Opinions on the Ocean dub of movies 1-3?

[WittyUsername]

FUNimation’s in-house dubs of the first two movies are reasonably faithful to the Japanese scripts, but they were also initially made with a replacement score, and they still did things like mispronouncing Kaioken, so it’s understandable that they would be seen as a step down from the Pioneer dubs. The movie 3 dub is way off the mark, though. I don’t know why FUNimation chose to base the script off the TV dub they did with Saban. Maybe since the Pioneer dub of the movie never aired on Toonami, they figured that most people would be familiar with the edited version?

[MasenkoHA]

FUNimation’s in-house dubs of the first two movies are reasonably faithful to the Japanese scripts, but they were also initially made with a replacement score

And even when they put the Japanese score back in Head Cha la is missing in the first 2 movies and Gohan's insert songs are left as instrumental. And the Tenkaichi Gohan scene is awkward as hell with just the instrumental. It just feels like you're watching an unfinished scene.

. I don’t know why FUNimation chose to base the script off the TV dub they did with Saban. Maybe since the Pioneer dub of the movie never aired on Toonami, they figured that most people would be familiar with the edited version?

That was my assumption. They wanted to base the script off the version kinds saw 9001 times on Toonami.

[90sDBZ]

Now Klassen as Kuririn is bad? How does his voice sound goofy? Muten Roshi's dub voice, I get, but Kuririn? i'll defend it. I wasn't aware people didn't like it.

I think he sounded good as Krillin during the Saban/Pioneer dubs.

In my opinion his performance is another that deteriorated from poor direction during the Westwood dub. His delivery became much more whiny sounding, and made the character feel one note. His performance in the earlier stuff felt more grounded, and he spoke in a lower tone during the more serious scenes.

I always loved the way he says "Let's turn up the heat!" during the Guldo fight. He never sounded like that in the Westwood dub because he was constantly in goofy mode.

[BootyCheeksJohnson]

I just don't like the way Klassen sounds. It's just personal preference. Which to be fair, according to Sonny Strait the reason he did "Popeye on helium" for his version is because the "producer" (never specified who) hated the Ocean dub voice. So even people on the production didn't team like it. I've seen plenty of people diss Nozawa (a brilliant actress) because "[they] don't like how she sounds." It's just a preference. The voice and performance simply doesn't do anything for me. People have said similar of Kelamis in this thread.

[MasenkoHA]

I just don't like the way Klassen sounds. It's just personal preference. Which to be fair, according to Sonny Strait the reason he did "Popeye on helium" for his version is because the "producer" (never specified who) hated the Ocean dub voice.

The producer was Barry Watson

So even people on the production didn't team like it. I've seen plenty of people diss Nozawa (a brilliant actress) because "[they] don't like how she sounds." It's just a preference. The voice and performance simply doesn't do anything for me. People have said similar of Kelamis in this thread.

Another example is Gen Fukanaga not liking Scott Mcneil as Piccolo. I think most Dragon Ball fans would think he was out of his goddamn mind.

[BootyCheeksJohnson]

I didn't know about Gen Fukanawa not liking Scott McNeil. That's a surprise because most fans seem to universally view him as the best thing to come out of the Ocean dub.

[ABED]

And I wouldn't be using FUNi's opinion on who was and wasn't a good choice for any role. They heard Linda Young and thought, "Sure, that's a great choice." I've also heard Gen wasn't that high on Drummond as Vegeta. While I think his Vegeta is cartoonishly evil, he does a great job within that framework.

[MasenkoHA]

And I wouldn't be using FUNi's opinion on who was and wasn't a good choice for any role. They heard Linda Young and thought, "Sure, that's a great choice." I've also heard Gen wasn't that high on Drummond as Vegeta. While I think his Vegeta is cartoonishly evil, he does a great job within that framework.

It's less about Funi having a worthwhile opinion (clearly Fukunaga is clinically insane) and more about how there's always someone who doesn't like a voice that you like.

[WittyUsername]

And I wouldn't be using FUNi's opinion on who was and wasn't a good choice for any role. They heard Linda Young and thought, "Sure, that's a great choice." I've also heard Gen wasn't that high on Drummond as Vegeta. While I think his Vegeta is cartoonishly evil, he does a great job within that framework.

Did they think Linda Young was a great choice? I thought she was hired because they needed someone who sort of sounded like Pauline Newstone.

[SuperSaiyaManZ94]

And I wouldn't be using FUNi's opinion on who was and wasn't a good choice for any role. They heard Linda Young and thought, "Sure, that's a great choice." I've also heard Gen wasn't that high on Drummond as Vegeta. While I think his Vegeta is cartoonishly evil, he does a great job within that framework.

Did they think Linda Young was a great choice? I thought she was hired because they needed someone who sort of sounded like Pauline Newstone.

Considering that most if not all of the in house cast were initially hired on the cheap to do (poor) impressions of the Vancouver/Ocean VA's in order to cut costs on the dubbing, i think the latter is more likely.

[NitroEX]

I would also have to disagree with you on Semi-Perfect Cell’s design not being goofy. He’s by far Cell’s silliest looking form, and was even used as the basis for a certain Internet meme from the late 2000s.

The meme you're talking about is taken from a scene where Cell is intentionally drawn with exaggerated features, not his default appearance.

Even Toriyama’s editor thought he looked stupid. I suppose it’s ultimately subjective, but I’ve seen many people agree that Cell is at his least menacing and effective while he’s in that form. He comes off more like a whiny brute than a creepy horror villain like Imperfect Cell or an intelligent and charismatic final boss like Perfect Cell.

