Three Sisters

My Review

This is probably the most unusual Ranma-chan/Ranko story I will be reviewing. It has several elements that normally would cause me not to review it.

1. Ranma dies right off.

2. It involves space aliens.

3. It involves, albeit briefly, a crossover with another series.

I don't like it when main characters die, unless their death is logical and fits in the storyline. For example, in one story, Cologne dies of illness and old age. Not something that is impossible, and in that story it works. In way too many stories, though, the writer likes to kill off one or more people, maybe because they just don't like that character or something. Usually it's not necessary for the story, usually it's not logical, and usually it actually hurts, rather than helps, the story itself.

There are certainly space aliens in anime. Lots of them. But none in traditional Ranma ½ stories. Even the vast, vast majority of fanfics don't use aliens. This is Ranma ½, not the X-Files.

I don't like crossover stories. I have yet to read a full-fledged crossover story that works. The crossover itself is almost always unrealistic. It's hard enough to write believably for one series, but trying to write believably for two series, especially two series that have nothing to do with each other is incredibly difficult. (The crossover element in this story is only a brief mention of "aliens" in another district, referring to Lum, etc.)

Given all that, when I started reading the story I initially thought it was done rather well despite my above misgivings. As I read more, though, I realized this story falls into my "some really good parts and some really bad parts" realm.

What I like about the story: even though Ranma-kun dies, three female versions of him (essentially) all come to life; Ranma-chan, Ranko and Kikuko, all three thoroughly female. There is some decent character development as in when Kodachi actually ends up finally getting herself together and acting like a decent person.

There is also some humor, for example early on when Shampoo comes on to Nabiki and when Kuno keeps getting beat up..

Beyond that, though, the story proved disappointing. The premise that Ranma died and his soul joined with some form of galactic-traveling souls I can take. It's basically a "suspension of disbelief" type of situation. If the story had involved just the three nendo-kata then it might have worked. The problem is that there are way too many of these individuals. Ukyou becomes one; Tsubasa becomes one; Azusa becomes one; it becomes just too much to be acceptable. It's the single biggest drawback to the entire story.

The type of language some of the characters use also seems stilted at times. I can understand the language of the nendo-kata being of a more formal nature, but even Akane, Kasumi and Nabiki don't seem to be talking like they do in the series. It's hard to explain; it's one of those things that just doesn't feel right, somehow.

In the eighth chapter, when the group defeats some thugs that were attacking a girl they take their money and this really seems wrong. Turn them over to the police, o.k. Leave them in their underwear to be embarrassed, ok. Taking their money, not ok, especially not when two of the people involved (Ranma-chan and Ukyou) and nendo-kata and "highly evolved" individuals.

I think if the story had dealt solely with the Ranma-chan/Ranko/Kikuko group it could have been a very good story. As it is, it's ok and different but not one of the best of this group of stories I've listed in my Ranma-chan fiction section.

Part 1

Genma falls into one cursed spring and turns into a Panda. Ranma falls into another and turns into a girl. This time, though, Ranma is so shocked by what has happened that he panics and, in that act, drowns. Suddenly Ranma's body levitates out of the spring and three rocks appear suddenly.

Something in the rocks mentally communicates with the guide and we learn that one is Ranma's soul, one is Ranko's soul (she was stillborn), and the third is the soul of the girl who originally drowned in the spring.

Three girls come from the rocks, all duplicates of Ranma-chan except one has reddish-purple eyes, one has light green eyes and the third has brown eyes.

One girl is Kikuko (the spirt of the original drowned girl), one is Ranko ( the spirit of the Nodoka's stillborn child) and the third is Ranma-chan. The girls exhibit telepathic abilities right off.

The girls are Nendo-kata. Their human souls were merged with the souls of wandering, peaceful aliens. The Nendo-kata are all females and can only mate with other females. We then have the arrival scene at the Tendos, but this time with three girls instead of one girl/boy.

The girls explain what happened at Jusenkyo and show how the panda can be transformed into Genma. Ranma-chan takes a liking to Akane, Ranko to Nabiki, and Kikuko to Kasumi.

The girls explain that they are spiritual symbionts, one half alien, one half human. Nabiki explains that aliens have already come to earth (Lum, etc). Soun also has heard of the Nendo-kata.

