History Main / DubInducedPlotHole

* The Ivan Krylov's Russian adaptation of ''Literature/TheGrasshopperAndTheAnts'', one of Literature/AesopsFables, instead of a grasshopper or a cicada like in the French adaptation, the first title character is a dragonfly. While it may look elegant and frail on the surface, anyone who has any passing knowledge of entomology will be able to tell that the dragonfly, far from being a careless freeloader, is [[DreadfulDragonfly a ferocious predator]] that would give any ant a run for its money in terms of laser-sharp focus and ruthlessness. Even without any biology knowledge, there's still the more obvious issue that, unlike either grasshoppers or cicadas, both insects known for making plenty of noise, a dragonfly does not "sing".

*** In the last trial, one of the students says that [[spoiler:the BigBad, The Ultimate Despair]] must be a high school student because they are an Ultimate. This is because in the original, the "Ultimate" part of each student's title translates to "Super High School Level", which sounds hopelessly awkward in English, but causes a problem here.

* The syndicated version of ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'' will occasionally shave of a piece of the episode for whatever reason. This ranges from the removal of a single line like "SUCK IT, BITCH!!" to the removal of ''an entire climax''. For example, sometimes "His Story" will end with Dr. Cox growing closer to J.D. for literally no reason.
** The German dub of the ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'' episode "My Interpretation" replaces the German patient that JD treats with a Danish patient who only speaks Danish. Despite this, they keep the sequence in which J.D. dances to "99 Luftballons" in order to bond with the patient, but since he is no longer German, the sequence no longer makes sense.

* In the ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' episode "Phases" Oz discovers he has become a [[OurWerewolvesAreDifferent werewolf]]. He has a talk with Giles who explains the precautions he can take to prevent him from posing a danger to others; Giles' explanation apparently involved a globe. In [[http://www.buffymaniac.it/adattamento/2_15_phases.php the Italian dub]] Oz instead says Giles used a volcano. What does a volcano have to do with a werewolf...?
** The Italian adaptation of ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' is notoriously bad. In the episode "Smashed" the conversation between Spike and Buffy about his being [[CameBackWrong able to hurt her despite his chip]] was completely twisted: "Came back a little less human than you were." was [[http://www.buffymaniac.it/adattamento/6_09_smashed.php translated as]] "You came back a little more human than you were.", making the entire plot point completely nonsensical.

* During Neo's training program in Film/TheMatrix, Morpheus explains that Agents have the ability to "move in and out of any software still hardwired to their system" (i.e. they can possess Matrix inhabitants like ghosts and leave their bodies once they're dead or just no longer of any use). In Polish version of the movie, instead of merely getting properly translated, that line was replaced by completely imaginary, random sentence claiming that Agents are supposedly "controlled by separate processor". This not only totally contradicts the very nature of the Agents (who are ''sentient'' programs, not "controlled" by anything), but deprives the viewer of explanation how they actually work, setting up for major confusion later in the movie.

** The French dub of the show had similar occurrences of the accent being brought up, despite not being really distinguished in any way by the way the characters were dubbed. Amy Pond has the same name in the French translation, but "pond" in French has no meaning relating to a body of water[[note]]it could mean the verb for laying an egg, with different tenses depending on whether you consider the written or spoken version[[/note]], thus losing all the connections made between Amy's last name and ponds. They are usually explained by mentioning what "pond" means in English, but in [[Recap/DoctorWho2012CSTheSnowmen The Snowmen]], the one word Clara says to convince the Doctor to help is "pond", like in English, without any explanation as to how she came to choose this particular word.
** The Czech dub of "Asylum of the Daleks" was criticized by fans for translating the "eggs-exterminate" pun of the episode in such a lazy way that it altered all the later soufflé-related references of Series 7. In the dub, Oswin is apparently working on "baked icecream" ([[AluminumChristmasTrees which is a real thing, BTW]]) instead of soufflés -- despite the fact that what she's trying to bake looks very obviously like a soufflé. This whole bizarre and unnecessary change in that one bit of the translation was made so that the translator-chosen pun could work in the episode. While the pun arguably works, the ham-fisted way it's incorporated into the episode and how it messes up all later Series 7 soufflé references and the continuity tied to them, is really ridiculous. And, to add insult to injury, Oswin isn't even nicknamed the [[InSeriesNickname Soufflé Girl]] at any point in the episode, because it wouldn't make sense anymore. The consensus among the Czech fans is that the pun could have certainly been translated a little differently, without omitting any and all references to soufflés.

