which is a series where I'll be highlighting the differences between the French and English dubs of the wonderful show that is Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir.
I've always watched the show in its original language and I really recommend doing so but I recognise that it isn't necessarily doable depending on the subtitles people have available to them and the fact that they might be based on the alternate dub rather than a translation of what is said in French, so I thought I'd do this as a way to both show the differences and the things that people might miss, as well as sharing some interesting facts I've noticed! I'll be making one post per episode, with for each notable difference what is said in English, what is said in French with my translation and sometimes a little comment from yours truly 😌.
Links to each episode:
Stormy Weather / The Bubbler / Mr Pigeon / Copycat /Timebreaker / Pharaoh / Lady WiFi / Rogercop / Evillustrator / Horrificator / Dark Cupid / Darkblade / The Mime / Animan / Puppeteer / Princess Fragrance /Gamer / Reflekta / Pixelator / Guitar Villain / Antibug / Kung Food / Simon Says / Volpina / Ladybug and Cat Noir + Stoneheart
I'll have to make a few disclaimers as I always do with these things so here are the main ones:
I have done this (rewatching and recording the differences) a looong time ago so I might have changed my opinion on a few things since then, although I'll try to go over and correct if really needed
I didn't actually watch it in English (sorry I really don't like watching dubs) but I instead used the subtitles available on Disney+ which seemed to be an accurate transcription of the dub. however if I've made any mistake feel free to point it out! it also means that I only focus on the text and not the delivery of the lines
I kept the translation of the original french voice acting quite literal and I am in no way competent in linguistics (women in STEM 🫡)
I've only done this for season 1, as I believe fandubs are available for the further seasons but if people are interested I might do the other ones, however I don't have access to legal streaming services with subtitles anymore so it might be a bit more complex for me
I'm not pointing out every single difference because some are uninteresting or just due to simple language differences, but only the ones I personally found interesting/relevant
I didn't include things that happen in every episode (aka the theme song or transformation phrases), but I might do a separate post for them if anyone's interested
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I've been watching a bunch of those multilanguage clips for Miraculous, and here's some of my favorite tidbits:
Italian and Korean among others seem to have leaned really hard on the avatar of destruction angle with Adrien, culminating with Italian Adrien being voiced by none other than Flavio Aquilone, also known as Light fucking Yagami. This is despite the fact that Aquilone has a really deep voice that makes Adrien sound like a 40 year old man. Also, someone please edit the umbrella scene with Italian Kira's laugh. I have a mighty need.
Polish Adrien sounds more like what I would've imagined PV Félix to have sounded like. Maksimilian Bogumił's voice is a great balance of reserved, serious, and classy, yet at the same time boyish, sensitive, and likeable. The Polish version of the umbrella scene is a great example.
While most Chloé VAs sound stuck up in a trashy kind of way, her first Finnish VA Sonja Pajunoja sounds stuck up in a very "prim and proper" kind of way. It reminds me more of a female canon Félix than Chloé.
The Russian dub apparently translates "She's just a friend. A friend..." as "She's just a friend. Or maybe..."
So there's two mandarin dubs for miraculous ladybug. And in the mainland chinese dub they fucking censored the lovesquare into friendship... Though it is cool to know that Adrien directed that dub though
This one's not really a difference, more of a double meaning that gets lost in translation: in French, the verb “buller” also means "to laze" and is a subtle reference to Nino's cool and laid back attitude (which is demonstrated more literally by him blowing bubbles during the episode).
Adrien, talking about his father
En: I'm pretty sure he was a downer back then too.
Fr: Je suis sûr qu'il a toujours été vieux jeu, même jeune.
I'm sure he's always been old fashioned (lit. "old game"), even when he was young.
I can't believed they missed out on Adrien making a hilarious joke!! And it actually would’ve been even funnier in English since “old fashioned” can be a reference to Gabriel’s job.
Chloé to Marinette
En: Out of the way.
Fr: Dégage, boulet.
Go away, boulet.
Here, “boulet” ("ball" as in "ball and chain" or cannonball) is a word used as an insult to qualify a person who is annoying or drags/weighs you down, like the ball attached to a prisoner's chain. Chloé uses that word very often when talking about Marinette in French.
Chloé
En: Happy birthday Adrien.
Fr: Bon anniversaire Adrichou chéri.
Happy birthday dearest Adrikins.
The nickname Chloé uses for Adrien in the French dub is over the top while she only says his name in English.
Chloé about the delivery men
En: Those slackers.
Fr: Les petites natures.
Lightweights. (lit. "Little natures.")
