Here we are again folks. Last time I was here talking about this subject I was trying to get the first season of YGO fansubbed. Now that it's being fansubbed, distributed and it's gotten listed on animesuki.com, here I am today talking about trying to get a new show Winx Club fansubbed. Why? Well there are several reasons.

For starters, 4Kids still has a long ways to go to improving. Generally anime companies improve in response to demand from fans. So the more demand there is from all fan groups to treat all their shows more respectfully the more 4Kids will be forced to improve and the sooner they will do so. If anime fans could recruit Winx Club fans in the fight to demand continued improvement from 4Kids then that's just more allies for a common goal.

Secondly, why not? I covered a lot about this a lot in my last editorial. If it's only fair that 4Kids release their animes dual and uncut then it's also only fair that they do the same with their foreign shows right? And of their 3 non-anime foreign shows I think this one looks by far the most interesting plus the most likely to have the potential of being fansubbed. Besides, there's not too much difference between the general themes of Tokyo Mew Mew and Winx Club so I don't see why it'd be fair to demand that only one show be released dual/uncut while the other not be, just because the latter one doesn't happen to be Japanese.

Finally, 4Kids is altering the show Winx Club by rearranging scenes/episodes, changing all of the music and some censorship... but just how much do they change? If fans don't have anything to compare it to then then they just don't know and they could wind up being tricked by an inferior hacked-up version of a show they'd enjoy far more in it's original format. This brings to mind how many DBZ fans (myself included) spent years watching Funimation's dub of DBZ, handing over money to them then praising them to the heavens for their fine work. Yet, later when many of us finally watched the original version and compared it then found out we were being tricked and given a hacked-up inferior version we... didn't appreciate it much.

So because of what Funimation did to me, the idea of same thing happening to fans of other series just isn't something that appeals to me at all. Unless a version is made available to the fans for them to compare it and the dub to... they'll never know. Besides, since the show is being altered I think 4Kids really should offer fans an uncut original version of the show on dvd. Unfortunately neither scenario looks likely today but that's something I'd like to try to change.

For those wondering about the show and unfamiliar with it here's a brief synopsis. Winx Club is a high-budget show from Italy made in part to compete with Disney's Witch. It's about five cute girls with magic powers who fight evil and stuff, kind of like Sailor Moon. It's a fairly common formula in animes that Tokyo Mew Mew also follows. The show seems to have a lot of inspiration from from animes, kind of like Teen Titans and some other recent shows in America right now. I should point out that there is also another English dub but that the chances of it ever being released in Amerca by 4Kids is pretty much null. Besides that, Winx Club developing a fansub base in America would be the best way to get demand for a domestic dual/uncut release in addition to making more known about the show. Ie, people being able to compare American-dubbed episodes to their Italian originals in order to know what's done right and wrong and having an alternative if the dub is seen as lacking in comparison, like they do with One Piece.

Anyway, that having all been said let's get started. Suppose you were a fan of this show and you wanted to see it fansubbed... however, you don't feel like just sitting on the sidelines but you'd like to be actively involved in trying to form a group dedicating to fansubbing this show. But there'd be so much work involved, people to manage, stuff to translate, etc. what to do? Well, here are the steps you'd need to take and some advice from someone that's had experience trying to get a show fansubbed before.

0. "What happened with fansubbing YGO."

After my editorial about trying to get YGO fansubbed I immediately started a group called "Project: YGO Fansub" dedicated to getting the show fansubbed. What it started with was me forming a small gathering place on a board and relaying information there. Stuff like groups to contact, groups that had been contacted, new information, etc.

I talked to some people from Toriyama's World and one of the encoders from Naruto expressed their interest in the project. During this time a few YGO fans e-mailed me some information and I then got into contact with a fairly well-known person who sells original raws of the episodes. I found out though, that they overlay their website name over all the eps to prevent copying. My friend who was planning on buying the eps talked it over and the person agreed to redo the eps again without the overlayed site name in exchange for a little extra cash. I was about to get hard to come by raws of all the eps, I had an interested encoder from a very popular fansubbing project and things were looking good.

Later though I discovered that all this had been unnecessary- there was already a group subbing the first series that had worked on about a dozen episodes. The head (or one of the heads) of the group came over and talked a bit because of the expressed interest. I offered them raw encodes if they needed sources or help in trying to find new staff to recruit if they needed anyone. Their group though was all set, so with that I cancelled the project as the show was already being fansubbed and they had all the resources they needed. I did encourage them to try in the future to get the show listed on animesuki.com on bit torrent instead of just irc in order to encourage greater distribution and watching of it though.

