Why is the japanese version of SONIC X better?

[NoOneEver]

Why do people say the japanese version of Sonic X is better than the english version? What is the reason?

[Solly]

Because the English dub changes a number of things. There are a ton of poorly placed jokes, it changes scenes and plot-points and there are scenes that are missing entirely. In the "space saga" Molly is killed in the Japanese version, whereas the dub has her live on to fight another day- besides being unfaithful, they forgot to edit her gravestone out of one of the shots. This is the definition of a bad dub.

The music is changed too. I think the Japanese version had the better tracks. They were more fitting to the overall style and mood of the show, with a lot of techno and rock mixed in, as well as using some bits of music from the actual games. In the dub, there are some pretty good orchestrated pieces, but the music that isn't part of an action sequence sounds incredibly out of place. Its use of clarinets and horns makes it sound more like something from Warner Brothers than Sonic.

Also the voice acting sucks, except for Mike Pollock.

Not that I liked Sonic X. I thought both versions of the show sucked ass, but the original cut is the lesser of two evils.

[Indigo Rush]

Pretty much what Soldier said.

Also, in the original cut, even Tails says "shit."

It's quite amusing.

[NoOneEver]

They should just do an English cover up on the Japanese version so we could understand what there saying and having epic scenes at the same time, because I don't understand Japanese so I like the English dub, I personaly don't care about the voice actors.

[Tori Himemiya]

Silly censorship is silly. 4kids censor some of the silliest things but not all of it.

In episode 18 4kids censor up the part where Eggman shocks the group of crocodiles so you would randomly see belly up crocodiles in front of Eggman.

Like I said silly censorship. And the fact they didn't got the 2nd to last episode right either. :/

Edited March 12, 2010 by Guest

[NoOneEver]

Silly censorship is silly. 4kids censor some of the silliest things but not all of it.

In episode 18 4kids censor up the part where Eggman shocks the group of crocodiles so you would randomly see belly up crocodiles in front of Eggman.

Like I said silly censorship. And the fact they didn't got the 2nd to last episode right either. :/

Is there a way that they could add English voices to the Japanese version like mute the Japanese voices and add English to it? So we understand what there saying.

[DaBatGuy]

They managed to ruin this:

As well as remove this amazing scene @ 3:30:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbrIIfrUn6Y#movie_player

Edited March 12, 2010 by Dat Kool Bat Guy

[MugiMikey]

Is there a way that they could add English voices to the Japanese version like mute the Japanese voices and add English to it? So we understand what there saying.

Yeah. That's calling dubbing the show without making any cuts or changing the musical score. Many dubbing companies do it that way now. In fact... I think pretty much every anime being released for the past few years have been uncut, or at least close to it. The way 4Kids edits things were a way of the '90s, but now they've silently backed off of anime YEARS ago.

Anyway, why is the Japanese version better? Well, the English version isn't horrible. It's watchable. Everyone seems to forget that Sonic X was a show for kids in Japan too. Here are the original Japanese version's advantages-

-It has a better, more Sonic-like soundtrack

-It takes itself more seriously

-Sonic's ENGRISH

-The dramatic scenes can get pretty emotional

If you choose to watch the Japanese version, just make sure you find one with good subtitles since that can make all the difference. I remember watching one that had Robotnik say something like "that FUCKING BASTARD SONIC ALWAYS HAS TO RUIN MY GODDAMN PLANS" ...Swearing isn't even necessary. Fansubbers really like to exaggerate the language. BUT... There was one time in the Japanese version where Sonic said "shit" in plain English, but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt because I seriously doubt the script writers knew how bad that word is.

Edited March 12, 2010 by MugiMikey

[ilcane87]

Is there a way that they could add English voices to the Japanese version like mute the Japanese voices and add English to it? So we understand what there saying.

Obviously, you can't have english voice-acting for scenes that were cut in the english version.

And the english lines are also changed sometimes to alter the events, so it wouldn't make sense to hear them during the original japanese scenes.

Therefore, the best way to experience Sonic X is watching Japanese Raws with English Subtitles, it truly is a thousand times better than watching the dubbed version, trust me.

[Flyboy Fox]

Shadow smacking Chris' bitch-ass face ;_; That's all I have to say about the matter.

