Based on my Facebook feed, everyone and their mother seems to have watched Trese -- Netflix's very first animated adaptation of an original Filipino story. And who wouldn't check it out, given the hype it got even before the release date, with the help of some clever marketing strategies, the star power of the voice cast, and the inevitable pull of "Pinoy Pride"? The series evoked quite a lot of emotions from its watchers, unleashing what has been dubbed as the "Trese Essay Writing Contest" on social media. Surely, you've seen a Facebook friend write about their feelings on Trese in no less than four paragraphs.
Of course, Conflux is also submitting an entry, albeit more than an entire month after the release date.
Synopsis: Set in Manila where the mythical creatures of Philippine folklore live in hiding amongst humans, Alexandra Trese finds herself going head to head with a criminal underworld comprised of malevolent supernatural beings. (From IMDB)
Much has been said about the production, mainly focusing on the dynamic animation, distinctly Filipino elements, and compelling narrative. Equally persistent are the opinions of people who had quips about the Tagalog voice acting, in particular on the performance of Liza Soberano, Tagalog voice actress of the series lead, Alexandra Trese. I'll try not to sound like an echo of the other opinions out there, but let's get down to what I think is really wrong with the voice acting and general localization, since it's an area I know quite well (I had a short stint in adapting Tagalog dubs of shows, from Japanese to Tagalog).
To begin, let's cut Liza some slack. Obviously this isn't her area of expertise, and she does seem to want to improve (for a potential season 2, perhaps?). But in my opinion we shouldn't put all of the blame on her. First off, why did the casting agency even choose her in the first place? Obviously, she is needed because of the star power, which she indeed brought to the cast. However, her twang and natural pitch is really not matched with the supposed tone they were going for the character.
Second, Alexandra Trese is described as a stone-cold warrior with a low tone, who was also born in the Philippines (with this, I would expect her to have a natural Filipino accent). Seeing as Liza has a naturally higher tone with "twangy" Tagalog pronunciation, this role was clearly not matched with her natural speaking voice. It's hard to focus on emotions while you're also adjusting your tone and taking note of your diction. Personally, I'd rather they chose an actress with less celebrity pull, but already has a naturally low timbre and can speak Tagalog well.
However, now that she's already been so closely identified with the role of Trese, I do hope they take the criticism in mind and give her further coaching if they ever decide to do another season.
Another thing that made the Trese Tagalog dub difficult to watch for me is the Tagalog localization of the script. Since the series was adapted first for an English release, the subsequent Tagalog dub had to adjust to the animation that was tailored for English pronunciation. If you're not familiar (and this is where it gets long-winded, so pardon in advance), translators must try to match the mouth shapes to the animation, as well as adjust the script to fit the length of time that the character has their mouth moving on screen.
For example, if the English line is "The enemies are here" (6 syllables), the literal translation to Tagalog would be "Andito na ang mga kalaban" (10 syllables). That won't fit the original line's 6 syllables, so you'll have to rewrite the Tagalog translation to fit ("Andito na sila"). This just adds to the difficulty of translation, and I think that by trying to adjust to this requirement, some parts of the dub became awkward and do not at all sound like lines that would be used by actual Tagalog speakers.
One scene involved Captain Guerrero saying "I think I need a drink" in the English version, which was translated in the Tagalog dub to "Gusto kong uminom." While correct, the dire situation and Captain Guerrero's tone indicates that he's not just thirsty, he needs alcohol. A better translation would be "Kelangan ko ng alak". While not literal, it conveys the message of the original script more succinctly.
In another scene, someone cautions the paramedics to watch the victim's head by saying "Ingat sa ulo". While literally correct, the way it's translated sounds more like the speaker is cautioning the paramedics that they will be harmed by the head, as opposed to being gentle with the victim's head. A more correct Tagalog translation would be, "Ingatan nyo yung ulo," and in order to fit the original syllables, you can even say "O, yung ulo ah."
There are also instances where the translation is correct; however, no one in real life would utter the translated phrase. As in one instance, someone tells Trese: "Pakiusap, saklolo." In real life, nobody says the expression "saklolo" as part of a sentence; it's an exclamation meant to garner attention. Essentially, the Trese dub would definitely be improved if they had the script looked over by someone who is a native speaker of Tagalog, not just someone who has a surface level understanding of the language.
One thing I also noticed is that the animation distinctly lacked a lot of "reactionary" noises. Simple things, like people gasping when they're making a shocked face, or a grunt of annoyance. I know people have made fun of the way anime characters make those noises (like in this ProzD skit), and maybe I'm just too used to watching anime, but I definitely felt like the tone of some scenes could be improved with just a few more reactions. And it's a good example of how small things can affect the big picture.
Overall, I enjoyed Trese. Personally, I think I enjoyed it because I didn't set my expectations too high, despite the shining reviews. And of course, Pinoy Pride (*Lupang Hinirang intensifies*). Don't let my critical review of the voice acting set you off; this is meant more as a point of reference for improvement rather than a dissuasion to potential audiences.
There definitely were still issues beyond the voice acting, but I'm just glad that more Filipino media is getting the spotlight. Perhaps the adaptation of Trese will get the ball rolling for us to produce more animated Filipino stories in a global scale.
You can watch all six episodes of Trese on Netflix.