Haha, I'm guilty of doing so :hehe:
Although I don't speak Korean or Japanese, I find it fun just to tune in and watch just for the hell of it. It's all good, beats watchin' infomercials I'll tell you that lol
I really try to watch everything without english subs because it can be confusing sometimes. Depending on how good the translation is. It sometimes is just too far from what they actually say. Pressing pause and reflecting over what has just been said is often better than reading subs...
I really love dorama to have japanese subtitles. Im not good at reading (3kyuu) and extremely bad at listening, but if I have both, it's ok. Having Kanji subtitle is also very good for looking up words.
the crappy vcd chinese subs" that then get even crappier english subtitles pasted on top of the chinese subs are either annoying, or hilarious, depending on my mood.
I've always wanted to see a show where the actors did the lines as typed in the Chinese to English translations. I think it would be a trip.
But to be honest, I still appreciate the bad Chinese to English subs, because they help me out big time. It's a lot easier to figure out what the bad sub meant than trying to figure out what the original Japanese was.
I have never watched unsubbed jdramas and never will. Watching a drama without the subtitles is quite a pain in the arse. I watched GTO special vcd which subs were displayed at the beginning and disappeared later on.
I'd rather pass a raw drama even if it's highly acclaimed. Eng subs is a must in jdramas since my Japanese is poorest. I want to enjoy and comprehend the drama. Hopefully not too much asked, hehe.
I think unless you understand the language quite well, it's not very possible to appreciate its essence. Japanese drama are unique in its colloquial dialogues, their dialogues are the most interesting ones to listen to and we understand the character development through the actors' dialogues, which what dramas revolve around often.
Even non-japanese who speak japanese find it hard to interpret some of the abstract meanings let alone not knowing what they say. Maybe the gestures can be funny or cast eye candy, I feel it's unlikely to get the full flavour without subtitles.
I dont think i've ever watched a dorama without subtitles...and i dont think i will.. except if it's small drama, or a really cheap drama starring an actor that i really adore.....or i download it... but i dont think i'll buy/download them if it's like the normal 8cds/11 episodes drama..