FUNimation's DBZ subs better than others?

Discussion regarding the entirety of the franchise in a general (meta) sense, including such aspects as: production, trends, merchandise, fan culture, and more.

Moderators: General Help, Kanzenshuu Staff

User avatar
Super Sonic
Born 'n Bred Here
Posts: 5171
Joined: Tue Feb 03, 2004 4:45 pm

FUNimation's DBZ subs better than others?

Post by Super Sonic » Mon Oct 13, 2008 9:22 pm

Hey, you know how most guys say Funi did better with other dubs than thier DBZ dub? Well, while I admit I haven't watched everything by Funimation subbed, but the subs for DBZ are at least better than the ones done for series like School Rumble and Shuffle. THose two aren't subbed by the guy who did DBZ, YYH, and Fruits Basket. Says they're done by some company, who don't do like him. They leave names in Western order, (which I don't mind for the dub but felt was different for Funi titles and in School Rumble's case, messes up the Harima Kenji-Harry McKenzie joke). They also don't use name suffixes all the time. They keep -senpai, but not -sensei, -kun or others as much, which is what I liked for Funimation. Anyone else notice this?

User avatar
Raki
I Live Here
Posts: 2712
Joined: Fri Aug 31, 2007 12:50 pm
Location: USA
Contact:

Post by Raki » Mon Oct 13, 2008 9:47 pm

I heard the non-Simmons subs for Funi DVDs were bad. But since Funi is good at dubbing, that shouldn't be an issue. For some fans who watch Japanese only, it is an problem though.
The series doesn't start with the arrival of Raditz. Stop being lazy and watch Dragonball.

User avatar
TheGreatness25
I Live Here
Posts: 4924
Joined: Fri Oct 19, 2007 9:36 am

Post by TheGreatness25 » Mon Oct 13, 2008 10:23 pm

Actually, the popular belief is that FUNimation's subbing is pretty well done. There's even a portion on this site that has comparisons between the FUNimation subs and Julian's (I believe) translations.

User avatar
VegettoEX
Kanzenshuu Co-Owner & Administrator
Posts: 17543
Joined: Sat Jan 10, 2004 3:10 pm
Location: New Jersey
Contact:

Post by VegettoEX » Mon Oct 13, 2008 10:25 pm

TheGreatness25 wrote:Actually, the popular belief is that FUNimation's subbing is pretty well done. There's even a portion on this site that has comparisons between the FUNimation subs and Julian's (I believe) translations.
That's not what's in question, here. Re-read the first post.
:: [| Mike "VegettoEX" LaBrie |] ::
:: [| Kanzenshuu - Co-Founder/Administrator, Podcast Host, News Manager (note: our "job" titles are arbitrary and meaningless) |] ::
:: [| Website: January 1998 |] :: [| Podcast: November 2005 |] :: [| Fusion: April 2012 |] :: [| Wiki: 20XX |] ::

SSj_Rambo
I Live Here
Posts: 3496
Joined: Tue Apr 01, 2008 4:10 pm
Location: West City

Post by SSj_Rambo » Mon Oct 13, 2008 10:27 pm

I'd never noticed this...but then again I've never seen any of Funi's releases other than their Dragonball ones. This made me think, Steve Simmons (Funi's sub translator) knows that he has a large crowd of people here that know him by name and read most of his subs fo Funi's Dragonball products, so I wouldn't be surprised if he spent a little more time double checking his Dragonball translations than on his others. :wink:
Last edited by SSj_Rambo on Mon Oct 13, 2008 10:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
Ex-Dubbie369
OMG CRAZY REGEN
Posts: 898
Joined: Mon Nov 27, 2006 2:14 am
Location: Anaheim, CA

Post by Ex-Dubbie369 » Mon Oct 13, 2008 10:27 pm

The only FUNi DVDs I have (that aren't DB of course) are the FMA ones, and the subs on those are top notch, but I think Daimao did them, so it's no surprise really.

Tatsunoboshi Horoko
Beyond-the-Beyond Newbie
Posts: 459
Joined: Sun Mar 05, 2006 5:45 pm

Post by Tatsunoboshi Horoko » Mon Oct 13, 2008 10:38 pm

JN Productions did the subtitles for School Rumble and Shuffle, if I remember correctly, which is why the translations are a bit different from something Daimao or Tomato might do.

User avatar
TheGreatness25
I Live Here
Posts: 4924
Joined: Fri Oct 19, 2007 9:36 am

Post by TheGreatness25 » Mon Oct 13, 2008 10:52 pm

No, the reason behind my post was I misread Raki's comments and thought he was saying that he heard that the Simmons subs were bad. My mistake.

