Ranma; Hard Core
Author's notes.
Finally, I'm sitting down to write this! I have to admit, of all my fics, this one took the most vibrant life of its own. I've only had a few that pretty much just wrote themselves; Easy Target 2, Ill Gain, and Ascension, but this one flowed more like I was watching a movie than anything else.
First off, starting with the meaning of the title. 'Hard Core' actually doesn't refer to the way the fights are done in a realistic manner; it actually refers to the way Ranma *attempted* to harden himself. Before his near death, Ranma was as Canon; cocky and confident of his abilities to the point where he pretty much believed he was invincible with focus. That fight that changed him by shattering that illusion utterly. It's like a race car driver that has a horrible accident, and when he recovers, swears he will never race again. Sometimes they develop an intense fear of speed, or of the car itself; Ranma developed an intense fear of not the fight, but the consequences of losing. Ranma learned that to fight was to put your life into your hands, and heeded to that with the rationalization that the means were always justified.
There lies the problem. As someone pointed out, it is not good to pull your punches in a life or death situation, but it's not necessary to go to extremes when subduing your opponent. The incident with Kuno was an intentional gray area; we all know Kuno wouldn't stop until something serious happened. The incident with his sister, on the other hand, was deliberately set up. Believe me, the technique (which I believe is a modified Aikido technique, I don't always ask my instructors where a move originated) is not an easy one to utilize. Hell, it's not even really practical. Also, at the beginning, when Ranma punched at Akane, that is a severe incapacitating blow, as it can push the cartilege back into the brain. Wether Ranma was intending to pull it or not, I leave up to you to decide. As for the reason why Ranma was a girl a good portion of the time, some of you ask? Note that it was during or after his more negatively impacting actions that this was so. It was a flag, as Ranma's girlside is supposadly his second most prominant failure, but the only one that could always be visibly shown, regardless of his attitude at the time.
And about the other characters? Mousse, Ryoga, and Kuno are pretty easily understood, so I'll skip them. Akane, to me, she's probably the character that gets the biggest bum rap in fanon. I'm most assuradly not saying she's a saint, but everyone seems to forget that she's a sixteen year old girl. A girl in the middle of her teenage years, in a society that teaches stern principles in male/female relations. Her open friendliness is easily mistaken for affection for anyone around her. Guys, being nice isn't flirting, it's just being polite ;p. Also, it must be noted that Takahashi herself seemed to make Akane the most emotionally youngest character in Ranma 1/2, as even instances where she's shown rather childlike in behavior (such as in the manga, where Hinako attempted to teach Akane to swim).
But... her attitude towards boys, her open admittance of the appeal of other girls does bring some things into question. The rumors Akane was getting behind her back at school would obviously hurt her. Some people easily shrug them off, but we've seen the way Akane reacts to Ranma's teasing, so I judge that not to quite be the case. Nabiki, in the heat of the moment, laying into Akane broke whatever confidence she had in her sexuality, since she now believes that even her sister, one of the few people who would always be someone who'd be there for her, regardless of minor sibling spats, even accused Akane of homosexual urges. Suddenly, the rumors seem all that more true. Akane flew off the handle, right when Ranma got there, she assumed, just when the 'girl' showed up, that Nabiki was in the right.
Akane genuinely has feelings for Ranma, but approached them tentatively, seeking his friendship first. Unfortunately, Ranma isn't the most outgoing person in this one. To add to her confusion at the end, Ranma's curse, along with several other *shallow* justifications she concluded herself for the rumors at school, caused her to question herself, sincerely. Now, she's seeking an answer she doesn't want to know, which poses problems to her in the future in both physical, mental, and spiritual.
Nabiki. It's obvious from the beginning of the manga she's a little boy crazy. What threw her off of Ranma was his curse in the first place. But, if she's given a reason to feel genuine concern for Ranma, she may not fall in love with him, but she'll have more sympathy. Later, it begins to dawn on Nabiki that there are a few parallels between her and Ranma, a few things they could relate. So she finds herself becoming more and more concerned for what happens to Ranma.
Nabiki would also most likely be the person who supports Ranma's actions of the others. Nabiki believes in an eye for an eye, plus the other eye, plus a foot... Anyhow in the end, Nabiki was already at fustrated levels, and with her wanting to help Ranma, and him not wanting her help, the rather irked her off to no end. Once it got to shouting levels, all she unconciously tried to hurt Ranma. She found a good way, and realized it right when it left her mouth.
