Sword Art Online: War of Underworld
Spanish dub review episodes 13-23
¡Bienvenido! Welcome back to Learning Spanish With Anime! This entry will cover the final episodes of Sword Art Online's War of Underworld arc, which includes many of my favorite scenes in the entire series, and features some of the best performances yet from the Spanish dub actors.
Part 2 opens with the appearances of Sinon and Leafa in the Underworld. Sinon enters the battle right in Asuna's moment of need, rescuing her and the Human Empire soldiers, as well as Kirito in the wagon. Sinon's reunion with Kirito is equally touching in the Spanish dub, and Ronie's reaction was just as amusing when she notes, "Kirito tiene muchas amigas" ("Kirito has many (women) friends"), and so was the teasing reply from Sinon, "Sí, y no somos las unicas" ("Yes, and we're not the only ones"). Later, Asuna is shocked when Sinon mentions the abilities of her Solus account and asks, "¿Puedes volar?" ("You can fly?") This leads them to form a plan where Asuna's team will hold off the red knights while Sinon flies ahead to assist Bercouli in saving Alice.
On the other side of the battlefield, Leafa has a rather unceremonious but hilarious entrance as she falls from the sky and lands right next to orc leader Lilpilin. Although his first instinct is to take her prisoner and bring her to the emperor, Leafa's kind and inquisitive nature causes him to drop his guard despite his prejudice against humans for looking down on him in the past. Leafa's response to Lilpilin, "Pero eres tú una persona" ("But you are a person"), is slightly different from the original dialogue in which she calls him a "human", but I feel this line works better and still maintains the heart of her message. The novel even has one instance where she used the term "person" instead of "human", so it's not a complete divergence from the source material.
Regardless, her intent is clear in how she views Lilpilin - "igual a mi" ("same as me"). This revelation leads him to break the seal of the right eye in order to help her fight DIL. Lilpilin does use the word "human" in this scene when he strikes back at the leader of the dark mages and gives Leafa an opportunity to finish the battle. With the overwhelming power of the Terraria account and Leafa's natural skill as a swordswoman, DIL is defeated at last. In the final line of this scene, Leafa calls Lilpilin a friend ("amigo").
The battle between Bercouli and Vector was fantastic, as always. Gabriel's voice actor did a great job shifting from the tone he normally used when speaking to something more sinister, but at the same time bored by his opponent, which reflects Gabriel's true nature. Bercouli's VA showed a great range of emotion in this scene too, from his anger at Vector when he shouted "Por es tu culpa... Ahora muere, bastardo!" ("Because it's your fault... Now die, you bastard!") to his perfectly feigned confusion towards the end of the fight, and his kind words to Alice. Unfortunately, Sinon arrives too late to save Bercouli, and Alice breaks down in tears over her loss in another stunning performance. When Gabriel awakens in the real world following his defeat and finds out PoH returned to the Underworld using his own personal account, he says he also wants to go back in. ("Yo también quiero volver a entrar.")
At the battleground in the ruins, a large group of MMO players from Japan appear to aid Asuna and the Human Empire's army, which was desperately fending off the American players. Asuna's words when she finds out Yui was a major driving force behind this plan were very sweet - "Muy bien hecho, hija mía." ("Very well done, my daughter.") Renly meeting Liz and Silica was another rare wholesome moment during the war. At first, he approaches with caution and asks, "¿De dónde vienen estos caballeros?" ("Where do these knights come from?") The casual, cheerful introductions from the girls and the relief in Renly's voice when he realized there are other kind people like Asuna from the real world were a perfect portrayal of this scene.
Just as Asuna and friends are beginning to feel like they can win their battle, PoH arrives on the same battlefield with a team of Chinese and Korean players which vastly outnumbered hers. They quickly overpower the combined Japanese players and Human Empire soldiers, and after they are all captured by PoH's army, Asuna convinces the people of the Underworld to surrender, pleading with them, "Ustedes tienen que vivir." ("You have to live.") When Asuna asks what PoH wants, his words and tone of voice in the Spanish dub, "¿Qué no es obvio?" ("What is not obvious?"), match the original dialogue very well, and his response to Asuna's shock that his goal all along was to drive Kirito and other players to kill in SAO was delivered with the same enthusiasm - "Sí, por supuesto que sí."
