How might Nerima change?

[Heaven's Deamon]

Could the sneak also be related to Gosunkugi? it just the way you described her made me think of the way he constantly gets overlooked. And also the way he's depicted as stalking Akane in some fics. One thing you could add to the Battle Bimbo would be for her to actually get along fairly well with most of the "Neo-Wrecking crew" memebers when not with the other two of the trio. partly from enjoying fighting them, and partly from being for "relaxed" when the other two don't give her a reason to fight.

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

She might be his neice or the daughter of a cousin, but I don't think she'd work so well as his daughter. Some kind of relationship might work.

And not a bad idea for the battle bimbo; I was thinking that she's generally harmless on her own anyway.

Any ideas/suggestions for the boss? Or more for the other two?

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Are either of you two still interested? If so, please speak up and let me know.

If you are interested, seeing as how Lifen has stalled, perhaps it would be best to leave her until later and move on to one of the other Neo-Crew members. So, who shall we tackle- Ukyo and Mousse's child, Kuno and Mariko's, or someone else?

If we decide to do the "Neo-Kunoji", shall we make them a boy or a girl? There's... something... in having her be one of Yemon's suitors if she's a girl (both her antecendants pursued both of *his* antecendants). If a boy, then I think he'd probably do well as the "Ryoga" of this generation- and if he is the oblivious target of Michiko Hibiki's affections, well, rather a nice twist on Ryoga and Akane's relationship, with the girl pursuing the heart of the completely clueless boy.

For Neo-Kuno, like I said before, there's a nice twist in making him the target of a Tendo's affections if he's a boy. There might be some twist or kink if she's a girl, but whatever they might be escapes me at the moment.

I've some vague ideas for the styles/fighting abilities of both of them, but I think I'll wait for either or both of you to return. I know Jupiah's around, I've seen him make some posts in the past day or so, so I hope he's still paying attention to this topic...

[Heaven's Deamon]

I'm still here. I say we go for the Kuno. Since your uncertain of what quirks a female one could have, it's probably better to see if we can think of any now while we can go with either gender rather than later and finding that we need a female for balance......

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Well, the main "thing" about Kuno (beyond his bigger than Ultimate ShiShiHokodan Ego) is his obsession with the past, yes? His delusion/fanatic desire to see himself as/be a samurai in the days of yore. Well, given the advanced timeline would probably have advanced technology somewhat (and even in the 1990's where the manga is said there was stuff like ki-powered power-armour), what do you think of the idea that Neo-Kuno's obsession isn't with the past, but with the future?

While Kuno eats up stuff like old samurai epics and dramas, his child is obsessed with sci-fi manga/anime. While Kuno performs Bushido rituals and practises kendo, Neo-Kuno is more likely to be programming a computer or playing videogames. Kuno speaks in flowery talk, often alluding to classical poetry, while Neo-Kuno is straightfoward and to the point- perhaps direct to the point as coming off as offensive/insulting, like Ranma does.

I'm not sure whether he/she is actually a child prodigy (which is something of a dig at the fact Kuno can come off as something of a moron as well as an ego-maniac) or simply gets its cool tech from the Kuno-owned/managed research labs, but I was thinking that they might not only have access to all sorts of "cool gadgets", many of which might be experimental prototypes, but might actually use these as the basis of their fighting style. Rather than go with the "mouldy oldy" route of physically training, the Neo-Kuno uses technology to do damage- they might wear an experimental modular battlesuit, or carry around a raygun.

I don't know whether to make them incompetent (at least, compared to the quasi-superhumans of the other Neo-Crew members) or whether their obsession with these "toys of war" is such that they actually do approach martial artist-grade affinity with them though.

So what do you think? Any comments or ideas of your own? Man, I wish Jupiah would come back- it's getting kind of lonely without him...

