I was watching Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood as I had finished the original and some Fate/Zero. One of my friends skyped me and asked me what I was doing. I told him I was watching anime and then he asked dubbed or subbed. I said dubbed and then he said I wasn't a "real anime watcher" whatever that means. This is also coming from someone who only watches mainstream Shonen. I get that there are some anime with bad voice acting which I frankly also don't care about either. But why is dubbed anime constantly ripped on? Some anime like FMAB and Code Geass have excellent voice acting. I actually prefer the dubbed version of Code Geass to the subbed version because of Johnny Yong Bosch. He's one of the best anime voice actors and has also done some other amazing anime like Bleach and Persona 4. Here's an example:

Dubbed

Subbed

Now honestly tell me which one you prefer to watch? All I'm saying is that I don't want to read whilst I'm watching the whole time.

Honestly, I prefer the dubs, because I can actually sit back and watch it, instead of ALWAYS looking at the bottom of the screen reading the subs, wondering what the top half of the screen looks like. Now I'm not saying I hate subs, but if there is an option of seeing the dub, then I'll watch the dub. If the anime isn't dubbed, then I can settle with subs. Now I'm hungry for sandwiches...

Well, it varies. Sometimes I prefer the sub over the dub, but I generally prefer dubbed. Pokemon's a great example of a show that did dubs right (at least in the beginning). Even though the dub sometimes didn't match up very well to the voices, many great jokes and puns were inserted that would not have worked nearly as well for a sub.

There's nothing wrong with dubs. But the majority of ones out there are not good to hear. So you will have to find the good ones. I still watch anime is sub and dub despite what people say. And I enjoy doing so. Your friend is wrong to think you are not a real anime watcher. Most people have their own likes, onto what they prefer watching which is the sub or either the dub, labu.

If a friend of yours can not accept that then sorry. Lay it down explain what you like watching more, and your reasons as of why, labu.

I love dubs but I think the problem is that the people who listen to the Japanese sub version of the anime  become so used to the voice that nothing they hear will be compared to it. As Johnny young bosch said "We are voice actors, not imitators ."  It's kind of stupid that a lot of people will turn down the dub version of the anime because the actor doesn't quite fit the Japanese voice actor and not the character itself. I'll take dragon ball z dubbed over dragon ball z subbed any day. But there is nothing wrong with dub, it's just that people take it over the top and complain how bad the voice actors sound.

I have watched an abundance of anime in my time and I love dubbed anime. It is better than say watching the bottom of the screen and I like to hear things I can understand. However, one thing I will say is I have hearing loss so no mater what I happen to be watching I have subs on anyways...  Besides I feel that sometimes I is fun o compare the subs and dubs when using both. 

xxxbluewolf : When i started watching anime i started with SAO with dubs. When i rewatched it right before the 2nd season started i had to switch to subs because the dubs were horrendous so that reason isnt true. On the other hand i used to watch dubs and only watched subs when dubs werent available and the only dubs i now prefer is the dubs for persona 4 the animation since its the same VAs as the game

I just dont think dubs sound nearly as good and some are decent. While others makes me want to rips out my ear drums. And everyone has different tastes for voices. Like Sop thinks the FMAB Dubs are good, while i think they kinda suck. And its the same with Persona 4 animation, i think the dubs are better then the dubs and he still is mad with atlus for not giving persona games the option to have subs

With me, they have to sound like their characters if they don't then I won't watch it. It's not a English thing but also a Japanese thing too. There's plenty of times where I won't watch the raw version of it because the voices doesn't sound right. Ghost in the shell, Cowboy bepop, Samurai Champloo, Full metal Alchemist, Durarara, spice and wolf and countless others are in my opinion better than the Japanese dub because they sound natural. I believe the issue here is that a lot of people have their own interpretation on what the character should sound like, unfortunately there's people who compare the Japanese voice actor to the English actor. And thats what the whole debate is about. People who are just complaining how bad they sound when it's not even that bad. Some of the cringe worthy animes comes from the 2000's era where anime wasn't exactly mainstream like it is now.

You might have to enlighten me, with your first statement being "When I started watching anime"  Kind of makes me believe that you are getting into anime right now. So which leads me to believe that you might or may not have the mind set molded. I've seen plenty of anime, so I already have my tastes and preferences. All I can tell you is that this whole debate has been around since I could remember. There is always that one person who thinks all dubs suck and someone who hates the idea of reading the dialogue off the screen. And there's people who don't care, like me. I don't care because I watch both.  All I can tell you is that it just goes with taste. If you are a hard core anime fan, I suggest reading the manga first so you can get a real feel of the anime for when it comes out.

xxxbluewolf : I started a while ago. Almost a year now and actually my first was P4 the animation i just started watching more after SAO.

