MovieChat Forums > Thundercats (1985) Discussion > Stiff dialogue and stiffer delivery

Stiff dialogue and stiffer delivery

posted 13 years ago by BrainGremlin
9 replies | jump to latest

I've only seen a few episodes so far, so I don't know if this changes. But 5 episodes in, this is one of the stalest shows I've ever watched. I like the setting, the characters, the music, the animation and so forth, but the voice acting and the lines are really bad for the most part, and that really makes it hard to fully enjoy. I do like the voices of everyone that don't possess "normal" voices (like Slithe and his gang, Mumm-Ra, and even Snarf), but the rest -- most ThunderCats even -- sound quite deadpan (which actually has made me laugh out loud on several occasions, so it's not all bad), and it's made much worse by the superfluous dialogue; they have a tendency to explain to the viewer what's going on, and I really hate that kind of thing. Indeed, it insults the viewer's intelligence. As if we cannot understand the situations at all ourselves, nor how characters must feel about the things going on (for example, in episode 2 I believe, we have Mumm-Ra appearing a few feet in front of Lion-O, and he exclaims -- as though Mumm-Ra stands a hundred feet away from him -- "What is that thing?!").

I'm not new to the show, but I grew up watching it in Swedish, so this original, English version is unfamiliar to me. And if memory serves me right, the Swedish version was better, and that is not common. This quite often feels like a poor fandub.

Great show regardless, but it could've been so much more. But I feel that's often the case with '80s cartoons. Still love 'em.

---
Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn

[–] col_rutherford 13 years ago

I agree that stilted dialogue is the weakness of the original ThunderCats. I still think it's one of the better animated series from the 1980s due to the quality of the plots and animation. The voice acting could have been better but I've heard worse. I couldn't stand the English dubbing of Voltron and Star Blazers: The Bolar Wars because some of the voices were awful.

[–] BrainGremlin 13 years ago

Glad you took my critique the right way. It's definitely one of the better '80s cartoons, in any case, indeed! It's so much fun. I love the villains.

Anyhow, the only other thing I can think of right off the bat that is equally bad is the original Guyver's English dubbing. But then, that was dubbing, and not the original voice acting you're meant to hear, so it was more acceptable. But that still had better dialogue, if I remember correctly.

Haven't seen either of the shows you mentioned (yeah, someone who hasn't seen Voltron!)

---
Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn

[–] Fluke_Skywalker 13 years ago

I actually think the voice acting works pretty well in a fantasy setting like this, with noble houses and heroic warriors. And it juxtaposes well against the flamboyant villain voices. But in SILVERHAWKS, which features essentially the same voice cast, it's really off-putting IMO.

Now playing: Inhumanoids http://saturdayshowcase.blogspot.com

[–] Oddark123 12 years ago

I don't really see much value in complaints like this. I don't find the dialouge style to be off-putting in anyway. I've always found it good enough as a kid and as an adult today

I refuse to argue on IMDB until the general populous actually uses their brains

[–] I_Guard_Tanelorn 11 years ago

I quite adore the line delivery in this show. First off, these are alien cat people, not humans of the 20th/21st century. They're not going to talk like us. Secondly, it has a cheeseball charm I find comforting. Third, i've been told by those whom English is a second language that they find the dialog of shows like this easier to follow than that of typical fast talking toons. And I like the universal appeal of that.

"I said no camels, that's five camels, can't you count?"

[–] dlmcamaross 11 years ago

I was just making this comment to someone. Lion-O and Cheetara had particularly awful voice acting. Very stiff and monotone. Still loved it though.

[–] Fluke_Skywalker 10 years ago

Cheetara I'll give you. She often sounds like she's been mixing Xanax and cough syrup. Tygra also sounds like he's on something. Come to think it, Tygra is on something (see; "The Garden of Delights"). But I think Larry Kenney is brilliant as Lion-O. He's got that boomingly heroic voice, but I don't think he's stiff at all. There's a playful youthfulness just underneath it that suits the character well.

----
A journey into the realm of the obscure: http://saturdayshowcase.blogspot.com/

[–] Takeshi666 10 years ago

It's not just Cheetara. All the female characters, at least early on, speak in this bizarre manner that sounds like they're pretending to be ghosts.

[–] col_rutherford 10 years ago

It's not just Cheetara. All the female characters, at least early on, speak in this bizarre manner that sounds like they're pretending to be ghosts.

All the female voices on the show were done by Lynn Lipton in the first season, with Gerrianne Raphael joining the cast in the second season to provide additional female voices. The female characters may have been given those odd accents and speaking patterns to help distinguish them from one another. The Warrior Maidens sounded a bit like Katharine Hepburn. Mandora sounded like a female John Wayne.