3 ms·
I still prefer scans when I can find them. Official translations often (1) censor a ton in both the text and the art to satisfy Western Puritanical sensibiliti
by sn9 3y ago
I still prefer scans when I can find them.
Official translations often (1) censor a ton in both the text and the art to satisfy Western Puritanical sensibilities and (2) have drastically less cultural context than scans do --- scans often will have notes about references to myths/stories that manga are referencing or influenced by like creation myths or relevant stories/concepts from Buddhism or random bits of cultural stuff like why a character might sneeze randomly after being talked about.
I've yet to read an official translation that's as good as scanlations, and the notes are often more creatively integrated into the scans in a way that are useful when encountered whenever possible.
I still subscribe to the official translations out of some sense of moral obligation to send some money back to the creators, but scans are faster and higher quality often enough.
- NoRelToEmber 3y agoThat's because official translations follow the rule of “Readers in English should be able to enjoy the story without thinking about it being a translation,” - an impossible standard. Think about what it requires - to cut out or replace any signs of the culture it came from, that would cause any friction with the target culture. To trick the reader into thinking the world is one big homogeneous mush, where works coming from the other side of the globe don't contain anything that would so much as confuse them. Nothing that would require a translator's note or explanation. It's not translation, it's butchery. It's making a sausage come out on one end, no matter what parts come in at the other.
- sn9 3y agoYeah I understand the constraints. I just wish there was an official version that was targeted for people like me instead of scanlators getting lawyered into submission and we end up with less.