Dragon Ball Z Kai Volume 1 Discussion

[rereboy]

I kind of think the point of that whole scene was to have Goku say a really awful pun. Viz's translation is a bad joke but...it's supposed to be. (Not saying Goku's line in the Kai dub is bad by the way.)

Exactly. The things that Kaio finds funny are supposed to not be funny at all and barely qualify as puns.
That is what makes those scenes amusing.

[JulieYBM]

This is a stupid argument.

Of course it is.


This guy is saying that watching DBK with the original credits and title cards is watching it "as it was original presented". My problem with this is watching it with subtitles is going against this idea, as the subtitles weren't orignally there and were added by FUNi like the translated credits and title cards.

I want the damned video and audio as it was meant. Subtitles are digitally layered over them and can easily be removed.

Hell, I could just watch the show raw. Would that be literal enough for you?

[rereboy]

Personally I don`t see any reason why some fans complain about having the credits or episode titles modified to English and therefore translated.

To me that`s just taking the "purist" perspective too far.

I mean seriously why does that matter? And don`t say "it`s the way it`s meant to be seen" because, the way it`s mean to be seen, is to actually allow the viewer to understand the credits and episode titles.
It is unpractical to use "soft", "removable" subtitles to translate the credits, so, to modify it to the language of the audience, without sacrificing the look, background, etc, of the original, is, to me, "the way it`s meant to be seen".

Only a purist perspective taken too far can see that as a let down in my opinion.

However, if the English credits actually leave out some things that the Japanese credits had, then I totally understand why that is a let down. It must include ALL the information/credits.

[TripleRach]

However, if the English credits actually leave out some things that the Japanese credits had, then I totally understand why that is a let down. It must include ALL the information/credits.

That's actually the main reason I have a problem with translated credits. In many cases, they only translate a handful of names, and leave the rest of the staff totally unaccounted for. There are also times where they romanize someone's name incorrectly, because it's not always easy to figure out how a Japanese name is meant to be read or spelled. As a Dragon Ball example, FUNi's English credits for Z always include a nonexistent "Chiho Kikuchi" person. It's still there in the dub credit scrolls on the Dragon Boxes.

Then, for some shows, they don't translate the credits per episode. By that I mean, instead of having one episode where "Takao Koyama" is credited as the writer, and another where "Keiji Terui" is the writer, they'll just have every episode say "Writers: Takao Koyama, Keiji Terui, Yasushi Hirano, Michiru Shimada, etc." So there's no way to know which person worked on a specific episode.

I'd rather they just leave it alone than get something wrong. What's the point of being able to read something in my native language if what I'm reading is inaccurate or omissive?

[rereboy]

But, as you said, that is a problem of translation/omission.

As long as the modified credits and episode titles keep ALL the information (correctly translated), with the music, look, background, etc, of the original, there is absolutely nothing wrong with it. And only a "purist" perspective taken too far would see such a case as a problem.

In short, its not a problem of method, its a problem of execution. You have to blame them for the translation used and for omitting information that the original had, nothing else.

[sumpter360]

TOPIC CHANGE

Does anyone else find it strange that (at least in the DVD version) Radditz is on the cover of the 2nd Disc slim case and not the first? Instead, Vegeta is on the first. It would seem to me that these two should be switched. Other's thoughts?

[TheGreatness25]

I don't like that they don't have alternate angles either, and the font that is used for the opening and closing is distracting (even though there is a textless version of it in the Extras).

My only problem is... why does my Blu-ray look the same as DVD? I mean it's not as spectacular as I expected. Maybe I expected way too much, but it looks no better than the Dragon Boxes that I've been getting (of course not talking about the new re-animated scenes, which I can't imagine looking too much worse on DVD). Did I kill off $5 for nothing, or is it just my imagination?

[Piccolo Daimaoh]

I'd rather they just leave it alone than get something wrong. What's the point of being able to read something in my native language if what I'm reading is inaccurate or omissive?

It's better to be able to read something that's slightly inaccurate or omissive, than not being able to read it at all.

[rereboy]

TOPIC CHANGE

Does anyone else find it strange that (at least in the DVD version) Radditz is on the cover of the 2nd Disc slim case and not the first? Instead, Vegeta is on the first. It would seem to me that these two should be switched. Other's thoughts?

It was probably a mistake on their part. They should be switched.

[JulieYBM]

I'd rather they just leave it alone than get something wrong. What's the point of being able to read something in my native language if what I'm reading is inaccurate or omissive?

It's better to be able to read something that's slightly inaccurate or omissive, than not being able to read it at all.

Not when it begins to spread misinformation.

[linkdude20002001]

Agreed. There's nothing I hate more than getting inaccurate information from a source that should be accurate. And FUNi seriously calls Chiho Kiyooka, Chiho Kikuchi? They should try looking up these people's names before they make the credits.

[zeldarocks]

I just got the first volume at Best Buy; luckily, Best Buy had opened a new locale near-by, talk about convenient, and cheap (only $29.99)

[Innagadadavida]

I saw the DVD in Wal-Mart and just had to buy it. I'm planning on going back and getting the Blu-Ray but I don't have a BR player and I want to see the show now.

EDIT: So after watching the first disc, I have a few thoughts to jot down. I watched the English dub exclusively. I'm not particularly interested in the Japanese version of Dragon Ball Z Kai... Kai, to me, is just a catalyst for a near perfect redub of the series. With the superior English dub and the lack of filler, Dragon Ball Z Kai is a much better show in English than Dragon Ball Z. The Japanese version of the original Z has always been more or less perfect. It doesn't require a redub. There's nothing there for me in Kai with the Japanese version.

