Ask John: Why Do Some Fans Oppose the Idea of Dubbing?

Question:
Why do people get irked about dubs and hope there isn’t one on a DVD? For me, if I don’t like the dub track I go over to the Japanese language track and watch that. But for some, they want the DVD totally null and void of dubs. I think this is wrong because in some shows the dub is better than the sub. Cowboy Bebop, Planetes and Fullmetal Panic are just a few to mention. Do you think all dubs are bad? Do you believe sometimes the dub is better than the sub?

Answer:
I don’t represent any anime fans besides myself, although my opinion may be shared by other fans. So my statements are based on intuition and interpretation of personal sentiment and statements that I’ve encountered from other anime fans. My personal opinion is that Automatic Dialogue Replacement, more commonly known as “dubbing,” is nothing more than a commercial gimmick. The purpose of dubbing is to make foreign film accessible to viewers who are incapable or unwilling to watch imported cinema with its original language. A “good” dub is simply one that’s more competent at achieving its commercial purpose than a “bad” dub. Dubbing is a convenience for viewers, a short-cut that makes foreign film easier to digest. The argument may be made that dubbing creates an experience closer to that intended by the original artist, but I cannot comprehend how a second party making changes to the original creative work makes the work closer to the intended experience. Logic seems to dictate that the most authentic experience of an artist’s intention is the actual, unaltered work that the artist created. (Keep in mind that subtitling does not remove anything from the original work while dubbing does.)

A second argument often proposed during debate over dubbing is the fact that DVDs offer selectable languages. The argument proposes that a “sub versus dub” argument is moot because a DVD satisfies both subtitle and dub preferences. In fact, this argument doesn’t settle the debate. Citation of DVD technology merely distracts attention away from the debate. In essence, the “sub versus dub” debate is a question over priorities: should the viewer’s comfort or the artistic integrity of the film take precedence? Critics that prefer original language only DVDs value the integrity of the artistic vision most. It’s the viewer that should adjust to the artwork. Proponents of dubbing value the viewer’s experience foremost. The artwork should accommodate the viewer.

Proponents of original language only DVDs sustain their belief on principle. The fact that DVDs contain selectable original language and dub options is not an acceptable compromise for the very fact that it is a compromise. Dubbing is an alteration of an artist’s work by someone besides the original artist. In principle, that alteration is disagreeable. Original Japanese artists themselves seem to have a split attitude toward dubbing. Director Hayao Miyazaki, in a interview published by the British newspaper The Guardian, stated that any translation- subtitled or dubbed- will have omissions and distortions from the original language. In that respect, neither subtitles nor dubbing are perfect. Miyazaki also expressed satisfaction with Lauren Bacall as the English voice of the Witch of the Waste, claiming that all native Japanese female voice actors sound coquettish. (But it’s worth noting that Miyazaki has a traditional distaste for professional Japanese anime voice actors. His films usually employ singers or film actors instead of anime industry talent.) An interview with director Satoshi Kon published during the same month as Miyazaki’s interview has Kon stating (in translation), “To watch a dubbed movie in my opinion ruins the original movie. So I am extremely happy that my film has been screened in its original form with subtitles.” When asked about the English dub of his film Perfect Blue, Kon replied, “That was not my idea… I’m not too happy about it.”

Opponents of dubbing agree with Satoshi Kon and object to dubbing as a matter of principle. Considering that a less severe, alternative form of translation is available- subtitling- dubbing is totally unnecessary (no offense intended to those who have physical difficulties with watching subtitled anime). Employing highly talented actors or investing more into production and audio mastering may result in a dialogue track that’s technically superior to the native language track, but even an outstanding dub track is still an alteration made by people who are not the original creator and who had no direct involvement in the original creative process. Based on that logic, the quality of a dub is irrelevant. A brilliantly conceived and performed alteration is still an alteration. The fact that an unaltered version is also available doesn’t justify changes imposed upon an artist’s work.

In conclusion, allow me to re-emphasize that this response is an objective answer to the question posed. The purpose of this response is not to debate the qualities or validity of dubbing because that’s not what the question asked. In summation, staunch opponents of dubbing dislike the concept of dubbing itself and object to any dubbing, in any language, in any type of film, on the basis of principle. It should go without saying that this firm belief can and is opposed by advocates of dubbing, but I’ll state that fact for the record, to avoid potential reactionary criticism.