In French the emphasis is put on the workers being weak, when they're lazy in the English dub (it's just a linguistic difference here).
Alya, to Marinette
En: Don't be a pushover, literally.
Fr: Te laisse pas faire tu vaux mieux qu'elle.
Don't let yourself be pushed around, you're (worth) better than her.
Alya sounds more supportive in French.
Marinette talking to the house camera when leaving her gift at Adrien's house
En: [...] ... did I already say that?
Fr: [...] cadeauuu!!! pour Adrien.
giiiift!!!! for Adrien.
Just Marinette being awkward in slightly different ways (I didn't put the whole quote since the rest of it is pretty similar in both dubs).
Alya, to Marinette
En: Girl, girl, girl
Fr: Marinette, Marinette
I'm not translating that one for obvious reasons, but I noticed that whenever Alya calls Marinette "girl" in the English dub (not just now but also later in the episode), she actually says her name in French. It's not a big deal but I just thought it was interesting.
Nino leaving Adrien's house after being kicked out by Gabriel
Fr: Ouais c'est ça au revoir.
Yeah, right, goodbye.
The sentence was deleted in the English dub.
Adrien to Nino, about his father
En: It's just best to stay out of his way.
Fr: Vaut mieux faire ce qu'il dit, c'est plus simple.
It's best to do what he says, it's simpler.
I didn't really pay attention to this one back when I was taking notes of the differences but it hits different after the sentibeing reveal 🥲.
Hawkmoth
En: It won't be long before Ladybug and Cat Noir show up to meet their doom.
Fr: Ladybug et Chat Noir ne tarderont pas à se montrer pour leur dernière danse.
It won't be long before Ladybug and Chat Noir show up for their last dance.
One of Gabriel's many puns, since it refers to the party that the Bubbler is throwing thanks to his new powers.
The Bubbler after Ladybug changes the music that was playing
En: Dude, who just hijacked my mix?
Fr: C'est quoi ce truc ? Qui a osé remixer mon mix ?
What's that? Who dared remixing my mix?
I think "remix my mix" is very funny.
Ladybug, replying to him
En: Yours truly.
Fr: DJ Ladybug.
She <33.
At one point, ladybug calls the Bubbler "DJ bubulle", which is a way of making fun of him since “bubulle” is a cute word for bubble (bulle in French).
Hawkmoth
En: You can't run forever, Ladybug.
Fr: Tu ne tenvoleras pas éternellement, Ladybug.
You won't fly forever, Ladybug.
A little pun that got lost in translation.
Adrien to Nino about his awesome new scarf
En: Yeah. Can you believe my dad got this for me? It's so awesome. He's given me the same lame pen for three years in a row.
Fr: Ouais, j'arrive pas à croire que mon père aie fait ça pour moi, tu te rends compte ? D'habitude il oublie tout le temps le jour de mon anniversaire.
Yeah, I can't believe my father/dad did this for me. Do you realise? He usually always forgets my birthday.
I can't tell which one is sadder :')). Also, "mon père" can be translated as either father or dad so I left both since I think it would be more likely for him to say "father", but the official translation chose to have him say "dad".
Fr: Tu te fais mener par le bout du nez, Marinette
This one is hard to translate. Literally, it would be "you're getting led by the tip of the nose", but it basically means that Manon has her twisted around her little finger. To me "pushover" sounds a bit harsher from Alya.
In French, Alya calls Manon "asticot", which means worm or maggot. It's an affectionate nickname (I swear) used for little kids who move and twist around a lot. (She says “small fry” in English.)
Vincent (the photographer) to Adrien
En: Come on now, I want to see hunger in your eyes.
Fr: Je veux sentir le soleil se coucher dans tes yeux.
I want to feel the sun set in your eyes.
Vincent to Adrien
En: And now, you have to eat the spaghetti off of the floor.
Fr: Tu es surpris, oui, la surprise.
You're surprised, yes, [play] the surprise.
Who translated that to English I just wanna have a talk.
This one is just a language thing but in French, baby doll eyes are referred to as "yeux de petit chat", which means kitty eyes.
Chat Noir to Stormy/Climatika
En: What's with all the terrorising? Why don't you pick up on someone your own temperature?
Fr: Ton arrivée a jeté un froid. À cause de toi y'a plus un chat dans le quartier.
Your arrival cast a chill. There's not a soul (lit. not a cat) in the neighbourhood because of you.
In french, "there's not a cat out there" is a saying meaning the place is empty, and a pun coming from Chat Noir.
Chat Noir, after Ladybug helps him get up
En: Why thanks, m'ladybug, but I had it covered.
Fr: C'était voulu, ma lady, pour le plaisir de te retrouver.
