Nozawa and Sabat's multiple roles

[Akumaito Beam]

To be fair I tend to have a very hard time telling what fake accents are going on in any English dub of Dragon Ball. Commander Red's accent disappeared completely for awhile and then came back for one of his last episodes. I don't blame people for getting confused or unnecessarily enraged.

[TheBlackPaladin]

Well, lemme throw something out there...when you were watching the show on TV, could you tell that Chris Sabat was doing all the voices? I suppose it depends on how old you were, but I honestly couldn't tell at all when I was 12. It didn't cross my mind for several years that those characters could be played by the same person. I can tell now, yes, and I think it's hard not to think of it that way since we've all looked at the credits and read the rants online numerous times...but I truly, honestly couldn't tell when I was a kid.

[VegettoEX]

See, yeah -- I wasn't 12 back then ^_~.

I was also one of those kids who raged at the TV when James Avery wasn't voicing Shredder that particular day.

[Nikkolas]

I really liked Sabat's distinction between King Piccolo and regular Piccolo. Oh sure he kinda used the same voice for Ma Junior in the 23rd Budokai but in DBZ his Piccolo sounds much less "aged" which is very appropriate.

Sabat's King Piccolo reminds me of his Raizen which makes sense since they're both ancient demons.

[Attitudefan]

You're thinking back to 1999 (or criticisms of 1999) when the cast of FUNimation's DBZ was Chris Sabat, Sean Schemmel, Chris Sabat, Chris Sabat, Dale Kelley, Chris Sabat, and a fresh up-and-comer named Chris Sabat. It was also directed by Chris Sabat.

Every voice sounded exactly the same, and it was easy-pickings at the time to showcase examples of Chris Sabat talking to Chris Sabat talking to Chris Sabat in the same scene all sounding like Chris Sabat talking to Chris Sabat talking to Chris Sabat.

Combine not even watching that version of the show with an immensely-respectable gazillion-fold increase in talent and care, and -- trust me -- it's not really a concern anymore.

(But we're still going to laugh at 1999, 'cuz NEVER FORGET.)

You forgot Nadolny...

Anyways, I think most people pick on Sabat is because he was doing more character voices than acting. I mean, it was a huge step back compare to before Texas took over. I do find his voice more annoying than anyone else back then; his piccolo sounded TERRIBLE! He sounded like he always had something stuck in his mouth or clenched teeth.

His Recoome was a good impression when he first started (acting wise, not that great). He changed it so much over the years with Recoome. Zarbon too, went from a Aussie to a faux gay British accent. His one line as Zarbon sounds quite different than the rest of his voices at that time (in the Vegeta flashback with Nappa and Raditz)

[Super Sonic]

I think a big problem with Sabat is how he's in every single Funimation dub.

There are a few he's not in like Sekirei and Negima season 1. Though he is gonna be in Funimation's new show "Panty and Stocking" playing a black guy with an afro. Don't know the guy's name, but from the trailer he sounds awesome.

Well, lemme throw something out there...when you were watching the show on TV, could you tell that Chris Sabat was doing all the voices? I suppose it depends on how old you were, but I honestly couldn't tell at all when I was 12. It didn't cross my mind for several years that those characters could be played by the same person. I can tell now, yes, and I think it's hard not to think of it that way since we've all looked at the credits and read the rants online numerous times...but I truly, honestly couldn't tell when I was a kid.

That was something similar I noticed when I picked up "Rescue Rangers" on dvd. When I was little, I didn't know Tress McNeille was doing most of the female characters on the show, but realized more when I watched again recently, and not just because she was the only woman credited.

[Gonstead]

It's always kind of irritating to me to hear people say that Chris Sabat's characters all sound alike, because even in the old dub, that wasn't the case. There were clear differences in their voices...for example...

Recoome: Was very bass and deep from the chest.
Piccolo: Was around as deep as Recoome, but not voiced with anywhere near as much force. His voice wasn't BOOMING like Recoome was.
Vegeta: Was higher than Piccolo and much more raspy, even later on into the Buu and Remastered Saiyan Sagas. The lines were also delivered with much more intensity.
Jeice: Australian
Zarbon: British
Kami: Higher than Vegeta, with a little bit, but not as much of a rasp as Vegeta.

