Funimation comments on Battle of Gods' status

[The Jackal]

I'm really hoping they do get a new voice crew for it. I'm so tired of hearing Sabat and Schemmel, it's unreal.

It's time we got new (and better) talent to cover DBZ now.

[Chuquita]

With FOX, honestly, I'd be more worried about the translation itself; a bad translation has the potential to wreak havoc on both the subs and the dub. If FOX handles translation, there's a chance they'd try to "spice it up" or whatever with stupid stuff ala some of the Season 3 dub.

If worst comes to worst, I'll just import the Blu-ray from Japan (which I might do anyway because I don't want to wait however many years it'll be for a U.S. dvd release).

[Gyt Kaliba]

I'm really hoping they do get a new voice crew for it. I'm so tired of hearing Sabat and Schemmel, it's unreal.

It's time we got new (and better) talent to cover DBZ now.

That's the thing though - just because they got (if they did) 'new' talent, doesn't mean it would be better at all. And if Fox went with a different voice-over casting, it's not like they'd go to Studiopolis in LA, or Sinterniklaas's crew in New York, or Ocean in Canada, or anywhere else. They'd go to Hollywood stars. And Hollywood stars are notoriously bad at doing voice-over.

Though keep in mind, that's not a 100% thing either. There's plenty that are also good at voice-over as well as on-screen acting, like Robin Williams, or Tim Curry.

[B]

The movie isn't going to do bad if Fox used a different dub cast. The general audience would pay the voice cast no mind.

EDIT: Ninja'd by Mike.

Trust me, if FOX changes the cast in anyway, it'll be ruined. We need the FUNimation cast, not some last-minute cast.

Why should anyone "trust you?" And there's no way to know if a possible cast outside of FUNimation's would be "last-minute."

I mean, yeesh, the FUNimation cast when it started out was 'last-minute" as they replaced the Ocean cast. Maybe these new folk will surprise you.

[Mewzard]

I'm really hoping they do get a new voice crew for it. I'm so tired of hearing Sabat and Schemmel, it's unreal.

It's time we got new (and better) talent to cover DBZ now.

Yeah, if that happened, I would give up on watching new dubbed DBZ until they were returned. I have absolutely zero interest in changing the cast for the dub from where it is now with Kai. They found my sweet spot, and I'm not giving that up. Hell, I might be disheartened enough to put off watching the movie at all for a while if that happened (wait until someone else paid for it so I wouldn't be supporting their choice). That's how strongly I feel about the current cast.

That's the thing though - just because they got (if they did) 'new' talent, doesn't mean it would be better at all. And if Fox went with a different voice-over casting, it's not like they'd go to Studiopolis in LA, or Sinterniklaas's crew in New York, or Ocean in Canada, or anywhere else. They'd go to Hollywood stars. And Hollywood stars are notoriously bad at doing voice-over.

Though keep in mind, that's not a 100% thing either. There's plenty that are also good at voice-over as well as on-screen acting, like Robin Williams, or Tim Curry.

Yeah, the voice acting can get so much worse. Especially if Hollywood gets their grubby hands into that pie and messes it up.

But yeah, I'm all for Tim Curry as Beers/Bills/Bubsy, lol.

Why should anyone "trust you?" And there's no way to know if a possible cast outside of FUNimation's would be "last-minute."

I mean, yeesh, the FUNimation cast when it started out was 'last-minute" as they replaced the Ocean cast. Maybe these new folk will surprise you.

Even if they weren't "last minute"...I still don't want a new cast. I'm far too attached by this point to the current cast to be willing to give a new one a chance. If they want to make their own DBZ CG Comedy Hour or something, they can cast new people. But as long as we're dealing with the Goku we know and love, I only want to hear Nozawa/Schemmel in official capacity (and MasakoX for parody purposes) *at least for Adult Goku in Schemmel's case*.

Honestly, even if they got the Ocean guys back, I'd still be annoyed. My limited attachment to them was from a short period almost 15 years ago.

[Fennekin]

The movie isn't going to do bad if Fox used a different dub cast. The general audience would pay the voice cast no mind.

EDIT: Ninja'd by Mike.

Trust me, if FOX changes the cast in anyway, it'll be ruined. We need the FUNimation cast, not some last-minute cast.

Why should anyone "trust you?" And there's no way to know if a possible cast outside of FUNimation's would be "last-minute."

I mean, yeesh, the FUNimation cast when it started out was 'last-minute" as they replaced the Ocean cast. Maybe these new folk will surprise you.