I would argue many are likely to be influenced by Dameon's voice when coming to this conclusion, which is exactly why casting a character with the correct voice is such an important first step.

Listening to the original as well as Dale Wilson's second form, neither come across as stupid, only short-tempered and conceited. The moments he's groveling are obviously just Cell conniving and wearing a mask to trick Vegeta. He's a cunning and devious character, not a goofy joke or a dumb brute.

As for Krillin I don't think I've seen a single person defend his Ocean dub voice/performance.

Klassen was a fine casting for Krillin and I have no major problem with the voice. I personally prefer a smoother voice for Krillin than Sonny Strait's raspy voice. The Funi Z dub had a habit of wanting Gohan and Krillin to sound tougher with a rasp but I never felt it was appropriate.

Brian Beacock is another good Krillin voice though he sounds more generically heroic. Klassen seems better at portraying Krillin's nervous and goofy side which, despite moments of bravery, is pretty much a default characterization for him.

The Japanese voice also shares more in common with these voices to my ears despite the differences in performance.

Usually when I see people praise the Ocean dub they do it to mock/shame the Funimation dub. Instead of just praising Ocean on it's own.

The opposite happens far more often. People will hate the Ocean dub to glorify the Funimation dub, in particular because more people have seen the Funi version.

The voices gives 80s North American cartoon vibes

Ironically the season 3 Funi Z dub gives far more of an 80s American cartoon vibe. Dale Kelly sounds reminiscent of 80s Shredder, and early Sabat often sounded like a stereotypical punk character from the 80s.

[ABED]

Did they think Linda Young was a great choice? I thought she was hired because they needed someone who sort of sounded like Pauline Newstone.

They thought she was talented enough to hire.

[MasenkoHA]

As far as Krillin is considered neither Strait or Klassen were that good tbh. Klassen's performance seem entirely based on the notion that Krillin is a coward. Strait's performance was just grating to my ears.

Gun to my head I'd choose Klassen but neither were great.

Did they think Linda Young was a great choice? I thought she was hired because they needed someone who sort of sounded like Pauline Newstone.

They thought she was talented enough to hire.

I don't think Funimation was in any position to be picky about their casting options in 1999. It was basically 1. Who's willing to work for peanuts 2. Who can kind of sort of mimic the Ocean voice.

I don't think acting talent was a big consideration on their part.

[TheGreatness25]

I certainly think that Klassen's Krillin sounded closer to the original Kuririn than Strait's did. I think that Strait grew into the role, but it's still kind of a "Funimation presents: Krillin" than the Kuririn that was actually written into the series. That's just my opinion. The Humphrey Bogart thing didn't help.

I think that Klassen had a good performance originally, but bad/rushed/inconsistent directing carved up his performance like the rest of the Ocean Group's--someone else mentioned this here and I totally agree. And then hearing Krillin's voice come out of Babidi's mouth didn't help.



By the way, I'm sorry if it's annoying and giving visual whiplash to see "Kuririn" and "Krillin" in the same post--I differentiate between versions. Sorry if it's annoying, but it is a conscious decision.

[ABED]

As far as Krillin is considered neither Strait or Klassen were that good tbh. Klassen's performance seem entirely based on the notion that Krillin is a coward. Strait's performance was just grating to my ears.

Gun to my head I'd choose Klassen but neither were great.

I disagree on both counts.

I don't see "coward" as the default setting of his performance. I can't recall a moment where his line reading was leaned into cowardice more than say the anime did.

As for Straight, my opinion has changed over the years, especially once he dropped the Popeye on helium performance and used what is mostly his normal voice. He's a good actor and he seems to like the character.

[WittyUsername]

Sonny Strait hasn’t sounded like “Popeye on helium” in over 20 years now.

I would argue many are likely to be influenced by Dameon's voice when coming to this conclusion, which is exactly why casting a character with the correct voice is such an important first step.

Some might be, but the guys at TFS don’t seem to care for Cell in that form either, and they aren’t exactly dub fanatics.

[NitroEX]

Some might be, but the guys at TFS don’t seem to care for Cell in that form either

I'm not sure what this means exactly or why TFS is relevant to this discussion.

While I might have seen some of the Abridged stuff over the years I'm not personally a fan of the creators and wouldn't know about their feelings on the dub (though I can assume they are mostly fans of it).

KaiserNeko has posted on this forum in the past and to my memory, he was vocal about loving Clarke's Cell.

[WittyUsername]

Some might be, but the guys at TFS don’t seem to care for Cell in that form either

I'm not sure what this means exactly or why TFS is relevant to this discussion.

While I might have seen some of the Abridged stuff over the years I'm not personally a fan of the creators and wouldn't know about their feelings on the dub (though I can assume they are mostly fans of it).

KaiserNeko has posted on this forum in the past and to my memory, he was vocal about loving Clarke's Cell.

KaiserNeko definitely isn’t a fan of the old dub, and has been very vocal about his disdain for the Faulconer score in particular.

For the record, I’m not a big fan of TFS either. I just brought them up as an example of people who are familiar with the Japanese version, but don’t seem to care for Cell’s second form. Toriyama’s editor didn’t care for that form either, and thought it made Cell look like a moron.

[MasenkoHA]

As far as TFS is concerned KaiserNeko may not be a fan of the dub but Lanipator clearly was.

A lot of the TFS voices are imitating the Funi voices so I think it's fair to say most of them are fans

[Super Sonic]

Again, these were the only versions I saw, but did anyone else notice that Turles' crew were more respectful in the video dub to the tv dub? In the tv dub they simply addressed him by name, but the video dub, they called him "Master Turles".