The debate over subbed vs dubbed that ruined my dinner last night

I was over at my buddy's place in Austin watching Akira for the first time with his group. Halfway through, two of them got into a screaming match about whether the original Japanese audio or the English dub is the 'real' way to watch it. One guy stormed out and the host had to pick up the pizza we ordered to cool things down. Which side do you land on when the argument gets this heated, and have you ever seen a friendship break over something like this?

2 comments

2 Comments

mitchell.wade4d ago

Have you tried just watching it with the original audio and subtitles first before jumping into a debate? That's what worked for me when my college roommates got into it over Ghost in the Shell. We ended up making a rule where the first time someone watches a show, they pick the version they want, no questions asked. It took the heat out of the argument because nobody was trying to prove their way was better. Once you've seen both, you can talk about why one works better for you without it turning into a fight. But honestly, if someone storms out over dubs vs subs, that's probably not really about the anime, you know?

the_jade4d ago

Yeah but doesn't that rule just kick the can down the road? Like okay they watch it their way the first time, but once they've seen both versions now you're back at square one trying to decide which one is "better" or more authentic. What happened when your roommates finally watched the other version after their first pick, did that rule actually stop the fights or just postpone them?