I keep seeing people mixing up subbed and dubbed release schedules

I was scrolling through a new season thread last night and someone claimed a show was delayed because the sub wasn't out, but the dub had dropped three days earlier. That's not how it works - subs usually come out first by a week or two depending on the licensor. Has anyone else noticed fans getting confused about which version actually sets the schedule?

3 comments

3 Comments

james_singh71mo agoMost Upvoted

Yeah man @danielmason nailed it. I remember a few seasons back when that big mecha show dropped and people were flaming the studio on Twitter because the dub episode wasn't up at the same time as the sub. Someone actually made a whole thread about how "the broadcast is ruined" because they needed to watch it in English with their kid. Like, bro, the sub is the main release, the dub is a bonus thing that takes weeks to get right. I saw the same thing happen with that fantasy show where the dub was like 5 episodes behind and people kept asking "is it delayed or what" every single week. It's wild how many fans think the English version sets the pace when most of these shows air first in Japan with subs coming out same day or next day. The real confusion usually hits when a show gets simuldubbed but then the dub skips a week for no reason and everyone assumes the whole series is on hold.

danielmason1mo ago

The biggest mix-up I see is with Crunchyroll shows where they drop the sub at 9am and the dub doesn't hit until like 4pm the same day or sometimes the next week. People think the dub schedule is the real one but it's almost always the sub that dictates when an episode actually releases. I've seen entire forum threads blow up because someone was waiting for the English voice actors to finish recording before they called a show "late". That's just not how it works for most seasonal anime. The sub is the priority for the broadcast, and the dub comes after because it needs translation and recording time. Sometimes a dub even lags behind by 4-6 episodes before they catch up. Really makes me wonder if half these people understand basic production timelines.

margaret_jackson731mo ago

@danielmason you ever actually see a sub drop early and people still complain?