| They all publish translated manga: Mixx Entertainment, represented
by Stuart Levy (left), Studio Proteus, represented by Dana Lewis (center),
and Viz Communications, represented by Trish Ledoux (right). They gathered
at an Otakon panel to tell how they handle the transformation of manga
from Japanese to American English. |
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| They agreed that a U.S. publisher's goal must be to create an understandable
product, rather than a literal, word-for-word translation. "When I'm reading
it in Japanese and I laugh and I cry and I'm entertained, it's that feeling
- that thing that moves me as a reader - that I want to translate into
the English language," said Levy. "The timing is crucial in comedy. Keeping
that flow going is important for the reader. If you laugh at one point
it's because the author wanted you to laugh at that point." |
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| Lewis used the famed Ah! My Goddess versus Oh My Goddess title question
as an example where understanding emotions means more than word for word
translation. Studio Proteus chose "Oh" for their English title because
"Ah" isn't a common phrase in English. Also, translators have to interpret
the "voice" of a character, from dialect to speaking style, as it would
appear in English. "Blade of the Immortal" mixes formal Japanese speech
with street talk, and the translation has to get that across - in a style
that some think isn't authentic. "Why are some characters talking like
Tokyo street kids? because they are," said Lewis. "We discussed whether
we would play it straight or try the author's radical ideas, and we decided
to go with the author." |
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| "No one speaks in that bland, homogenized, tone. There's characterization,"
Ledoux said, "but if you translate literally, you get a bland translation."
Beyond the decision the American translators make on the characters' voices,
Ledoux noted there's another problem: often the manga authors are vague
about their intentions, and the U.S. publishers have to work around that
shortcoming. |
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