Fansub Review: [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle (Episode 05)

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This post was written by Dark_Sage. He is Dark_Sage.

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It appears in my sloth fansubs of this quality have managed to thrive unmolested. Dearest scene, I am deeply sorry. May my insights molest these subs at once.

Table of Contents

Release Information

Visual Quality

Script Quality

Results

 

Release Information

Episode details.

Release format: MKV (263 MB, 8-bit)

Japanesiness: Honorifics.

English style: The patron English of aborted dictionaries.

Encoding details: http://pastebin.com/Sc0ELuTT

Speed: Quick (<48 hours)

Translation style: Original guesslation.

 

External links.

Group website: http://watakushi-fansub.blogspot.com/

IRC channel: Saa

 

 

Visual Review

Karaoke.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_02.04_[2014.05.07_22.22.13] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_02.10_[2014.05.07_22.22.26]

Opening. Ignoring the English, it’s not bad. The font and effects are pretty generic, but suit the OP well enough.

Rating: Okay.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_22.20_[2014.05.07_22.24.15] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_23.18_[2014.05.07_22.25.40]

Ending. This was actually quite nice. Colors were suitable and the fonts matched the theme of the ED.

Rating: Okay+.

 

 

Typesetting.

It’s not good, but they tried. Mostly.

Spoiler for

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_01.15_[2014.05.06_22.58.30] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_01.16_[2014.05.07_22.17.09] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_01.30_[2014.05.06_22.58.55]

Ignoring the awful phrasing of the question, perhaps Watakushi should have realized that with a show titled “Akuma no Riddle”, there’s probably a better word to use here than “problem”.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_03.07_[2014.05.07_19.58.23] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_03.10_[2014.05.07_19.58.32]

Ah yes, the infamous 10-year black class.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_03.30_[2014.05.07_19.59.54] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_03.41_[2014.05.07_20.06.25] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_04.01_[2014.05.07_20.06.57] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_05.27_[2014.05.07_20.09.17]

Good thing this part wasn’t important. Who wants to be spoiled by blatant foreshadowing?

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_11.20_[2014.05.07_20.16.12] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_13.19_[2014.05.07_20.20.26]

Great little history lesson.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_15.13_[2014.05.07_20.26.39] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_21.06_[2014.05.07_21.17.28] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_21.12_[2014.05.07_21.17.40]

Yeah, “kill” is definitely something that you “need in order to let a caged bird free”.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_23.38_[2014.05.07_21.18.51]

These subs aren’t even hilariously bad; they’re just bad. And that’s the worst part — no fun allowed, just tears.

 

 

Script Review

Karaoke.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_01.55_[2014.05.07_22.21.54]

OP:

A sympathy merely for form’s sake.
How many are of it by now?
My body lacks honesty;
it’s unsatisfied.
I’ll protect the promise I’ve made with her
at all costs.
I tied my shoelaces tightly too.
Do you have a wish so strong that you don’t even regret
giving your life in exchange for it?
Oh, set me free.
Sacrificing myself or feeling pain doesn’t matter either.
Set me free.
End my gentleness of a lie as well.
People having hopes for me or giving me responsibilities
are being changed by strength.
You know that the meaning to live or die
are inside of me so
please, set me free
An unimportant sympathy.

ED:

I entered a fragile range
The cold war area is boring
which in turn makes us extraordinary
The volume of self-abasement’s been in the abyss for a long time now
I can’t show you foolish but funny moves
It’d just foster pointless excitement
Is acceptance and rebellion the only option?
Ah, man, this aesthetica
I won’t let anyone touch her
Wounded innocence — I’m the same
Our progress will never end
It’s okay if you foolishly believe
the truth about the skirt hem
Why don’t you simply mutter
that you want to be moved awfully?

I think it’s fair to say that these translations have ruined music forever.

 

 

Main Script.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_00.20_[2014.05.07_22.16.05]

1. Tokaku is already living with her grandmother.

2. She (oka-chan) is not living with “Granny”; she’s just visiting the house to see Tokaku and her sister’s grave.

3. She (oka-chan) is asking Tokaku to live with her.

So you’d want the line to be “Tokaku-chan, don’t you think you should leave this place and come live with Auntie?” if you like third-person lines. If not, change “with Auntie” to “with me” or “with your auntie” or “with me, your auntie” depending on how much you wanna spell it out for your audience.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_03.10_[2014.05.07_19.58.32] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_03.13_[2014.05.07_19.58.48]

“At the end of the month, we will be celebrating Myoujou Academy’s anniversary!”