[Vertekins]

All you need to know why dub is pure FAIL and raw is pure WIN

I've always said that if a series requires the sheer amount of editing that Sonic X and One Piece "required", it shouldn't have been dubbed in the first place. 4kids shows aim for the YTV 7 rating. If Sonic X's content undubbed is not suitable for the western world's 7 year olds at the youngest then it shouldn't be dubbed, simple as.

It's best left alone and unedited instead of being turned into a 20-25 minute fallacy of puns, bad music and wrongly characterised characters as a result of bad translation. Some might call me out, saying that I shouldn't be so hard on this practice of editting but if Hayao Miyazaki's works can air unedited on datime TV kids channels (Such as an airing of Princess Mononoke unedited with gore intact) then there's no real reason as to why any other kids anime should be toned down as considerably as 4kids dub was.

Sonic X WAS bad dubbing. If you've seen the original japanese episodes, they are quite characteristically different to what the dub portrayed. It had vastly superior music (Not that annoying aspect of Sonic X dub where they use that hair-rippingly annoying 7-note motif whenever Sonic himself appears or the english intro. Anyone who calls that....travesty...an even halfway decent song is insulting every decent musician on the planet). It had morals and didn't shy away from suggestive themes, like Rouge's flirtation or stuff like that.

Important scenes get such effort put into them in the japanese original. And even some of OFF COURSE's songs get used to amazing effect. These moments get almost entirely slaughtered in the dub for more reasons than the music change. Just look at episode 26's comparison on the site I linked to at the beginning of this post.

[PC the Hedgehog]

(Not that annoying aspect of Sonic X dub where they use that hair-rippingly annoying 7-note motif whenever Sonic himself appears or the english intro. Anyone who calls that....travesty...an even halfway decent song is insulting every decent musician on the planet).

At risk of insulting the world of music, I thought that little ditty was, dare I say, kinda catchy.

If there was any piece of dub music that was annoying, it was that blasted, shrill saxophone that played every time you saw Rouge on screen. Rarely do I cringe while watching a dub, especially as a result of music, but WOW, is it ever irritating. And the composers were sure never to miss a chance to use it. Watch any episode where Rouge is the focus and see just how many times they use a saxophone music cue. Gah.

Edited March 12, 2010 by PC the Hedgehog

[Vertekins]

At risk of insulting the world of music, I thought that little ditty was, dare I say, kinda catchy.

If there was any piece of dub music that was annoying, it was that blasted, shrill saxophone that played every time you saw Rouge on screen. Rarely do I cringe while watching a dub, especially as a result of music, but WOW, is it ever irritating. And the composers were sure never to miss a chance to use it. Watch any episode where Rouge is the focus and see just how many times they use a saxophone music cue. Gah.

Interestingly enough, even the japanese version used the Sexophone music. Different from the Sax tune in the dub but still a sax motif So the dub did get this little aspect of Rouge down from the japanese version.

[Diz]

I am a fan of reused/a firm selection of musical tracks reused for each occassion. Also, the tracks included in the Japanese version I really like. Other than that, it is pretty much like any anime imported from Japan and "merely" redubbed. For whatever reason (probably to make the show better suitable for even younger audiences) America, 4Kids or whatever fails to keep background tracks for most animes and rather sees it fit to create a new track for every single episode, or so it at least seemed so far for me.

The other thing has also already been mentioned, and partially through my last paragraph as well. The Japanese version simply gives off a more mature feeling. You do not necessarily feel like you are talked to as a kid, get it?

Also: Original. In many cases, the language something originated in is best, and it might have something with that to do too.

I have not seen all that much of the American version (the same one Norway also uses), but I have seen what I need to see in order to prefer the Japanese version. =)

[MugiMikey]

Sonic X WAS bad dubbing. If you've seen the original japanese episodes, they are quite characteristically different to what the dub portrayed. It had vastly superior music (Not that annoying aspect of Sonic X dub where they use that hair-rippingly annoying 7-note motif whenever Sonic himself appears or the english intro. Anyone who calls that....travesty...an even halfway decent song is insulting every decent musician on the planet). It had morals and didn't shy away from suggestive themes, like Rouge's flirtation or stuff like that.

Important scenes get such effort put into them in the japanese original. And even some of OFF COURSE's songs get used to amazing effect. These moments get almost entirely slaughtered in the dub for more reasons than the music change. Just look at episode 26's comparison on the site I linked to at the beginning of this post.

