To the surprise of no one, Netflix’s new adaptation of the classic gender-swapping comedy series Ranma 1/2 has revealed the insane depths of the Western transgender activist moment’s more die-hard acolytes, as less than 24 hours after it hit the streaming platform, said individuals were quick to express their hopes that the anime would lead more people to realize that they themselves are transgender.
Adapted from Rumiko Takahashi’s iconic manga of the same name, Ranma 1/2 centers around the 16-year-old Ranma Saotome (CV: Kappei Yamaguchi – Kaito Kid in Detective Conan), a fledgling, ‘anything goes’-type of martial artist.
As part of his training, his father Genma (CV: Cho – Kazuo Yamashita in Kengan Asura) takes him to China, where they proceed to test their skills on the cursed Jusenkyo training ground, its terrain full of cursed springs that will transform a person into whatever creature first fell into it and drowned.
During their sparring match, Genma falls into the Shonmaoniichuan – the Cursed Spring of Drowned Panda – and Ranna into the Nyanniichuan – the Spring of Drowned Girl.
As a result, now when Ranma and Genma are dowsed in cold water, they respectfully transform into a cute girl (CV: Megumi Hayashibara – Anna Kyouyama in Shaman King) and a giant panda, with hot water returning them to their original forms
Throughout the series, Ranma usually avoids turning into a girl as much as necessary, only really showing a willingness to use his female side for comedic antics or to go undercover in service of a goal. Further, Ranma not only expresses numerous times throughout the series just how much he detests this curse, but also spends its page count/run time (depending on which version of it you’re engaging with) seeking a way to reverse it.
Yet, despite the hero’s clear disdain for his curse, a large number of Western fans – many of whom themselves attribute their own transgender awakening to the series – have taken to pushing the narrative that due to its depiction of Ranma as sliding between both his male and female forms, Takahashi always intended for Ranma 1/2 to be a trans allegory.
As such, when Mappa’s anime remake hit Netflix on October 5th, transgender activists showed out in full force to share their excitement of the idea that the series would ‘crack the egg’ for a new generation of transgender people.
For those unaware of just what the phrase ‘crack the egg’ is referring to, ‘Eggs’ are what transgender activists call individuals (usually those who don’t fit into gender stereotypes, such as tomboys or feminine men) who they believe are either unaware or in denial of their trans-status, and ‘Cracking the Egg’ is essentially short hand for ‘making someone realize that they are transgender.’
In light of this framing, some activists believe it is their duty to ‘crack’ these ‘eggs’, usually by way of exposing an individual to ‘transgender-related’ media or just vehemently insisting that they are until they agree.
On Twitter, @aria_of_effect tweeted following the series’ premiere, “And with that… the deafening sound of thousands of eggs cracking simultaneously could be heard throughout the world.”
“This gonna crack more eggs than…. Well…. Probably this show being pirate-able in the 2000s,” @Carmparens stated.
@AfterCrashVT proclaimed, “Welcome all to the cracked egg society.”
“Netflix bouta be makin omelettes,” @aTastyHaggis tweeted.
@KomorebiGold declared, “I, for one, would like to welcome all the new cracked eggs into the trans family.”
@Ranting_Trans was so confident in their belief that the return of Ranma 1/2 would result in the creation of more transgender people that they declared, “Calling an emergency council of the trans agenda. We’re about to get an influx of cracked eggs and we do NOT have the infrastructure to handle that right now”.
“Please consider donating your Blahajs [a blue-shark toy made and sold by IKEA which the online transgender community has adopted as a de facto mascot] and thigh highs [often worn by male-to-female individuals due to their ability to both hide leg hair and ‘slim’ the leg’s overall shape] to those less fortunate,” they added.
