Subs vs. Dubs

Synonyms:
See also:	Subtitle, Dub
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Subs vs. Dubs is the perennial argument among fans over whether it's better to watch the show/movie in the original language with translated subtitles or with translations provided through voice actors dubbed in replacement of the original language.

Started by anime fandom, expanding to film and television, currently also participating in streaming. With both sides arguing categorically that their point of view is better than the other and vice versa.

Controversy

Many fans argue that such disputes are superfluous or selfish, that they only fuel an unreasonable fight in fandoms, in addition to excluding disabled fans and sometimes forgetting that regardless of the choice of dubbing or subtitles, both options employ different people, and that certain arguments used in favor or against one or the other choice do not fall short of the perspective of defending it.

Fannish Perspective

In Brazil, for example, dubbing fans often remember how the country grew consuming dubbed content, with actors like Orlando Drummond—deceased 2021—giving voice to Scooby-Doo for over 30 years, joining Guinness for such a feat. With dubbing studios having their names engraved in idyllic memory, and Brazilian dubbing being highlighted as one of the best, becoming part of the history of many fans who later chose her as their profession because of their love for her.

There are also perpetual fans of the legend in the country, who give great honor to the voice actors, without undermining them, but appreciate that the experience of the original audio with the on-screen transition expands the fan's chance to learn a new language, improve the reading of those who already dominate and broaden the horizons facing coexistence in the globalized world.

However, even though there seem to be two groups that know very well how to correlate, there are still some among them that open more fierce disputes about the dispute.

Arguments for Subs

Since they are not constrained to matching the "lip-flapping" of the characters, subs have more freedom to accurately translate the original language.

Fans watching a show or movie with subs get to experience the original performances of the voice actors, which are presumably closer to the creators' intent than the localization which they may have no involvement with.

GoatJesus, an Anituber who makes video essays, has addressed his preference for basing analysis off of the sub instead of dub in a couple of his videos:

I’m going to be using the official subtitles for this video as reference, because the official dub was extremely liberal. I consider it to be one of the best dubs out there overall--um, minus a few cheesy lines--but, really only for casual viewing. It doesn’t do so well if you’re trying to decipher meaning or message from the show accurately. I can pick up on a few Japanese words without research and tell you that there’s a heavy difference between the official sub and the official dub. Give it a look-see:

Sub

Rose: People aren’t things! Would you blaspheme God!?

Ed: Alchemists are scientists, so God is something ambiguous, that we don’t believe in. It’s ironic, since we’re the ones who are closest to being gods.

Dub

Rose: Well if there’s no magic, then you bring someone back to life!

Ed: Just a matter of time, Rose, science will find a way. Science is the answer to everything. If I were you, I’d drop the scriptures and pick up an alchemy book. We’re the closest things to gods there are.

I think it’s different enough to warrant the use of sub. It changes the context of what Ed’s saying entirely. Instead of Ed stating his own atheism, albeit obnoxiously, Ed’s just preaching the gospel of science… I think that a lot of antireligious themes were omitted in the dub because of Vic Mignogna [Ed’s voice actor for the dub who is very Christian].

Alphonse is the consistent narrator in [the Fullmetal Alchemist 2003 anime], which is changed oddly in the dub at the end. (Which is another reason not to trust dubs for analysis since they vary consistency on a whim. I'm just saying, it's not the original director…Even though it is pretty good—)

Arguments for Dubs

Subs stick closely to the source material in an effort to keep the translation accurate, but in comedy works because many jokes are untranslatable the essence of the scene/humor is lost. Dubs are more apt to localize the jokes, better preserving the scene's purpose and feel.

Because the viewer doesn't have to read text on screen in order to understand what's happening, their attention isn't split and they're better able to appreciate the animation and what is happening visually.

Dubs allow for relevant accents, such as in the Yuri!!! on Ice anime, which features a cast of professional figure skaters from countries around the globe. The dub has, in this fan's opinion, the very fun inclusion of Russian accents for the Russian main characters. However, some find the accents distracting.

Related Media

• Anituber Explanation Point's two-part video analysis on how the slight differences between Boku no Hero Academia's sub and dub alter the motivation/characterization of the characters. Part One, Part Two
• Anituber The Cartoon Cipher's video Why Do Anime Dubs Change the Original Script?, which goes into the process of dubbing vs subbing, and various viewpoints on how they affect the experience of the viewers of the anime. It's a part of their Anime Dub/Industry video series, which touches on this topic in the course of its videos.