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 In Defense of Dubbing (Sort of)
Written by Barb Lien-Cooper
Awhile back, I tried reading a rather scholarly book on anime. In its introduction, the author ended with the phrase "death to dubbing." It was at that point that I stopped reading it, as I didn't like that sentiment. My first thought was, "Do we have to be that way in the anime community? Do we have to act like all the fans of American comic books who constantly play a game of one-upsmanship concerning who's the 'better' more 'dedicated' type of fan?"
Having been a fan of American comics for awhile before I transferred a lot of my affections to manga and anime, I've had to live with a fan community that insists that all fans walk in lockstep, that all fans must like the same comics and same creators, as well as the same geek culture works (the 'canon' as I call them) in order to be considered a 'real' fan. American comics are created and marketed toward a comic-book-lifestyle sort of a fan. Mind games of 'fannier than thou' abound. You're told that it's your duty to buy bad comics in hopes that they might get better (they usually don't), that you have to "keep up," that you have to buy every event tie-in or else you're not really a fan.
I came to the manga community in part because, while we have two categories of manga fans (the casual fan and the otaku), the hardcore fans usually don't play fannier-than-thou games. Yes, otakus embrace the manga as lifestyle idea in ways that more casual fans don't, but most otakus I've encountered are mercifully free of the "I'm a real fan and you're not for this reason or that reason" mentality. Most otakus I've encountered are rabidly into manga and anime, but are more than willing to share their knowledge with the more casual fan. Otakus I've met like to fill you in on what you don't already know instead of sneering at you because you're not as in the loop as they are. My husband gets the magazine Game Informer as a result of buying games at GameStop, and so I know that even in gaming they're struggling with the growing spilt between casual and hardcore. We in manga/anime are doing pretty well.
Except, I'm sad to say, when it comes to "authenticity" of manga and anime. I've encountered other otaku who would totally agree with the author of the anime book when it comes to dubbing anime in American to satisfy the needs of the more casual anime fan.
Now, in the main, I understand their arguments. Yes, the Japanese voice actors in the main are totally spot-on in their work, while sometimes American voice actors don't quite cut it. I can totally understand how some might dislike the voice actress who does Naruto, for instance. I like the American version well enough, although I'll be the first to admit that the Japanese version is miles better in many ways. I'll be the first to admit that some American dubs absolutely ruin a series for some of the audience. For example, I couldn't stand the American dub of Hikaru No Go. I can even understand how disappointing it is for some otakus that Cartoon Network, for instance, seldom seems to show anything like the original Japanese versions of anime series. And while I'm at it, on a slightly separate but related subject, I understand how edits to, say, Sailor Moon, One Piece, and Naruto have caused some fans a lot of consternation. I feel your pain.
But when it comes to renting anime, since almost all of the DVDs have both American dubs and the original Asian versions, what harm does it do to our community to have both? Don't casual anime fans have the right to choose without having to hear "death to dubbing"? Exactly how does it hurt anyone that both English and Japanese versions are available on DVD?
What's more, dubbing is helpful to spreading the "gospel" of anime and anime, ensuring their continued popularity. Think of how many young fans got turned on to anime because of American dubs on Cartoon Network. Would Rurouni Kenshin or Naruto have sold as many copies as manga if they hadn't been backed up by American dubs? Would anime have gained as much acceptance as it has if dubbing hadn't been an option? Many anime fans who come into anime and manga through TV, as well as dubs of Miyazaki films (thank you, Pixar) are quite young. Do you honestly think that most tweeners which anime have brought to the anime/manga fold would have gotten here in the first place if the only anime they could find was the "authentic" versions? Kids aren't exactly patient with subtitles (and when it comes to some all-ages anime, a lot of the fans are too young to even read them). Dubs helped bring anime (and by extension manga) to the American mainstream. I know that whole families now sit down and enjoy Naruto, for instance. So it's not as authentic as the Japanese versions-- popular acceptance has meant more and more anime, as well as more and more manga. We have a lot to thank American dubs for as fans, even if many in our audience prefer authenticity.
We have a great community in anime and manga circles. I can tell you from experience that compared to a lot of the comics industry fandom, manga fans tend to be nicer and more polite than the American fan community, which tends to shout down anyone who doesn't walk lockstep with them. There are exceptions, but a lot of members of the American comics community can be a bit, well, rude. In my humble opinion, the anime/manga community's diversity of fandom, from kid fans to casual fans to hardcore fans, is what makes us such a great community to be a part of.
But I can also tell you from experience that when fans play "fannier than thou" games in a community, the diversity of the community starts to fade in favor of exclusionary tactics which lead to lockstep mentality.
So even if you're totally against American dubs, please respect those more casual anime fans who like them. Our community is strong because we're strong in numbers, and in solidarity compared to many other fandoms. We can't afford to play "authenticity" games that separate us into "real" fans and "not so real" ones. We need to learn from the American comics community and not repeat their mistake of making a form of entertainment into a battleground between those who embrace sequential storytelling as a lifestyle and those who are just here because they like the stories. Because once that happens, tolerance and diversity go out the window and you end up with a small, impolite community that has pushed out the more casual readers, to the detriment of both the community and the sales of product.
I've seen it happen with comics fandom. I'd like to think that manga/anime fans, being newer here and having had to put up with not being seen by comics fans as "real" fans of sequential storytelling because we don't read their comics or superhero comics or color comics or whatever ridiculous excuse they have for excluding us from the sequential storytelling community this week…
I'd like to think that we're just a little smarter, more tolerant, more welcoming, and a little more loyal to each other than that.
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