Disclaimer: Ranma ½ belongs to Rumiko Takahashi and Viz Video and Winx Club belongs to Iginio Straffi and Rai S.p.A (NOT 4Kids!!!). Song 'Chain' belongs to Air Gear, and 'ama wa Sasenai' belongs to Slayers.
Note: this follows the Rai version of Winx as the 4Kids version butchered it too much, like with every anime it dubs.
Chapter 21: A System! Layla at Bat!
Opening (Air Gear style, 'Chain')
A shot of Tokyo Tower. Panning up, Ranma is seen standing right on top of the tip. He does a crane stance and jumps up, performing a few aerial punches and kicks before landing back on the tip. Afterwards, he jumps off the tower and vanishes.
On top to break the chain, no pain
Don't be afraid, but kawaranai(unchanging) same old days
Same always, mawaritsuzukeru(keeping on spinning) is okay
Kawakikitta koukei (The dried up sight)
Layla sits on the side of an overpass. She looks off to the side as if sensing something and jumps off. As she lands onto the street, she goes of into a sprint and activates her Enchantix.
Repeat sareta mainichi zutto (Repeated days are like)
Mukedasenai kono houteishiki (The inescapable equation)
Bloom is walking down the road and sees Layla flying past. She quickly follows after activating her Enchantix.
Ka kono nakade aya sturareta puppet (The puppet that was manipulated in the past)
Kakikesuno moshika, (Erasing away)
I heard your voice
Stella sits at a bench near the road as Bloom and Layla fly by. She follows in Enchantix.
Haiiro ni tsutsumareta Tai you wo yobisamasu (Calling for the sun, wrapped up in gray)
As Bloom, Stella, and Layla fly down the road, Flora sees them from a distance in the city park where she was admiring the plantlife. She also flies after.
Haiboku wo korogashite Asu eto tsunagu my wish saa ikouze (Leading to tomorrow while beating, defeat my wish)
Musa leans against the wall, playing a sax, then looks up to see the four Winx girls flying and flies after them. Tecna is seen sitting on a wall as if waiting, and sees the Winx. She flies after.
On top the chain, no pain, don't be afraid
Issai hazushite – (Miss everything)
A shot of Shampoo and Ukyou. Suddenly, they get drenched, activating their curses. They then transform into their were-forms. As they go off-screen, a shadowed figure is seen.
Kimi wa gomen to bouken daitai ouen (You are sorry, adventurous, and usually supporting)
Tsubasa hiroge – (Spread your wings)
Ranma reappears onto the street and keeps running.
That's the sign it's time to try you gotta pride
- Aoi sekai e - (To the blue world)
Ile mo shite mo nai you gotta grab the sky
Ranma grinds to a stop. Appearing on either side of him are the ghostly Specialists and the Winx. Also with them are Shampoo, Ukyou, and the shadowed figure from before. On the road before them was the 'Ranma Club' log.
End opening
It's been two weeks since Ranma and the Winx had attended Furinkan. Already, the six girls were starting to fit in quite nicely. They had also amassed quite the fanbase, the males especially. Of course, Kuno was the unwanted fan and self-proclaimed lover of the Winx, which would promptly get him beaten down hard by either them or Ranma. Akane was also showing displeasure at their attending Furinkan. It was mostly due to jealousy that the Winx Club were more popular, not to mention more attractive, both physically and personality-wise. Because of this, Akane was all but forgotten. This did not sit well with her. Although she would never admit it, Akane liked being the center of attention, and these interlopers took that away. Like Kuno, any attempt she made to cause physical harm to Ranma or the Winx would be thwarted by Shampoo or Ukyou.
As the girls were walking home, they began discussing their time there on Nerima.
"Aside from the nuisances around here, Nerima's not so bad." Said Bloom.
"There's still much of the place we haven't been to, just yet." Said Stella.
"True, Nerima is part of Tokyo after all." Said Bloom. "It's a big city."
"It would be a shame to not go and see everything while we're here." Said Layla.
"You know, Ranma hasn't seen much of the place due to his training, not to mention his engagements, so I don't think he gets out much." Said Musa.
Everyone looks at the musical faerie.
"Now that I think about it, that's true…" said Flora.
"You know, it's been a while since we've been asked out…" said Stella.
"Hmmm? What're you getting at, Stella?" asked Tecna.
"I'm saying that we ought to ask Ranma out!" replied Stella. "Individually, of course."
The girls blushed at the idea.
"What…? Alone with… Ranma…?" saif Flora with a tinge of red on her cheeks.
"I think it's a great idea! We get to go see the sights and get to know Ranma better." Said Stella.
"Well, it is bad if you keep yourself holed up in one place…" said Flora.
"Then it's settled!"
"Hold on a minute there, Stella." Said Bloom. "You say that, but there's still one problem: who gets to go with him?"
"I suggest a system." Said Tecna.
"Huh? A system?" asked Musa. She and the other look at the techno faerie.
"It will be a fair way for each of us to spend time alone with Ranma. Order can be decided in a fair, agreeable manner."
