Z Gundam DVD Set Myth or reality

[Mechamaniac]

Dude, You're never happy about anything!

[Hikuro]

But also take into consideration its "their translation" which means its "cannon"..its also dubtitles as you guys put it, in ALL of the Gundam shows really....so really why are we still bitching about it when we're aware?

[mechaninac]

....so really why are we still bitching about it when we're aware?

It's the sport of choice at Macrossworld.

[Keith]

Dude, You're never happy about anything!

Sure I am, I'm just never happy about poo that's intentionally botched. How can you be happy about dubtitles? The whole point in watching something subtitled is to not have to deal with fast & loose american "re-interpretations.

But also take into consideration its "their translation" which means its "cannon"..its also dubtitles as you guys put it, in ALL of the Gundam shows really....so really why are we still bitching about it when we're aware?

Because this is the worst case of dubtitling since Wing. The 0079 movies, CCA, and aside from the whole "zeek & feddie" thing, 0083 & 08th MS team were nowehre near this bad. This isn't a mainstrream release, and even if it was, there's still a dub for those who want it. The subtitles should be left alone.

[Mechamaniac]

Dude, You're never happy about anything!  

Sure I am, I'm just never happy about poo that's intentionally botched. How can you be happy about dubtitles? The whole point in watching something subtitled is to not have to deal with fast & loose american "re-interpretations.

Well, you sort of have to quantify "re-interpretation".

If you mean the bastardization that they did with the American Adult Swim version of Lupin III which was just freaking horrible, then yeah, that sucked, and they should have been shot for doing so.

However, IMHO, taking a sentence translated from the literal Japanese and redoing it in to colloquial English so that it doesn't sound awkward is cool with me. So long that it means the same thing of course.

Ultimately, as long as I'm not missing huge elements of the story, then it doesn't bother me. Besides, I'm in about the same boat as you when it comes to my Japanese. I lived there for two years, but only learned enough to hail a cab and order food in restaurants. Everything else I know of the Japanese language, I learned from Anime.

So, I don't know enough to grasp even 25% of what they're saying. Therefore, I have to go by the subs either way.

Edited December 17, 2004 by Mechamaniac

[Hikuro]

Gotta agree there, if its translating from your typical Japanese into what it would be interuperted to English, than its not so bad...I mean you still got something of higher quality by far to a bootleg....if you can still understand the story of whats going on, than enough said I think.

dammit......I really want my box set....WHERE IS IT?!

[phuqueue]

I noticed the dubtitles as well (although not having watched the dub, I didn't know if they were actually dubtitles or if Bandai was just using a loose translation), but it doesn't really matter to me as long as the meaning is still preserved. It's a little irritating, but the meaning is still conveyed accurately, so I can deal with it.

Having actually seen the set now, I do have to say the new intro and ending both suck pretty hardcore. I haven't skipped ahead to see how they handled the second OP, but I don't imagine it's much better. I still stand by what I was saying before, that cancelling your set over something like that is incredible overreaction, but I must admit that they're much worse than I imagined they would be. I was under the impression, because of something someone said on the AoD forums, that they were just instrumental versions of the original songs (which doesn't make a whole lot of sense given the licensing situation, but I assumed it meant that the music was fine, but only Sedaka had the right to put out a lyrics version in the US), and that seemed all right. Unfortunately, that's not the case. The Robotech comparisons for the OP are actually incredibly apt. I'm not even a huge fan of the original songs, but the new credits are pretty god awful.

[Gui]

I do not really care about this translation thing personnally, I mean: let's face it, this is not Balzac or Dostoïevsky, giving the whole sense of each sentence in a grammatically correct and easily readable way is more than enough if we can follow the whole story, character development and interaction, etc,... I watch such shows mainly as a Science-Fiction stories fan, not to study the japanese culture through its language: if I wanted to do this, I'd learn japanese and I'd go in there quite some time to watch it with my own eyes

On the other hand, I understand the disappointment of some, all the more as it is a limited edition: obviously, Bandai understood this term only for the little mecha figurines "extras" which is rather understandable because they build toys but still, after so much delay it's true we could expect slightly better care for the customers IMO...

[Jolly Rogers]

I do not really care about this translation thing personnally, I mean: let's face it, this is not Balzac or Dostoïevsky, giving the whole sense of each sentence in a grammatically correct and easily readable way is more than enough if we can follow the whole story, character development and interaction, etc,...

Except the dubtitles apparently failed to deliver on that front as well.

When the R1 audience is questioning Camille's motives for the way he was behaving in the first few episodes (having beef with authority, stealing the Mk-II) without being able to connect the obvious dots together (he gets off easy due to the jobs/ranking his parents have, his parents spent more time working on the Mk-II than raising him, etc.) you can't help but wonder if the dubtitles managed to convey these most basic plot points at all.

[mpchi]

Regardless of comments & complains I've heard so far, I like what I am getting from this DVD set. Got it last night and started watching disc 1.

