Ouran Official Funimation Dub

First two episodes are up for free streaming. Itadakimasu~

The opening is...interesting. Singing is good, although for some reason it just feels like her voice is a lower pitch. The lyrics are nice too, although I'm so accustomed to the ones I wrote, it's a little jarring. Translation is pretty spotty, but since the lyrics where rearranged to rhyme and it still gets the point across, I can deal. I didn't really like the original ending, so I don't have much of an opinion of the dubbed ending. It sounds a bit out of his range. The lyrics sound good to me, but I don't actually remember the original so I guess it doesn't matter. XD

Hm, I should stop rotting my brain with this video. I was genuinely surprised to only hear quiet chatter in the library. -_- Haruhi's voice is much better than it was in the promo video. It's a lot more masculine than Maaya's take, but it's a pretty good fit. Some of the lines feel a little flat, though. I think the monologue is a little hard on her, and it feels like she's still getting into the character. But definitely a pleasing voice and delivery.

The twins sound good together. But wow, they sound so not like the twins when it's only one or the other talking. O_o Hikaru's voice is a little lower than I'd expect, and Kaoru's isn't quite as nasal. I think I'll get used to them if I keep watching, but I'm honestly a little surprised at the departure.

Tamaki sounds like Fai. I WONDER WHY. I know a lot of people are like GRRHATEVIC, but I like his acting in this. I really, really liked Mamoru Miyano's performance, and it's pretty hard to live up to a standard like that, but I don't feel let down by Vic. I think some of his performance is more flamboyant than what Mamo did, which gives a different feel to the character. I'm going to have to get used to his higher pitch, but I definitely think it's a dub well done.

Hani's voice is definitely cute boy voice all the way, but it's a lot raspier than the original. o.o Luci's got a lot of energy in her delivery, which I like, but the raspy tone makes Hani sound more like a wild child than the loli shouta type, though. : / Really, really cute delivery, though. Even though the raspy tone is a little weird, this is one of the strongest performances in the dub.

Kyouya's voice is probably my least favorite in terms of the actual voice. I'm probably more picky about it since Kyouya is my favorite character, though. I think his voice should be a bit deeper and much smoother. Some of his lines sounded more playful than devious, I think. I'll probably get used to the voice with time. We'll see.

Not enough Mori lines to tell anything. : (

Whoa, Ayanokoji's voice is definitely higher than I expected. And she sounds a little more California girl snooty than high class snooty. Personally, I think she could really sound good in this role, but I think the directing for this character is a little off. I liked her crazy screaming at Haruhi, though.

Other fangirls were good. Not anywhere near as high pitched as the original, but the deliveries were spot on.

Scripting isn't too bad. They leave in a lot of Japanese phrases like "-chan" and "lolita." Tamaki's lines are really nicely translated. The vocabulary is well-chosen, and I'm pleased to hear him use random French. I can't believe Ayanokoji said "crap." I don't think a high class girl like her would use that sort of language. I don't like Haruhi's line "I know just the story," as if she were trying to manipulate the girls. I think she was just being honest. I also don't fully understand "I'll just call everyone dude and bro, now." It's quite a departure from the original meaning, and it feels incredibly out of place, even to someone with no knowledge of the original.

There is absolutely no screen painting whatsoever. While I understand this for a lot of the animated kanji that dances around the screen (and especially the huge "onna" made of lightbulbs), it's distracting and frustrating for the labeled portions with the words inside the fancy frames. It really isn't that hard to just paint over those. I paint over important stuff in my fandubs when I can. Personally I think if it's just words sitting in a frame, it really should be painted rather than subtitled. The subtitles are hard to read against that background. At least they did us the courtesy of redrawing the show's logo into English.

Final verdict: Anyone with no knowledge of the original will have no trouble enjoying this dub. The acting and voices are great, and the script is pretty solid for the most part. A few hiccups in the script and the subtitles are bothersome and annoying, but not life-changing. Fans of the original will find that the voices aren't perfectly faithful, but the direction and acting are strong enough that it's still enjoyable (unless you're a dub hater). Overall, a piece of quality work that manages a solid English conversion. Oh yeah, and I'm pretty sure I've seen Vic act like that in real life.

Anyone else have an opinion to share?

--Ou-bento