English so hard. :(

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_03.27_[2014.05.07_19.59.07]

The fuck is a royal road? Is that like Dairy Queen’s version of rocky road?

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_03.30_[2014.05.07_19.59.54]

No. The scenario’s already been fucking written. The word you’re looking for is “script”.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_03.33_[2014.05.08_00.06.02]

*to

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_04.08_[2014.05.07_20.07.24] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_04.14_[2014.05.07_20.07.14]

Translating the Japanese translation for Romeo and Juliet instead of using any of the standard English versions of the play out there? Bold move.

Stupid? Absolutely. But bold nonetheless.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_05.05_[2014.05.07_20.08.49] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_05.08_[2014.05.07_20.08.36]

They’re both women, though. And even if this line was supposed to hint that blue-chan might be a dude (which I don’t think it’s doing), it’d still be wrong. “lady” or some other ‘dignified’ term would fit better, because red acts with class.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_09.55_[2014.05.07_20.14.22]

Watakushi? More like watafailure! zingzingzing

For real though, you better check your expectation privilege while going into this release, because there’s no hope to be found in these subs. About all you can reasonably look forward to is an ever-increasing sense of despair and disgust with every sentence that passes.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_10.16_[2014.05.07_20.14.48]

I want to forget about this line even more than Turkey wants to forget the Armenian Genocide.

Oh what’s that, my Turkish nationalist readers? You didn’t think I’d bring that up in a random fucking fansub review? Look, I’m just saying maybe the fucking Armenians would’ve given us a decent fucking translation for this show if you hadn’t killed them all off. It certainly couldn’t be worse than this cancer we’re being subjected to.

Just putting it out there, so don’t shoot the messenger. (I’m white, so seriously, don’t.)

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_10.27_[2014.05.07_20.15.14]

This is too much.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_11.26_[2014.05.07_20.16.30]

Wow. Someone took AOL’s “you’ve got mail!” campaign way too seriously. This ain’t how people speak at all.

“A message from your family?” would fit better, since Japan can’t into the difference between texts and e-mail.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_11.35_[2014.05.07_20.17.22] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_11.46_[2014.05.07_20.16.55]

I know you don’t want to believe it, but these lines are supposed to be linked.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_12.01_[2014.05.07_20.17.55] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_12.08_[2014.05.07_20.18.06]

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_12.14_[2014.05.07_20.18.16]

With such a great translation I almost didn’t have to go to the Kaitou script to figure out what the hell was going on. Hell, I barely even had to use their script as a reference point for every goddamn line in this release. Way to go, Watakushi. You nearly made a release that could stand on its own!

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_12.43_[2014.05.07_20.19.19] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_12.45_[2014.05.07_20.19.25]

>Isn’t

Yuck. She’s not talking about the frame in that line; she’s talking about wire-chan’s siblings.

“So this is why you’re here?” (subject: ‘what she’s looking at’)

“Well, aren’t they cute?” (subject: ‘the kids in the picture’)

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_13.01_[2014.05.07_20.19.56] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_13.04_[2014.05.07_20.20.03]

Again, purple curls is talking about wire-chan’s family. But this time, she’s suggesting that wire-chan should just kill them off.  Gotta love how clear Watakushi’s translation is.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_13.29_[2014.05.07_20.20.42] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_13.30_[2014.05.07_20.20.47] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_13.36_[2014.05.07_20.24.29]

This was the entirety of her flashback monologue. And no, Watakushi, you can’t buy “a table with a smiling family”.

Well, now that I think about how outsourced this translation reads, Watakushi’s staff might actually be able to buy them in their home country.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_13.47_[2014.05.07_20.24.50] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_13.49_[2014.05.07_20.24.57] [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_13.52_[2014.05.07_20.25.14]

However many English classes the members of this group took, it wasn’t enough.

And after having experienced this release, I doubt there are enough classes in the world to cure whatever inherent retardation ails them.

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_21.26_[2014.05.07_21.17.59]

[Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle - 05 [720p][6DD04365].mkv_snapshot_19.44_[2014.05.07_21.15.57]

I’m sorry, but there are some things that can’t be forgiven, Watakushi. And after having suffered through these subs, your members’ lives are definitely among them.

 

 

 

Results

Watchability: Unwatchable.

Visual grade: C+

Script grade: F

Overall grade: F

You should avoid this fobglish garbage unless you want to feel what it’s like to unlearn English line by line. The whole release is wrong, and you’d be a fool to try and understand the show with this guesslated gibberish.