I agree with your first paragraph about how you think a character should sound a certain way. Which is why i dislike the dubs of SAO and FMAB, Since i dont think the dubs fit how in my mind the characters should sound.

I've watched about 20 full series. And havent watched a full one since FMAB cause im keeping up with 3 airing anime right now. So im not getting into anime even though i started seriously watching in april and first watched in january

In all honesty for me,it just depends on the anime in general.I don't even truly believe i could pick one over the other.It all depends on the anime,and who the voice actors are.Its quite complicated for me to choose because i myself speak English and Japanese,so if both dub and sub are bad there will be no way to escape it.Like i said i don't really have preferences.It all depends on the voice actors in both languages.After i determine what language is better i will watch the anime in that format.

Ah, that completely makes sense I just wanted to make sure. But some anime dubs are good, you just gotta know where to look and whats really popular. And that's a good strategy, watching 3 animes at a time, because watching more than you can handle kind of becomes frustrating. I'm currently watching Akame Ga kill, sabagebu and tokyo ghoul, though I am a tad bit behind.

After talking to and observing anime watchers, the big problems with dubbing always seem to be three things

1. Censorship - This needs to stop. People need to calm down a bit. 

2. Voice Acting - It's usually horrendous in the dubs, and people don't always fit the characters properly. 

3. Purist-Fulfillment - I prefer to watch things in a pure form, and I believe that the English voices ruin my immersion and enjoyment. 

4. Screw dubs. 

5. Japanese is greater than English.

6. I like reading, and I am a really fast reader. 

7. Reading subs improves my reading speed immensely. I was always able to read fast, but this has helped me improve even more. 

Spoiler: It's all subjective, and it varies from person to person, so none of these lists matter. 

There's nothing wrong with dubs, and in many cases, I prefer them.

Durarara!! and Code Geass are two in particular that stand out to me. (Yong Bosch is an INCREDIBLE voice actor)

I've heard people complain about the Naruto dubs... but honestly, I don't see the problem with them. The show itself isn't a masterpiece or anything, it's not like the dubs ruin the show. Really, the voice acting might be the best thing about Part 1 Naruto.

I don't really care either way, I can listen to both of them just fine, I read through subs pretty fast as it is, but sometimes I like to listen to dubs instead. When it comes to Naruto for instance, I can go either way since I've listened to both. 


For me it can depend on a number of things, whether or not I like the way one sounds over the other, the anime itself and the voice actors, or if only one of them is available. Certain anime are better with dubs than others, but for the most part, I like to stick with subs and I would need a really good reason to use dubs instead. For the most part, I don't care and I also don't see why there is such a dispute over which is better, just enjoy the anime already....

If there is anything I have to say about dubbed anime, as long as it is NOT 4kids, I will watch, but it depends on the kind of anime. Pokemon is awesome but it seems that the early Pokemon seasons back when I was 4-7 were absolutely funny and I just wouldn't stop watching. I care about voice acting now compared to my younger self. Stuff directed by 4Kids actually amuses me, believe it or not in a funny way. I know 4Kids has gotten a horrible rep because of the lousy voice actors, notably in Sonic X. Vector sounded so funny in the 4Kids dub. "Well, you, get, off, my, NOSE!" I swear, I can't find the English dub of the episode at all. I only find the Japanese dubs.

Subs are great, especially when the dub sucks, but looking at the sub the entire time can mean you have to watch the freaking episode TWICE to get the whole thing. Lucky Star has a great example of this. Watching it once for the subs, and then again for the actual stuff happening. I love that "Good Job!" voice that Konata says to "Miyuki-san" even though I don't watch anime anymore.

For me honestly, I prefer dubs, but it depends on the actual anime.  I feel that people are a bit overly critical about dubs.  And if they argue that "you're not a real anime watcher because you aren't watching in Japanese," that's when I want to say "okay, how about you turn off the subtitles again and REALLY watch it in it's original format?"  Yeah some dubs aren't as good as their original Japanese counterparts, but unless it's actually very terrible voice acting, I prefer to watch the dub because I can understand it and don't need subtitles.  In some cases, like Lucky Star's case, I prefer the dub honestly. 

I go with Dubs usually unless there either is none, or the rest of the series is isn't dubbed, like Higurashi. Though really I don't mind either too much.

I like the dubs better mostly because I can just sit back and watch the anime without having to translate mid sentence or compete with my auditory response when I read the English words.

People are so used to the voices from the subbed anime that they don't like the voices of dubbed anime. Also some animes who transfer to America, often get changed to make the show kid friendly but they often seem awkward and weird to others who have seen the original and subbed versions of an anime.