"Dragon Ball Super" FUNimation Dub Official Discussion Thread

[Doctor.]

So do you think Goku's English Dub voice is overall terrible?

No, it's serviceable enough.

[Scsigs]

Because it makes sense with the physical changes...?

Nozawa doesn't do that. She uses a more serious tone sometimes, because the situations involving SS3 or SSB Goku are mostly serious, but the voice is still the same. It's fine if you want to differentiate the separate forms, even though it's unnecessary, but what Schemmel does is awful. A rough, gruff voice doesn't fit Goku. Is that his default option for a serious tone? Because it's the same exact thing he did with Black in the videogames and he's terrible too.

Sean's NOT Nozawa & he'll never be. Allow him to give his own interpretation based on the material that's presented to him for god's sake, will you? He's even said he doesn't take too much from her. Though, I imagine he's been taking SOME influence from her in the newer dubs now, since he's been cracking his voice a bit when recording for Goku in some instances, as I've heard Nozawa does. He also does a more serious tone for the Super Saiyan God transformation, which he's commented on Nozawa's performance of it & liked it.
For the SS3 transformation, Goku's hair gets longer & he loses his eyebrows in the process of his forehead bulging out on his browline. Then there's the fact that, as Goku goes up in his Super Saiyan transformations, he gets more confident & cocky, as is in his Saiyan nature & blood. The voice just goes with it. Same with SS4. SS4 seems to be a hybrid between SS & the Great Ape form, in a sense, devolving the user to some earlier state of evolution, physically changing the body. It makes even MORE sense for his vocal chords to have changed as well with the rest of his body. It's more primal.

I can understand that you don't like it, but there's a methodology behind it besides being a holdover that's stuck from the original Z dub that's not even one of the more egregious ones, if you think about it.

The one character he's going to voice, & has voiced, I will agree with you on here is Goku Black. His initial takes for him in Xenoverse 2 are just terribly done because he did what Nozawa did & used his SS4 tone for Black. That's not how Black should've been voiced at all because he's, physically, Goku, just with someone else in the driver's seat who's generally more cocky/narcissistic/arrogant than Goku usually is & a more confident, or self-assured tone would've fit much better. I suspect they'll catch on by the Future Trunks arc after gauging fan feedback from Xenoverse 2's DLC.

Why does everything have to be 1 to 1 with the Japanese all the time with you people?

Nobody said this. But, if you want an answer regardless, if you're dubbing something, it's best it resembles the original.

You implied it, which is where I got the idea that's what this is about. To wit, my response.
Yes, you can have something resemble the original Japanese language, &, I'm sorry to bring up the old sub vs dub stuff other people, but everyone's doing it, it's good to actively do that, however, you need to make sure the voices fit the characters & allow the actors a little leeway to have their own takes on their characters. While it's good they try to pattern themselves after the original Japanese, it's also good if they bring new things to the table. Sean's take on Goku is a bit different than Nozawa's, as shown in the behind-the-scenes stuff on the Resurrection F Blu-Rays when they're talking about how they've portrayed him & they have 2 distinct points of view in their relationships to him.
I'll bring this example up. Franky in One Piece. Patrick Seitz sounds ABSOLUTELY NOTHING like the original Japanese voice. Does that hinder my enjoyment of the character? No. he's still delightfully over-the-top & energetic as Franky that he stands out from his predecessor. There's also Steve Blum as Spike Spiegel in Cowboy Bebop, who even Wantanabe prefers to the original Japanese voice of the character.

It's good that I caught your "It's serviceable" comment before I published this response. That last paragraph was defending voices from actors in dubs who give different voices to the characters, and are good as, if not better, than the original Japanese ones in their own right. Sean's a completely competent actor & a great voice for Goku. if you prefer Nozawa, good for you. I like the things he does for Goku. It's different from Nozawa &, in this case, it's a good thing.

[Doctor.]

Allow him to give his own interpretation based on the material that's presented to him for god's sake, will you?

I am. And I think his interpretation is terrible. I don't know why you're assuming I want him to be like Nozawa, I gave Nozawa as an example because she's the best Goku voice around. If Peter Kelamis was the best Goku voice, I'd use him as an example instead.

For the SS3 transformation, Goku's hair gets longer & he loses his eyebrows in the process of his forehead bulging out on his browline. Then there's the fact that, as Goku goes up in his Super Saiyan transformations, he gets more confident & cocky, as is in his Saiyan nature & blood. The voice just goes with it. Same with SS4. SS4 seems to be a hybrid between SS & the Great Ape form, in a sense, devolving the user to some earlier state of evolution, physically changing the body. It makes even MORE sense for his vocal chords to have changed as well with the rest of his body. It's more primal.

I can understand that you don't like it, but there's a methodology behind it besides being a holdover that's stuck from the original Z dub that's not even one of the more egregious ones, if you think about it.

Sense isn't needed in a series where flying monkeys shoot laser beams. I don't think it fits Goku's personality, so I don't like it. Goku gets more confident and cocky as Super Saiyan transformations get higher, but that doesn't need to reflect itself on the voice, simply talking in a serious tone is fine. Proper acting and a good script should differentiate the forms, not different voices.

You implied it, which is where I got the idea that's what this is about. To wit, my response.

I implied no such thing. I said Schemmel's Super Saiyan 3 voice (not even Schemmel's Goku) was terrible. Nowhere did I mention the japanese version before you did. It seems like to me you just assumed automatically what I thought, just because I criticized Schemmel and you must have an idea of what people who criticize Schemmel must be like. Coming off as relatively hostile with the "you people" comment doesn't help with the whole generalizing thing, either.

