Unpopular DB opinions

[MasenkoHA]

Some more unpopular opinions

“Watch Z for the sub and Kai for the dub” is a completely nonsense mantra

Not sure I understand what that means or what your disagreeing with.

When fans say if you’re gonna watch Dragon Ball Z watch it subbed (I agree with that) but if you’re going to watch Dragon Ball Kai watch it dubbed (that’s the part I don’t agree with) there’s nothing about Dragon Ball Kai in English that’s inherently better than the Japanese version. Any plus (usually pacing and lack of meandering filler) or negative (usually in regards to music and the fact that its a recut and not a new series) applies to both versions. The Japanese cast in Kai still gives a better performance than the Funimation cast in Kai.

If you want to watch Dragon Ball in English (a lot of valid reasons for doing so) then watch Kai. But if you have no general preference for dubs or subs then sure yeah Z in Japanese has the best acting, better music and music placement etc but if your reason for watching Kai is you like the faster pacing than Kai is still better in Japanese than English.

[ABED]

The Japanese cast in Kai still gives a better performance than the Funimation cast in Kai.

This will get me some dirty looks, but with the exception of mostly the side characters, they don't. The performances in the Japanese cast are much worse than they were in DBZ. I honestly think the dub performances are better. While the Japanese cast is professional, they seem bored in Kai because they are doing it for the millionth time.

[MasenkoHA]

The Japanese cast in Kai still gives a better performance than the Funimation cast in Kai.

This will get me some dirty looks, but with the exception of mostly the side characters, they don't. The performances in the Japanese cast are much worse than they were in DBZ. I honestly think the dub performances are better. While the Japanese cast is professional, they seem bored in Kai because they are doing it for the millionth time.

I agree there’s a drop in quality in the acting for the Japanese cast from Z to Kai. Or at least a “We already said these lines 20 years” sort of thing. I disagree the dub performances are better.

The Japanese cast, even phoning it in, still turns in perfectly respectable performances.

Chris Ayres is maybe the only performer who I think gave a better performance than his Japanese counterpart. At least of the main cast members.

[ABED]

Fair enough. If I'm going to watch the original, I wouldn't suggest watching Kai.

[Kunzait_83]

This will get me some dirty looks, but with the exception of mostly the side characters, they don't. The performances in the Japanese cast are much worse than they were in DBZ. I honestly think the dub performances are better. While the Japanese cast is professional, they seem bored in Kai because they are doing it for the millionth time.

While I agree that much of the Japanese cast is certainly phoning it in for Kai: guys like Toshio Furukawa, Ryusei Nakao, and Masako Nozawa just reading from a phonebook in dry monotone can still manage to convey INFINITELY more natural charisma, vibrancy, and gravitas than godawful non-talents and charisma-vacuums like Schemmel and Sabat grunting and straining their way through yet another "trying so hard I'm bursting a blood vessel" ear-rape of a performance: which yes, is STILL what they largely do with these roles to this day, even in Kai and Super.

I've been long convinced that you're simply NEVER, ever going to get a natural, non-forced sounding performance out of almost any of the FUNimation cast for the simple reason that they're just fundamentally untalented, bad voice actors who aren't comfortable with just emoting organically into a mic. The Japanese cast, by contrast, are so bursting with natural, raw acting talent between them (on top of being such seasoned pros) that they can still run circles around their FUNimation alternatives even at their most disinterested, bored, and disengaged. Guys like Norio Wakamoto, or Daisuke Gori (RIP), or a pre-illness Jojji Yanami have the type of gifted acting presence where they can just blandly recite the menu of a bed & breakfast and their natural delivery would be commanding enough that they'd likely still make your ears perk up and take notice of them.

[coola]

The Japanese cast in Kai still gives a better performance than the Funimation cast in Kai.

This will get me some dirty looks, but with the exception of mostly the side characters, they don't. The performances in the Japanese cast are much worse than they were in DBZ. I honestly think the dub performances are better. While the Japanese cast is professional, they seem bored in Kai because they are doing it for the millionth time.

I agree there’s a drop in quality in the acting for the Japanese cast from Z to Kai. Or at least a “We already said these lines 20 years” sort of thing. I disagree the dub performances are better.

The Japanese casr, even phoning it in, still turns in perfectly respectable performances.

Chris Ayres is maybe the only performer who I think gave a better performance than his Japanese counterpart. At least of the main cast members.

Not only that, but 99% of replacements are terrible, and werent even half as good as Z ones, of course if voice actor/actress already died or retired, than replacement was necessary, but why, for example, Sho Hayami couldnt return to reprise his role as Zarbon?

And my personal unpopopular opinion, is that Ryo Horikawa sounds terrible as Vegeta nowadays, he is fine when he speaks in normal voice, but when he is angry or more emotional, not wanting to sound disrespectful, but he sound like old man trying to do Vegeta (its like he 's been smoking too much)

[MasenkoHA]

Fair enough. If I'm going to watch the original, I wouldn't suggest watching Kai.

