Animemes

For me, the performance of the main voice actors is THE single most important moment-to-moment element in how an anime hits. Shows with pretty poor animation can be rescued by amazing VA performances, but even the best animation can't save a show if the acting doesn't land right.

And in dubs, the voice acting almost never reaches the quality of the original.

The voice actors usually sound like they are just reading a script alone in a box, with no proper context of the emotional setting or tone, or awareness of who they are saying it to, or any feeling that they care about the words. The delivery is flat at times it should be spirited, or dialled to 100 at times where it should be nuanced.

Simply put, it's very clear you are listening to an actor, rather than the actor being invisible (as good performances are) and letting you hear the character.

Even in the cases where dubs are actually competent (Ghibli movies, as a prime example) the process still introduces changes - entirely unavoidably - and this isn't just true for anime, it's true for all foreign films and shows.

The original casting directors chose the actors they did for a reason, and it's those people whose performances I want to hear.