Ranma/Akane's Marriage: how long do you think it would last?

[LadyRelena]

But why was she doing that he has no idea. It also does not mean I love you, since billions of people have married for reasons other than love. For all he knows she's sacrificing herself because he loves her not because she loves him.

Are you serious? First of all, Ranma's not that deep a thinker especially when it comes to love and sacrificing. Second, this is Akane were talking about, she would rather burn in hell then ever go through a marriage where she wasn't in love with the other person.

That Ranma loves her does not matter, Ranma wants to know if she loves him. If she had said because "I (Akane) love you" he might have gone with it, but she didn't do that she said because you love me.

Again, Akane would rather burn in hell then ever go through a marriage where she wasn't in love with the other person, hence, the fact that she's in a wedding dress and ready to go through with it, already proves that she does love him.

What does it matter if Ranma said things in front of other people, all evidence points to Ranma not wanting to marry anyone at that point in his life.

It maters because when Ranma is in front of other people, he never actually says what he really means more then half the time. He's usually completely embarrassed or under duress.

Indeed, blackmailing him with the cure for the curse was such a loving thing for her to do. She never talks about how much she loves him, it's very much her trying to force him to say that he loves her.

Akane didn't say anything about the cure until Ranma started arguing with her. Then she got an attitude and made it sound like she was forced into the wedding situation. She was obviously said it at that particular moment to be vindictive. Just look at her face for crying out loud. Black mailed or not, she WANTED to get married to him.

[three headed dog]

While that maybe your opinion. I disagree entirely. You say Ranma is not that deep a thinker when it comes to love and sacrifice. Yet we are shown in an earlier volume that Ranma is willing to make that same sort of sacrifice you say he wouldn't even think of. After all he was willing to marry Akane when he thought she was turned into a duck so that she could have at least some happiness. For Ranma, love and marriage is very significant, if it wasn't kisses and such would have no meaning (which is something he says during the Romeo and Juliet arc of the manga -that it'd be easy to kiss her if it didn't mean anything).

Your also saying that the only possible reason Akane could be wearing a wedding dress is because she loves him, even though she had been possessed in an earlier volume and had her memories messed with in multiple other volume, disregarding that, you find it impossible to believe she'd sacrifice herself for someone else's happiness not her own, or possibly out of a feeling of obligation, or so that Ranma can get his cure, (or any of the other possible reasons). She's willing to risk her life for other's (like during the Orachi arc) but it is for some reason completely unknown to me impossible to believe she'd marry someone for reasons other than love.

So the fact that from the very first scene in the manga with Ranma in it to the very last volume have Ranma against being married at that age (except some dire situations, where he still didn't want to but would have anyways) means nothing. Also going by the manga, ignoring the anime entirely, Ranma does generally say what he meant to say. I can't really think of times he had said stuff he didn't mean to say (sure he'd lie occasionally but those were intentional, as are his insults in the manga though they aren't always meant to be overheard). When he gets flustered, like when he was going to tell Shampoo he loved her, he generally doesn't say anything. Looking at the scene in volume 37 Ranma says he needs more time and it's something he can't do right away, what part of that constitutes something he didn't mean to say (hell even his insult of Akane thereafter appears intentional since it both proved his point in not being able to marry then and got him away from them so they wouldn't push the issue then). If it is so common, can you please give me three examples of him saying things he didn't mean to say, manga continuity since I don't like the anime anywhere near as much and haven't even watched all of it (things he didn't mean to be overheard don't count because he still meant them and things he said but to the wrong person also don't count since he still meant them - example telling Akane he loved her when he meant to tell that to Nabiki).

No one was arguing about whether Akane wanted to get married at that time, was arguing about Ranma wanting to get married at that time and what he might have been thinking at that time (Akane's rather abrupt change from being vehemently against it to willingly wearing a wedding dress and his abrupt being woken up and not having any idea as to what the hell was going on).

