GENERAL - TURNOFFS
Surprisingly... I don't have many.
Bad grammar/formatting. If I have trouble reading it, I'm not going to care if it is the best story ever, I'm likely to stop. Paragraphs should change at each change or speaker or point of view. scene breaks etc... The entire story should not be bold, underlined, or centered, nor have outrageous hard to read color schemes or fonts. I do allow some give if the author does not have English as a first language. Also, I do not care on the quality of their comment posts, as I do not check spelling/grammar on most of mine, but story postings should always be checked.
Finally on formatting, I if at all possible, prefer to read my stories in TXT format. Thus, things like bold, underline, and italics to do word highlighting don't work well, authors that go the extra step to use methods that work even in text view are preferred. Sites I don't mind reading in HTML include Anime Addventure, Ranmafics, and Lost Library of Florestica.
Stories that 'Jump Shark', where the plot and dialog are pointing a certain way, and then in the space of a chapter or so, things do a 180.
Stories where the author goes to the trouble to break a couple up, perhaps even as far as to get the readers to hate that character, yet still have them together in the end. An example might be a story where Ranma and Akane get close, then break up do to a long drawn out fight, and it is still an Ranma/Akane match ups in the end.
Unless done really well, or not part of main plot line, Guy/Guy. I'm not against it per se, though I do not seek it out, just it is done crappy in what I've read.
GENERAL - CHAPTER SIZE
Officially... a chapter is supposed to convey a entire piece of a story, that can be a scene, or a concept, or a plotline. As such, length should not be taken into account. Having stated that...
LENGTH PREFERENCES
There are benefits to both long and short chapter lengths.
- Short lengths allow potentially for faster updates, but can leave some readers fustrated.
- Longer lengths can be good for some readers, especially fast readers, and can take the time to draw a reader in, and make them want more. However... potentially, we are looking at longer periods between updates.
SIZE PREFERENCES
Some go by word count when refering to chapter length. For fan fiction I actually prefer physical file size in KB, especially for TXT. While some would argue one should not, with HTML or international text, most of my documents are 8 bit still and I'm fine with it. I like longer chapters, but shorter is acceptable to a degree... Not that average English word size is 5 characters, plus a space, so 6 characters overall. Thus 1kb, which is 1024 characters, is some 171 words on average.
HTML and other formats are always inflated numbers due to fact the formatting inflates the file size. Thus 100kb TXT has more content to read than 100kb of HTML.
Unless it is on something like the Anime Addventure, I prefer chapters be at least 8kb. For me, longer is better.
SIZE STATISTICS
For all non-lemon stories I've downloaded over the years... I get:
TXT Smallest - 1kb - estimated 171 words
TXT Largest - 2,409kb - estimated 411,136 words
TXT Average - 28kb - estimated 4,775 words average
HTML (non AA) Smallest - 1kb
HTML (non AA) Largest - 824kb
HTML (non AA) Average - 47kb
HTML (AA) Smallest - 1kb
HTML (AA) Largest - 68kb
HTML (AA) Average - 7kb
I probably should have tossed out the top 10 or so TXT and HTML, since those skew the results slightly. But did not feel up to going to that much trouble.
CANON ARGUEMENTS - ANIME NOT BEING CANON, MANGA IS ONLY TRUE CANON
My view is anime is just as canon as manga, just that they should generally be considered different continuities of each other.
Canon to me is anything within the series source material. For a anime, OAV, or movie, within series airtime. For manga, within the story pages, and not before or after them. Covers would count in manga and on the DVD/VHS/VCD's in anime.
Anything stated by an author after series, or during interviews is not part of series, and this not admissible in my eyes as canon. If a series is ever extended, then that becomes part of canon.
Every page of a manga, every second of an anime, it is all canon, I do not consider something not canon merely due to it not adding to plot. About the only exceptions would be end of episode shorts some series and manga have... such as the super deformed conversations at the end of each Lodoss Wars Chronicles of the Heroic Knights... that breaks plot, breaks 4th wall, and breaks characterization by having them directly address an audience.
CANON ARGUEMENTS - MANGA COVERS, US RELEASE VERSIONS, AND RANMA'S HAIR COLOR
Some argue the manga has female Ranma's hair as black. I in fact have been told the first chapter in the Japanese edition is in color and shows it as black. My own U.S. release 1st chapter is not in color.
I will not dispute any fan fiction author using black. But the anime and most of the covers show it as red.
