Top 10 Hilariously Bad Anime Dubs

Top 10 Hilariously Bad Anime Dubs

They’re so bad but oh so good! Welcome to WatchMojo.com and today we are counting down our picks for the top ten hilariously bad anime dubs.

For this list, we’ll be looking at English dubs that turned out so poorly that they ended up becoming comedy gold as a result. Keep in mind, we won’t be including anime that were intentionally dubbed in this way for a similar effect, so as much as it pains us don’t expect to see Ghost Stories on here. Same goes the 4Kids dub of One Piece, because that didn’t make us laugh as much as it made us angry to no end!

“Fate/stay night” (2006)

“Ghost Stories” (2000-01)

“One Piece” (1999)

#10: “Angel Cop” (1989)

We are on the border of actually recommending this one. Not for its plot, action, character or anything concrete like that, but just for the sheer amount of cursing the English voice actors do! There’s an f-bomb in every other scene, not mention all the colourful stuff that Lucifer seems to spew when using her psychic powers. You won’t find any gritty cop drama here, but in exchange you’ll het every kind of 90s anime cliché you could ever want. Kudos to the voice actors for…somewhat trying. At least they tickled our funny bones.

#9: “Guin Saga” (2009)

And you thought all the legitimately terrible dubbing came way before the 2000s, but nope, some slipped through the cracks. We’re not sure who’s to blame for the direction of this show but we’ve never seen a dub of modern fantasy anime that was this lazy. If the actors don’t sound bored, they sound confused as all hell. The perfect example being when the character Malius starts singing. Not that you can tell over how off-key it is, but the dub is so uncoordinated that he eventually starts to sing what’s supposed to be an inner monologue…

#8: “Speed Racer” (1967-69)

Ah the classics. You can’t really hate on this one given the state of English dubbing back then, but that doesn’t mean it still isn’t one of the worst out there. Due to leaving the original translations relatively untouched, the voice actors seem like they’re constantly in a rush to pack in as much dialogue into a scene as possible regardless of timing or emotion. As a result, the characters sound beyond unnatural but oh so hilarious. We can’t get enough of those signature exclamations.

#7: “Transformers: The Headmasters” (1987-88)

We’re not going to say that the original Transformers cartoon was the pinnacle of western dubbing, but it was still an awesome show and had a solid cast that was obviously having fun. Here? We’re not sure what Omni Productions was trying to do here but they ended up making a dub beyond the pale of poor. As a Japanese-only sequel to the original series, it never saw an American release, only shown in Malaysia! Kind of a blessing, since it’s so bad they barely ever correctly pronounce any of the Transformers’ names correctly throughout the entire series.

#6: “Voltron” (1984)

While we’re sure many Voltron fans look back on this series fondly, it can’t be denied the voice work was definitely more miss than hit. On the one hand you have half the cast who have all the acting chops of cardboard, we’re looking at your Keith, and on the other hand you have those who are obviously trying but still end up making their character’s voices overblown. The biggest casualty in this regard would of course be Pidge, whose voice is sort of like the audio equivalent of a train wreck, it’s so horrible but you just can’t turn away.

#5: “Devilman OVAs” (1987-90)

The dub for Devilman Crybaby turned out pretty damn good, probably thanks to all that Netflix money, but we couldn’t help but be reminded of the dub for the original anime. So stilted in its delivery, so lacking in emotion, every word exchanged by Akira and Ryo in these OVAs is so bad that’s almost poetic. Especially when it comes to the cursing. We don’t know about you but the only people who seemed to be possessed by demons are the voice actors! Emote god dammit!

#4: “Cyber City Oedo 808” (1990-91)

It’s your typical 90s sci-fi anime filled with wannabe badasses, plenty of flying cars, the occasional hot girl and dialogue so bizarre and cheesy it wouldn’t even make it into a Schwarzenegger movie. However, we decided to include it for a single line of delivery. One that might just contain the greatest insult ever heard in an anime. We’re honestly not sure what made us laugh harder, the rebuttal that the character Benten dishes out or the way he says it, either way it cracks us up every time.

#3: “Garzey’s Wing” (1996)

Now we’re reaching the bottom of the barrel. Infamous for its horrendous dub, to the point where the translation is at times nonsensical, Garzey’s Wing is so legendary for its awfulness that even other voice actors love to take the piss out of it. As you might have guessed the delivery of every single line never comes across as believable, not helped by the fact that the main character constantly sounds surprised. The whole thing is one big beautiful failure.

#2: “Bible Black” (2001)

That’s right people, after so many years a hentai has finally managed to make it into a top ten. Rejoice! Granted this is just a stand in for every hentai out there that has ever been dubbed, given how both the characters and the performances always end up sucking in some way. In regards to Bible Black specifically…wow. Did they literally pull strangers off the street to read lines? Even the moans aren’t convincing! Be honest, you started watching this for the sex but ended up staying to see just how much worse the acting can get. All of a sudden High School DxD sounds like Shakespeare.

#1: “Dragon Ball Z ‘Big Green’ Dub” (2003)

We have no idea what everyone was smoking behind the scenes, but by god did they leave us with the greatest piece of animated trash we have ever heard. Over the course of eleven movies, this dub company somehow managed to get everything about the Dragon Ball name wrong, even more so than GT. Every attack is a Kamehameha, the syntax is messed up in places, Super Saiyans are Super Warriors, they even refer to Piccolo as Big Green. If anything, this unholy dub was the original abridged series.