THE FIRST ANNUAL TALESWAPPER AWARDS FOR BEST RANMA FAN FICTION
I noticed that someone posted on rec.arts.anime.stories a poll
to select favorite fanfics, etc. No poll, unfortunately,
enables respondents to provide a rationale for their choices.
Suddenly inspired to express my thoughts on stories I have
enjoyed reading, I put together the following list of my
favorites and tried to describe why I like the stories so
much. At first, I tried to assemble my thoughts using the
usual gimmicks (e.g., top 10 list, "best of " categories).
Such constructs, however, only constrained me unnecessarily,
requiring me to leave out good stories that didn't make an
arbitrary "cut" or to rank stories numerically. Depending on my
mood on any given day, there are at least four fanfics that
could have won my "Best Story" award. So I decided to simply
state that I like about all the fanfics that I count among my
favorites.
Why only Ranma stories? Since I don't read everything on
r.a.a.s., I didn't think it would be valid to list favorite
overall fanfics when I have deliberately limited my choices.
I've read all Ranma fanfics. Well, to be accurate, I've
*started* to read all Ranma fanfics. When the writing is
really bad or the story uninteresting, I often just skim to the
end to get the basic plot. But I've finished most of them,
even many bad ones.
All Ranma fanfics in Megazone's ftp.std.com archive that have
an archive date after 9/29/94 qualified for consideration. I
picked that date since it is the archive date of all the older
files (presumably when Megazone moved from wpi.wpi.edu). Also,
having a cutoff date enabled me to enshrine a few stories in my
"Hall of Fame" at the end of this post.
How does a fanfic make my list of "favorites?" Basically, a
fave is anything that I've read in its entirety more than
once. Some stories are so enjoyable or so skillfully crafted
that I find myself reading them a second time, a third . . .
There are stories that I consider very well written, but have
nothing to draw me back a second time. What tends to draw me
back? Elegant and skillful prose (nothing turns me off faster
than clumsy language). Great characterization, expressed
either by high fidelity to the anime and manga characters or by
excellent *new* directions in characterization (though I
usually don't enjoy new characters). Realistic and well-paced
dialogue. Funny jokes (few writers are as funny as they think
they are; look at any .sig for evidence of this maxim).
Imaginative and well-described action scenes (these are
*rare*). Interesting (read: unique) plot lines that make me
want to see how the story ends. Evidence of effort to
accurately portray elements of Japanese culture.
After compiling my list, I discovered one more virtue I look
for in a fanfic: brevity. Now, extended length is not an
absolute disqualifier (one of my all-time faves is John Biles'
15-chapter epic "Putting Your Heart in the Right Place"). But
there does seem to be an arbitrary point at which stories
become too long for me to want to re-read unless they are
_very_ entertaining or thought-provoking. Perfect examples are
the stories released as part the Elseworld series started by
Biles. I enjoyed all of them, but their great length, combined
with necessarily very complex plots, are a disincentive for me
to re-read the stories.
The following comments are entirely my own opinion. Naturally,
there are a few SPOILERS in my critiques. I welcome your comments.
Taleswapper
September 1995
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TALESWAPPER's LIST OF BEST RANMA FANFICS 1994-95 (listed
alphabetically by author)
"Stepping Stones - Ukyou's Tale" by Benares
If Hayao Miyazaki did a Ranma movie, the script might read
something like "Stepping Stones." The moving story of a young
woman conquering her emotional dependency is about as mature
and realistic as fiction based on cartoons can be. Ukyou's
first-person narrative flows beautifully and sounds very much
true to life, except for a few overdone "Now we come to . . ."
sort of lines and the annoying "Takahashi Wall" joke. Her
description of the childhood encounter with Ranma was
especially enjoyable, although Benares has either changed or
gotten wrong the story of how the Saotomes ended up with the
Kuonji's yatai. I would have liked to have read the author's
take on the secret sauce story and how Ukyou felt about Ranma's
childhood vow to her.
In adulthood, when Ukyou talks about her feelings concerning
Ranma and his family, your heart has to ache for her.
Absolutely fascinating is the final confrontation between Ukyou
and Shampoo, especially the former's palpable and frightening
rage when her old rival dares to speak the truth Ukyou has
denied for so long. Bringing in the monk from the Joe's Crepes
episode was a nice touch and a smart way to advance the plot
toward resolution. Ironically, this dead-serious story
contains one of the funniest things I've read in any fanfic:
the scene when Ranma dumps a potted plant on his head. It
wasn't until my third reading that I noticed that what I've
read is meant as the beginning of a longer story. Maintaining
this level of quality will be a major challenge: Good luck,
Benares, and don't do anything silly like having Ukyou fall in
love with an American (where's she going on that ship?).
