Ryoga and martial arts rhythmic gymnastics

[Crescent Pulsar]

Is it just me, or is it strange that Ryoga is familiar enough with it to know the rules, as well as have the required skill with the tools to participate?

This is coming from the fact that:

A: Even Ranma and Akane had no idea about martial arts rhythmic gymnastics.
B: It appears to be a girl's competition, as far as we, the readers, can tell.
C: Even though Ranma has the necessary skill to learn it to begin with, it still required, at the very least for him, watching Ryoga and Akane perform the techniques to learn it.

It just seems like an odd skill for someone like him to have learned. Although, I suppose, it may explain his skill with his belt. I'm just curious because it seems to be an obscure martial art, like a lot of the other ones that Ranma learns throughout the series, that he never learned during his training trip. Then again, by and large they appear to be practiced by girls... Which still raises the question of why Ryoga would learn it, or what the circumstances could have been.

[LawOhki]

One of those unexplainable things, such as how Ryoga knew where to find Ranma so short a time after he arrived in Nerima.

[LiliandraNadiar]

Well, he could've learned it like Ranma did. He got lost in a competition and watched the, presumably, pretty girls in tight clothes doing 'matrial arts'.

[Crescent Pulsar]

I thought that, too. But would he stick around to watch it, or would he be more concerned about continuing on his way to his desired destination?

[Nekomata-sensei]

I was always under the impression that whenever various lost Hibikis bump into each other they manage to travel together for a little bit, and exchange travel tips, various currencies of money, language lessons, travel gear, non-perishable food and water stocks, and martial arts training to help insure the survival of the clan despite their getting lost difficulties, and that Ryoga must have learned martial arts rhythmic gymnastics from some sort of female relative like an aunt or a cousin or even his mother, possibly them forcing him to learn it after he disses it as girly and them kicking his ass with it.

I have this image now of onna-Ranma in Yoiko disguise while Ryoga is still falling for it stumbling upon another Hibiki, a female one, who doesn't know she is a fake one, who suddenly challenges her to a match to test which of them is stronger, manages to beat Ranma up with an advanced form of Rythmic Gymnastics martial arts combined with various other tricks picked up all over the place, partly due to Ranma holding back in order to keep Ryoga from recognizing her fighting style and seeing through the disguise, and Ranma gets knocked out and dragged off to get lost some place and forced through martial arts training female Hibiki style, and left behind some place weird like Transylvania or Madagascar or Chille, and calling the Tendos after she manages to ditch her tutor to request a ride home, all the while wondering how they crossed oceans to get there by just walking. Maybe even with a few bonks on the head she might forget that she isn't really 'Yoiko', and have amnesia, even if she gets back to Nerima, at least for a while until someone manages to hit her with hot water or something.

[Crescent Pulsar]

That's... Quite a long-winded explanation for such a conjecture. XD

[KonokoHasano]

It's possible that he could have learned it to even himself off. He's more strength oriented, so it makes sense that he'd learn something to allow himself to become more flexible and able to balance easier if need be.

Ranma is incredibly flexible and great at balancing already, so it makes sense that he probably never had to hear of it before.

A for Akane... eh, she probably just never bothered.

[Spokavriel]

So no one remembers the Mens Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastic team in the Anime that was stealing the objects from the womens teams and ended up with some ghosts after them for their troubles?

Just because the Womens competition is repeatedly shown doesn't mean there can't also be a Mens in the Mangaverse. It's just unimportant to the Ranma story line. Who's to say Ryouga didn't learn the techniques that way? Since it is a sanctioned and acknowledged Martial art with competitions and all. Heck he could even have picked up a book and learned the Techniques that way. It isn't a hidden secret or lost art.

[LawOhki]

So no one remembers the Mens Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastic team in the Anime that was stealing the objects from the womens teams and ended up with some ghosts after them for their troubles?

Anime and Manga don't really mix. Although in the first instance with Kodachi, the story matched up well enough.

IIRC they were also shunned as losers or weird, since the sport was FOR girls.

[Crescent Pulsar]

Yeah, I remember that episode, too.

And rhythmic gymnastics is primarily for girls, as you said, even though male participation is increasing (particularly in Japan, actually). However, considering the year that the episode came out ('91, I think), the episode may have actually illustrated the general consensus of what people thought about men's rhythmic gymnastics, at the time.

Though it definitely has more recognition and acceptance now than it did twenty years ago.

Just because the Womens competition is repeatedly shown doesn't mean there can't also be a Mens in the Mangaverse. It's just unimportant to the Ranma story line. Who's to say Ryouga didn't learn the techniques that way? Since it is a sanctioned and acknowledged Martial art with competitions and all.

I understand where you're coming from with that, but you have to consider something: tradition. For instance, cheerleading has traditionally been performed by females. It's only in recent times that men have become more involved. But whenever someone thinks of a cheerleader, the vision of a girl/woman is most likely to pop into their head. That's just how it is. And while I'm only guessing that tea ceremony can be practiced by either sex, I'm assuming that there must be a traditional reason for why females are illustrated to practice it the most. (Rather than be pessimistic and say that there's a sexist reason.)

