Growing Attached to the Voices of Characters

[Hero]

How many of you also suffer with this? For me, the voices need to be from the Funi cast or else I just can't get into the show. The Japanese cast does a great job, obviously, but no matter how much I know that Nozawa was picked by Toriyama or how much her voice channels Goku's spirit and such, I just can't get into any Goku other than Sean Schemmel's. Same with Chris Sabat as Vegeta and Piccolo. Or Nadolny as Gohan.

And it's not a nostalgia thing either. I can't imagine Frieza having any other voice than Chris Ayres' even though I've only watched a few episodes of Kai and it was from the Saiyan Saga. No matter how good a voice is, if it's not the one I'm used to/ have accepted as the character's voice, I just can't watch it. It's the main thing keeping me from the Japanese dub and why I'm waiting for the dub to watch Super. It was also why I hated Resurrection F when watching the Japanese version and got bored but then loved it in the dub.

[ShaneisMC]

It either has to be the same person or a DAMN GOOD replacement or improvement. Chris Ayres for example DESTROYS Linda Young as Freeza. I was hesitant at first due to old nostalgia but quickly found it outstanding. Same with Colleen Clinkenbeard as Gohan. She does a much better portrayal of a little boy that also fits Gohans personality more than Stephanie. For Kid Goku however I think I would prefer it to stay Stephanie. I think her voice is more fitting for his character. However I believe her acting could improve some but with some refinement I would love to continue with her in that role. As for others..... honestly at this point I think they pretty much have every character down to where they need to be in both Japanese and English. I really wouldnt want to see any further changes in casting.

[Vijay]

Lol. You hated Ressurection of F just cuz it was Jap dub? Thats some pretty deep-rooted bias you have there mate.

Not tryin to be wannabe elitist/experienced brat in forum, but in order to learn & appreciate new things, 1st you gotta severe every attachments you have from the past. Nostalgia, bias everything

I for once loathed Japanese voices. Glorified Sean's portrayal of Goku (with deep & distinct tone as SSJ4 against Baby) while Nozawa's portrayal was much more subtle, & laid-back. I trolled Goku's squaking voice mercilessly whenever he screams/shouts (I even used the word dying cat on frying pan).

Now, humbled for how much Nozawa-san's portrayal "defined" Goku as character. The warmth, purity & soulful acting is in a league of her own.

Just like how Donnie Yen IS Sun Wukong in Journey to The West. Anyone other than him fails to reach that height/peak the character deserves.

Upon receiving new-enlighment, I started badmouthing Sean. I mean his Supermanish acting, with butchered lines/corny script. Though I've grown to severe that attachment as well & learnt to appreciate his take on Goku

As of now, I have no "permanent" attachments. Just preference. My take: Z Jap > Z Kai Jap & Kai Fumi > Z Funi

My 2 cents

[B]

None of the Canadian performances are good. Maybe it's because I'm American; maybe it's because that dub was produced on a shoestring budget at a very fast pace; maybe it's because the actors were never given the repetition of video games to hone their skills, but I can't listen to them. If I'm watch DB in English, which is fairly rare, it's the FUNimation cast. However, I don't see that as an "attachment" so much as "this is the closest thing to acceptable".

And with that being said, the only actors I am "attached" to enough that it would truly bum me out to lose in future dub endeavors are Sonny Strait as Kuririn and Chris Sabat as only Piccolo. I guess Chuck Huber's roles as well. But, those guys virtually synonymous with FUNimation at this point and I don't see them disappearing anytime soon.

I am obviously attached to most of the major Japanese performances. Thankfully Kai didn't replace anybody I was super into, minus the circumstances that couldn't be controlled, like the passings of Gouri, Aono, and Utsumi.

[Ajay]

None of the Canadian performances are good.

Wew lad. Watch what you're saying about the one and only Scott McNeil -- otherwise known as the greatest English language Piccolo of them all.

I'm totally not attached to any voice actors from my childhood.

[successoroffate]

I would like to think that most of the people including myself are "Region Locked." For example, I grew up with the Latinamerican dub and for me Mario Castaneda plays an easy Goku to relate to. Same goes for Carlos Segundo's Piccolo. In fact, as I am sure most of you know, both voice actors were used for DB Evolution to play their respective characters. If you think about it, this was a very smart business strategy by the LatinAmerican dubbing company.