* The syndicated version of ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'' will occasionally shave of a piece of the episode for whatever reason. This ranges from the removal of a single line "SUCK IT, BITCH!!" to the removal of ''an entire climax''. So sometimes, His Story will end with Dr. Cox growing closer to J.D. for literally no reason.
** The German dub of the ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'' episode "My Interpretation" replaces the German patient that JD treats with a Danish patient who only speaks Danish. Despite this, they keep the sequence in which J.D. dances to ''99 Luftballons'' in order to bond with the patient, but since he is no longer German, the sequence no longer makes sense.

** If ''Ace Attorney'' happens in the US, then why did Edgeworth take up his prosecuting career in California instead of a part of the country without [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes earthquakes]]? Because the country is really Japan, no such place exists there, and [[CreatorProvincialism the idea of a place without earthquakes wouldn't occur to a Japanese writer or audience]].

** DubInducedPlotHole/DragonBall
** DubInducedPlotHole/SailorMoon

*** In the last trial, one of the students says that [[spoiler:the BigBad, The Ultimate Despair],]] must be a high school student because they are an Ultimate. This is because in the original, the "Ultimate" part of each student's title translates to "Super High School Level", which sounds hopelessly awkward in English, but causes a problem here.

So you're translating and/or adapting an ongoing story from another country, and for whatever reason -- maybe [[ExecutiveMeddling your boss ordered you]] to [[{{Bowdlerise}} tone things down]] to appease MoralGuardians or commercial sponsors, or etc. -- you've made significant changes to the original content. But then additional material from the original source comes in, and there's something in there that just doesn't work with the alterations you've already made (in a worst-case scenario, the new material explicitly contradicts your changes); maybe it's a Japan-centered story where a [[FirstNameBasis change in honorifics]] occurs but you cut them all out for ease of flow[[labelnote:†]] (admittedly, a ''good'' translator shouldn't have to employ honorifics regardless; they can simply indicate a change in relationship through the tone of dialogue)[[/labelnote]], or a character whose [[NeverSayDie death you censored]] has to come BackFromTheDead, or you [[BannedEpisode excised content]] that later turns out to have had a major impact on the story's plot.

** Also in Chapter 6, when the mastermind explains [[spoiler:how [[TrumanShowPlot the Danganronpa TV show]] is [[TitleDrop "everyone's killing school semester" (the game's Japanese subtitle)]], one of the audience comments says that they finally get it.]] Since the English subtitle is changed to ''Killing Harmony'', referring to [[spoiler:Kaede's death]] in the first chapter, this instead comes off as an unexplained LateToThePunchline gag.

* In ''VisualNovel/DanganronpaTriggerHappyHavoc'', Toko Fukawa makes an offhand remark where she states she HasTwoMommies. While left unexplained in the Japanese version, the English localization inserted dialogue in School Mode that insinuated that her father had divorced and got remarried. This got problematic when ''VideoGame/DanganronpaAnotherEpisodeUltraDespairGirls'' came out and revealed that the two mothers thing came from an incident involving her father being in relationship with two women at the same time and a malpractice accident that left her actual mother unknown (Toko even says her father was never divorced). Whoops. When the latter game was localised, the team chose to completely ignore the original dub script and just go with the original.
** In the last trial, one of the students says that the BigBad, The Ultimate Despair, must be a high school student because they are an Ultimate. [[spoiler:This is because in the original, the phrase translates to "Super High School Level", which sounds hopelessly awkward in English, but causes a problem here.]]
** The localization team was also unable to licence ''LightNovel/DanganronpaZero'', which is problematic given a large amount of the plot of ''VisualNovel/Danganronpa2GoodbyeDespair'' hinges on one reading the novel, since many of the plot twists otherwise come out of complete and utter nowhere and there are several references to the book that are rendered meaningless. A good example is, in the final trial, [[spoiler:Junko makes a glitched statement about "Yasuke" and "the pain of losing ones beloved". If you hadn't read ''[=DR0=]'' and thus don't know about Yasuke Matsuda, this line is a complete and utter non-sequiter.]]