That wasn't the end though. Another group had just finished fansubbing the first episode of YGO Season 1. I went over there relayed the story and told them about the other group and encouraged them to work together. This group wasn't really interested and wanted to work on the first season seperately. I then told them about getting raws (they were using the copies of raws from the person I mentioned earlier, although the site name was still listed at the bottom) and encouraged them to try to get one without the site name overlaying and with that, that was the last of Project YGO Fansub.

The project ultimately didn't do too much since it turned out the first season was already being fansubbed independently by two seperate groups. To be fair though, the 2nd fansub group started a while after I began the project and many hardcore YGO fans (including even Kevin) didn't even know about the first group then. However, from my experiences I did learn a few things I'd like to share that I think could help.

1. "How to find a group."

It's something every fansubbing project requires- a group of people dedicated to seeing the show translated. First of all you need people who'd be interested in this project- but where's the best place to begin asking?

Simple- shojo crowds. The format of Winx Club basically fits that of a general shojo anime. This includes shows like Fruits Basket, Sailor Moon, Air, Full Moon wo Sagashite, Tokyo Mew Mew, Maria-sama ga Miteru, etc. etc. So where better to start asking then fansubbing circles that have subbed these types of shows before and areas with fans who generally prefer shojo-types shows? That's not to say that others wouldn't be interested in this projec or that you shouldn't ask, but these crowds would probably be your best bet to start off with. A group won't always agree to do the project completely together, but one or more of the staff might express interest in helping out.

However, that's not to say that mainly shojo crowds would be the only ones interested in working on a project like this. Many animes fans while having one main preference often mix other shows into their viewing habits to give them some variety since too much of the same thing consecutively can get boring. Take it from me, after watching 5 shonen series in a row you kind of get to the point that you want the next show you watch to be anything but a shonen series.

2. "Of course, it's not that easy."

A group's not just going to immediately jump at the opportunity to fansub all of something and then take care of every single detail while you lie back just because you ask. Generally thanks to anime magazines and news in Japan about upcoming anime they generally know what animes they're going to fansub ahead of time. Plus fansubbing is a free service provided by fansubbers so it's completely up to them to decide what they want to dedicate their time to translating and putting out there for the fans.

I think you'll find most groups will probably send you at least a friendly e-mail back even if they're not interested. Or they might direct you towards someone who would be interested. And at the very least they'll probably mention this to their other friends in the fansubbing community and word of interest in this project could leak to other people so remember, be friendly and cordial to anyone you contact. Besides that the door is always open for them to contact you again if they should have a change of heart.

And even in a case where a group might not be polite enough to e-mail you back, don't worry about it and just move on. There are plenty of people you can ask and being negative will just make you enemies so it's really not in your interest to badmouth any of the groups.

3. "It's hard enough to get an anime fansubbed but it's even less easy when it's not an anime."

Ah, anime. Japanese entertainment originally written in Japanese by Japanese people for Japanese audiences. Many hardcore fans, particularly in fansubbing communities, study and know Japanese. This makes them fluent in the language and allows them to enjoy anime in it's original format and, in the case of fansubbing groups, allows them to put their skills to use to give other fans the benefit of enjoying these same shows without having to spend years of study with a foreign language.

However with Winx Club it's not an anime and it's not originally Japanese- it's Italian. What this means is that you can't rely on fansubbing circles to find a translator and you'll have to look elsewhere. Luckily America's historically got many Italians who've immigrated from here and Italian is also a fairly popular foreign language here. This will definitely be the most important step to starting any fansubbing group- finding a fan with strong Italian language skills who'd be interested in using them to help translate this show. After all, the fansubbing groups will probably only know Japanese and English and they can't help you fansub a show unless there's a translator ready for it.

How difficult would finding a translator be? Well, Italian is a fairly common foreign language in America (and there are probably far more people who know Italian than Japanese in America) so it shouldn't be too difficult. But finding someone with Italian language skills who'd be interested in this project is the first and most crucial step.

4. "Well okay- but it's not Japanese!"

True. But then again, what is anime? It's basically animation produced in Japan reflecting of Japanese values, culture and popular entertainment directed towards various audiences. The fact that it's Japanese alone isn't what makes it enjoyable and take Take Tokyo Mew Mew for instance- a fairly popular show with a high demand for uncut/dual releases. With Winx Club it's not an anime yet it follows the same shojo style and format- and it's an Italian show made by Italians for an Italian audience that reflects Italians values and interest instead of Japanese. This is what would make it different and unique from the average shojo anime. If it were fansubbed and distributed for viewing it would stand out in the crowd and attract more attention mainly because of that difference. Because of this I think it's differences should be considered more of a plus for it and be considered an advantage for generating curiosity and interest in seeing the show. Of course, it being Italian and not Japanese does create a few more obstacles towards getting it fansubbed but the fact also means that if it were fansubbed it'd definitely stand out in a crowd of shojo animes.

