madoka magica dub or sub

Puella Magi Madoka Magica

Available on Manga Store

Apr 10, 2014 12:26 AM

#51

Florete

Offline

Jun 2008

2216

KumagawaBox said:
If you prefer dubs then watch the dub. If you prefer subs then watch it subbed.

Pretty much this.

Both versions are fine. This show's dub is actually very good. Anyone who says otherwise is most likely one of the vocal anime elitists who thinks all dubs are terrible.

Unfortunately, since Rebellion is not dubbed in English and may never be, it will probably be a better idea to watch subbed so you don't have to deal with the awkwardness of new voices.

FloreteApr 10, 2014 12:32 AM

Mar 31, 2015 4:56 PM

#52

CompaNeptune

Offline

Mar 2015

Madoka Magica is the only dub I like besides Spice & Wolf, Cowboy Bebop, Baccano, K-ON!, and Miyazaki's movies. I personally love Homura's voice in ENG.

CompaNeptuneMar 31, 2015 5:13 PM

Apr 7, 2015 2:42 PM

#53

FuckMAl4132

Offline

Dec 2013

780

don't watch it at all its garbage

Apr 18, 2015 6:57 AM

#54

TheLastVeo

Offline

Dec 2012

Okay, here's my two cents:

The sub is generally solid. I'm not going to say it's acted better since I don't know the language (for the record, otakus, STOP saying Japanese acting is better unless you speak the language. Yes you can hear emoting, but emoting alone does NOT make a good actor. Japanese acting is not "better", it's just bad acting doesn't show as much in a foreign language). If you have no problem with subtitles, then the Japanese version will do you just fine.

The dub is a mixed bag.

Christine Marie Cabanos as Madoka is lacking. It's a good effort, but she's clearly trying to put on an "anime voice" and it seriously takes away from the performance. She gets a good read out every once in a while, but for the most part its pretty meiocre for this quality show. Honestly she's the worst of the main cast...and as the main character, this does hurt the dub overall.

Cristina Vee as Homura is pretty good...a touch cliche, and she doesn't have much to work with at first, but she avoids playing the part in straight monotone, which would be the easiest pitfall to fall into. That and in the last third of the show (for reasons I will not spoil), she becomes truly outstanding, and the dub is almost worth watching just for those scenes. In short: Passable at first, astounding later.

Sarah Williams as Sayaka is brilliant. The voice is a little cartoony, but the acting is fantastic; she puts a lot of energy and sincerity in the character, and is able to put Sayaka's raw passion into every line, even in the quieter, subtler scenes. In short, she's perfect.

Carrie Keranen as Mami is solid. It's a perfectly fitting voice and she puts the effort in in all the right places. Nothing to write home about, but no complaints either. She's fine.

Lauren Landa as Kyoko is equally solid. Perhaps lacking in subtlty (though to be fair she's the least subtle character), but she's clearly having fun with the part. Not quite perfect, but still fine.

Cassandra Lee as Kyubey is great. To be fair, the character doesn't demand much emotionally, just cute nonchalance...but she does cute nonchalance very well, so can't complain. That and her voice is weirdly natural and easy on the ears (which, trust me, makes the character all the more creepy).

The supporting cast is kinda mixed as well...Madoka's parents both do a good job, Kyosuke is pretty dull (apart from one scene), and Hitomi is just straight up ear-blisteringly awful...thank Christ she's only a supporting character.

Overall, if you're torn, I'd say go for the sub. The dub will still be there to check out later, and is worth looking at for the stuff that works (mainly Sayaka and late-story Homura). Despite what purists would have you believe, it is a genuine, earnest effort...but Cabanos is the most troublesome factor, and what keeps me from recommending the dub entirely.

Hopefully that answer gives you more to chew on than "DUBZ SUCK!!!" or "EW SQUEAKY VOICES!!"

Jan 14, 2016 1:04 PM

#55

xSakuraBeautyx

Offline

Jan 2016

Ignore all weaboos, I watched dubbed. Watch it Dubbed. I actually liked all voices in the dub.

Jan 22, 2016 6:22 AM

#56

D-ohnuts

Offline

Jul 2014

3117

I thought all the voice actors did a good job. It didn't affect my enjoyment of the show either way.

With the exception of a few retarded lines like "That was a bona fide battle to the death for realz", the dub is pretty solid all around.

Jan 30, 2016 10:07 AM

#57

xSakuraBeautyx

Offline

Jan 2016

AlexTheRiot said:
there's a dub?

Yes there is. Done by Aniplex. And I think it is good. If you would like, watch it. All voices were seem to do a good job on the dub.

Jan 30, 2016 10:23 AM

#58

removed-user

Offline

Jul 2018

564612

What is that question, subs, of course!

Mar 14, 2018 4:33 PM

#59

Zibsidian

Offline

Jan 2018

Dub, by far, I watched the Dub version first and I absolutely adored it. I watched the subbed version after, it was good but I felt it was lacking. The english VA's for Homura, Sayaka and Kyouko were superb.

May 22, 2018 8:29 AM

#60

Tenderizer79

Offline

Jun 2016

866

gamer2710 said:
Hmm, dunno I haven't watched it yet. I'd go with dubbed since it's not Sentai Filmworks.

THIS, although still there are some sentai dubs I'd strongly recommend (Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun and Clannad most of all).

