Stereotyping

[Godo]

Is it absolutely impossible for a man to have a high-pitched voice?

If we're talking about a 40-year old man here, then yes.

I actually knew a 40-year old man once with a high pitched voice, he was my arts teacher. He sounded like a kid almost.
So they do in fact exist, which makes Goku's voice plausible.

[Big Momma]

Is it absolutely impossible for a man to have a high-pitched voice?

If we're talking about a 40-year old man here, then yes.

Eh, 44 years is close enough

[Piccolo Daimao]

Is it absolutely impossible for a man to have a high-pitched voice?

If we're talking about a 40-year old man here, then yes.

Two words: Michael Jackson.

The other thing that annoys me is "every saga plays out the same" which frankly I'm not sure where people are getting that from at all.

Well, to be fair, that stereotype of "every saga plays out the same" does have a sliver of truth in it. See the "Goku saves the day" plot device (on arrival against Nappa, Ginyu Force and Freeza), the ridiculous Zenkai abusing, the bore-fest of Boo's regeneration, the whole "super-strong guy powers up, everyone's WTF" constant...just to name a few.

[johnboy1]

Yes, Tyson and Jackson have high-pitched voices, and guess what? People make fun of them for it. The same way they would if Goku were a real man who sounded like Nozawa. And what is this argument about? People ridiculing Goku for having a high-pitched voice. The point I'm trying to make is that you can't really blame some people for having a mental block on Goku's voice, because they probably do the same thing in real life.

[Perfect]

Well, to be fair, that stereotype of "every saga plays out the same" does have a sliver of truth in it. See the "Goku saves the day" plot device (on arrival against Nappa, Ginyu Force and Freeza), the ridiculous Zenkai abusing, the bore-fest of Boo's regeneration, the whole "super-strong guy powers up, everyone's WTF" constant...just to name a few.

Out of curiosity, what definition of plot device are you using? Also the events you listed weren't exactly "Goku saves the day".
-Arrival of Nappa: Only two people are left alive, mainly everyone is already dead. In the end he loses to Vegeta, (though most call this a draw).
-Ginyu Force: Basically everyone is trashed. Goku does save the day here, (Goku ends up beating everyone but Jeice and Captain Ginyu. Ginyu switches bodies and is beaten into the ground by Vegeta. However, Goku does throw a frog in the way of his final body switch.), though had it not been for Vegeta, it would've been all over.
-Freeza: Vegeta is beaten to a pulp and dies right in front of Goku. Krillin dies a bit later. Piccolo is heavily wounded. Goku nearly defeats Freeza, but leaves him unknowingly incapacitated. Trunks ultimately saves the day here (Unless you count the events in Trunks' time line).
My point here is to call these events for the sake of causing something that repeats itself inconsistent. At least under the "Goku save the day" terminology.

Zenkai is abused during the Freeza saga. So I'm not sure how this classifies under making every saga play out the same. In fact, the usage of zenkai on Namek isn't consistent mathematically, making each boost different than the last. The only redundant effect of this is the fact that one's power increases.

This one made little to zero sense to me. How does one character, at the last saga to be more specific, make anything prior repetitive based on his/her regeneration ability. The only regeneration techniques prior weren't any where near as advanced or mindfully baffling. Piccolo's had a limit, his head had to be in tact. Cell had a nucleus in his body which he could regenerate from. A step up from the Namekians as a whole. Buu on the other hand could regenerate from next to dust, literally. Making him nearly impossible to kill. Plus it's from an entirely different element standpoint. So how does Buu's regeneration "make every saga play-out the same" or any at all? No other character possessed magical regeneration abilities, or for that matter, to the extreme like he did. Unless you're calling the fact he can and did regenerate repetitive, which is like saying breathing air is repetitive.

People do have "WTF expressions" a lot, but generally there's a good reason for it (Piccolo during Imperfect Cell's). And the character that causes it isn't always the "super-strong guy", in comparison to other characters around. There's a ton of variables each time around to look at.
But if you're going by the whole "a character, even one character is totally scared for his/her life due to someone powering up" type thing, then we might as well say it's repetitive that certain people in the world have arachnophobia or a drinking problem.