"I suppose that makes sense, but how will we do this?"
At the Saotome home…
Bloom, Stella, Flora, Musa, and Layla all had sweatdrops when they looked at Tecna's 'system'. It was nothing more than a wheel with an arrow on it. The wheel had six sections with each one containing the drawing of a Winx girl's head in chibi-form.
"Wow, Tecna… for a Faerie of Technology, your system sure is simple." Remarked Stella.
"Give me a break! It was all on short notice!" said Tecna in an indignant tone.
"Okay! Chill, Tecna! It's cool!" said Musa.
Tecna calms down before continuing. "This is a roulette wheel which will determine who gets to ask Ranma out. Spin the arrow, and the one it lands on will win a date. Her panel will be taken off the next time we have a spin-off so that no one will get left behind."
"A simple, yet effective system." Commented Flora.
It was then that Zing flew in. "Girls? What's going on here?"
"Hello, Zing! We're trying to decide who gets to date Ranma this weekend." Replied Bloom.
"With Ranma? Ooooh, this ought to be fun!"
"Zing, think you can spin the arrow for us?" asked Tecna as she gestures to the roulette wheel.
"It will be my pleasure!" said Zing. She feels that she's doing a service for her bonded faerie by helping the girls get with him. All of a sudden, Zing was dressed in a business suit with brown hair and brings up a mini puzzle board. (1) "Let's give the wheel a spin!"
Zing gives the arrow a spin as random blocks on the puzzle board light up. The arrow begins to slow down, then finally, it lands on…
"The winner is… LAYLA!" said Zing as the arrow held over Layla's panel. Zing suddenly had blonde hair and was in a white strapless dress as she went over to the mini puzzle board to flip over the letters in Layla's name (2). Afterwards, the puzzle board vanished and she reverts back to herself.
Layla was shocked. She had first dibs on Ranma!
"Well congrats, Layla! You're up first!" said Stella.
"Oh wow… I… I don't know what to do…" Layla said nervously.
"Don't worry, Layla, it will be all right." Said Bloom.
"The only thing I can tell you is to be natural and just have a good time." Said Flora.
Layla could only nod as she thought about Ranma.
Later…
Ranma comes back home after being put on cleaning duty at school. He really didn't like doing school cleaning, but it was part of policy after all. Fortunately, he was able to speed it up with his magic.
"Tadaima!" Ranma called out as he entered the Saotome complex.
Layla comes down to greet him. "Welcome back, Ranma."
"Hey there, Layla." Ranma looks around to see that the place was empty aside from them. "Where'd everybody go?"
"Your mom is out shopping and everyone else has gone out to explore the town." Replied Layla.
Ranma looked confused. The girls and even the Pixies were out and about in Nerima? "So… we're by ourselves now?"
"Yeah…that's right…" Layla fidgets in her standing position. "So… Ranma… are you busy right now?"
"Huh? No, I don't believe so."
"Then… you think that we could… maybe… you know… go out?"
That question took Ranma by surprise. "Nani? Are you… asking me out, Layla?"
"Yes, I am, Ranma." Replied Layla while blushing.
Ranma couldn't believe it. Layla was asking for a date! He felt a little nervous, though. In the past, his previous dates, if one could call them that, were pretty much forced. There was the time when Shampoo bribed a date with Ranma with that fake 'Instant Nanniichuan' water, then his 'date' with the Scribble Panda during that annual festival incident with the cursed paintings. He didn't even want to think about his (shudder) 'date' with Kuno when he was trying to get the Wishbringer Sword in order to purge himself of his Jusenkyo curse.
However, this felt different. The way Layla asked him with nervousness and sincerity just made her feel attractive to Ranma. She didn't want anything out of him other than wanting to get to know him better. His memories as Nabu came to the fore as he looked at Layla, who had her face turned away to hide her blush. Ranma couldn't help but notice how cute the dark-skinned girl looked right now.
"But… what about…?" Ranma started.
"If you're worried about the others, don't be." Layla said with reassurance. "They already know that I intended to ask you out. We're not going to fight over you, Ranma."
Ranma blinked. Sure, in the past, he'd go out with all the Winx girls as a group so that no one would feel left out, but to do so individually was something he never thought of. He simply didn't want to hurt anyone by not giving enough attention to some just for others.
"Well, if it's all right with all of you, then it's all right with me. Shall we, then?" said Ranma as he held out his arm.
Layla smiled and took his arm. "I'd be happy to…"
Somewhere in Nerima…
Ranma and Layla were walking about the livelier district of town. It was then that they came across a certain area where some people were gathered.
"What's going on over there?" asked Layla as she pulled Ranma forward.
They went through the crowds to see a huge area containing several obstacles, like blocks, ramps, stairs, railings, among others. In the middle was a fountain that continued to shoot water into the air. Also down there were people on skateboards, rollerblades, or razor scooters either rolling around or doing skate tricks.
"Wow, it's a skatepark!" said Layla. She remembered doing stuff like that whenever she snuck out of the palace back in Andros. She wasn't the type of princess who would sit still.