It was on purpose, my lady, for the pleasure to see you again.
This is probably one of the prime examples of the reason a lot of people prefer the french dub over the English one: Chat Noir’s sweet and charming line in French got turned into a more dismissive one in English.
And her reply
En: No time for your childish charm, Cat Noir. But you're welcome.
Fr: Dis donc, c'est pas le moment de jouer les charmeurs, Chat Noir. Un merci aurait suffit.
Hey, now's not the time to be a charmer, Chat Noir. A "thank you" would've been enough.
Chat Noir
En: A little Cat Noir will take the wind out of her sails.
Fr: La miss météo elle commence à me hérisser le poil.
This weather girl is starting to rub me the wrong way. (lit. "ruffle my hair" as in cat hair, but it doesn't make much sense in English and translating it to "ruffle my feathers" would defeat the point of the pun.)
Here they changed the cat pun into a weather pun.
Ladybug about Stormy weather/Climatika
En: Maybe she's got some unresolved anger issues.
Fr: C'est moi ou elle a un caractère un peu orageux?
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In French, you can say "the man of the situation" to designate the right person for a job, so here you have Marinette making a cat pun when impersonating Chat Noir.
Nadja
En: Hurry up Manon, we have to stop by the station.
Fr: Depêche toi Manon, il faut qu'on repasse au bureau de maman.
Hurry up Manon, we have to stop back at mom's job.
Hawkmoth
En: Ah, what could be more pure than an innocent child's emotions?
Fr: Ah, qu'y a-t-il de plus puissant que les émotions d'une enfant innocente ?
Ah, what could be more powerful than an innocent child's emotions?
Just a one word change here but with a pretty different meaning so I thought it'd be relevant to point it out to show how the English dub sometimes adds the most random changes.
Plagg
En: Just when we'd shaken off your bodyguard.
Fr: Mais on vient à peine de se débarrasser de ton gorille.
But we barely just got rid of your gorilla.
Marinette
En: Her voice belonged to a little girl I babysit.
Fr: Lady WiFi parlait comme une enfant que je connais.
Lady WiFi was talking like a little girl I know.
The English dub is a little bit confusing here since during the scene, Lady WiFi (puppeteered by akumatised Manon) talks with her own voice (Alya's) and it's just her way of saying things and vocabulary that belong to Manon.
Ladybug
En: Hey kitty, up here.
Fr: Hey mon chaton, c'est par là !
Hey my kitty, it's up there!
Her!! kitty :33.
Chat Noir to Lady WiFi
En: Breaking and entering are grounds for a serious time-out.
Fr: Et s'introduire chez les gens sans leur permission mérite d'aller au lit sans dessert.
Getting into someone's home without their permission deserves to have you go to bed without eating dessert.
No dessert, the worst punishment :((.
Lady WiFi - Chat Noir
En: You goody two shoeses! - There's only one goody two shoes around here and I'm not her!
Fr: Bande de vilains gentils super pas beaux. - Super pas beaux, tu dis ? Non, s'il y en a ici, ça peut pas être moi.
You bunch of naughty nice guys super not pretty. - Super not pretty, you say? No, if there are some here, that can't be me.
Chat Noir - Ladybug
En: Don't let her make me a puppet. You know I like to be in command. - You mean second in command.
Fr: La laisse pas faire de moi sa poupée. Il n'y a que tes désirs qui sont des ordres. - Oh, ça fait plaisir de l'entendre.
Don't let her make me her doll. Only your wishes are my command. - Oh, it's a pleasure to hear that.
Whyyy is English Chat Noir saying the exact opposite of French!!!!
Puppeteered Chat Noir - Ladybug
En: I'm gonna get your miraculous! - Not so fast, rugrat!
Fr: Donne moi ton miraculous ! - Dans tes rêves, microbe !
Give me your miraculous! - In your dreams, microbe!
Ladybug - Chat Noir - Ladybug again
En: You were a puppet. But don't worry, you didn't do anything foolish. - Good. And Ladybug, FYI, you can pull my heartstrings any day. - I think I liked you better when you sounded like a five year old girl.
Fr: Tu étais une marionnette. Mais je te rassure on t'a pas pris pour un guignol. - Tant mieux. D'ailleurs, entre nous, toi je t'autorise à manipuler mon coeur où tu veux et quand tu veux. - Hihihi, je crois que je préférais quand la petite te faisait parler.
You were a puppet. But I reassure you, we didn't take you for a "guignol" (≈clown puppet). - Good. By the way, between us, I allow you to manipulate my heart wherever you want and whenever you want. - *Most adorable laugh ever*, I think I liked it better when the little one was making you talk.
