English Voice Actor Replacements

[funrush]

There's no way you can't improve after playing a character for 10+ years, I think.

It's possible to not improve on something in ten years. Ever read a Rob Liefield comic book?

Haha, no, can't say I have.

He's a comic book artist who is infamous for being a not-so-good artist, and improving only a very small amount since the early 90's. He recently rage-quitted from DC Comics, and blamed the editorial department for the quality of his work.

[Piccolo Daimao]

To be honest, I found Clinkenbeard’s #18 pretty hot. Apart from the times when she sounded a little bit like Gohan when she screamed, I think her performance was equal to McCoy’s.

Eh... I recall some TERRIBLE acting from her though during the Cell arc... Like, moments when Gohan was in shock or whatever resulted in him doing this terrible "Uh uh uh uh uh uh" kind of noise.

Oh yeah, I hated that from Nadolny. That's part of the reason why I don't like her kid Gokuu either. The voice is much less raspy and sounds more appropriate, but she still can't act for shit.

There's no way you can't improve after playing a character for 10+ years, I think.

Sean Schemmel's Kaio. Cynthia Cranz's Chi-Chi.

That's probably more to do with direction than acting. It's pretty obvious that they still seemed to be telling Cranz to play up the "bitchy" aspect of Chi-Chi's character. Presumably because it's better that the fans hate the wife of the main character who's trying to protect her son from, you know, getting killed.

[funrush]

To be honest, I found Clinkenbeard’s #18 pretty hot. Apart from the times when she sounded a little bit like Gohan when she screamed, I think her performance was equal to McCoy’s.

Yeah, I was shocked to find that people liked McCoy's better. She was okay, but not good. Colleen pulled it off much better.

There's no way you can't improve after playing a character for 10+ years, I think.

Sean Schemmel's Kaio. Cynthia Cranz's Chi-Chi.

That's probably more to do with direction than acting. It's pretty obvious that they still seemed to be telling Cranz to play up the "bitchy" aspect of Chi-Chi's character. Presumably because it's better that the fans hate the wife of the main character who's trying to protect her son from, you know, getting killed.

Am I the only one who doesn't hate Cynthia Cranz's Chichi and thought she did much better in Kai?

[DBZAOTA482]

To be honest, I found Clinkenbeard’s #18 pretty hot. Apart from the times when she sounded a little bit like Gohan when she screamed, I think her performance was equal to McCoy’s.

Yeah, I was shocked to find that people liked McCoy's better. She was okay, but not good. Colleen pulled it off much better.

I agree. McCoy's 18 seemed more fitting to an African-American who's well into their late 20's.

Sean Schemmel's Kaio. Cynthia Cranz's Chi-Chi.

That's probably more to do with direction than acting. It's pretty obvious that they still seemed to be telling Cranz to play up the "bitchy" aspect of Chi-Chi's character. Presumably because it's better that the fans hate the wife of the main character who's trying to protect her son from, you know, getting killed.

Am I the only one who doesn't hate Cynthia Cranz's Chichi and thought she did much better in Kai?

You're not alone on that because I second that notion (she also got better in the original Dragon Ball and the video games, but she's still shit compared to Meyumi Shou). It was the dialogue I had a huge problem with (they rewrote her as a paranoid freak who wants her family to be "normal")....in the early dubs that is.

[matt0044]

Am I the only one who doesn't hate Cynthia Cranz's Chichi and thought she did much better in Kai?

Here, here. Though it could've been better, she did do better in Kai.

[Gonstead]

Am I the only one who doesn't hate Cynthia Cranz's Chichi and thought she did much better in Kai?

Nope, definitely not.

[CaBrPi]

I do agree that she needs to tone it down, but I think she's a good fit for the role.

[Ringworm128]

As good as Colleen Clinkenbeard is as Kid Goku and Kid Gohan I have to say that I prefer Nadalony simply because I thought her delivery for Gohan sounded more consistently child like especially in the remastered dub where as Clinkenbeard's delivery can sometimes sound like an adult talking with a kids voice. And honestly the rasp never really bothered me, and in Revenge of King Piccolo it shows that she's made improvements in her acting and she seemed to have even toned down the rasp in her voice. So if Nadalony had returned for Kai and the redub of the first DB movie 1 believe she would have been just as good, if not better then Clinkenbeard.

