The point here is that how Dragonball, or any anime in this case, sounds is what makes Dragonball, Dragonball. Cowboy Bebop is Cowboy Beobp. Trigun is Trigun.

One of the things that seems to bother people the most, is the way characters are often portrayed by their respective actors. But what do the voice actors think about when they step in that cramped booth?

"Why do I have to be so over the top?"

"Can't I ever land a serious role?"

"*sighs* At least it pays the bills......."

There are some exceptions, but how many times have you sat down to watch something new, only to hear a man who's too boyish. or a woman who's voice is perhaps too nasal? They get paid so little, and they do so much for the fans, and for themselves. But doesn't anyone ever wonder about the kind of fanmail voice actors get? The rants of angry otakus, the love letters from crazed stalkers, the heavily weighted questions from a webmaster from a popular fansite. Does anyone ever stop to think about what the voice actors think? They have no control over what happens in the production process, but they seem to take the heat most of the time. Kyle Hebert comes to mind when discussing this. He runs a great website. Plus, he has a message board where just anyone can come along and ask him questions. Sure, most of the questions are harmless.

"Do you play videogames?"

"What kind of ice cream do you like?"

"Can you tell me what you think of my pictures?"

And Kyle, being the nice guy that he is, will answer all of these questions. He takes time out from his (probably) hectic scheduele to cater to his fans. He is a great person. I find him to be a great actor as well. But every once and a while some rabid, chibi-otaku fourteen year-old comes along,

"wHy 1$ DEE bee Zee +3h sU(k0rZ??"

And of course he gets flamed out of his arse, and banned. But why?

Because the sound made him do it.

Does anyone remember getting their first taste of DBZ? For me, it was a really bad fansub. Sure the video was all jumpy. And sometimes the audio cracked and poped. But it was Dragonball Z. I can remember hearing Ryo Horikawa and Masako Nozawa through the clicks and pops. I knew how it made me feel. Add on the original soundtrack, and I was in heaven. The nitty gritty, mono audio that came from my television brought me into a new world.

Just hearing the new theme, and being a musician myself, it makes me nervous. Not just because its a really bad rap song. But because it isn't the original score. It's not Dragonball GT. You can copyright it, sell it, juice it, box it, set it on fire and make Chris Sabat eat it. Its not Dragonball GT. And that is what makes the fans upset. Because this new "music" doesn't feel like Dragonball/Z/GT. I don't think the music card needs to be played in an editorial again, we all have our preferences, mine just happenes to favor the original.

Sound makes the world come alive. Sound gives life to the cells of animation that scroll by 24 times a second. So maybe the next time you pop in your favorate DVD, you'll make note to listen more carefully.