English dub's influence on characters

[Taumiel]

The other day I happened to watch some english-dubbed episodes of NGE. I only had watched original (subtitled) and spanish/catalan dubbed versions before.
The thing is, the cast voices didn't sound right to me, not after having heard the original ones and the spanish and catalan dubs.
Something clicked in my mind at the moment, it was why Shinji is universally stated as being "whiny". To me, it didn't seem so when watching the series, but when I heard the english voice... it IS annoying, and makes that character quite pathetic.

So, here comes my question: how do you think the english dub affected your perception of the different characters' personalities?

I'll add some proof (I hope I'm not breaking the forum's rules by adding these links):

Original version:
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-03zvdQWFM[/url]
English dub:
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-D_FU4ZgbU[/url]
Spanish dub:
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2j4OoELRpyk[/url]
Latin-American dub:
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMwKt1Al5Sk[/url]
Catalan dub:
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbREdkqhRBw[/url]

Compare, discuss and enjoy!

[oOoOoOo]

Aaaaaah~ I concur, I concur! Just take Asuka. Her English voice is the single most annoying sound in the history of anime. Actually, all the voices sound off. I've enjoyed plenty of dubs in my day, but Evangelion's is hideous. It reminds me of the sort of material I put together with classmates in our communications class when I was in high school.

Shinji, Misato, and Asuka are all far better in the original Japanese, and that's probably because they were experienced voice actors. The English cast always seems to be reading lines as opposed to speaking them. If you want to hear a good dub of an anime, you have to look at Disney's work on Princess Mononoke or Spirited Away (etc). You can see the difference using real talent makes.

[Timstuff]

I actually find Asuka's Japanese voice a bit more grating sometimes.

[backseatjesus]

I agree, but it's perfect for her character because she's suppose to be an annoying bitch on the outside.

[NemZ]

And at least she can do the German bits without sounding idiotic.

[Alaska Slim]

@Nemz: You mean the English dub does.

Her English voice is the single most annoying sound in the history of anime.

It fit Asuka's personality, her German was far more fluent and she used it more consistently, creating a slightly more believable and memorable character.

The English cast always seems to be reading lines as opposed to speaking them.

Exactly what Yuko Miyamura did with much of the German lines, Tiffany Grant expanded on them, if only in a few instances.

Actually, all the voices sound off. I've enjoyed plenty of dubs in my day, but Evangelion's is hideous.

You have a right to your opinion of course, but it's generally agreed that Allison Keith (Misato) and Tristan MacAvery (Gendo) were competent in their roles, and that Amanda Winn-Lee (Rei), as horrible of a director she made, gave a passable interpretation of Megumi Hayashibara’s performance.

[Timstuff]

I never had a problem with Tiffany Grant's Asuka. The only voice in the American dub that I've always had mixed feelings about was Spike Spencer's Shinji. I say mixed feelings, because I both like it and dislike it. He sounds whiny, but it's also kind of endearing. He definitely was the best example of an American voiceover influencing how I viewed a character, because my view of Shinji would probably be pretty different if I wasn't introduced to his character through Spike's voice.

[Reichu]

but it's generally agreed that Allison Keith (Misato) and Tristan MacAvery (Gendo) were competent in their roles

Whose consensus is this? Did I get a vote?

[VoidEater]

In general, I thought much of the English dub to have a narrow band of expression, which limits my perception of the characterization. The vernacularization of speech seemed to skew many characters into an earlier chron or emotional age than perhaps intended.

Upon first viewing, I wondered if people younger than I actually talked like that.

Even so, the complexity of emotions in the facial expressions were not always present in the voice.

[schismatics]

I don't think they did a bad job on EoE (minus Lee's adding of the goooopppy noises ). There wasn't unneccesary Asuka/Misato squealing/shrieking and Spencer's scream at the end of air was great in my opinion.

But yes the series was horrrible in the English dub...some of that may come from Lee's script (Bologna Pony??????).

@Void eater - I agree that there wasn't enough emotion in the voices at times.

[Oedipusfoot]

This is off topic but I think that the influence of the characters on the actor has a lot of do with the quality of the dubbed version, or even the original. It's dangerous to generalize, but in all of the interviews I've seen that question the dub cast, all the dub cast can say is "Oh, it was a great movie, I feel very privileged to have been able to act in it." They never really personalize the character, they never really take on their role as something greater than what it is on a superficial level--a character in a "cartoon." On the other hand, Japanese actors who are interviewed talk about the profound effects the characters have had on their lives. It is clear that the Japanese actor has absorbed the character's will and soul into himself, and this makes for a more realistic/serious/ and influential product.

Yeah...it's just that I've been watching a certain show over again (refer to avatar) in Japanese.

or maybe it's just the weeabo in me...

@topic: the English voice actors have nothing to do with my take on the character, because I don't think the English voice actor's work is legit. It's more like someone trying to pretend to be the real voice actor.

[thewayneiac]

It fit Asuka's personality, her German was far more fluent and she used it more consistently, creating a slightly more believable and memorable character.

The English voice doesn't fit the character at all; she makes Asuka sound older than Misato. Plus, like all the other characters, The dub took a complex character and turned her into a one dementional caricature.

Exactly what Yuko Miyamura did with much of the German lines, Tiffany Grant expanded on them, if only in a few instances.

Asuka's German is a trivialty. The idea that we should let German profiency decide which performance is better when 99% of her lines are not in German is silly.

