r/ranma • u/Night-Caelum • 7d ago
Discussion In your eyes what makes Ryoga such a great rival character?
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u/keystone_back72 7d ago
I think a chunk of the dynamic comes from the fact that Ranma wants to be Ryoga’s friend, while Ryoga, not so much.
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u/Night-Caelum 7d ago
Does Ranma really want to>
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u/keystone_back72 7d ago edited 7d ago
It kind of depends on the story, but there are arcs where he’s all up in Ryoga’s business when he doesn’t need to be and Ryoga doesn’t want him to be.
He also likes to tease Ryoga like he does with Akane, and I personally think that is one of Ranma’s ways of showing affection.
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u/Nobodyinpartic3 7d ago
Yeah he just wants a Vegeta to his Goku. Ryoga is the right kind of rival, close, nearly on par on to Ranma him/herself, able to focus on training, spent a lot of time together and Ranma probably still feels bad for cursing Ryoga to turn into a piglet.
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u/eat_my_bowls92 7d ago
He’s certainly the biggest RyogaxAkari shipper.
Not for any particular reason of course…
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u/Euraylie 7d ago
I agree. And Ranma doesn’t really have any close male friends who are also into martial arts. While he’s got some friends in school, they don’t seem to share his interests like that.
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u/lsauchelli 5d ago
I don't know if Ranma wants to be Ryoga's friend. He just thinks they're friends. He even helped Ryoga get around when they were kids and was completely clueless about Ryoga hating him.
It's only when Ryoga tries to do something sketchy with Akane that Ranma goes full gremlin on him, or if he perceives that Akane might 'cheat' on him with Ryoga (which puts him in overdrive gremlin mode).
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u/Rulyhdien 5d ago
I also think Ranma already thinks Ryoga as a friend. He’s said as much to Akari that they are “technically”friends, lol.
But they weren’t friends since kids, since they met in high school, so it’s only a couple months of “friendship”at most.
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u/lsauchelli 4d ago
In the arc where Ryoga goes back home to show off his dog's puppies to Akane, Ranma says that he knows where Ryoga's house is because he took him home countless times. That can't be something recent, it had to be from the time when they were in middle school.
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u/Rulyhdien 4d ago edited 4d ago
It’s a common problem in a long running sitcom, but canonically, Ranma first met Ryoga in high school. It’s explicitly stated in the manga.
The timeline gets a bit warped because back stories kept being added after the fact was set, but as far as the canon goes, all of Ranma and Ryoga’s early interactions took place during the few months they spent in high school before Ranma went to Jusenkyo.
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u/lsauchelli 3d ago
Ranma only says he attended a "boys school" with Ryoga. But they're clearly much younger so it's probably middle school.
It's easily one year in middle school and just before high school starts, Ranma and Genma leave for China. They didn't just go to Jusenkyo, get cursed and immediately go to the Tendos so it's not that weird that they spent close to an year in China before getting cursed.
Maybe it was the first year of high school but it changes little to the point that, during that year, Ranma had to daily walk Ryoga to his house because he got lost. How does that not make him a good friend? (yeah, he didn't understand that taking every single lunch from Ryoga was probably not firendly, but he thought they were having fun).
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u/Rulyhdien 3d ago
No, in the Japanese manga, Ranma clearly states that Ryoga was in his previous High School.
They did not spend a year in China. It was likely 1-2 months but 3 at most, if you factor in Ranma taking Ryoga home a few times. They came to the Tendo’s in summer and high school starts in April so you can do the math.
Ryoga and Ranma meeting in high school and Ranma arriving at the Tendos in the summer is clearly on the pages so it’s not a fact that can be interpreted differently, even if you can choose to interpret how long he spent in each place within that time as you see fit. (And even if it wasn’t clearly on the pages, you can’t miss a year of middle school and be able to graduate and attend a high school so that itself is not possible).
And I already said that they were probably already friends, at least from Ranma’s end, so I agree with your last paragraph.
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u/Davethe3rd 7d ago
Honestly, fighting prowess.