I'm just being honest. There's no point in letting a company like FOX handle this movie. It would be wrecked. It is much smarter to just let FUNimation handle it.

[Chuquita]

Well, hopefully things have changed in the four years since the LAM. If I remember correctly it wasn't just Toriyama that FOX wouldn't listen to for input, they never either contacted or spoke with/took input from Funi either.

[The Jackal]

I'm really hoping they do get a new voice crew for it. I'm so tired of hearing Sabat and Schemmel, it's unreal.

It's time we got new (and better) talent to cover DBZ now.

That's the thing though - just because they got (if they did) 'new' talent, doesn't mean it would be better at all.

No Sabat would be better by default, imo at least. I know I'm in the minority, but I just don't like his performance. Or Schemmel's for that matter.

Yeah, if that happened, I would give up on watching new dubbed DBZ until they were returned. I have absolutely zero interest in changing the cast for the dub from where it is now with Kai. They found my sweet spot, and I'm not giving that up. Hell, I might be disheartened enough to put off watching the movie at all for a while if that happened (wait until someone else paid for it so I wouldn't be supporting their choice). That's how strongly I feel about the current cast.

I'm the opposite. I feel they could do so much, much better and I really do feel a new voice cast should give it a crack. But what am I saying, chances are Funi will just be used anyway, and I'll just be forced to watch the Japanese version with subs, which I'm not complaining, but it would be nice to see a Funi-free English release for a change (again, I'm a minatory, but one can hope).

[OmegaRockman]

You know, assuming that FOX dubs the movie, I actually wouldn't mind if they hired the Funimation actors to do their regular roles but get celebrities to play Beerus and Whis since they're new characters. I may have gotten this idea from reading the forums here, but I don't remember... Whatever the case, I don't see that as a bad idea, really. I still hope Funimation ultimately ends up dubbing the movie, though.

[DragonBalllKaiHD]

I'm the opposite. I feel they could do so much, much better and I really do feel a new voice cast should give it a crack. But what am I saying, chances are Funi will just be used anyway, and I'll just be forced to watch the Japanese version with subs, which I'm not complaining, but it would be nice to see a Funi-free English release for a change (again, I'm a minatory, but one can hope).

It's a wishful thinking. It ain't going to happen. You have to accept the fact that Funimation is the one that dubs DBZ in a long run. Whether you like Funimation or not, you can't forget that Funimation improves so much to the point that most of us want them to dub Dragon Ball Z again. You can't absolutely have anyone voice Freeza other than Chris Ayres. Or Schemmel as Goku. They are becoming icons of the Dragon Ball franchise.

I certainly hope that they dub the movie. I will be bitterly disappointed if they don't.

[VegettoEX]

You can't absolutely have anyone voice Freeza other than Chris Ayres. Or Schemmel as Goku. They are becoming icons for the Dragon Ball franchise.

He's certainly no icon to the -- usually younger -- fans that love to spew every amount of absolutely horrific vitriol possible because Freeza's not the chain-smoking joke-cracker they remember.

Change is possible even within the established FUNimation cast. How many voice actors did Tenshinhan go through, again...?

[Big Momma]

Personally, I think I'd welcome a new, FOX-chosen cast. It'd be nice to hear a new take on the characters after all these years. Heck, a FOX dub might even end up being better than a FUNi one.

[DragonBalllKaiHD]

You can't absolutely have anyone voice Freeza other than Chris Ayres. Or Schemmel as Goku. They are becoming icons for the Dragon Ball franchise.

He's certainly no icon to the -- usually younger -- fans that love to spew every amount of absolutely horrific vitriol possible because Freeza's not the chain-smoking joke-cracker they remember.

Change is possible even within the established FUNimation cast. How many voice actors did Tenshinhan go through, again...?

Well, what I meant is that the voice actors in the previously dubbed DBZ has been giving voices to certain characters for a long time. When they replaced Young with Ayres for Freeza, you knew that Ayres will almost certainly be Freeza for a long time. Wouldn't that mean that he's going to be an icon?

[Mewzard]

You can't absolutely have anyone voice Freeza other than Chris Ayres. Or Schemmel as Goku. They are becoming icons for the Dragon Ball franchise.

He's certainly no icon to the -- usually younger -- fans that love to spew every amount of absolutely horrific vitriol possible because Freeza's not the chain-smoking joke-cracker they remember.

Change is possible even within the established FUNimation cast. How many voice actors did Tenshinhan go through, again...?