5. "But- isn't it licensed?"

Yeah, it is. Then again, look at One Piece. You can easily find the first 128 episodes fansubbed along with the first 3 movies and first tv special. How does the anime community feel about it? Well.... considering what a crappy dub it is there has generally been a great deal of tolerance and acceptance for it, many saying that it desperately deserves a good fansubbing and lots of distribution because of the horrible way it's been treated.

The same has been said about Sonic X, Initial D., (where even the "uncut" dvd's still censor stuff from the original version thanks to TokyoPop) DBZ and many other shows too which have developed strong followings for their fansubs. All the fact that this show is licensed basically means is that the release would be more underground and it wouldn't get to be listed directly on animesuki.com.

Then again... it's not anime so... it wouldn't even be listed on animesuki.com in the first place so...- hey, that means no worries!

6. "Alright, but you're going to need original raws to encode over."

Ah, raws. The sources needed to create fansubs. Basically an original broadcast of a show on Japanese tv (or an episode/movie/special gotten off of a Japanese DVD). In this case you'll need Italian raws of Winx Club.

But where to go to look? Well, there should be some Winx Club fans that know of sites where to download them or buy them from or if you recruit a translator they should be able to help. Someone needs to download or buy them though, and you may need some funding to get them. In the old days of VHS fansubbing people would give the people that funded fansubs (ie, bought the VHS's and copies of the original episodes) direct 3rd generation fansubs along with sometimes crediting and thanking them at the end of fansubs.

With bit torrent these days you won't really have any direct VHS copies, (although you could e-mail them dvd's with the episodes on them) so being credited on the end credits should suffice. But don't worry, people get involved with fansubs more out of love for the shows then interest in some kind of payment. So, the satisfaction of helping out and getting to be involved in a project like this is probably the main interest that would drive most source providers.

As for finding eps, one fan Carter told me that he was able to download them using emule. He also said that you can buy and import the DVD's and VHS's here and here. Finally he also stated that the Dvd's come with a British dub alternate on them. Although I don't know Italian, considering that the description on the dvd's reads, "Lingua audio italiano, Dolby Digital 2.0 - stereo - inglese,Dolby Digital 2.0 - stereo" it appears that they do indeed include two dubs on them.

And as for how to play them, here are a few posts I grabbed.

1. "If I wanted to import a foreign dvd from somewhere in Europe (like France, Italy- but I think theyr'e all the same region anyway) and try to play it here on a regular dvd machine would it work?

If not, is there anyway to fix it? Also, I'm able to watch regular dvd's here on my computer. Does anyone know if my computer would be able to effectively watch a foreign dvd like a regular one?"

2. "No, you'll need a region-free DVD player, which are actually pretty useful machines. This place has a really good one for $159.

There is a way to fix your DVD player to play foreign DVD's; I don't know them, but other people here do."

3. "Thanks. Also, does anyone know if a computer that plays an American dvd's would have problems with a foreign one? (don't think computers "recognize" regions like some players, but just want to be sure)"

4. "You can apply region free patch on your computer dvd-rom player so that it can play dvds from all region but you can't do this with most standalone dvd players."

5. "Many DVD players can be set to specific regions, or to be region free by programming with the remote control. (With the one I have, you open the tray and hit certain numbers and then close the tray.) Other players have to be hardware modified to be region free. There are websites that will list which are which and what the codes are for the programmable ones. But I lost the bookmarks to them, and I don’t remember the codes for my player anymore too."

6. "http://www.videohelp.com/dvdhacks"

7. "http://www.rpc1.org

Firmware patches, region lock bypassing tools. All -very- handy."

8. "I use a program called DVD Region-Free, no firmware hacking, no nonsense.

OR, if you have a DVD Player, do what i did and ring up the manafacturer and ask them for the technician code to make it region free, the manafacturer of mine gladly gave me the step by step instructions to make it region free, and now it plays any region i put in it, bam... easy as pie."

So basically,

1. It'd be cheapest and 2nd easiest to play the dvd's on your computer. (just need to set up some computer stuff)

2. It'd be easiest to simply buy a region-free dvd player. Then you can watch them on you tv. (but that costs money)

3. You can also mod your dvd player for free too. (but that starts to get a little bit difficult making it the hardest step.)