I should note also, there are two US releases. The first US release went only to volume 21. The second US release went and did the whole series, but they:
- renumbered the chapters and volumes to be 36, not 38 volumes as the rest of the world.
- changed the covers and the size of the manga itself for the 2nd release.
My copy is first release for 1-3, 7-21, and second release for 4-6, and 22-36.
Some had black, most were red or redish. For my copy:
- edition 1. Vol 1,2,3,7,9,18 - red
- edition 1. Vol 12,17 - pink
- edition 1. Vol 13,16 - purple
- edition 1. Vol 20 - black
- edition 2. Vol 4,6,22,25,27,28 - red
- edition 2. Vol 5 - black
- edition 2. Vol 23,34 - purple
- edition 2. Vol 32 - blue
- edition 2. Vol 33 - brownish/black
- edition 2. Vol 35 - pink
That yields 12 red, 4 purple, 3 pink, 2 black, 1 brownish black, 1 blue
Thus, since so many are red on manga covers (all other colors combined do not match number of red), and anime was consistently red. I see little issue with fan fiction authors using red.
CANON ARGUEMENTS - LAW ENFORCEMENT
Sniggers, what law enforcement. Only time I recall it in Ranma canon is Ryoga helping a little old lady to a police roadside assistance guy, and a couple instances with Zoo personnel attempting to contain Genma in panda form.
Heck... when Happosai appears, the town council puts Soun in charge of getting him, not the police. Likewise, when the store owner needed that magical possessed brassier kept away from Happosai, they got Soun and Genma to do it, likewise a cursed mirror, and the case of the octopus pot at the seaside resort.
I have been informed there were a couple scenes in the background showing them, but not actually doing anything. Also a scene were Ranma dresses as a female police officer against the Oorochi. I do not count them.
CANON ARGUEMENTS - TIMELINE
Snorts... what timeline. In both anime and manga, we see multiple seasons go by, we see holidays, celebrations, etc... yet no one ages, no one advances. Kuno is proclaiming himself as a junior and 17 in the start of the series, and the end of the series.
COMMON ARGUEMENTS - AKANE IS *SO* MUCH NICER IN MANGA THAN ANIME TO RANMA
Sigh... having seen both, and seen this one must wonder what some are smoking.
An example would be the scene early on where he is listening in on Akane and Nabiki talking about him:
- In the dubbing, she does state: "Think about it, I am engaged to my worst nightmare".
- In the subtitles, it is: "I can't stand the thought of being associated with that pervert. I mean, honestly."
- In the manga, it is: "But everyone's spreading rumors about me. They're saying I'm his fiancee! Do you think I want everyone thinking *I'M* a pervert TOO!"
Really, none of the variations above are too kind toward him. Though the manga is *slightly* nicer in my own opinion. If anything, after reading the manga, I cannot understand how she generally considered so much better in manga than anime. Though I can see her as much better than fan fiction makes her out to be.
And I've been accused that is merely due to it being an early scene, and she gets better further in. For that, I normally refer those individuals to:
Ranma vs Akane Argument League Tables
Some have told me in the last arc, she does not do as much violence toward him. See the notes under my views of Akane for why I think this does not matter.
COMMON ARGUEMENTS - BY SERIES END, RANMA AND AKANE ARE MEANT TO BE TOGETHER
The wedding incident resolved absolutely nothing. Soun even puts off anything more until the fiancee mess is resolved. They are shown insulting each other, and going off to school together like a normal day in the manga.
COMMON ARGUEMENTS - PROPER NAME FOR FEMALE RANMA STORIES
This particular arguement came up in a preview thread by Toasted Pine on The Fanfiction Forum.
I've read fan fiction long enough it barely registers. I see the terms and just automatically make the association to know what is meant.
- Yoiko/Yoiko-chan
- Lanko/Ranko/Ranko-chan (almost no-one uses the first, which is how Nodoka pronouces it in anime)
- Ranma-chan/onna/sama
- Pig Tailed Girl
- Osage no Onna
- Tree Borne Kettle Girl (I notice this used least in fan fiction, despite fact he called her that first in anime and manga)
- couple other varients.
Heck, even the term fuku-fic, despite it being a generic term that *could* refer to among other things female Ranma in a skirt, I generally assume it *is* that until I read otherwise in the story.
So I've no preference or complaint on if an author uses any of them for female Ranma.
One additional note... Only if a story has both characters present, I'd rather:
- the original canon or male cursed/locked persona be called Ranma or Ranma-chan.
- the separate or new female split/twin/sister persona be called Ranko or Ranko-chan.