PoH's background story was also portrayed very well in the Spanish dub. Many of his lines as a teenager are direct translations of the original or very close to it, and his voice actor perfectly captured his sarcastic, guarded comebacks during this scene when he asked what his father was doing here ("¿Qué haces aquí?") and his reply after being told about his half brother, "Ese no es mi problema." ("That's not my problem.") Young PoH's reaction as the conversation slowly builds to the real reason behind his father's sudden visit, "¿Y qué?" literally means "And what?" which is very similar to a common English phrase among teenagers, "So what?" When the truth is revealed, PoH's words "¿Así quiere eso?" ("So you want that?") which vary from the English dub drive home the implication that he knew his father wanted something but was still shocked when he found out exactly what that was.
His father's response surprised me in how close it was to the light novels. Rather than the previous anime dialogues which presented the situation as blackmail, in the Spanish dub he says in no uncertain terms, "No puedes negarte." ("You can't refuse.") This portrayal feels much more accurate to the original story, where PoH made it clear that he wasn't given a choice.'
I was happy to hear Asuna's heartfelt prayer for Kirito to awaken used nearly identical phrasing in Spanish as in English, "Tú tienes mi corazón, mi vida, todo lo que tengo." ("You have my heart, my life, everything I have.") Kirito's line at the end of the episode, where he's shown in his dream state, is also the same, "¿Todo fue un sueño?" ("Was it all a dream?")
The scene where Asuna's memory of Yuuki encourages her to fight is just as impactful in the Spanish dub, with a beautiful line from Yuuki - "Tienes que proteger a la persona que amas." ("You have to protect the person you love.") When Kirito awakens at last, Asuna greets him with the familiar phrase "Bienvenido, Kirito." ("Welcome, Kirito.") His response is another great example of my favorite couple's more romantic dialogue in the Spanish dub - "Hola, amor. Ya estoy de vuelta." ("Hello, love. Now I'm back.")
PoH's dialogue with Kirito during their fight also stays very close to the original, using the same phrasing on many occasions, and even when they vary slightly, his lines still have the same spirit as the ones I've watched so many times. As the battle begins, he warns Kirito "Si no peleas en serio, mi deceptionarás" ("If you don't fight seriously, you'll disappoint me") and later boasts "Si no quieres hacerlo y prefieres morir, está bien. No te preocupes." ("If you don't want to do it and prefer to die, that's fine. Don't worry.") Once Kirito turns the tides and begins to power up his sword when PoH is unable to do the same, he delivers one line with the same frustration in his voice as in the English dub - "¡Hijo de perra!" ("Son of a bitch!") I've learned a few colorful phrases from PoH since I started watching the Spanish dub, and this one was the most fun to spot then play again just to make sure he really said what I thought he did.
The translation choices continued to be great throughout Kirito's fight against Gabriel, starting with Kirito's fading resolve when surrounded by Gabriel's powerful Incarnation. The only answer he can come up with for the question of his own name is "No puedo recordarlo" ("I can't remember it"), but after a little encouragement from Eugeo, he announces himself as "Kirito el espadachín" ("Kirito the swordsman") and then asks Gabriel "¿Cuál es tu nombre?" ("What is your name?") Gabriel's response in the Spanish dub makes an interesting distinction by saying "Mi nombre real es..." ("My real name is...") when the original version, even the novel, only implies he gave his real name without saying it outright. Gabriel's voice becomes truly chilling after his avatar transforms into an angel of death and he threatens to steal "tus recuerdos, tu corazón, y toda tu alma" ("your memories, your heart, and all your soul").
At the end of the battle, Kirito says the same farewell to Eugeo that he used following their fight against Administrator on the top floor of Central Cathedral, "Hasta siempre, hermano." Meanwhile, Asuna informs Dr. Koujiro through the control panel of her intent to stay by Kirito's side in the Underworld, having realized there was something he wasn't telling her. She expressed her desire for the Rath team to protect Alice, saying she is a sweet girl ("ella es una chica dulce") and then offers her final message before the max acceleration phase begins, "Todos... Por favor... Perdoname." ("Everyone... Please... Forgive me.") In the original, her words were, "Thank you. I'm sorry. Goodbye."
When Kirito is surprised to find Asuna waiting at the World's End Altar, she says she already knew ("ya lo sabía") and asks him, "¿Por cuánto tiempo estaremos en este mundo?" ("How long will we be in this world?") Of course, his answer doesn't worry her, as they're just happy to be together again ("juntos otra vez"). Their reunion in the real world later is equally adorable, with Kirito greeting Asuna and calling her pretty ("Hola, bonita") in another example of the Spanish dialogue between couples being more openly romantic.
