Summary
The English dub of Naruto Shippuden toned down Shikaku Nara's eloquence compared to the Japanese dub. The English voice cast delivered great performances with memorable lines that kept the series' appeal. Shikaku's speech was a lesson in dealing with grief, but it was delivered with less subtlety in the English dub.
Shikamaru Nara is my favorite character in Naruto franchise, not least because I could relate to his lazy attitude and his fascination with strategy games as a teenager. However, as a character, he had to mature to fully grasp his talents as a shinobi and future leader. His real challenge came later the death of his mentor and Team 10 leader Asuma Sarutobi, causing Shikamaru to shrink back. However, in a pivotal moment when NarutoShippuden tackles the issue of masculinity and dealing with grief, Shikamaru's father appears. Unfortunately, the English dub dulls the subtlety of that moment.
Naruto and Naruto Shippuden features a talented voice cast in the original Japanese and English dubs. I usually happily swap between the two, occasionally leaving the English dub in the background. Many of the film's performances are engaging, and although I prefer the Japanese audio, most of the timeThe meaning of various moments in the series is not lost in translation.
However, the English dub ruined the perfect ending my favorite quote from Naruto Shippudenin a moment shown in episode #82 of the anime, when Shikaku and Shikamaru play shogi together.
Subtlety is exchanged for simplicity in Episode #82
I've written about the best Naruto quotes, where Shikaku's quote to Shikamaru stands out as a poignant moment between a father and his grieving son, which is mostly English dubbed. While playing shogi, Shikaku teases Shikamaru by reminding him how tough Akatsuki are as opponents and how he doesn't want to have to bury his son right after burying Asuma. It wears Shikamaru out until Shikaku comes close, told him to let go of the pain of losing his mentor that was tormenting him, giving him privacy in the process. Here's the dialogue in the English dub:
Let it go, boy. All the anger, sadness and fear. Everything is boiling inside you. You have to let it go. It all started from there, son. Remember, I will be here for you.
-Shikaku Nara
While it's a perfectly acceptable speech from a father giving his son space to grieve, the English dub lacks the subtlety inherent in NarutoShippuden's Japanese dub. Saying “I will be here for you” as he walks away seems generic and like a clichéwhile the original Japanese dub has the following content: “I will pick up your pieces” Final. This touch, which references the scattered shogi board and the debris from Shikamaru's anger, along with Shikamaru's collapse, sounds like an elegant metaphor of a father giving his son freedom. time to grieve.
Shikaku's speech is an important lesson for every guy
Naruto teaches us that emotions are not weaknesses
Shikaku's speech in the English dub of Naruto Shippuden loses the elegant sophistication usually found in Japanese audio, greatly diminishes the impact of the important lesson he is imparting to his son. Throughout much of the episode leading up to this moment, Shikamaru avoids the grieving process, including not attending Asuma's funeral, choosing instead to stare into the clouds while playing with a lighter. of the mentor as a memento. He spends his days being lazy, eventually sitting motionless in the family's yard, refusing even to eat, while day turns to night before Shikaku pulls him aside to play shogi.
Part of what makes Naruto Shippuden episode #82 extraordinary is its animation. Although largely devoid of action, the episode is a powerful display of emotion through body language. When watching Shikamaru's shogi game, viewers will see Shikamaru's posture worsen as Shikaku urges him, from sitting up straight to hunching and then falling onto the board before tossing it away, causing the candles to go out. . It's a subtle moment where viewers will never have to guess what each character is going through.
Shikamaru is someone who avoids conflict, which I can understand, and despite his years of management experience, facing difficult situations is never fun; however, it is necessary. Shikaku reminds Shikamaru of what is at stake in their game and his speech, in both dubs, mostly feels right, but “I will pick up your pieces” is too perfect for a shogi-playing father to say to his son. It cannot be ignored. The main lesson in Shikaku’s speech, realized from this little line, is something like, “It's okay to cry, son.”
Releasing emotions is healthy and humane
Shikamaru received the clarity he needed after his outburst
After Shikaku leaves Shikamaru to cry and grieve openly, Shikamaru then picks up the shogi board himself, comes up with a plan to defeat Hidan and Kakuzu, the shinobi responsible for Asuma's death. It ends my favorite part of Naruto, where I see the most satisfying and intelligent, grounded moments from Naruto's star strategist when Shikamaru's cloud of grief is no longer hanging over his head. It means Shikamaru has been taught that it's okay to show emotion, a lesson that wasn't always taught to boys like me growing up.
