Many in the anime world, especially fans, have reacted negatively to the increasing use of artificial intelligence. While groups in Japan are forming to combat the misuse of AI, companies are still exploring its potential within the industry. A recent example is Amazon’s streaming service, which used AI to create an English dub for a popular anime. Unfortunately, the quality of this dub has drawn significant criticism from viewers.
I’m such a big fan of Banana Fish! It actually started as a manga way back in 1985, and ran for almost a decade thanks to Akimi Yoshida. The story follows Ash Lynx as he gets caught up in a really intense mystery involving street crime in New York City. Then, after all those years, an anime adaptation finally came out in 2018! It’s 24 episodes long and was beautifully animated by Studio MAPPA – you probably know them from hits like Chainsaw Man, Attack on Titan, and Jujutsu Kaisen. What’s really wild is the English dub – instead of using voice actors, they used AI to create it! It’s seriously something you have to hear for yourself to believe. I’ve included a sample below so you can check it out.
Amazon’s AI English Dub for Banana Fish is hilariously bad at times.#BANANAFISH
— Otaku Spirit (@OtakuSpirited) November 29, 2025
One Voice Actor Has Had Enough
Voice actor Daman Mills strongly criticized Amazon’s choice to use AI for dubbing the anime Banana Fish, especially since English-speaking fans had eagerly awaited a dub for years. With a solid resume including work on popular series like The Summer Hikaru Died, Ubel Blatt, Sakamoto Days, Pokemon, One Piece, Solo Leveling, and Digimon, Mills is a well-known figure in the voice acting world. He’s particularly famous for voicing Frieza in Dragon Ball Super, and just like that iconic villain, he didn’t hold back his frustration with Amazon’s decision, explaining that
“Shame on you, Amazon. After years of fans hoping for an English dub of Banana Fish, you give it to us as AI-generated garbage? It’s disrespectful as hell. Was a queer trauma narrative handed to a machine because paying real actors is too hard? Fix this, or I personally will not work with you as an actor EVER AGAIN on any of your dubs. This is not ‘the future.’ This is erasure.”
Currently, Amazon hasn’t made any official announcements about an English dub of Banana Fish, or if they plan to create a new version with voice actors. The anime adaptation of Banana Fish also hasn’t confirmed whether it will continue adapting the original story for television, and recent news about the show isn’t the positive kind fans are hoping for.
What are your thoughts on this heated debate? Share your opinion in the comments and join the discussion on the ComicBook Forum!
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2025-11-29 19:17