Oh I would never suggest Kai unless the person was strictly a dub only viewer or complained about Z’s pacing.

Kai’s existence is way more justified by the English dub than the Japanese dub but I’ll still maintain the Japanese version is better.

[ABED]

This will get me some dirty looks, but with the exception of mostly the side characters, they don't. The performances in the Japanese cast are much worse than they were in DBZ. I honestly think the dub performances are better. While the Japanese cast is professional, they seem bored in Kai because they are doing it for the millionth time.

While I agree that much of the Japanese cast is certainly phoning it in for Kai: guys like Toshio Furukawa, Ryusei Nakao, and Masako Nozawa just reading from a phonebook in dry monotone can still manage to convey INFINITELY more natural charisma, vibrancy, and gravitas than godawful non-talents and charisma-vacuums like Schemmel and Sabat grunting and straining their way through yet another "trying so hard I'm bursting a blood vessel" ear-rape of a performance: which yes, is STILL what they largely do with these roles to this day, even in Kai and Super.

I've been long convinced that you're simply NEVER, ever going to get a natural, non-forced sounding performance out of almost any of the FUNimation cast for the simple reason that they're just fundamentally untalented, bad voice actors who aren't comfortable with just emoting organically into a mic. The Japanese cast, by contrast, are so bursting with natural, raw acting talent between them (on top of being such seasoned pros) that they can still run circles around their FUNimation alternatives even at their most disinterested, bored, and disengaged. Guys like Norio Wakamoto, or Daisuke Gori (RIP), or a pre-illness Jojji Yanami have the type of gifted acting presence where they can just blandly recite the menu of a bed & breakfast and their natural delivery would be commanding enough that they'd likely still make your ears perk up and take notice of them.

All I can say is I disagree concerning Kai. I love Nozawa as much as the next person, but at least with Kai, her voice lacks the vigor it did in years prior. I'm sure you will not just disagree but probably look down on my taste (not that I care all that much), but I think Sean has vastly improved to where he's good as Goku.

[MasenkoHA]

but I think Sean has vastly improved to where he's good as Goku.

I agree Sean has definitely shown massive improvement since 1999 to the point his Goku is perfectly solid even if I’m more of an Ian Corlett guy when it comes to English Goku myself.

You could also make the argument Schemmel in 1999 really had nowhere to go but up but given how many of the dub cast barely improved over the years it’s a testament to Schemmel he improved as well as he did.

But Nozawa’s Goku is still just way better than any of the English Gokus even at her most phoned in.

[Kunzait_83]

I'm sure you will not just disagree but probably look down on my taste (not that I care all that much), but I think Sean has vastly improved to where he's good as Goku.

You shouldn't care about what almost anyone in general thinks of your taste as an overall rule: but for whatever little its worth, I don't think your particular taste is nearly as bad as a lot of other folks in this community, if only by sheer virtue of the fact that you actually have a much more balanced and informed palette of stuff than most here often tend to.

And as an aside, I apologize for never having gotten back to you with that PM response of recommendations in all these months: been SUPER busy IRL, and I wanted to have a substantive list of things to send back.

[ABED]

I'm sure you will not just disagree but probably look down on my taste (not that I care all that much), but I think Sean has vastly improved to where he's good as Goku.

You shouldn't care about what almost anyone in general thinks of your taste as an overall rule: but for whatever little its worth, I don't think your particular taste is nearly as bad as a lot of other folks in this community, if only by sheer virtue of the fact that you actually have a much more balanced and informed palette of stuff than most here often tend to.

And as an aside, I apologize for never having gotten back to you with that PM response of recommendations in all these months: been SUPER busy IRL, and I wanted to have a substantive list of things to send back.

Thanks and I figured it was real life which should take precedent.

But Nozawa’s Goku is still just way better than any of the English Gokus even at her most phoned in.

I don't think she phoned it in. She strikes me as an actress that always gives it her all. Some of the others are like Connery or Harrison Ford when they don't have their heart invested in the role, solid performances, but little more than serviceable.

[SuperSaiyaManZ94]

I'm sure you will not just disagree but probably look down on my taste (not that I care all that much), but I think Sean has vastly improved to where he's good as Goku.

You shouldn't care about what almost anyone in general thinks of your taste as an overall rule: but for whatever little its worth, I don't think your particular taste is nearly as bad as a lot of other folks in this community, if only by sheer virtue of the fact that you actually have a much more balanced and informed palette of stuff than most here often tend to.

And as an aside, I apologize for never having gotten back to you with that PM response of recommendations in all these months: been SUPER busy IRL, and I wanted to have a substantive list of things to send back.

Thanks and I figured it was real life which should take precedent.

