Ask John: Why Do Anime Receive Name Changes for American Release?

Question:
I was trying to talk about Rurouni Kenshin with some friends, but they only knew of it as Samurai X. That got me to wondering, why do anime series get their titles changed in America? Why not just use the original Japanese name?

Answer:
There are actually a number of simple, and not so simple reasons why some anime series released in America have titles different than their original Japanese titles. Sometimes name changes are simply a matter of using names pronounceable for English speaking audiences, sometimes names are altered for reasons of marketing, and sometimes names are altered for legal or contractual reasons. Allow me to provide some examples to clarify this statement.

The “westernization” of anime titles seems to be a bit arbitrary in some cases. It’s not unusual for anime to have both a Japanese and an English language title that differ slightly in meaning, such as “Tenku no Escaflowne” (Escaflowne of the Heavens) and “Vision of Escaflowne” or “Majo no Takkyubin” (Witch’s Express Mail) and “Kiki’s Delivery Service.” In some cases the American release just uses the original, unaltered English language name. In other cases American versions use a direct or loose translation of the Japanese name such as Fushigi Yuugi/Mysterious Play, Karakuri no Kimi/Puppet Princess, and Maho Tsukai Tai/Magic User’s Club. And in some cases titles are left in the original Japanese, for example Shusaku and Urotsukidoji. But occasionally difficult to pronounce Japanese names are re-titled in America for ease of reference. For example, difficult to pronounce titles like Jubei nin Pocho, Yoju Kyoshitsu, Kakugo no Susume, Gunnm, Makai Tenshou and the upcoming Houshin Engi have been re-named Ninja Scroll, Demon Beast Invasion, Apocalypse Zero, Battle Angel, Ninja Resurrection and Soul Hunters, respectively. These names have nothing to do with the original Japanese titles, but are easier for English speaking viewers to pronounce.

Connected with the concern with English pronunciation is a concern with marketability. Difficult to pronounce or very Japanese sounding names may discourage some mainstream viewers or consumers from buying a title. Titles can also affect a show’s physical market potential. AD Vision chose to use the title “Samurai X” for a two-fold reason. Since Media Blasters was using the original Japanese name, using Samurai X would help eliminate confusion between the two companies’ releases. AD Vision also hoped to coat-tail on Sony’s planned (but never enacted) Samurai X television advertising campaign. Likewise, AnimEigo chose to use the phonetic spelling of Rupan for their Lupin III releases to avoid confusion with Streamline’s “Lupin” releases. But in addition to avoiding unintentional cross-promotion, names are sometimes changed in America to change an anime title’s image. The original three Magical Girl Pretty Sammy OAVs never sold well, so major retailers like Best Buy and Musicland were wary of carrying new tapes with that name. In response to this cool reception, Pioneer changed the American name of the Pretty Sammy TV series to “Magical Project S.” Both Media Blasters and AD Vision have re-titled re-releases to make them seem like American debuts. Media Blasters first released Princess Rouge subtitled, but then released the dub and DVD versions under the subtitle “Legend of the Last Labyrinth” to make “Legend” seem like a brand new release. AD Vision likewise re-titled the later dub release of My Dear Marie as “Metal Angel Marie.” In a similar move, Central Park Media re-titled the adult anime series La Blue Girl EX and Maho Shoujo Meruru (Magical Girl Meruru) to “Lady Blue” and “Magic Woman M” to eliminate the word “girl” and any suggestion of child pornography from these releases.

And finally, American titles are sometimes changed in response to potential copyright infringement problems or contractual obligations. In the case of Gensomaden Saiyuki, for example, AD Vision will release it in America as “Paradise Raiders” at the request of the Japanese copyright owner. AnimEigo and Dark Horse Comics use the title “Oh! My Goddess” for “Ah! Megami-sama” because creator Kousuke Fujishima liked the English language pun on “Oh my God!” In other cases, names are changed in response to domestic controversy. AD Vision will release Chivas 1-2-3 as “Sorcerer on the Rocks” to avoid potential copyright infringement with the Chivas liquor brand. And Central Park Media had to change the title of Maris the Supergal to Maris the Choujo after the first production run in response to DC Comic’s umbrage over the use of the name “Supergal.”