** Throughout ''VisualNovel/DanganronpaV3KillingHarmony'', the game consistently uses a different word to refer to the BigBad (張本人, commonly fan-translated as "Ringleader", instead of the more common 首謀者), a nuance ignored in the localization, which sticks to just using "Mastermind". This causes problems because, in the final trial, [[spoiler:Tsumugi Shirogane says that, while she may be the mastermind (張本人), the actual mastermind (首謀者) is the outside world desiring the killing games]]. This results in the localization having [[spoiler:Tsumugi claim they're ''both'' the mastermind]], turning a fairly major twist revealing the true meaning behind a seemingly minor detail into utter nonsense.

** Right before the end of the main story, [[spoiler:Tsumugi tells Shuichi that she is a "Cosplaycat Criminal" who was imitating Junko Enoshima and her killing game, with the implication that this is the actual true nature of the killing game]]. This is actually a CallBack to the prologue where [[spoiler:Rantaro calls the organisation of the students for the killing game as a "copycat scenario" before being cut off]], which the localisation mutates into him [[spoiler:talking about "ridiculous theatrics", seemingly mistaking the line as a comment on the Monokubs antics]]. The resulting change not only guts the epilogue of a good deal of the ambiguity, but turns the line in a rather sudden last-minute AssPull.

** A long-running case of this is Skull Servant. It was originally called "Wight", but it was a completely innocuous ComMon so nobody really noticed. Then it became a MemeticLoser JokeCharacter, and so it got a support card named Wight King, which the English game renamed "King of the Skull Servants." Still pretty reasonable. But this spawned a whole wave of cards that all punned off "Wight", like Lady in Wight or Tri-Wight or Wightmare. The translators wisely avoided naming these cards things "Skull Servantmare" and just left their names as-is, leading to a weird case where the two focal cards of the archetype are the only ones exempt from its ThemeNaming.

** The change from Japan to America also causes problems in ''[[VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyDualDestinies Dual Destinies]]''. The second case of the game features {{Yokai}} as a prominent plot point. This makes sense in Japan where Yokai are the regional mythological creatures, not so much in America. Ditto goes for the sudden existence of Rakugo practioners in the following game.

Compare InconsistentDub, when something in a translation keeps zigzagging between two different changes and/or between changes and the original because the translators don't keep things straight; this happens mostly with names or pronunciations, but can happen with plot points, where it would overlap with this trope.

* Early Spanish editions of ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' novels used feminine pronouns for Death, since the corresponding word (La Muerte) is female. When ''Reaper Man'' came out and unambiguously identified Death as male, the translators had to do some backpedaling.

** On a minor note, [[TheSongRemainsTheSame most of the musical numbers also remain in English]], despite carrying the action.

So you're translating and/or adapting an ongoing story from another country, and for whatever reason –- maybe [[ExecutiveMeddling your boss ordered you]] to [[{{Bowdlerise}} tone things down]] to appease MoralGuardians or commercial sponsors, or etc. -– you've made significant changes to the original content. But then additional material from the original source comes in, and there's something in there that just doesn't work with the alterations you've already made (in a worst-case scenario, the new material explicitly contradicts your changes); maybe it's a Japan-centered story where a [[FirstNameBasis change in honorifics]] occurs but you cut them all out for ease of flow[[labelnote:†]] (admittedly, a ''good'' translator shouldn't have to employ honorifics regardless; they can simply indicate a change in relationship through the tone of dialogue)[[/labelnote]], or a character whose [[NeverSayDie death you censored]] has to come BackFromTheDead, or you [[BannedEpisode excised content]] that later turns out to have had a major impact on the story's plot.

** And of course, ''[[Webcomic/AwkwardZombie someone]]'' [[http://www.awkwardzombie.com/comic/culture-schlock had to capitalize on this.]]

