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Old 2004-11-07, 14:14   Link #61
FET-Kun
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Ok, so I of course watched the first ep, along with thousands of others I'm sure. It wasn't bad at all. Basically an over all decent dubbing job.

Ed's voice was fine really, I liked it. However, it was a bit too deep in the begining, and the actor seem'd to have trouble with the whole being in pain scene after the transmutation.

Now, Al's voice...sheesh...probably the worst voice they could've gotting for him. Either the actor has no experience, or the monotoned low voice is on purpose. Whatever the reason, it just was horrible. Not every scene was bad for Al's voice, but most of the time. The worst part was the next time preview...Maybe he'll get better with time? We can only hope.

I thought Roze's voice was perfect...very excellent. As for all the rest...eh, fine really. Again, an over all good dub, but it has some quarks.
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Old 2004-11-07, 17:01   Link #62
Za Paper
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Originally Posted by NinjaServ
To be honest, unless you are japanese you have no CLUE about THEIR accents and voice tones in their country AND culture. I feel unless you have LIVED there and spoke japanese for MANY years, you don't have the right to say SHIT about the japanese dubs being better unless the english ones are GOD AWFUL (ex. Love Hina where one character spoke with a Southern Bell accient, and NO ONE speaks that way any more in the US).
I'm actually Korean but I have cousins that are Japanese. I've only visited Japan a few times but I think thats crap if you think that you have to be Japanese to determine whether Japanese VAs are better than their American counterparts. I'm not fluent in Japanese but I think I have a good enough grasp of the language and culture to determine whether the VAs are doing a good job.
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Old 2004-11-07, 19:40   Link #63
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NinjaServ
I feel unless you have LIVED there and spoke japanese for MANY years, you don't have the right to say SHIT about the japanese dubs being better unless the english ones are GOD AWFUL
I don't think so - all it takes is about a year or so of watching things in Japanese, and you can catch on pretty quickly about how things are supposed to sound in each situation; what different facial expressions and vocal intonations are normal for a given situation. I watched anime subtitled for about two years before I began learning Japanese and talking to a lot of Japanese people, but even now that I feel I have a (somewhat) decent grasp of the language and find myself talking to many Japanese people, I find that the reality isn't that much different from what I got from watching Japanese TV. Obviously, any native Japanese speaker is able to better appreciate what is and isn't good Japanese voice acting better than any English speaker, but that doesn't mean that English speakers who know little Japanese can't get a decent grasp on what is and isn't good voice acting - I know this to be true from experience.

But anyway, I agree with basically all your points about the FMA dub.

---

Also, something I'd like to point out to people (especially concerning the comments about the GitS dub) - realize that comparing the English dub to the Japanese dub in terms of whether they sound alike isn't (in my opinion, anyway) a good way of judging a dub. Saying that "this dub sucks because this guy's voice is a bit higher pitched whereas in the Japanese version he's not" doesn't hold up well. A dub should be judged on it's own merits and whether the writing and voices fit the characters in the way they're presented - not whether it mimics the Japanese version.

Frankly, I prefer it when dubs avoid mimicing the Japanese version because they usually turn out too rigid and awkward sounding, and frankly anyone who's concerned about getting "the real deal" shouldn't be watching a dub to begin with - they should always watch the original. Dubs CANNOT be a full-out replacement for the original version because too many changes have to be made to make the show work in English - it's much better that they just go with it and make it watchable on it's own merits than try to be rigidly true to the original when it's impossible for a dub to be anyway.

If you care about a highly accurate translation, watch it in Japanese. If you don't like subtitles and/or are able to check your care for accuracy at the door, watch dubs. All that matters is whether the dub stands well on it's own merits. And that inherintly is why I don't watch dubs much - I want as accurate a translation as possible, and subbed versions give that.
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Old 2004-11-07, 21:45   Link #64
Akumabito
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There is no excuse for how horrible the dub was, and it was. Completely ignoring the japanese dub, it still sucked. The kid they got for Al has some potential, but he needs work, not enough emotion. The old man they got for Ed sucked. He's as bad as a commercial actor. Just because it is a cartoon doesn't mean you have to have a goofy voice and/or way too much emotion/emphasis on some words which do not need it. Most of the voices did not fit the characters at all. Even with the crap changes they did adapting it to English, if they had just cast well it would have been forgivable.

