Internet goes and their obsessions with all things Japanese?

[Trulen]

Hi there.

I've been browsing the web since I was 11. So that makes about 7 years.

And the past... 3 years or so, I've noticed a trend. A trend here, and a trend everywhere else there are internets and forumgoers.



The obsession with the Japenese culture. As one become more obsessed with the Japanese culture, a more intense hatred is mustered for the English (American/Britain/ english speaking countries) games/shows.


When a game is released in Japanese, people attempt to play it despite them not knowing Japenese. They'll still go play it, just for the mechanics of it. They'll miss out on the story, of course.


Oh, but there's FAQs out there. But I guess I'm too lazy to read a guide telling me what's said while playing along side a Japanese game (though I can see where that's useful if the English release is far off, or there isn't going to be an English release!).


But when the game DOES come out in English, it seems to be the trend to dump the english sounds and immediately go for the Japanese that they don't know.
I never see anyone ask where they can get the Spanish, German, Italian, or other sounds. Only Japanese.


Oh, and animes.
I don't quite know, but the Japanese voice thing also takes place. Oh, but there's English subtitles because the watcher doesn't know Japanese.
I personally don't have the ability to watch, read, and interpret as fast as the show is going along. Unless the TV show points at something to read, then I miss stuff. I usually look at the words when I read.



Ah, and Japan itself.
Unless I'm wrong, I'm sure the entire country isn't obsessed with Anime and video games itself.
But that seems to be a regular theme displayed among the members here.

I personally couldn't see myself going to Japan. I'm sure the people there don't have subtitles.



But I could be overanalyzing things. Maybe it's all down to personal preference.
That's probably it.

 

[Hop2089]

Ah, and Japan itself.
Unless I'm wrong, I'm sure the entire country isn't obsessed with Anime and video games itself.
But that seems to be a regular theme displayed among the members here.

Viewing anime and reading Manga in Japan is considered childish stuff, but there are still people who are obsessed with anime just not as many as most people think. This causes problems because they also put hentai anime and manga in the childish category which infuritates most American and European anime fans because in the US and Europe it's considered adult content.

 

[Law]

Hi there.

I've been browsing the web since I was 11. So that makes about 7 years.

And the past... 3 years or so, I've noticed a trend. A trend here, and a trend everywhere else there are internets and forumgoers.



The obsession with the Japenese culture. As one become more obsessed with the Japanese culture, a more intense hatred is mustered for the English (American/Britain/ english speaking countries) games/shows.


When a game is released in Japanese, people attempt to play it despite them not knowing Japenese. They'll still go play it, just for the mechanics of it. They'll miss out on the story, of course.


Oh, but there's FAQs out there. But I guess I'm too lazy to read a guide telling me what's said while playing along side a Japanese game (though I can see where that's useful if the English release is far off, or there isn't going to be an English release!).


But when the game DOES come out in English, it seems to be the trend to dump the english sounds and immediately go for the Japanese that they don't know. *
I never see anyone ask where they can get the Spanish, German, Italian, or other sounds. Only Japanese.


Oh, and animes.
I don't quite know, but the Japanese voice thing also takes place. Oh, but there's English subtitles because the watcher doesn't know Japanese.
I personally don't have the ability to watch, read, and interpret as fast as the show is going along. Unless the TV show points at something to read, then I miss stuff. I usually look at the words when I read.



Ah, and Japan itself.
Unless I'm wrong, I'm sure the entire country isn't obsessed with Anime and video games itself. **
But that seems to be a regular theme displayed among the members here.

I personally couldn't see myself going to Japan. I'm sure the people there don't have subtitles. ***


But I could be overanalyzing things. Maybe it's all down to personal preference.
That's probably it.

* A lot of dubs are horrible and some people just don't want to go through the whole game listening to bad voices they can understand, when they would rather listen to a bad (yet the voice you would expect a 12 year old school girl to have) voice that they cannot understand.

** You'd be surprised if you actually went there.

*** I hear that they float above people's heads.


Also: GBAtemp is filled with weeaboos.

 

[Trulen]

Hi there.

LOL I SAID A LOT OF STUFF.

