse project but until then!

I've wanted a home release of the Westwood dub for so long too, the frustrating thing is that Funimation could have easily put it out on DVD at any time, because Ocean had the rights to all the Canadian dubs, kept the master tapes and would have been able to work something out with them no problem. But yes a shakeup at Crunchyroll would be much needed, get more MediaOCD/Discotek-type home video staff who have ambitions and want to produce the best physical releases possible. If the Westwood or Blue Water dubs went up for pre-order they would have my money now. The Ocean edits of Funimation's Dragon Ball Z dub could even be included as additional audio tracks for episodes 108-167 (edited numering) which would sync with the Westwood dub episodes that aired exclusively in Europe perfectly (same cut).

This was my first thought and hope when the final dissolution of Funimation was announced. Given all the fans out of the UK, Canada and the Netherlands, plus hardcore/curious US or Australian fans who would just collect it for the sake of collecting it I think the demand is there for a limited collector's print at least. It's all there as you said, just requires some limited cost to package it into an adequate home release and it's guaranteed to sell out.

I think it's a matter of time until some executive or decision maker realizes they are sitting on 160 odd already dubbed episodes with a small but hardcore following. Or maybe we just need a few British or Canadian plants within crunchyroll to steer things in that direction lol.

[Tian]

The YTV airings are quite unique, not only were they the only channel outside of Europe to air the Westwood and Blue Water dubs but for episodes 53-167 of Dragon Ball Z, when the Funimation inhouse cast was still being heard on Canadian TV you got a separate cut of that dub than what Toonami US got.

Basically, as evidence suggests from recordings Ocean were provided with Funimation's raw materials like the individual Faulconer Productions tracks, sound effect tracks, different takes the actors performed (for example on Toonami US airings Dende says "Don't piss off the God of Love" but on YTV he says "Don't tick off the God of Love") and scripts (which was likely what led to Ocean having the same scripts as Funimation to use for the Westwood dub of the corresponding episodes) and assembled them as you see fit. There are also some better performances from the actors, like you would hear a more soft spoken Dale Kelly, which I liked as it showed a more mature side to his voice with greater texture than the typical monster truck announcer voice. So on YTV airings the placement of the Faulconer Productions score differs from what was heard on Toonami US, and even some of Ocean's own sound effects can be heard in Funimation's dub, a few different lines, and some superior performances from the actors. It's a subtle difference, but its an interesting historical curiosity about Dragon Ball on Canadian TV.

Wait a minute... so, there was another variant of the FUNimation dub for Canadian airings? Man, the history of the English dubs of this franchise is getting more confusing for me.

I thought that this edited version thing started after DBZ Kai, when Sabat stated that FUNi will always produce and record an edited version in case a network happens to request it, which happened with Super in some countries.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

Or maybe we just need a few British or Canadian plants within crunchyroll to steer things in that direction lol.

Well the closest thing we had to that was back when Manga UK were around. When they got the license to start releasing Dragon Ball in 2012 the head of marketing and acquisitions at the time made contacts within TOEI Europe that led to him also having a working relationship with Funimation. Manga UK then became Funimation's exclusive partner for distributing various titles in the UK like Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, Fairy Tail, Attack on Titan amongst other things.

Then in 2019 Funimation buys Manga UK, likely in an effort to take more control of the British market. Initially Manga UK reassured fans on social media they would still be able to acquire non-Funimation titles, which seemed to be the case when they released Hunter X Hunter, which was a Viz title in the US, the UK Blu-Rays had Manga UK catalogue numbers and logo when you put in the disc but with Funimation's logo on the cover and disc art. Of course now Funimation rebranded to Crunchyroll in both the US and UK, and they haven't releases any non-Funimation/Crunchyroll titles so it looks like all autonomy is gone now. I can't imagine if Crunchyroll set up a Canadian division it would be any different, it would likely be just as powerless to make independent decisions as the UK one seems to be.

It has always been assumed Funimation didn't release the Canadian dubs because then they would be promoting a competing product. I hoped things would change under Crunchyroll, at least for the older series because now that Funimation is no more, they are dubs Crunchyroll didn't produce (although some of the staff behind the Z dub may still be there) but inherited, everything from Super Hero onwards is a Crunchyroll dub, so the Westwood dub would be no different in terms of being something they acquired. Sadly though it would seemingly take a change in leadership, for someone on the US side to approve any commercial usage of the Canadian dubs, but I hope at some point some executive realizes there's money to be made, I know lots of fans have wanted to own the Westwood dub for years.

Getting back to the topic a 'Toonami UK' Collector's Edition, which included Saban Z, inhouse Z, Westwood Z, the Blue Water dubs and Big Green dubs would be something I think a lot of fans would be interested in. All these products aired on our Toonami between 2003 and 2005. Toonami UK closed in 2007 but other than AnimeCentral briefly around the late 2000s we haven't had a prominently anime channel since so there would be a lot of nostalgia for such a product, especially if Crunchyroll could get some of the old promos from Cartoon Network UK.

Wait a minute... so, there was another variant of the FUNimation dub for Canadian airings? Man, the history of the English dubs of this franchise is getting more confusing for me.

I know, right? I know Dragon Ball is not the only anime that has had multiple English dubs (One Piece had 4Kids, Funimation, Odex, several anime have alternate Animax dubs, etc) but I don't know of any other series where it is this convoluted.

If it counts, the New Zealand airings of Dragon Ball Z on TV3 also had exclusive Dale Kelly eyecatches that aired nowhere else, although I'm not aware of any other differences between what was aired there or in America, Australia or South Africa. I would think there are none, but who really knows with this franchise. Hell, a lot of fans weren't even aware the YTV airings of the inhouse Z dub were any different until super fans pointed them out.