"Guignol" is the name of a very famous French puppet from Lyon. He's the main character of a specific comical puppet show. If someone says you're a guignol, it basically means that you're acting like a clown.
Frenglish differences in Miraculous - Episodes 25 & 26
Origins Part 1 and 2
Ladybug and Cat Noir/Ladybug & Chat Noir
Gabriel
En: Nooroo, dark wings rise... From this day on, I shall be known as Hawk Moth.
Fr: Nooroo, que les ailes de la nuit se déploient... Nooroo, transforme moi !
Nooroo, let the night wings unfold... Nooroo, transform me!
In French, the transformation phrase is the same for all the kwamis ("transform me"), so they have Gabriel say it even after his little "dark wings" line.
Alya - Marinette
En: We can't let her get away with it. - Well, that's easier said than done. She likes to make my life miserable.
Fr: Alors on n'a pas le droit de se laisser faire. - Bah, j'ai pas de super pouvoir, moi. Et c'est plus facile à dire qu'à faire.
So we can't let ourselves be pushed around. - Well, I don't have super powers (as opposed to Majestia). And it's easier said than done.
Well she doesn't have super powers... yet.
Plagg about the lamp genie
En: I met him once. So he grants wishes, big deal.
Fr: Je l'ai rencontré. Bon il exauce les voeux, il n'y a pas de quoi en faire un fromage.
I've met him. So he grants wishes, no need to make a "cheese" about it.
In French, "to make a cheese out of something" means to make an unnecessarily big deal out of it.
Adrien to Plagg
En: Seriously? My personal chef made all this.
Fr: Tu plaisantes ? C'est notre chef étoilé qui a tout préparé.
You're joking? It's our starred chef who prepared all of this.
So the Agrestes not only have a personal chef, but a starred one too!
Hawk Moth
En: Once I have your miraculous, you will be powerless against me. Everyone will be powerless against me. I will have absolute power!
Fr: Une fois que j'aurai vos miraculous, j'obtiendrai le pouvoir absolu. Et je pourrai réaliser mon souhait le plus cher !
Once I have your miraculous, I'll have absolute power. And I'll be able to fulfil my dearest wish!
It's interesting that the wish is mentioned as early as Origins in French, while the English dub only talks about power.
Stoneheart/Cœur de Pierre
Chloé calls Adrien "Adri-cans" in English and "Adrichou" in French. "Chou" means cute, sweetheart or darling and is sometimes added at the end of someone's name to make a cute nickname.
Ivan's song when he starts singing it to Mylène
En: Mylene, be serene / No, be serene
Fr: Mylène, plus forte qu'un chêne / Veux-tu être ma reine
Mylène, stronger than an oak / Will you be my queen
Ivan's whole song, written on the paper
Mylene mon oxygène
Mylène my oxygen
La plus belle des collégiennes
The prettiest of middle schoolers
Plus forte qu'un chêne
Stronger than an oak
Pour les autres tu te démène(s)
For others you struggle (i.e you always help other people)
En: FYI, Marinette's never gonna fall in love with a statue. - Shh! You know im no good with the ladies, especially this one all of a sudden. I mean, dude, do I go up to her and crack a joke? Shoot her a compliment? Invite her to the zoo, play it serious?
Fr: Dis moi Nino, je trouve que tu louches un peu trop souvent sur Marinette ces derniers temps. - Chuuut, oui bon bah c'est vrai je la trouve super mignonne. Tu trouves pas, toi ? Oh, comment je pourrais faire pour qu'elle me remarque ? Je dois faire quoi ? Lui sortir une blague ? Lui faire des compliments ? L'inviter au zoo, la jouer façon tombeur ?
Tell me Nino, I think you're squinting a little too often at Marinette these days. - Shhhh, well yeah it's true that I find her super cute. Don't you think so too? Oh, how could I get her to notice me? What do I need to do? Crack a joke? Compliment her? Invite her to the zoo, play it like a stud?
"Marinette's never gonna fall in love with a statue." Sure dude. Very rich coming from the person who tried to get her to like him by, doing what exactly? Ah yes. Masquerading as a wax statue. Anyway. Adrien's line in French might sound a bit like some kind of jealousy when reading it but it's not, he's just teasing Nino.
Nino after Adrien teases him for wanting to invite a girl to the zoo
En: Well, they have this really cool new exhibit there.
Fr: Bah quoi, il paraît qu'ils viennent de recevoir une nouvelle panthère.
Well, I heard they just received a new panther.
