Encyclopedia of Opinion
Question
Should you watch anime dubbed or subbed?
Position1 of 3
Subbed anime is better
Argument3 of 5

The quality of acting in anime is ensured

Subbed anime are able to preserve the original quality of the anime.

The argument

Japanese voice actors undergo rigorous training before finally being selected to act in an anime. There are specialist schools who train voice actors. The industry is extremely competitive and it is hard to obtain a good role and become successful without prior relevant experience in the entertainment sector. Voice acting work is not as prominent in the US, despite the growing number of people becoming interested in the industry. Understandably, there are less English voice actors than there are Japanese, and it is not uncommon to see the same group of English voice actors act in various anime. More different voice actors can be heard with the original Japanese audio, and there can be more combinations in different works since there are more choices of casting in Japan. Viewers would not have to be hearing the same voice actors every time they watch an anime. The possibility of a good compatibility of a voice actor with their character is also higher in Japanese audio, because of the great talent pool Japan’s anime industry has. Dubbing studios may not have as much choice in terms of talent and some roles that might not be the best fit for the actor may be assigned to them anyway. With subbed anime, which retains the original Japanese audio, viewers can enjoy the performances of many different voice actors who are selected by directors because of their compatibility with the character.

Premises

[P1]Japanese voice actors undergo rigorous training at specialist schools and compete in a highly competitive industry, helping ensure high-quality performances. [P2] Japan's far larger talent pool gives directors more casting choices and better actor-character compatibility, whereas English dubs reuse a small group of actors who may be poorly matched to roles. [C] Therefore, because the quality of acting is better ensured in the original Japanese audio, subbed anime is better.

Counter-arguments

Rigorous training and fierce competition do not translate directly into quality work. English voice actors are also professionally trained and have their own following in terms of fans and recognition.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P1 and P2] Viewing experience is subjective and thus cannot be assumed for every individual.