"Ranma .05" by Darren Demaine
To commend the author merely for constructing "a lemon story in
which the sex is central to the plot" would be faint praise.
No doubt that's what Demaine intended, but like the fabled
characters that write themselves, his plotting and scripting
abilities have taken over and yielded prose and stories that
are good regardless of the sexual content. While this lemon
fanfic, for obvious reasons, cannot be completely faithful to
its anime/manga inspiration, Demaine does a heroic job of
keeping Ranma and Co. in character (especially their dialogue)
despite the obvious challenges.
The plots, which Demaine modestly downplays in his notes as
overlong justifications for the lemon scenes, are as
imaginative as any but the most expansive fanfic stories. The
plot of Volume II, Part 4 - wherein Ranma must think of a
counter to Mousse's new technique - could be the basis of a
good fanfic (in the TV episode style) on its own, without the
lemon scene. Speaking of which, the sex scenes are well
conceived and very capably written, better than anything else
out there. The Ranma/Akane scenes are marked by genuine
romance of the youthful, inexperienced sort. The Ukyou/Ryouga
story, though, is probably the best in terms of imaginative
staging and raw eroticism, with a setup as faithful to the
source material as you can get in the context.
"Juyza's Lyric" by Stefan Gagne
Juyza Shiratori wins for Best New Character. I wanted to hate
this story; I have little patience for fanfics in which the
author or his proxy is a major character. I wanted to hate the
self-centered main character with his trendy counterculturalism
and Marvel Comics-style teenage angst (complete with
stereotypical lines like "I don't believe in the concept of
love"). But "Juyza's Lyric" story grabs hold of you and won't
let go. Gagne's choice of the first-person/journal style was
very well calculated; it enables the reader to experience
firsthand Juyza's maturation and enlightenment. The
development of the title character is professional and
polished. Juyza has clear (if sometimes objectionable)
motivations and well- defined personality traits, unlike the
predictable, two-dimensional stars of other author-in-Ranmaland
fanfics.
The journal entries, despite their realistically nonlinear
style, weave a surprisingly complex story. The P-chan
kidnapping subplot is crafted nicely; particularly
well-thought-out is the use of the character Chance, who links
success of Juyza's scheme to Mikado's desire to keep Azusa at a
safe distance. And it takes a very skilled scripter to make an
effective climax out of a speech (Ukyou's explanation of
contentment with her life); Gagne qualifies.
"Akane por Siempre" by Oscar Octavio Mascare~as Garza
This beautiful tale is the most romantic fanfic after Joseph
Palmer's seasonal stories. Garza is especially adept at
describing what Ranma and Akane think of each other in trying
circumstances. Also touching are the scenes between Ryouga and
Akane. Akane's feeding scenes (Ranma and Shampoo) are as
erotic as anything written in a lemon fanfic. The _in medias
res_ beginning is unusually sophisticated for a fanfic; it
works very well, so it's not pretentious. The climactic fight
scene is exciting; Garza shows skill in giving the multiple
combatants something useful to do. The story could have used a
little more editing/proofing, though.
"Girls' Night Out" by Jeffrey Paul Hosmer
They ought to turn this fanfic into an OAV. Seriously, while
the story may be extremely introspective for Ranma 1/2 (that's
a *good* thing, BTW), it's certainly not too talky. A fun tale
on the first read, "Girl's Night Out" turns into a capable
character study if you read it a second time. Hosmer does a
commendable job of exploring Akane's and Ukyou's motivations
(especially how the two feel about each other) through capable
third-person portrayal of the girls' private thoughts. The
language in these "inside her head" passages is well matched to
each character's personality: Akane's tempestuousness and
insecurity; Ukyou's cheerfulness and quirky femininity. The
fight scene was a little contrived and unnecessary, but it did
have the effect of giving the fanfic the feeling of a TV
episode.
"Winter," "Spring," and "Summer" by Joseph Palmer
Palmer is a runaway winner in the Best Writer and Best Romance
categories. His prose is elegant: simple and unpretentious yet
enormously expressive; rather like poetry. I thought about
quoting some of my favorite passages, but taking them out of
their well-formed contexts would be unjust. The imagery is
vivid and, although the extended similes in "Winter" are a
little forced, the author keeps getting better as the seasons
pass.
The plots don't have the complexity of other good fanfics, but
that is because the overall story is so very realistic; as in
much of real life, less turns out to be more. Palmer portrays
very authentically the evolution of a genuine romance. The
author has removed the slapstick comedy that is an integral
part of Ranma 1/2, but he methodically uncovers the Ranma/Akane
relationship in the precise way, I think, that Takahashi
intends it: Ranma's slow realization of his feelings and
Akane's hopeful impatience as he comes around. BTW, Kasumi's
role as instigator in "Winter" was the most successful of all
authors' attempts to portray the elder Tendou as smarter than
she seems. I look forward to "Autumn."