Thoughts?

You're right, I never got why people said that either, although you do have to admit that Piccolo and Vegeta used to sound very similar during their screams.

Don't forget Burter.

IMO He sounded alright as the role but in episode 68 he really did sound like Veteta most of the time. That must of probably been the episode he first did as Burter after taking over from Vic Mignogna.

[Kingdom Heartless]

Wait, I'm not very clued in with the Funimation dub.

Just how many voices did Chris Sabat do?

[JulieYBM]

Wait, I'm not very clued in with the Funimation dub.

Just how many voices did Chris Sabat do?

Here's an old (last modified 2/11/2010) list I made:

1. Vegeta
2. Piccolo
3. Yamcha
4. Piccolo Daimaô
5. Karin
6. Kami-sama
7. Umigame
8. Adjutant Black
9. Grandpa Gohan
10. Muuri/Moori (the second Saichoro)
11. Saichoro (Grand Elder of Namekians)
12. King Vegeta
13. Rikuum
14. Butta
15. Jheese
16. Sauzer/Salza
17. Vegeta Jr.
18. Shen Long
19. Polunga
20. Red Shen Long
21. Super Xi Xing Long
22. The Evil Shen Long that Smokes (?)
23. Zarbon
24. Bubbles
25. Mr. Popo
26. Narrator (Dragon Ball Movie Two/Three)
27. Angira (DBZ Movie Four)
28. Kakûja (DBZ Movie Four)
29. Zeiun (DBZ Movie Four)
30. The Dictator (Movie 12)
31. Rakkaru (Dragon Ball GT special)
32. Haiya Dragon
33. Nappa (Season Three Flashback)
34. Raditz (Season Three Flashback)
35. The Doctor (Movie Eleven)
36. Old Man that Knows the Son Family who appears with his wife watching the Cell Games on TV.
37. Kuwabara look-a-like (DBGT Episode #39)
38. Colonel Silver
39. Torga (GT Special)
40. Igor (DB Movie 2)
41.
42.
43.

[Kingdom Heartless]

Good gravy.

From that, I have to say there isn't much comparison. That's insane.

[dbboxkaifan]

Oh, and by the way... It's his opinion that Sabat's Zarbon had something of a British accent.

The fact's Sabat voice of Sabat or any sound nothing like a British accent, at all.

If he actually tried to sound British with his American accent, it would've count but he didn't.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNOFkTqg3Nk - 0:31 Ayres' Freeza isn't entirely an imitation of a British accent, but much closer than Sabat's attempts.

Sabat will always be Sabat, so there's not much to be said, any more.

[Gyt Kaliba]

Honestly, that became my major complaint with the Japanese side of Dragon Ball pretty quickly. Nozawa does do certain inflections to make the roles sound different, for the most part, but after a while it got pretty bad with her talking to herself three characters at a time, thinking of the Goku/Gohan/Goten stuff.

Okay, I exaggerate a bit as I can't think of a single scene with all three characters talking to each other...but you get my point. The only roles I specifically didn't like her in though, were future Gohan (sounded exactly like her adult Goku, she ended up doing a lot better for Gohan in the Buu arc), and the god-awful choice of having her voice the oozaru form in GT.

As for Sabat, I think TheBlackPaladin has a good point that for those of us that were kids back then, we didn't really notice too much. Just the benefit of it just being 'a cool show on TV' to us at the time I guess. I do remember the day I found out that Piccolo and Vegeta were the same guy though, and freaking out about how 'cool' that was to me. Going back to the dub of Namek stuff nowadays though, good lord...suddenly I'm no longer watching Dragon Ball Z, I'm watching 'The Chris Sabat Show! Starring Sean Schemmel'. Just on Namek alone, he's like every third major character and every second background Namekian. It's insanity.

So for me, both performers probably got more roles than they needed - I'll never be able to agree with Toei's decision to have Nozawa voice every Son male (but since that is how it works out, I can deal with it), and I'll always ugh a lot at Sabat's multitude of roles in early Z.

