Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by MasenkoHA » Tue Oct 20, 2020 12:54 am

precita wrote: Wed Oct 07, 2020 11:07 pm The lines don't sound too awkward when you read the subtitles though. Either way, most dialogue is still not translated 1:1 in the Kai dub. I think the problem is the dub gets the "general idea" of what the characters should be saying, but it mixes things around and it doesn't always have the same effect. Sure this isn't the DBZ dub where FUNI just made up stuff out of thin air and had characters say things either out of character or contradicted the source material, but the Kai dub is only marginally better in that regard.
Reading the subtitles and matching the lip flaps are two unrelated things. Adjusting the dialog to match the lip flaps is fine as long as its faithful.

Doesn't excuse Funimation's bizarre fear of acknowledging Piccolo is a demon or insisting Goku knows who the hell Gero was back in the day.

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by SuperSaiyaManZ94 » Tue Oct 20, 2020 8:36 am

MasenkoHA wrote: Tue Oct 20, 2020 12:54 am
precita wrote: Wed Oct 07, 2020 11:07 pm The lines don't sound too awkward when you read the subtitles though. Either way, most dialogue is still not translated 1:1 in the Kai dub. I think the problem is the dub gets the "general idea" of what the characters should be saying, but it mixes things around and it doesn't always have the same effect. Sure this isn't the DBZ dub where FUNI just made up stuff out of thin air and had characters say things either out of character or contradicted the source material, but the Kai dub is only marginally better in that regard.
Reading the subtitles and matching the lip flaps are two unrelated things. Adjusting the dialog to match the lip flaps is fine as long as its faithful.

Doesn't excuse Funimation's bizarre fear of acknowledging Piccolo is a demon or insisting Goku knows who the hell Gero was back in the day.
The former one i just don't understand at all, it makes no sense why they are so averse it seems to revealing Piccolo as a Mazoku/demon as they have been since 1996.
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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by precita » Mon Nov 16, 2020 4:12 pm

I'm surprised FUNI kept Imperfect Cell's "snake" like voice for his first stage. I remember a lot of complaining with the original DBZ dub that FUNI had each of Cell's stages with different voices, but they kept that for Kai. I actually like it since of course the english Perfect Cell voice wouldn't fit his Imperfect form.

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by G1Ravage » Mon Nov 16, 2020 10:56 pm

The FUNi dub of Kai always irked me...they teased us by using certain Japanese attack names for the first time ever early on in the show, but then switched right back to using the prior English dub attack names.

The Kai dub was no doubt a massive improvement on pretty much every DB/DBZ dub that came before it, both in terms of script and performances. But like all FUNi DB/DBZ adaptations, it isn't without its shortcomings.

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by XanatosVanBadass » Tue Nov 17, 2020 1:10 am

I’m willing to wager that the change back to dub attack names and “punched up” dialogue over time was due to enough Funimation Z dub fans complaining. Possibly alongside fans of Kai on Nicktoons who were confused by all the changes. Unfortunately, the Z dub fans will likely always have the ear of Funimation.

Believe it or not, many of said fans actually enjoy “punched up” scripts and like that Funi changes things from the Japanese version. And then there’s those who truly wish Funimation would bring back replacement scores. Not just Faulconer, but just any music that’s not the original score.

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by precita » Tue Nov 17, 2020 1:16 am

G1Ravage wrote: Mon Nov 16, 2020 10:56 pm The FUNi dub of Kai always irked me...they teased us by using certain Japanese attack names for the first time ever early on in the show, but then switched right back to using the prior English dub attack names.

The Kai dub was no doubt a massive improvement on pretty much every DB/DBZ dub that came before it, both in terms of script and performances. But like all FUNi DB/DBZ adaptations, it isn't without its shortcomings.
I can't remember where they went back to the dub names for the attacks, I think it was halfway into Namek but can't remember for sure. They always used "Spirit Bomb" in the dub even in the Saiyan saga so that always was the same in the dub.

But it is what it is. Personally the dub names for the attacks don't bother me too much, but I can see why it would for others.