Don't assume I hate all dubs and they will never sound right because it's not japanese, that's just bs. The companies just need to take the jobs seriously. Just look at the Miyazaki films that have had big releases in the US, they were good dubs because they were serious about casting and actors. Not to say other companies can't get it right occasionally. Cowboy Bebop has a good dub, better than the original japanese. The american voices, to me, seemed to fit the characters much better than the japanese. Which just proves that if they can cast right it can be better than the original despite changes in dialogue/english adaptation.

And one last complaint, they screwed with the end theme. I wish they would just leave the original end themes where they are instead of switching music all over the place. I happen to like the first end theme a lot. Bah...

Honestly, I would be happy if dub companies would stop with the squeeky attempting-to-immitate-the-japanese-VAs voices or stereotypical cartoon crap actor and just try and do some serious character casting. It's called voice acting, and the stress should be on the acting. Drop the commercial actors with the over the top emotions and try trusting in the animation to get the emotions across.
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Old 2004-11-07, 22:21   Link #65
Hiruka00
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Im a HUGE hagaren fan, and I have to say I was pleased with the english dub. I do agree that Ed sounded a lil wierd in the begining, younger version, but as for his current self, I thought the voice actor did really good. I also liked Als voice. Though he wasnt as emotional as the first Al, I still think he did a good job. Over all I was very pleased with the first episode.

The only thing that I would have to say that I didnt care for was them having Al call Ed by name instead of calling him brother.

Cant wait for the next ep!!

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Old 2004-11-07, 22:23   Link #66
Suikun
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Originally Posted by Akumabito
And one last complaint, they screwed with the end theme. I wish they would just leave the original end themes where they are instead of switching music all over the place. I happen to like the first end theme a lot. Bah...
Well, actually, that was only done for the Cartoon Network airing - Cartoon Network usually requests that the OPs be sent seperate from the actual episode so they can replace it if need be for time purposes (this is why on shows like Rurouni Kenshin they use the same OP for each episode). FUNi knew that CN would likely only use one OP and ignore the others, and decided Ready Steadywas the best to use. Therefore, FUNi must've decided to replace the OP at the end of the first ep with the L'arc en Ciel one for consistency. No sense having the Porno Graffitti song on there if it won't be used else where.

Don't blame FUNi for that one - blame CN.
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Old 2004-11-07, 22:28   Link #67
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Akumabito
There is no excuse for how horrible the dub was, and it was. Completely ignoring the japanese dub, it still sucked. The kid they got for Al has some potential, but he needs work, not enough emotion. The old man they got for Ed sucked. He's as bad as a commercial actor. Just because it is a cartoon doesn't mean you have to have a goofy voice and/or way too much emotion/emphasis on some words which do not need it. Most of the voices did not fit the characters at all. Even with the crap changes they did adapting it to English, if they had just cast well it would have been forgivable.
:Sigh: The reason why the FMA dub "sucked" was because they have to maintain a budget on voice-acting and editing. If they hire great people those peope might demand a high pay and therefore they would lose money as opposed to gaining it. I'm sorry if everything in a dub anime can't be perfect. If you don't like it don't watch it. It's as simple as that. Stop acting like such a purist and deal until the DVD's come out, your highness.[/sarcasm]


Quote:
Don't assume I hate all dubs and they will never sound right because it's not japanese, that's just bs. The companies just need to take the jobs seriously. Just look at the Miyazaki films that have had big releases in the US, they were good dubs because they were serious about casting and actors. Not to say other companies can't get it right occasionally. Cowboy Bebop has a good dub, better than the original japanese. The american voices, to me, seemed to fit the characters much better than the japanese. Which just proves that if they can cast right it can be better than the original despite changes in dialogue/english adaptation.
Well then, but they are NOT dubbed by the same company, so stop using better companies as opposed to FUNimation because that's just not fgair. You could've compared it to the other dubs that THEY did instead of making look bad when in comparison to other dubbers.


Quote:
And one last complaint, they screwed with the end theme. I wish they would just leave the original end themes where they are instead of switching music all over the place. I happen to like the first end theme a lot. Bah...
The reason why they screwed with the end theme is for time purposes for commerical time. They do this for all anime that keep in it's opening, so it's no use complaining now when no one complained over half a year ago, so you're a little late to be whining about this.