"Never knew there was something like this here." Said Ranma. Of course, Ranma would never notice these things on his own, considering that his chaotic life kept him from enjoying himself. Fighting and martial arts were always his top priority, especially when all he ever does is fight against anyone who comes after him for idiotic reasons or whatnot.
"Looks like fun. Shall we join in, Ranma?" asked Layla.
"I guess, but we don't have the gear for it." Said Ranma.
"Not to worry. Have you forgotten that we're faeries?" Layla uses her powers over the Morphix to materialize a skateboard and some protective gear on herself. They looked to be made out of a purple gelatinous material, but were solid as thick plastic.
"Oh, right…" said Ranma in embarrassment. "Excuse me for a moment."
He goes off to a slightly more deserted area and teleports away. A second later, Ranma finds himself at the old scrap metal yard where he defeated Mousse during the time where he was supposed to lose on purpose (an idea he decided to screw when Mousse tried to serve him up like sashimi with those scythe blades he kept repeatedly producing until he ran out). He sees a few broken pipes, a wooden dresser, other broken furniture, a trashed car, thick plastic jugs, and other broken items.
Ranma smiled as he sees there was enough materials. He was not yet at the level to be able to materialize things in thin-air just, so he had to borrow a bit from something else. (3)
"Mom and Flora always said that I should recycle." Said Ranma as he brought together some pipes, the dresser, and a lot of plastic jugs. Focusing his ki, Ranma uses his magic to cover the junk with a blue dome. The broken items then become translucent, then glows blue, and finally started to mesh with each other like clay. The mesh reshaped itself and the light died down. Sitting there in its place was an orange colored skateboard with green wheels. (4) On the board was a helmet as well as wrist and knee guards.
"All set!" Taking the gear, he teleports back to the skatepark.
Ranma finds Layla sitting at a bench waiting for him.
"That didn't take long." Said Layla as she spied what Ranma held in his arms. "Nice work there. Alchemy?"
"Yep. Luckily, the area I was in had enough materials for the job." Replied Ranma as he sat down to put on his protective gear. He gets up once he's done. "Ready?"
"I've been born ready!"
Both teens got on their boards and rolled into the park.
They followed the crowds towards the numerous ramps, half-pipes, railings, and other obstacles. The two faeries were rolling towards the stairs, which were about four feet tall. Layla jumps off over the steps while performing an Indy Grab with her board. Ranma follows suit as he does the same move, but doing a 360 in the air. Once reaching the ground, Layla speeds off ahead and rolls up a ramp, and jumps off over some skaters while doing an Airwalk.
Ranma heads right towards a parallel railing and Kickflips up, landing on the metal bar and grinding down it. Before reaching the end, he jumps off the railing with a Nightmare Flip.
Layla was impressed at the way Ranma was handling his board. She was currently riding along a wall from a ramp where she kicks off of it, flipping over and landing on her wheels as she skates towards where Ranma was.
"You're quite good, Ranma!"
"So are you, Layla!" To tell the truth, Ranma had no idea how he was boarding so well. Then again, with his martial arts reflexes, such things as aerial tricks were cake to him. Somehow, he felt more comfortable with a skateboard than he is with skates. He shuddered as he though of the time he and Akane, then later Ryoga, had to face off against the Golden Pair.
They rolled towards the half-pipe, skating into the middle while avoiding the other skaters, and rolls up to one of the high sides. Leaning over the edge, Ranma and Layla skated down the half-pipe, performing several aerial tricks as they roll up the opposite edges: kickturns, edge grinds, hand plants, 360s, and flips. There was even a moment where Ranma and Layla were catching air side by side, and while they were up, they quickly swapped boards before falling towards the half-pipe edge. They skated with each other's boards on the half-pipe while performing aerial tricks in sync. This earned the two teens an audience from the other skaters and onlookers as they watched them in awe. Afterwards, Ranma and Layla traded boards again while in mid-air and skated away from the half-pipe. The people applauded for the show after the faeries left.
"That was fun!" said Layla.
"That was nothing!" said Ranma as he skated alongside Layla.
The dark-skinned faerie gives Ranma a mischievous grin. "Hey, you feeling lucky?"
Ranma turns towards her with a confused look. "Huh? What do you mean, Layla?"
"That was nothing, huh? How about putting your money where your mouth is?" Layla then slaps Ranma on the back of his shoulder. "Tag you're it!"
Ranma recovers from the sudden act to see Layla already speeding off. "Hey! No fair!" The pigtailed boy skates sfter her.
"Catch me if you can!" Layla laughed. She does a Hippy Jump over a bench as Ranma does an Ollie over it.
Skating towards an upward staircase, Layla jumps and grinds her board up the handrail and and kickflips off of the end. Ranma jumps while flipping his board upside down and performs a Dark Slide grind up the railing, then jumps off while flipping his board rightside up again.
Layla snakes down the sloping ramp, picking up speed and rolls along the upcoming ramp wall, curving right. Ranma follows through the ramped wall while grinding along its edge before rolling after Layla.
