Is Nozawa's voice the only thing that turns people off of the Japanese version?

[TheGreatness25]

I think that sometimes people are satisfied enough with a dub rather than reading. I also would like to just relax sometimes and not have to pay 100% attention to the TV screen to read what's actually going on.

[PsionicWarrior]

I think that sometimes people are satisfied enough with a dub rather than reading. I also would like to just relax sometimes and not have to pay 100% attention to the TV screen to read what's actually going on.

Sad to hear, do you also watch Kurosawa or Tarkovski in english dub?

[TheGreatness25]

I don't watch those. I'm not saying that I don't like the Japanese version. I'm just saying that after seeing the series god knows how many times, I'm not always interested n having to pay 100% attention to the subtitles. Sometimes I'd rather have DB in the background while I do something else, but why would I do that with a version that I don't understand? So I'd assume there are others like that.

I know it's a difficult concept for some, but some fans don't care about it being faithful to the original; some fans just like it regardless.

[ABED]

I would by no means call it "narrative convenience", and there are elements of its roots that I think the same soundtrack makes sense, but it's not exactly a weird Kung-Fu movie anymore.

*Genre convenience. Or adherence.

Freeza cannot only be an intergalactic crime lord. He must also mystical kung-fu fight. Strip away the constantly escalating superpowers (which are still all versions of mystical martial arts tropes run through Toriyama's lens), and the expanding lore, and every arc in the series is as in-genre as its origins.

I would say that the constantly escalating battle powers is narratively convenient, but in terms of the set up of the world, it only makes sense that the space conqueror isn't just Hitler in space. It would have to a being of immense power in order to threaten the Namekians.

I know it's a difficult concept for some, but some fans don't care about it being faithful to the original; some fans just like it regardless.

Some don't know. They are usually called casual fans.

[PsionicWarrior]

I'm not saying that I don't like the Japanese version. I'm just saying that after seeing the series god knows how many times, I'm not always interested n having to pay 100% attention to the subtitles.

I don't understand, if you've seen them countless times already, do you REALLY need to pay 100% attention to subs?

Sometimes I'd rather have DB in the background while I do something else, but why would I do that with a version that I don't understand? So I'd assume there are others like that.

In the background? Burn the heretic!

[sangofe]

Grandma Goku and the dreary, dated Kikuchi soundtrack are the two main reasons I've seen.

Nozawa has grown on me from watching Super every week but the voice still just does not sound right at all. Black as good a character as he is and Nozawa does a good job with making the character sound silky and evil....but he so obviously sounds like a woman. It's a full grown man that sounds nothing at all like any man.

I love Nozowa's Goku voice. Is out of this world, and precisely that's why I like it so much! And those screams, have to bow to them!

[TheGreatness25]

I don't understand, if you've seen them countless times already, do you REALLY need to pay 100% attention to subs?

It's not like I remember all of the dialog 100%. And if I'm not going to be watching the TV (let's say I'm doing work and just have the TV on in the backgroind), then why would it be of something that I don't understand? Why wouldn't I just have a political speech in Mandarin in the background? It would kind of be the same thing.

In the background? Burn the heretic!

Yeah... I'm not sitting there re-watching the series for the 30th time.

[PsionicWarrior]

Ok is your approach and I respect that, to me watching Dragon Ball is like a spiritual journey, not something to put in background or keep on watching altered/adapted versions because too lazy to read subs.

[ABED]

Ok is your approach and I respect that, to me watching Dragon Ball is like a spiritual journey, not something to put in background or keep on watching altered/adapted versions because too lazy to read subs.

I think you are taking this out of context. I believe he said he's watched the show enough times that after a while, he still enjoys having it on, but can afford to have it on and do other things as well. I do that with shows I've seen multiple times.

[Cure Dragon 255]

I think that sometimes people are satisfied enough with a dub rather than reading. I also would like to just relax sometimes and not have to pay 100% attention to the TV screen to read what's actually going on.