"Ryouga: The Shampoo Variation" by Mark Latus
Latus wins the award for Best Fight Scene. I enjoy the
climactic battle not only for the originality of having Ryouga
and Shampoo team up against Ranma, but also for the
ruthlessness Latus portrays in both attackers. The battle is
well choreographed; Latus' imagery enables any imaginative
reader to paint some pretty exciting animation cels in his
mind. I wish the author had made battle last longer, although
it might not have made much sense for Ranma to be able to put
up more of a fight. Also well-crafted are the scenes where
Ryouga's secret is revealed and where he resolves to give up on
Japan and kill his rival. The characterization is pretty
faithful to the source material, although Ryouga gets a little
too verbose near the end. I thought the framing sequence was
superfluous; since I didn't enjoy "Ryouga: Crossover" nearly as
much, linking the two stories holds no appeal.
TALESWAPPER's RANMA FANFIC HALL OF FAME - Charter Inductees
The following three fanfics are my favorites among the older works.
"Putting Your Heart in the Right Place" by John Walter Biles
Biles is the only author to succeed in maintaining the original
spirit of Ranma 1/2 over a work of significant length and
multiple plotlines. His fight and slapstick scenes are
especially true to their anime inspiration; even if many jokes
fall flat, Right Place is the funniest fanfic out there. My
favorite line: "Now the wall will be a wall forever!" The
organization of the story into TV episode-like chapters serves
to keep the large cast and the web of concurrent storylines
manageable. The focus on Akane and Ukyou as the only "real"
contenders for Ranma (sorry, Shampoos fans) sets up an
interesting love triangle and Ranma's two dates were especially
enjoyable to read for the depth of characterization. The Akemi
character was an ingenious creation, but wouldn't it have made
more sense for her to choose Ranma-chan's appearance as a
permanent form, since (so far) there is no more Ranma-chan (who
cares what Gosunkugi wants)?
A quibble: the dialogue sometimes seems excessively intelligent
and adult. I'm not necessarily taking issue here with Biles'
characterization of Kasumi as a closet intellectual. Rather, I
was sometimes disoriented with the eloquence and literacy
exhibited by many characters, especially Ranma and Akane.
While we're on the topic of speech, a tip of the hat to Mr.
Biles for the hands-down best ability to script Kunou. Many
(most?) fanfic authors fall flat on their faces trying to ape
Kunou's affected formality (I recall one who had Kunou calling
Ranma an "infidel"), probably because they don't have a
powerful enough vocabulary. Biles, however, pulls the trick
off nicely in "Right Place" and his other works. Other authors
can also take a lesson from Biles on how to insert cameo
appearances. He uses cameos subtly, so the light humor works;
other authors ruin the opportunity by making the cameo too
obtrusive ("B-Ko, leave me and C-Ko alone!"), or worse, by
explaining the joke ("heh heh, only Tenchi Muyo fans will
understand this reference"). I await more chapters of
"Furinkan Summer."
"Ranma's Timeslip" or "Ranma 1/2: Actor in the Mirror" by
Christian Gadekan
This story may be my all-time favorite because of its
well-crafted "what-if" plot and its faithfulness to the
"spirit" of the anime/manga; the dialogue and characterization
are right on, if sometimes a little too serious to be
completely true to the source material. A shining example is
Ranma and Akane's first kiss: Ranma's hesitancy, Akane's
initiative. I wouldn't be surprised if Rumiko Takahashi
scripts it the same way (it is comparable to her hand-holding
scene at the end of the Shinnosuke story). Ranma's alteration
of the events of the first TV episodes gives the reader a
vicarious thrill: who wouldn't want an opportunity to go back
and erase old mistakes? The intense emotional moments are
genuine and demand a reader's sympathy. I especially admired
Gadekan's portrayal of Akane's grief at Ranma's departure from
the other timeline, as well as Ranma's subsequent "You don't
know what I had to give up . . ." The chase scene near the end
is a refreshing comic breath after the somber ending of the
alternate history. If I could bankroll a Ranma movie, I'd ask
Gadekan to submit a treatment based on this story.
"Ranma 1/2: Kanketsuhen '93" by Richard Uyeyama
As Ranma fanfic, it's only a little better than average: the
plot is simplistic and Shampoo's characterization seems way
off. But as metafiction, Uyeyama's work is unparalleled. You
have to marvel at the realism of his editorial asides,
introductory and concluding remarks, and the bonus SD
animation. Especially clever were the little apologetic notes
about difficult translations. BTW, for those of you who fell
for it: didn't it strike you as odd that Uyeyama went to the
trouble of translating Shampoo's dialogue into pidgin English?