• Bulma sounds exactly like Tiffany Volmer, but older and less bitchy. Overall, a good casting change.
• Yajirobe's voice is a lot deeper than in the English dub of Dragon Ball and the original Dragon Ball Z.
• Mike McFarline's performance as Roshi is not as good as it was in the English dub of Dragon Ball. It's a little higher pitched and more throaty. It's really off-putting.
• Fotuneteller Baba's voice actress is Linda Young. In the original Dragon Ball Z English dub, she was voiced by somebody else. However, Linda Young did play Baba in the English dub of Dragon Ball and the redub of Z seasons 1-3. This kind of fits in with my theory of FUNimation's attempt at keeping Z Kai consistent with the English dub of Dragon Ball.
• Not easily adjusting to the new Gohan. Miles better than Stephany Nadolny's portrayal, but nowhere near perfect. I can't help but hear Luffy. And I keep expecting to hear Nadolny when I see him open his mouth. It's going to take a while to get used to the new Gohan.
• Piccolo sounds like Zoro. Sabat really toned down the rasp and growl for Z Kai. I am completely neutral on this. I have no thoughts other than I notice it.
• This is my first time watching Kai. I only watched the first episode of the original Japanese version raw, then completely lost interest. I am loving the pace, but find myself missing a lot of the filler. I really like the filler in the Saiyan saga. Particularly Gohan and the Humans' filler episodes. Lunch tracking down Tenshinhan and cooking food for him was so cute. And Yamcha playing baseball was really fun. Not to mention all the character development we're missing out on with Gohan.
• I. FREAKING. LOVE. SEAN. SCHEMMEL'S. GOKU. He is really taking this role seriously. And by seriously, I mean totally goofy. This feels so much more like Goku than the original English dub of Z. It's also much more consistent with his performance at the end of Dragon Ball. Hell, with Goku's character in general from the English dub of Dragon Ball.

More later, I guess.

[Blue]

So say you only watch Dragonball dubbed and then you go straight into the Kai dub would it sound like they picked up where the left off in the previous series? Or are there jarring differences in voice acting or voices themselves? I'm just curious.

I'll probably skip out on the 1st Kai set. After rewatching the Saiyajin Saga and Cell saga I realized they aren't nearly as bad as I thought. The Freeza arc's pacing was so awful in my book it put a bad taste in my mouth for the entire series. So I'll probably pick up The entire Freeza run of Kai episodes which will be about 4 volumes or so. Then I'll probably pick up the Dragon Box 4-7. It kind of sucks I'll be missing out on the early Trunk's stuff because I'm skipping Dbox 3. I obviously have no issue with Frankenstein collections.

[Innagadadavida]

So say you only watch Dragonball dubbed and then you go straight into the Kai dub would it sound like they picked up where the left off in the previous series? Or are there jarring differences in voice acting or voices themselves? I'm just curious.

That is a tough one. FUNi is consistent with some things, but inconsistent with other things. Bulma's voice actress is a big one. It's a different person. She sounds similar, like I said; older. So I guess it's an easy write off. Five years have passed, afterall. Roshi sounds different. His voice actor seems to have lost a little character after not voicing him for a while.

Then... there's the music. Yamamoto's score is very different and will unfortunately serve as a big mental separation for the two series. I think they should be experienced as one. Without Kukichi's score all across the board, a new viewer will get a different vibe from Z Kai.

I'd say the biggest problem with going from Dragon Ball straight to Kai, is that they completely spoil the fact that Goku is a Saiyan with the narration right at the start of episode 1. It kind of removes that shock value that first time viewers would experience after watching the show from the beginning.

[SylentEcho]

After reading Kanzentai's review on this, I'm not very interested. It seems like Funi purposely left out a few things like the original Japanese title cards, the intros and outros in Japanese audio just so that they could put all this into box sets or season sets and we can buy them again.

However I think the main reason I'm not buying this is because I find Raditz's and Nappa's voice actors annoying. They actually sound like Scooby Doo villians.

To quote Kanzentai, "Goku still doesn't sound like much of a hick, Raditz is annoying as ever, as well as Kaio, and you can still pick out every character voiced by Christopher Sabat."

[MarcFBR]

It seems like Funi purposely left out a few things like...
the intros and outros in Japanese audio just so that they could put all this into box sets or season sets and we can buy them again.

It seems like dumb people will always make excuses to not do something they weren't gonna do anyways. It is especially fun when not only does the excuse have no basis in reality, but the people they cite never said any such thing.

[Supa Saiya-Jin Tullece]

So, what is Gallick Gun this time around?

Gallick Gun?
Gyalic Gun?
Garlic Gun?

Damn it, I'm torn as to whether I should buy this or start paying for my Limited Edition Halo Reach... DAMN YOU MONEY GODS! DAMN YOU!

[Puto]

The Gyallic Hô is absolutely nothing because that happens one episode after this set ends.

Funi purposely left out a few things like (...) the intros and outros in Japanese audio

The intros and outros most definitely DO have Japanese audio. What they don't have is Japanese-language credits (though all the original credits were properly translated to English -- including the Japanese cast for each individual episode).

[Piccolo Daimaoh]

Not when it begins to spread misinformation.

Okay yes, FUNi screwed up a name or two. Big deal. In their defence, Japanese people names (and to a lesser extent, place names) written in Kanji are hard to translate, due to the Kanji having multiple possible readings.



It's better to read something that's slightly inaccurate, then not at all. Anyone remember those Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Jade bootleg games? Those had an extremely bad translation, but people still played them over the originals. Why? Because even though those games were badly translated, people could still get the gist of what was going on.