Sad to hear, do you also watch Kurosawa or Tarkovski in english dub?

Would you say that to blind people or people who cant read? That are enjoying the work "Wrong"? And as far as I know there are no dubs of Kurosawa. If it was made well enough I would watch the dub, even if I prefer the subs.

[PsionicWarrior]

Would you say that to blind people or people who cant read? That are enjoying the work "Wrong"?

Obviously not but I doubt I'd find them in a forum lol

And as far as I know there are no dubs of Kurosawa.

I know^^

If it was made well enough I would watch the dub, even if I prefer the subs.

Well sure you can, and some dubs are really well done, but the voice is no little part on the impact it has on the atmosphere.

[Cure Dragon 255]

And subs dont block the screen and disrupt said atmostphere? And Blind people can be on the internet and go on forums. But I dont think you were trying to be rude or mean so I will let it slide.

[TheGreatness25]

I just find it so crazy that people are trying to figure out why some prefer to watch the dub. I have never watched the subbed version of Kai nor Cowboy Bebop nor Attack on Titan nor Yu Yu Hakusho nor Black Lagoon. I have no interest in watching the subbed version. The only reason I did for Dragon Ball (and actually really love it) is because it's so different from the dub and this is a series that I have a very high level of nostalgia for. If I didn't watch it as a kid and went crazy for it, I would never care about watching the subbed version. Why do so many fans find it odd that many people are simply not interested in the series to the level of watching the subbed version? That doesn't make for a "fake" fan or anything.


I'm actually surprised that this is still such a hot topic. The original Funimation "died" in 2007 (if you want to push it) when they re-dubbed some lines for the orange bricks. Kai has been released and Super will get an extremely good dub when it comes out. The sub fans have easy access to their sub version, the dub fans have access to their version, everyone's happy.

[Im insaneFromEarth]

I see it all the time with comments on the internet of people voicing their dislike for the Japanese version of the series, most of the time the only reason they give for hating the Japanese version is because, to put it bluntly, "Japanese Goku is awful" and many variations on that. Some people go more in depth, usually citing that Goku being a big strong man (again, to put it bluntly) makes a female sounding voice sound wrong on him. You rarely get a proper analysis of why Nozawa's voice doesn't work, it's hardly ever about how well she can act, constantly the reason given is just the sound of her voice. Not that I expect that from an internet comment, but usually you get someone writing off the voice entirely for sounding female which makes it seem like they heard Nozawa's voice for all of 5 seconds and immediately got turned off by it.

This leads into the main point I want to make, do people start with looking up Goku's Japanese voice, seeing as he's the main character, and then never want to hear the Japanese version again because they can't stand his voice? You rarely, if ever, hear about people who hate the other voices as well, does this mean that they've never heard them? (some proof of this might be that it's usually complaints about "Japanese Goku", never Gohan or Goten or Bardock or even Tullece) Or does it mean that they don't have an opinion on those voices because Goku's voice simply sticks out so much to them that it's all that comes to mind when they think about the Japanese version?

Can anyone think of any other reason why the Japanese version is hated by so many people? (I mean it's hard to tell how many hate it because it depends on where you look) Seriously, the amount of comments you can find that only cite Nozawa's voice as the reason they dislike the Japanese version is staggering. People don't seem to want to compare Vegeta's English and Japanese voices, or Piccolo's or pretty much any other character, is it because Goku's female voice is such an easy target because you can just say "man with woman's voice = wrong". People just don't care about the rest of the cast because they hate Nozawa's voice and that's pretty sad to think about honestly.