Nino - Adrien
En: What if I act like a Moron-a-saurus? Or she disses me, or thinks I'm lame or... - Okay, I got your back.
Fr: Et je fais quoi moi après si elle me jette si elle me met un vent ou qu'elle me traite de gros lourd ?! - Ok, viens, je vais t'aider.
And what do I do after if she rejects me or if she ignores me or calls me a lump. - Ok, come, I'm gonna help you.
The saying Nino uses is "gros lourd", which literally means "big heavy". It is used to refer to guys who are very insistent and annoying.
Marinette (talking about Adrien) - Alya
En: Oh, he's such a... - Smarty, hottie, suavissimo, yummytastic, spellbinder. - All of the above.
Fr: Hhhhha, il est tellement... - Intelligent, gentil, beau comme un dieu, irrésistible, drôle et sensible ? - Tellement plus que ça.
*Very big sigh*, he's so... - Intelligent, kind, handsome as a god, irresistible, funny and tenderhearted? - So much more than that.
French Marinette really is infatuated lmao.
Nino to Adrien
En: If I could be yourself. Myself don't work that way.
Fr: Sauf que pour toi c'est trop facile. Moi avec les filles c'est une galère.
Except that for you it's too easy. For me, with girls, it's a mess.
Here, Nino says it's "une galère", which is the French word for galley. It is used to refer to a tricky and hard to get through situation, just like you need a lot of strength to row a galley.
After Nino said to Marinette that there's no need for Adrien to hang out at the zoo: Alya replies in her earpiece
En: Of course we do, you Dumbo.
Fr: Bien sûr que si grosse nouille.
Of course we do, you big noodle.
Noodle can be used as an insult in French, it makes the whole scene very funny.
Max
En: Typical diet for a feline species requiring the strength to run at speeds in excess of 60 miles per hour.
Fr: C'est l'aliment principale de ce carnivore féliforme capable d'atteindre la vitesse de 65km/h.
It is the main food item of this feliform carnivore capable of reaching the speed of 65km per hour.
Who tf uses the word féliforme like ever. But the main problem is the speed. 65km/h is only about 40mph. 60mph, like the English dub says, is actually closer to 95km/h. And according to science, the English dub is bullshit. Panthers can't run that fast.
Kim
En: What place did your cat come in at the county Athletics tournament?
Fr: Il a fini combien votre chaton au championnat intercollège d'Île-de-France ?
What place did your kitten come in at the inter middle school championship of Île-de-France?
Île-de-France is the French région that Paris belongs to. County would probably rather be used to refer to what we call a département which, in the case of Paris, is the city itself. There are currently 18 French régions, and around a hundred départements.
Kim, comparing himself to the panther
En: No need to, I'm obviously the better-looking one. Hey, kitty-kitty. How about a little race with me, huh? Last ones a rotten egg.
Fr: Ha ! Ça ne risque pas ! C'est clair que je suis le plus canon des deux. Hey, boule de poils. Ça te dirait de faire une course avec moi, hein ? Le dernier arrivé aura un gage.
Ah! There's no risk! It's clear that I am the more gorgeous of the two. Hey, furball. What would you say about having a race with me, huh? The last one there gets a dare/has to pay a forfeit.
I'm not 100% sure about the translation here since it seems there's no direct translation of "avoir un gage", but basically, the loser has to pay a forfeit by completing a dare.
Max
En: Let's see. With a 6-feet-per-second wind behind you, and the sun at a 45 degrees to the northeast, I don't think you'd be a rotten egg, you'd be lunch.
Fr: Voyons voir. En considérant un vent favorable de 2 mètres par seconde et avec le soleil dans le dos, je sens que c'est toi qui aura le gage, et elle, elle te dévorera.
Let's see. Considering a rear wind of 2 meters per second and with the sun in your back, I can feel that you're the one who's gonna have to do the dare (/pay the forfeit) while she will devour you.
2 meters per second corresponds to about 6.5 feet, so this conversion is quite accurate.
Chat Noir - Ladybug
En: I dont think he can "bear" to listen to that noise. - You're almost too much to "bear". Now we wait.
Fr: Il en a plein les oreilles, le bruit le rend chèvre. - C'est toi qui me rends chèvre avec ton humour. Regarde il est épuisé !
He's getting an earful, the noise is driving him nuts (lit. driving him goat). - You're the one driving me goat with your humour. Look, he's exhausted!
In French, to "drive somebody goat" means you're making them enraged/lose their patience or annoying them a lot. It's obviously a hilarious pun coming from Chat Noir and Ladybug teasing him in return.
Chat Noir hugging Ladybug after she got eaten by the dinosaur