Yes, you can have something resemble the original Japanese language, &, I'm sorry to bring up the old sub vs dub stuff other people, but everyone's doing it, it's good to actively do that, however, you need to make sure the voices fit the characters & allow the actors a little leeway to have their own takes on their characters. While it's good they try to pattern themselves after the original Japanese, it's also good if they bring new things to the table. Sean's take on Goku is a bit different than Nozawa's, as shown in the behind-the-scenes stuff on the Resurrection F Blu-Rays when they're talking about how they've portrayed him & they have 2 distinct points of view in their relationships to him.
I'll bring this example up. Franky in One Piece. Patrick Seitz sounds ABSOLUTELY NOTHING like the original Japanese voice. Does that hinder my enjoyment of the character? No. he's still delightfully over-the-top & energetic as Franky that he stands out from his predecessor. There's also Steve Blum as Spike Spiegel in Cowboy Bebop, who even Wantanabe prefers to the original Japanese voice of the character.

It's good that I caught your "It's serviceable" comment before I published this response. That last paragraph was defending voices from actors in dubs who give different voices to the characters, and are good as, if not better, than the original Japanese ones in their own right. Sean's a completely competent actor & a great voice for Goku. if you prefer Nozawa, good for you. I like the things he does for Goku. It's different from Nozawa &, in this case, it's a good thing.

It's fine to have a voice that is different from the original as long as the actor "gets" the character and his acting, along with the script, showcases it. In my opinion, Schemmel doesn't. It has nothing to do with Nozawa being a better Goku or a better actress, it has to do with the fact that I don't see Goku when I watch the Funimation version, at least not most of the time, sometimes I do (hence the "serviceable" comment).

[Scsigs]

It's fine to have a voice that is different from the original as long as the actor "gets" the character and his acting, along with the script, showcases it. In my opinion, Schemmel doesn't. It has nothing to do with Nozawa being a better Goku or a better actress, it has to do with the fact that I don't see Goku when I watch the Funimation version, at least not most of the time, sometimes I do (hence the "serviceable" comment).

I see.

[simtek34]

Having not seen the JP episode 5 in 8 months, I can say that this was actually a good episode! The only thing I hated was Sean's SS3 voice. It was too gruff compared to the games and BoG.

500th Post! Yay! I'm a Regular now!

[Scsigs]

Having not seen the JP episode 5 in 8 months, I can say that this was actually a good episode! The only thing I hated was Sean's SS3 voice. It was too gruff compared to the games and BoG.

500th Post! Yay!

How was it too gruff?

[Ajay]

How was it too gruff?

He was slipping into full Batman at points - it was very distracting.

His screams were on point, though. I was actually taken aback.

[Scsigs]

How was it too gruff?

He was slipping into full Batman at points - it was very distracting.

His screams were on point, though. I was actually taken aback.

I didn't notice too much, but then again, that voice is always very Batman anyways. Ironically, Sean voiced Batman in Arkham Origins: Blackgate, I believe.

He's always had GREAT control of his screams, even back during the shitty Z dub. They're always on-point.

[WittyUsername]

I don't really see the problem with giving Goku's SSJ3 form a gruff voice. It's not like that's the default voice for his version of Goku.

[Scsigs]

I don't really see the problem with giving Goku's SSJ3 form a gruff voice. It's not like that's the default voice for his version of Goku.

Exactly.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

I am a huge fan of Schemmel's recent work (Kai onwards) as Goku but even I feel the gruff tone didn't work. Other than that he nailed it, especially with the screams as others have said, and hey if you don't like this episode there is always the superior version of these events in Battle of Gods.

[Bansho64]

Glad I'm not the only one who caught that really gruff tone on Schemmel's SSJ3 Goku. I thought I had been hearing things. Yeah, I'm not to fond of it. It seems a bit unneeded.

Episode 5 was pretty okay.

[simtek34]

I don't really see the problem with giving Goku's SSJ3 form a gruff voice. It's not like that's the default voice for his version of Goku.

Exactly.

Before, I wasn't saying that gruff is bad, I was just saiying that it was too gruff for my normal taste than usual. Can't wait to hear it in Kai though!

[Baggie_Saiyan]

SS3 doesn't show up again until the Trunks arc and even then it's for like 5 seconds. So I wasn't gonna be particularly bothered by what he did and it was fine.

[El Diabeetus]

It was okay, the growl could've been toned down. But there was a point in the fight where Sean's SSJ3 had this weird lisp that sounded like Goku was trying to impersonate Daffy Duck.

https://youtu.be/UoIuk66ZWKY - About 3:47 in this clip.

[Noah]

Luckily Schemmel will realize his gruff tone doesn't suit well on Black and do a better work then he did on XENOVERSE 2

[Hellspawn28]

I wonder who should voice Zeno? Brina Palencia seems like a good choice for the role if you ask me.

[SaiyanGod117]

Though, I imagine he's been taking SOME influence from her in the newer dubs now, since he's been cracking his voice a bit when recording for Goku in some instances, as I've heard Nozawa does.

Must be a coincidence, since he's openly said in a interview, he takes no cues from Nozawa. Meaning, he doesn't try to replicate any of her voice acting, which is good, it should stay like that. His voice acting for serious and goofy Goku is just spectacular, his Black Goku needs some work though.

[Bansho64]

It was okay, the growl could've been toned down. But there was a point in the fight where Sean's SSJ3 had this weird lisp that sounded like Goku was trying to impersonate Daffy Duck.

https://youtu.be/UoIuk66ZWKY - About 3:47 in this clip.

What the heck? It's like he got his Goku and King Kai voices mixed up.

[Footlong Shoe]

I wonder who should voice Zeno? Brina Palencia seems like a good choice for the role if you ask me.

I think she'd be a good choice.

On the topic of Zeno, how do you think they'll handle the whole "Zen-chan" joke? It would be easy enough to have Goku call him "Zenny", but "Zeni" is already the name of their currency.