I thought that this edited version thing started after DBZ Kai, when Sabat stated that FUNi will always produce and record an edited version in case a network happens to request it, which happened with Super in some countries.

Well for Kai, Ocean edited Funimation's dub, which is known because they are credited along with Diana Gage and Dennis Hrehoriac in the Nicktoons credits. Funimation largely stopped relying on middlemen after the move in-house though, so this was a rare case of them collaborating with another company in the 2010s, possibly because when Kai was announced Ocean realized the Dragon Ball dubbing rights they had as a perk of their working relationship with Funimation in the 90s never went away and that they could make an offer to create a TV-safe version so both themselves and Funimation had a cut they could sell to networks.

I believe since The Final Chapters Funimation has done all the editing themselves, which is unfortunate. The cut of Super that aired on Pop in the UK wasn't very well edited. I wish Funimation/Crunchyroll would hire Ocean again, they are very good at editing.

[MasenkoHA]

Wait a minute... so, there was another variant of the FUNimation dub for Canadian airings? Man, the history of the English dubs of this franchise is getting more confusing for me.

Apparently Funimation sent Ocean Productions a rough cut of the episodes to distribute to YTV

Fans on here throughout the years have noted a lot of the Orange Brick "eccentricities" like lines that weren't in the original Funi dub, different music placement and what not appeared in the YTV broadcast indicating Funimation used a workprint version for the remastered dub.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

Apparently Funimation sent Ocean Productions a rough cut of the episodes to distribute to YTV

I'm not an expert on the Faulconer Productions score, but some more knowledgeable fans than I have noted that episode 102 (edited numbering) features at least one track not heard on the orange bricks that was on the DVD singles and Toonami US airings. There are also lines like my previously mentioned "Don't tick off the God of Love" that are exclusive to YTV. Not to forget Ocean added in their own sound effects in addition to touching up Funimations. As such the most likely scenario is Ocean Productions received raw materials from Funimation and mixed them to their own liking or Ocean received a workprint with the score placement later used on the orange bricks and made slight changes here and there.

From what Arian has said here it was also during any reruns of Funimation's season 3 (beginning September 2000 in Canada, which was about 7 months after its initial debut) that the Ocean edit was aired. The first airings of Dragon Ball Z episodes 1-102 (edited numbering) were exactly the same as what aired in the US, UK and all other territories that received this dub with the exception of the OP and ED.

So Canadian fans may have heard the infamous "Don't piss off the God of Love" from Toonami US when episode 60 (edited numbering, 75 in uncut), unless it was muted like in the UK airings. Maybe Ocean wasn't happy with these things slipping up, and they opted to start asking Funimation for raw materials because their pre-edited masters were not to YTV's liking. Remember YTV eventually switched to the Westwood dub because they were sick of getting tapes late, so Ocean may have thought it would have speeded things up if Funimation didn't have to pre-edit their dub beforehand and just sent raw materials.

[MasenkoHA]

Apparently Funimation sent Ocean Productions a rough cut of the episodes to distribute to YTV

I'm not an expert on the Faulconer Productions score, but some more knowledgeable fans than I have noted that episode 102 (edited numbering) features at least one track not heard on the orange bricks that was on the DVD singles and Toonami US airings. There are also lines like my previously mentioned "Don't tick off the God of Love" that are exclusive to YTV. Not to forget Ocean added in their own sound effects in addition to touching up Funimations. As such the most likely scenario is Ocean Productions received raw materials from Funimation and mixed them to their own liking or Ocean received a workprint with the score placement later used on the orange bricks and made slight changes here and there.

Given how much the YTV broadcast Faulconer placement syncs up with the Orange Bricks we can safely conclude that Ocean did not get the individual Faulconer tracks to place as they saw fit, they got what Funimation originally had before switching tracks out for the home video release/Toonami U.S broadcast.

If there's an instance of the YTV placement syncing up with the original U.S release and not the Orange Brick release it's probably because Funimation themselves switched it out before giving it to Ocean.

"Don't Tick off the God of Love" was likely a tv safe edit Funimation had in place that they switched out with the uncut line because... to see what they could get away? 11th hour mixing error? They probably gave Ocean the tv safe version to begin with.

There's no real reason to think Funimation gave Ocean raw materials to mix as they saw fit. Just a workprint version that Ocean added their own additional sfx too.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

There's no real reason to think Funimation gave Ocean raw materials to mix as they saw fit. Just a workprint version that Ocean added their own additional sfx too.

It's possible the voice recordings and scripts came in a package but Ocean received a rough edit of the Cakemix/Faulconer Productions score, which they made minimal edits to.

There is also the recordings unique to YTV that Funimation must have recorded but not included in their own edit for Toonami US, like the Dale Kelly narration at the beginning of Our Hero Awakes (episode 131 edited/146 uncut) in which we hear "Where have they all gone" in a more William Shatner-esque tone or the Ocean edit of Goku's Alive!! (episode 92 edited/107 uncut) where he sounds much more calm and grandfatherly than on Toonami US. Either way there was the aforementioned New Zealand-exclusive eyecatches so evidently there was more material from Dale Kelly that Funimation was sending them around at some point.

In any case it seems Ocean getting materials from Funimation was the beginning of the Westwood dub, as just a month after YTV began airing these exclusive edits in September 2000, Doc Harris confirmed the tracks were being done in Vancouver and actors like Brian Drummond and Ian James Corlett were contacted about reprising their roles as early as May. So going by this timeline for the Westwood dub's pre-production Ocean may have indeed been at the mixing stage in October and worked on the edits for Funimation's dub concurrently with the Westwood dub.