Forum - View topicFYI: ADV to Retain the Utawarerumono Name
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biliano
Posts: 956 Location: Cleveland, OH |
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Back in August, ANN reported here that ADV Films was planning on releasing the series Utawarerumono under the moniker "Shadow Warrior Chronicles", which of course caused a lot of controversy on this board. However, Janice Williams of ADV mentioned on the Anime on DVD forum that ADV will NOT change the title of the series, and instead will retain the original Japanese name. The title of the first volume will be called Utawarerumono: Mask of a Stranger. It was not announced at this time when Vol. #1 will officially street.
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Wolverine Princess
 Posts: 1100 |
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I'm glad they listened to what the fans wanted and decided to trash that horrid re-name, and although I know it's extremely unlikely I'm really hoping the DVDs will come with come with reversible covers that have "Underwater Ray Romano" printed as the title.
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Shiroi Hane
Encyclopedia Editor
 Posts: 7580 Location: Wales |
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See? They are not "teh 3vil!!!11" after all
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Zalis116
Moderator
 Posts: 6895 Location: Kazune City |
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I don't care too much one way or the other about the title (haven't watched any of the series yet
 ), but ADV's in a tough spot with this series. "Shadow Warrior Chronicles" sounds like some kind of forgettable mid-90s OVA from Central Park Media's VHS back catalogue, and a literal translation ("That which is sung" or something like that) isn't very marketable. The original name, Utawarerumono...well, I have no problem with it, but I can't help but think that the casual Best-Buy-browsing fans will see it on the shelves and think, "Uta-wanna-poké-whata-mono?"
In essence, ADV may have done right in the view of the hardcore fans on these kinds of forums, but I can't help but think that they're hurting the sales potential of the series to casual fans. Even people in the local anime club have problems with titles like Kimi ga Nozomu Eien and Gankutsuou; while short titles in Japanese like Ai yori aoshi, Koi Kaze, and Haibane Renmei are memorable and accessible enough, titles with 7+ syllables seem to pose problems for fans with no or limited Japanese language skill. EDIT @ Past: "Utawareru Mono" is the most correct way to separate it, as far as I know. utau (=sing) -> utawareru (passive form =to be sung) + mono (=thing, person, generalized "one"), with utawareru acting as a modifier that would be rendered as a dependent clause in English. Last edited by Zalis116 on Wed Oct 18, 2006 10:04 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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selenta
 Subscriber Posts: 1774 Location: Seattle, WA |
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Perhaps you're right, but I personally think: "The One Being Sung" sounds pretty darn poetic. I really like it personally. Either way, I laud them for keeping the name, if only because that is the name; you can translate it however you want as far as I'm concerned, but that is the name, not any of this 'shadow warrior chronicles' hogwash some idiot came up with. Then again, there's a good chance it was all just publicity for the show anyway. |
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Animefreak6969
 Posts: 587 |
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THANK god, I was kind of pissed when i heard this, I hated The "Shadow Warrior Chronicles" as its name and was yelling at my friends for no reason, but thank god they're keeping it............however like Selenta said "The One Being Sung" would have also sounded pretty nice.
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P€|\||§_|\/|ast@
 Posts: 3498 Location: IN your nightmares |
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Yes my friend it rings very close to an actual anime released by CPM (actually under the label "US Manga Corps") by the name of Yotoden: Chronicles of the Warlord Period. That Which is Sung kind of reminds me of a newer series with a similarly poetic name - The Moment the Cicadas Cry. Unfortunately Utawarerumono just seems like too much of a tounge twister and the lack of spaces to separate it into 2-3 words seems very arbitrary. Something like Uta Wareru Mono would be more appropriate but I'm not sure it represents the correct separation between the actual Japanese characters. |
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Animefreak6969
Posts: 587 |
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I guess it kinda is, but i find it very fun to say Utawarerumono over and over again. |
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Daemonblue
 Posts: 701 |
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Shadow Warrior Chronicles was a part of Macross :O It's listed somewhere in the encyclopedia if you wanna look it up. I personally love the idea that they're gonna keep it Utawarerumono (I didn't have problems with the name
 ) for the same reasons as above. It is Utaware, not Shadow Warrior Chronilces or The One Pulling a Sword outta his ***, it's The One Being Sung (roughly translated) and leaving it as is would be best IMO. This probably wouldn't be a title casual viewers would pick up anyway, and Utawarerumono is much more marketable than Shadow Warrior Chronicles or The One Being Sung (the latter because it sounds more exotic and not as girly [let's face it, most americans are closed minded]). Needless to say, I hope some more series like this one get brought over  .
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beast
 Posts: 102 Location: High Ground |
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I'm glad to hear this, if this in fact turns out to be true. ^^
As a hardcore anime fan, I couldn't care less about what marketing or localization experts think about economic realities. The artistic and cultural reality is that the formerly proposed English title doesn't have much to do with either the original Japanese title or the content of the show, and as such is to be dismissed. |
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one3rd
 Posts: 1818 Location: アメリカ |
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You're thinking Robotech, not Macross. The two are not interchangable. Anyway, I think using Utawarerumono as the official North American title is a terrible idea. Many American anime fans who couldn't care less about being true to the original Japanese title will probably dismiss the name as being unpronouncable. They should have come up with something less generic than "Shadow Warrior Chronicles," but sticking with Utawarerumono is even worse. Also, let's be honest about the supposed "artistic" reality. Maybe a handful of people in charge of making any given anime actually care about its artistic merits. The others are either just trying to earn a paycheck or trying to maximize their profits by selling TV advertising and merchandise. As a hardcore anime fan, you should care about what marketing experts think about economic realities. The reality is, if a title doesn't turn a profit, then there's no money to license a new title. If the Japanese don't get the money from licensing out their titles, then they have less money to produce more anime, whether it comes to the U.S. or not. In any case, I don't see what the big deal is about changing the title. It doesn't affect the quality or content of the show if it has a different title, so why make a big fuss about it? |
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Malintex Terek
Guest
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My respect for ADV just went up a couple rungs; here's hoping Utawarerumono sells better than Fate/stay night.
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Richard J.
 Posts: 3367 Location: Sic Semper Tyrannis. |
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On the other hand, the title Shadow Warrior Chronicles creates a preception of 1) the series is a cheap, simple watch and forget title and 2) the series will involve warriors who either have shadow powers or are evil or something. Based on the encyclopedia entry, I'm guessing that shadows don't play much of a role in this one. (Haven't seen so no real clue. For all I know, the whole thing could be one long dream caused by an evil shadow god.  )
I doubt ADV is expecting massive market penetration with this title anyway. It sounds interesting but it seems like a title that only deep into the culture anime fans would really like. It's unlucky that they couldn't do with this title what Geneon did with Shakugan no Shana. They marketed it as Shana but the whole title is in fact on the disc. The "shakugan no" part is just in small type. By the by, does anyone know who first referred to this title as Underwater Ray Romano?  It cracks me up everytime I read it.
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biliano
Posts: 956 Location: Cleveland, OH |
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Someone on the Anime on DVD thread I referenced (where I first heard about the news) mentioned it, and I assumed that's where W.P. got it from. It does sound pretty funny, though. Question: Does anyone here know how Utawarerumono did ratings-wise in Japan? It doesn't seem like it would carry a big audience, and in essence looks like it'll be either a Class B- or Class C-type series in the R1 market. |
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biliano
Posts: 956 Location: Cleveland, OH |
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Yes, it is true. The news came from Janice Williams herself, and she's a representive of ADV Films. |
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