[Anchoku]

In the manga, Ranma and Akane are clearly becomming emotionally attached by the end despite their differences. Also, in societies with arranged marriage, the parents carry some responsibility for helping their children get along and become accustomed to married life. It takes some of the blame off of the newlyweds for their problems because their parents are partlhy responsible. There is nothing in the manga that says the two cannot at least learn to function as a married couple as they continue to mature.

With that said, Ranma still reacts to marriage with at least some denial and Akane still has her temper and own set of hang-ups to deal with. The fact the manga ends with the two of them not married but on friendlier terms than most of the other scenes indicates a marriage may be well into the future.

I voted "Something Else" because a long marriage is not inconceivable but marriage in the short term seemed to have been ruled out. The manga gives hints of "happily ever after" while keeping the status quo between most of the relationships.

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

According to that list she hits him:
72 times in V 1-10,
56 times in V 11-20
28 times in V 21-30
41 times in V 31-38 [average of 5.125 times per volume]

127 times in the first 19 volumes
71 times in the second 19 volumes

V 34 is an outlier (particularly considering that the list counts hitting him while she is dreaming} and the trend is downwards.
It also seems to me that the percentage of hits after teasing is moving down slightly.

EDIT: I missed a few in V36, but anyway there are considerably more in the first half of the manga than in the second and my main point was that there is no reason to think they have a long-term effect.

Just was browsing this topic and noticed this, and felt inclined to ask: after volume 20, doesn't Ranma start getting more and more stories involving him in situations where he's either not actually around Akane or in situations where the two obviously have more on their minds then each other? After all, aren't there stories like the Musk Dynasty arc, where I don't think Ranma and Akane say more then a few dozen words to each other, or Nodoka's finally discovering the truth about Ranma, or the Phoenix People arc, which spans, what, two or three volumes and where Ranma isn't anywhere near Akane after the first three or four chapters (and shortly after they do come back together, Ranma gets into a fight with Saffron and Akane gets turned into a doll)?

[LawOhki]

Just was browsing this topic and noticed this, and felt inclined to ask: after volume 20, doesn't Ranma start getting more and more stories involving him in situations where he's either not actually around Akane or in situations where the two obviously have more on their minds then each other? After all, aren't there stories like the Musk Dynasty arc, where I don't think Ranma and Akane say more then a few dozen words to each other, or Nodoka's finally discovering the truth about Ranma, or the Phoenix People arc, which spans, what, two or three volumes and where Ranma isn't anywhere near Akane after the first three or four chapters (and shortly after they do come back together, Ranma gets into a fight with Saffron and Akane gets turned into a doll)?

Pretty much, such a list is also skewed because there are several chapters where Akane doesn't appear, or needs to exist. Hot spring island (23-5:6), even Ranma/Genma visiting the hotspring and meeting Nodoka (33-9) come to mind. It also takes the manga as one timeline, something that would mean the manga is 3 years of time.

A better list would only deal with the chapters where the two interact. Without doing so myself, I would wager that the percentage of times where there is violence would go up.

[truedemonicfire]

What Ranma and Akane hate most is the pressure to get married. I think what needs to happen is to let it take it's course.

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

They may hate the pressure being given to them to marry the most, but that doesn't change the fact that there are a few other personal issues that cause them to squabble so much. Among other things, they don't really trust or respect each other all that much - oh, Akane's quick to proclaim that Ranma will come and save her, but outside of that area, she's quick to jump to a conclusion that makes Ranma look bad. And Ranma just as jealous and suspicious of her as she is of him.

[StanS]

What Ranma and Akane hate most is the pressure to get married. I think what needs to happen is to let it take it's course.

I agree. The pressures of modern day high school are different from their parents. They cannot make a family living wage with this kind of degree.

I do feel that Akane feels the Dojo is her birthright and would support any career Ranma chose, no matter what the parents think.

I would also add that Ranma now knows better than most men what a woman's feelings are. Ranma in the later stories does not press Akane's buttons and respects her in ways we have grown to like.

If anything it might be the discrimination of the rest of society (about Ranma's condition) that could someday break them up. The safety of high school is kinder than the adult world.

[Kyoumen]

They've been able to get along together and have fun without fighting since quite early on in the manga, they unquestionably do love each other, and they've forgiven each other some fairly unforgivable things before, so I can't see why it wouldn't last.

