Dubbing or subbing?

[Hippostania]

So, you're watching a foreign-language TV show. You are given the option of watching a dubbed version (where the soundtrack has been re-recorded in your native language) or a subbed version (subtitles are placed in the bottom of the screen and the soundtrack remains unedited). Which one would you pick? Why? Does dubbing have benefits over subbing, or vice versa?

Personally, I prefer subbing over dubbing. Dubbed versions are usually much lower in quality, and it'd just seem weird watching Americans speaking Finnish in a TV show taking place in America. Good thing only kids show sar subtitled over here in Finland, it'd suck to live in a country like France or Germany where everything is dubbed.

[DesAnges]

Subtitles, much preferable.

As an example, watch Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon with subtitles, then with English dubbing. The subtitles are much superior and carry the sense of atmosphere much better.

[Samuraikoku]

Best choice will always be original language, with subtitles.

[Khadgar]

Sub, dub voice actors are often wooden or amateurish.

[Ovisterra]

Subtitled.

[DesAnges]

It's disconcerting anyway, when the person's lips stop moving and the speech carries on for another second.

[Ifreann]

I wouldn't mind, all else being equal. Though I don't watch much foreign language media.

[Sdaeriji]

Quality dubbing is better than subbing, but quality dubbing is a unicorn. Given the choice between subtitles and the sort of dubbing that you normally see, give me the subtitles. But if all dubs could be like Cowboy Bebop, then dubbing all the way.

[Cabra West]

I'm in two minds there.
Most of the time, I would definitely go for the subtitles, no questions asked.

There's only one film that makes me re-think this a little, "Black Cat White Cat". The first time I saw it, I saw it in a dubbed version in French. The second time I saw a dubbed version in German.
I bought a DVD of it a while back, and it only offers the original with subtitles, and somehow the film loses something through that. It's just not a kind of film for subtitles.

[Esternial]

Depends on the voice actors.

[Cyborg Holland]

Dub makes me smile. Mave favourite programme was a programme about horses in the worst english dub from Hungarian...

Dub can never be neat, and my OCD with that really annoys me, but when doing something else, it's hard to have to read subs.

[San Leggera]

Subtitles. I generally find dubs to also be of low quality, and sometimes the original dialogue is just spoken over rather than replaced.

[Of the Free Socialist Territories]

Subtitles, they're just better, and it allows you to hear what the actor is saying in their native language and attempt to match it to the words. It's better for learning.

[Lazssia]

I'll watch dub sometimes, but only if it's actually good, or hilariously bad.

[Gallade]

Subtitles, especially for french tv and film.

Along with french literature, it helps keep my language skills fresh, especially during the holidays when I have no students to repeatedly shout to in.

[Hamste]

I choose dub because it can make even the most boring film funny with how bad it is.

[Esternial]

Subtitles, especially for french tv and film.

Along with french literature, it helps keep my language skills fresh, especially during the holidays when I have no students to repeatedly shout to in.

Plus the French rarely dub anything they make in a different language.

It's either subtitled or not.

[Retro Lyra]

Subbing. Many of the voice actors I've seen when dubbing are medicore at best, or just have the wrong voice for the character. Take Howl's Moving Castle, for example. When I first saw it, it was translated into english via dubbing. When they first show Howl, his voice just seemed so oddly deep. It was quite out of place for such a young looking man. I couldn't even pay attention to the storyline because I just kept thinking "Why is this man's voice so deep?" I know it sounds odd, but just looking at Howl and observing his character just made it a bit odd for me. When I saw it in its original language with subtitles, it was fine and I could concentrate on what was going on. It sounds silly, but I think part of the reason I dislike dubbing is because the voice actors don't sound like what I'd imagine the characters to actually sound like.

The only exception I can really think of is Hetalia, but to be fair, it was probably "americanized" to make it more suitable to an American audience (in other words, more crude than the original Japaneese verison).

[Marina and The Diamonds]

Subtitles, without a doubt.

[Nadkor]

Subtitles. I like hearing the original language, and reading isn't that difficult.

[Samuraikoku]

I remember Dragon Ball being rather well dubbed in Latino Spanish. Goku's voice especially.

[Second Korean Empire]

Depends on the show. If it's a live-action movie, then definitely subtitles. If it's an anime, it depends on my personal liking to the English or Japanese dub. I always preferred the English dub of my childhood animes like Pokemon, DBZ and Yu-Gi-Oh, because I frankly found many of the Japanese voices to be annoying to me (Meowth in Pokemon, Goku in DBZ). Then again, English dub of Inuyasha is absolutely horrendous.

[Gallade]

Subtitles, especially for french tv and film.

Along with french literature, it helps keep my language skills fresh, especially during the holidays when I have no students to repeatedly shout to in.

Plus the French rarely dub anything they make in a different language.

It's either subtitled or not.

They've seemed to make a disappointing switch lately. I was in Paris two weeks ago. Dubs. Dubs everywhere.

[NeoPacificus]

dub for me it breaks the immersion when I have to read. I also have a hard time concentrating on reading and what's going on with the rest of the screen at the same time. I also don't like to rewind when it goes by too fast.

[Samuraikoku]

Another case in point of the dubbing difference, and the superiority of the original (I make another exception here in Español Latino, that was awesome).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dQXhuey51M