Comic Discussion > QUESTIONABLE CONTENT
WCDT: 2495-2499 (22-26 July, 2013) Weekly Comic Discussion Thread
westrim:
--- Quote from: Salty on 28 Jul 2013, 22:21 ---Her name is only Alita in the translated version. In the original her name is Gally.
And this is just me speculating, but I think of it as because it's the title that both fans of the un-name-changed series and the ones of the name-changed series more familiar with its past recognize.
As for me personally, I only think of the first half of the series as Battle Angel Alita. That's probably because I first read it as the English-translated version, but eh.
Gunnm really is a much shorter name, though. Less title fatigue for me to remember.
--- End quote ---
You know guys, if I know the root of the Japanese title, it's pretty likely that I also know that the main character also had a name change.
I find that unlikely, since it's been available in the US for 20 years only as Battle Angel Alita, which is also the the James Cameron version will use whenever that gets off the ground.
Well, sure. The second half is (colon) Last Order. Though 'half' may be the wrong word since it's already twice as long and still going.
Shorter yes, but in addition to my previous reasoning, try saying it.
My feeling is that we're speaking English to each other, so we use English names unless they're clearly dislike by the natives- by your reckoning I should start referring to Japan as Nippon.
--- Quote from: Indicible on 28 Jul 2013, 22:57 ---Indeed, Gally is the true name for the heroine in Gunnm. As far as I know, the name was inverted with her "girly" name, precisely because it did not sound feminine to Anglo-saxon audiences (I would have said American, except I do not know if it was translated in the UK.) But Kishiro actually gave that name to his character.
--- End quote ---
It's not the true name, it's the Japanese name. The source material being Japanese doesn't make it 'true.' Not sure which name you're saying is girly- both are feminine names, though Alita does give off a more tomboyish vibe, but that may be because of it's association in my mind with this manga. English is the usual catchall- Anglo-Saxon is a racial group, not a language. Kishiro also used Alita, in a dream sequence, which indicates to me that he's okay with it.
Salty:
Guh-num.
But this is a silly argument over pointless points.
Though it is always nice to meet another fan.
Neko_Ali:
Ummm.. Since Gunnm is a Japanese comic series by a Japanese creator I would say that yes, Gally is her true name. Alita was the name invented by the translators. If you have a friend named Bob and started calling him Susan all the time, that doesn't make Susan his real name. Now if he were to change his name to Susan, that would be a different story...
J:
all names are just arbitrary linguistic designations, so what makes one any more valid than the other? likewise, what makes a translation more valid than the original? the translation is as much a creative work as the original version it's based on, and the translator is just as much an artist.
Dekker3D:
--- Quote from: J on 29 Jul 2013, 05:57 ---all names are just arbitrary linguistic designations, so what makes one any more valid than the other? likewise, what makes a translation more valid than the original? the translation is as much a creative work as the original version it's based on, and the translator is just as much an artist.
--- End quote ---
If I created a long-running, popular anime/manga series (I don't actually know gunnm specifically), and someone said that the translator were as much of an artist as I were.. Yeah, I think that'd hurt.
Translation IS a creative process, but not nearly as much so as coming up with the thing in the first place. I agree that the original can be considered the only canon, including such things as "real names". Differences in translation can be caused by translator error as much as it can be caused by creative differences.
I like how the comic is dealing with May and Dale. It fleshes them both out pretty well, and May seems like an interesting character.
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