[Ellen Kuhfeld]

If anything it might be the discrimination of the rest of society (about Ranma's condition) that could someday break them up. The safety of high school is kinder than the adult world.

What high school did you go to? I don't think it was the one I went to.

[Eric_Phail]

I put in a vote for months, I just don't see enough trust there (Although I'll admit, I am probably biased by fanfics and being a believer in Ranma/any non-canon fiancee)

However there is a part of me that agrees rest of their lives as if you treat it seriously rather than as slapstick I feel the mariage will end with a jealous/upset akane killing Ranma.

Just my 2p

[Té Rowan]

For how long would their marriage last? For however long it advances the humour and/or the plot. What d'ya mean, it's not a canon plot device? Oh, well... moot question, then.

[AdmiralTigerclaw]

Personally, I think it would last forever.

Assuming the sideshows don't get in the middle.

They're both still kids, and not quite emotionally mature right now. They both show genuine caring and affection when they finally let their guards down. However, some external force always ruins it. They also have a habit of lowering their psychological guard around each other quite a bit. How many times does Akane ask Ranma to taste-test for her knowing he'll be predisposed to avoiding it at all costs and insulting her? Either she's dense as a brick, or she trusts his judgement, even if he's rather poor at communicating that her cooking sucks 'constructively'. How much does Ranma flat out hang with Akane and discuss various issues with her (many personal) knowing he can easily take off in a heartbeat? If he didn't want to be around her that much, he'd take off.

If we go ahead and focus beyond the scope of the story, they'll mature. Ranma will stop pretending to have a soft side for Akane every time something draws attention to it. And Akane will mellow out and take Ranma's teasing as a sign of endearment, and most likely tease him right back. It'll seem uncalled for, but between them, that's okay. (Woe betide anyone who attempts the same stuff as an outsider though.)

And I think the final scene of the Manga took a step in that direction.

"Let's just start from scratch."

"Okay..."

[Kyoumen]

I put in a vote for months, I just don't see enough trust there (Although I'll admit, I am probably biased by fanfics and being a believer in Ranma/any non-canon fiancee)

However there is a part of me that agrees rest of their lives as if you treat it seriously rather than as slapstick I feel the mariage will end with a jealous/upset akane killing Ranma.

Just my 2p

If you treat it seriously rather than slapstick, than Ranma's habit of greeting people by jumping on their heads makes him a serial murderer.

But I don't get where "lack of trust" comes from. I mean, even if you ignore the fact they're both willing to die for each other, Akane trusts Ranma enough to still love him despite multiple times catching him in the arms of a naked sexy woman whom she knows loves him. Good luck finding a significant other who'll extend that much trust to you!

[Zwzn]

If you treat it seriously rather than slapstick, than Ranma's habit of greeting people by jumping on their heads makes him a serial murderer.

We are shown time and again that what is shown to happen is happening from the very first story. Akane/Ukyo/Shampoo/Kodachi hitting Ranma is no different from Chichi breaking a frying pan over Goku's head, or Bulma pulling out a gun and shooting Goku.

Kasumi and Nabiki truly feared Akane had killed Ranma with the dinning room table. I would not be surprised if Akane in one of her bad moods badly hurt or killed people in the past. It's not like Akane hasn't tried to snap Ranma's neck for the horrible crime of trying to be friendly, and cheer her up.

I would love to know where you got the idea Ranma has a habit of greeting people by jumping on their heads. The only person I can think of that being done to is Ryoga, and only once or twice.

But I don't get where "lack of trust" comes from. I mean, even if you ignore the fact they're both willing to die for each other, Akane trusts Ranma enough to still love him despite multiple times catching him in the arms of a naked sexy woman whom she knows loves him. Good luck finding a significant other who'll extend that much trust to you!

Ranma has never really done anything for Akane that he has not done for perfect strangers, or people he does not like.

Ranma can give a detailed explanation as to what he is doing and why, provide hard evidence, and Akane will not believe him. The girl is paranoid and delusional.