User avatar
JulieYBM
Patreon Supporter
Posts: 16503
Joined: Mon Jan 16, 2006 10:25 pm

Post by JulieYBM » Mon Oct 13, 2008 11:18 pm

Tatsunoboshi Horoko wrote:JN Productions did the subtitles for School Rumble and Shuffle, if I remember correctly, which is why the translations are a bit different from something Daimao or Tomato might do.
Tomato (of One Piece and Dragonball fame) is also active in the fan community so that is probably why he finds himself in the fandom's favor...
She/Her💕 💜 💙
progesterone princess, estradiol empress
Lucifer's bimbo daughter

User avatar
bkev
I Live Here
Posts: 2532
Joined: Sat Jan 20, 2007 7:17 pm
Location: Twitter. Tweet-Tweet.

Post by bkev » Mon Oct 13, 2008 11:21 pm

Tomato did Tenchi as well, which makes me happy. :)
[quote="Brakus"]For all the flack that FUNimation gets on this forum for their quote about DBZ, there's some modicum of truth to it: a 9-year-old is born every day. Or in some cases, "reborn". DBZ may be a kids' show, but it's been so close to so many hearts all over Japan, America, and quite possibly, even the world.[/quote]

User avatar
Thanos6
Advanced Regular
Posts: 1353
Joined: Fri Apr 14, 2006 11:46 pm
Location: Deep 13
Contact:

Post by Thanos6 » Tue Oct 14, 2008 12:48 am

Tenchi got an A+ release the whole bloody way. EVERYTHING about what Pioneer did with Tenchi in the US should be considered the high-water mark. The dub, I think, is the gold standard of dubs (that, or the Akira re-dub).
Trunks & Goten forever

User avatar
MagicBox
Advanced Regular
Posts: 1476
Joined: Sat Nov 25, 2006 6:09 pm
Location: On The Forums... Duh!
Contact:

Post by MagicBox » Tue Oct 14, 2008 2:25 am

Tatsunoboshi Horoko wrote:JN Productions did the subtitles for School Rumble and Shuffle, if I remember correctly, which is why the translations are a bit different from something Daimao or Tomato might do.
There's your answer then, Super Sonic. Right there.

FUNi's other translator, Clyde Mandelin (Tomato), was personally requested by Steve Simmons himself, I believe, and they're both fantastic translators. Mr. Mandelin did episodes 29 onward of Dragon Ball, and he's doing Detective Conan and One Piece right now too. I can't really speak for the accuracy on the latter, since I only own one DVD of the series (OP movie 8), but I'm a huge Detective Conan fan, and I've got nothing but good things to say about his translations. Honorifics, correct name format (last name first, blah, blah, blah), and just a great job overall.

I do think Mr. Mandelin did a somewhat imperfect job with Dragon Ball's subbing (translating important terms like "Ki" and "Son-kun", simplifying certain line translations, etc.), but hey, he was just starting. He's gotten fantastic since then.

I think FUNi's got the best subs in the entire industry. I can't even think of any other companies that regularly include honorifics and stuff like that. FUNi's not yet a perfect dubbing company (damn close, though), but I always get so excited when a title I like is licensed by them, simply because it means it'll get subbed as accurately as possible.
"Magic's Detective Agency" - The Ultimate Guide to Changes in Detective Conan

"Magic's DiGiMONMUSiC Database" - The Ultimate Guide to Digimon CDs

User avatar
Captain Awesome
Patreon Supporter
Posts: 2641
Joined: Wed Jul 25, 2007 1:31 am
Location: Australia, Planet Earth

Post by Captain Awesome » Tue Oct 14, 2008 4:14 am

MagicBox wrote: I do think Mr. Mandelin did a somewhat imperfect job with Dragon Ball's subbing (translating important terms like "Ki" and "Son-kun", simplifying certain line translations, etc.), but hey, he was just starting. He's gotten fantastic since then.
Both "Ki" and "Son-kun" are intact, however a few times when Bulma refers to Goku as "Son-kun" it's translated just as "Goku" though these instances are few and far between.

Which dvd's are you talking about?, I own all of them and I've never seen "Ki" referred to as anything else.

User avatar
sangofe
Kicks it Old-School
Posts: 7535
Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2004 3:39 pm

Post by sangofe » Tue Oct 14, 2008 3:05 pm

Ex-Dubbie369 wrote:The only FUNi DVDs I have (that aren't DB of course) are the FMA ones, and the subs on those are top notch, but I think Daimao did them, so it's no surprise really.
I believe Simmons did those.

