‘Ranma ½’ season two brings more characters for more fun

The slapstick comedy Ranma ½ revolves around Ranma Saotome, a young martial artist who transforms into a girl whenever he touches cold water. In season one, Ranma (voiced by Kappei Yamaguchi and Megumi Hayashibara) meets his fiancée Akane (voiced by Noriko Hidaka), and the two immediately begin to clash like cats and dogs, never mind that they’re infatuated with each other. The two fight off suitors and challengers left and right as their relationship unfolds.

Season two continues the good work that season one began by promising twice the amount of action, suitors, and magic pool-induced transformations. The pacing of the new adaptation is much more compact than the original show, focusing on showcasing the most romantic arcs between Ranma and Akane, including a much-anticipated arc where they perform as Romeo and Juliet. The end result is that the pairing appears even more lovestruck and easy to root for.

The season kicks off dramatically with the cat fist arc, in which we learn Ranma has a huge phobia of cats due to rigorous cat-related training. As a trauma response, he takes on the mannerisms of a feral cat. It’s already endearing that Akane is the only one who can calm him down during his violent rampage, but the drama peaks when Ranma leans forward—still in a trance—and they share their first kiss. Akane is understandably upset afterwards, but she implies that she may have been fine with the kiss if only it weren’t public, which is the closest we’ve gotten to a direct confession of her crush on her fiancé.

Several new characters appear in the new season, equipped with quirks that are characteristic of Ranma ½. First, the cunning warrior Shampoo (voiced by Rei Sakuma) returns after her departure at the end of season one. Following Shampoo from China is her suitor Mousse (voiced by Toshihiko Seki), who challenges Ranma to a duel since he believes Ranma has “stolen” Shampoo from him. Like Shampoo, who fights with shampoo (no surprises there), Mousse fights in an amusing and comedic style, lobbing large objects at people from underneath his baggy sleeves.

Another character who joins the fray is Cologne (voiced by Ako Mayama), Shampoo’s great-grandmother and the leader of the Chinese Amazons. Rather than a serious threat, she’s more like a troublesome neighborhood grandma who loves pulling pranks on the kids.

Speaking of threats, the neighborhood menace Happosai (voiced by Kazuhiko Inoue) makes his appearance this season. Happosai is the embodiment of the “old pervert” archetype, like Master Roshi from Dragon Ball or Jiraiya from Naruto. In this way, he’s a time capsule of the media of his time. While I did wince watching his antics, I respect that the new adaptation stays true to the source material.

And finally, Ukyo (voiced by Kaori Nazuka) is my favorite new character of the season. Initially introduced as (yet another) one of Ranma’s rivals, Ukyo is revealed to be (yet another) one of his fiancées. She’s an okonomiyaki chef, and swings around a giant spatula in a brawl. While Akane’s tsundere attitude is charming, Ukyo is refreshingly honest. If I were Akane, I’d be nervous about maintaining my spot as the heroine.

Of course, the introduction of new characters means the spotlight has to be taken away from others. Kuno’s younger sister, Kodachi, is nowhere to be seen. Before episode nine, Ranma’s rival, Ryoga, spends most of his screentime in the background lounging as a miniature pig, seemingly having embraced his new identity as Akane’s pet.

As always, Ranma is a comedy on the screen and a deconstruction of gender norms in my head, but I’m still going to point out the parts that read especially queer to me. In episode three, Ranma sports various cute outfits in girl-mode, for no practical reason other than having fun (and honestly, good for her!). In episode four, he wears a swimsuit that reads "Boy,” which is both hilarious and surprisingly gender euphoric, even though it stems from Ranma's insecurity over his masculinity.

In an interview about the new adaptation, the creator of the series Rumiko Takahashi stated, “I'd decided that Akane and Ranma would find happiness in the end, but I was worried about whether to turn Ranma back into a man. However, I really didn't want female Ranma to disappear.” By the end of season two, it’s clear that both male and female parts of Ranma are authentically him. His journey of learning that he doesn’t have to compromise either, though unintended, is a beautiful one that will undoubtedly be a joy to follow.