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Summary
My personal queer discovery actually came from a classicanimethat was incredibly forward-thinking for its time. Every member of the LGBTQ+ community has had their moment where they realize their identity in one way or another. For many, though, pop culture has played a major role because ofa story’s own LGBTQ+ charactersand premise being relatable to personal experiences. Anime played a role for me, with one cult-classic series helping me come to terms with my own gender identity.
Ranma 1/2, based on the manga by Rumiko Takahashi, is a series that hasbecome a major icon for the Trans community. It follows the adventures of Ranma, a young man who’s experienced in martial arts. However, when he falls into a cursed pool during a training session, he discovers that he turns into a girl whenever he’s splashed with cold water. Hijinks ensue, ashe comes face-to-face with threats that require him to swap between his gendered personas while he searches for a way to reverse the curse.
It’s an incredibly entertaining series, but its themes led to a lot of Trans people discovering their identities, including myself.
My Hero Academia’s Trans Characters Were Way Ahead of Their Time
Though the clues might be easy to miss, My Hero Academia has subtly introduced two transgender characters within the pages of the manga.
Ranma’s Premise Alone Establishes a Crucial Question for Gender Questioning People
Would You Reverse the Curse?
Upon hearing the premise for the first time in college, I was incredibly curious to seek outRanma 1/2. Something about the subject called me. I’d been subconsciously questioning my own identity for years, but it was something that I’d constantly suppress in order to live my life the way that society expected. When I found it streaming on Hulu, I started the first episode and found my whole worldview beginning to shift.
Immediately upon hearing Ranma’s backstory, it got me thinking about what my own actions would be if I found myself in the same situation.Would I truly try to reverse this curse? If I could change my body to the opposite gender, would I go out of my way to change myself back if it’s as simple as splashing myself with hot water?
Ranma still identifies with masculine pronouns, even in his feminine form.
This is undeniably the question that has made the series such a mainstay for Trans individuals. It can be incredibly affirming to question if the gender one was assigned at birth is right for them, and media likeRanma 1/2can be a great outlet for this. By setting up Ranma’s dilemma as something that can be changed at will rather than forced upon him like how a werewolf changes under a full moon, it sets up the idea that it’s his choice to go back-and-forth between being a guy and a girl.
Ranma 1/2Views Femininity in a Positive Light
Ranma’s Curse Isn’t a Detriment
As I would continue my binge-watching, I began to notice the positive viewpointRanma 1/2has on femininity. For a series that clearly establishes that Ranma wants nothing more than to break himself from his curse, he changes consistently at will, not just by mistake. There are times when he takes on his feminine form in ways that can make attaining his goals easier than if he were a guy.This leads to him beginning to be comfortable as a woman, since he will occasionally be shown in this form casually without any rush to change back.
“Seeing a strong character like Ranma realize that these pre-conceived ideas of femininity and womanhood equating to weakness are actually fabricated societal lies is a powerful message for Trans people in the closet[…]”
It’s a fascinating way to show not just comfort in womanhood, but also power. Ranma is clearly shown in the beginning of the series to be at odds with the curse, feeling shame at times for turning into a girl. However, as he sees the benefits of working with the curse, he begins to realize it’s not as bad as he once believed.Seeing a strong character like Ranma realize that these pre-conceived ideas of femininity and womanhood equating to weakness are actually fabricated societal lies is a powerful messagefor Trans-femme people who are still in the closet, like I was at the time, as he begins to willingly change when he feels like it.
Manga’s First Trans Character Debuted Decades Before Marvel or DC’s
While Marvel and DC have recently gotten some pushback for the inclusion of more LGBTQ+ characters, manga debuted its first trans character in 1978.
The Episode ofRanma 1/2that Made Me Realize I Was Trans
Season 3’s “Am I…Pretty?” Changes Everything
Egg-cracking is a common term in the Trans community that describes the moment when a questioning person realizes that they’re Trans.I never thought that this would happen to me, until I sat down to watch the season three episode ofRanma 1/2titled “Am I…Pretty?” Ranma’s Declaration of Womanhood!" This story focuses on Ranma as he accidentally hits his head incredibly hard during training. When he wakes up, his mannerisms have changed as he fully identifies as a girl, not remembering his life before as a guy.It’s a unique take on a typical amnesia storyline, but two particular moments from this episode awoke something in me.
The first notable scene is when Akane changes Ranma back to his guy form while he still identifies as a woman. The absolute horror on his face as he sees a body he doesn’t connect with in the mirror is gut-wrenching and an accurate portrayal of how badly gender dysphoria can affect people. It can be disheartening to not see who you are looking back in the mirror. However, the other stand-out scene features Ranma eating with Akane. When the latter asks Ranma if he’s truly forgotten his life as a boy, he responds with an incredible monologue:
“I don’t know quite how to describe it. It’s as if my experiences until now aren’t mine. It seems so unreal. As if I have another person’s memories. And this morning, the real me suddenly awakened. I finally realized that I was a woman.”
This was my egg-cracking moment.It was as if everything I had felt throughout my high school years had finally been expressed in one simple dialogue, validating the years of questioning I had been experiencing. It was at that point I knew I was Trans.
Since watching that episode, my life has changed for the better. I’m a year into hormone replacement therapy and have been living as myself with my partner for even longer than that. However, I will never forget the roleRanma 1/2played as a statuette of Ranma sits at my desk every day. It’s ananimethat was so forward-thinking that it inspired my own queer self-discovery, changing my life for the better in every way possible.
