Subject: [FFML] Re: [Fanfic][Ranma] Ranma No More Chapter 1
From: RaeMowse@aol.com
Date: 3/21/2000, 1:00 PM
To: rcarson@rcarson.com, ffml@fanfic.com

In a message dated 3/21/00 11:16:47 AM EST, rcarson@rcarson.com writes:

<< Kevin D. Hammel for Dani Yanega writes:
 > 
 > Akane to be Ranma's fiancee.  Be advised that all my knowledge of Ranma 1/2
 > comes from the wonderful FanFics I have read over the years, I have never
 > seen any of the Ranma Animes although I have seen Sailor Moon and
 > Dragonball Z (American version), I would prefer to read the FanFics and
 > completely ignore the Animes.
 
       This is rather dangerous. Reading only fanfics, without any exposure
 to the manga, is bound to give you some rather peculiar, not to mention
 outright wrong, ideas about the characters.

=Mostly.  Then again, we are all entitled to our own opinions and 
interpretations of characters.  Of course, it's rather silly to jump right in 
on a story without at least reading (or watching) the series you wish to 
write about.  Having the gist of the story plot is not enough, and I've read 
many stories that could have been very good had the author simply watched 
more of the show instead of apparently relying solely on fanfics and/or 
second-hand info.  

Advice: rent out some of the episodes at least, or find some translated manga 
pages (several sources, as some net-translated pages can and have souped up 
some of the volumes).
  
 > Into the valley comes a young man about sixteen and very muscular.  He has
 > black hair and deep brown eyes, that are full of rage, hate and depression.
 > He stands about 6 feet or so tall.  He is wearing a yellow and black dotted
 > bandana tied around his head.  He also wears a yellow shirt and brown pants
 > with leather ties on the lower legs of the pants and soft sole leather
 > boots.  He carries a huge backpack with a red umbrella on top.  He enters
 > the valley and sees the two men fighting, as he focuses on the younger one,
 > he growls, as he narrows his eyes.
 > 
 > "Now I will get my revenge for the Hell you have caused me Saotome!"
 
      I agree with someone else's comment that Ryoga wouldn't be talking
 about Hell, but about Ranma running out on their fight. 

=Agreed as well.  Ryouga only brought Hell into play _after_ Jusenkyou.

Also, Ryoga is
 nowhere near 6 feet tall. Kuno, Mousse, and Soun Tendo are all taller than
 he is.

=I think Ryouga's more like 5' 8-9".  He a little shorter than Kasumi, and 
Kasumi and Ranma are near the same height.
  
 > The young man watches with anger as the girls father viciously kicks her
 > then reaches down and grabs her hair, when he is awed as a fiery red aura
 > explodes around her and knocks the idiot into one of the springs.  The
 > young man turns and runs when he sees the panda emerge.  He knows if he
 > stays here to much longer he too will be cursed.  Ranma watches the boy go,
 > through a confused haze and sighs as recognition sets in.  It was her
 > friend from junior high Ryoga Hibiki, what she didn't understand was why
 > and how he got to China.
 
      Unless you've got some hidden explanation, martial artists in Ranma
 don't generate ki blasts just because they're ticked off. That requires
 training that Ranma hasn't had yet. I think it's a bit unlikely Ranma would
 remember Ryoga's name - he didn't a few months later at Furinkan, and we
 know he has a bad memory for names.

=I think there's a lot more to the story than what the first chapter cared to 
share at the time.  Apparently, something happened to Ranma when he fell into 
Nyannichuan, and we're not talking about changing into a girl, either.
 
 > "There will be no joining of the Anything Goes Martial Arts Schools, or a
 > fulfilling of an agreement of two _drunken_ fools.  As of now you have no
 > son _you_ have killed him.  Ranma's part of the pledge you made to his
 > mother has been fulfilled.  You will fill all the other pledges you have
 > made for he _will not._"
 
       You established above that Ranma doesn't know anything about joining
 the schools at this point in time - which is correct. So where does he
 get the business about drunken fools? 

=Ranma, the ESPer?  Seems to be the conclusion I'm drawing.

Additionally, the bit about being
 drunk is purely fanfic cliche - we're told nothing about how the agreement
 came to be made.

=Of course, it's just as sound as anything else, and it does explain a lot 
about Genma's actions in a strange way...^_^;

 Also, Ranma knows nothing about any pledge to his mother
 - he didn't find out about that until Nodoka actually showed up at the
 Tendos' house. >>

=Now, this, I believe is what happened.  Falling into the spring, something 
else happened to Ranma on the mental level, like another personality (maybe a 
latent effect from whoever drowned in that spring?) or something of the like. 
 Genma punched him in the head, which caused whatever was going on in Ranma's 
head to complete, giving him access to mad power, but in actuality, he 
doesn't have any control or it because the other personality took over his 
body and sealed his mind and personality away.  The alter, as we shall call 
it, is aparently some sort of mind reader, psion, ESPer...whatever you wish 
to call it, and after seeing some of Ranma's memories, it decided to take 
matters into its own hands by locking Ranma away to protect him and beat the 
snot out of Genma with its awe-inspiring power.  After it dealt with the 
matter at hand, the alter left Jusenkyou with a pretty scared Ryouga trying 
to keep track of it while making sure to stay far away from the cursed pools.

Now, for a small gripe. ^_^

I always think it's better to not give away too much of the story at the 
beginning.  It totally ruins the surprise factor, and it hurts the story 
overall; we can pretty much guess what'll happen next, and readers lose 
interest when things become too predictable.  That's all for now.

Later

Rainman


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