Why she left with Ranma? She already assumed he had been thrown out from the way she was crying, without her father, and with her backpack. Nabiki didn't think it was fair the way Ranma was being treated by everyone, including herself. So she leaves with him as a form of atonement.
Kasumi, she wasn't sure how to handle Ranma. At first, she thought that he was someone not accustomed to being around people, or dealing with them. She knew that Akane was at fault for the first incident, but once she got to witness first hand what Ranma was capable of, and the amount of concern he had for his actions, it didn't set well with her at all. It's like inviting someone into your house, and finding out they've murdered in the past or were a child molester. The situation just got complicated for her, as it started to seem that her whole family was against her on her opinions on Ranma.
Genma, he was severely ashamed of himself for how he had let Ranma become the way he was. At first, he thought he could 'push' the weakness from Ranma, and it seemed to work. Problem is, Genma only managed to compound the emotional trauma. Genma realized this eventually, but didn't know what to do about it or how to handle it. Bed of his own making, as it were.
Soun, obviously would be a traditional sensei, so more than likely he would have severe issues with the way Ranma handles things. Not the means, per say, but the fact that Ranma doesn't seem to deal with the consequences of his actions. That's a big theme of the story, right there. You shoot someone with a gun, you have a responcibility to deal with the consequences, even if it is in self defense.Same with martial arts, you cause someone bodily harm, you *are* obligated to take the consequences. It is one of the first lessons many instructors will teach. There is a reason it is considered 'carrying' a lethal weapon if you are blackbelt status or above in states like California.
Dr. Tofu had no idea what was going on, he didn't even know Ranma the boy and Ranma the girl were one in the same. He was pressing to get details from several parties, but none of them were forthcoming. When he finally did get it from Kasumi, he was definitely sure her notions were a bit biased and she wasn't giving the whole story or didn't know it, but he also knew that Ranma probably has more issues than he noted, or that Kasumi noted would even consider. Unfortunately, Ranma would be gone before he could make a decision on how to approach the problem.
Kodachi also has no idea what was going on. The first thing that came to mind when she saw the way [girl] Ranma was acting when Soun had her pinned, she had assumed rape. There's probably a reason for that, and it's not what you're thinking right now ;p.
Many of you readers were chasing after red herrings, looking at what was most *obvious* the problem, and then deciding by 'common sense' where things lay. Psychologist's rule #1. NEVER rely on common sense. Problems lay a little deeper than what you see on the surface, and thought processes are a lot more complicated than what people will show you. A lot of factors need to be considered, and I dropped quite a few hints to true ones, I just didn't make them outright blatant about them on purpose. Kudo's to Paulie's Mom, Blazestryker, Taxzombie, and anyone else I missed for *reading* the story, because they saw what was going on, or at least they had an inkling of the way things were. I'll just say this, with my serious fics, you can't surface read, because I automatically presume that you'll think about what's happening, before coming to an assumption. The blatant red herrings, you should have noted from their inconsistencies that they were probably false. Like Akane's relating to Ranma because they're 'the same'. Obviously that wasn't the case, since she didn't even agree with half the things he did. That's why Ranma ended up with Nabiki, she did, or at least came the closest to doing so.
I know, why did I have Ranma run away? Simple, he didn't know how to handle his problems. He's just been told he couldn't do the only thing that provided him a security blanket, Kasumi was kicking him out, and from the way Akane ran away, and Nabiki was shouting at him, they both 'obviously' didn't care about him. Ranma's too afraid of death to even concern himself with Seppuku, so there was only one option left. Hopefully he can find peace, but then again, the author is a cold hearted bastard ^_^
Last note; these are *my* interpretations of the characters. You have your own pre-concieved notions of what they were, and don't agree with my charactorizations, that's your problem ;p. If the characters seem OOC to you, well, they *should*. You should also note that it's not OOC that's ever the problem, it's the motivations behind them, or lack there of depending on the fic and author ;)
That should cover the notes for book 1. Any other questions, just email me, and I'll make amendments later. And for any martial artists out there think they can list the schools the various techniques came from, email them to me too, we'll make a game of it ^_^
::Sigh:: now I have to write notes on Ascension and Into Dreams (Oh bloody hell that one's gonna be lengthy). See you book 2.