Even now that the battle is over and he knows he's safe, the memory of Eugeo still weighs heavily on Kirito's mind, and he breaks down in tears after returning to his home. Suguha's lines as she comforted Kirito were just as touching in the Spanish dub, "Puedes hablar conmigo, hermano" ("You can talk to me, brother"), and encourages him to open up to her about his experiences there, all the good and bad in the world ("todo lo bueno y lo malo del mundo").
Soon after, Alice disappears from Rath and shows up at his home in hilarious fashion. Just like in Alicization, she and Kirito have great banter. The scene where Alice speaks with his dad was comedy gold as well. When she calls Kirito the greatest swordsman in their world, he acknowledges this by saying that Kirito is a great hero in this world too ("Él es un gran héroe en este mundo también") and then using his old nickname from SAO, much to Kirito's shock. However, the very best part of the exchange was Alive addressing Kirito's dad as "suegro", which means "father-in-law". In the English dub, she simply said "father", but this makes her intent even more clear rather than just hinting at it.
The reason Alice showed up is because she insists she needs to talk to Kirito in person ("necesito hablar contigo en persona"). After hearing her concerns, Kirito reassures her about her place and purpose in this world and how he sees her - "Tú eres mi esperanza. Pero no solamente para mi. Todos confiamos en ti. Tu eres nuestra esperanza." ("You are my hope. But not only for me. We all trust in you. You are our hope.") His words, and a brief sword fight, are enough to convince Alice that she can live in this world ("Yo puedo vivir en este mundo").
This entry ends the Sword Art Online: Alicization & War of Underworld review series! Check out my translation guide below for common and key phrases from this episode. I'm planning an expansion for my blog soon which will include more anime reviews, comparisons between light novels/manga and their anime adaptations, and also continue my Learning Spanish With Anime series, so I hope you'll enjoy reading. ¡Hasta luego!
Voice Acting: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Translated Script: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Recommended Proficiency: Moderate/Intermediate
Key phrases:
- Genera todos los elementos - Generate all elements
- Nuestros corazones están unidos - Our hearts are united
- Se buscan voluntarios - Volunteers wanted (the message PoH instructed Critter to post online seeking reinforcements from China & Korea)
- Matando a todos - Killing everyone (variations of this phrase are used several times throughout the season)
- Muchas gracias por tu servicio - Thank you very much for your service (Sheyta to her dragon, Yoiyobi)
- Simplamente no puedo morir - I just can't die (Leafa describing the Terraria account's healing abilities, both a blessing and a curse)
- ¿Sabes qué es la fuerza? - Do you know what strength is? (Iskahn when the sky in the Dark Territory turns black and the stars representing the hopes of everyone in the Underworld begin to appear)
- Un sueño para proteger - A dream to protect (Kirito and Kikuoka both consider the Underworld to be this)
Common phrases:
- Aún así - Even so
- Tengo esperanza - I have hope
- Cuenta con nosotros - Count on us
- Levántate ya - Get up now
- Voy a entrar - I'm going in
- No voy a perder - I'm not going to lose
- No es así - It's not like that
- Espera un poco - Wait a bit
- No te atrevas - Don't you dare
- Creo que si - I think so
- Estamos bien, ¿verdad? - We're fine, right?
- ¿Qué dices? - What are you saying?
- Pero no esta vez - But not this time
- Es mi nombre de jugador - It's my player name
- No tienes que ayudar - You don't have to help
- ¿Ellos verdad están aquí? - They are really here?
- Claro que si. Aquí estamos. - Of course. Here we are.
- ¿Usted conoce a estas personas? - Do you know these people?
- Mucho gusto / Encantada de conocerte - Nice to meet you
- Es un placer conocerte - It's a pleasure to meet you
- El placer es mío - The pleasure is mine
- Eso me recuerda... - That reminds me...
- Oye, hablando de eso... - Hey, speaking of that...
- ¿Estás comiendo bien? - Are you eating well?
- Seguramente no me conoces - Surely you don't know me
- Es justo lo que esperaba - It's just what I expected
- No tengo otra opción - I do not have any other option
- No tienes que disculparte de nada - You don't have to apologize for anything
- ¿Estás allí? ¿Me escuchas? - Are you there? Can you hear me?
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