[Godo]

Yes, Tyson and Jackson have high-pitched voices, and guess what? People make fun of them for it. The same way they would if Goku were a real man who sounded like Nozawa. And what is this argument about? People ridiculing Goku for having a high-pitched voice. The point I'm trying to make is that you can't really blame some people for having a mental block on Goku's voice, because they probably do the same thing in real life.

Well, then we are speaking of ignorant and discriminating people then, if they will ridicule someone because of their voice.
If they have a mental block on Goku's voice, it pretty much further expands on the prejudices I have regarding those kinds of fans.
It's sad that in the 21st Century, there are still people who are that thick in their heads.
At least I know, that in Sweden no one with such a voice (or a handicap for the matter) is ridiculed in such a way.

[Piccolo Daimaoh]

Is it absolutely impossible for a man to have a high-pitched voice?

If we're talking about a 40-year old man here, then yes.

Eh, 44 years is close enough

Okay, it's not impossible. But it still is very rare.

[Kaboom]

Adult Goku retained his high-pitched little boy voice as a way for the anime to express his being a happy-go-lucky man-child. Like the voice or not, there is a reason for it and it's perfectly legit for it to be that way. Even still, his voice DID age itself over time. Just watch a scene from the Saiyan arc or something else early that has him and young Gohan in it. It'll be blatantly clear just how much older Goku really sounds.

[OutlawTorn]

Adult Goku retained his high-pitched little boy voice as a way for the anime to express his being a happy-go-lucky man-child. Like the voice or not, there is a reason for it and it's perfectly legit for it to be that way.

Fair enough, but why should it bother people if not everybody likes it? I don't watch DBZ and constantly seethe thinking "How can people prefer Nozawa over Schemmel?" so why is the very concept that people could prefer Schemmel over Nozawa so anathema to others? How could it possibly impair their enjoyment? Since they aren't interested in the dub in the slightest, it's not like they're going to be constantly exposed to it, unless they're masochists and choose to watch the dub for some morbid reason.

Everybody has different tastes and everybody is entitled to their own preferences. I just cannot fathom why anybody, whether they are a fan of the original or a dub, would be bothered by another viewer's preference.

[Big Momma]

Okay, it's not impossible. But it still is very rare.

Haha, I do agree. I was just messing with ya


While Goku's voice is higher-pitched...I wouldn't really say that's it's all that high, especially considering a woman is voicing him. After knowing that...I would expect it to be even higher than what it is. It gets much deeper during serious parts.

[Gaffer Tape]

RE: OutlawTorn

Well, I think the answer to that question is found the other way around. I think it's highly probably that the reason Japanese fans are so defensive about Nozawa is because of how prevalent the, "Durh, Goku sounds like a woman/gay/etc." "argument" is. And when the argument often can't be stated any more literately than that but still is so prevalently tossed around like fact, I certainly understand how that can grate on people's nerves. It certainly grates on mine at times.

[AgitoZ]

Well I prefer Nozawa over Schemel not because of the pitch. But instead of how they portray the character.

Nozawa's is a happy go-lucky, hick, man-child(which is who Goku is to me). While Schemel's is a knight in shining armor, the stereotypical hero(who Goku is definitely not).

Although Schemel has certainly gotten better.

[Soul]

But you know guys, there is a hard delivered point here.
YouTube User's and their comments are ..I'd say 7 to 8 times out of 10 ignorant and blinded by so-called nostalgia, especially because these people lack the intelligence to see what good voice work really is. And even in say the 2005 redub, quite a bit of the dialogue sounds stilted and awkward. While say Kai's English voice work in terms of it's quality is as close to top-notch as "DBZ" in general will ever get. (Which goes into YT User's bitching about Colleen's Gohan).