Quote:
Honestly, I would be happy if dub companies would stop with the squeeky attempting-to-immitate-the-japanese-VAs voices or stereotypical cartoon crap actor and just try and do some serious character casting. It's called voice acting, and the stress should be on the acting. Drop the commercial actors with the over the top emotions and try trusting in the animation to get the emotions across.
I've never heard of anime dubbers trying to sould like the Japanese counter-parts. You could've made an example to back up your facts. People either bitch when it sounds nothing like the Japanese version, and when they try they bitch about them sucking at the attempt. Besides unless you can do better then stop complaining. Would you rather have it mute like cartoons in the 1920's and earlier? Just be glad they licensed it and actually did the acting for the anime instead of licensing it and not even do a thing of work on it and it to be never seen by man. Just be happy that it was on television legally and for free.
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Old 2004-11-07, 23:22   Link #68
Akumabito
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Originally Posted by Razer_2mb
:Sigh: The reason why the FMA dub "sucked" was because they have to maintain a budget on voice-acting and editing. If they hire great people those peope might demand a high pay and therefore they would lose money as opposed to gaining it. I'm sorry if everything in a dub anime can't be perfect. If you don't like it don't watch it. It's as simple as that. Stop acting like such a purist and deal until the DVD's come out, your highness.[/sarcasm]
Trust me, I'm not going to keep up with the dub on CN. I'm not a purist, I specifically said so. If this is the best talent that a dubbing company without a Disney budget can afford then something is wrong in the industry.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Razer_2mb
The reason why they screwed with the end theme is for time purposes for commerical time. They do this for all anime that keep in it's opening, so it's no use complaining now when no one complained over half a year ago, so you're a little late to be whining about this.
I know, this is just a minor complaint I have about CN really. Just like how they screwed with the end theme of Wolf's Rain. Bah, they need less commercials or something, and yes I know nothing will happen despite anything I say, doesn't mean I can't be unhappy about it.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Razer_2mb
I've never heard of anime dubbers trying to sould like the Japanese counter-parts. You could've made an example to back up your facts. People either bitch when it sounds nothing like the Japanese version, and when they try they bitch about them sucking at the attempt. Besides unless you can do better then stop complaining. Would you rather have it mute like cartoons in the 1920's and earlier? Just be glad they licensed it and actually did the acting for the anime instead of licensing it and not even do a thing of work on it and it to be never seen by man. Just be happy that it was on television legally and for free.
The "trying to sound like the japanese VAs" is reffering to getting female voices that are unusually high and/or squeeky. I am complaining about crappy quallity dubbing cause it just doesn't feel like they are really taking it seriously, nothing to do with it being in japanese or not. And as for the "unless you can do better" thing, hell, I could do better. But among many reasons why my efforts would be rather pointless, I don't feel like moving to where the nearest dubbing company is (almost to the other side of the country from me I think, and if I thought I had a chance I honestly would try).
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Old 2004-11-07, 23:56   Link #69
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Meh.. people most definitely overeact... if you don't like it, don't listen to it.. there's the option when you buy a dvd.. to hear the japanese voices, and look at the english subs.. Though that does kind of annoy me in video games where I don't get that option.. but that's a whole other issue..

Honestly, I saw it, my impressions.. From what I remember..

Ed was pretty good, though, I still didn't feel something behind his voice.. Like.. when he listing off the composition of a human.. that didn't.. sound too good. Like certain parts I wish he had done differently, but it was their take. Maybe I want to see he doesn't have this semi-depressed tone, because Ed comes off as semi-depressed but covers it with an angered tone. It was lacking.. but I must continue..

Al.. oh Al.. I'll be honest and say I didn't like it, maybe he'll be better in the later scenes, but I realize this kid is like, 11 years old, that's his voice.. but.. it felt like he was too young.. like he had no sense of maturity, which I thought he had a little, but I'd like to see how he is near the end, where he begins to realize the darkness of the world, but, I didn't think it was too off from what it should be, because that's what it should be..

Rose, she was good, but I wonder what her sad tone is.. it feels like all the VA can do is happy, but I could be wrong..

Lust.. I don't know, she was good, but not.. good.. there was something about her tone I can't remember.. but yea..