[quote=Mushmallow message=29337803]I have seen 3 episodes in it. Was not impressed. [quote] 3 episodes is not enough to judge a dub when watching it second, unless it's to say that the dub's good. (because if you prefer it without needing extended adjustment period, that means it IS good)

TCTriangle said:
Yea, I have the LE boxed sets so I rewatch if pretty often. My second viewing, I tried to rewatch the entire series in dub instead of sub. Made it to the end of episode 2 before I had to switch back. It wasn't bad, it just couldn't compare to the skill and experience of the Japanese VAs.

2 episodes is not enough to judge a dub when watching it second.

00002019 said:
I can guarantee most, if not all, of the people in here didn't even actually hear Madoka Magica's dub and call it shit because it's an "anime principle" of sorts.

It's not so much "didn't even hear the dub" as "didn't give the dub a fair chance". I refuse to speak poorly of a dub unless I've seen at least 12 episodes of it. That is the proper way to do things. I also don't speak poorly of a sub unless I've seen all of it, or none at all (with the exception of steins;gate, where I had 40 hours to adjust to the insufferable japanese cast in the visual novel, and still couldn't speak highly of them by the end)

00002019 said:
However, the films are officially of a higher canon than the TV series now, and they are not dubbed, nor will they ever be.

You got this really wrong.

EndritVA said:
madoka magica dub or sub

I've seen both versions from start to finish and ... it really doesn't matter, at all. Both versions are good shows. The only difference in quality, is just due to the show being in english with the dub (no need to read subtitles, voice acting is easier to appreciate and more distinct).

The overlap in casting between Kyuubey and Taiga Aisaka is something hard to stomach if you're simultaneously going through a voice actor transition and know the true nature of his character. When the voice isn't bad when you don't know what the voice is masking, and you don't also find it unsettling that a character is speaking the voice of an entirely different person.

I know of about 4 cases where it really matters what version you watch, and Madoka Magica is the furthest any anime has ever been from being one of those cases.

Tenderizer79May 22, 2018 8:33 AM

Aug 13, 2018 2:49 AM

#61

FelleBanan_ygsr

Offline

Dec 2017

I know this is old, but the dub is a actually pretty good. I prefer sub, but dub is acceptable.

FelleBanan_ygsrMar 30, 2020 4:17 PM

Sep 3, 2018 10:23 AM

#62

elenaeteresa

Offline

Nov 2015

always sub. the voice japanese is very amazing

Dec 16, 2019 11:40 AM

#63

Notshane

Offline

Jan 2015

To generalize most of what has been said here, the sub will give you an overall better performance, with every character fitting their role. The dub will give you some solid performances from a few of the main characters, most notably Homura and Sayaka, but not the main character, Madoka.

That is a bit of a problem for the main character of the anime to not have the best acting. Though, the voice actor herself I love a lot. Elsewhere, she has usually been pretty great, but her tone does feel strange for Madoka. The tone does not feel fitting and, as also said before, she can be a hit at times and do very well, but be a miss when the scene really needed her not to.

Ignore all of the other opinions, such as "I have trouble reading," "the Japanese voices sound like helium," "all dubs are bad," etc. They are worthless statements because they are not the criticisms you are looking for. There are great dubs and subs. There are even cases where the dub opinion is wholly superior, such as Ghost Stories. And other times where the unbiased sub opinion is better, such as Higurashi.

Madoka Magica stands to be better in sub, primarily because the delivery of every character is great. Though, the dub improved significantly in the movies. So, my advice would be if you have a dub bias, you can approach Madoka Magica the way you do all of your anime and watch it dubbed. But, if you want every character to have a comparably good performance, you should exit your comfort zone just once and watch it subbed. However, for the movies, you are free to choose on your own accord, since the acting is comparable for both the dub and sub.

As for my preference, the sub does perform better, but I like the voices chosen for the dub. I just wish they could have performed better for the important sequences. Sayaka and Kyoko are the most consistent performances in the dub and deliver their lines very well. Homura is the same near the end. Madoka could have been better.

Dec 16, 2019 12:08 PM

#64

penrhos

Offline

Nov 2019

713

Find a dual-audio release with subs - then you have the choice - I've watched both and the dub is perfectly watchable but you get more feeling with the subbed version.

The Japanese VA's are much better than the English VA's - My other half can't stand "squeaky" Japanese girls voices so if I want to watch Anime on the big TV I have to watch dubs or read subs with the sound muted.

See All Discussions

Poll: » Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica Episode 12 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) tsubasalover - Apr 21, 2011	1541	by Biisoo »» Apr 15, 2:44 PM
Poll: » Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica Episode 11 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ) tsubasalover - Apr 21, 2011	229	by Biisoo »» Apr 15, 2:11 PM
Poll: » Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica Episode 10 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) stevewiess01 - Mar 10, 2011	704	by Biisoo »» Apr 15, 1:41 PM
Poll: » Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica Episode 8 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) stevewiess01 - Feb 24, 2011	627	by Biisoo »» Apr 15, 12:51 PM
Poll: » Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica Episode 6 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) stevewiess01 - Feb 10, 2011	523	by Biisoo »» Apr 15, 11:18 AM

madoka magica dub or sub

More topics from this board

Poll: » Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica Episode 12 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page )

Poll: » Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica Episode 11 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 )

Poll: » Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica Episode 10 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page )

Poll: » Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica Episode 8 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page )

Poll: » Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica Episode 6 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page )

Preview MangaManga Store

MoreTop Anime

MoreTop Airing Anime

MoreMost Popular Characters