Dragonball Kai (FUNimation English) Dub: General Discussion

[KaiserNeko]

That's laughable. McNeil's Piccolo has more of the arrogant snark, a sort of superiority complex to it similar to Vegeta's (or the Japanese Vegeta, at least), the way Furukawa's Piccolo is. Sabat's has shades of this now, too, but isn't nearly as good.

Nah, McNeil is good, but that monster voice would be best suited to his first fight against Goku, followed by his fight with Goku against Raditz. I just don't think of Scotts voice when I see Piccolo bonding with Gohan, fighting Freeza, merging with Kami, and eventually being the uncle figure to Goten and Trunks. The core of Piccolo's character is the strict but wise noble teacher, I don't hear that in Scott's Piccolo at all, just mostly the "badass", but that's just a part of the character.

MasakoX is almost a perfect English dub Goku, though.

Actually he's not, though.

For the sake of everyone, let us NOT have this conversation... AGAIN.

[MR.Mark]

McNeil's Piccolo can sound sage, too

But the point everyone is trying to make to you is that Sabat sounds better, more natural, more like the actual character. I love Dinobot, but not in my Piccolo please.

Actually, he is. He captures pretty much all the qualities of Masako Nozawa's Goku

Except the accent, bad grammar, and other things. I'd also help to form a better opinion of him besides going by his work on a PARODY.

Who do you think is a good English Goku?

Chuck Norris

[penguintruth]

But the point everyone is trying to make to you is that Sabat sounds better, more natural, more like the actual character. I love Dinobot, but not in my Piccolo please.

There's that word again. "Everyone". It's you and a couple of others.

McNeil's Piccolo is much more like Furukawa's than Sabat's and far more believable.

I'd also help to form a better opinion of him besides going by his work on a PARODY.

That's entirely irrelevant. All it would take is a few tweaks in his voice and he would be perfect as an English-language Goku. He already captures Goku's free-spirited tone better than any of the English VAs to play him thus far.

Chuck Norris

Oooh, funny, an internet meme-based answer. Maybe you should post a LOLCat next.

[Kaboom]

Attitude. Stop. Now.

[MR.Mark]

Oooh, funny, an internet meme-based answer. Maybe you should post a LOLCat next.

Your having a rough night, what with everyone disagreeing with you. Chill, you act like McNiel is your grandmother.

At the end of the day, many SEEM to feel Sabat has improved. Seems to be a fair assessment, he has had the opportunity to improve and took it, McNiel has not had that chance. If your Nostalgia from the 90s makes you like Scott more whether his voice sounds like a monster or not ,more power to ya! Also, if you feel some dude on the internet voicing Goku in a parody has the acting chops to pull off the character seriously. Then that's your god given right, as baffeling as it may be to me.

Feel free to respond, repeating over and over McNeil=Furukawa and Masakox is God, in your ever lasting quest to have the last word. I've made my point and said my peace, so I'm done here.

[penguintruth]

everyone disagreeing with you

Whatever helps you sleep at night, bro.

At the end of the day, many SEEM to feel Sabat has improved. Seems to be a fair assessment, he has had the opportunity to improve and took it, McNiel has not had that chance.

I very much agree with you, Sabat has indeed improved. Scott McNeil, however, never needed improving. He was always a good Piccolo, and I can't recall too many people bitching about him. Not even Chris Psaros.

If your Nostalgia from the 90s makes you like Scott more whether his voice sounds like a monster or not ,more power to ya!

Yeah, because as so many people around here know, I am SUCH a huge fan of the old Ocean dub.

Also, if you feel some dude on the internet voicing Goku has the acting chops to pull off the character seriously. Then that's your god given right, as baffeling as it may be to me.

Talent is talent, wherever it may come from.

[G1Ravage]

The Kai dub script continues to impress me. Having watched this with Daimao's subtitles so many times, the dub is basically saying the same thing overall.

As excited as I am to see what they do with Freeza's new voice, I'm just as excited to see what they do with what Freeza says.

[MR.Mark]

As excited as I am to see what they do with Freeza's new voice, I'm just as excited to see what they do with what Freeza says.

Indeed, I hope we get some Mr. Zarbons and Mr. Dodorias as Freeza casually shoots the shit with them. Talking about how he had to kill that last namekian that didn't cooperate, saying it all like he's talking about what he had for breakfast that morning.

[omegacwa]

You're forgetting about the Ocean dubs of the first three movies.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80u__4SDjhA

And this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RuViG2-w ... re=related

I have mixed feelings about Peter Kelamis, but this is his Goku at its absolute best. He sounds like an unleashed beast.

The uncut dubs of Movies 1 through 3 from Pioneer were the epitome of "good dub" and "good home release" at that time.

Kelamis is Goku in Movie 2. He sounds exactly like what I would want Goku to sound like in English. I actually prefer the Ocean Dub of Movie 2 over the original Japanese. Too bad my DVD has a small crack on the inner ring so I am afraid to play it. Guess I will have to try and find another copy. I have it on VHS though.
I've never really like Sean Schemmel as the role. He has definitely improved over the years, but just something about his tone I have never really liked.

