Thursday, December 2, 2010

Dear Viz, You Suck. Love, Phoenix

First let me say, I've been looking forward to Inuyasha the Final Act for YEARS.

If you're an Inuyasha fan, like I am, you were no doubt disappointed at the half-assed ending on the seventh season. It ended with Kagome and Inuyasha sitting in a tree, looking off into the distance, and feeling hopeful that maybe someday they'll defeat Naraku.

No, I'm not joking.

But that was okay, because the manga was still going on. Eventually, the manga ended, and it had an epic ending. SPOILERS! Basically, Kagome graduated high school, went back to the feudal era, married Inuyasha and lived happily ever after. *blithely ignores feminist voice whining in her head* Miroku and Sango got married too, and had three kids.

THEN we IY fans discovered that they were releasing Inuyasha: The Final Act, which was an additional season wrapping up the entire anime. There was much crying and happiness among within the fandom.

Even better--a month after this was announced, Viz, like a mighty ninja, snatched up the license for this anime and announced that they would be streaming the subtitled anime via hulu. They said nothing about dubbing it, so we awaited with bated breath.

The anime came and went. I laughed, I cried, I SQUEALED like the fangirl I am when Inuyasha and Kagome kissed in the final episode--(which they didn't in the manga...forty plus volumes and not one frigging kiss...) I waited and waited and waited for Viz to announce they were dubbing it.

They were silent.

I tried to be optimistic. "Of course they'll dub it," I assured my brothers. "Why else would they license it if they weren't dubbing it?"

FINALLY I received news. Kelly Sheridan, the VA for Sango, tweeted about how she was recording lines for Inuyasha. HUZZAH!

I could relax, I naively thought. If they got Kelly, then surely they would make sure to get all the rest of the original voice actors to finish this magnificent series up. After all, the Japanese did it.

I was wrong.

I was oh, so wrong.

It has reached my attention today that the voice actors for Kagome and Sesshoumaru will be changed. Moneca Stori and David Kaye will no longer be voicing them.

I feel like crying.

Especially after youtubing their new voice actors (Kira Tozer and Michael Daingerfield).

The voices sound vaguely similar--similar in a way that if I wasn't paying attention and I'd only seen Inuyasha once it'd be all ok.

I could maybe live with replacing Sesshoumaru. Sure, I'd bitch and moan about it, but replacing KAGOME?! Are you people serious?! She was the frigging lead! The story, while called Inuyasha, was about HER adventures! It all takes place through HER EYES, not Inuyasha's!

Moneca did a fabulous job as Kagome. You can't simply replace her, hope no one notices, and go about your day. The fandom will notice, and the fandom will be pissed.

Hi. I'm the fandom.

Moneca hasn't been doing a lot of voicework lately, as far as I can tell, so maybe she opted out. (Pregnancy? Marriage? Wants to spend time with family? Trying to move out of acting all together?)

But David Kaye?

The guy lives for voicework. If he will voice a horse in Barbie and the Three Musketeers, he'll fragging voice Sesshoumaru again. His Sesshoumaru voice was incomparable--sexy, mysterious, deep, dark, and not necessarily evil.

So Viz, after being so faithful to you, so proud of you for ninja-ing the license for Inuyasha, I just want you to know, I now hate you and you suck. After I get the Final Act (which I will, but not for your sake, only for Kelly and Kirby's sake) I will not be watching Viz again. I'm sticking with Funimation, which at least has never disappointed me to this extent.

Screw you, Viz.

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