* A lot of dubs are horrible and some people just don't want to go through the whole game listening to bad voices they can understand, when they would rather listen to a bad (yet the voice you would expect a 12 year old school girl to have) voice that they cannot understand.

** You'd be surprised if you actually went there.

*** I hear that they float above people's heads.


Also: GBAtemp is filled with weeaboos.

* Ah. I figure that's down to the personal tastes. So far, no games english voices ( the few that have them) don't bother me too much.
And then animes, I've watched Trigun, Fullmetal Alchemist, Outlaw Star, Cowboy Beebop, and some Bobo bo..bobobo...bobobobo...bo? The guy with the yellow hair.

And so far none of the voice acting has been terrible. Actually, they haven't even been bad. Unless I was lucky enough to watch good examples of voice acting in English voiced animes.

Though the guy with the yellow globe and nose hairs. Bobo.
It seems that everything said was really just thrown in there for randomosity, but when I watch it... It fits alot.
But I do enjoy it. Makes me laugh. I enjoy the unexpectability of it.

*** That's assuring. Just in case I ever have to go to the land of the rising sun (or is that China?... Or did I get the phrase wrong..) I won't be completely lost.

 

[alltooamorous]

Well as far as Anime goes, I think things get "lost in translation." When animes are dubbed to English (or any other language other than Japanese) things aren't always translated correctly or in the same way. Also, voice acting in Japan is actually taken very seriously; it can be compared to actual acting in America.

 

[Shabadage]

The anime dub thing is actually pretty easy to explain. In the late 80's and early 90's most of the anime that was dubbed was done by tiny, tiny companies with zero resources. As a result you'd often have poor "actors" doing horrible acting, but also changing their voice because they played like 10 different characters. You'd end up with some people who screeched out lines in ways that would be very painful to listen too. (Most common when there were little girl characters). This was the main cause of the problem (That and the liberties that some companies take with the source material, changing lines here and there or massively altering the story)

This isn't so much of a problem anymore though, but even still you've got the elitists who absolutely despise dubs because "all dubs suck", and their most common "explanation" is "The voices don't fit". While doubtlessly some people do actually feel this way, the majority of those who fall into this category are just trying to be superior in some fashion. The easiest way to tell the difference is to see how red their face turns when you say you like/don't mind the dubs. The Elitists will take this as a personal insult and begin to tell you why your opinion is wrong and then throw a fit if you try to watch it English. The ones who actually feel the voices don't fit will simply say they prefer the japanese voices and deal with the English dub. You'll normally find that the younger crowds are the elitists, while the older folks tend to be the more genuine. Another way to tell is that the elitists will typically despise any anime that has a mainstream following. People who liked Bleach before it started airing in English now hate the show, same goes with Naruto and DBZ back in the day. The more genuine fans could care less.

Keep in mind this post is mostly subjective, just things I've noticed over the years. Dubs nowadays are a lot better than they used to be, fanboys are more prevelant than they used to be, and it's "cool" to be an elitist apparently.

 

[dark42]

I'm sure 4chan has a lot to do with it.
Also, most anime dubs do suck... NARUTO DOES NOT SAY "Believe it!". It annoys the hell out of me. I'd rather hear his nonsensical, slightly less annoying "dattebayo".
I started to watch Death Note on Adult Swim, but then downloaded the entire subbed series. After watching the subs, the AS dub made me want to throw up. Call me an elitist if you will but I really dislike most dubs. However I have read somewhere that the Ghost in the Shell English dub was superior to the original Japanese. I am not really into the series but I try to keep an open mind about such things.

 

[UltraMagnus]

japanophilia is nothing new, H G Wells was a japanophile for instance, why do you think the elite in "A Modern Utopia" were called samurai?

 

[Panzer Tacticer]

I'm 46 and I started with the internet in 1990.

It's true that Japan and all things Japan can seem ever present. It isn't.

But if you look in any genre/hobby/interest that is open to Japanese culture it's an easy conclusion.

Movies and literature are hardly Japan dominated. You actually need to hunt for Japanese film and books, well that's utterly language limited.

There's as many shows in animation from non Japanese styles as ever. This is easy to confirm at a normal retail outlet.

But the internet has made topical specialization fairly easy.

