Zaxxon Hunter wrote:

Hi all,

Is there an 'American Guide to Anime' that has some definitions and
explanations about what happens in Anime, as in language and customs?

More immediate questions are ...
        What does 'Ranma no baka' mean?
        What does 'baka' mean?
        What does 'kawii' mean?

--
Zaxxon <sachs@knuth.mtsu.edu>                           http://www.cs.mtsu.edu/~sachs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Looking at the ashes and death the Phoenix said wisely, "true. There is
sorrow here but rejoice, there is room for rebirth here as well."
==============================
Random Babylon5 quote ...
G: "No boom?"
S: "No boom."
I: "No boom *today*. Boom tomorrow. There's *always* a boom tomorrow."
        -- Garibaldi, Sinclair and Ivanova, "Grail"Answers to immediate Questions:

Ranma you idiot!
Idiot!
cute

NOTE:  The term "Ranma no baka" is really a pun in Japanese.  Japanese is 
written with characters called "kanji".  They are pictures with meanings 
by themselves and make new words and meanings when combined in twos and 
threes.  The first "kanji" in the word "baka" is the same first kanji in 
the word "Ranma" when Ranma is spelt with kanji.

Alone the kanji is pronounced "BA" (kanji often vary in pronunciations 
when combined).  It means horse.  Ranma's name in Kanji, altogether, 
means "wild horse".