Skating towards a line of six block protrusions, Layla uses an Indy Grab to jump up on top of the first one. Each block was about three feet high and six feet long. The blocks were about seven feet away from each other at the ends, making a sort of dotted line. The faerie of water jumped from block to block, the first she did an Indy Grab, the second lifting her leg off her board into a No Comply, the third a 360 spin, the fourth a Kickflip, the fifth an Airwalk, then finally finished by doing a 540 spin off the last block.
Ranma Ollies onto the first block. Jumping between protrusions, the first he did a Airwalk, the second a 360 spin, the third a forward somersault while in an Indy Grab, the fourth jump he did another forward somersault while OFF over his board and lands grinding on the edge of the fifth block while doing a HANDSTAND, the fifth jump he back somersaults over his board to land rightside up on it, then finally jumps off the last block while performing a complete 900!
Once more, Ranma and Layla were attracting attention from the crowds with their little game of skate tag. They couldn't believe the complexity of the aerial maneuvers performed by both teens.
Layla couldn't believe that Ranma was keeping up with her, then irks as she sees a jump ramp ahead of her. Building up speed, she jumps the ramp at a height of seven feet. It looked like she was literally skating on the air. She looks behind her and sees Ranma had also jumped the ramp after her, though his jump height was a foot difference between their boards. Although lower, Ranma was flying up to her fast. He suddenly jumps off his board at her.
"You won't catch me that easily, Ranma!" Layla teased. She suddenly jumps up, doing the splits, as Ranma's body passes underneath her and over her board. At the same time when Ranma flew over Layla's board, his own board passed right under her board.
Layla smirks, thinking she had outsmarted Ranma, but was confused when she saw him smiling himself. She then realized too late that Ranma had swiped her board from under her and quickly placed it on top of his own board, giving it a cross shape. Layla yelped as her wheels were taken right from under her. As Ranma lands on the two piled boards, he skids to a stop and catches the surprised Layla in his arms. The pigtailed boy only said one thing as he held the girl.
"Tag."
Layla could only blush as she was cradled in Ranma's arms. Suddenly, a thunderous cheer erupted from all around them. All the people in the skatepark gave the the pair a huge applause once their game of tag was over. Looking around, Ranma sets Layla down on her feet and then both wave to the crowds.
"Man, that was AWESOME!"
"Those moves were rad!"
"They looked like they were flying!"
"I'd probably break my legs if I ever tried to do what they did…"
"Such gnarly air times, dudes!"
The two faeries smiled at the applause. Ranma had to admit, this is probably one of the few most fun times he's ever had in Nerima.
"Looks like they enjoyed our little game, Ranma." Said Layla.
"Yeah." Ranma returns Layla's skateboard to her. "It looks like they want an encore."
Layla steps on her board. "Huh?"
"Last I checked, I just tagged you, so… YOU'RE IT!" Ranma skates off with a shot.
"HEY! Get back here!" Layla laughed as she pursued Ranma on her board. (5)
Streets of Nerima…
Ranma and Layla had spent quite a lot of time at the skatepark before calling it a day. Each of them was eating an ice cream cone as they walked the nearly empty streets.
"Mmmm… nothing like a cold treat to cool you down." Said Ranma as he eats halfway through his cone.
"After all that skating, it's quite refreshing." Said Layla as she ate hers.
Ranma nods as he finishes off the rest of his ice cream cone. "Somehow, boarding comes naturally to me, even though I don't even do it." Sure there was the time Ranma surfed during the Togenkyo Island episode, but outside of that, he never did. Actually, the memories of the Specialists in him unlocked his boarding skill. At Red Fountain, Specialists were trained in how to ride hoverboards for certain missions where ships are too bulky and inconvenient for the job.
"It's nice to know you've still got confidence." Said Layla in a teasing manner. After a bit of walking, she finished her ice cream cone. "Ranma, I'd just like to say that I really enjoyed our time together. Thank you."
Ranma blushes at Layla's line, but quickly recovers. "Same here. However, I should be the one thanking you. I don't remember the last time I've had this much fun in Nerima, if ever."
Layla giggles. "Then I'm glad we were able to help each other out in that regard." She then suddenly takes Ranma's hand in her own. The male half of the pair suddenly started to feel hot. "Oh? Feeling all right?"
"Huh? Oh! Uh… yes, of course!" Ranma said hurriedly.
Layla could only smile at Ranma's obvious nervousness. Even after spending time at Alfea, he still felt rather uneasy about being intimate with girls due to his stay in Japan at the Tendo Dojo. "Come now, Ranma, there's no need to be scared around me. I won't bite, you know."
"Scared? I ain't scared of nothing!" said Ranma, his ego coming to the fore.
They stopped walking as Layla turns to face Ranma. "Is that so? Then…" She moves her face closer to Ranma's, merely a few inches away. "… prove it…"
Ranma gulped at the close proximity, but would not back down. "You asked for it…" 'Man, I hope I know what I'm doing. Better put my money where my mouth is…' He slowly put his hands on her waist, and then…
Layla's eyes widened when she felt Ranma's lips suddenly press up against hers. Her cheeks were tinged with red and her arms went limp at her sides as Ranma kissed her. She didn't think Ranma would actually go through with it, being almost a dare on her part, but he proved her wrong. However, she was glad he did it, or she would've done it first. Relaxing her body, she closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around Ranma as the osculation continued.
