For many years many new foreign Netflix shows have been  growing in popularity. Out of every show on Netflix, Squid Game has become the most popular series among viewers, bringing in 4.4 million subscribers and $900 million for the streaming service. It has also become the main choice of show for several students at Wayne Hills, popping up in conversations left and right.

This series was filmed in Korea, making the original dialogue Korean. This leaves viewers the option to either watch the show in the original language while reading subtitles or stream a dubbed version of the series in a language they understand. One may think that a decision like this does not hold too much weight when based on personal preference, yet people’s opinions on how to watch Squid Game, even any other shows in a foreign language, have created a popular debate.

Some people feel the only way to watch foreign shows is with subtitles. This includes Aadith Balaji, a Sophomore who enjoys watching anime in his free time. He finds that “the subbed translations are a bit more accurate than the dubbed ones, and the voice acting is much more natural in subbed”. The only times he would watch dubbed versions of his shows are when he’s streaming them while he is too busy to read the subtitles.

However, several other students prefer their favorite series dubbed. This includes Faryah and Aaron Schwartz, twin freshman students who also take a liking to anime and other foreign shows. Both students like being able to hear what the people are saying instead of reading the dialogue at the bottom of the screen. They feel it takes away from watching the episodes, concentrating more on reading than the action.

According to a poll released on the Patriot Press, out of 134 student voters, 41 of them prefer to watch their shows with dubbed audio, making up 31% of the votes. 28% includes the 37 voters who watch with subtitles and the last 56% goes to those who do not often watch foreign shows. Statistically, this shows that out of the group of people who voted, aside from those who do not commonly watch foreign shows, most Wayne Hills High School students like streaming dubbed versions of their favorite series.

Still, both options appear to have their pros and cons. While watching with subtitles the viewer gets to hear the original voices, which are commonly agreed to be better than the dubbed versions. On the other hand, though, watching dubbed episodes of a foreign show allows people to pay more attention to the plot instead of reading the captions.

No matter what people choose though, with Squid Game’s popularity rapidly expanding, more people are finding and enjoying these overseas series that are popping up on their Netflix watch list.