But Nozawa’s Goku is still just way better than any of the English Gokus even at her most phoned in.

I don't think she phoned it in. She strikes me as an actress that always gives it her all. Some of the others are like Connery or Harrison Ford when they don't have their heart invested in the role, solid performances, but little more than serviceable.

Yeah, she's only been playing Goku since the anime began in 1986 (plus as Gohan and Goten for less amount of years) so she's pretty much been THE one and only voice there has ever been for the characters. Her voice has never sounded phoned in with about anything i have heard her in, either Dragon Ball or other anime series she's been in.

[8000 Saiyan]

I think Nappa should have been recasted with a better actor for Kai. Parsons isn't bad, he's just not very memorable.

[RandomGuy96]

Some of the others are like Connery or Harrison Ford when they don't have their heart invested in the role, solid performances, but little more than serviceable.

Ford can be downright awful when he's truly disinterested. I would file recent films such as The Force Awakens and Bladerunner 2049 under the "serviceable Ford" label; he's past his prime but still does okay. But those films, while he clearly is not invested in them, do not properly show how Ford acts when he's in full "I do not care" mode; for that, see Ender's Game, Expendables 3, or Paranoia (or better yet, don't) where he's just terrible, sucking any possible charisma out of his scenes.

[ABED]

I haven't seen the films you mentioned besides TFA and I thought that was 'good Ford'. It's about between about midway Great and Serviceable. I felt he put some genuine effort into the role in TFA because it was the final one for him. Nowhere near Star Wars or Empire, but a step below Jedi.

Back on topic, I don't know if this is unpopular, but I really like Giru. I think he's one of the best parts of GT.

[Hulk10]

Goku doesn't seem stupid to me, more like extremely naïve.


Also using feats to compare characters is a bad idea.

[MasenkoHA]

Goku doesn't seem stupid to me, more like extremely naïve.
.

He was raised out in the mountains and only ever interacted with one person the first 11 years of his life and never got a formal education like his son did and only really learned basic reading and math while training under Muten Roshi.


He’s not stupid. He just more focused on fighting.

[Kataphrut]

This is a touchy subject considering how he's a under a lot of fire right now but I prefer Mignogna Broly screams than Shimada's in the movie. Not to say his screams were bad but Mignogna screams capture the tortured caveman Broly was in the movie while Shimada's was straight up psychopathic which honestly fits the old Broly more

I agree. I never liked Vic Mignogna's Broly, but credit where it's due, his Super Saiyan transformation in the new movie was genuinely impactful. He really captured the intensity and the anguish Broly was going through in that scene.

Still, he had to get the flick. I'm sure whoever they replace him with will be fine, most of the new actors at Funimation have been doing alright. All three of the actors playing the Universe 6 Saiyans in the dub nailed their transformations.

[Hulk10]

Goku doesn't seem stupid to me, more like extremely naïve.
.

He was raised out in the mountains and only ever interacted with one person the first 11 years of his life and never got a formal education like his son did and only really learned basic reading and math while training under Muten Roshi.


He’s not stupid. He just more focused on fighting.

Yeah I agree. He just doesn't think.

[8000 Saiyan]

This will get me some dirty looks, but with the exception of mostly the side characters, they don't. The performances in the Japanese cast are much worse than they were in DBZ. I honestly think the dub performances are better. While the Japanese cast is professional, they seem bored in Kai because they are doing it for the millionth time.

While I agree that much of the Japanese cast is certainly phoning it in for Kai: guys like Toshio Furukawa, Ryusei Nakao, and Masako Nozawa just reading from a phonebook in dry monotone can still manage to convey INFINITELY more natural charisma, vibrancy, and gravitas than godawful non-talents and charisma-vacuums like Schemmel and Sabat grunting and straining their way through yet another "trying so hard I'm bursting a blood vessel" ear-rape of a performance: which yes, is STILL what they largely do with these roles to this day, even in Kai and Super.

I've been long convinced that you're simply NEVER, ever going to get a natural, non-forced sounding performance out of almost any of the FUNimation cast for the simple reason that they're just fundamentally untalented, bad voice actors who aren't comfortable with just emoting organically into a mic. The Japanese cast, by contrast, are so bursting with natural, raw acting talent between them (on top of being such seasoned pros) that they can still run circles around their FUNimation alternatives even at their most disinterested, bored, and disengaged. Guys like Norio Wakamoto, or Daisuke Gori (RIP), or a pre-illness Jojji Yanami have the type of gifted acting presence where they can just blandly recite the menu of a bed & breakfast and their natural delivery would be commanding enough that they'd likely still make your ears perk up and take notice of them.

What do you think of Dameon Clarke's Cell, Kara Edwards' Videl and Rick Robertson's Dabura? Those three performances always seem to be considered to be standouts of the old Z dub.