Author's notes.
Finally, I'm sitting down to write this! I have to admit, of all my fics, this one took the most vibrant life of its own. I've only had a few that pretty much just wrote themselves; Easy Target 2, Ill Gain, and Ascension, but this one flowed more like I was watching a movie than anything else.
First off, starting with the meaning of the title. 'Hard Core' actually doesn't refer to the way the fights are done in a realistic manner; it actually refers to the way Ranma *attempted* to harden himself. Before his near death, Ranma was as Canon; cocky and confident of his abilities to the point where he pretty much believed he was invincible with focus. That fight that changed him by shattering that illusion utterly. It's like a race car driver that has a horrible accident, and when he recovers, swears he will never race again. Sometimes they develop an intense fear of speed, or of the car itself; Ranma developed an intense fear of not the fight, but the consequences of losing. Ranma learned that to fight was to put your life into your hands, and heeded to that with the rationalization that the means were always justified.
There lies the problem. As someone pointed out, it is not good to pull your punches in a life or death situation, but it's not necessary to go to extremes when subduing your opponent. The incident with Kuno was an intentional gray area; we all know Kuno wouldn't stop until something serious happened. The incident with his sister, on the other hand, was deliberately set up. Believe me, the technique (which I believe is a modified Aikido technique, I don't always ask my instructors where a move originated) is not an easy one to utilize. Hell, it's not even really practical. Also, at the beginning, when Ranma punched at Akane, that is a severe incapacitating blow, as it can push the cartilege back into the brain. Wether Ranma was intending to pull it or not, I leave up to you to decide. As for the reason why Ranma was a girl a good portion of the time, some of you ask? Note that it was during or after his more negatively impacting actions that this was so. It was a flag, as Ranma's girlside is supposadly his second most prominant failure, but the only one that could always be visibly shown, regardless of his attitude at the time.
And about the other characters? Mousse, Ryoga, and Kuno are pretty easily understood, so I'll skip them. Akane, to me, she's probably the character that gets the biggest bum rap in fanon. I'm most assuradly not saying she's a saint, but everyone seems to forget that she's a sixteen year old girl. A girl in the middle of her teenage years, in a society that teaches stern principles in male/female relations. Her open friendliness is easily mistaken for affection for anyone around her. Guys, being nice isn't flirting, it's just being polite ;p. Also, it must be noted that Takahashi herself seemed to make Akane the most emotionally youngest character in Ranma 1/2, as even instances where she's shown rather childlike in behavior (such as in the manga, where Hinako attempted to teach Akane to swim).
But... her attitude towards boys, her open admittance of the appeal of other girls does bring some things into question. The rumors Akane was getting behind her back at school would obviously hurt her. Some people easily shrug them off, but we've seen the way Akane reacts to Ranma's teasing, so I judge that not to quite be the case. Nabiki, in the heat of the moment, laying into Akane broke whatever confidence she had in her sexuality, since she now believes that even her sister, one of the few people who would always be someone who'd be there for her, regardless of minor sibling spats, even accused Akane of homosexual urges. Suddenly, the rumors seem all that more true. Akane flew off the handle, right when Ranma got there, she assumed, just when the 'girl' showed up, that Nabiki was in the right.
Akane genuinely has feelings for Ranma, but approached them tentatively, seeking his friendship first. Unfortunately, Ranma isn't the most outgoing person in this one. To add to her confusion at the end, Ranma's curse, along with several other *shallow* justifications she concluded herself for the rumors at school, caused her to question herself, sincerely. Now, she's seeking an answer she doesn't want to know, which poses problems to her in the future in both physical, mental, and spiritual.
Nabiki. It's obvious from the beginning of the manga she's a little boy crazy. What threw her off of Ranma was his curse in the first place. But, if she's given a reason to feel genuine concern for Ranma, she may not fall in love with him, but she'll have more sympathy. Later, it begins to dawn on Nabiki that there are a few parallels between her and Ranma, a few things they could relate. So she finds herself becoming more and more concerned for what happens to Ranma.
Nabiki would also most likely be the person who supports Ranma's actions of the others. Nabiki believes in an eye for an eye, plus the other eye, plus a foot... Anyhow in the end, Nabiki was already at fustrated levels, and with her wanting to help Ranma, and him not wanting her help, the rather irked her off to no end. Once it got to shouting levels, all she unconciously tried to hurt Ranma. She found a good way, and realized it right when it left her mouth.