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by Matches Malone » Tue Nov 17, 2020 12:23 pm

XanatosVanBadass wrote: Tue Nov 17, 2020 1:10 am I’m willing to wager that the change back to dub attack names and “punched up” dialogue over time was due to enough Funimation Z dub fans complaining.
Toei makes them use incorrect names like Frieza instead of Freeza due to their recognition, so it may have been done on Toei's request.

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by Metalwario64 » Tue Nov 17, 2020 12:38 pm

precita wrote: Mon Nov 16, 2020 4:12 pm I'm surprised FUNI kept Imperfect Cell's "snake" like voice for his first stage. I remember a lot of complaining with the original DBZ dub that FUNI had each of Cell's stages with different voices, but they kept that for Kai. I actually like it since of course the english Perfect Cell voice wouldn't fit his Imperfect form.
It would have been interesting if Clarke had taken his Perfect Cell voice, but made it a little more coarse and raspy for the first form.
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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by Fionordequester » Tue Nov 17, 2020 6:01 pm

You mean something like his Younger Toguro voice?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vD46fhiTe5I
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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by Aim » Mon Mar 29, 2021 8:21 pm

MasenkoHA wrote: Mon Mar 30, 2020 2:57 am I know Funimation's dub of Kai is praised for being fairly accurate but I was watching episode 57 and this bit bothered me.

Trunks: And the man who created them (the Androids) was none other than the Red Ribbon Army's residence lunatic Dr.Gero.
Goku: *gasp* Dr.Gero but how can that be? I wiped out the Red Ribbon army, I'm sure of it.
Trunks: I know, you crushed the red ribbon army years ago. However, Dr.Gero survived and carried on with his research.
Goku: So what's he after? Is it that whole, I'm going take over the world thing again?

To compare, the subtitles

Trunks: The one who created them, was a former mad scientist of the Red Ribbon Army, Dr.Gero.
Goku: Red Ribbon Army? You mean the Red Ribbon army that I wiped out?
Trunk: Correct. The Army was crushed by you long ago. However, Dr. Gero survived and continued his research.
Goku: For what reason? Was the usual "world domination" thing his goal?

The dub dialog isn't as inaccurate as it was for Z but it still suggest Goku knows who Dr.Gero is, which is of course wrong. Funimation had long since dubbed the original Dragon Ball so I don't know why it would be off base like that.
The dub enjoys taking lines and changing them unnecessarily, just changing a couple words changes the context of an entire sentence as I’ve said before.

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by TheMajinRedComet » Thu Apr 01, 2021 11:36 am

It sucks that there was no consistency with the attack names. From what I have heard Kai's dubbing was chaotic apparently there was at least three different Funi Dub tracks being recorded. Uncut, Edited and CW.
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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by NitroEX » Thu Apr 01, 2021 2:05 pm

A lot of great points made in this thread.

Every time I've tried watching the Kai dub I'm often taken out of the experience with Funimation's questionable attempts at humour. Jokes can sometimes be tone-deaf to what's going on within the scene, such as - off the top of my head - when Cell delivers the line "What!? seriously?" in a comedic tone after Goku threatens him with a Kamehameha from above (resulting in the IT Kamehameha). Or this moment from the Boo arc where Vegeta suddenly decides to say "wrooong!" like he's in a TFS abridged dub. It honestly just wrecks immersion for me, and I know that people will undoubtedly consider these things minor and forgivable because Funi or Dragon Ball is their sacred cow but... They really do add up across the series and after constantly hearing such exaggerated claims about Kai's dub being the most accurate and perfect DB dub ever, and you're met with flaws like this? I really have to wonder where these people are coming from.

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by MasenkoHA » Thu Apr 01, 2021 4:25 pm

What’s funny is there’s at least two instances off the top of my head where their earlier Z dubs was closer than. Kai.


Right before Kuririn gets tail slapped into Kame House by Raditz he tells him its not to good to get drunk this early in the afternoon. Both the 96 and 05 dub kind of keep this idea by having Krillin say he thinks Raditz has been dipping into the eggnog. The Kai dub isn’t even close and just has Krillin offer to escort him off the island.

And then after Piccolo gives Gohan a Kame gi with his symbol he mentions making Gohan into a mazoku. The 05 dub at least he says something like “You’ll be just like me” which is close enough for Funi when they can’t ever seem to acknowledge Piccolo being a demon anyways. He doesn’t say anything like this in Kai and just mentions Gohan was going to wish he was dead.