After a minute, they separated both still having a tinge on their faces. To Layla, this was her first kiss, and she liked it! She never had as much experience being with boys as the other Winx did (Stella especially), so this was all still new to her. To Ranma, this may not have been his first kiss (the first in male form being from Shampoo when he "defeated" her, and the first in female form being from… shudder… Mikado of the Golden Pair), but this was the first one he willingly gave to another girl. Okay, so he gave a kiss to Akane when he was in Nekoken mode that one time, but he was not of his own mind at the time nor did he even remember doing so, not to mention that the tomboy threw him into the school pool afterwards. There was also the Romeo and Juliet play incident where he faked kissing Kuno by taping his mouth, then had his own mouth taped when doing the final scene with Akane.
It felt natural to Ranma kissing Layla. Most likely, it was due to his past life as Nabu that helped him go through with it, coupled with Brandon's ability to attract girls. (6)
Layla was the first to speak. "Wow… I honestly didn't expect you to do something so bold, Ranma."
"To tell the truth, neither did I…" said Ranma as he scratched the back of his head.
The faerie of water gave the pigtailed boy a cute grin. "I have to say, you're a good kisser."
Ranma could only laugh nervously. "I… I'm glad you think so…"
Layla takes Ranma's arm and continues walking. "This day turned out great, didn't it?"
"It sure has."
They walked arm in arm towards home.
Along the way to the Saotome residence…
Ranma stops walking suddenly.
"Aw man, I need to use the bathroom…" He looks ahead and sees a public restroom. "Good! There's a restroom up ahead. Be out in a minute…"
"Take your time, Ranma." Said Layla just before Ranma leaves her side towards the restroom.
The dark-skinned girl stood near a light post as she waited for Ranma to be done. She smiled as she thought about the date they had. It was then that her magical senses acted up.
"Huh? It sounds like someone's in trouble!" She couldn't wait for Ranma to finish and quickly ran off ahead and around the corner.
Layla comes across a deserted lot and sees a spectacle. She could make out two girls, one attacking the other ruthlessly with what looked like a bullwhip. She winced shen she heard the victim scream in pain, then her eyes widened when she recognized the voice.
"NO! PLEASE STOP!"
Upon closer inspection, Layla could make out the forms of the two girls. The victim, a girl with brown hair tied in two long braids and in a Furinkan High uniform, was someone that Layla recognized as a fellow member of the gymnastics club. Her tormentor was a girl dressed in a white and tan school uniform, with long black hair tied in a side ponytail on the left side of her head. She lets off a shrill, ear-splitting haughty laugh as she continually whips the poor girl with a gymnast ribbon.
"OOOOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO!!! You are weak weak weak! Furinkan thinks they can triumph over St. Hebereke in the upcoming contest with such weak peasants! Such a joke! You are not worthy to grovel at the feet of Kodachi the Black Rose!"
The girl, though being whipped by a supposedly flimsy ribbon, was marked with numerous bruises and lash marks. "You're nothing but a rotten cheater! Ambushing me like this!"
"Cheater? I believe in fighting fair, before the match, of course!" Kodachi whips the girl more, making her scream louder. "If I weren't a lady, I'd be more ruthless than this! How fortunate for you that I'm-"
"STOP IT!!!"
Kodachi was surprised when her ribbon was suddenly wrapped up around a bar that looked to be made of a purple gel. Standing before her was Layla, holding the bar and stopping the attacked girl's torment.
"What? Who're you to interfere with me!?" Kodachi demanded as she glared at Layla.
The victim looked up to see her fellow club member come to her defense. "Layla?"
"Just who do you think you are, attacking a defenseless girl like this!?" Layla retorted.
Kodachi's eyes narrowed as she looked at Layla. 'She caught my ribbon. No one has ever done that since that red-haired harridan showed up!' "You're not from around here, are you?"
"No, I'm not." Replied Layla as she threw the ribbon off to the side.
"You're a gaijin… no matter, you shall suffer along with that weakling behind you!" Kodachi pulls back her ribbon to lash out again.
"Hydro Fist!"
Layla throws a punch, which shoots off a basketball-sized fist of water. It nails the insane gymnast in the face, knocking her back. She gets up drenched and angry.
"How dare you attack me!"
"You're the one who started this fight!" shouted Layla.
"You peasant! I'll remember this! How lucky for you that I've somewhere to be, otherwise, I'd have annihilated you!" She jumps up on top of a powerline post, leaving a trail of black rose petals. "You've been marked by Kodachi Kuno, the Black Rose of St. Hebereke! Remember it well! OOOOOOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO!"
Kodachi retreats with a shrill laugh and a rain of black rose petals. Layla was glad the insane girl was gone, as hearing her laughter was painful. She then turned and got down near the attacked girl, propping her up.