At this point some interesting things happen. Ranma explains to Akane what she thinks the results of her being half boy/half girl would have been (negative); that her father is a chauvinist (duh!), and that she was trained in the martial arts so much that she is basically one-dimensional and doesn't know much of anything else. All of these are very good points and quite realistic.

Ranma explains that all Nendo-kata are female, and that the reproduce with other females by parthenogenesis, stimulated by their telekinetic powers. (Since the reproduction is by parthenogenesis, all children born would be female, naturally.)

Then the author reveals another interesting variation on the Ranma ½ theme. All three girls were in the Amazon village (as was Ranma in the canon universe), but the Amazons saw their powers and the girls feared major trouble would arise. so they left. Honesty and hurting no one unless absolutely necessary are two main driving forces of the Nendo-kata.

Ranma tells Akane that she feels Akane is the right person for her to mate with. The two were in the dojo and when they return to the house they reveal that they now consider themselves engaged, at least for the time being. Nabiki and Ranko will team up as will Kasumi and Kikuko.

Back in the Amazon village, Shampoo says she is in love with Ranko. Elsewhere, Ukyou and Ryouga are talking and we find out Ukyou is also a Nendo-kata. (This, again, is my major problem with the story; there just seem to be too many of the Nendo-kata concentrated in a very small geographic area.

The other criticism I have is the manner in which the people speak. I think that Akane, Nabiki and Kasumi speak a little more formally then they do in the series and, with Akane at least, with a lot more maturity. At times it's like all the girls are adults rather than teen-age girls; actually, all the time.

Part 2

The three sisters reveal that they have telepathic, telekinetic and empathic abilities. One of the nicest philosophical points of the story arises when Ranma-chan explains that the Nendo-kata do not really care about age, gender preference or physical appearance of an individual; they are concerned with that the person is inside.

The story gets somewhat wilder when two men arrive. They represent a special United Nations group that helps aliens adjust to life on earth; the men are the Men in Black (MIB). They also reveal that there are actual treaties with governments on other worlds. They have also provided official identification for Kikuko and Ranko so they can attend school; they have also provided the three girls with some money of their own in a bank account.

Ranma is very concerned that Akane will not be able to improve her martial arts skills as long as she is attacked by the boys every morning before school. The attacks don't require any skill from her so she isn't growing in her knowledge of the martial arts.

During lunch at school the girls are talking with Nabiki and reveal Ranko is the last member of her "school" of eight left alive; Ranma-chan and Kikuko are the last survivors of their "school" of six Nendo-kata.

The sisters let Akane know that Kuno does not take her seriously; he holds back when he fights her. That infuriates her. In the auditorium, later, she makes speech denouncing Kuno and his actions; she adds that she and Ranma-chan are engaged and that the daily attacks on her need to stop.

Chapter 3

They set up sleeping arrangements, Kikuko with Kasumi, Ranko with Nabiki and Ranma-chan with Akane. The three Nendo-Kata sisters begin to assume their unique personalities; Ranma-chan is a tomboy; Ranko a self-assured woman, and Kikuko a traditional maiden.

Things worsen, though, when Ranma-chan finds out that Nodoka is coming to visit. The ashes of Ranma's original body are stored in an urn that Ranma-chan has. Nodoka goes into the dojo where the three girls are and Ranma-chan gives her Ranma's ashes.

Instead of trouble, though, Nodoka accepts the three girls as her daughters. Nodoka finds out, though, the things that Genma did during their training trip including engaging Ranma to various girls and getting Ranma to steal things so they would have money and food. Nodoka is not pleased.

Further, the relationship with Ukyou is discussed and everyone sees the kinds of problems that might cause.

Then there is a brief scene in which we learn that Ukyou also has unusual powers and it is implied that she is also a Nendo-Kata.

Kuno has not gotten the message as he gets a bunch of boys to attack Ranma-chan, but she defeats them easily. While Ranma-chan and the others are in class and explaining to their classmates just what happened to Kuno, Ukyou arrives and also beats up Kuno (with reason.) Then Shampoo arrives.

