Funimation's English Dub of the DBZ Anime Is Charming

Dragon Ball Z is the type of show that virtually every anime fan knows about. Having maintained its cultural relevancy for nearly thirty-five years, the series remains a crucial part of the shonen anime catalog. For English fans, many dubs have been made for Dragon Ball, with each having various strengths and weaknesses, and some being more notorious than others. At the beginning of the series run, Harmony Gold licensed an English dub for Dragon Ball. This dub in particular is difficult to detail because it was never broadcast outside of test screenings, making it an example of a “lost anime.” Following this, Funimation licensed the series and recruited voice actors from Ocean Productions.

This dub did end up airing but was canceled after thirteen episodes. In 2001, Funimation took up the mantle again and re-dubbed the series, which aired from 2001-2003 on Cartoon Network in the United States and Australia, while a different production company took over the dub in Canada. The Funimation dub has grown to be very beloved and nostalgic to its fans, but its interesting history shows how it’s truly a mixed bag in terms of dub quality. Dragon Ball Z went on to become perhaps the most iconic anime franchise of all time, both in Japan and especially in the West. Now, the Funimation streaming app is shutting down for good, leaving many fans nostalgic for the anime dub that arguably put the company on the map.

Updated by Timothy Blake Donohoo on February 9, 2024: The classic Funimation dub isn’t the only English dub of Dragon Ball Z, but it is the most iconic. To many of the franchise’s fans, it’s the version of the series that an entire generation is used to hearing. This dub put Dragon Ball Z and Funimation in general on the map when it came to Western viewers. Through this, anime began to become a tour de force in non-Asian territories, and this legacy of success can be traced back to the Funimation dub of Dragon Ball Z.

The Ocean Dub vs. The Funimation Dub

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The Funimation dub of Dragon Ball Z was only one of the many English versions of the show released over the years. The first of these was by a company called the Creative Products Corporation, which dubbed fewer than 30 of the show’s episodes. After this failed to gain much traction, Funimation and Saban Entertainment tried to do their own versions, with the latter handling things in Canada. This was done through Ocean Productions, with the subsequent dub becoming known as the Ocean Group Dub. This take had involvement from Haim Saban, Shuki Levy, and even musician Ron Wasserman, all of whom created and/or shaped the popular Power Rangers franchise.

Even more so than the Funimation dub, the Ocean dub was known for its censorship, with child characters (including cast members such as the young Gohan) being endangered or in distress causing problems. 67 episodes of the show were dubbed by Saban/Ocean, but due to how much content was cut, it brought the number down to merely 53. Ironically, the movie The Tree of Might was also dubbed and included as a miniseries. Despite the seeming success of the dub, ratings still weren’t enough, even when compared to the previously failed attempts to air a dubbed version of the original Dragon Ball anime.

Reruns on Cartoon Network were successful, however, allowing Funimation to bring the rest of the series to Western viewers. From there, the rest was history, with Dragon Ball Z becoming a major hit on the programming block Toonami. Eventually, the original Dragon Ball was brought over, and since then, the entire Dragon Ball timeline has been available throughout the West in one form or another. This has become even easier in the present day, with popular streaming services such as Crunchyroll bringing the franchise to more fans than ever. Despite this and the fact that the Funimation dub is what many fans grew up with, there are some still who have issues with it.

Problems With The Funimation Dub

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Though there are undeniably some strong aspects of the revamped Funimation dub in Dragon Ball Z, it’s also not hard to see where some of the difficulties lay in the company trying to successfully create an English dub in the first place. For one, both dubs cut out or changed many of Dragon Ball Z‘s plot points and aspects of the story/dialogue from the Japanese version. Though this is not necessarily all that uncommon or even definitively a problem, the Dragon Ball Z dub in particular suffers from some inconsistency and confusing moments due to these changes. One example occurs in episode 108, where Goku explains his power, Instant Transmission, as basically super speed, when in the Japanese version, the power takes the user from one destination to another instantly, which is more in line with the title of the power.

Of course, these minor changes do not make or break the show, but another issue with the English localizations by Funimation was the censoring of virtually any serious, adult topic that appeared in the original series, such as death, nudity and sex, and religious references broadly. Though this improved in the second Funimation dub, it seems that the Funimation team was trying to appeal to younger audiences rather than roll with the more mature topics of the original Japanese Dragon Ball Z series. This turned off many adult fans who appreciated the more dark or intense aspects of the Japanese dub.

Why The Funimation Dub Still Deserves Love

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As previously mentioned, the later dubbed episodes of the Funimation dub for Dragon Ball Z improved upon the first batch in terms of plot changes from the original. The creative team also censored less as the series was redubbed and progressed through its run. In other words, the team at Funimation was able to adapt and tweak the problems fans saw with their adaptation, which shows a commitment on the part of the talents behind the dub to making something fans of the show would love. The original score of the English dub, composed by Shuki Levy and Bruce Faulconer demonstrates real originality and artistic innovation, even if some fans prefer the composition by Kenji Yamamoto. The voice acting is also strong in the redubbed episodes by Funimation, and despite some criticisms, it’s a solid English dub overall, with some really excellent moments as the show went on.

All in all, Dragon Ball Z’s English dub history is complex, and debates over which dub is best are still going strong in online anime communities. As much as there were bumps on the road to Funimation’s ideal Dragon Ball Z dub, what fans now have from them is a solid and overall good, if imperfect, project. Its success has seen the entire Dragon Ball franchise become a worldwide phenomenon, with characters such as Goku becoming as well-known as Superman or Mickey Mouse. Regardless of what some might now see as unnecessary changes here and there, Funimation’s Dragon Ball Z is the epitome of the brand for many fans.

Dragon Ball Z

With the help of the powerful Dragonballs, a team of fighters led by the saiyan warrior Goku defend the planet earth from extraterrestrial enemies.

Release Date

September 30, 1996

Creator

Akira Toriyama

Cast

Sean Schemmel , Brian Drummond , Christopher Sabat , Scott McNeil

Seasons

9

Studio

Toei Animation

Number of Episodes

291