I'd go for step 3 and see if it works. Then go to step 1. (which should work on almost any computer with the right setup.) Finally, if you still have no luck then go for step 2.

7. "Translator... check. Original raw Italian episodes... check. What now?"

Well, there are several key positions needed for fansubbing. There's the timer, who times when people speak and finish speaking. This is done to organize when subtitles should show up on the screen and disappear to provide proper translations at a good rate. Next come the encoder and editor. One takes the translations and has them show up on the screen at the ordained the times and when that's finished, the last one edits everything together to create a downloadable and watchable file for a fansubbed episode. There's alsot the quality checker who has to check for grammar/spelling errors, etc. etc, though sometimes many position are generally for much larger groups that fansub great amounts at once frequently and in other cmaller times one staffer does more than one job.

So basically for this that would come to about 4-5 positions. After the file is complete comes distributing it via irc or bit torrent which other groups can tell you more about. (or maybe the Sonic X fansubbers could?) As for encoding, a fansubber friend of mine recommended the website, "doom9.org" for lots of information on how to do it though there are lots of other places. And of course, don't forget animesuki.com for more techincal information on just about everything involving fansubs. Any questions you got about what to do, how to do it and how to learn to do so can pretty much be answered there.

8. "Okay... so I know everything that has to be done. I'd love to watch fansubs of this show and see this project come along but I'm not sure I'd even have the time or necessary skills to be directly involved with it. What else can I do to help?"

Well there is basically one thing- word of mouth. Got an anime website? Do a news update about it. Post on message boards? Make a topic about it. Tell friends and other people, particularly any Winx Club fans or people who like animes or adopt a signature linking to information about the project. There's a lot that can still be done to help even if you aren't actively making the subs yourself. Remember, it takes news and word of mouth to get people to check out a show that's been fansubbed and that much can also help a show be fansubbed to begin with.

Well, that's basically just about everything that'd be involved with trying to fansub Winx Club. Before I finish I've got one last message to Winx Club fans- just look at One Piece. 4Kids has completely wreaked that show. They've messed up the voices, they changed around the script/plot. They've censored a lot of stuff, much of it unnecessary and to excess. (come on- rice balls into cookies? Cork guns?) They've skipped/combined one episode so far and the music they've put in there is just cheap crap with no moments of silence whatsoever that's been used in some of their other shows too. Basically, 4Kids has ruined another anime like they've done to so many others.

However, because One Piece was originally fansubbed and had it's manga shown in America fans knew what was going on and immediately realized that they were being cheated. Unlike with DBZ where most fans had no clue what was happening until long after it first started in America, because of the evolution of the anime community One Piece fans were prepared to know what to expect and to be opposed to it when the crappy dub first showed up on Fox Box. Let me ask you- if the difference between Winx Club's original version and it's dub by 4Kids happened to be just equal to the difference between One Piece's original version and it's dub by 4Kids- would the dub really be worth watching? And if you don't have any way of knowing completely for sure what else 4Kids is messing up and to what extent they're doing so, wouldn't you like to be able to know for certain that what you're getting and watching is the actual real deal? And not just a hackjob like One Piece was?

Anyway take care, and I hope this idea builds up enough momentum to the point that a group someday decides to completely answer these questions once and for all for everyone by fansubbing this series.

"Does every foreign show, and not just your Japanese ones, have to be given your 'Americanization' treatment?

The Winx Club is originally a highbudget show made in Italy (mainly to compete against Disney's "W.I.T.C.H.") that's done pretty well in Europe. It was licensed a while ago in order to help 4Kids compete for more girl audiences since Disney was basically getting that market to themselves with shows like Kim Possible.

http://www.4kidsentertainment.com/properties/winx.html

Yup, so you took it and dubbed it into English for American markets. But... there was never any need to...

http://www.winx-club.de/content/downloads.html

Because there was already a perfectly fine English dub already made that you could have used instead! But instead, you made a new one from scratch simply for the sole purpose of replacing the original music ("too Italian"?) and probably because the script there was probably too accurate.

Some people in the past have gone so far as to occuse you of overt racism against Japanese culture in general because of the way you treat your shows. I always thought better of you... and I was right! You guys aren't really racist- you're just equal-opportunist xenophobes!

