Intro
The Netflix Japan Youtube Channel released its second trailer for the Ranma 1/2 reboot just two months after the release of its first trailer. Especially considering the success of the 2022 reboot for Rumiko Takahashi’s first anime, Urusei Yatsura (1981), the reboot for her second anime, Ranma 1/2 (1989), has been highly anticipated ever since its announcement this past June.
The story follows a teenage boy named Ranma who, on his life-long journey training to become a martial artist and “man amongst men”, accidentally falls into a cursed hot spring that causes him to transform into a girl whenever splashed with cold water. Soon after, he learns that his father has forced him into an engagement with his friend’s daughter Akane Tendo. While the two don’t get along at first, they reluctantly begin to form deeper feelings for one another while living together. However, they end up in a love-hate relationship as he juggles a long string of other fiancé’s crazily trying to pursue him as well as those seeking revenge on him in their pursuits for Akane’s heart – all in the midst of trying to accomplish his original mission despite his curse.
The first trailer does an excellent job establishing Ranma’s initial situation regarding his curse and living with Akane due to their engagement. That is, it introduces us to Ranma and Akane’s families while briefly showing us the comedic situations they get into as a result of Ranma’s curse. However, many have been anticipating many other beloved characters in action for this reboot – which is what the latest trailer gives us and much more.
More Classic Characters Back in Action
Many fan-favorite characters finally make an appearance in the second trailer released for the upcoming Ranma 1/2 reboot. The first of which is Ryoga Hibiki, the hilariously iconic “lost boy” who is primarily known for his severely poor sense of direction. While the trailer does not hone in on this part of his character, it definitely succeeds in showcasing his rivalry against Ranma in his first shot as he is seen attacking Ranma with his signature red umbrella. The trailer also shows us Akane kissing a small black pig wearing his bandana, giving us a glimpse of Ryoga’s storyline involving his own hot spring curse that causes him to transform into a pig that Akane unknowingly takes in as a pet.
Afterwards, we see the chaotic brother and sister duo Tatewaki and Kodachi Kuno. On the one hand, Tatewaki persistently tries to pursue Akane and later female Ranma who he calls “pigtailed girl”. During his introduction in the trailer, he is seen attacking male Ranma which shows us a glimpse of his rivalry against him as he thinks Ranma is trying to steal both girls away from him – completely unaware of his curse.
On the other hand, his sister Kodachi forms a crush on male Ranma after he saves her, which we see a shot of in her introduction in the trailer. We also see Kodachi’s ribbon twirling skills which she uses as a form of martial arts to attack Akane and female Ranma as she thinks they’re both trying to steal male Ranma away from her – also unaware of his curse. The ignorance shared amongst this set of siblings is one of the more well-known comedic staples of the show, so it seems fitting to see their comeback included in this trailer.
The next pair introduced are ice skater Mikado Sanzenin and his skating partner Azusa Shiratori. They’re two rather minor characters that threaten Ranma and Akane’s engagement in an early episode where Azusa helps Sanzenin fight Ranma for Akane’s heart using their ice-skating martial arts. While the two of them show up in only a handful of future episodes throughout the original anime’s run, their presence as significant characters in this trailer makes a lot of sense as their first fight with Ranma is fairly well known across the fanbase. On top of that, it also serves to introduce yet another one of Ranma’s rivals who tries to pursue Akane.
We then see Dr. Tofu’s introduction as the reserved and kindhearted doctor that Akane initially has a crush on. While he does not make too many appearances either, his inclusion in the trailer makes sense as he plays a prominent role for his impact on Akane. Specifically, while she is initially upset that her hair is accidentally cut short because she believed Dr. Tofu liked girls with long hair the best, she eventually comes to accept that he will only ever have feelings for her big sister Kasumi. This leads to Akane accepting herself more by embracing the short hair she maintains throughout the rest of the series. All of which is hinted at with the combination of shots that follow Dr. Tofu’s introduction.
Finally, we arrive at the introduction of Shampoo, a hugely popular anime character and fan-favorite amongst the Ranma 1/2 fanbase. Shampoo is a skilled Amazonian fighter from China who hunts down female Ranma after she beats her in a battle. Shampoo is seen demonstrating this by making her entrance breaking into the Tendo household and attacking female Ranma with her signature pair of multi-colored chúi – the same way she makes her debut in the original anime. However, Shampoo is also later seen declaring her love for male Ranma in a following shot. With that being said, her intro could not have been timed better as it abruptly interrupts a series of shots showcasing Ranma and Akane’s growing bond. More specifically, it very much symbolizes the way she would barge in whenever the two of them were having a moment in the original series. The trailer saves her for last, delaying her introduction compared to the others, which is meant to build her up and demonstrate just how much of an iconic character she is to the series.
While all of the characters look slightly different due to anime’s more polished design, most of the original Japanese voice actors have returned to reprise their roles. While this has essentially been a well-known fact since the reboot’s announcement, it has further excited fans being able to hear it across more characters as they’re brought to life in a new and vibrant way. Such an important detail also showcases the creators’ awareness of just how much the fans cherish the original and demonstrates their commitment to remaking it in a quality way.
Visual Differences
As predicted, given the execution of the Urusei Yatsura reboot, we are also able to see just what kind of creative differences the Ranma 1/2 reboot will have compared to the 1989 original. The main difference includes certain moments having been executed with more dramatic shots, such as when we see Shampoo declaring her love for Ranma for the first time. In the trailer, she is shown doing this in a glowing shot with a flowery background, gazing into Ranma’s eyes as her voice echoes the Chinese phrase for “It’s you I love”. This is starkly different from the quiet side shot of Shampoo wrapping her arms around Ranma as she simply says the phrase in the 1989 version.
With these changes, the reboot seems to use creatively enhanced visuals to place an emphasis on moments it deems most important to use them. So far, it works to give this new Ranma 1/2 anime a stunningly unique style.
Capturing the Feel of the Original Anime
Watching the trailer from start to finish, we can see how well it captures every shift in tone that made up the original 1989 anime. This was mostly due to the dynamics between all the characters. Tender moments between Ranma and Akane were constantly interrupted by the chaos caused by other characters’ relationship to them – ultimately resulting in their more usual love-hate relationship. In the trailer, every aspect of this is shown. We see this right from the start, when soft music plays as Ranma and Akane are seen walking together outside peacefully, showcasing their rather intimate bond. Afterwards, quite suddenly, the atmosphere then becomes quite tumultuous when the rest of the characters are introduced as fighters who cause trouble for the both of them.
Towards the middle, we see things start to calm down a bit again. As the music becomes softer, Ranma and Akane are shown becoming more curious about each other as their beginning interactions become more varied. Then, once again, their moment is cut off by the utter silence of Shampoo making her entrance. The enhanced drama of this interruption makes sense as she is the woman who, arguably, stands in the way of their relationship the most throughout the series. After this, we are shown fast paced shots of random antics that are to occur throughout the series until we finally get to see Akane with Ranma again. This time though, almost as a reaction to his involvement in the chaos, she is seen expressing her trademark anger by giving Ranma a huge slap and calling him an idiot – shouting it so loudly that it echoes throughout the last few seconds of the trailer.
Using character introductions and upcoming situations to give this trailer the structure it has works very well. Not only does it give fans a general sense for what a brand new Ranma 1/2 anime will feel like to watch, it also conveys to newer audiences exactly what the show is all about.
Conclusion
Overall, the trailer expands its confirmation of many people’s expectations for the reboot while enticing us with new visuals and creative changes in details. We’ll be able to get a full taste of everything they’ve teased us with so far when the Ranma 1/2 reboot releases on Netflix on October 5th!