COMMON ARGUEMENTS - RANMA DOES NOT HIT GIRLS
Another fannon cliche. He hits Shampoo, he fights Kodachi, he fought Ukyo, though that was before discovering she was a girl.
I think it more accurate he does not hit someone that cannot take it. Which is why he does not hit Akane. Besides, canon would make it a world of trouble if he did. Akane would complain (not that she has the moral high ground or right to), Soun would complain, Nabiki and Kasumi would complain, his own father would complain. He might be forced out.
COMMON ARGUEMENTS - RANMA DOES NOT USE/LOOKS DOWN UPON WEAPONS
I never could exactly figure where this fannon one came from.
Ranma never struck me that way, and did not seem to have any reservations on using weapons against Kodachi in the Rhythmic Gymnastics, among others.
It would be a serious hole in at least not being able to defend against them. It is after all 'Anything Goes'. To defend against them, I would think one would need to somewhat be able to understand them.
COMMON ARGUEMENTS - RANMA IS A CHAOS MAGNET, AND THE ONLY SUCH ONE IN CANON
Fannon and overdone. It has always bugged me. Everyone assumes Ranma is the only chaos generator/causing agent. Which I can somewhat follow, as is it a somewhat obvious conclusion. However, is that really the case or is it more they blame him out of convenience. I think it more a unwanted joint effort from both of them rather than just Ranma. Consider, who is it that had to fight those boys in the morning at the start of the series. Who is it that seems to get into trouble and need rescuing from despite numerous other martial artists it could happen to? Who is it that had a poetry sprouting swordsman obsessed with her? Who got them into the skating match? Who got them in the gymnastics match? None of the above is even remotely normal, though toned down for a normal Ranma episode with both Ranma and Akane. Several of the above happened without Ranma even there. Ranma did not run into any of his problems while on the move, even when settled down in places for a while, it was only while with Akane.
COMMON ARGUEMENTS - THE SO CALLED 'JOINING OF THE SCHOOLS'
It has been pointed out to me that many manga fans, and some anime fans, insist there is no such thing as a 'Joining of the schools' in the Tendo/Saotome agreement. Some others have stated that was only in the Ranma scan translation. Looking at my VIZ retail copy, however, depending upon interpretation of Souns statements, certainly can lead one to believe it is a 'joining of the schools'.
[ quote ]SOUN: "If one of you three girls were to marry him... and carry on this training center... then the Tendo family Legacy would be secure.[ /quote ]
So... the goal is to carry on the school, and Ranma is needed to secure their family legacy, which apparently cannot be done on their own without him... Thus both are needed and bring something to the table, the marriage joins those somethings... both are different branches of the same school. Thus, a joining of the schools. And despite the fact Soun opened it to the three of the daughters, he was quite clear it was to carry on the training center.
COMMON ARGUEMENTS - VIEWS ON CAT'S TONGUE PRESSURE POINT
Actually, my pet peeve is that the cats tongue should not have worked... at all... To my eyes it is a case of bad logic on the part of Rumiko Takahishi.
Think about it... you take hot water, your curse deactivates with hot water, and put the hot water on you when female. What is supposed to happen.
Now... I can understand you being burned, or imagining it, if the skin is more sensitive.
But there is no reason whatsoever the curse should not still have deactivated. After all, the curse was supposedly not affected (Remember Tofu's Tokyo grandfather point fixed Ranma temporarily). Heck... if anything, with the body being more sensitive it should have made it easier for the curse to deactivate and turn him to his natural male form and harder to turn female.
Some argue the manga has female Ranma's hair as black. I in fact have been told the first chapter in the Japanese edition is in color and shows it as black. My own U.S. release 1st chapter is not in color.
COMMON ARGUEMENTS - VIEWS ON CAT'S TONGUE PRESSURE POINT
Actually, my pet peeve is that the cats tongue should not have worked... at all... To my eyes it is a case of bad logic on the part of Rumiko Takahishi.
Think about it... you take hot water, your curse deactivates with hot water, and put the hot water on you when female. What is supposed to happen.
Now... I can understand you being burned, or imagining it, if the skin is more sensitive.
But there is no reason whatsoever the curse should not still have deactivated. After all, the curse was supposedly not affected (Remember Tofu's Tokyo grandfather point fixed Ranma temporarily). Heck... if anything, with the body being more sensitive it should have made it easier for the curse to deactivate and turn him to his natural male form and harder to turn female.
And about the only martial artist Ranma won't hit male or female is Akane
Users browsing this forum: No registered users