Chart time:

1. Kikuko (traditional maiden) + Kasumi

2. Ranko ("liberated" woman) + Nabiki + Shampoo

3. Ranma-chan (tomboy) + Akane + Ukyou

Kuno then enters the classroom and attacks, injuring Shampoo in the process. Ranko and Kuno fight outside and Ranko wins (of course).

Chapter 4

A decision is made to build a guest house to help handle the ever-growing group.The engagement between Ranma-chan and Akane is cancelled to give Ukyou an even chance for becoming her fiancee.

Ukyou thinks that she and Akane should become sisters (by adoption), and one of the other Nendo-kata become adopted by the Tendous. It also seems that once people are bonded in the Nendo-kata style their cycles will mesh and a sort of pon farr will take place leading rather quickly to someone becoming pregnant.

It's revealed that Mousse is on his way to confront Ranma. He arrives at the school where he demolishes a wall. There's a major fight between him and Ranko, but Ryouga shows up along with an Amazon elder. Seems Mousse is violating a bunch of Amazon laws (and regular laws, too) by stalking Shampoo.

Ryouga shows up and deals with Mousse. Kuno is dealt with when a Dreamweaver shows him just what girl really loves him. (In this reality it was Mousse who knocked Ryouga off a cliff into one of the springs).

Ryouga reveals that he was in a fight with Tsubasa once and used a very powerful technique, not knowing that Ukyo was nearby. She was killed but her "wanderer" half merged with her human part and so she became a nendo-kata. Rouyga and Ranma-chan/Ranko/Kikuko all get along well now.

Chapter 5

Ryouga finds out that his curse involves having the actual spirit of a pig in him and he wants the spirit to be freed to live its own life. They manage to communicate with the spirit and tell it that, sometime later, it will be freed. It seems to want to be in human form when it's released.

In trying to figure out how to fulfill all the engagement promises Genma made, Nodoka and the others come up with a plan.

Ukyou and Akane will be adopted by Nodoka and become Saotomes.

Kikuko will be adopted by the Tendous.

Akane states that she wants Ranma-chan to be her lifemate but the laws, of course, won't allow a woman-woman marriage and states she is now Akane Saotome. Ukyou then formally becomes a Saotome with Ranma-chan and Akane.

The Dreamweaver looks at the possible future for the three together and it looks good, although she points out they will have to actively work at it.

It's later revealed that something very bad happened in Akane's past, but at this point we don't know what it is.

Mousse appears again and is quickly gotten rid of. Tsubasa meets Kodcachi and it seems that Tsubasa is also a nendo-kata.

Chapter 6

Azusa now enters the story. Apparently a couple of weeks before Azusa and Kodachi had sex with each other. We also find out that, due to the crossing over, Tsubasa is now physically a woman.

Kodachi and Tsubasa decided to go on a date sometime.

Kodachi and Tsubasa are attacked by three male thugs. Azusa saves them by severely beating the thugs.

There is further reference made to whatever had happened really bad to Akane in the past.

Chapter 7

There is going to have to be a way for the dojo group to start bringing more money, so Nabiki is going to work on that. At the school, Mousse attacks and this time is sent skyward by Ukyou.

Kuno and other members of the kendo team attack Kikuko but are easily defeated. Kuno attacks again and is again easily defeated. Kuno attacks yet again and yet again is easily defeated.

Meanwile, Azusa and Tsubasa have used some form of sexual therapy to heal Kodachi.

A group of girls from Kodachi's school are attacking a group of girls from Ranma-chan's school, the group that was behind the attack on her. Meanwhile, at the school Kuno attacks yet again, this time coming very near to seriously hurting Akane before he he is sent out the window by Ranma-chan.

Akane is emotionally in really bad shape and Ranma-chan and Ukyou take her home.

It's then revealed that Akane was raped four years ago.

Chapter 8

The Dreamweaver (now an adopted Hibiki) talks to Nabiki and they end up falling in love.

Mousse attacks Kikuko thinking she's Ranko but Cologne and another nendo-kata arrive. Cologne puts Mousse to sleep. Ranma-chan and Ukyou are working with Akane to try and help her heal emotionally.

Five thugs are attacking one girl when Akane, Ukyou and Ranma-chan arrive. They are quickly defeated and the girls end up taking their money and buying earrings.

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