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AKA: Ranma 1/2 Kessen Tougenkyou! Hanayome o torimodose!!, Ranma 1/2 Decisive Battle in Togenkyo: Bring Back the Brides!!
Genre: Martial arts romance comedy
Length: Movie, 60 minutes
Distributor: Currently licensed by Viz Entertainment
Content Rating: 10+ (violence, fan service)
Related Series: Seasons 1 to 7, twelve OAVs, one more movie, It's a Rumic World: 50th Anniversary Weekly★Shonen Sunday (crossover)
Also Recommended: Urusei Yatsura, Maison Ikkoku
Notes: Continuation of the Ranma 1/2 franchise, though this story is not based off any equivalent in the manga.
Rating:

Ranma 1/2 the Movie 2: Nihao My Concubine

Synopsis

What started out as a leisurely cruise on Kuno's yacht (a real yacht this time, not the rowboat like in the first movie) ended up having the entire Ranma cast getting shipwrecked on some deserted tropical island. While the crew tries to repair the ship, set up camp, kill Ranma, marry Ranma, etc., the females start mysteriously disappearing one by one.

Turns out that the girls are kidnapped by a prince (why does it always have to be princes?) named Toma, who's a master of illusion. Toma plans to marry one of the females (guess who?) and let the other "concubines" get married off to his (all male) minions. Ranma and the gang have to infiltrate Toma's palace and rescue the girls (AGAIN) from future unvoluntary wedlock.


Review

Hmph. Where to begin?

Takahashi Rumiko wasn't really happy with this movie at all, and neither am I. The film tries to recapture the typical mayhem found within Ranma 1/2 gatherings, but often resorts to using Ranma "cliches" to get its point across. Without any extra humorous "punch," the gags fall way short of the humorous caliber of other Ranma anime. In fact, they get darn tiresome after awhile.

And the plot is no better. It was bad enough that the "rescue the females" plot had been used before, but why in the world would they want to use the SAME plot AGAIN? Prince kidnaps females; Ranma and friends must rescue them. Ho hum. Beyond that, there is no plot. The ending is flat with no buildup whatsoever, and there's no tension caused by the events in the movie.

The movie seems to be nothing but an excuse to see the female cast of Ranma with ridiculously exaggerated figures wearing equally ridiculously revealing dresses. I swear, some of those bodies defy the laws of physics. Anyway...

Overall, pretty disappointing, especially for Ranma. There are some neat bits (like Ryoga's Shi Shi Hokodan), but you'd probably be better off looking elsewhere.

Raphael See

Recommended Audience: Same as the others, but the overemphasized bodies may give people pause before showing it to little kiddies. Yes, the "cheesecake" factor was more than a little high for this one.



Version(s) Viewed: VHS, English dub
Review Status: Full (1/1)
Ranma 1/2 the Movie 2: Nihao My Concubine © 1994 Takahashi Rumiko / Shogakukan Inc / Kitty / Fuji TV
 
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