Bloom Into You's Localization
Minor Bloom Into You spoilers follow
Localizing foreign media is far more complicated than just translating it from the original language, although there are many stories that struggle with even that. Localizers must make the work understandable to audiences, while still retaining the spirit of the original to the greatest extent possible. These two conflicting goals present problems when it comes to translating aspects of the work that are unique to its original language, such as puns or other idiosyncracies of the language, not to mention cultural aspects.
Bloom Into You is a lesbian romance story that would almost certainly be very different if it were not set in Japan. This from the main couple, Touko and Yuu, being a "senpai" and "kohai" ("senior" and "junior") to the idea that "romantic" friendships between girls are a phase in adolescence and nothing more. One key aspect is how the characters speak to each other, and I will examine that here. I may not be a professional translator, but this is my opinion as a long-time fan of anime who has seen localizations of varying quality.
Context
First, I will establish context as to the situation in question. Like in most other anime, how characters choose to address each other tends to say a lot about them.
Touko, being a well-mannered young lady, initially calls Yuu "Koito-san," roughly equivalent to calling her "Miss Koito" in English. Naturally, this is far more formal than most teenage girls behave around each other in English, but it that sort of politeness is expected in Japan unless the two are particularly close, such as Touko and her best friend Sayaka, who use each other's first names without honorifics. Touko does, however, call Yuu by her first name without honorifics when she's feeling playful or flirtatious, although she does ask for permission before switching over (which will be discussed more later).
Yuu calls Touko "Nanami-senpai," since Touko is not only someone she recently met, but also a year ahead of her in school, so she deserves greater respect, which is why Yuu also uses formal speech on Touko; for example, she says, "Nanami-senpai, ohayo gozaimsu," while Touko simply says "Yuu, ohayo." In the West, however, it's more acceptable for people to be casual with those who have seniority over them, so the senpai-kohai distinction doesn't exist.
In the dub, however, both characters simply call each other by their first names, as they do with most of their peers. For most of the series the way they speak to each other generally goes unacknowledged, except for two scenes midway through the anime.
The Scenes In Question
The first scene in question is when Touko and Yuu are walking home after meeting with Koyomi. Touko, probably noticing that Yuu calls Koyomi by her first name without honorifics, asks permission to do the same with Yuu. Yuu nonchalantly remarks that Touko does so all the time (as mentioned above, Touko occasionally used Yuu's first name while flirting with her), and Touko asks if she can do so in front of everybody. After a moment, Yuu says yes. Touko then asks Yuu to call her by her first name, and Yuu calls her "Touko-senpai," only for Touko to blush. At this point, Yuu goes back to calling her "Nanami-senpai."
In a student council meeting some time later, Sayaka immediately takes notice of how Touko called Yuu by her first name, and becomes jealous of Yuu, although Touko tries to play it off as them just being friendly. Doujima tries to get Touko to call him by his first name, but she casually brushes him off. Sayaka then asks if she could call Yuu by her first name (subtly intending to show that there is nothing special about Touko doing the same), but withdraws it, pointing out that at her previous school, she never called her kohais by their first names. The student council soon changes the subject to Sayaka's previous school, but she is left with the realization that Touko and Yuu are becoming close, and starts to become jealous of Yuu.
Naturally, the dub runs into some problems in this situation. On paper, the suggestion of using nicknames is a decent one, as something similar was done in Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls, when Komaru starts calling that game's Touko by her first name late in the game. Unfortunately, the truly significant part- namely, Sayaka noticing the change in address- is not conveyed, since Touko had always called Yuu by her first name in front of Sayaka.
Evaluation
Now I will evaluate the decision and what could have been done differently.
On the one hand, a fair amount of the subtext is lost by the dub's use of first names, not just what I mentioned above. In one scene when Sayaka meets her ex, Chie Yuzuki, by chance, Sayaka decides to subtly imply that she is still a lesbian by calling Touko by her first name (granted, they are best friends, so it is not unusual for her to do so), then leaving arm-in-arm with her. Likewise, Riko and Miyako calling each other by their first names is the first hint that they are a lesbian couple. In terms of plot significance, the change does not alter the entire story, but it is noticeable enough that astute viewers will likely realize that some aspect of the original work did not carry over well, even if they did not view the original.
On the other hand, by making this choice, the conversations sound more natural to an English-speaking audience. Consider the following options for translating how Yuu and Touko might refer to each other at first.
It is worth noting that later on in the manga, Yuu finally starts calling Touko "Touko-senpai," whereupon Touko asks her to drop the "-senpai." It would be very difficult to translate this into English without using Japanese honorifics or a literal equivalent of "Senpai."
In conclusion, the localizers ultimately chose the lesser evil when it came to translating the series for the dub. Overall, it is a fairly good dub for a great anime series, so it is a shame that some parts of the story were inevitably lost in translation.
Localizing foreign media is far more complicated than just translating it from the original language, although there are many stories that struggle with even that. Localizers must make the work understandable to audiences, while still retaining the spirit of the original to the greatest extent possible. These two conflicting goals present problems when it comes to translating aspects of the work that are unique to its original language, such as puns or other idiosyncracies of the language, not to mention cultural aspects.
