Is there a drama that you want to watch but can’t find subs for? A feature you would like to see on the MyDramaList website? Maybe you have an idea for a topic you would love to hear us talk about on the podcast? We’ve taken some of the guess work out of those queries for you by compiling a list of links. Check it out!
I hope somebody subs this!
The curse of all Asian drama fans is trying to find easy subs. Legal subs, easily accessible subs, good subs, subs that won’t tank your computer or require a stellar VPN. Even if you regularly sail the high seas in your search for subs, there will always be that one elusive drama that you just can’t find. If you have a favourite fan subber and their DMs are open, you can try popping them a message asking if they plan to sub the drama you’re looking for. If you’re going this route, please Please PLEASE be super duper polite and make sure you don’t sound like you are making a demand. Subbers are people too and they only have so much time to work on what is largely a labour of love.
If you’re looking for legal subs, you can similarly ask your favourite streaming site if they plan to get the license for the drama you are looking for. Most websites have a suggestion box or contact form of some sort.
These contact forms aren’t usually too difficult to find. Often they are listed somewhere under the “contact us” section or the FAQ. But lucky you, I’ve already done the hard work finding those pages and will link them here for you. All you have to do is click the links 😉 If you hear about a drama that sounds good but doesn’t appear to have a platform yet, go request it. Knowing that people are interested in a specific drama increases the likelihood that your favourite streaming service will secure the rights.
Sometimes a drama is easily available on a streaming site, but doesn’t currently have any subs in your preferred language. Official YouTube channels and OnDemandKorea are two common examples of locations that will show up when one searches for dramas but which are sometimes a crap shoot whether they will be fully subbed or not. I myself have been burned by several Chinese dramas this past year that stamped their videos as “Eng Sub” but gave up by episode 3 or 4.
On YouTube you can always try leaving requests for subs in the comments of the shows you want to watch. Double check that the official channel doesn’t have an alternate channel for international or English audiences. Now that fan subbing has been removed as a feature on YouTube, it’s sometimes necessary to watch and episode to see the subs. YouTube will tell you that the episode has no subs available while the company has embedded the subs within the video on their own opting to forego the YouTube system entirely.
If you find a drama that you want to watch on OnDemandKorea but it doesn’t have any subs, you can try using their feedback form to ask them to sub the show. I’ve yet to have success with this method, but who knows? It’s worth a shot.
I know that these are by no means the only streaming sites available when it comes to Asian dramas. It seems like every time I turn around there’s a new streaming service popping up. These are the ones that I am most familiar with. I was unable to find a useful suggestion box type form for either LineTV or Tencent.
I have an idea!
Sometimes what we need is a place to share our ideas. A place to talk to others about our dramas and a way to make that place more fun for us. One of the more common things that I see people asking MyDramaList about on Twitter, is ways that the database could be improved for the users. Not a lot of people seem to know that MDL has a suggestion box already set up on the website for that.
Every user account is assigned 30 votes (I think, it’s been a while since I’ve had all of mine available to me). When you go into the suggestion box thread, you can either create a new suggestion or vote on the suggestions that are already there. It is highly recommended that you read through the thread before posting your own suggestion. If the suggestion already exists your post will either be locked and deleted, or will simply split the vote making the suggestion appear less popular than it is.
When voting on other people’s suggestions, you can assign either one, two, or three votes total to each suggestion. When you run out of votes, that’s it, you’re done. HOWEVER, when a suggestion gets either locked, deleted, or implemented those votes will be returned to your account. It’s a good idea to check in every few months to see if you have more votes to use on somebody else’s great idea.
Please remember that everyone involved with running MyDramaList is a volunteer. Sometimes good suggestions are going to take a while to implement. If you see a great idea that seems to be lagging, you can comment in it’s discussion to help boost the post to the front page. You can also share the link to the thread with your other drama loving friends who might also want to throw it a few votes. MDL prioritizes ideas with more than 100 votes, so get out there and campaign for the things near and dear to your heart.
Finally…
Do you have a great idea for a topic you’d love to hear us discuss on the podcast? Maybe you have a game idea that you think we’d have fun with or an actor who you’d love to see us profile? We’re always open to suggestions. Like with anything, there’s no guarantees, but we love to hear from you. You can contact us through our email at CertifiedNoonas@gmail.com, message us on Twitter or Instagram, or leave a comment on one of our blog posts. We love to have feedback from our listeners. Thanks for listening… and reading!
Jessie
Sky