What I Look For In a Dub

The sub vs dub is a trite and stupid conflict. You would understand that some things can't be translated well enough or something they have to make it better to understand or to match the mouth flaps or just about anything you can think of in a dubbing. Even Miraculous Ladybug has this trouble because they are dubbing something that still has the original plot, spirit, and characterization in mind. I am not asking a word-for-word dubbing that includes the culture that might fly over their heads or something.

I don't hate dubs. I grew up with the dub of Pokemon, Yugioh, and Digimon for Godoka's sake. As a kid, I was unaware of 4Kids' infamy. At the time, all I could think was how cool the Pokemon contests and battles were. Even before starting to watch the original series with subs, I still don't get the hate on dubs.

Yes, I am well aware of terrible dubs. I kept a mental list of awful dubs out there (Cardcaptor Sakura Nelvana Dub, One Piece 4Kids Dub (the VAs are talented, just 4Kids doesn't have the talent), Free! (like OP, has talents onboard but the failure to keep the spirit of the original... They got the slice of life tone down and kept the dramatic moments. However, it felt more like an abridged series and 50% Off is a better abridged despite my dislike towards abridged in general. The stupid lines like the backstroke all days comment is disingenuous to a series that garnered recognition beyond the fact it's aimed at girls.)).

And decent ones (Tiger and Bunny, Naruto, One Piece Funi Dub).

And awesome ones (Fullmetal Alchemist, Cowboy Bebop, My Hero Academia).

Looking, dubbing is hard work. Scripting to make a natural flow of conversation without making it awkward or finding voice actors who can work with the script and interpret in the right direction is a difficult task. Translating cultural contexts is hard; either they have to make it in their country's context or outright change the context. In fansubs, at least they can explain in little notes.

Seriously, there is a major difference where someone has a major handle on a series in which they do whatever they wanted and a known production which has a lot of material which they have to understand and translate.

Look at Voltron Legendary Defender where the staff created the story, cherrypicking things from previous incarnations and make it their own. Sure there are writing problems that I don't blame the creators for because the writers they hired aren't as great as say the writers of Gravity Falls or Over the Garden Wall. VLD S4 might as well be considered filler despite its plottiness; when you concentrate on the plot too much, you will neglect the characters. Let your characters take the front row seat, not the plot. Even Osomatsu-san, a gag anime, have their characters at the forefront in their most dramatic pieces like "The Letter" or "Jyushimatsu Falls In Love". Even in their most funny pieces like "The Karamatsu Incident" where Karamatsu was kidnapped by Chibita in an act of revenge, there was clearly something there for the characters where we see a friendship between Karamatsu and Chibita and the brothers' lack of concern for their second eldest. This is one of the major problems with VLD's writing; when they focus on characters, it's great in S3 but when they don't...well...you saw the disaster that is S4. I didn't hear an announcement of season 5 yet so I think the criticism is very bad enough for the team to get together that all they are releasing now is some character stuff. The writers must have been hit hard by the criticisms and try their hardest to rewrite and refine the scripts.

Much like adapting a manga into an anime or adapting anime into film, adapting Japanese culture in the text is difficult. Some could be subtle social commentary such as the Japanese western superheroes anime (Tiger and Bunny, HeroAca, OPM). Or outright Japanese culture, expectations. There is a reason why Power Rangers Samurai failed in that respect because American feminism is different from Japanese feminism.

I don't hate dubs just because I know how difficult it is to dub. Even the dubs I don't like just makes me meh nowadays and just tell other people to make their choice to see it or not. Look I watched bad movies like Manos: The Hands of Fate and The Room because I want to.

Sometimes a dub can improve on the original series. Just look at Ghost Stories, a mediocre anime that is best described food-wise a sloppy cheeseburger. The dub is a grilled cheese sandwich with eggs. Like it's not a delicacy or a rare treat but it's still something glorious to witness in its full cookery.

Like that's a dub job that everyone can get behind.

Think dubbing as another art form unto itself.

I never actually watched the Animax CCS dub, the second one after Nelvana's failed dub Cardcaptors. For CCS, the only other dub I ever watched for them was when Funi came in and dubbed the Sealed Card movie, a dub that is decent and managed to make the same spirit of the original CCS came through.

Just because I have a laidback attitude towards the existence of dubbing does not mean I have my own requirements for a dub. Like any show that originated elsewhere like France, I need to see the original in order to see what they are aiming for. With added research on culture, history, etc.

• The naturality and flow, staying within the confines of the context of the show (setting, world, conversation). If the dialogue is somehow so ridiculous, they have to make it work. If there is something Japanese-based joke based on language, they have to adapt it somehow. I still don't get the Deku thing in the Funi dub of MHA where Uraraka said the nickname was cute rather than having the nickname's alternate reading; it took place in Japan that Funi did not take away so why change the alternate reading to something that a girl thinks is a cute nickname? Also, I don't get why they change takoyaki to octopus fritters? 
• Did they manage canon well? How are they going to adapt it without losing the actual canonical events and dialogue? If they have to change the dialogue in order to fit the mouth-flaps, they still have to make it close enough to the original dialogue. 
• Does the voice acting do well? Do the voices fit some extent? It is voice acting after all; there is a reason why Andrea Romano is regarded as the Queen of animation/DC. Look at Ian Sinclair's Brook in the Funi's dub of One Piece; his personality, laugh, everything was perfection and I can listen to his laugh all day.

Yeah, voice acting is low on the list because I'm far more concerned about how they execute the Japanese aspects (will they keep it or not? Because if they are keeping it, they still have to match the mouth-flaps and make the dialogue flow with the mouth-flaps. Or they will keep the setting and try to pass it off as some radio tower or something? Despite it being an obvious Japanese trademark? When I was a kid, even I recognize the Tokyo Tower is nowhere located in America.)

Now I am more concerned about the world they lived in. I don't nitpick at how the Haikyuu dub used the American system for height or use of dude. At least, their usage of dude is not as insistent as in the Free! dub.

I want dubs to do well.

Which is why I am surprised to not see dubs for popular anime like Osomatsu-san. Free! got a dub due to its popularity but Haikyuu finally got a dub just last year with the second season dub pushed back in March or April for quality control just like how Atlus pushed back the localization for Persona 5.

I mean Funi is still dubbing One Piece! They are behind the actual Japanese which is nearly 900 at this point. They're nowhere close to the Dressrosa arc at all.

CCS Clear Card has a Funi dub coming soon and of course, I am going to watch it. When Funi got the dub and dubbed only the second movie, it was a good dub in a short amount of time; the voices fit the characters and they got the spirit down.

How addicting is this series and I'm talking about the GBBO, isn't it? It's also relaxing to watch them bake and experiment pastries.

And make me crave the pastries and desserts.