Manga Readers Are Fighting Back Over a Controversial Kamen Rider Release
Kamen Rider fans outside of Japan have been dealing with a number of issues over the years in terms of enjoying releases from the franchise legally, and with high quality, and the Kamen Rider Kuuga's English language manga release is coming under fire by readers and fans for its controversial translations. Although the first two volumes of Titan Comics' Kamen Rider Kuuga have been out for some time, it's come to some fans' attention that there seemed to be a difference between the translation teased during previews, and the one that had been actually released with the physical volumes.
The difference between the previews and the actual release have gotten so much attention due to noted errors with the translation (even leading to allegations of relying on an unedited machine translation), that Titan Comics released a statement regarding the complaints through their official Twitter account. Noting that the early preview pages were "translated for marketing purposes." Their statement reads as such:
Titan Manga’s statement on Kamen Rider Kuuga Volumes 1 and 2: pic.twitter.com/wh4xCmFI1m
— @ComicsTitan (@ComicsTitan) January 25, 2023
What's Happening to Kamen Rider Kuuga?
"In response to fan discussion online regarding the recent manga releases of Kamen Rider Kuuga Volumes 1 and 2, we wanted to address some points that have been raised and provide clarity," Titan Comics' statement begins. "We appreciate the fans bringing this to our attention. In April 2022, early draft pages (three pages for Volume 1 and four pages for Volume 2) were translated for marketing purposes, as we wanted to get the artwork out as soon as possible for the fans. These may still be circulating on the web."
The statement then sparked a bit of an issue with fans as it seems to then note that the printed books (which notably contained the errors) were worked on by their "highly respected translators" and subsequently approved, "The actual translation for the printed books (approved by Titan and licensors) were worked on by two highly respected translators in the business. We're thrilled to be releasing such a beloved franchise as Kamen Rider Kuuga to English-language audiences, and value the fans' comments."
Titan Comics' statement seems to have only furthered the discussion about the translations for Kamen Rider Kuuga, and with Volume 3 and 4 already on the horizon, fans will likely keep a very close eye on how future releases develop in the hopes that the same thing doesn't happen again. Kamen Rider fans already have enough trouble getting releases outside of Japan in general, and this sort of controversy doesn't help matters.