Back to the point, Americans (most of them, even though I would like to think that the number is not that big) are fond of the Funimation dub because that was the version they were presented to. It is perfectly normal to despise the Japanese original but not to the point of arguing that the Funi Dub "Did a better job than the original." It is a matter of taste, a matter of how attached you are to the specific dub of your region. Now, we also have the opposite where Americans would despise the Funi dub, for whatever reason and fall in love with the original Japanese.

There is no right or wrong answer, as long as you are respectful to the preference of others.

[FortuneSSJ]

I have a open mind. As long as the voice actors do a great job, I can accept them.

It was also why I hated Resurrection F when watching the Japanese version and got bored but then loved it in the dub.

Talking about childish.

[Gyt Kaliba]

I try to have an open mind about these things, but I do have to admit I have my preferences, and a lot of it does come back to the voices I'm most used to...to a degree, anyway. I tend to prefer the FUNimation cast for anything English I'm going to be watching, but there are definitely misses here and there for me. For example, I actually don't dislike Schemmel's Kaio like most do, but for some reason I just can't really enjoy Jackson or Massey's Oolong anymore. It's just jarring. On the flip side, being more used to the Japanese cast now after watching everything that way too, there are definitely voices I prefer there over any of their dub counterparts...and vice versa. For example on that one, I don't know what it is, but I just don't like Takaguchi's Baba. I know it shouldn't be any different than getting used to Nozawa's Goku, but for some reason I just can't do it. And the less said about Path to Power's Roshi the better.

The Ocean cast is the most major cast that I'm the least familiar with. By the time I got into DBZ, things had already switched over to the in-house cast, so my only exposure to the show with that cast was a few re-runs here and there. I did hear them quite a bit via the first three movies though, and it's from those in particular that I know I great preferred their Dr. Wheelo (R. Bruce Elliot is an amazingactor, it's nothing against him, I just feel the former actor did better on this one), as well as their Oolong, who actually sounds like he's going for the same kind of thing as Tatsuta. I cannot stand Klassen's Kuririn though. I can't.

So yeah, I'd say there's really nothing wrong at all with growing attached to particular voices. There's nothing 'childish' in the least about having a preference. The only childish thing would be when one tries to deny others their own right to their opinion just because it differs.

[Kuririn Fan]

Most of the english voices are good, the problem is not about them. It's been almost half a year since i converted to the original side and now, Dragon Ball has only one version for me, and one legendary cast that has been doing their job for 30 years. It sucks that it took me all this time to experience the real deal, but i guess it's never too late.

[Wezenheim]

I think both the original actors and the current FUNimation group do a great job and even though I'm pretty open minded about voice actors and the like, I am really fond of both casts and I'd hate to lose either. Like Gyt Kaliba said though, it's a matter of opinion, and no one can help it if x person in a role just doesn't click for them because they love y too much.

For me though, the only voice I'd say I might be attached to is Toshio Furukawa as Piccolo. Don't get me wrong, I like Sabat and McNeil, but it's really weird for me to listen to them or any of the other actors I've heard now. That's probably just because I haven't heard anyone I like as much though, and Furukawa is one of my favorite actors in the series. As long as they do a good job I'll be fine, and thankfully Sabat has improved his Piccolo over the years.

I will say that I am glad that this exists:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krrJ3ccfnUI

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

I've learned to have an open mind myself, because when you live somewhere that aired the Blue Water and early and later parts of the Ocean dub (as I do) you need to get used to cast changes even if you weren't from the tape trading era (which I'm not) and started with the English version.

I've liked all the dub Gokus from Corlett to Morrow and Schemmel took a little getting used to, but since Kai he is, in my opinion the best there's been from the English side of things. He really nails the character these days, That said Nozawa will always be the original Goku, but as an English-speaking option Schemmel comes pretty close in terms of delivery.

[Ddd]

I couldn't care less about the funi cast. I don't think they're bad by any means(they're all incredible), and my way of thinking really doesn't have anything to do with bias. I just like reading and watching things in their original language, and if dragon ball was German, Italian, Hungarian or Chinese I would still watch it in it's original version, a perfect dub or even a better than the original dub is not something I'll ever be interested in.