And as I said. At this point Sabat Vs. McNeil is really just down to personal preference, because now that Sabat is a seasoned actor, and has evolved the voice to sound very natural, it's no longer about technique.

Honestly, I always loved McNeil's Piccolo, until I realized he used the same voice for every "Bad Ass" character. I watched an episode of X-men Evolved or whatever that show was called, and was alarmed by the fact that Wolverine sounded exactly like Piccolo.

But as Howie Mandel sad, when it comes to voice acting, find one voice you do really really well, and just use it for everything, lol.

[ohaimynameiserik]

That clip of Kelamis was win. At a couple points you could even confuse him for Nozawa.

[Piccolo Daimaoh]

That clip of Kelamis was win. At a couple points you could even confuse him for Nozawa.

Really? I didn't hear any Nozawa in him and that's a good thing because I don't think an English Goku should sound a lot like her anyways.



Oh and I loled at "Superior Ocean dub for the win", in that video's description.

[Big Momma]

That clip of Kelamis was win. At a couple points you could even confuse him for Nozawa.

Really? I didn't hear any Nozawa in him and that's a good thing because I don't think an English Goku should sound a lot like her anyways.

Go to 1:50

Oh man...I almost thought that was actually her for a second.

[Mewzard]

Nah, McNeil is good, but that monster voice would be best suited to his first fight against Goku, followed by his fight with Goku against Raditz. I just don't think of Scotts voice when I see Piccolo bonding with Gohan, fighting Freeza, merging with Kami, and eventually being the uncle figure to Goten and Trunks. The core of Piccolo's character is the strict but wise noble teacher, I don't hear that in Scott's Piccolo at all, just mostly the "badass", but that's just a part of the character.

McNeil's Piccolo can sound sage, too, and handled the bits of training with Gohan really well in the Ocean dub, despite the poor script. Sabat is just going to sound like an asshole. He's utterly incapable of showing any more than that in his Piccolo.

Actually he's not, though.

Actually, he is. He captures pretty much all the qualities of Masako Nozawa's Goku, but appropriately for an English-speaking audience.

Who do you think is a good English Goku? Sean "Gravelly Screaming" Schemmel and his complete lack of understanding of the character?

I disagree on all counts.McNeil's Piccolo was much more of a "Stuck in one mode voice". A demonized voice that seemed a bit more awkward when he was more on the good side. Piccolo really did well to have a feel of touching teacher during the Kai dub, especially when he was dying, and was making said feelings a bit more obvious.

As for Sean Schemmel, he gets the character quite well. He has further changed his Goku more towards that innocent, if not blunt guy who can get mad and fight.

[penguintruth]

I disagree on all counts.McNeil's Piccolo was much more of a "Stuck in one mode voice". A demonized voice that seemed a bit more awkward when he was more on the good side. Piccolo really did well to have a feel of touching teacher during the Kai dub, especially when he was dying, and was making said feelings a bit more obvious.

As for Sean Schemmel, he gets the character quite well. He has further changed his Goku more towards that innocent, if not blunt guy who can get mad and fight.

And I disagree on all your accounts. McNeil's Piccolo, above all else, has charisma and flavor to it, a real sense of dimension and texture, whereas Sabat's is a bit more of a standard voice for the type of character Piccolo is, though he's grown into a little better now so it doesn't sound quite like a flat impression of McNeil. It's acceptable, but still vastly inferior to McNeil's.

And Sean Schemmel's Goku has become more tolerable for Kai, but he's still vastly inferior to Kelamis because his voice really doesn't reflect Goku's naivate carefree nature. It's way too gravelly and harsh during a lot of scenes. It just isn't Goku.

That isn't to say that Kelamis was perfect either, but he definitely did a better job with the character than Schemmel.

[jjgp1112]

I disagree on all counts.McNeil's Piccolo was much more of a "Stuck in one mode voice". A demonized voice that seemed a bit more awkward when he was more on the good side. Piccolo really did well to have a feel of touching teacher during the Kai dub, especially when he was dying, and was making said feelings a bit more obvious.

As for Sean Schemmel, he gets the character quite well. He has further changed his Goku more towards that innocent, if not blunt guy who can get mad and fight.

Yeah, McNeil's Piccolo always sounded really stiff and one-dimensional to me. And Peter Kelamis just made Goku sound like an idiot.

[Mewzard]

It's kind of funny that some can see one-dimensionality in a voice, and others can see a diverse role. McNeil Piccolo is very 80s villain voice. It worked for what it was. Sabat started closer to that, but made the voice entirely his. Literally, it's very similar to his natural voice, with just a slight alteration at this point.

Schemmel's voice fits nigh perfectly for the role, he captures both that common carefree voice, and that more frustrated voice.

Even Nozawa's voice gets rough a bit more gruff when she's making Goku speak in an angry tone than in a calm tone. Unless you want a monotone voice that doesn't change at all. I know my voice isn't very gruff normally, but when I yell, or emphasize when mad, it does tend to up that trait a bit.