** On two separate occasions, a plot point is that Pearl is unable to read kanji, leading her to incorrectly reassemble the Sacred Urn after she broke it, and [[spoiler:misunderstand the instructions in the written note Morgan left for her]]. Since the concept of a separate alphabet doesn't exist in English however, the English version of 2-2 instead gives the explanation of her being unable to read. Thing is though, while a small child being unable to read kanji is perfectly normal, a girl Pearl's age being illiterate enough to mispell a simple three-letter name makes far less sense, espcially when one considers her backstory. More glaringly, however, when the second instnace occurs Pearl is suddenly able to read just fine, and only messes up because of the complex wording, no mention of her supposed illiteracy or an explanation as to why [[spoiler:Morgan would trust written instructions to her daughter unable to read them]] is ever made.
** One the developers couldn't have predicted happening was the story of Apollo's deceased father [[spoiler:and Thalassa's first husbdand]] Jove Justice. In ''Apollo Justice'', Brushel reveals that Apollo's father was a preformer who died in an accident on stage, heavily implying he was a magician like the Trope Gramarye. When the thread is revisted in ''Spirit of Justice'', a game released a whole ''nine years'' later, however, Jove is suddenly a traveling musician and died [[spoiler:in the fire during Queen Amara's attempted assassination when Apollo was an infant.]] The reason for this seemingly extreme {{Retcon}} is that the original Japanese is far less specific about who Apollo's father was, merely stating he was an artist of some kind and that he died around when Apollo was born.

* In the Latin American Spanish dub of ''Film/AddamsFamilyValues'', the joke about Fester's name meaning "rot" is kept even though his name has been changed to Lucas.

** A minor case happens in the first trial, when Leon asks who "Sakura" is after Aoi [[FirstNameBasis refers to the person in question by her first name]]. In the original Japanese, this, combined with the cast being on a LastNameBasis for the most part, establishes that the students aren't exactly familiar with their classmates' first names, [[spoiler:which is part of the reason why not everyone notices that "[[DyingClue 11037]]" is supposed to be Leon's first name.]] In the localized version, it merely seems as though Leon's bad with names.

* ''ComicBook/{{Tintin}}'' comics were translated into English out-of-sequence. Translators altered the dialogue to try to give a sense of continuity to the "new" sequence, leading to problems such as characters the heroes already "knew" being introduced. Also, of course, if the books are placed in proper sequence, some of the dialogue just doesn't make any sense.

* In the Latin American Spanish dub of ''[[Series/TheAddamsFamily Addams Family Values]]'', the joke about Fester's name meaning "rot" is kept even though his name has been changed to Lucas.

** The Spanish (Spain) dub, at least for the first movie, has a couple of minor ones. For example, when Frodo says Strider would "look fairer and feel fouler" if he was an enemy, the translator seemed to understand "feel fooler". Or Isildur referring to the Ring as "[[MeaningfulEcho precious to him]]", echoing Gollum's "my precious"... which was {{Woolsey|ism}}ized, losing that reference.

* In the Mexican dub for ''Series/TheNanny'', Ms. Fine doesn't have a raspy annoying voice with a thick New York accent, but a rather normal one with a slight sexy tinge and a neutral accent. This makes all the jokes and references about Ms. Fine's speech confusing.

* In the Latin American dub of ''[[Series/TheAddamsFamily Addams Family Values]]'', the joke about Fester's name meaning "rot" is kept even though his name has been changed to Lucas.

* ''Literature/HarryPotterAndThePhilosophersStone'': At the end of the book, Gryffindor wins the House Cup by 10 points which Dumbledore granted Neville by saying "It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends", as a few hours before Neville had actually tried to stop his friends from leaving the common room at night in order to stop Gryffindor from losing more points. However, in the Latin American version, the phrase is translated as "It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up ''for'' our friends", which is exactly the opposite of what Neville did, so Dumbledore giving him any points for it makes no sense.

** Right before the end of the main story, [[spoiler:Tsumugi tells Shuichi that she is a "Cosplaycat Criminal" who was imitating Junko Enoshima and her killing game, with the implication that this is the actual true nature of the killing game]]. This is actually a CallBack to the prologue where [[spoiler:Rantaro calls the organisation of the students for the killing game as a "copycat scenario" before being cut off]], which the localisation mutates into him [[spoiler:talking about "ridiculous theatrics", seemingly mistaking the line as a comment on the Monokubs antics]]. The resulting change not only guts the epilogue of a good deal of the ambiguity, but turns the line in a rather sudden last-minute ShockingSwerve.