I wouldn't say Sonic X was BAD dubbing... It was mediocre at best. I agree that the BGM 4Kids made for it was pretty lame, but that seven-note riff was catchy. Not gonna lie. As for the Off Course songs... those were only present in the TV Tokyo television airings. And Natsu no Hi was in some foreign airings such as the French dub, Kotoba ni Dekinai and Midori no Hibi weren't (crazy licensing issues?) They weren't even there in the Japanese DVD and VHS releases. That wasn't really 4Kids' fault. But even if the songs were left there, they wouldn't have used it anyway.

[Tornado]

All you need to know why dub is pure FAIL and raw is pure WIN

A terrible show receiving a mediocre dub does not make the terrible show retroactively better.

[Phos]

What's hillarious about the dub is that it censors scenes from games that had E ratings when they were released.

The voices and the annoying title theme make it unwatchable.

Edited March 12, 2010 by Phos

[Vertekins]

A terrible show receiving a mediocre dub does not make the terrible show retroactively better.

No, but a good dub of a terrible show doesn't make a terrible show any worse than it is already.

[Tornado]

Yeah, but this bullshit that frequently goes down about how "Sonic X is only hated on/bad because of the dub" is completely absurd. As far as dubs go, it wasn't even particularly bad by Saturday morning cartoon standards.

Edited March 12, 2010 by Tornado

[Chooch]

I thought both versions of the show sucked ass, but the original cut is the lesser of two evils.

A terrible show receiving a mediocre dub does not make the terrible show retroactively better.

Pretty much this. If you can deal with the English voice acting then go ahead and watch it in English. The Japanese version might be a bit better but in the end Sonic X is still a horrible show to watch.

Edited March 12, 2010 by Top Cat

[JezMM]

I still love Sonic X (yes even Chris) to the end of the earth myself but meh.

The dub is WATCHABLE. The two things that mainly bother me:

1. Music. Though this is a double-edged sword, as I LOVE the music that plays when Amy is drowning in Episode 9, and when Gamma dies in the Sonic Adventure arc. If the dub had used the original music I'd have never heard those gems, even if (like all the dub music) they are pretty short. But yeah, the annoying thing with the dub is how "wacky" the music is, and how silence IS NOT ALLOWED EVER. Every time a character talks it plays their little theme, making for a really annoying and disjointed soundtrack. The original Japanese version's soundtrack is amazing (it makes me so sad that such a meagre selection of it was released on the soundtrack - I love all the sad tunes).

2. Patronisation. They don't seem to appreciate any of the more mature or sentimental moments, and the result feels like they've "dumbed it down", i.e. Sonic is for kids and kids are dumb. That's not fair on the older Sonic fans OR the kids - not that they know it.

Edited March 12, 2010 by JezMM

[MugiMikey]

The voices and the annoying title theme make it unwatchable.

You know what's funny? People are NEVER happy with Sonic voice actors. Hell, even back when we had the old Sega cast, people still complained.

"WE WANT JALEEL WHITE BACK! RYAN DRUMMOND SUCKS AND SOUNDS RETARDED!!!"

Once Jason is replaced, people will want him back.

[bais]

I wouldn't, I really don't like Jason Griffith's sonic dub. I don't know, it doesn't fit, he sounds so wrong as Sonic. And even though it was far from perfect Ryan Drummond voice was better, it was fitting Sonic well especially in the Adventure series, Heroes was only about cheesy lines and screaming so the dub was worse, but it was still better than Jason's voice in Sonic 06, secret rings, riders...

I do agree that the dub was better in Unleashed but I still didn't like it. I think he does a pretty good Shadow voice though.

And by the way jap Sonic's Engrish is awesome, shame that we don't hear much of it in Unleashed.

[eXtaticus]

Why do people say the japanese version of Sonic X is better than the english version? What is the reason?

Because 4Skin entertainment neutered the script, castrated the soundtrack and circumcised the storyline; this left us with a pile of useless and clapped-out genitalia to call a "cartoon series".

Did I mention that the indescribably bad voice acting from the English dub of Sonic X infected the games, too? Or that the character's personalities were watered down, washed out and replaced with violently cheesy stereotypes?

You need only look at episode comparisons for more reasons...

[Aquaslash]

Did I mention that the indescribably bad voice acting from the English dub of Sonic X infected the games, too?

This is by far the worst aspect of it all. In fact, I think I can safely blame Sonic X for Shadow and Rouge being turned into joke characters.