Well, for Chris Ayres, it's more of a matter that we don't WANT him to change, because that man was a damn fantastic Freeza. I feel the same way about Schemmel as Goku, but he's already had the role for approaching 14 years now. That's the time where you stop replacing actors because people are attached (Well, people who care about the dub of course).

Personally, I think I'd welcome a new, FOX-chosen cast. It'd be nice to hear a new take on the characters after all these years. Heck, a FOX dub might even end up being better than a FUNi one.

Even IF it's better (and given Fox sometimes, and some terrible celebrity voice work that's been done at times, I don't see that as likely), fans attached to a set of voices like myself won't care.

Just imagine if the Japanese cast was replaced with the perfect storm of best voice actors on the planet. Every single member somehow has the perfect voice for the role and decades of acting chops to make every scene perfect...would you care if it meant losing every single voice actor? Or, if that's not enough, say they were to physically replace the old audio on all releases so you can never get this cast's work again (or, replaced via time travel, but you know about it before it happens if that's the extreme you need *Think an Imagin from Kamen Rider Den-O did something to the voice cast*)..wouldn't you be upset regardless?

I feel that way about both the Japanese cast AND Funi's dub cast. At this point, I care about them both equally (I was originally a dubbie, then the Japanese cast won me over thanks to uncut DVD releases...then Kai helped boost my love for the dub cast back up, lol), which is why this matters to me so strongly. Me losing Schemmel as Goku would upset me as much as losing Nozawa as Goku (which would upset me greatly, she's fantastic).

I know here, the sub is the king of the nest, but you can be a strong, fan of over half your life and like both. I've always been a passionate fan who loves the series (I do own the SJ versions of the DB/Z manga and enjoyed reading those, got all of Z in Dragon Boxes but the last...need the money, and I've got the first four Kai sets on DVD *planning to get the Blu Rays of the Seasons in the near future*).

I just feel fans of the Funi cast like myself want them to stay more than anyone else who would want to watch a dub would want a new cast. It's pretty make-or-break for me.

[penguintruth]

Just imagine if the Japanese cast was replaced with the perfect storm of best voice actors on the planet.

Many in the Japanese cast are likely already the best voice actors on the planet. I mean, Toshio Furukawa, Tohru Furuya, Norio Wakamoto, Daisuke Gouri, Ryo Horikawa...

[Jackal puFF]

You know there's going to be a lot of rage if all of a sudden Goku and everyone else starts sounding different in US. Forever people talking about it on youtube and what not. It'd be pretty jarring if they attempted that. But for curiosity's sake, I don't really mind if they getting new voices either.

[Mewzard]

Just imagine if the Japanese cast was replaced with the perfect storm of best voice actors on the planet.

Many in the Japanese cast are likely already the best voice actors on the planet. I mean, Toshio Furukawa, Tohru Furuya, Norio Wakamoto, Daisuke Gouri, Ryo Horikawa...

...*sigh* You know what I mean. Let's just say for the sake of argument they're placed by voice actors that are clearly better...would you be fine with it then? Or would you still prefer your old cast?

And I do agree, they are wonderful voice actors (which made me glad that Toei was glad to use actors among that group for several anime). Tohru Furuya is one of my favorite Japanese VAs, Ryo Horikawa is always awesome (I'm loving him in his live action role as the nerdy Sentai fan-turned villain, General Tsu, in Akibaranger 2), and Norio Wakamoto's cracktacular voice is always pure fun to hear. Also, Shigeru Chiba has been awesome in narrating Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger (warning, he's really excited):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qr8oJz7e-do

It's always a thrill to hear these guys at work.

[GTx10]

Fox used the Dub Digimon Adventure 1 cast for the movie so I don't see why they wouldn't use Funi, or at the very least Ocean Dub.

[Gyt Kaliba]

Fox used the Dub Digimon Adventure 1 cast for the movie so I don't see why they wouldn't use Funi, or at the very least Ocean Dub.

I have no documentable proof, but I've heard mumblings quite a lot in the past that they considered re-casting for that as well. So it's always hard to tell really.

[GTx10]

Fox used the Dub Digimon Adventure 1 cast for the movie so I don't see why they wouldn't use Funi, or at the very least Ocean Dub.

I have no documentable proof, but I've heard mumblings quite a lot in the past that they considered re-casting for that as well. So it's always hard to tell really.

I see. Well even if that's true (its very possible) the dub was picked in the end, so score one for dubs! So perhaps Funi could get their roles given to them. I'm sure Funi would strongly appeal to FOX to play their roles if the movie comes over here.


How is BOG different from every other DB/Z movie that Funi just can't grab it and run?