No... no it can't be over. The boobies, the comedy, the messed-up martial arts! Now all I have is current anime and they won't dub it anymore because Japan got all cheap. Ranma 1/2 Set 7 comes in the nicer looking Limited Edition with a nice guide book a collectible card, while you can get the regular edition that ends the Ranma series. I suspect though Viz might release all the OVA's again, as they've also already been dubbed. The only thing lacking and it might have been due to getting the license is a special new episode, "Nightmare! Incense of Deep Sleep." It came out in 2008 and was never dubbed for the US. Please Viz, get it one day! The only extra is a finale for the We Love Ranma doc.
Getting to the content the remastered Ranma stories stand up to be pure comedy gold as the sex-changing main character can't catch a break. Where to begin, the cheerleader who doesn't play fair, the ghost who wants a date with Ranma's girl half. The level of destruction raised in, "The Musical Instruments of Destruction" , was insane. One hit of a drum and the school explodes. Ranma takes the hit every-time. Painful and funny. No, let's go back to the Cheerleader episode. Ranma has to fight a cheerleader at her own game and ...blech... "fall in love with Kuno" in the two-parter, "Bring it on! Love as a Cheerleader." Watching as cheerleaders take out Ranma's high school team to have their side win could only happen in this show. An astounding array of attacks and animation of a cheerleader kicking people's butts like a crazy person.
You have some of the saddest joke episodes with, "From the Depth of Despair, " where Ryoga learns a new technique and in time Ranma does too that draws its power from how depressed you are. Nobody wins that battle.
"The Battle for Miss Beachside, " is the last big cast episode bringing together all of Ranma's female romantic rivals in a contest for the hottest girl on the beach, this of course leads to a big fight, when does it not? And hey, bikinis!
The final episodes reveals Ranma's mama and the idiotic idea on why we haven't seen her. Ranma's panda changing Dad made her a promise that Ranma had to be a real man the next time they met his Mom or he and Ranma would commit seppuku, a painful disemboweling suicide. So Ranma is now afriad to ever see his mother as a guy or explain the situation of turning into a girl, because she might make him kill himself? What?
*If you can slow it down-and you can- the animators added a nice shot of Shampoo and Ukyo almost nude when Ranma gets bashed in these episodes. Why? Because they're Japanese animators.
Though I wish the series ended on a battle heavy comedy episode, it's more of a touching good-bye ending with Ranma and Akane almost breaking the fourth wall and saying thanks for watching.
You have more stories than that with some very stupid premises that make the show so watchable. The classic anime voice actors will bring you back to the 90's. Even though most of them work today, it's nice to hear some familiar voices.
I only wish I got into Ranma at the start or the re-release and collected all the special editions for a really nice looking complete set to put in my Blu-ray case. This volume is as shiny and nice to display as the others. And nice enough to make other anime friends jealous.
So if you've gotten this far, end the series and complete the set to see Ranma and Akane walk off and be sillier than any current anime out there. I'll miss you Ranma!
Reviewer was given copy by publisher for review purposes