Go with Kaitou’s release for Akuma no Riddle, or HorribleSubs/Funimation’s if you’re impatient. And if you seriously can’t wait for those releases to come out, watch it raw. You’ll understand it better than with these subs, guaranteed.

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87 thoughts on “Fansub Review: [Watakushi] Akuma no Riddle (Episode 05)”

  2. >The fuck is a royal road? Is that like Dairy Queen’s version of rocky road?

    LOL, that is the million dollar question.

    Reply

    • I haven’t watched the ep yet, but with subs like these, I’m glad I’m too busy subbing. I watched Watakushi’s ep 1, and even I was starting to play TL checker at times >_>

      Reply

      • I haven’t watched any of the eps they have subbed for this show. TBH, I haven’t watched anything they have subbed. Just commenting on something that caught my eye. ;)

        Reply

  3. これが彼方の理由てわけね。。　可愛いじゃない

    I think it has a double meaning. it can be “the kids in the picture” or “the reason it self”.

    But other than that, im agree.

    okay, gonna switch to kaito

    Reply

    • Actually i think the second meaning is too important to be omitted.

      I’d go with something like “How cute”, for the second sentence here.

      Well, i’m glad i decided to watch it raw… -.-‘

      Reply

  4. I watched this release. And by that I mean my mind filtered out the subtitles after about a minute and basically just watched it RAW.

    Reply

    • Well, i think it’s not technically impossible to “buy a table with with a family”, but i doubt the family would be smiling in such situation :>

      Reply

      • There are all sorts of ways to do it.

        The family can be the payment for the table.

        The family can be accompanying you while you purchase the table.

        The table can have a picture of a smiling family on it.

        All sorts of ways~

        Reply

        • well, the way i understand it, from the phrasing in this release is, the family is part of the purchase package :>

          Reply

  10. When an original TL is blown out of the water by Funi subs, you know you’ve got a winner on your hands. Keep it up, Hadena 2!

    Reply

  11. I barely noticed any of these. Probably because I’m just in this for the yuri.

    In the future I’ll wait for Funi disable the subs.

    Reply

    • Same. Because the writing in this show is so shit, I don’t care/notice how stupid the dialogue reads.

      It’s like porn. You don’t need coherent language to understand the gist of everything. Plus after many years of experience with watching fansubs, you level up. So, for example, I understood all of the completely misleading lines in this release perfectly well without needing any clarification.

      Bad subs can ruin your impression of a good show, but this one is so bad that it doesn’t matter. That’s my point.

      Reply

  13. What’s wrong with “buying a table with a smiling family”

    It just means being able to provide enough food for everyone at the table.

    Reply

        • If he understood the line, my money’s on Hungarian, since apparently that’s what these subs were translated from.

          Here’s one of the comments in their script: {csá, Anime Sekai Team, nagyra értékelném, ha nem az [AS] tag-ot használnád, hanem mondjuk az [AST]-t, mert ugye az [AS] az AuroraSubot jelöli.}

          I don’t speak much foreign, but from what I can gather, they’re talking about the enormous size of my penis.

          Reply

          • For the sake of completeness, translation from google translate:

            “Hey, Anime Sekai Team, I would appreciate it if not the [AS] tag was used instead of, say, [AST], and is it because of the [AS] denotes the AuroraSubot.”

            Still better English than in this release, IMO.

            Reply

    • Only sort of. When I checked, it was in a fairly decent position. You’ll get your No Game No Life shit soon. But I had to skip reviews for episode 4 cuz it didn’t have an ED and I didn’t wanna deal with any bitching from groups about how it would be unfair to review that episode or whatever.

      Reply

      • Just a suggestion but, can you review subs that are actually good? It’s fun to see you tear away at the shitty subs but it doesn’t help anyone really. We want to know what is good to watch, not just what to avoid. Thanks

        Reply

        • And how would you suggest I go about deciding which subs are good before I review them? This isn’t Nyaa.

          Reply

          • I don’t know. I mean, you seem to have a general idea of how they are going to be based on which group it is but, other than that just whatever seems good? Just a thought really

            Reply

            • Problem with that is there are different staffs working with different groups on different shows. No group is always going to have good subs unless there is someone is pushing for standards within the group.

              Reply

        • D_S usually aims to review all the subs for a show, doesn’t he?