Heck he could even have picked up a book and learned the Techniques that way. It isn't a hidden secret or lost art.

But does he seem like the kind of character that would do that? Learning gymnastics in general, I can understand. Ranma himself is adept at it. But they never learned how to ice skate, did they? And for all of the skill that they had shown up until that point (including the rhythmic gymnastics story), no amount of grace and balance saved them by making it an easy task, did it? The argument is basic and easy to envision, but that doesn't raise the possibility of it being true. After all, if it did, it would have been just as simple a matter to learn how to ice skate in their past, as it would been to learn martial arts rhythmic gymnastics. And which one do you think is more obscure? Yup.

It's possible that he could have learned it to even himself off. He's more strength oriented, so it makes sense that he'd learn something to allow himself to become more flexible and able to balance easier if need be.

The one problem with that, is that Ryoga is shown to have a mind for training in the mountains, to increase his overall strength, if not his existing technique. And the kind of techniques that he learns often reflects upon his character: the breaking point technique increased an already-high toughness, and the shishi hokodan drew power from the heavy heart that he was already known for.

And while being a girl is new to Ranma, accepting challenges is not. Just thought I'd take care of that so I don't have to worry about it later. ;p

[LawOhki]

The one problem with that, is that Ryoga is shown to have a mind for training in the mountains, to increase his overall strength, if not his existing technique. And the kind of techniques that he learns often reflects upon his character: the breaking point technique increased an already-high toughness, and the shishi hokodan drew power from the heavy heart that he was already known for.

Ryoga's toughness is overblown, he had far less stamina than Ranma at the beginning. I'm of course not counting the anime in that since they threw in a bunch of stuff with Nabiki and the science club to the first actual fight between the two.

Even before the match with Kodachi, Ranma fought Ryoga all night long, beat Ryoga, then went on to face and defeat Kodachi.

It was after the broken Breaking Point training that Ryoga became an unhurtable juggernaut. Even the shi shi hokudan was used only a hand full of times after that story arc, Ryoga may not be the happiest guy in the world but he's not depressed all the time. Although fanon has made it so that he goes around shooting them off whenever he's depressed.

Taking a guess at where he learned it, I don't think he really did. I think he heard the rules somewhere, and whoever taught him his normal skills also included the use of similar tools. Hence his belt/bandanna attack. Without looking at the raw, I believe he said he'd instruct her on how to use the tools. Could be that he's being attributed with more knowledge than he has.

[antimatterenergy]

And while I'm only guessing that tea ceremony can be practiced by either sex, I'm assuming that there must be a traditional reason for why females are illustrated to practice it the most.

It can and is practiced by both sexes, even in the manga it was done by both sexes. Akane beat up a group of them to get into the dojo and the guy who taught Ranma was a practitioner. The most likely reason that Ranma didn't learn it prior to that arc is that there simply is not a lot of practitioners of the martial arts version (we do see the regular style in the manga as well and that is what most people would learn, Ranma accidentally interrupts the tea ceremony club).

---
Ranma likely never used skates before but did go on ice. The reason he didn't learn it earlier is simple - was no reason to. Ice skating is not a skill most people need, I've never gone ice skating (did skate board and roller blade poorly though). As for learning it, at least in the manga, Ranma was learning it pretty fast. First couldn't stand on ice, interrupted training by Mikado, later had figured out how to skate pretty fast but hadn't figured out how to stop. Had training not been interrupted likely would be awesome at it (considering how competitive Ranma is, it is also likely that after that arc he went back to master it in case it comes up again).

[Crescent Pulsar]

Edit: This post was made before antimatterenergy's post, so... This is a response to the prior message. Since I don't have an argument for it, I'll go ahead and nod, since it sounds reasonable enough.

It's possible. People pick up random information over time, as it is, and martial arts rhythmic gymnastics is still within the general realm that he would study.

And I was just illustrating how certain aspects of a character are emphasized, even if they're not entirely true by the time that they are. In much the same way that we see Kasumi as a very different person at the start before all but the strongest parts of her character are scraped away.

Strength in general carries over into stamina, often enough; and I think it's the case with Ryoga, as well. Both strength and stamina fall under a measure of toughness, and I think his wandering and training methods are meant to illustrate that he's tough. It's true that Ranma is tough as well, but he also has other things going for him, being the main character and all. So it's not uncommon for other characters to be known for at least one trait in specific.

I still find it a strange notion, though. Both he and Ranma appear to be the type to avoid doing girly things, unless certain circumstances allowed/called for it.

[Spokavriel]

Ryouga doesn't really seem to bother with anything sexist until after seeing Ranma's curse. And then after that almost everything that he does bother with the gender role for something on tends to be something to either taunt or tease Ranma about.

Look at where Ryouga met Ukyo. No thought to check the neck or believe what he was being told he had to see her bindings cut before he believed she was a she.

I say there's a good case for Ryouga being at least partly Gender Blind unless the mamaries are staring him in the face.

[Crescent Pulsar]

I found that hard to understand, partly due to your writing. What exactly are you saying? That, somehow, because Ryoga needs more blatant signs than the usual person to identify something, that he can't tell if it's a girly sport despite (in this case) the form-fitting leotards involved? O.o