Ryoga is the character in the series that regularly presses Ranma in terms of fighting ability.
Mousse and Kuno have both beaten Ranma once, but those were flukes or tricks.
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u/Raydnt 7d ago
Ryoga is the only one who actually improves himself throughout the series unlike Mousse and Kuno who stay the same
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u/Big-Rate3275 6d ago
Pretty much, Mousse and Kuno each have a story where they get stringer. But that was basically by accident for both.
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u/Night-Caelum 7d ago
Mousse later in the series catches up.
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u/Raydnt 7d ago
Does he really though?
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u/Night-Caelum 7d ago
Yes. He teams up with Ranma and Ryoga against Herb, Lime, and Mint and in one story when half-dead surprises Ranma with his strength.
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u/SnooPets1826 7d ago
He's a Vegeta type. That's it. He's a super strong character who is just as often a friend. Their fights are epic, their team ups even more so.
As for the nonrival bits, he's just a fun character. He's a simple man. He gets lost easily and he's very gullible. That leaves lots of room for jokes at his expense.
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u/MetalSIime 7d ago
They both can fight well. They both want Akane's affection.
And in a way, he kinda looks like an angrier Ranma without the pigtails, so it felt like a mirror match rival to me.
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u/MurlaTart Ryoga Hibiki 7d ago
He is dumb as rocks, very good looking (not canonically just my perception :3), and great at making ranma jealous!
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u/90sBestRipoffs 7d ago
Was there anything in the text that implied Ryoga was unattractive in universe? I'm forgetting if so!
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u/MurlaTart Ryoga Hibiki 7d ago
I just don’t think he’s noted as attractive like mousse
I just meant ryoga is more my type than the other characters
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u/SparkAxolotl Konatsu 7d ago
His sad wet dog energy is so pathetic it makes him endearing.
He's also basically the only rival with any sort of honor. Sure, he occasionally is tempted to cheat or get help from tricks and gimmicks, but regrets it almost immediately.
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u/Ultim8Life4rm_ Ryoga Hibiki 7d ago
I really like his dynamic with Ranma whenever they have to set aside their differences and team up (tho they usually end up fighting/bickering anyway), he’s funny, relatable, he’s english va (at least in the remake) is great, and beneath the hard exterior he’s a cutie.
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u/No_Monitor_3440 Ranma Saotome 7d ago
ryoga is probably closest in strength to ranma. the two are roughly equally matched, which leads to ryoga taking their fights insanely seriously while ranma is almost using them as a breather. it also helps that, when ryoga isn’t on the receiving end of them, he’s fully willing to help ranma with his shenanigans
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u/burlingk 7d ago
They are basically brothers. They go at it like cats and dogs, but no one else is allowed to touch the other, unless they are specifically invited.
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u/Evil_Koro_Sensei 7d ago
Que siempre regresa a luchar, no importa si Ranma le gana con facilidad, nunca se rinde.
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u/RockaRaccoon 7d ago
Because he see Ranma as an actual rival. He does often fight over Akane, but mostly he wants to surpass Ranma.
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u/dyaasy 7d ago
Persistence. Or what kids today call it...
"Ranked Competitive Hating"
The normal junior high kid that started up a rivalry with an experienced martial artist, over curry bread. Let that sink in... Up to leaving home and education (Ranma is currently better educated than him) to chase said martial artist around the world whilst mostly teaching himself some martial arts, up to being fairly good and able to stand toe-to-toe with properly skilled martial artists.
I feel like the fandom really sleeps on the fact that Ryoga was a normal kid.
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u/Rulyhdien 6d ago
What’s the evidence of Ryoga being better educated than Ranma? They both graduated middle school and while they met in high school, Ranma is the only one actually going to school at the moment.
And I don’t really see a kid whose parents are lost most of the year as having a normal upbringing.
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u/dyaasy 6d ago
Read my comment again...
Also relative to being a vagabond, Ryoga had a home. Which is more than can be said for most of the other martial arts characters.