          Akuma no Riddle ranked high on the poll, and D_S reviewed the two groups doing it. Unfortunately, you don’t always get a stellar release on every show. In this case, your choices are a really shitty release and a somewhat shitty release. That’s pretty much it.

          I also prefer it when D_S reviews shitsubs. Those reviews tend to be the funniest.

          Reply

  16. “I want to forget about this line even more than Turkey wants to forget the Armenian Genocide.”

    Well I’m Turkish and that line made me laugh my ass off.

    Reply

  17. >it appears in my sloth fansubs of this quality have managed to thrive unmolested
    [02:12:08] Yuki: I really don’t know if i can QC today
    [02:12:11] Yuki: i’m freaking out
    [03:44:24] YixayZay: if D_S magically reborns, I’ll say it wasn’ tQC’d \o/
    [03:44:33] Yuki: :P
    [03:56:24] YixayZay: so i shold jus treleael without qc,?
    [03:56:30] Yuki: you’re qcing
    [03:56:57] YixayZay: TL+TLC+QC=orz

    Reply

  19. He called you slow, not lazy. Sloth is a slow-moving animal, not a word for laziness.

    This reply ofcourse depends on whether I managed to interpret “*it appears in my sloth” correctly. I hope you can understand if I didn’t.

    Reply

        • I have trouble believing you understand English, considering that every time I’ve seen you reply to someone or something you completely miss the point.

          Why is it okay to put out releases that aren’t QC’d and not okay for those releases to be held as examples of your quality?

          Reply

        • Well, it’s a bit ridiculous that you’re blaming D_S for your own shortcomings. D_S isn’t always right (and obviously his hyperbole is a stylistic consideration for the sake of readability}, but if you’re going to be pigheaded enough to suggest that releasing this tripe and calling it a translation is acceptable – well, you deserve all the abuse hurled at you :P

          Reply

        • Ah, the good old, “no one could possibly disagree with me, so that one guy is probably posting under multiple accounts to make it look like people agree with him” argument. That’s trolling 101.

          Reply

    • At the risk of sounding like Dark_Sage, you would need more than a QC to fix this script. I mean yes, you could get an editor to completely rewrite it, but that just ruins the accuracy instead.

      The problem lies more with you not understanding the Japanese properly and not being able to express it in English properly. You can maybe work around the latter with a lot of communication, but it’s not ideal. If you have both, you should probably get back to studying.

      Reply

    • Like, how is a QC supposed to realise that you took these lines:

      (春紀)初めて\N人を殺した報酬で買ったものは
      テーブルいっぱいの家族の笑顔と
      ずっと憧れてた\Nベビーピンクのマニキュア｡

      and realise that you misinterpreted the ずっと憧れてた as applying to the whole sentence before it and not the ビーピンクのマニキュア immediately after it? Even though the last clause is clearly set off by a と and leaving the manicure on its own doesn’t really make sense?

      If you’re making these kinds of mistakes often you really need someone other than yourself to TLC after you. Or maybe you shouldn’t be translating. Even I know what ずっと憧れてたベビーピンクのマニキュア means and I’m nowhere near qualified to translate.

      Reply

    • Is your QC still not working on the show? Because elementary mistakes still creep into episode 6. For example: http://i.imgur.com/RGREAWa.png
      It’s*

      http://i.imgur.com/w3zOhBz.png
      You’re missing a “the” here. If I were to write the sentence though, I would reword it as “I planned to have Ichinose die, just like in the play.”

      http://i.imgur.com/q9Y3303.png
      Wished? Wanted? Pick one.

      http://i.imgur.com/IEK7iev.png
      I don’t know about the Japanese but contextually this makes no sense, since no needle was involved (it was a spray). I would need a TLC to sign off on it, but I’d say “Ken’mochi was attacked with poison.” Infected doesn’t make much sense either unless we’re talking about a virus or bacteria or something else along those lines.

      http://i.imgur.com/1UM0RbA.png
      I wouldn’t say it’s wrong, but personally I’d write the end of that line as “died up till now” or even a complete rewrite to “It’s because of her so many people have died” or “It’s her fault so many people have died.”

      http://imgur.com/bL7OXOY,VXmJPEG,7FiXXr0
      I don’t know if this is a problem with the line or me, but I don’t understand how “ditzy” relates to the situation at all.

      Reply

      • Oh, and if you know you’re going to be turning out a sub-par episode for whatever reason, you can always just tell Dark_Sage it’s not up to your standards and ask him to not review it. From what I recall he’s pretty accommodating about that.

        Reply

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