Stream It Or Skip It?

After a successful first season, Ranma 1/2 returns to Netflix for another season of goofs, gags, and gender-swapping hilarity. The martial arts rom-com anime series continues to draw from Rumiko Takahashi’s classic manga series from the ’80s and ’90s to create an adaptation that’s both faithful and unique to the beloved original content. With the introduction of new enemies, drama, and romantic plotlines, Ranma 1/2 looks to be twice as fun and fresh in this second season.

RANMA 1/2: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: A man narrates that “The footage you’re to see was taken at a nearby school. Pay close attention. What happens next defies all rational explanation.” Then we see grainy footage of school grounds, where, in the background, Ranma Saotome is seen transforming from a boy to a girl after being doused by a bucket of water. We then see that this is playing on the television as Ranma, Akane, Genma, Soun, Nabiki, and Kasumi all watch, confused.

The Gist: 16-year-old male-hating martial artist Akane Tendo (Noriko Hidaka) has several admirers, but she has seemingly unknowingly earned herself a pathetic and creepy stalker in the form of her schoolmate, Hikaru Gosunkugi (Akira Ishida). When Gosunkugi’s candid snapshots (which he apparently sells to other weirdo boys at school) of Akane keep getting ruined by photobombing from Akane’s fiancé, 16-year-old Ranma Saotome (Kappei Yamaguchi and Megumi Hayashibara), the sunken-cheek stalker starts following and recording Ranma in hopes of discovering the cursed martial artist’s weakness.

After voodoo dolls, a box of weird things, and interviews with Akane’s older sisters, Nabiki (Minami Takayama) and Kasumi (Kikuko Inoue), and “Tendo family pets” — Ranma’s pandafied dad, Genma (Chō) and Akane’s human dad, Soun (Akio Otsuka) — yield no results, Gosunkugi eventually discovers that Ranma’s weakness is, surprisingly, cats. Genma shares with the Tendo family that when Ranma was around 10 years old, he put his son through “Cat Fist Training,” which basically was just him attaching a bunch of dried sardines to Ranma before throwing the boy into a swarm of hungry cats.

Gosunkugi hopes to take advantage of this fear by getting kendo master Tatewaki Kuno (Tomokazu Sugita) involved so the latter boy can achieve his goals of defeating his one-sided rival, Ranma, while winning a date with the “beautiful pigtailed girl,” AKA Ranma in his female form. What ensues is a first episode full of utter slapstick silliness and incredible idiocy that surprisingly ends with a catnip-induced kiss. Through it all, Akane and Ranma continue going back and forth with their love-hate relationship, Ranma continues to flip-flop between genders depending on the temperature of the water he’s splashed with, and everyone remains incapable of having a single dull day.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of?: Ranma 1/2 continues to call to mind the romantic and form-flipping curse storylines of Fruits Basket, while also potentially reminding viewers of other hijinks-filled animations like The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.: Reawakened, Gintama, Tom and Jerry, and Looney Tunes Cartoons.

Our Take: It can be hard to remake classic content when it has a loyal fanbase who feels nostalgic for the original work, but Netflix’s Ranma 1/2 seemed to please both old and new alike when it premiered last year. Season 2 of the series looks to keep the fun and good feelings rolling as it continues to boast vibrant animation, strong voice acting performances, and entertaining (as well as often delightfully over-the-top) characters.

With the first episode alone, Ranma 1/2: Season 2 is off to the races with minimal recap, just full-on chaos, tomfoolery, and silliness. The show is an absolute fever dream in the best way possible. Every single character brings their own unique brand of insanity that, when mixed together, creates a discordant and absurd yet ultimately extremely entertaining finished product you can’t help but enjoy.

Plus, in addition to the goods and gaffs, through all of the series there remains the underlying potential romance of Akane and Ranma, whose tenous bond will only continue to deepen and change as they face fresh challenges, suitors, and revelations throughout the rest of the season. All we know is that if this episode is Season 2’s starting point, we can’t wait to see where the heck it will go from here.

Sex and Skin: There’s a hint of skin whenever Ranma transforms into a girl, but all of the sensitive parts stay covered. Otherwise, no sex or skin. Just lots of wacky shenanigans.

Parting Shot: Girl Ranma muses to herself that she can’t remember anything after getting surrounded by cats, revealing that only Akane is left with the memory of their surprise Cat Fist-induced kiss. Meanwhile, Akane stomps home, muttering to herself, “Ranma, you idiot!”

Sleeper Star: Tomokazu Sugita definitely got some chuckles out of me while voicing Tatewaki Kuno. The character is depicted as such a simple-minded, earnest himbo that you can’t help but find him kind of endearing (or at least funny).

Most Pilot-y Line: Ranma declaring, “Oh, I get it now. You two are looking for my weakness, aren’t you? Well, you can stop wasting your time, because I’m not scared of anything or anyone,” only to faint in fear at the sight of a harmless cat mere minutes later.

Our Call: Sometimes laughter really is the best medicine, and Ranma 1/2: Season 2 provides it in spades from the first episode alone. The quirky characters and over-the-top humor make for an easy viewing experience that’s sure to bring some additional levity to your life. It’s fun, it’s fresh, it’s feel-good. STREAM IT!