Originally posted by mrmenz

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Naruto filler arcs are sub par at best, what gets me is that theres so many other characters that fillers could be based around, but they never stray from the main crew.

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Originally posted by Jin Dogan

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Originally posted by mrmenz

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Naruto filler arcs are sub par at best, what gets me is that theres so many other characters that fillers could be based around, but they never stray from the main crew.

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Yes, you are so right. The problem is that they have those characters sit around and make a "special" entrance during the main arc. However, it's not as dramatic as in other anime because, well, it's just plain annoying.

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Originally posted by Guilty Grey X

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Ronin, where'd ya find the trailer? I wanna see how bad...

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Originally posted by Ronin

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It wasn't excatly a trailer, it was just the obligatory stuff that they put on CN for hype. "*insert subject of show*, THEY EXIST. THEY'RE TRYING TO BE AWESOME. WATCH PLZ AT *insert time here*

I just know I'll end up watching it for some reason XD

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Originally posted by Prier

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You'll watch it anyways. Complain afterwards.

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Originally posted by Dcahrakos

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in my opinion, if its going to be like that, ill watch it, BUT, it will be horribly bad....I cant believe how horribly dubbed they made it. well, the dubbing itself isnt horrible, but some pronounciations are very bad...like how they said "Naruto"...its just sad.

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How to pronounce "a"

To demonstrate this for yourself, say the word "father". The "a" vowel sound in this word is relatively neutral.

Now, say the word "dad". Notice how harsh it sounds. This is what we call a "bright" vowel (or, in this case, a bright "a"). This is the sort of tone we use when we scream, "ahhhh!!!"

Now, say the word "fawn" (and if you're familiar, say this in a posh-British accent). Notice now how the "ah" sound of the vowel has mutated into something closer to "oh". This is what we call a "dark" vowel.

Though "father", "dad", and "fawn" all use the "a" vowel, you can hear how they are different in sound. "Dad" is "a" in its brightest form, and "fawn" is "a" in its darkest form. English vowels, in general, tend to be towards the neutral version of this scale. Posh-British English vowels tend to be darker, and French and Japanese vowels tend to be brighter.

The brightness of the Japanese "a", though it varies from speaker to speaker, tends to fall somewhere between "dad" and "father". Listen for this in spoken Japanese and you'll see what I mean. Listen to Japanese singers hold out words that end on an "a" vowel, and you'll notice it's usually a little brighter than a pure "ah". Another illustration would be to compare pop singers to musical theater singers. Pop singers (good ones, anyway) will tend to have more neutral "a" vowels, while musical theater singers (and Clay Aiken : p ) sing with brighter tones� (and, incidentally, so do I ^^; Yaaaaay people with naturally bright, metallic voices!)

So I spent all that time simply talking about the "a" vowel� Hahaha~� Well, it can get pretty technical if you're a perfectionist. Just try and grasp the "bright" and "dark" concepts, since I'll use these to explain the other vowels�also keep in mind that everyone's "a" is different slightly. Just like a fingerprint�

How to pronounce "u"

This is a little more difficult to describe. It's not a deep, dark sound like the sound the King of Town makes when he says, "ooh! ooh!" �(sorry if you're not a homestarrunner.com fan ^^. Again, it's a very bright sound. Think of some surfer-guy saying, "kewl" or "duuuuude". Or, if you're familiar with German, think of u-umlaut. Think of Ernest (from "Hey Vern, it's Ernest") when he goes, "eeeeeeeewwww"�.

Or, if you're unfamiliar with all of these examples, round your lips to make a rich, dark "ooh" sound, then instead of saying "ooh", say "eeee" instead. The sound produced sounds similar to the Japanese "u". Just remember, keep it bright and nasally� and listen to spoken/sung examples.

How to pronounce "o"

Wow, down to the last vowel, finally� This is another toughy, though.

American-English "o"s are very lazy. Our mouths open slightly and our lips round ever so slightly as the inside of our mouths makes a slight dome.

Japanese "o"s, however, require more energy to pronounce. Form your lips into a tight circle, as if you were going to say the English "ooh". Now, pull your tongue down a little so that the inside of your mouth is more dome-like, open your lips just a smidge and say "oh". It should be a bit darker and more clear than the English "oh"� Or if that's too confusing, just do your best impersonation of Jabba the Hut laughing "ohhh-ho-ho-ho-ho"� Then just brighten it up a bit.

Like I said, this is very hard to describe, so taking these basic rules, listen to some spoken Japanese and try to imitate what you hear.

Exceptions: As if "o" weren't confusing enough already, singers change it around, too! Again, I'll use Ayu's I am� as an example, since that's a perfect example of a "rock-Japanese accent". At the very start of the song, when she sings a-capella, she finishes with "koko ni iru no�" and holds out the "o". You may notice that this is not a pure Japanese "o". It's instead an "o" with a silent English "r" added to the end (which could also be described as a slight dead "i".) She does this a lot in the song Naturally as well.