[Heaven's Deamon]

Hmmm, parts of that description caused me to think of (what little I know about) Project A-Ko, I don't know much, but I think the main rival in the series is a rich tech abuser......But the thought of the Neo-Kuno being a tech geek is entertaining. I could also imagine them getting into lots of arguements with Tatewaki and being forcfully enroled in PE and other courses that require physical activity by daddy despite their lack of intrest in such......

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Which might require them to have a different school then Furinkan High, unless you think the "rivalry" (for lack of a better word) that would spring up between Kodachi & Tatewaki over this might be funny. Basically, Kodachi tries to let him off easy/let him out of it due to him being her favourite nephew (or her favourite niece if we decide a girl would be a better choice), which Tatewaki doesn't appreciate.

I've never heard of Project A-ko myself, but do you like the idea of the Neo-Kuno being a technophile? So which do you think would be better? General "mad scientist" or a "mecha knight"? The latter would probably tie him more to Kuno than might be appropriate though- it's basically the same "warrior image" as Kuno, but based around the future rather than the past...

[Heaven's Deamon]

Well, I do like the idea. As for what kind, that would depend in part on the role they play.

If they are primarily a comic relief source, then Mad Scientist, pulling out random bits of tech only to have it backfire or blow up on them.

As a "Respectable Annoyance" I could see them trying a different tech each time, and keeping with it until it gets beaten, when they decide to try something else. They could eventually look over all the things they tried in the past and start improving on them and combining them later in the fic to keep up.

As an "aggresive techie" I would see them going with one or two base tech examples that they always use and improve upon, and adding an occaisonal extra onto them from time to time for surprises.

......Something that has entered my head is the idea of Yemon having a habit of annoying the Neo-Kuno result in them chasing him around, which actually ends up being the Neo-Kuno's best source of exercise......

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

...That might be a nice gag. And I'm unsure what to make of this one; Kuno was simply comic relief, but Neo-Kuno might have more possibilities to offer. Which do you feel would be the best route for them?

[Heaven's Deamon]

I'd say the respectable Annoyance route. some of the early things they try could be more outthere and comedic overall, but as things go on and they develop, they start developing a sense of strategy and their tech becomes more reliable.

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Sounds alright to me. So... what do we need to work out for the Neo-Kuno now? Name, appearance, personality, "techniques", relationships... anything else?

[Heaven's Deamon]

I'd say that sounds like most of it.

For appearance I could see typical geek build more or less. potential for muscles and such to develop, but no intrest in doing so.

For personality I could see a tendency to show off the tech they have available in attempts to get friends, but actually shy around people due to lack of contact......

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Personality... a kind of shy personality is a nice twist, given Kuno's arrogance and Mariko's forceful personality. Hmm... perhaps he claims to be disinterested in people and prefers machines instead, but in truth that's an act to cover how lonely he is? What other personality quirks could he have...

A tall, slender but lacking in muscle-tone figure sounds about right. Both his folks are tall and lithe, yes? Hair and eye color... hair could be either brown or black, and eyes... Kuno's eyes are usually depicted as steel-grey (a lot like Ranma's, weirdly enough), and that does seem kind of appropriate for a technophile. On the other hand, "aunt Kodachi" has purple eyes, so that coupled with his obsession with sci-fi manga/anime (which, if I'm not mistaken, is prone to unusual colors- even more so than others) means a weird eye/hair color could be valid. Hell, he could even have black hair and grey eyes, but he wears colored contacts and dyes his hair to look "better".

What sort of technologies might he/she have availible at the start... and should he/she get them from the "family businesses", or do we make them a techno-prodigy and thus let them build/design them him/herself?

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Just a few thoughts that came to me about the Neo-Kuno yesterday and which I've tried my hardest to remember. Jupiah, if you're still scanning this, can you please let me know whether or not you still want to be part of this?

Anyway, first up, here are the name-links again so they're a bit easier to find:
http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-boys-names.shtml
http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-girls-names.shtml

I can't think of a name for him off the top of my head, but I think that, given Kuno's samurai obsession, the "maru" suffix would probably be incorporated, what with it being a popular suffix for samurai.