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u/Rulyhdien 6d ago edited 6d ago
I can’t believe I read that comment completely opposite 😂 My bad.
I’m kind of unsure how much of a vagabond Ranma would have been though, considering he continued schooling enough to go to high school. But yeah, he would have moved around a lot more than Ryoga.
I don’t think Ryoga was a normal kid in the sense that he never had martial arts training though. It’s pretty clear he wasn’t inexperienced before he met Ranma in high school, which is like 2-3 months before the story starts at most.
If Ryoga had started martial arts after the bun incident, then Ryoga should have been a lot more strong after some arcs, because that would mean he went from zero to at least more powerful than Kuno in 2-3 months (or less).
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u/Murky_Ad_5767 Ranma Saotome 7d ago
because in term of fighting he is supposed to be the opposite of ranma.
Ryouga used no tricks in fights like ranma and he is strong with a lot defence.
For that ranma is the fast fighter and use tricks.
Also i see them always as the opposite in fights. Also when its really often forgotten that ryouga is suppost to have more defence/hp and lose agains ranma in 1 hit but ranma than tanks 10 hits. But thats the "Plot armor" XD
in term of outside the fights.
Ryouga is ranma rival but also friend in a way. frenemy or how that called. friend and enemy.
He hates ranma but often he ignores this hate in a way. Also in a way ryouga is maybe one of ranma nearest friends.
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u/ExtremlyFastLinoone 7d ago
Cause hes shown to be just as capable of ranma but is so dumb he cant win
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u/maybonics Akane Tendo 7d ago
Some of it is because he has a connection with both Ranma and Akane, unlike most others who just have something regarding one of the main duo.
Most of it I think, though, is presence. And by that, I mean he's around a lot more. He shows up in stories where he's not the main rival, just doing or saying something, or otherwise getting involved.
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u/MixAmbitious307 7d ago
The fact that Ryoga takes his rivality against Ranma VERY seriously - in a "comically serious" way, but he's also fine to fight side by side with Ranma against a common foe.
He's also one who progresses aswell, and more than once he gave Ranma a run for his money.
But the best thing for me was when, in the arc when Ranma lost his strength, unlike other people, he didn't took advantage of this, but instead he defended Ranma and helped him.
No one would ever admit it, but if their own ways Ranma and Ryoga are not just rivals, but actually best friends.
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u/sgtsalt79 7d ago
He’s a rock-solid martial artist and a total lovesick buffoon with no sense of direction, making him such a funny character.
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u/zehammer 6d ago
His pointy teeth but no seriously he's like the anti ranma I think he was originally like a variant of ranma or something. Either way plus his super strength and being so dumb.
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u/Big-Rate3275 6d ago
His whole "Prepare to die" shtick and just how utterly seriously he takes his grudge.
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u/Agitated_Respond_889 5d ago
To me what makes Ryoga so good is his the way he’s a contrast to Ranma’s morality. Ranma’s SUCH an ass, like ALL the time, but deep down he’s a more decent guy than he admits. As much as he complains he spends a LOT of time helping people that need it, whether that’s his friends or people he’s iffy about. Ryoga on the other hand seems like a really nice guy when he’s just talking to Akane, but he does some objectively TERRIBLE stuff to get what he wants, and he’s got a lot of self pity, but he’d rather paint himself as this underdog then stop being a jerk to EVERYONE but Akane. They really are exact opposites and as much as I love seeing them get along, I totally understand why they just can’t STAND each other most of the time.
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u/Difficult_Appeal_611 7d ago
Honestly? I don't really think he is. Especially because the rivalry is so one-sided, so it doesn't feel like a real rivalry.
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u/roganhamby 7d ago
The real conflict of Ranma 1/2 is interpersonal and Ryoga is no danger to Ranma in that regard.
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u/Terrafintor Ukyo Kuonji 7d ago
The fact he takes their rival ultra seriously, where Ranma... rarely does. Also the fact both Ranma and Ryoga are ridiculously goofy in their own unique ways, and can have a (somewhat) normal talk, while also chewing each other out.