Overall, it wasn't bad, not great, and I like to judge it all off personal feeling, which is what it all comes down too. I'll buy the DVD's and I'll probably watch it subbed, but I'd still like to see how the VA's progress, it's hard to say right now.. because the tone does get dark, and if they can pull that stuff off.. I'll be impressed.
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Old 2004-11-08, 00:08   Link #70
Spooky-Electric
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It just reminded me why I don't like dubs. The DVD's can't come fast enough.
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Old 2004-11-08, 02:32   Link #71
Ed Elric
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I'm waiting until Episode 7 to make a final decision on what I think of the dub.
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Old 2004-11-08, 19:28   Link #72
crazyXsunshine
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ed Elric
I'm waiting until Episode 7 to make a final decision on what I think of the dub.
smartest idea.
but but
gluttony's voice... how bad/different was it?
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Old 2004-11-09, 09:26   Link #73
pathyfinder
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Voice Acting is just that ACTING using your voice.

That being said, the actor has the responsibility to make the viewers FEEL emotions. I for one actually feel that I'm sharing the joy, pain, and confussion of the *animated* characters. That is what makes the show great. IF the voice actors fail to do that, regardless of what language they are using....they fail in acting. This is what measures a good dub to bad one. There is a lot of PASSION in FMA and that PASSION is so important.

One doesn't need to be all knowing in a certain culture to know while listening to a good or bad voice actor. Just how many people still enjoy operas or listening to music in another language than their own, and enjoy it? Perhaps Millions!!!

If AL is going to continue with the IMO monotone voice, it will be very difficult for any one to relate or FEEL anything from him. Young or old, regarless viewers should be able to *get the message*. I doubt if AL doesn't have some growth in his ability to ACT the show will suffer.

ED sound way too smart assed IMO, however ED is a smart ass, the difference I hear is Ed's characteristics like : Quirkyness *if it's even is a word*, Genius *he always talked like he knew what he was saying* and Love towards his brother (without sounding so condensending). Ed like all characters grow and become more mature as time continues, however I just "feel" it.

As far as time goes, well, I for one don't like being kicked in the head by a donkey, so I'm not going to view it and endure the pain. I watch to be entertained, not to see where my endurance level is for pain. There are great dubs and bad dubs. Emotion is important and I just don't feel it. (that is a fact)
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Old 2004-11-09, 09:59   Link #74
STfan
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His quest will determine the ultimate fate of an entire nation...
We Americans have no imagination whatsoever. Well, but if you see how Hollywood, our excuse for moviemaking, churns out trash that's almost entirely spinoff material of the above line without even trying to make it look good, you can sort of understand why America is generally brainless.

No wonder I stick to anime. Movies have absolutely nothing to offer me. They're all either "guy/chick mates with the chick/guy and everyone fills it with sentimental trash" or "person saves the world" or "angsty, brainless teen becomes independent, brainless adult" spinoffs.
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Old 2004-11-09, 13:13   Link #75
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Originally Posted by STfan
"angsty, brainless teen becomes independent, brainless adult"
Damn, I must've missed those. Can you reccomend me one?

I actually liked Al's voice. Edward needs some time to adjust to, I guess. Rose's voice was bad, imho. It sounded like the woman was trying to act, and not just speaking naturally.That way, the intonation/flow of the speech gets messed up totally, which for me is the main critcism on almost every english dub I listened to. The voices often sound like they're standing on a stage reading a passage of text, but not speaking normally (like in live-action series for example). But well, that falls under the "emotion" point anyway.

If I hadn't seen it already, I probbaly would continue watching if I were an US resident.

CU,
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Old 2004-11-10, 17:03   Link #76
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Originally Posted by lamer_de
Damn, I must've missed those. Can you reccomend me one?

I actually liked Al's voice. Edward needs some time to adjust to, I guess. Rose's voice was bad, imho. It sounded like the woman was trying to act, and not just speaking naturally.That way, the intonation/flow of the speech gets messed up totally, which for me is the main critcism on almost every english dub I listened to. The voices often sound like they're standing on a stage reading a passage of text, but not speaking normally (like in live-action series for example). But well, that falls under the "emotion" point anyway.

If I hadn't seen it already, I probbaly would continue watching if I were an US resident.

CU,
lamer_de
Thank God Roze goes mute >_>
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Old 2004-11-10, 19:27   Link #77
odoriman
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Why does every thread about a dubbed anime turn into a pointless bickering over the general quality of anime dubbing?

