Subtitle policy and Infuse timing

Preferred: exact-release switchable subtitles

Readiness prefers a switchable English subtitle stream embedded in the exact media mux. The subtitle and video share the same release cut, frame rate, recaps, openings, and commercial edits.

Omakase preserves every embedded subtitle language. Plex and Infuse can expose those tracks to the viewer instead of collapsing the file to one forced choice.

Switchable versus burned-in

A switchable subtitle is a separate stream the player can enable, disable, or replace.

Burned-in text is part of the video image. It cannot be switched off, retimed, restyled, or changed by the player.

After all eligible switchable-subtitle candidates are exhausted, Omakase may accept a verified English burned-in release as a clearly labelled fallback. It does not describe that fallback as a selectable subtitle.

External subtitle files

External .ass, .srt, .ssa, and .vtt files are fallback evidence only. A subtitle timed for another encode may differ because of:

• a changed opening or recap;
• a different frame rate;
• a streaming versus broadcast cut;
• commercial breaks;
• a release-specific edit.

For an external subtitle to contribute to readiness, it must be linked to the exact media release fingerprint and carry an explicit verified synchronization state in the import request.

Omakase does not guess a delay or silently bless a same-title subtitle. An unverified file can remain visible as evidence without making the episode ready.

Plex and Infuse

Plex reports embedded stream languages and makes them selectable in supported clients. Infuse can consume the Plex library but applies its own playback and subtitle-rendering behavior.

Same-release embedding reduces drift risk, but it cannot guarantee that every upstream mux is perfectly timed in every player. Verify representative dialogue, opening transitions, and late-episode timing on the clients you use.

What to inspect

For a representative episode:

1. confirm the video and audio streams probe successfully;
2. list every embedded subtitle language;
3. select English and confirm it can be turned off;
4. confirm other embedded languages remain available;
5. check timing near the beginning, middle, and end;
6. verify a representative playback or HTTP range read.

Do not call a title ready because a subtitle filename contains “English.” Readiness comes from the stream inventory and playback evidence.