Growing up, I was often very emotional, but crying in front of my father became increasingly unacceptable. I was told that “become a man” when he caught me crying, and although I loved him very much, this lesson in stoicism had probably been imparted to him and his father before, and it set me back many years. Even though Shikamaru is a fictional character, I'm probably not the only one who wishes to hear that kind of speech, not so that I can defeat an immortal ninja, but for my mental health. I have a better start.
Shikaku's speech was not his first with Shikamaru
Shikamaru becomes extremely mature and responsible in the following arcs.
Whether dubbed in English or not, Shikaku helps Shikamaru overcome his conflict avoidance and develop an assassin strategy in which he leads Team 10 and Team Kakashi. However, it's important to remember Shikaku convinced Shikamaru not to give up on becoming a shinobi in episode #135 when he failed as team leader in preventing Sasuke from defecting and allying with Orochimaru. Shikaku was a wonderful father figure to Shikamaru, even if he also imparted some unenlightened views on women. His lessons would help shape the future leader of Konoha in Boruto.
However, Shikaku's speech in Naruto Shippuden episode #82 is an additional, deeper example of this and not present in the corresponding moment in chapter #330 of the Naruto mangaInstead, it shows Shikamaru sitting solemnly at his shogi board with Shikaku smiling knowingly, pleased that his son is preparing to avenge his master. While the English dub may lose the subtlety of this moment in Naruto Shippuden, it doesn't take away from the series' appeal, as it does with other iconic quotes.
Naruto Shippuden Has Some Iconic English Dub Quotes
The English voice cast still gives excellent performances
I don't want to say anything negative to Jonathan Fahn, whose performance as Shikaku is quite enjoyable. Many of the English dub moments in Naruto Shippuden are on par or superior to the original Japanese. For example, Troy Baker's voice of Pain has some of the most memorable and often quoted lines of the series. Yuri Lowenthal's role as Sasuke is extremely coldespecially during his battle with Orochimaru, where he delivers cruel insults that are only available in the English dub.
“The way you inject yourself and jump from body to body, it's disgusting. As an Uchiha, all I see when I look at you is a miserable person. And above all, I don't like your style.”
-Sasuke Uchiha
However, Shikaku's dialogue in the Japanese dub of Naruto Shippuden cannot be ignored, especially since the small but significant difference from the English dub is not even the first or most noticeable mistake in the English dub of Naruto. Pointing out this small difference seems illegal or even petty. However, I paid special attention to this speech, especially since I revisited the series as an adult after happily reading Naruto when it was available in North America as a child.
Shikaku's speech helped me get through a period of grief
No Shogi board needed
A significant family tragedy occurred after I watched the anime Naruto Shippuden when I first graduated from college. My uncle, the pillar of my childhood, passed away after a long battle with cancer. Spending time with him as a child was a guaranteed source of joy because he loved his nephews and nieces as if he were their second father. But before the news of his death, my mother even told me It's okay to cry; I didn't do that, not because I was forcing myself, but because my feelings were buried under years of repression.
However, my father's side of the family expressed varying degrees of grief, and it was heartbreaking to hear my grandmother, the sweetest and kindest woman I've ever known, cry in the next room after the funeral. mourning. Before, I had never heard her cry for anything. It turns out that listening to this lesson and completely accepting it is different.and I will need a lot of adjustments in the years to come. But if I absorbed or even heard from a family member of a similar age to Shikamaru, maybe it would be easier.
In the years since, I've gradually let down my walls, eventually learned to release my emotions in a healthy way, and increasingly rediscovered my childhood fondness for Naruto. , whether for the quotes or the exciting battles. Naruto is like a comfort foodfamiliar and nostalgic, and its use can actually be therapeutic, with lessons about masculinity that extend far beyond Shikamaru's analysis of shogi. While the English dub lessens the impact of a beautiful speech, there's a lot of pop wisdom to be gleaned from Naruto franchise, and you better believe it!