I love her as Son Goku, she is Son Goku, I just don't see some of the hate that she get's

[TheGreatness25]

I actually really enjoy Nozawa's work as Goku in Dragon Ball through GT. The very first time I ever heard it (Dragon Ball Z Greatest Legends for PS1 in 1999 or so), it was a little shocking, but I very quickly took to it. But in recent years with the new releases, her voice changed a little and I find it pretty annoying. I don't know if it's because it's in high-def or it's a combo of the voice and music, but I find it a lot worse than her original portrayal of the Son family. It's the same with Kevin Conroy's Batman, though the "new" voice was around longer than the "old" one. In the first three seasons of Batman The Animated Series, his portrayal of Batman sounded a little different than anything that came after and I enjoyed the original version a lot more. The later version sounds more cold and monotone.

So yeah, Nozawa's Goku is fantastic in every aspect, but I enjoy the old version more than the new one. It might be because she was a really cute kid Goku and we've mostly seen a more serious adult Goku (not many moments when he's doing the "Oooh! Waaahh!" thing as an adult) and now it might be that adult Goku's doing too much of that. I don't know. I don't watch enough; that's just an observation from what I've seen.

[PsionicWarrior]

And subs dont block the screen and disrupt said atmostphere?

Of course the best way is to understand the original language, but I didn't mean to say dubs disturbed the atmosphere, I meant to say they deliver a different atmosphere.

And Blind people can be on the internet and go on forums.

Yeah but you're just being rethorical here lol

But I dont think you were trying to be rude or mean so I will let it slide.

Cheers sorry if I worded wrong, the whole thread got me in a bad way actually, I have no worries with people who enjoy the dubs, but, people bashing the original, like really??

[Jinzoningen MULE]

I actually really enjoy Nozawa's work as Goku in Dragon Ball through GT. The very first time I ever heard it (Dragon Ball Z Greatest Legends for PS1 in 1999 or so), it was a little shocking, but I very quickly took to it. But in recent years with the new releases, her voice changed a little and I find it pretty annoying. I don't know if it's because it's in high-def or it's a combo of the voice and music, but I find it a lot worse than her original portrayal of the Son family. It's the same with Kevin Conroy's Batman, though the "new" voice was around longer than the "old" one. In the first three seasons of Batman The Animated Series, his portrayal of Batman sounded a little different than anything that came after and I enjoyed the original version a lot more. The later version sounds more cold and monotone.

So yeah, Nozawa's Goku is fantastic in every aspect, but I enjoy the old version more than the new one. It might be because she was a really cute kid Goku and we've mostly seen a more serious adult Goku (not many moments when he's doing the "Oooh! Waaahh!" thing as an adult) and now it might be that adult Goku's doing too much of that. I don't know. I don't watch enough; that's just an observation from what I've seen.

You have to keep in mind that Nozawa is far past her prime these days. She isn't able to bring the same range to the table as she used to, so she has to exaggerate her voices to compensate.

[TheGreatness25]

You have to keep in mind that Nozawa is far past her prime these days. She isn't able to bring the same range to the table as she used to, so she has to exaggerate her voices to compensate.

I completely understand and appreciate that. But it doesn't take away from the fact that I think that her performance now is a bit more irritating than in the past (at least to me).

[Cure Dragon 255]

And subs dont block the screen and disrupt said atmostphere?

Of course the best way is to understand the original language, but I didn't mean to say dubs disturbed the atmosphere, I meant to say they deliver a different atmosphere.

And Blind people can be on the internet and go on forums.

Yeah but you're just being rethorical here lol

But I dont think you were trying to be rude or mean so I will let it slide.

Cheers sorry if I worded wrong, the whole thread got me in a bad way actually, I have no worries with people who enjoy the dubs, but, people bashing the original, like really??

Its okay, I was rude, I shouldnt have put you on the spot like that. You are a nice guy.

[Jinzoningen MULE]

You have to keep in mind that Nozawa is far past her prime these days. She isn't able to bring the same range to the table as she used to, so she has to exaggerate her voices to compensate.

I completely understand and appreciate that. But it doesn't take away from the fact that I think that her performance now is a bit more irritating than in the past (at least to me).

I know, I was just explaining why it's worse.