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Since everyone has their own "getting to know DBZ" stories, I guess I have no
choice but to tell one of my own: I was introduced seven years ago when I was
reading a Hong Kong magazine with lots of DBZ pictures; back in '92, it was the rage in Hong Kong. I was so enthralled by the images of DBZ that I rented an uncut Cantonese version, from the Vegeta saga to the Freeza saga. And--some of you might call me crazy for saying this--I even had a bit of a crush on Goku; men who school powerful bad guys and can change hair colour at full power are sexy in my books. I also have the first six DBZ movies to this day. Even though I've moved on to other anime like Evangelion, Utena and Pokemon, DBZ still remains my anime roots.
Now that I've finished my obligatory introduction, I'll go to the main point of my essay: The Japanese version of DBZ is much better than the U.S. dub. Yes, other contributors have proved this point an infinite number of times and I don't have a lot of facts to support it, speaking as a deprived Canadian who only got the first 13 shows (lucky 13! ^_~), but I'd like to add a little something to all the arguments that are already posted.
First of all, "Rock The Dragon". Is it just me, or does the song sound
completely like the Power Rangers theme? The BGM's have that Power Rangers
"edge", too. I think the music, especially the BGM's, are totally inappropriate to the story, which is supposed to be fantasy, martial-arts adventure. Maybe I shouldn't be surprised because Saban was behind the U.S. dub, but wouldn't it be much easier and more appealing to fans if the original music was left intact?
Next is the "other dimension" thang. Corny, dumb, ridiculous, no kids will buy it......but it's an even bigger slap in the face when you consider that there were honest discussions and mourning about Mr. Hooper's death on Sesame Street. (Has anyone came across this scene yet?) If even a preschooler's show can deal with death, why the HFIL can't DBZ, a show with infinitely more instances of death--and incredibly violent ones at that?
Finally, I have an idea about the censoring in the U.S. dub: the producers
should've followed the example of South Park. Once, South Park has beaten
Seinfeld by 2 ratings points in the category of men 18-to-34 years old. Get
this: Less than 50% of TV households in the U.S. have Comedy Central (the channel that carries South Park) while NBC (which carries Seinfeld) is available in virtually every home that has a TV. And South Park is definitely more crude than DBZ. Imagine what the DBZ ratings picture (and therefore memorabilia sales) will look like if it were to be shown in its uncensored glory on a specialty channel at a night time slot?
I conclude my essay with a too-obvious comment: Japanese DBZ wins hands down,
goddammit!
P.S. This doesn't have to much do with the Japanese vs. US debate, but I got to let this out of my system seeing that lots of teenybopper idols are sporting the Trunks Bowl Cut:
IMNSHO, only Trunks could get that haircut right. Him and Link from Zelda 64.
Leonardo DiCaprio and Nick Carter and all those other huckers don't even come
close. (This from someone who has never had a crush on Trunks!)
- Miseducation |
   
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