Why she left with Ranma? She already assumed he had been thrown out from the way she was crying, without her father, and with her backpack. Nabiki didn't think it was fair the way Ranma was being treated by everyone, including herself. So she leaves with him as a form of atonement.
Kasumi, she wasn't sure how to handle Ranma. At first, she thought that he was someone not accustomed to being around people, or dealing with them. She knew that Akane was at fault for the first incident, but once she got to witness first hand what Ranma was capable of, and the amount of concern he had for his actions, it didn't set well with her at all. It's like inviting someone into your house, and finding out they've murdered in the past or were a child molester. The situation just got complicated for her, as it started to seem that her whole family was against her on her opinions on Ranma.
Genma, he was severely ashamed of himself for how he had let Ranma become the way he was. At first, he thought he could 'push' the weakness from Ranma, and it seemed to work. Problem is, Genma only managed to compound the emotional trauma. Genma realized this eventually, but didn't know what to do about it or how to handle it. Bed of his own making, as it were.
Soun, obviously would be a traditional sensei, so more than likely he would have severe issues with the way Ranma handles things. Not the means, per say, but the fact that Ranma doesn't seem to deal with the consequences of his actions. That's a big theme of the story, right there. You shoot someone with a gun, you have a responcibility to deal with the consequences, even if it is in self defense.Same with martial arts, you cause someone bodily harm, you *are* obligated to take the consequences. It is one of the first lessons many instructors will teach. There is a reason it is considered 'carrying' a lethal weapon if you are blackbelt status or above in states like California.
Dr. Tofu had no idea what was going on, he didn't even know Ranma the boy and Ranma the girl were one in the same. He was pressing to get details from several parties, but none of them were forthcoming. When he finally did get it from Kasumi, he was definitely sure her notions were a bit biased and she wasn't giving the whole story or didn't know it, but he also knew that Ranma probably has more issues than he noted, or that Kasumi noted would even consider. Unfortunately, Ranma would be gone before he could make a decision on how to approach the problem.
Kodachi also has no idea what was going on. The first thing that came to mind when she saw the way [girl] Ranma was acting when Soun had her pinned, she had assumed rape. There's probably a reason for that, and it's not what you're thinking right now ;p.
Many of you readers were chasing after red herrings, looking at what was most *obvious* the problem, and then deciding by 'common sense' where things lay. Psychologist's rule #1. NEVER rely on common sense. Problems lay a little deeper than what you see on the surface, and thought processes are a lot more complicated than what people will show you. A lot of factors need to be considered, and I dropped quite a few hints to true ones, I just didn't make them outright blatant about them on purpose. Kudo's to Paulie's Mom, Blazestryker, Taxzombie, and anyone else I missed for *reading* the story, because they saw what was going on, or at least they had an inkling of the way things were. I'll just say this, with my serious fics, you can't surface read, because I automatically presume that you'll think about what's happening, before coming to an assumption. The blatant red herrings, you should have noted from their inconsistencies that they were probably false. Like Akane's relating to Ranma because they're 'the same'. Obviously that wasn't the case, since she didn't even agree with half the things he did. That's why Ranma ended up with Nabiki, she did, or at least came the closest to doing so.
I know, why did I have Ranma run away? Simple, he didn't know how to handle his problems. He's just been told he couldn't do the only thing that provided him a security blanket, Kasumi was kicking him out, and from the way Akane ran away, and Nabiki was shouting at him, they both 'obviously' didn't care about him. Ranma's too afraid of death to even concern himself with Seppuku, so there was only one option left. Hopefully he can find peace, but then again, the author is a cold hearted bastard ^_^
Last note; these are *my* interpretations of the characters. You have your own pre-concieved notions of what they were, and don't agree with my charactorizations, that's your problem ;p. If the characters seem OOC to you, well, they *should*. You should also note that it's not OOC that's ever the problem, it's the motivations behind them, or lack there of depending on the fic and author ;)
That should cover the notes for book 1. Any other questions, just email me, and I'll make amendments later. And for any martial artists out there think they can list the schools the various techniques came from, email them to me too, we'll make a game of it ^_^
::Sigh:: now I have to write notes on Ascension and Into Dreams (Oh bloody hell that one's gonna be lengthy). See you book 2.