I think a pair of defining traits of Neo-Kuno would probably be his less-than-stellar relationship with his father, both a reflection of Kuno's own relationship with *his* dad (though they don't treat each other the way the Principal did Tatewaki, naturally) and something of a homage to the "culture clash" of Past and Future- Tatewaki is representative of the past and tradition, while "Maru" is representative of the future and the new way.

It was this idea that inspired the various other details I came up with, which currently consist of the following...

Appearance
Now, I admit I'm not an anime expert, but isn't it common -especially in sci-fi anime- for a rich/noble kid to be portrayed as (semi)bishonen? Given that, and the fact the rootseries for this is a comedy, the fact Kuno & Mariko aren't exactly bad-looking and, finally, the fact that Maru is somewhat less than fond of exercising, I was thinking that a somewhat feminine build might suit him well.

Not only is it a good way to represent both his good looks, inherited from his folks, and a way to portray his lack of physical development without making him a creepy nerd-figure like Gosunkugi, it's also a 'key' for Maru and Kuno to clash over. With his obsession with his image as a "noble warrior", Kuno is doubtlessly not going to be happy with a boy who looks so... well... "anti-fighter". I can see him begging/bugging Maru to bulk up, to get some dirt on himself, or better yet earn some battles scars- just stop looking so much like a dainty who'd faint at the first sight of blood, dammit!


Weapons/Fighting Style
Kuno always carries at least one sword on him- it's part of his samurai obsession and the basis of his fighting style. To properly honour him, I'm thinking Maru should also be a weapon user- however, to fit him better, I was thinking to make him a gunslinger. This plays up the "past/future clash" aspect- I admit to not being an expert historian, but wasn't it the creation and proliferation of firearms that led to the downfall of knights in the European countries? And didn't the samurai likewise fall in power when the peasantry gained the power to, after a couple of weeks, kill a warrior-lord who had spent decades honing their skills before said warrior had even gotten close enough to strike? Even if it doesn't have that resonance with Japanese history, the fact his son is dedicated to a "peasant's weapon" is sure to be another source of tension between them. Besides which, having a fighter dedicated to an entirely ranged style is a change from the usual norms of Ranma 1/2.

In keeping with Maru's futuristic theme, and my ideas on his own intelligence (see below), I was thinking that when the series begins Maru would carry a futuristic "stunner pistol". Vaguely inspired by Falco's blaster in Super Smash Bros, this relatively slow-firing sidearm produces "bolts" of energy that can damage inanimate materials, but whose effect on living organisms is a jolt of pain and minor muscular paralysis- essentially the same effect as a hard slug from a martial artist. As Maru progresses through the story, he upgrades his tactics and arsenal in order to keep up with the growing skill and prowess of the other martial artists- I was thinking that, eventually, he'd come up with the idea of a prototype form of exo-armour (a 'missing link' between a full-grown mecha and a suit of power armour) mounting energy weapons.


Intelligence
Kuno isn't *precisely* stupid, but his immense ego and somewhat twisted way of looking at the world means he tends to come off as such -perhaps more so in the anime, though this is one time where it's hard to say. As such, I was thinking that it might be a good twist to make Maru definately intelligent, perhaps even a prodigy/genius- he might get the parts from KunoTech Industries, but he's the one who comes up with the designs and puts them together. It also helps with the antipathy between father and son; to the progressive and, well, stable Maru, Kuno comes off as just as big a flake as he does to Ranma (or any viewer/reader).

[Heaven's Deamon]

I like most of the ideas. On the matter of IQ, I was actually thinking that it could be a form of proggressive revelation. That is, at first "Maru" could simply get his stuff from they employees and only care about how to use it, but as things progress and he starts spending more time looking at what they have and such, he develops more intrest in how it is made and modified, thus bringing to light his own potential in that field......

Oh, and would "Marumaru" work as a name, sort of a joke on the samurai use of Maru, and something that a ditz type character might think of as sounding "cute"......