If you type in Simpsons porn you get quite the land slide which leads to porn of every other similar type show.
If you type in Sailormoon porn you get the same result.

Of course some stuff is going to be specific to Japan and some not.

School girl porn for instance. In North America it's North American girls performing the same sexual acts as they do in Japan with Japanese school girls.
So it just depends, do you like watching Japanese school girls screwing Japanese teachers, or North American school girls screwing North American teachers?
Personally I have never cared for the atypical cliche slutty North American cheerleader archetype.

I don't think anyone other than the Japanese care much for 'dating' games (should actually be called screwing games, but I guess it sells better calling it dating).

I tend to prefer anime like game graphics, but the style is merely more pleasing to the eye (in my opinion).

I like the voice actresses singing tunes from anime shows. I guess I just find the Japanese female voice 'pretty'. I look at the lyrics and usually wonder if the translation is proper, or if it's just the song 'sounds pretty' but lyrically would probably be lacking in English to my ear. I don't tend to care much for Japanese tunes from Japanese male singers.
Then again, I have heard stunning voices in Russian and Greek and Spanish too. I just don't encounter them as much.

I think over all Trulen, you might just be a victim of too highly focused an experience of the internet.

Prior to Sailormoon and Dragonball, anime was mostly invisible.
Prior to it going to dvd, it was almost impossible to find it on sale in other than isolated asian retail.
And prior to Bit Torrent, it was very hard to find as a download.
I would say that a great deal of anime has been quite hard to come by earlier than about 2003.

And inside of Japan itself, anime is treated to about the same treatment as any other established 'geek' pursuit anywhere else.

For instance, how many people in your high school consider playing Dungeons and Dragons 'cool"

 

[xcalibur]

* Ah. I figure that's down to the personal tastes. So far, no games english voices ( the few that have them) don't bother me too much.
And then animes, I've watched Trigun, Fullmetal Alchemist, Outlaw Star, Cowboy Beebop, and some Bobo bo..bobobo...bobobobo...bo? The guy with the yellow hair.

And so far none of the voice acting has been terrible. Actually, they haven't even been bad. Unless I was lucky enough to watch good examples of voice acting in English voiced animes.

Quite amazingly, you've stuck to only great dubs of anime. If you were to listen to a dub of naruto or one piece, your ears would literally bleed.
Its true however that dubs aren't as bad as people make them out to be but I assume that the only reason one would watch anime in subs is if it isn't available in english. However sometimes things can be conveyed easier in their own language. Another thing is that sometimes when you watch an anime and hear a scream or a shout, instead of sounding stupid (as it would in english), it sounds awesome (because you can't understand it). Of course others do it just to feel superiour over those who watch dubs

The whole weeaboo culture I find pretty normal for the demographic. Don't you get teenage girls who want to be just like celebrities and follow their every move? Its just a case of "the grass is greener on the other side", with people wanting what they probably couldn't have.

 

[beefymeatloaf420]

That's a good point.

I'd argue but I'm one of the obsessed people. I'm too busy watching mah anime to argue.

(No, seriously, I am RIGHT now watching it)

 

[da_head]

the interesting thing about dubs, yeah the english voices suck most of the time, but it also varies on which one u watched first. for example, i watched bleach on the internet before it came out on ytv. when i heard the english voices, i thought it was effin horrible. but, i watched naruto on ytv first, and i actually don't mind the english voices (but i no all my friends hate em). i guess it's also a matter of what ur used to. and the classic argument of "i can't read and watch", it's just a matter of gettin used to.

 

[kikuchiyo]

Ahaha, this whole topic is cute.

I will say the original poster is somewhat correct (not nearly as correct as he thinks he is though).
But, and I've said this before: undubbing is good because it's far easier to learn spoken Japanese than it is reading and writing. Spoken Japanese with English text (whether it's subtitles or a game) can reinforce conversation.

Manga isn't really considered childish. Some titles are but having lived in Osaka and visiting Tokyo pretty regularly, you'll see adult men young guys or salarymen reading manga on the train home. I had an ex who's dad wasn't an anime nerd but read all of Dragonball. Go to any book store and you'll see teens and young adults reading manga.

In short, if you haven't lived here you don't know what you're talking about.