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Originally Posted by EclipseZeta
It's a fine line we have to walk between using the term as it is used in Japanese, or actually translating it to what we think might be an English equivalent. Unfortuantely, I'm not immersed enough in the "ero-game" culture, so translating that word was a little difficult. (heh, if I was, I might be too busy to translate... that happened with a competing translator earlier this year.) Based on my conversations with some people on IRC, I actually thought "hentai game" was an appropriate t/l. After all, Americans call pornographic anime drawings "hentai pics" and not "ero gazou" (ero-pics) or "nijigen gazou" (2D pics, as referred to on that scary place known as 2chan.) as the Japanese would call 'em. I'm in general not a big fan of incorporating Japanese abbreviated terminologies in my translation... like it would be silly to use "Telebi" as the translation every time "T.V." is mentioned. But hey, I'm open to suggestions. If you guys have other Otaku terminologies that you'd like to see translated in a certain way, come visit our channel or something and let me know!  Don't worry about "Comike" tho... that's an official term like "Otakon" so I wouldn't translate it anyways. |
Dear Sir (or Madam):
I am happy that you have taken the opportunity to choose this specific anime to be "fansubbed" for potential viewers of the foreign anime community. Although I have ambiguityon my own personal stance on these "fansubs" outside of Japan, I do believe that such materials that you provide are a window to our Japanese culture that I hold dear to.
On the issue regarding the usage of foreign usage of "hentai" versus our usage of "ero," it is something that I (and most Japanese otakus) feel a certain distaste in.
"Hentai" is rather, a very harsh word. It is close to being derogotary in its original meaning that describes a noun as being "weird." (more like "fucked up," "whack," "crazy")
And as you know, the word "ecchi" is in reality taken from the first alphabetical word of "hentai" as a means for being "perveted" or the act of "sexual intercourse."
But for some reason, this reasoning seemed to have confused foreigners into using a word that to us Japanese, have never used - it was used wrong from the start.
"Hentai" (weirdo, pervert) ----> take first alphabet of "hentai" = "H", and pronounce it in Japanese ------> "ecchi" (pervert, sexual intercourse)
While it is true that in the past, we called such animes and games as "H-anime/H-games" (ecchi-anime, ecchi-game).
HOWEVER, we have never used it as "Hentai-anime/Hentai games." That was something where foreigners assummed "oh, 'ecchi' basically is taking the first letter of 'hentai,' so in essence, they are 'Hentai anime' and 'Hentai games' "
The distinction here is the subtle difference between "hentai" and "ecchi."
"hentai" (weirdo, pervert)
"ecchi" (pervert, sexual intercourse)
The very subtle difference here is that..."Hentai" is an act of being weird as a means of being perverted. "Ecchi" is an act of being perverted and/or within the concept of having sexual intercourse. Wow this is harder to explain than I imagined...
So I imagine why this mishap had taken place:
Japanese viewed such anime and games as "anime and games that had sex in it" = hence, "ecchi-anime/ecchi-game"
Foreigners viewed such anime and games as "anime and games that had sicko perverted tentancles" = hence, "hentai anime/hentai games." Therefore, "hey, ecchi probably is an abbreviation for 'hentai,' let's call it that."
This distinction in terminology was fine when these types of anime and games
were all about weird fucked-up shit with tentacles, rape, and bondage...
BUT thanks to much changes in the 18-and-over otaku sub-culture industry
http://forums.animesuki.com/showpost...&postcount=169
http://forums.animesuki.com/showpost...&postcount=170
http://forums.animesuki.com/showpost...&postcount=173
http://forums.animesuki.com/showpost...&postcount=175
http://forums.animesuki.com/showpost...&postcount=176
I think it is necessary that I start my own stupid little crusade with the hopes that foreigners, as much as they like Japan, to start using a more lesser and lighter intonation to describe such games and anime...since none of them are "hentai"
To put it bluntly:
Was "Kimi Ga Nozomu Eien" a "hentai?"
Was "D.C.~da capo~" a "hentai?"
Was "Kanon" a "hentai?"
Was "To Heart" a "hentai?"
Was "Wind ~a breath of heart~" a "hentai?"