And yeah obviously Kai in general is much more accurate and those two moments are really inconsequential as opposed to metric fuckton of important things Z’s dub changed but it’s still funny to me.


I dunno I almost want to go back to Robo’s rewatch thread and do a Kai sub vs dub comparison but that might get tiring.

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by WittyUsername » Thu Apr 01, 2021 7:50 pm

FUNimation has always made small mistakes and changes with Dragon Ball, even to this day. To give an example, they have a tendency to have alien characters refer to Earthlings as “humans,” even though by Dragon Ball’s definition of the word, anyone who isn’t a deity is classified as a human.

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by Dragon Ball Ireland » Sun Apr 04, 2021 1:09 pm

MasenkoHA wrote: Thu Apr 01, 2021 4:25 pmI dunno I almost want to go back to Robo’s rewatch thread and do a Kai sub vs dub comparison but that might get tiring.
Go for it, would be very interesting to read, and a great reference point for discussions on Kai's levels of accuracy :thumbup:
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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by 90sDBZ » Sun Apr 04, 2021 4:59 pm

It's been a few years since I watched Z in Japanese, but for the most part English Kai feels like the same show to me. There are some minor changes but the overall tone and feel is intact, and the performances are top notch.

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by BlazingFiddlesticks » Sun Apr 04, 2021 10:22 pm

TheMajinRedComet wrote: Thu Apr 01, 2021 11:36 am It sucks that there was no consistency with the attack names. From what I have heard Kai's dubbing was chaotic apparently there was at least three different Funi Dub tracks being recorded. Uncut, Edited and CW.
I recall this being the case too. For whatever mix of time, circumstances, and creative sputtering as the Kai project became less novel over time, the original attack names fell out under the load.
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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by MasenkoHA » Sun Apr 04, 2021 11:08 pm

Producing an edited and uncut version is nothing new for FUNimation. They’ve been doing that since 1999 and have continued to do that all the way into Super where they provided an edited version to a UK kids channel. Drago Ball Boo Kai might be the only one that doesn’t have an edited version and even then wouldn’t surprise if FUNimation produced one just in case.

The whole idea of needing to use the old dub names for attacks in the edited version never made much sense. The Nicktoons and CW target audience was in pull up at the oldest when Z ended on Toonami. Half of them weren’t even alive.

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by Kakkaroto735 » Tue Apr 06, 2021 6:57 pm

MasenkoHA wrote: Sun Apr 04, 2021 11:08 pm Producing an edited and uncut version is nothing new for FUNimation. They’ve been doing that since 1999 and have continued to do that all the way into Super where they provided an edited version to a UK kids channel. Drago Ball Boo Kai might be the only one that doesn’t have an edited version and even then wouldn’t surprise if FUNimation produced one just in case.

The whole idea of needing to use the old dub names for attacks in the edited version never made much sense. The Nicktoons and CW target audience was in pull up at the oldest when Z ended on Toonami. Half of them weren’t even alive.
Maybe they were scared of the little ones hearing Kienzan or god forbid Son Gokū. :cry:

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Re: Funi's Kai dub and accuracy

Post by WittyUsername » Tue Apr 06, 2021 9:45 pm

Kakkaroto735 wrote: Tue Apr 06, 2021 6:57 pm
MasenkoHA wrote: Sun Apr 04, 2021 11:08 pm Producing an edited and uncut version is nothing new for FUNimation. They’ve been doing that since 1999 and have continued to do that all the way into Super where they provided an edited version to a UK kids channel. Drago Ball Boo Kai might be the only one that doesn’t have an edited version and even then wouldn’t surprise if FUNimation produced one just in case.

The whole idea of needing to use the old dub names for attacks in the edited version never made much sense. The Nicktoons and CW target audience was in pull up at the oldest when Z ended on Toonami. Half of them weren’t even alive.
Maybe they were scared of the little ones hearing Kienzan or god forbid Son Gokū. :cry:
The Son Goku part wasn’t edited for the Nicktoons or Toonzai broadcasts.

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