Partly inspired by NovaJinx’s take on Wallpaper Failures.

Irks in subtitles are divide into two main categories. The first pertains to the mistake in font usage. The second is referred to as clutter. It mainly discusses about the lack of simplicity and organization. Overall, this gives examples of some of the eyesores out there.

Fonts

Example 1: A common mistake is the choice of font color, yet easily forgiven. Frankly, choosing the right color scheme is tough. Artists are really no better than the visually impaired when it comes to deciding. The use of color involves risks. It is like rolling a dice. When the right color scheme rolls up, subtitles generate a wonderful mood. On the other hand, the wrong set can ruin the entire viewing experience. Generally, bright colors such as yellow should be avoided. Saturation causes problem as well. Extremely light colored fonts will blend in with the picture, and become hard to read. We want bold subtitles that are easy to read. In which case, black-and-white is the most neutral and safe choice.

Example 2: This one is an extreme case of choosing the wrong color. As shown above, we have a dark color layered by another. The problem is clearly the lack of contrast. A staple subtitle should be made up of a light inner color, and a dark outer color. The outer color helps to clearly define the edges of each letter, and also presents subtitles with the solid look. Naturally, these kind of subtitles have more fair reasons for criticism than the previous.

Example 3: Third example is somewhat related to fonts with extremely light color. We can not call them eyesores in a sort of way. The only issue is just that they are hard to read. As seen above, it is hard to make out a letter when it is too thin. Quite comparable to desperately searching for a mechanical pencil refill dropped on the ground. The main importance of subtitles is legibility. Wonderful translations are sadly useless when one can not read them due to poor font choice. Subtitles should be bold, and have letter thickness to some degree. On of top of that, the colors are already wrong in this example.

Example 4: Please refrain from using fancy fonts. They are cute, but not very inviting to read. Anyone with sufficient education should easily agree that teachers will not accept reports typed in such fonts. Fancy fonts are not only funny to read, but also give an immature feel. Please save such fonts for graphic design projects. Viewers are looking to read subtitles, not logos. In addition, not all of us think they look cool.

Example 5: As opposed to the other examples, this one is completely unacceptable. Jagged fonts. To elaborate, fonts lacking a smooth composure. Not much to say as this is equally simple to fix. Either set the font to smooth, or choose a different one. Those pixels are unattractive. These are not seen too often, but certain people are oblivious to them.

Clutters

Example 1: To be fair, the use translation notes has been a staple in fansubs. Notes are quite useful. They often help define terms lacking direct English translation. In other situations, notes clarify dialogs that are not self-explanatory (seen above). Nevertheless, translation notes fall under the category of clutter. They fill the screen with unnecessary text. Fortunately, some fansub groups are aware of the mess notes can cause. There have a few alternative methods to leave translation notes such as (1) throwing in a text file with the video, or (2) adding a slideshow (of notes) at the very end of the video. None of them will probably develop a strong following though.

Of course, it all depends on the series. Some need notes more (if at all) than others. Good examples are pun heavy shows like Yakitate! Japan. Another would be shows with lots of parody/reference jokes. Personally, I do not like notes on the latter. Reference jokes do not suddenly become funny with a cheat sheet. You need to either follow the joke, or don’t.

Example 2: Horrible—vaguely resembles the mess my (Jewish) ex-roommate used to pile. The image above shows when unnecessary and excessive collide. Call it the pinnacle of subtitle clutter. Do not be alarmed when a cricket spawns from your monitor. For those questioning, it breaks down like this. It has way too much translation than needed. What does one exactly gain out of knowing what those books say? None of them are crucial to understanding, and therefore give no reason to alter the original picture. On-screen text translations are similar to that of sound-effect translations in manga. Sound effects are better left as it than replacing them with corny English sound effects. Lastly, we can be straightforward—all that jumble of English text and Japanese text makes it a mess.

Ironically though, fansubbers do not take full blame on this. Full translation is actually a response to the expectation set by majority viewers (with a retarded taste). Fansub groups merely choose to meet these demands in order to be passed off as a (quote) high quality group. For comparison, it is like how NovaJinx pointed out that the majority love wallpapers with blinding effect filters. People use majority agreement to decide what constitutes a good wallpaper, which in turn motivates all the untalented wallpaper creators to make more. To be concise, it is our fault. The majority amongst us have horrible taste, and there is not much to do about it. Either that, or we lack effort. Punch your neighbor, will you? Especially if it is one of those people demanding karaoke/translation for openings and endings.

Zoom-in for the visually-challenged.