[linkdude20002001]

I dunno... Are you sure she can act now? 'Cause her acting in DB made me sad... After which she really only did the random video games; I don't think she did any more cartoon dubs.

[matt0044]

As good as Colleen Clinkenbeard is as Kid Goku and Kid Gohan I have to say that I prefer Nadalony simply because I thought her delivery for Gohan sounded more consistently child like.

I dunno. I think Clinkenbeard captured Gohan's innocent nature and when fierce, she make an interesting contrast to when Gohan's timid and docile (like it hard to believe that the previously innocent kid could even hurt Raditz, let alone Freeza). Her "adultness" with Gohan is mostly because he was educated by Chi Chi and therefore a tad smart than the average kid (or toddler) and he was also drafted into a battle by Piccolo, forcing him to get tougher and more "grown up" for lack of better terms, so it honestly fits. It's a running joke in TFS for a reason, of course.

Nadolny was better in the remastered dub but I don't feel she truly got the character himself down. Granted, some kids do sound raspy even before puberty but I don't believe Gohan's part of the some if you ask me. Clinkenbeard actually gets me to believe that I'm hearing Gohan. Plus, when she voices Gohan as he cheers for his dad, singing "My dad's a hero" I actually that moment.

Say, out of curiosity, after Nadolny left FUNi, did she do any other works?

[TheBlackPaladin]

Say, out of curiosity, after Nadolny left FUNi, did she do any other works?

Technically the term "left FUNi" is not the best way to phrase it, because none of the voice actors are FUNimation employees. They're freelance voice actors who are hired on a case-by-case basis. That said, I know what you mean...and no, she has not. She does the occasional commercial here and there, but ultimately has decided to focus on her singing career.

[matt0044]

Say, out of curiosity, after Nadolny left FUNi, did she do any other works?

Technically the term "left FUNi" is not the best way to phrase it, because none of the voice actors are FUNimation employees. They're freelance voice actors who are hired on a case-by-case basis. That said, I know what you mean...and no, she has not. She does the occasional commercial here and there, but ultimately has decided to focus on her singing career.

In that case, what songs has she sang?

[TheBlackPaladin]

Say, out of curiosity, after Nadolny left FUNi, did she do any other works?

Technically the term "left FUNi" is not the best way to phrase it, because none of the voice actors are FUNimation employees. They're freelance voice actors who are hired on a case-by-case basis. That said, I know what you mean...and no, she has not. She does the occasional commercial here and there, but ultimately has decided to focus on her singing career.

In that case, what songs has she sang?

That I'm not too sure about. I know that she's part of a band, that they do a lot of gigs throughout Texas, and that she's actually been in it for a while. She said in a couple interviews that she was in it while she was still voicing Gohan, and that some of her toughest singing gigs were when she had to straight from screaming in DBZ to singing on stage. So I don't know if they do original songs or not, but I believe I saw a clip online of them doing a cover of "You Don't Own Me."

[matt0044]

^Okay.

As for Bulma, I feel that Monica Rial NAILED the character. For those who liked Tiffany Volmer, that's fine and all but I always found her to be trying far to hard. Monica actually portrayed Bulma VERY well from her bitchy attitude to her joyful moments and even her more humble side. Seriously, I heard Bulma in English.

[funrush]

^Okay.

As for Bulma, I feel that Monica Rial NAILED the character. For those who liked Tiffany Volmer, that's fine and all but I always found her to be trying far to hard. Monica actually portrayed Bulma VERY well from her bitchy attitude to her joyful moments and even her more humble side. Seriously, I heard Bulma in English.

Yeah, there's a difference between being bitchy and smart sometimes, and being an annoying screecher that sounds like she came out of an 80's exercise tape.

[dbzfan7]

The replacements that are really needed are Kaio and Recoome. I have gotten a little more settled with Kaio in kai, but he still sounds weird compared Kaio from the Japanese version.

