In this particular scene, Touya calls Misaki to see what’s up. On his mind are the cake and Akira, but he’s unable to bring it up at all. Instead what goes through his mind is the note that Rina left in the Browning book. But the point of this example is the on-screen text. Here it says “The cake, right?” but we can infer that Touya’s thinking about the cake from what’s shown only a second or two after: a plate with the remnants of the cake and Rina at the cafe. This scene’s on-screen text didn’t add much to the viewer’s understanding unless you’re really stupid.

Touya and Yuki finally meet after being unable to find each other the whole day. It’s a bit late to do anything, so Touya offers his apartment as a place to hang out. Yuki is unaware that Touya lives around here; she assumes that Touya still lives with his father. The on-screen text in this case is “Yuki didn’t know…” but even in this situation, there isn’t a need for Touya’s thought to be shown to us through text. The scene immediately after is a flashback in which Touya is angry that his father is kicking him out of the house. Given that Yuki asks, “You live around here?”, we can tell that Yuki doesn’t know Touya’s living on his own.

This segment is from Touya’s perspective, so it’s arguable that the on-screen text is required to show Touya’s thoughts. Touya is about to leave after walking Yuki home, but she asks if he would come in her apartment. She says that she wants him and that it cannot wait. For the majority of this part, Yuki is the only one shown. On-screen text could have been avoided by displaying Touya. A simple expression may have communicated his confusion and questions without needing this text on both sides of Yuki’s adorable head.

Yuki’s manager offers herself to Touya as a replacement to Yuki. At the end of their date, Yayoi plants a kiss, one that Touya’s thoughts describe as “heatless, doll lips” (D-R subs of White Album 05). Judging by how Yayoi is portrayed before and after this scene, as well as Touya’s expression as she pulls back, I think it’s safe to say the viewer can conclude she is a rather cold, heartless character that wouldn’t radiate warmth in anything that she does. Her appearance emanates “serious business” and an uncomortable aura. It’s not a surprise that her lips are rather dull and devoid of real feeling.

The on-screen text isn’t bad; it does a decent job of letting viewers know what’s going on in Touya’s head. However, it’s not something necessary beacuse it’s easy to tell what he’s thinking from visual clues and dialogue. Perhaps it’s helpful for the rest of you, I don’t know.

Here are the points he brings up:

1. Fansubbers from the 1980s and 1990s aimed to be professional, but fansubbers are now unprofessional.
2. “Over 90% of fansubs now leave in as many honorifics and Japanese words as they can.”
3. Translation and explanation notes are distracting and irritating.
4. Since some old fansubs included explanation notes as text, all fansubs should do it now.
5. Fansubbers are inconsistent with their translations.
6. There is far too much focus on fonts, color, and effects.
7. Fansubbers disrespect studios by including their own logos and credits in the opening and ending sequences.
8. Translations of text in the actual animation are distracting and annoying.
9. Since translators of Indian, Korean, and Chinese movies and TV shows do not leave in words of the original language, anime translators are wrong for being the “only ones” that do this.
10. Fansubbers often leave literal translations instead of changing it to grammatically make sense.
11. No one will get into anime by watching these fansubs.

While this guy has plenty of examples to support his thesis, he seems to forget that fansubbers are doing this for free. They do not profit, and providing subtitles is a hobby for them. They are not professional because they need not be; who the fuck is paying them to be professional? What will they gain out of being professional? The cheers and praise of people they will likely never meet in real life? No, sir, they will not actually gain anything out of it, so why would they worry about their professionalism? These aren’t professional translators. They’re regular people that have to deal with real life and have other pressing matters. They don’t head into the office during set times to translate for a paycheck.

OtaKing constantly brings up older fansubs as examples, as if they are the greatest anime shows and the greatest translations ever. Unfortunately, times have changed, and we are not stuck in the 1980s anymore. We have the ability to get prettier fansubs, so we get prettier fansubs. I detest the font of DVD subtitles, so there’s no reason for me to settle for them. I would gladly take a.f.k.’s Lucky Star font over some generic font my DVD player would display.

What’s with this general resentment toward ALL anime fansubs? He never talks about exceptions, he never discusses solutions to the problem, and he never considers the counter-argument. He runs out of points by part 4, and he beings to repeat himself.

My responses to his main 11 points:

1. They never said they wanted to be professional; they’re giving to fans for free. These people also have fucking lives; most of them don’t have the damn time to make sure everything reads like normal, conversational English.
2. Where is this bullshit statistic from? Anyway, I’m sure if most people cared, there would be a general outcry for translators to cease the usage of “onee-chan,” “onii-chan,” and other honorifics. Fansubbers also aren’t aiming to recruit new people into anime. They just want to have fun and leave in what they think is valuable or necessary. If you disagree, go create your own subgroup that will uphold your beliefs.
3. True… to a point. I’d like to know what stuff says. It’s equally distracting for me to look at a separate document while watching, and it’s just damn annoying to look at it after. Sometimes fansub groups indeed overdo the translator’s notes, but I find most helpful. I’m sorry, but I don’t live in fucking Japan and probably never will. I don’t speak Japanese, I can’t read Japanese besides hiragana, so give me a damn break. I like knowing that the door in Lucky Star leads to the nurse’s office.
4. Look at #3.
5. True. I will completely give you this. Why translate “chief” and not “minister?”
6. Depends on the fansub group. I’ve never watched a fansub with those ridiculous subs with pop-in effects.
7. They’re doing us a favor; they’re saving me the trouble of learning Japanese (for now). I don’t care about their name plastered in the opening and ending sequences. If that bothered me, I would watch raws with subtitle files. I don’t think the studios care too much about it either; they’re more worried about the loss of revenue.
8. Look at #3.
9. I don’t think anyone cares about these pointless comparisons. Just because most translators do something doesn’t mean the minority needs to follow their example.
10. Somewhat true. I (and persumably most people) generally don’t care unless the group fucks up on editing.
11. Uh, I got into anime by watching these fansubs and I’m sure many more have. Make a better point, Paul.

Anime is associated with a unique and overwhelming culture. Because anime is so entrenched with the Internet (anime blogs; message boards; heck, even fansubs), most fansub watchers don’t mind the Japanese words in fansubs, because nearly everyone already knows what they mean. Most fans immerse themselves in anime or otaku culture. They listen to J-pop even though many of them can’t understand, they cosplay and try to look as Asian as possible, and they buy a crapload of figures and posters. Hell, even some of them probably say such words like “imouto” and “sugoi” (damn weeaboos). The problems with fansubs aren’t related to attracting new viewers to anime, and they definitely aren’t the lack of professionalism that you’re so hellbent on fixing.

EDIT: Didn’t realize that this theme doesn’t show the numbers in lists. Might fix later, but I’m feeling especially lazy right now.

EDIT2: Great, I had no idea I was missing the “about” in the post title.