Ranma 1/2, Volume 1 FROM THE PUBLISHER
One day, teenaged martial artist Ranma Saotome went on a training mission with his father, and ended up taking a dive into some cursed springs at a legendary training ground in China. Now, every time he's splashed with cold water, he changes into a girl. His father, Genma, changes into a panda! To make matters worse, Ranma's supposed to be engaged to a girl who doesn't like him -- or at least says she doesn't. Shampoo's great-grandmother Cologne has every intention of seeing her gret-granddaughter marry Ranma, and to that end, she promises to teach Ryoga an ultimate martial arts move -- the Bakusai Tenketsu or "Breaking Point" technique. Can Ranma defeat his greatest rival for Akane's affection? Or a better question might be, does he even want to?
FROM THE CRITICS
Library Journal
Takahashi is probably the most popular female comics creator in the world. Her series have been hugely popular in Japan, spawning animated TV series and movies, and English translations (including the recent anime hit Inu-Yasha) have drawn many American fans as well. This martial arts romantic comedy, which Viz has been releasing in comics and on video for over a decade, is among her best-loved works. Teenage martial arts prodigy Ranma Saotome was promised in marriage by his father Genma to a friend's daughter. But while training in China, Ranma and his father are cursed-and now, whenever Ranma is touched by cold water, he turns into a girl, and only hot water will change him back. (Genma's curse similarly transforms him into a giant panda.) This fun and action-packed first volume (reissued in Viz's new smaller and less expensive format, with succeeding volumes to follow) introduces much of the quirky cast, including Ranma's feisty fianc e, Akane-a martial artist herself who is none too happy about the situation-and his formidable but thick-headed antagonists Kuno and Ryoga. There's some nudity, in a non-titillating context, but the series (with 23 volumes in print and more to come) is still appropriate for teen collections, where it will be wildly popular. Older manga fans will be interested as well. Since Viz is phasing out the older, larger editions, this is recommended for all libraries that want to start collecting this popular series. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
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