"Kyoiya! You all right?"
The girl, Kyoiya, could only nod as tears of pain ran down her face. "Layla… thank goodness you came… I'll be all right…"
It was then that Ranma entered the scene. "There you are! You just left all of a-" He noticed that Layla was cradling a battered and bruised girl. "Whoa! What happened here?"
"Oh Ranma! Kyoiya's been attacked! She needs help!" said Layla.
Ranma nods as he assesses the situation. He'll have to ask for the details later, but for now, they had to help the girl.
"Don't worry, we're near the house, we can take her there for treatment." Said Ranma as he scooped Kyoiya in his arms.
"Let's hurry!" said Layla.
They quickly head back towards the Saotome residence.
To be continued…
Preview…
Layla: My club members got attacked!
Musa: Who does that psycho think she is!?
Ranma: I almost forgot, Furinkan had a Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastics tournament with St. Hebereke last year. It must be close to that time again.
Flora: How dare she perverts the use of flowers like this!
Layla: It's settled! I'm going to enter and give that harpy a piece of my mind!
Ranma: Be careful, Layla! Kodachi will use whatever means necessary to win a fight!
Layla: Then I ought to respond in kind, too!
Ranma: Next time, on Ranma Club, 'Battle of Grace? Layla vs. Kodachi!'
Layla: She'll pay for what she did…
Ending (Slayers style, Jama wa Sasenai)
Music starts as a crystal orb shows up in the background. Ranma appears out of the orb and walks towards the screen.
Nanika ni ayatsurareta jinsei nante yume mo kibou mo nai shi... (Something's taken control now, your life's hopes and dreams are gone)
Ima no your life manzoku na no? (Are you satisfied with your life now?)
As Ranma walks, an image of Bloom and Ghost Sky passes by.
Seikimatsu ka to omowaseru mainichi ni sonaete (Got that 'fin de siecle' feeling, and spend everyday preparing)
An image of Stella and Ghost Brandon passes by.
Sorosoro engine kakeyou (So let's get your engine running!)
Sabi-tsuite 'ru joushiki zenbu nugisutete (Throw off all of that rusty common sense!)
Flora and Ghost Helia passes by.
Sekai-juu uwasa ni naritai (You want to be the talk of the world!)
Kagayaku mirai mo te ni iretai (You want to have a shining future!)
Musa and Ghost Riven passes by. At this time, Ranma starts to run.
Are mo kore mo honki no yume (That and this are your true dreams)
Dare hitori jama wa sasenai (Don't let anyone get in your way!)
Tecna and Ghost Timmy passes by.
Sekai-chu uwasa ni narukurai (To be the talk of the world)
Tobikiri hajiketa sugoi hito ni (Let the greatness inside burst out!)
Layla and Ghost Nabu passes by.
Isshou de ichido no Break (You only get one break in life)
Ijiketa jibun ni Bye-Bye shimashou! (So let's say bye-bye to your timid self!)
It's all right!
The background turns into the Nerima jumps up and goes into a flying kick towards the camera.
End ending
Author's notes:
Finally! I've managed to finish this chapter of Ranma Club! We now throw in another one of the Nerima crazies into the mix.
(1) Pat Sajak from Wheel of Fortune.
(2) Vanna White from Wheel of Fortune.
(3)Like in FMA, the basics of alchemy: "To obtain something, something of equal value must be lost."
(4) On one box art, Ranma is seen skateboarding in an empty pool. The board in that art is used here.
(5)Ryan L. Spradling's suggestion on Layla's date. Had to do a little research on wikipedia on the different skateboard tricks.
(6) There was actually one moment in the RAI version where Layla got flattered by Brandon when they first met in season 2.
Layla: (to Tecna in a joking manner) "Oh? You mean that love is their specialty?"
Brandon: "You can say that again, cutie. Are you the new girl?"
Layla: (embarrassed) "Uh-oh! He heard me…"
Rictor Yagami: Naah, Ranma will have to keep his curse in order to keep attending Alfea. Plus, I don't like the idea of killing off Bloom and putting her in a separate Ranma-chan. Remember that in AA's Fist of the Pikachu, Ranma kept his curse, but is still able to control it with a Water Stone. Like that Ranma, this Ranma turns his curse into a boon.
Ryan L. Spradling: Layla's date comes to a close! Was it to your expectations?
ThePageMaster1530: Glad to help in hooking you up with Rai eps. Now you see the glaring differences!
Sadistic-anomaly: Hmmm… interesting proposition… I'll have to give it some thought…
Elrail: As long as I've got the creative juices flowing, I will keep on continuing!
Isoulmni: Nice to know there's someone else who knows of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure! ORA- ORA- ORA- ORA- ORA- ORA- ORA- ORAAAAAA!!! Staaaa Pratnum… ZA WOURDO!!! Misty may counter? What do you mean?
AndrewK9000: Kuno seriously is the Blue Blunder. The same thing had bothered me ever since I started watching Ranma ½. How can ANY guy find Akane attractive? Well, she's basically forgotten due to the Winx showing up. LOL.
