Lovely Complex DUB by JelloApocalypse
Hello, I'm late to the party. Probably most of the people who would be most interested in hearing about this story (Lovely Complex fans, people interested in anime/animation/media, people interested in/concerned with localization/dubbing/culture war/censorship) probably already know about this.
Let me tell you what I think about the situations like this: First of all, and most importantly, doing things like this is evil, downright like something from a totalitarian dystopia Orwell was warning about. And to people saying ''Come on! It's just a stupid romcom anime. It's not that big of a deal.'' Shut up, you're a brain-dead follower whose opinion doesn't matter because it changes with the wind. If it was something you care about or your work, you wouldn't be saying those things. It's not about the quality of the product, it's about integrity and honesty. Just because you or I don't like something it doesn't give us the right to change it. It's not fair to the creator and people who actually like it. If you don't like something, you can not watch it. And if your job requires you to work with something/somebody you don't like, then there's this thing called professionalism. Second of all, I don't want people to be replaced with AI. I want those localizers with massive egos who think they can write a better story to get fired and for the new professional ones to take their place. Unfortunately, because the industry is a bubble where talented people were replaced or turned into activists, and the rot goes so deep, I don't think I trust anybody there to do or find somebody who will work without trying to fix other projects. The problem with not only woke but also just bad localizers goes a long way back. Everybody makes fun of those stupid 4Kids changes, but they never left. They just changed course, instead of Americanising things because little American kids are stupid, and don't know other countries exist, and can also make cartoons, they changed it to preach their politics and opinions on other social topics.
Enough of that. Let's get to the meat and potatoes of this post. I believe a lot of you heard about the controversy, but very few people actually hear the infamous dubbing. Here it is:
Maybe I'm spoiled with good Polish dubs, but why so many English dubs, especially for anime, can't seem to match actors who will fit with the person they're voicing? That way, actor can practically use their normal voice, focus on delivery and emotions, instead of changing their voice to fit the character built.
It's so ironic that they thought ''transgender panic arc'' (crossdressing is NOT transgenderism!) aged the series poorly, but their unfunny references to memes don't. It's a series from the 2000s, keep your contaminated hands from the 2020s of them! I can see those millennials sitting in the circle coming up with those ''funny'' lines. They're kids fucking around in grown-up bodies. They probably use the word ''adulting'' not ironically.
I know anime does it a lot too (Of all the things they decided to keep that.), but why do they have to yell so much, even in scenes that don't need it?
I'm sorry. (Not really, because it's also their fault for gladly taking part in murdering art and coming up with those terrible, cringe-inducing dialogue, too.) Most of those actors are terrible, and I want to strangle them all. Maybe if they were working under a competent person, they would have done a better job.
Many times, voice actors give up and start making noises. Because it's funny?
Those meta jokes make me want to reach through my screen and slap them. Especially those about the animators and voice actors. They didn't forget to color her, that's a well-known way of showing somebody is gloomy. Also, don't compare yourself to overworked and underpaid animators when your job is just talking. You wasted their hard work with your garbage dub. Far fewer people will watch this show because not everybody likes to pause their show every minute to read subtitles. Might as well read the manga. Speaking of which.
I bet there's a portion of people who watched the dubbed show not knowing about the drama. Imagine their disappointment when the manga is nothing like their new favorite anime. Or worse, how many people were turned off to buying the manga because of the dubbing, making the characters annoying as fuck!
Also, the whole dubbing is way more mean-spirited. Especially the ''best friend'' character basically hates the main girl character now. The hatred for this show (and so many other things and people) just pours out of this rotten jelly and has poisoned the entire show.
The whole dubbing feels like an amateur fandub parody, which it basically is if you know how it was made. But even then, it's unfair to some funny parodies whose humor doesn't boil down to scream/meme/meat.