Viewtiful Joe episode 4 is a lost episode, in a manner of speaking. It never aired in America. I remember it was GOING to, but something happened with the network and it never happened. Many episodes of the anime only had one shot to air and then never aired again and that includes this one. It's a DVD exclusive. The DVD was ever advertized as such, but I got hyped to buy it and watch an episode I never saw before. The Wikipedia page giving the air dates lies about this and says it did air.
As for the episode itself, Sprocket gets the idea to make a demoralizing video to manipulate Silvia while Joe faces the Bianky Primas. That first plot point isn't super obvious at first, which is why we have
Expo Dub: "Yes, of course. If we can somehow turn the girl against him, she'd be an absolutely devastating secret weapon."
The plan isn't super obvious in the Japanese version. In that, she's just looking at a film reel of Joe punching a Bianky in silence.
Expo dub: "That's funny. The window's not locked. No screen or anything."
In the Japanese version, after they save Silvia from falling, the lovestruck Biankies slap each other in the face. I'm not entirely sure why. Maybe they're trying to snap the other out of it or they're so distracted that they messed up doing a proper handshake? The English version re-uses footage of them from later in the episode in which they clasp hands in approval.
This might've been a last-minute change because if you listen closely you can hear the dizzy birds chirping for a second after it cuts to Silvia's face in the English version.
The street Joe walks down has a Howard Johnson's hotel, which is a real hotel chain so for copyright reasons the English version changes the text to "Hotel" in every shot it's in.
The same slap change is made again in the scene right after except in the Japanese version they also fall down afterwards
A shot of Joe leaning onto a pole after walking across the crosswalk is cut from the English version. If they had to cut anything for time they wanted it to be the lingering part where they'd have to edit the Howard Johnson's sign again.
In the shot right after that the word "bar" is edited off a sign.
Expo Dub: "It's a little update for you on the progress your hero's making."
I like the change they made to the bit when Charles whispers his plan to Bruce and Hulk. Charles whispers that his plan is "Operation Crush Viewtiful Joe: The Movie" in English and I think "Viewtiful Joe: The Movie Jakuuten" (jakuuten meaning weak point). In Japanese Bruce just yells out "Viewtiful Joe: The Movie Jakuuten?!" The less-stupid English version more sensibly yells "Well crikey! What was all the whisperin' about?!" Then in English Charles said he wanted to keep it quiet because it's a secret. In Japanese he just continues on about it and the reason he was whispering isn't clear.
Again a bar sign is edited and a camera pan with the sign in frame is cut so the editors don't need to edit the sign frame by frame.
A sign for a nightly music club is edited out in the English version, probably because the wording on it might make it seem like a more risque night club.
When the Bianky Primas attack, the English version cuts out a few seconds where one of them kicks Joe in the face (in the eyes, even) and then another comes in with a kick, which Joe dodges. The English version treats the attacks after that as the first strikes. This was probably cut because maybe the face shot was too violent, they didn't want to edit the night club sign in the shot again and of course for time.
Bar sign changed again. Also someone tell that shop owner how to spell "Japanese".
The first few seconds of Joe futilely attacking the Bianky Primas are cut and the English version cuts in a quick close-up shot from episode 2 for him to declare using mach speed. In Japanese he says "mach speed" right before punching with no visual cue.
The same possible night club sign is edited in the shot of the approaching prima tornado. Not even bothering showing it this time.
Another bar is edited out. Maybe the reason no one stopped to help Joe when he passed out from hunger is because drunk bums are a common sight here.
The Howard Johnson's that's normally edited out isn't in one close-up shot of the English version because all you can see is "How".
A shot of Joe jumping on the roof of a car, jumping off of it and the trailing tornado destroying it is cut. That destroyed car is the one the rolling tire in the next shot comes from. It still works in the English version because the tornado is shown catching another car prior. This one was likely cut so they wouldn't need to edit another bar sign.
A looming tornado shot edits out the night club sign again again and I'm done showing those. However, for a brief moment when Joe activates slow you can see a partially obscured night club sign behind him in English.
When Joe goes on the offensive there are hit flashes on every strike on the English version, which I think adds to the action rather than detracts, but curiously one of the hits is used in the English opening and there's no hit flash there. The street for the final hit also edits out the night club sign.
Expo dub: "There. Right before he moved away. See that? The fist was right in front of his face. Look like he got clobbered. Keep that. Splice it in with all the others."
After that a panning shot of Sprocket overseeing the film is cut so they wouldn't have to edit every frame, including the parts where she's layered behind the Bianky.
Man... Name one other anime that shows an old-school film editing room in use. They got the splicing machines, the tape cutters, the waste bins on wheels and everything. This anime loves films. Sprocket is even named after film sprockets that hold the films in place, which this anime ALSO makes sure to show being used. I love it.
The footage of Joe's fight on the film has no hit flash in English. Maybe they got one of those automatic exposure correction cameras.
In the English version, dialogue is added where Sprocket continues instructing the Biankies on how to edit the film, making her more hands-on. She continues looking on in relative silence in Japanese.
After that the only change is that the same bar sign in the shot of Joe backflipping is still out on the film Sprocket shows Silvia.
The big edits that had to be made this whole episode is 2 things: signs and Sprocket. The few signs of bars or a nightclub or a copyrighted hotel kept popping up so they had to keep editing it. Close, moving shots of Sprocket also resulted in some cuts. Despite this, nothing about the episode is lost, unless you really wanted to see Joe get kicked in the face. You probably wouldn't notice the signs in the background unless you were making the comparison like I am and Sprocket's role and presence isn't reduced in the English version at all. In fact, the additional and better dialogue adds to them, I'd say.
Oh boy the next episode I know is going to be a big one. It's a combo platter of broadcasting issues: guns, bombs, bar signs and being the very first episode of the anime aired, meaning more expo dubbing. I'm going to have my work cut out for me.
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