Cheifhotrod: Sorry, not sure myself. I rely on media sites.
Firehedgehog: IGNORE THE 4KIDS VERSION!!! AVOID IT LIKE THE PLAGUE!!!
Dumbledork: Aw come now, surely you've got more to say than that, right? (hopeful look)
Nysk: Oh, the rest of the NWC is involved, in fact, some of them already are in the later chapters.
Jerry Unipeg: Glad you like it. I'd be sad, too, if a group of hot, scantily-clad girls left my area…
Dark-Magician-41: Oh, Akane will eventually find out about Ryoga's curse, if he can find his way back to Nerima, that is. Layla DID send him flying far.
Talonhunter: Still, it would've been better left to good companies like FUNimation.
Cyclon One: Is it still the coolest thing to happen to Ranma?
Erick Genryusai: It's chaos! CHAOS I TELL YOU!!!
Bloomforever: It's called Ranma ½. It's so named because Ranma's a guy half the time, and a girl the other half of the time. LOL.
It's time for another…
RAI vs. 4Kids rant!:
This is probably my longest one, and this is on one episode alone, too.
As you know, 4Kids overstupify things to an extreme, eliminating drama for idiotic "funny" stuff. The company also has the tendency to piss off all the Otakus everywhere. Today's episode topic: Season 2, episode 14, Battle on Planet Eraklyon (4Kids: The Wrong-Righters. WTF!?!?!).
First of all, they called those guys the "Wrong-Righters"!? That's just so freakin' LAME! In the original, they're called the Patchamen. As a fellow anime fan, I understand the name as it is a reference to the old anime Science Ninja Team Gatchaman (G-Force in the USA). They're obviously a parody of those guys. I mean, who else wears outfits consisting of feather-like mantles and helmets with bird-beak-shaped visors? Oh yeah, the robotic Patchaman does a Voltron reference ("And I'll form… THE HEAD!"). Also, as this episode dealt with cyber ninjas and techno ninjas, there was a moment where Zing cosplays as Scorpion from Mortal Kombat. The reference is made clearer in the Rai version as she actually says "GET OVER HERE!" when throwing her spear (and typically, in the 4Kids version, she doesn't say the line).
Ugh…. WRONG-RIGHTERS!? WTF!?!?!! I just have to say again, THAT'S SO (big censored)ING STUPID!!! Not only that, it makes absolutely no sense when their chest emblems are containing the letter "P", for PATCHAMEN, as Rai was trying to get across! "Wrong-Righter" doesn't even contain the letter! It's like giving Superman's emblem to Batman!
(Thug: "Who are you!?"
Batman: "I'm Batman."
Thug: "Huh? But your costume has an 'S' on it."
Batman: "It was supposed to be a bat, but the censors thought it to be 'too offensive' for people, so they replaced it with this 'S' instead since it's part of the Alphabet."
Thug: "So why didn't they just make it a 'B'?"
Batman: "They're idiot censor dubbers. What more can I say?"
Thug: "Good point.")
Sigh… okay…. Now that I got that out of my system…
Again, 4Kids change Zing's lines to mess up her character references when cosplaying.
Zing takes a hit for Flora
4Kids:
Flora: "Zing? Are you okay?"
Zing: (cosplaying Jesse Ventura) "I'm all right, lil' lady!" (The hell? They made her a cowboy now?)
Rai:
Flora: "Zing! You're hurt!"
Zing: (cosplaying Jesse Ventura) "I ain't got time to hurt!"
Zing was refering to a scene in the Predator movie, thought the line was "I ain't got time to bleed".
4Kids over-emphasized on Diaspro being a spoiled princess. Okay, 4Kids, we know she's spoiled, but you're going WAY overboard with that!
When Diaspro wakes up kidnapped.
4Kids:
Diaspro (waking up) : "Ugh... where am I... *dog in her face* AHHH!! YUCK! HAVE A BREATH MINT! (struggles and sees the Patchamen) What do you want!?"
Patchaman 1: "You were destroying Planet Isis!"
Diaspro: "What? I'm a great ruler!"
Patchaman 1: "People are going hungry because you're making them spend all their money on outfits! You're sending people into exile for wearing more than one type of denim!" (Uh..... just.... wow....)
Diaspro: "Head to toe denim is cheesy!" (Again... just.... wow....)
Patchaman 1: "We are going to turn you into a good person!" *he and the other Patchamen do their sentai poses as all sentai teams do then leave.* (Just what is this? They're supposed to be techno ninas, but they're more like techno self-help counselors...)
Diaspro: "What-EVER."
Rai:
Diaspro (waking up) : "Oh... where am I? *dog in her face* AHHH!! A DOG! SOMEBODY HELP! (struggles and sees the Patchamen) Hello? Who's there?"
Patchaman 1: "Be still. Prince Sky can't reach you here. We are the Elite Techno Ninja Team. We've never known defeat!"
Diaspro: "You must be working for Yoshinoiya!"
Patchaman 1: "No time to talk! We have deeds to perform!" *he and the other Patchamen do their sentai poses as all sentai teams do then leave.*
Diaspro: "I hate this!"