User avatar
JulieYBM
Patreon Supporter
Posts: 16503
Joined: Mon Jan 16, 2006 10:25 pm

Post by JulieYBM » Tue Oct 14, 2008 5:56 pm

Well, Mr. Mandelin's come a long way since those DB DVDs. You've got to remember it was only he and an already busy Simmons at that time. Now Mato pops in once in a while on AP for fan help or to answer our questions. I've no reason to believe he'd produce bad products.
She/Her💕 💜 💙
progesterone princess, estradiol empress
Lucifer's bimbo daughter

User avatar
linkdude20002001
I Live Here
Posts: 2613
Joined: Fri Jul 22, 2005 4:22 pm
Location: Marysville, Washington

Post by linkdude20002001 » Wed Oct 15, 2008 5:06 pm

MagicBox wrote:Mr. Mandelin did episodes 29 onward of Dragon Ball, and he's doing Detective Conan and One Piece right now too.
Where did you hear Tomato started with episode 29? I asked him myself and he said did the first 13 episodes in addition to the rest of Dragon Ball. It was a long time ago, so he could be mistaken I suppose.
The Many English Dubs of DB, DBZ, and DBGT
Viz Release Censorship Guide

Scsigs: "Y'know, it actually makes sense that they waited till today to announce [the 30th Anniversary] set. It's Akira Toriyama's birthday."
Shaddy: "I too want my legacy destroyed as a birthday gift."

User avatar
MagicBox
Advanced Regular
Posts: 1476
Joined: Sat Nov 25, 2006 6:09 pm
Location: On The Forums... Duh!
Contact:

Post by MagicBox » Wed Oct 15, 2008 5:28 pm

Captain Awesome wrote:Which dvd's are you talking about?, I own all of them and I've never seen "Ki" referred to as anything else.
Really? Wow, I'm sorry then. I guess I got mixed up on the Ki part. But he does do the Son-kun translations and I think he also ignores Goku's accent as well, if I'm not mistaken.
linkdude20002001 wrote:Where did you hear Tomato started with episode 29? I asked him myself and he said did the first 13 episodes in addition to the rest of Dragon Ball. It was a long time ago, so he could be mistaken I suppose.
Well, on the Tournament Saga DVD set, Mr. Simmons is credited with the translations. That, in addition to a few more subtle things (like Goku's accent not being ignored), makes it a pretty safe bet that he did the Tournament Saga episodes at the very least. I know he did movies 2 & 3.
"Magic's Detective Agency" - The Ultimate Guide to Changes in Detective Conan

"Magic's DiGiMONMUSiC Database" - The Ultimate Guide to Digimon CDs

User avatar
bkev
I Live Here
Posts: 2532
Joined: Sat Jan 20, 2007 7:17 pm
Location: Twitter. Tweet-Tweet.

Post by bkev » Wed Oct 15, 2008 6:17 pm

I know for a fact that Son-Kun is at least usually used. For what it's worth.
[quote="Brakus"]For all the flack that FUNimation gets on this forum for their quote about DBZ, there's some modicum of truth to it: a 9-year-old is born every day. Or in some cases, "reborn". DBZ may be a kids' show, but it's been so close to so many hearts all over Japan, America, and quite possibly, even the world.[/quote]

User avatar
Daimao
Mr. Subtitles
Posts: 238
Joined: Thu Jan 15, 2004 9:20 pm

Post by Daimao » Fri Oct 17, 2008 1:27 am

Starting with School Rumble season 2, the translations were back in-house. Best show I did all year (and that was last year). Don't know why it didn't get released until just this month.

And Tomato did take over from episode 29 (or wherever the Tournament discs leave off). It makes sense that he did the first 13 as well, since I know I didn't do them. I hear those will finally be coming out in 2010, right?

User avatar
Raki
I Live Here
Posts: 2712
Joined: Fri Aug 31, 2007 12:50 pm
Location: USA
Contact:

Post by Raki » Fri Oct 17, 2008 2:23 am

Daimao wrote:Starting with School Rumble season 2, the translations were back in-house. Best show I did all year (and that was last year). Don't know why it didn't get released until just this month.

And Tomato did take over from episode 29 (or wherever the Tournament discs leave off). It makes sense that he did the first 13 as well, since I know I didn't do them. I hear those will finally be coming out in 2010, right?
It's so so to be honest. I don't know if that info is true or not concerning the release date.
The series doesn't start with the arrival of Raditz. Stop being lazy and watch Dragonball.

Post Reply