Why was the EVA English dub better received in Australia?

[HeeroYuyIII]

I grew up Australia and I've noticed how the dub is way more liked over there than in the States. I've never seen the dub divide in Australia that I have in the US. In the US, the dub is divisive and always has been as a matter of fact. The brunt of hate was from the 90s of course, but you also have fans who think the dub is amazing and think that Spike Spencer was awesome, when he wasn't, but in Australia, the dub is more praised and consistent.

Tiffany Grant mentioned that she is known, ESPECIALLY in Australia as Asuka. Spike has also been and many Aussies praised him for being Shinji.

How did the dub become liked over here? The accents are American and I know many Australians can tire of this over-exposure. I understand that Aussies can be rather cheesy and the dub is cheesy, but how is a dub intended for North America better loved over there than in the US?

[pwhodges]

If it's true (I have no evidence), I suspect that the US attitude is no more than a reflection of the religious arguments over sub and dub that seem to come round regardless of dub (or indeed sub!) quality.

[The Eva Monkey]

HeeroYuyIII, have you ever even lived in the United States?

[EvangelionFan]

This is the first I've heard of any overwhelming preference around these parts. I don't really have answer for you. You could wait for input from the other local regulars Fazmotron and Blue Monday, but to be honest short of going to a convention and asking attendees about their preferences, your best bet would be to head over to the Madman Entertainment forums and see if they have a thread on it (and if they don't, you could start one).

Addendum: Oh yeah, remember how NGE had a national broadcast on SBS back in 1999? It was a subtitled broadcast, and although I don't believe it has been repeated since (and the SBS subtitles haven't been licensed out to anyone, as the Madman release uses the U.S. subs) it's nonetheless suggestive that, at least in the case of fans who were exposed to it at that time, there might a preference among those fans for the Japanese dub rather than the English dub.

[tootiredtoriot]

This is the first I've heard of any overwhelming preference around these parts. I don't really have answer for you. You could wait for input from the other local regulars Fazmotron and Blue Monday, but to be honest short of going to a convention and asking attendees about their preferences, your best bet would be to head over to the Madman Entertainment forums and see if they have a thread on it (and if they don't, you could start one).

Addendum: Oh yeah, remember how NGE had a national broadcast on SBS back in 1999? It was a subtitled broadcast, and although I don't believe it has been repeated since (and the SBS subtitles haven't been licensed out to anyone, as the Madman release uses the U.S. subs) it's nonetheless suggestive that, at least in the case of fans who were exposed to it at that time, there might a preference among those fans for the Japanese dub rather than the English dub.

Japanese dub? Wha? SBS did a double run of the series with english dub and english translations of signage. IMO it was a successful move in allowing the series to be accessible (or as accessible as NGE can be to a new audience)

[EvangelionFan]

Sorry, you're right - SBS did do a double run of the series in 1999 ... and although you've said that it was a dubbed run with subs for signage, I have to admit that it took a fair while to actually find the information I needed to confirm this for myself. ANN - bless their souls - don't have any information on the VHS releases of NGE, and so it was a while until I found the EvaWiki article that lists the original U.S. VHS releases in 1996-1998. Now knowing this, I do concede that yes, SBS probably ran the series from the dubbed tapes, and in doing so, most likely used the signage subs that existed on the tape as it would have been quite a hassle for them to make their own subs at that point.
All that having been said, I guess, goes to show that there isn't a great deal out there on the SBS broadcast. Sure, Carl Horn was certainly aware of it - he discusses it in the back pages of Shinji Ikari Raising Project Volume 7, noting the Saturday 8.30pm timeslot as well as SBS's choice to run two episodes each week - but the specifics discussed above, if not for a few discussions like this one, appear to be more or less absent from record-holding sites such as ANN and the EvaWiki.

...
@HeeroYuyIII: the abover discussion of the SBS broadcast appears to paint a stronger case for popularity of the ADV dub over the Japanese dub, at least for fans who saw either one or both of those SBS broadcasts fifteen years ago. As for how the rest of the local fandom feels, again, I recommend searching the MadBoards for any mentions or discussions on it - and in the absence of that, I recommend asking around over there (where there are probably more Australian anime/Evangelion fans who can answer your question).

[Blue Monday]

I liked the dub when I was 10.

Also, I'm not too sure how I feel about being called cheesy either.

[tootiredtoriot]

Sorry, you're right - SBS did do a double run of the series in 1999 ... and although you've said that it was a dubbed run with subs for signage, I have to admit that it took a fair while to actually find the information I needed to confirm this for myself. ANN - bless their souls - don't have any information on the VHS releases of NGE, and so it was a while until I found the EvaWiki article that lists the original U.S. VHS releases in 1996-1998. Now knowing this, I do concede that yes, SBS probably ran the series from the dubbed tapes, and in doing so, most likely used the signage subs that existed on the tape as it would have been quite a hassle for them to make their own subs at that point.
All that having been said, I guess, goes to show that there isn't a great deal out there on the SBS broadcast. Sure, Carl Horn was certainly aware of it - he discusses it in the back pages of Shinji Ikari Raising Project Volume 7, noting the Saturday 8.30pm timeslot as well as SBS's choice to run two episodes each week - but the specifics discussed above, if not for a few discussions like this one, appear to be more or less absent from record-holding sites such as ANN and the EvaWiki.

...
@HeeroYuyIII: the abover discussion of the SBS broadcast appears to paint a stronger case for popularity of the ADV dub over the Japanese dub, at least for fans who saw either one or both of those SBS broadcasts fifteen years ago. As for how the rest of the local fandom feels, again, I recommend searching the MadBoards for any mentions or discussions on it - and in the absence of that, I recommend asking around over there (where there are probably more Australian anime/Evangelion fans who can answer your question).

Personally I usually like the version of an artistic work that I see first, obviously this is why it grabbed me in the first place. Whether it be a live or a studio version of a song, or a dub of an anime.
This is also why I feel funny when a different voice actors taking on a role (even if it is practically essential where a voice actor disappears, or even if a later voice actor does a far better job) it just feels a bit removed from the character I associate with.

That's the reason why I like the dub anyway.

Quick sidenote / hopefully not slammed for going off topic - the 2 episodes in a row per week seemed to flow so well, it gave an appreciation to the variety when an action heavy and psychological episode were next to each other, and many of the stories were more completely told 2 episodes in a row anyway, like the Unit 03 episodes and the Zeruel episodes.

[Fazmotron]

I grew up with the dub, and I honestly have nothing against it, I think its a great localisation and all the actors did a fantastic job (especially Spencer and Grant). Of course now I prefer the sub for the subtleties in the performances and to experience the show as Anno intended. The only time I watch the dub anymore is when I watch any Eva with an old friend of mine who insists on it.

I now exclusively watch subbed anime and CRINGE everytime I hear anything dubbed.

I think Eva is probably the only show I'd ever go back and watch dubbed in full.

[Ringworm128]

The accents are American and I know many Australians can tire of this over-exposure

how is a dub intended for North America better loved over there than in the US?

Well I can't speak for everyone but like 60% of the stuff that's played on TV, radio etc comes from the U.S so most of us are pretty used to American and Canadian accents. And since I've been watching TV, movies, playing games etc since I can remember I'm probably slightly more used to American accents than I am my own.

[kuzronk]

It was the first madman release/mature anime (likely) that was showed on TV.

[Shoujo Kakumei Asuka]

From what I understand, Australians just don't fret as much about sub vs. dub in general, and this type of question is likely to be posed much more on the Internet than it is in real life as well.

So the attitudes of Americans on the Internet can't be extrapolated to that of people you meet in Australia, since people tend to bitch about anything online.