It's that mentality that goes into the passive issues these "Fans" have with the Japanese version.
Nozawa is Goku! No question, no argue. Even for someone like me who of course grew up watching the dub and loved Schemmel. (So it's nice to see the guy act with the script accurate and his performance more akin to Nozawa's)

Not every fan who were introduced to the franchise from the dub will even consider giving the Japanese version a chance.
It all come's down to one thing: Ignorance. (I kinda got a bit of topic but still)

[batistabus]

Well I prefer Nozawa over Schemel not because of the pitch. But instead of how they portray the character.

Nozawa's is a happy go-lucky, hick, man-child(which is who Goku is to me). While Schemel's is a knight in shining armor, the stereotypical hero(who Goku is definitely not).

Although Schemel has certainly gotten better.

Like you said, it's not a matter of the voice itself. I'm certainly not going to defend anything from the original dub of Z, but what you were talking about is how the scripts were written.

Although Schemmel's acting has obviously vastly improved in Z Kai, the writers are still seemingly afraid to go all the way with Goku. The majority of American DBZ fans know Goku as a stupid, hungry, weird hero. While that's not a complete misrepresentation, the change we'd like (they're afraid) would be too much of a shock to everyone who grew up with the original concept. They have taken some leeway in Z Kai (making him more goofy, using slang once in a while) but one could argue it's not enough. They're trying to find a happy medium.

The point is, every time Schemmel uses excessive slang or says dialogue that seems to be more in-character, many people who hated the Z dub throw their hands up. At this point it's not the voice or the acting, but the script.

[jjgp1112]

You know what's also a stereotype? Assuming that every fan of Z's dub is just speaking from nostalgia...

[AgitoZ]

Although Schemmel's acting has obviously vastly improved in Z Kai, the writers are still seemingly afraid to go all the way with Goku. The majority of American DBZ fans know Goku as a stupid, hungry, weird hero. While that's not a complete misrepresentation, the change we'd like (they're afraid) would be too much of a shock to everyone who grew up with the original concept. They have taken some leeway in Z Kai (making him more goofy, using slang once in a while) but one could argue it's not enough.

The point is, every time Schemmel uses excessive slang or says dialogue that seems to be more in-character, many people who hated the Z dub throw their hands up. At this point it's not the voice or the acting, but the script.

Well that's a valid point. But one thing Nozawa does better is when either Goku is serious or SSJ, is it sounds realistic or good(take your pick).

While Schemmel's sounds like a guy screaming in a booth.

[Metalwario64]

While Schemel's is a knight in shining armor, the stereotypical hero.

Perhaps in FUNimation's dub of Z (and even that was toned down in the Buu arc). In Kai, he sounds as childish as ever (possibly more so than Nozawa at times), especially in the scene where he tells Vegeta and Nappa to "just go back to wherever they came from". There he sounds like a child trying to sound tough, it's great.

I like Nozawa better, and as a kid when I downloaded the OMG FULL EPS AND MOVIEZ in Japanese I never had problems with her. I just assumed it was an Asian martial artist thing, because the only real perception of Asian martial artists I had at the time was a stereotype of Bruce Lee's high pitched "WATAAAAAA"s, so I assumed that Bruce Lee just talked like that, therefore I thought it was natural for Goku to have a higher pitched voice.

While Schemmel's sounds like a guy screaming in a booth.

I don't understand this criticism. In Kai's dub he (accurately) sounds like a child trying to sound tough (yet some still claim he still sounds like a superhero, which I just don't hear). Even in Z, he never really screamed his "serious" lines, so I don't know where you're getting that from. If anything, from recent viewings, I'd say that most of the time he under delivered his lines, even sounding tired at times.

In Z's dub, a lot of the yelling in general sounded phony, but I'd say it was more directing than anything else, as they seem to have been directed as "yell a lot and make sure you yell for every punch and kick". In Kai it's much more realistic and natural.

[Soul]

You know.. would saying "No one ever stays dead." be a stereotype?

[Cowboy Dev]

You know.. would saying "No one ever stays dead." be a stereotype?

Not really. It is kinda true.

[JulieYBM]

You know.. would saying "No one ever stays dead." be a stereotype?

Well, Cell dies and stays dead.

And #16, if he counts...