The package is very nice overall, with the thin DVD cases & cool artwork on each of them. The box is cool too, though a little too big/loose with all the DVDs & the boolet inside. The booklet is thick & informative, though the page layout & design can be more attractive. Didn't expect to have an extra poster too. The DVD video, sound, and sub is all pretty good for a mid 80s show. Way cleaner than the Saint Seiya ADV release. And having the songs taken out didn't bother me much. I have the songs on CD anyway. As someone that never watched Zeta before (though own the manga), the show doesn't feel butchered or dumbed down in anyway. Think Bandai actually have a good release here. May not be perfect, as not everything is left intact, but a good release nontheless. Worth the $119 I've spent!

[Keith]

I'm definately sticking to my guns on this issue. Bandai's dubtitling choices are bizarre at best. Changing Thirty Bunch to "Colony Thirty".....IT'S IN ENGLISH ALREADY DAMNIT!

There are just far too many instances of what's really being said swapped out with some...dub style atlernative. At that point it stops being a trasnlation, and starts being a re-write. Say what you will about HK subs, but most I've seen have done far better at conveying the basic's of what's going on than this dubtitle script. Having already seen the HK Zeta set, I can tell you I was considerably less angered by the translation there. Good sentence structure & spelling are fine & all, but they don't mean anything when they don't actually convey what's being said.

[Mechamaniac]

Sorry, but to me "thirty bunch" sounds like something you get at the florist. Whereas, "Colony Thirty" sounds like a colony where people live, and eventually get gassed.

[Keith]

I'm sure giant fighting robot sounds better to you than "gundam," but it doesn't change the fact that one is the name, and the other is not.

Besides which, it's been a while since I've watched all of Zeta, but I do seem to recall the "bunch" name specifically regarding colony grouping, not specific colony numbering. All the more reason the re-name doesn't fit.

[phuqueue]

I'm sure giant fighting robot sounds better to you than "gundam," but it doesn't change the fact that one is the name, and the other is not.

Besides which, it's been a while since I've watched all of Zeta, but I do seem to recall the "bunch" name specifically regarding colony grouping, not specific colony numbering. All the more reason the re-name doesn't fit.

Actually, in Gundam the "bunch" name does refer to a specific colony, but the show itself is the one that makes the mistake. O'Neill's original colony concept on which the colonies in Gundam are based calls for the colonies to be linked together in pairs called bunches (for reasons I won't bother explaining since it's irrelevant). A bunch refers to a linked pair of colonies. Since Gundam doesn't pair its colonies up, they aren't technically "bunches." They're just space colonies, so "Colony Thirty" is actually more accurate. Still, they're called bunches in the show, so that's how it should have been translated. Regardless of how well it meshes with reality, the colony was called the 30th Bunch. But from a realistic standpoint, Bandai's rename is actually more accurate than what was really said in the show.

[Gui]

Maybe all these changes are done to fit better the upcoming movie release... Like some sort of update or so...

[Hikuro]

After watching Volumes 1-7 over the weekend, both in English and Japanese, I don't think its bad at all. The dub is more impressive than the old 0079 AND CCA combined. The voices for the characters either seem to fit better than the old ones. Though the guy playing Char, aka Quatro seems to be doing an impression of the past VA, but almost better. Kamille's VA is spot on, and his acting isn't bad either, unlike previous VA's in past Gundam shows who can't yell worth squat him and Jerid's VA seem to do fairly well.

Personally the voices for reappearing characters, Char, Amuro, Bright etc are better than the previous, however I do not like Hayato and Kai's VA's.....they're too deep espically Hayato's.

The openings and closings being redone are a pain in the ass...I don't really enjoy it all that much but that's what the skip to next chapter is for thank god. Its just the same damn song over and over even retooled a bit from OP1 to OP2 I think.

The animation restoration is fantastic, its better quality than my old stuff I got on tape, clean and colorful. Close up shots have so much shading and detail of the characters and mobile suits that I enjoy seeing that stuff on a timely basis.

Although the added on explosions, and mechanical effects can be a tad bit much in certain episodes, it can help out since in the Japanese audio there could be ZERO sound going on, such as doors opening, footsteps, booster shots, that sorta deal.

The cover art is fantastic, I love it alot, even the DVD menu, but I wish they played a different song on each one, either a BGM, or Image Song other than whats playing on these....it can get old.

The pencil sharpeners are cute, I got the Hiyaku Shiki, Rick Dias, MKII and Zeta on top of my work computer.

[Hoptimus]

I am sorry but I am so with Keith on this one.

The Dub title sucks. Makes me wish I still had my HK set. Sure the last 15 episodes had some serious engrish subs but its sad when a company makes a DVD set that only the hardcore that would notice something like a dub-title and they dub-title it. Grrrr.

Good thing I just borrowed this from a friend or I would be upset that I spent 125-200 dollars on it.

[Keith]

It is sad when HK subs are closer to the actual dialogue....bastards! Anyway, mini-update for those who are still bugged by the changed intro thing (like I am). Apparently the R2 vol 13 of Zeta has all the textless versions of the openings & endings. So I've personally gone & ordered that, picked up an extra thin-pak case, and wouldn't you know it, if you take out that useless book it comes with, there's just enough room for an eleventh case!