I mean really, what's the problem- are American children not only incapable of liking Japanese foreign music but incapable of liking ANY foreign music? Isn't the American tv market dumbed down enough? Do you really have to go to such extravagant lengths and be a part of the problem instead of the solution? And those lengths you went too aren't even helping a show that got such high ratings overseas, on one week it only beat Dora the Explorer by .2 and it's barely tied with Jojo's Circus. (though the following week when total viewership was much less it beat Jojo's Circus by .3)

Also, rather interestingly enough Italian censorship tv standards of what is and isn't acceptable are apparently similar to Japan's in many ways.

http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=124767&highlight=4Kids

Actually, I just got back from vacationing in Europe. Censorship there is a lot different, particularly views on nudity. While watching daytime tv on a regular tv I came across a movie with a young girl dancing and posing topless in her panties for two lucky teenage male artists- and not a lick of censorship! A real culture shock from America where so many foam at the mouth at less than a second of nipplage from Janet Jackson, but anyway. I'm not saying 4Kids should intentionally try to leave in "certain stuff". I know that while the average Italian with so much nude art in their country and more liberal views on the human body could worry less about a single panty shot in a cartoon while meanwhile, if that were shown in America that'd probably create an even bigger scandal than the alleged homosexuality of a talking cartoon sponge.... yeah.

Do any of you know that the first time a movie in America showed kissing that it was a national scandal akin to the Janet Jackson incident? That there was a time that such a natural act of 2 people in love (and of the opposite sex) kissing was considering unholy to be shown in a movie? Yeah...we do live in a very Puritan country. We still do in many ways.

Anyway, offtopic and that history lesson and stuff about Italian culture aside, I was just pointing out the censorship of the show just so anyone watching it or interested in watching it realizes that it's being edited. (and as Carter pointed out, "I've seen most of the Italian episodes, and from the description of the American dubs here, some of the episodes have been changed quite a bit. Scenes are switched around and some are even moved into different episodes") I'm really not too bothered by 4Kids censoring stuff to a reasonable degree [ie, no super soakers or cork guns or completely changing episodes] and censorship's probably the least of my worries with the way they dub shows.

While on that topic... why do some people feel like fighting to the death for Tokyo Mew Mew but don't care if an Italian show of the same nature is probably getting misdubbed too? I mean really, aren't they both the same thing with Sailor Moon-esque teams designed to appeal to the same audience of girls? Does the fact that Tokyo Mew Mew was thought up and created by Japanese people and is a Japanese cartoon automatically make it superior to an Italian cartoon thought up and created by Italian people?

I haven't really seen much of either show but personally, TMM looks kind of generic to me and Winx looks like it'd be more interesting to watch. That being said, any fansubbing teams want to find an Italian translator and translate this show? I'm all for 4Kids releasing dual/uncut versions of their animes but I think they should do the same with any other foreign shows they get and that fans should try to take steps that would help encourage 4Kids to do that."

"Winx

We have a company known for replacing all of the music in it's shows with cheap stuff that drones on and on with no moments of silence- in virtually all of it's instances and the instances of other companies doing the same, the new American soundtracks have been inferior to their original soundtrack counterparts. Winx is most likely the same. It's ratings aren't that great so far so you should probably rescore it with a mix of it's original soundtrack to help improve it's quality. Or hell better yet, just redub it completely and try to find a better time slot on tv. After all, if the difference between the original version of Winx vs. your dub of it is equal to the difference between the original version of One Piece and your dub of it then there's still definitely a lot of room for improvement.

Also, why not try to market it to anime fans as by releasing it dual/uncut like you'll probably be forced to do with Tokyo Mew Mew? I'd imagine there's probably nothing worse in Winx than the average episode of TMM, plus anime fans also tend to be animation buffs so doing this could bring in more viewers and interest for the show."

"Does every foreign show, and not just your Japanese ones, have to be given your 'Americanization' treatment?

We have a company known for replacing all of the music in it's shows with cheap stuff that drones on and on with no moments of silence- in virtually all of it's instances and the instances of other companies doing the same, the new American soundtracks have been inferior to their original soundtrack counterparts. Winx is most likely the same. It's ratings aren't that great so far so you should probably rescore it with a mix of it's original soundtrack to help improve it's quality. Or hell better yet, just redub it completely and try to find a better time slot on tv. After all, if the difference between the original version of Winx vs. your dub of it is equal to the difference between the original version of One Piece and your dub of it then there's still definitely a lot of room for improvement.

Also, why not try to market it to anime fans as by releasing it dual/uncut like you'll probably be forced to do with Tokyo Mew Mew? I'd imagine there's probably nothing worse in Winx than the average episode of TMM, plus anime fans also tend to be animation buffs so doing this could bring in more viewers and interest for the show."