You have a right to your opinion of course, but it's generally agreed that Allison Keith (Misato) and Tristan MacAvery (Gendo) were competent in their roles, and that Amanda Winn-Lee (Rei), as horrible of a director she made, gave a passable interpretation of Megumi Hayashibara’s performance.

That's not generally agreed at all. Allison Keith is horrid as Misato; she reads her lines about as well as a porn star would read them.

MacAvery turns a complex character into a stereotpical villain.

As for Lee, it's hard to totally mess up a character who speaks in a monotone, so she doesn't stink quite as bad as she normally does. However her performance in the ep. 26 A.U. stinks up the whole episode.

The worst performance, however, was given by Sue Ulu as Ritsuko. As Shin-seiki once said, ADV should have just added in a mustache for her to twirl. For an example of how ADV turned poor Ritsuko int a bizarre caricature, watch the "phone call from Grandmother" scene in ep. 23, first in Japanese, then in English. In the original she sounds genuinely concerned. In English she sounds like she is totally blowing her grandmother off. Her tone of voice reeks of "Don't call me, I'll call you, old bag". Inexcusable.

[Joseph the PRPD]

But yes the series was horrrible in the English dub...some of that may come from Lee's script (Bologna Pony??????).

I cracked up when I heard Rei say that.


@TOPIC

With Japanese Asuka, it kind of annoys me but hearing her German makes me laugh.

English Asuka, I think Tiffany Grant did a great job as Asuka but the German seemed "scratchy" to me. If that makes sense. Maybe it's just me.

Japanese Shinji and English Shinji, I think both voices fit well. Ogata and Spencer played Shinji well. I wish Spike's Shinji's screams didn't sound like pre-recorded lines every time.

Japanese Ritsuko, I can't take Ritsuko seriously in her Jap. voice.

Japanese Gendo... sounds to generic... if that makes sense...(?)
McAvery did an awesome Gendo!

I think Rei's voice was great in the English dub. Though the alternate reality bit in ep. 26 had me in a "WTFLOL!!!?!?"

Spanish dub:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2j4OoELRpyk
Latin-American dub:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMwKt1Al5Sk

Ugh... Can't stand that.

Catalan dub:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbREdkqhRBw

Made me laugh.

[Joseph the PRPD]

[/double post]
From the looks of some posts this may turn into a bad dub vs. sub argument.

[GaijinOtaku]

I actually prefer Allison Keith, Tristan MacAvery and Sue Ulu to the Japanese seiyu. But I dislike everyone else's english voices, especially Asuka!

[Reichu]

[/double post]
From the looks of some posts this may turn into a bad dub vs. sub argument.

If people are just pitching generalized opinions without doing much if anything to qualify them in any way -- well, yeah, it's not going to advance very far beyond those primordial trappings, is it?

Please don't just post who you like better, and whose screaming is better, and lol Miyamura's German sucks, and etc. We've heard it all before. Stick to the topic. If your post obviously has nothing to do with this:

how do you think the english dub affected your perception of the different characters' personalities?

...I won't hesitate to delete it. I'll let some of the examples of what not to do remain.

[Fast Tony DeNiro]

Coming from someone who has only seen the series dubbed in English, maybe this will be a little one-sided. I've seen snippets of the original Japanese audio, but not much.

I actually really liked the voice-acting in the English dub. I thought it got the point across very well, and I don't think anyone, at least in the main cast, was bad by any means. Ya there are a few lines here and there that come off a little halted, but so what? It didn't take away from anything, at least in my opinion.

I especially thought Spike Spencer was very good as Shinji. Without seeing the Japanese version, I don't have anything to compare it against, but all the same I thought he was good. In every interview I've seen with Spike, whenever he's asked who his favorite character was, he answers Shinji without hesitation. He put a lot of work into the character and I, at least, think it shows.

Some of the minor characters were pretty lol-worthy in the dub, I'll admit. The Seele Committee, for example.

I don't understand how any of the English voice-actors turned the characters into one-dimensional caricatures. The characters were all very well fleshed out.

So yes, maybe I have a different view of the characters than some other people who watched the series in Japanese, or Russian, or Spanish, whatever. But for me, the message still comes across completely, and just as powerfully as it would in any other language.

[TheLobe]

my experience with anime is if you watch the English dub first, you'll be fine with it, however if you watch the Japanese first the dub will sound like crap. I had this experience with Tsubasa, fma and Death Note. However pretty much every other anime I've watched the dub first, and been fine with it. except the Rurouni Kenshin movie. That was just awful.

[backseatjesus]

my experience with anime is if you watch the English dub first, you'll be fine with it, however if you watch the Japanese first the dub will sound like crap. I had this experience with Tsubasa, fma and Death Note. However pretty much every other anime I've watched the dub first, and been fine with it. except the Rurouni Kenshin movie. That was just awful.

You really thought the Death Note dub was crap after watching the original? I think they're both very great it different ways. L seems a lot more arrogant and closer to how I thought he was when reading the manga.... Light voice was also creepier for me(especially during the last episode). Ah well, different strokes for different folks.

The only problem I have with the Evangelion dub is that Spike and Tiffany both make their characters sound older than they should be.

[Marzan]

As far as I'm concerned NGE's english dub was not all that bad all things considered. There are a few exceptions, like Ritsuko, who is just plain terrible. In general I think the male english dubs are better than the female ones. That's just my opinion.