Bloom Into You is a lesbian romance story that would almost certainly be very different if it were not set in Japan. This from the main couple, Touko and Yuu, being a "senpai" and "kohai" ("senior" and "junior") to the idea that "romantic" friendships between girls are a phase in adolescence and nothing more. One key aspect is how the characters speak to each other, and I will examine that here. I may not be a professional translator, but this is my opinion as a long-time fan of anime who has seen localizations of varying quality.
Context
First, I will establish context as to the situation in question. Like in most other anime, how characters choose to address each other tends to say a lot about them.
Touko, being a well-mannered young lady, initially calls Yuu "Koito-san," roughly equivalent to calling her "Miss Koito" in English. Naturally, this is far more formal than most teenage girls behave around each other in English, but it that sort of politeness is expected in Japan unless the two are particularly close, such as Touko and her best friend Sayaka, who use each other's first names without honorifics. Touko does, however, call Yuu by her first name without honorifics when she's feeling playful or flirtatious, although she does ask for permission before switching over (which will be discussed more later).
Yuu calls Touko "Nanami-senpai," since Touko is not only someone she recently met, but also a year ahead of her in school, so she deserves greater respect, which is why Yuu also uses formal speech on Touko; for example, she says, "Nanami-senpai, ohayo gozaimsu," while Touko simply says "Yuu, ohayo." In the West, however, it's more acceptable for people to be casual with those who have seniority over them, so the senpai-kohai distinction doesn't exist.
In the dub, however, both characters simply call each other by their first names, as they do with most of their peers. For most of the series the way they speak to each other generally goes unacknowledged, except for two scenes midway through the anime.
The Scenes In Question
The first scene in question is when Touko and Yuu are walking home after meeting with Koyomi. Touko, probably noticing that Yuu calls Koyomi by her first name without honorifics, asks permission to do the same with Yuu. Yuu nonchalantly remarks that Touko does so all the time (as mentioned above, Touko occasionally used Yuu's first name while flirting with her), and Touko asks if she can do so in front of everybody. After a moment, Yuu says yes. Touko then asks Yuu to call her by her first name, and Yuu calls her "Touko-senpai," only for Touko to blush. At this point, Yuu goes back to calling her "Nanami-senpai."
In a student council meeting some time later, Sayaka immediately takes notice of how Touko called Yuu by her first name, and becomes jealous of Yuu, although Touko tries to play it off as them just being friendly. Doujima tries to get Touko to call him by his first name, but she casually brushes him off. Sayaka then asks if she could call Yuu by her first name (subtly intending to show that there is nothing special about Touko doing the same), but withdraws it, pointing out that at her previous school, she never called her kohais by their first names. The student council soon changes the subject to Sayaka's previous school, but she is left with the realization that Touko and Yuu are becoming close, and starts to become jealous of Yuu.
Naturally, the dub runs into some problems in this situation. On paper, the suggestion of using nicknames is a decent one, as something similar was done in Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls, when Komaru starts calling that game's Touko by her first name late in the game. Unfortunately, the truly significant part- namely, Sayaka noticing the change in address- is not conveyed, since Touko had always called Yuu by her first name in front of Sayaka.
Evaluation
Now I will evaluate the decision and what could have been done differently.
On the one hand, a fair amount of the subtext is lost by the dub's use of first names, not just what I mentioned above. In one scene when Sayaka meets her ex, Chie Yuzuki, by chance, Sayaka decides to subtly imply that she is still a lesbian by calling Touko by her first name (granted, they are best friends, so it is not unusual for her to do so), then leaving arm-in-arm with her. Likewise, Riko and Miyako calling each other by their first names is the first hint that they are a lesbian couple. In terms of plot significance, the change does not alter the entire story, but it is noticeable enough that astute viewers will likely realize that some aspect of the original work did not carry over well, even if they did not view the original.
On the other hand, by making this choice, the conversations sound more natural to an English-speaking audience. Consider the following options for translating how Yuu and Touko might refer to each other at first.
- Using the same modes of address and honorifics as in the Japanese. The localization of the manga and the light novels go this route, but this is not practical for an anime.
- A literal translation, with Touko calling Yuu "Miss Koito," and Yuu perhaps using "Upperclassman Nanami" on Touko. This would come off as overly formal.
- Use of last names without the honorifics; Touko and Yuu would call the other "Koito" and "Nanami" respectively before changing to first names. While this would retain the significance of the shift to first names, use of last names without proper honorifics is rather rude in both Japan and English-speaking countries.
- Use of first names. As stated above, they sound more like something that high schoolers would use. Concerns about translation fidelity aside, this is the most natural-sounding choice.
It is worth noting that later on in the manga, Yuu finally starts calling Touko "Touko-senpai," whereupon Touko asks her to drop the "-senpai." It would be very difficult to translate this into English without using Japanese honorifics or a literal equivalent of "Senpai."
In conclusion, the localizers ultimately chose the lesser evil when it came to translating the series for the dub. Overall, it is a fairly good dub for a great anime series, so it is a shame that some parts of the story were inevitably lost in translation.
Comments
Post a Comment