I would like to add my opinion of the FMA dub and I thought it was great! It was well beyond my expectations (and I was expecting a butchering).

I thought Ed's voice was awesome. (That's right, I said AWESOME! ) Although, it didn't fit well at all when he was a kid at the start. I was thinking "Whoa, Ed sure hit puberty early." They should have digitally altered his voice for that. Not sure if that would have made it better or worse though.

I didn't like Al's voice much. The voice was a good fit but child actors can't act (except in rare cases like Haly Joel Osment in The Sixth Sense). It's probably not going to get any better later on in the series.

I don't see why everybody is dumping on Roze's voice. I found no problems with it.

Oh but Gluttony... I'm worried about Gluttony. He's one of my favourties. We only heard a giggle, but what a raspy giggle. I hope they don't mess with Gluttony.

I really think they adapted the script very well. Even adding a few nice lines. "Wrong leg. Right Arm!" Gold. Pure gold. You can't get that in the Japanese version.

Overall, I thought it was Americanized very nicely. Good job Funimation (so far).
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Old 2004-11-13, 12:52   Link #78
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Why does everyone hate dubs?

I love 'em. Much easier than reading subtitles all the time. Occaisonally they're pretty rocky, but they've improved a LOT since anime started getting dubbed and major differences in how characters sound from the Japanese can usually be written off to some archetypes sounding different in different cultural media. IMO, Kenshin sounds a lot better in English than in his girly Japanese voice.

As for FMA, I liked the voices. Al's took a bit getting used to (having only read the manga, I visualized his voice as being deeper), but it seemed to be improving later-on in the episode. The first episode of any dub is always pretty rocky, but this one was decent and that's a very good sign. VAs get better and get into their roles later on in the series, and we'll see that happening here.
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Old 2004-11-13, 14:48   Link #79
Hoshino Hikari
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Originally Posted by PlasmaFlux
Why does everyone hate dubs?

I love 'em. Much easier than reading subtitles all the time. Occaisonally they're pretty rocky, but they've improved a LOT since anime started getting dubbed and major differences in how characters sound from the Japanese can usually be written off to some archetypes sounding different in different cultural media. IMO, Kenshin sounds a lot better in English than in his girly Japanese voice.

As for FMA, I liked the voices. Al's took a bit getting used to (having only read the manga, I visualized his voice as being deeper), but it seemed to be improving later-on in the episode. The first episode of any dub is always pretty rocky, but this one was decent and that's a very good sign. VAs get better and get into their roles later on in the series, and we'll see that happening here.
Because in dubs alot is different. Not only the voices but the way people say things and some stuff even gets cut out. Voices arn't the only problem (sometimes the voices can be good.) Honestly the only good dub I've seen is Inuyasha.

The dubs of CardCaptor Sakura and Shaman King are extremly HORRIBLE. in CCS they changed everything, even relationships. in SK they changed all the music and the voices are horrible.

Although, Since I live in Canada I havn't seen too many dubs because we don't get cartoon network. =(!!!
I wish I could see the FMA dub.. but all I hear is bad stuff about it.

You should watch the sub of FMA, I've never read the manga but the anime is the greatest~<3!
and Al has a cute voice. ^-^
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Old 2004-11-13, 19:43   Link #80
crazyXsunshine
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Originally Posted by Hoshino Hikari
Because in dubs alot is different. Not only the voices but the way people say things and some stuff even gets cut out. Voices arn't the only problem (sometimes the voices can be good.) Honestly the only good dub I've seen is Inuyasha.

The dubs of CardCaptor Sakura and Shaman King are extremly HORRIBLE. in CCS they changed everything, even relationships. in SK they changed all the music and the voices are horrible.

Although, Since I live in Canada I havn't seen too many dubs because we don't get cartoon network. =(!!!
I wish I could see the FMA dub.. but all I hear is bad stuff about it.

You should watch the sub of FMA, I've never read the manga but the anime is the greatest~<3!
and Al has a cute voice. ^-^
I SO AGREEEEEEEEEEE about those HORRIBLE dubs.
MORTY. JULIAN STAR.
erghhhhhh...
pioneer and 4kids oughtta die. but funi could be SO MUCH WORSEEEE
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