[Wezenheim]

I've learned to have an open mind myself, because when you live somewhere that aired the Blue Water and early and later parts of the Ocean dub (as I do) you need to get used to cast changes even if you weren't from the tape trading era (which I'm not) and started with the English version.

I've liked all the dub Gokus from Corlett to Morrow and Schemmel took a little getting used to, but since Kai he is, in my opinion the best there's been from the English side of things. He really nails the character these days, That said Nozawa will always be the original Goku, but as an English-speaking option Schemmel comes pretty close in terms of delivery.

I really liked Peter Kelamis as Goku also. Some of his screams sounded close to Nozawa. He would have been even better if he talked with a bit of a higher pitch, but he was still awesome.

Battle of Gods is probably my favorite Schemmel performance, I thought he was spectacular. He's come a very long way.

[Jaetinh]

I'm very much attached to the German voice actor of Goku. Nozawa has my deepest respect and her voice acting back then was phenomenal. Still, Tommy Morgenstern is the only Goku for me. God was I happy watching the German version of Battle of Gods.

[Kakacarrottop]

I actually find it difficult to watch any stuff with the FUNi in-house cast these days, as i've gotten so used to the Ocean voices. Their Yamcha, Gohan, Piccolo, Goku etc and even the BF musical score just sound like really cringy imitations of Ocean's Saban era stuff to me. On the other hand, i'm much more neutral towards the Japanese version, since i know that's the way the show is intended to be like, for better or worse.

[NitroEX]

Having sampled every English dub from childhood (aside from Big Green and that Speedy crap) I'd like to think I'm slightly less bias than most English speaking fans, I even quickly grew to love the Japanese cast from playing the video games growing up so it's never been a problem for me going back to the original.

In spite of my experience with other English dubs I still, to this day, have a preference for Ocean's Canadian cast and honestly, aside from the rare exceptional Kai performance such as with Chris Ayers' Freeza, none of the Texas cast have changed my mind over the years, regardless of how much they've improved or not. I have my own qualms with Funimation's dubbing style and questionable casting decisions so it's not always the acting I have a problem with. Though, at the end of the day, it's clear that I'm not Funimation's target audience and I'm certainly not buying their products anymore so I don't expect them to cater to me anyway.

If, for whatever reason, I'm ever forced to sit and watch the new material (Super and ROF) then I'm perfectly fine with the Japanese cast. I honestly doubt even Brian Drummond and Scott McNeil could save those flawed works, much like with GT I'm actually kinda glad they don't have to waste their time and energy on it.

[Cure Dragon 255]

Latin America is in love with Laura Torres and I cant blame them. But what they did to Karina Altamirano was awful. I didnt like her Gohan voice yet I hate how the fanbase treated her. She seems to be doing much better acting for Adult women and is quite happy at it too!

[emperior]

I like English dub a lot (only watched Kai in english as it wasn't released in Italy)

I love Italian voices, I grew up watching DBZ with those voices. Unfortunately, the guy who dubbed Goku died and now ever since Battle of Gods we have got new voices that are lame and everyone sounds the same, I can't even distinguish who is talking when seeing BoG and RoF in Italian.
This sucks as the other dubbers are still alive and they have chosen an extremely wrong voice for Goku.
So I'm really hoping that Dragon Ball Super will be bought by Mediaset (the ones who aired DBZ) and that we will get our loved voices back and that someone will be able to voice Goku properly, or else Super will never have success here in Italy and it's a shame because everyone has watched DBZ here.

[Netter75]

I've found myself pretty attached to the original Funi cast, though I can appreciate the Japanese dub as well.

Kai is better written and all the VAs, new and returning, do a great job, but I'll always associate Gohan, Oolong, Puar, Bulma, and Chiaoztu with their original actors.

The exception to this would have to be Freeza. For whatever reason Chris Ayres' portrayal really blew away Linda Young's for me.

[Thanos]

I cut my teeth on the American dub voices, but eventually I found myself watching subtitled stuff exclusively (started out being out of necessity back when many things weren't yet dubbed). I found myself watching everything twice, once dubbed, then again in Japanese... but somewhere along the line I dropped the dub. Really helps for watching Super, since I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything. Now, Nozawa's voice is to me as ubiquitous to the character as Goku's spiky hair. It makes me sad that she's 80 this year.