I’ve been re-reading Ranma ½ recently (as well as watching the anime on streaming). In a world that is very vexed about gender and identity the comic has a new dimension to me. Ranma generally seems very relaxed about his gender fluidity and while he frequently expresses dismay at his situation and desires to find a way to fix his masculine identity as the books progress he increasingly seems at ease with his female identity, using the same name across both and eventually not even concealing the truth from his classmates or even seeming concerned about their sexual desire for him.

Generally I find Rumiko Takahashi quite reticent on the issue of sexism and harassment, acknowledging it and expressing anger but equally often contextualising into comedy. Judgement of female beauty norms and, later, bottom pinching and underwear theft are shown as being distressing to their victims but the male perpetrators suffer no real consequences for it.

In the chapter called “A kiss in the ring” though Ranma in his female form is kissed by Mikado Sanzenin, something that moves him to tears and then declare that he is angry for the first time in his life and that he wants to kill Sanzenin. The blaze of rage is quite unusual in a generally light-hearted comedy. Akane, Ranma’s fiancée, speculates that it is because of the same-sex nature of the kiss but Ranma’s dialogue focuses on the Mikado’s arrogance in treating Ranma as he wishes. What we would more likely frame as consent and sexual assault in our times.

As usual Mikado is spared any serious consequences for his actions but it is striking as a point where emotions literally boil off the page and the victim is able to translate some of their emotional pain into physical revenge.