Subject: RE: Yet another question...
From: Neill Walker <[email-masked]>
To: "'Ranma 1/2 Mailing List'" <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 30 Apr 1996 22:31:45 -0600

>Roy is actually slightly confused.  The Japanese phoneme that gets written
>as "r" is actually a cross between the "r" and "l".  In short, although it
>sounds closer to an "r," when one pronounces it one is supposed to tap the
>top of the palate with the tongue like an "l".  Because it sounds more like
>an "r" than an "l", it is usually written in Roman characters as "r".  When
>transliterating from English to Japanese, both "r" and "l" are converted to
>the same sound.  This is why many Japanese people will confuse words like
>"pray" and "play" with each other.  So, "Ranma" and "Lanma" are both valid
>pronunciations of the same Japanese name, because to a Japanese ear the
>two names are equivalent.  Viz could have easily released the series as
>"Lanma 1/2," but since there was already all this Japanese merchandise and
>posters using "Ranma 1/2," it would be silly to do so.  I believe another
>American company released "Lupin III" as "Rupan III," so problems like this
>are not uncommon.

So it's NOT just pronunciation!

>As for the other questions:

>Yes, but it's very likely that Rumiko Takahashi came up with the story long
>after she decided that Ranma should wear a pigtail.  She couldn't very well
>reclaim all the old manga and redraw Ranma to have a ponytail, right?  In
>any case, Rumiko Takahashi never gives a satisfactory explanation to this
>answer.

Well, a change in hairstyle is just a little thing... I was just curious why he'd change it after the curse.  I think he looks just as good with his ponytail.

>By the way, what makes you think the pigtail is braided?

Well, unless he ties a string all the way down it, it's hard to make that "cocktail wiener" look...

>>3. Where can I get those cool balls to stick in my hair?
>
>Are you referring to Shampoo's hairstyle?  In that case, there are no "balls"
>hidden in her hair; it's just that with long hair one can roll them into a
>ball and tie them.  

Hoo boy, I've got a little ways to go then... I'll have to settle for