Was 4Kids trying to be funny by making those lame-ass lines? Well, it didn't work! It made them all sound like a bunch of retards! That, coupled with their miscasted voices and bland replacement background music made it even worse.
4Kids ignores yet another plot device. When Bloom, Sky, Flora, and Brandon walk through the forests, both versions talk of different topics…
4Kids:
Bloom enquires Brandon about the (ugh…) "Wrong-Righters" and he replies that they're a "justice group into all sorts of causes". This is due to a past idiotic edit in a certain season 1 episode.
Rai:
Originally, Brandon doesn't know anything about the Patchamen. Instead, Bloom asks about the main man behind the kidnapping, Yoshinoiya. Brandon explains that the guy's been trying to get the Eraklyon throne for a while now, which was the reason why he and Sky switched identities back in season 1.
4Kids says that Sky and Brandon switched identites because Sky "wanted to experience life outside of royalty". Rai says that they switched identities to throw off assassination attempts, just like what Padme did in Star Wars Episode One Phantom Menace, when she switched places with one of her servants to throw off assassination attempts.
The intro of the Patchamen.
4Kids:
Ken (Patchaman 1): "I'll tell you who we are! Wherever there is injustice and inequality, we are there! Wherever people are suffering, we are there!"
Bo (Patchaman 2): "We fight poverty!"
Jinpee(Patchaman 3): "That's right! We save the oceans!"
Dunko(Patchaman 4): "That's right! We love for education!" (The hell…?)
Kiu(Patchaman 5): "Our mission is to stop environmental degradation, (assembles himself) and to defend underprivileged beings all across the magical dimension! We're here to uphold justice! We are the unstoppable, invincible…"
All: "WRONG-RIGHTERS!!!" (Excuse me while I vomit…)
Rai:
Ken (Patchaman 1): "Silence! How dare you! Whenever there is injustice, we are the ones who answer the call! Be afraid, villains, we are bandit justice man…" (a parody of Ken Washio)
Bo (Patchaman 2): "Bo! Mysterious anti-hero!" (a parody of Joe Asakura)
Jinpee(Patchaman 3): "Jinpee! The smartest kid ever!" (a parody of Jinpei)
Dunko(Patchaman 4): "Dunko! Princess of beauty" (a parody of Junko)
Kiu(Patchaman 5): "And Kiu! The mighty one! Dunko! My components, please! (assembles himself) And I'll be… THE HEAD! Together, we are… Science Ninja Team…" (a parody of Ryu)
All: "PATCHAMEN!!!" (a parody of Gatchamen)
Before they go at it with the Patchamen, Bloom and Flora transform. In Rai, Bloom simply says "Magic Winx!". In 4Kids, she, for some reason, says "Let's go, girls!". Yes, she said the plural form, despite the fact that aside from her, Flora was the only girl there, so that line made absolutely no sense.
When Diaspro was rescued and is with Flora
4Kids:
Diaspro: "You're right, Flora. No one should be without freedom. I don't want anyone to be without enough to eat! I'll have to change, and I will change! I promise I will become a great leader!"
Flora: "Okie dokie."
Diaspro: "You know, I still believe hair accessories should be considered a basic necessity." (.... I see a bleak future for her kingdom...)
Chatta: "Actually, I completely agree with you on that."
Rai:
Diaspro: "It's so not fair! Bloom's the one who rescued me! Oh I HATE HER! WHY DOES SKY HAVE TO LIKE HER!? I've spent my whole life studying posture, ettiquette, court protocol, everything! "
Flora: "We understand."
Diaspro: "After all of that work, I was supposed to marry a prince! That's the whole point!"
Chatta: "Hey, there're plenty of princes in the Magic Dimension."
4Kids: Diaspro starts raving on how wrong she was to treat her people so badly to suit her inflated ego and that she has to act as a proper ruler. This conflicts to her reappearance in season 3 when she cut a deal with Valtor in order to steal Sky away from Bloom since in this version, she seemingly forgets or accepts that Sky chose Bloom over her.
Rai: Diaspro complains how much of a blow it is to her pride that she got rescued by Bloom, the one girl she hates because Sky loves Bloom and not her. Even though Bloom saves her, Diaspro still hates her for having Sky, which coincides with her eventual deal with Valtor later on in season 3.
4Kids also took out the parts where Zing cosplays as Spiderman and Dr. Octopus (yes, she seriously does this).
Rai:
*Zing, as Spiderman, hangs upside-down from a webbing just like the original Marvel Superhero. Brandon comes and gives her a look.*
Brandon: "Zing, you're the Pixie of Insects. You don't have to pretend you've got Spider Powers."
Also, this episode had scenes of Musa stopping Stormy from breaking into Alfea. 4Kids stupidly took out all scenes related to it to put into the next episode where Musa holds her concert. Another act of idiocy from 4Kids: taking scenes from other episodes to put into episodes they don't even belong in. Real smart, dumbasses…
Finally done with the rant. Please read and review! Look forward to the next new installment!