translations

[louiselux]

It's amusing to compare different translations. Not knowing any Japanese I haven't got a whelk's chance in a supernova of knowing if a translation is true to the original or not, (and besides am grateful for any and all of them), but reading more than one you pick up slight differences in meaning that can give a bit of insight into a) what the original was aiming for and b) the mindset of the translator. There's tons of examples of this in Saiyuki, but my favourite is when Hakkai wakes up. The fan/unofficial translation is:

Hakkai: 'Hell is so mediocre'
Gojyo:  'Who you callin' mediocre?'

Tokyopop changes it to

H: 'Hell is so anticlimatic.' 
G: 'Who you callin' anticlimactic?'

I think the Tokyopop translation get the dibs on the slashy, there. yay!

Comments

[louiselux.livejournal.com]

Oooh, pimpage! you are eeevil - my brain is already on overload *g*

I think the Tokyopop translators really went for the slashy in some parts of Saiyuki, but even the fan translations show that original is very slashy anyway, I think.