Also, off topic a bit -

See, yeah -- I wasn't 12 back then ^_~.

I was also one of those kids who raged at the TV when James Avery wasn't voicing Shredder that particular day.

For me it was worse when Rob Paulsen wasn't Raphael. All of my child rage burst out at once. Whenever I eventually get the DVDs for oldschool TMNT and get to see that show again, it'll be the only time I complain when Jim Cummings voices someone I think.

[penguintruth]

And now Paulsen's going to be Don instead of Raph. Boo.

[Piccolo Daimao]

Though he is gonna be in Funimation's new show "Panty and Stocking" playing a black guy with an afro. Don't know the guy's name, but from the trailer he sounds awesome.

Unfortunately, I can't watch the trailer because FUNimation blocked it in my country , but the black guy with an afro is Garterbelt. You should watch Panty & Stocking (produced by Gainax); it's great.

[Lord Eeyore Haw-Haw]

Oh, and by the way... It's his opinion that Sabat's Zarbon had something of a British accent.

The fact's Sabat voice of Sabat or any sound nothing like a British accent, at all.

If he actually tried to sound British with his American accent, it would've count but he didn't.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNOFkTqg3Nk - 0:31 Ayres' Freeza isn't entirely an imitation of a British accent, but much closer than Sabat's attempts.

Sabat will always be Sabat, so there's not much to be said, any more.

There are tons of "British" accents I've heard that don't sound anything like a British accent, and I always think to myself "How many Americans think that we English actually have more than just two accents, consisting of either Received Pronunciation or Cockney, and nothing else." It's just how things go. And yet people will still call it British or English or Australian or whatever. It's not something you should get in a huff over, and not something you should tell someone to take back their opinion over. And there's no need to act like "I'm right, you're wrong, so there" over it. You don't like Chris Sabat. Fine. Whatever. Some of us don't mind him. Does that mean we're wrong, and that you need to call his acting bad? No. It's our opinion, whether to like him or not. It's when you start going on at other people's opinions, and telling us not to have them, that you're getting nasty.

[VegettoEX]

As much as I'm equally getting pretty tired of dbboxkaifan's excessive repeats of how he feels about Chris Sabat, he is indeed entitled to express that opinion and provide examples as to why he feels that way just as much as you are entitled to provide the opposite.

So yes, he can call the person's acting "bad" and explain why he thinks that way, just as you're completely open (and encouraged) to provide examples of the opposite and explain why you feel that way.

[Lord Eeyore Haw-Haw]

Oh, I wasn't saying that he wasn't entitled to express his opinion. I was saying "No, we're not wrong for having the opinion opposite to you", which he was implying by telling someone to take their opinion back.

[The Tori-bot]

Yeah, that's true. I don't agree with Nozawa voicing Bardock and Tullece, though, because while the high-pitched voices work for the characters of the Sons, they really don't for the evil and fierce Saiyans that have no real relation to Gokuu other than in appearance and it's just jarring.

I'd say that Bardock has more relation to Goku than just appearance...

And as for Tullece, he was supposed to be a "what-if?" version of Goku, so having Nozawa voice him just reinforces that idea.

[linkdude20002001]

It's always kind of irritating to me to hear people say that Chris Sabat's characters all sound alike, because even in the old dub, that wasn't the case. There were clear differences in their voices...for example...

Recoome: Was very bass and deep from the chest.
Piccolo: Was around as deep as Recoome, but not voiced with anywhere near as much force. His voice wasn't BOOMING like Recoome was.
Vegeta: Was higher than Piccolo and much more raspy, even later on into the Buu and Remastered Saiyan Sagas. The lines were also delivered with much more intensity.
Jeice: Australian
Zarbon: British
Kami: Higher than Vegeta, with a little bit, but not as much of a rasp as Vegeta.

Thoughts?

There's actually a scene in Kai where Vegeta is laughing at Gohan being in pain, and Piccolo was on screen, so I thought it was Piccolo laughing at first... -_-
So, they're more similar than you think.

[GS7X7]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4KEX3cprEg

Does Masako voice Riley in J. Boondocks? It sounds kinda like Goku.