[Ringworm128]

One voice actor I really wish had returned was Bradford Jackson. He was great as Oolong and King Cold.

[TheBlackPaladin]

The replacements that are really needed are Kaio and Recoome. I have gotten a little more settled with Kaio in kai, but he still sounds weird compared Kaio from the Japanese version.

Yes, compared to the Japanese version. For me, though, I guess how much an English voice actor sounds like their Japanese counterpart has never been a major item of concern for me. Which is not to say that my opinion should be universal, of course, I'm just sayin' that from my point of view, I care more if the English voice actors sound like their characters, rather than if they sound like their Japanese counterparts. As Peter Kelamis once said, "The level and emotion of the original performance is attempted to be re-created but not the voice. If I tried to re-create the original voice I think I would run the risk of hitting a note so high that I may not be able to have children in future life."

Slightly off-topic, but I was having a discussion with some of my VO colleagues today about an issue relatively similar to this. The trailer for "Lincoln," a biographical movie about Abraham Lincoln directed by Steven Spielberg, was released recently. It gave us an early look at the voice that actor Daniel Day-Lewis used for Lincoln...and a few people are complaining about it. They complained that the voice Day-Lewis used was too wimpy sounding and high-pitched, and that they imagined Lincoln as having more of a powerful, baritone voice. The thing is, though, all historical texts have described Lincoln as having a voice very similar to the one Day-Lewis used...shrill, high-pitched, and almost frail. It sparked a really interesting debate over whether or not Day-Lewis should have gone for historical accuracy (which is what he did), or for a more powerful voice that might have had more of an "artistic" and emotional impact.

This issue is somewhat similar the "issue" of Kaio's voice. The most common criticism I have heard with regard to Schemmel's take on Kaio (apart from it being a continuation of Don Brown's take) is that it doesn't have a "godly" quality about it, in contrast to Yanami's take on the character, which is deeper, more resonant, and has a bit more of a commanding presence to it. People say that Schemmel's take doesn't have a sense of godly power to it, and the absence of it makes it difficult for some audience members to take it seriously. So it really comes down to whether or not one can take Schemmel's voice for Kaio seriously during the more dramatic moments of DBZ.

When it comes to me, I can. I was introduced to Kaio through Don Brown, and Schemmel continued the character in the same direction. His voice sounds weird and almost alien-like...certainly not god-like. Then again, like the Day-Lewis situation, there's no rule that says gods have to have deep, powerful voices...that's just what we imagined them having. Schemmel's take does sound weird in comparison to Yanami's take, but if Yanami's take weren't around for me to compare to Schemmel's take, I wouldn't have found Schemmel's Kaio voice odd in the slightest. The voice fits that of a short, fat, old, weird-looking creature with an odd obsession for pun-based humor. The voice may not suggest power, but the acting (in my opinion) does. Not unlike Yoda, actually...you wouldn't think he's a master of the Force by listening to him, but you believe it later through his demonstration of the Force and in the sincerity of Frank Oz's delivery.

All this to say...I'm happy with either Yanami or Schemmel for Kaio. Both work for different reasons.

[Ringworm128]

I must be the only one on this forum who thinks Sean Schemmel's voice fits greatly with King Kai's wacky personality. So many people use the "I can't take it seriously" argument, yet they can take a blue midget being voiced by what's pretty much the Japanese equivalent to Jamed Earl Jones, a young boy being voiced by what's clearly a man trying to sound like a kid and a witch being voiced by a man seriously?

[DBZGTKOSDH]

I must be the only one on this forum who thinks Sean Schemmel's voice fits greatly with King Kai's wacky personality. So many people use the "I can't take it seriously" argument, yet they can take a blue midget being voiced by what's pretty much the Japanese equivalent to Jamed Earl Jones, a young boy being voiced by what's clearly a man trying to sound like a kid and a witch being voiced by a man seriously?

The problem is that he is the god of 1/4 of the galaxy, and not only that voice makes him sounding like he is fucking stupid.