I did like hearing my first dubbed insert song. Does anyone know when the next insert song is, and what song it is?

[penguintruth]

It's kind of funny that some can see one-dimensionality in a voice, and others can see a diverse role. McNeil Piccolo is very 80s villain voice. It worked for what it was. Sabat started closer to that, but made the voice entirely his. Literally, it's very similar to his natural voice, with just a slight alteration at this point.

Schemmel's voice fits nigh perfectly for the role, he captures both that common carefree voice, and that more frustrated voice.

Even Nozawa's voice gets rough a bit more gruff when she's making Goku speak in an angry tone than in a calm tone. Unless you want a monotone voice that doesn't change at all. I know my voice isn't very gruff normally, but when I yell, or emphasize when mad, it does tend to up that trait a bit.

And that's all Sabat sounds like, a guy doing a voice. McNeil's sounds like Piccolo. His voice isn't 80s villain at all, it's textured in Piccolo's personality traits, but without being over-the-top the way some of Funimation's VAs are. This is why Scott McNeil is one of the best voice actors around, and Chris Sabat is just sort of okay.

Same with Goku. Sean Schemmel's is entirely "Sean Schemmel voicing a character". It doesn't really sound the way Goku should. It almost fails entirely in capturing his personality. At least it's tolerable now, less painful to hear, but he's still no Kelamis, and I doubt he'll ever reach Nozawa's heights.

[JulieYBM]

I'd say McNeil sounds like a guy doing a voice far more than Sabat. Hell, all Scott McNeil does is 'a voice'. If Norio Wakamoto just plays 'Norio Wakamoto' these days, Scott McNeil just plays 'Scott McNeil', at least whereas his 'badass character voice' is concerned. The only difference is Scott McNeil talks to himself more than Chris Sabat.

[DB_Fan1991]

It's kind of funny that some can see one-dimensionality in a voice, and others can see a diverse role. McNeil Piccolo is very 80s villain voice. It worked for what it was. Sabat started closer to that, but made the voice entirely his. Literally, it's very similar to his natural voice, with just a slight alteration at this point.

Schemmel's voice fits nigh perfectly for the role, he captures both that common carefree voice, and that more frustrated voice.

Even Nozawa's voice gets rough a bit more gruff when she's making Goku speak in an angry tone than in a calm tone. Unless you want a monotone voice that doesn't change at all. I know my voice isn't very gruff normally, but when I yell, or emphasize when mad, it does tend to up that trait a bit.

I did like hearing my first dubbed insert song. Does anyone know when the next insert song is, and what song it is?

I agree with the points you have made for Sabat's Piccolo & Schemmel's Goku. While sounding rough in "Season 3" they grew into their roles over time, and it shows. Piccolo no longer sounds like a McNeil impersonator. McNeil is a fine Piccolo, but it just doesn't work as well as Sabat's. Schemmel went from an Ian Corlett sound alike to making the role his own, and it also shows just compare Schemmel's Goku in "Season 3" to how he sounds in Kai, and the difference is clear he is much natural in the role. Sabat also has improved his Vegeta going from a Brian Drummond impersonator to too gruff to now arrogant and stuck-up just like the Saiyan Prince he is. I miss Nadolny & Vollmer as Gohan & Bulma, but Clinkenbeard & Rial are doing fine in the roles, and I have no problem with their work. Cranz, McFarland, Schemmel, Sabat, Burgmeier & Strait don't sound too different from the UUC dub versions of Chi-Chi, Roshi, Yajirobe, Kaio-Sama, Kami-Sama, Karin, Yamcha, Shenron, Tenshinhan & Krillin it's just they now have a better script to read from. As for the other new voices I expected Palencia to voice Chiaotzu & Puar since she has been voicing them since Tenkaichi 3. Massey sounds just like Jackson's Oolong, so no problem there. Cason does a decent job as Mr. Popo & Turtle, but Sabat is the definitive Mr. Popo for me. Now I can't wait for the new voices we'll hear in the Namek saga.

[Gaffer Tape]

Wow. Reading most of these posts just shows me how much has changed in popular opinion over the past ten years. Sabat has improved, sure, but he has never held a candle to McNeil's Piccolo from seasons 1 and 2. There was just so much confidence and charisma. I can't think of anyone I knew growing up who didn't love Piccolo's voice. And whoever mentioned that Chris Psaros liked him too, yeah, he heaped praise on him. I believe he stated several times that McNeil was his favorite voice in the entire English cast at the time, and it's not hard to see why. Sabat just sounds quite generic by comparison. I don't think he sounds much like McNeil, but I still think of him as "Diet Scott McNeil" in terms of his Piccolo. He has the gruff, deep voice thing like Scott McNeil but seems to be missing everything else. He's just... lacking.

I do remember, however, the first time I wasn't disgusted by his voice, and that was in season 4 when he was about to merge with Kami-sama. When he wasn't yelling or growling but just talking calmly and naturally he actually sounded quite good and didn't pain me to listen to, and it was at that point I realized that he had the potential to be a good Piccolo. But he still never reached the level of distinctiveness that his predecessor had.