Stupid things the characters have done

[antimatterenergy]

Therefore Ranma had time, and didnt learn his lines.

That is purely speculation. No proof one way or another. We do not know what Ranma does all the time. Hell we don't know what Ranma does most of the time in the manga. We see only what is important to the story/funny/had a reason. Showing what he was doing and whether he had the time to study was not important to the storyline so was not shown but doesn't mean that he had time. Your making the assumption he had time because you want to see it that way but it does not mean it was that way. Mine is an assumption as well. There is not enough information to rule it either way. He could have had the time to read it and didn't or he could have been too busy both are equally possible given the information shown.

If we only use what is shown or implied by the author than Ranma doesn't use the toilet since it is never shown or implied.

So how about a compromise, if he had time but didn't it is stupid.
If he was too busy than it is not stupid.

[Necavit]

You said he didnt have time because something might have happened that would prevent him.

You do realize the pointless of arguing could of's and might of's in a made up world. If nothing is shown in a fictional story we assume nothing of interest happens. Thats how writing works.

You need to prove something into exsistence. Rumiko shows time passing, a transistion. It means nothing of interest happens.

Your toliet example is absurb.
Its more along your line of reasoning to say

Ranma might not use the toliet.

I would argue: Well thats odd, the author never gave us a hint...

You argue: But he might not use it.

I: But we can assume since the author never left any clues...

You: But its never shown, your assuming he uses a toleit!

You need to prove something that isnt commonly assumed. I the reader assume Ranma uses the toleit. The reader assumes nothing happens during a transition because the author skips it and never mentions what happened during the passing time.

Therefore its safe to beleive that Ranma had spare time.

Now could Ranma have been busy solid for several hours? Yes its possible, but its also possible that all our world leaders are aliens, its just bloody unlikly. (This was for a cure, dosnt that take predcent in his books? Or was he fighting them for several hours, stopped to change into his Romeo costume and went to the play?)

Now this may seem like quite a rant for such a small comment. But you use this type of logic quite often. And it gets to me because using this arguments its impossible to prove anything. Its a made up world, anything could happen.

Mabye Im taking this too seriously. It Manga, not a thesis. So if ya want to agree to disagree, fine by me.

[antimatterenergy]

If nothing is shown in a fictional story we assume nothing of interest happens. Thats how writing works.

This is somewhat true, but for the point of the story nothing interesting happened. His fighting others, being busy, or reading it all do not matter to the story so they weren't shown. He could have had an entire adventure but for the point of the story it wouldn't have mattered and therefor wouldn't have been shown. I have read quite a few books where interesting happened but it wasn't told until a far later point or was only mentioned in passing because it wasn't important to the story.

There is absolutely nothing that shows what he was doing at that time. Both options too busy or just didn't want to are equally viable. Therefore really neither option has a valid reason to have preference over the other.

You need to prove something that isnt commonly assumed

How am I supposed to know what is commonly assumed. For some things like eating it is easy but for others like in this instance, without taking a poll, how would I know what common consensus for this is? I assumed he was too busy and didn't get a chance to read it and nothing contradicts that.

Now could Ranma have been busy solid for several hours? Yes its possible, but its also possible that all our world leaders are aliens, its just bloody unlikly.

Actually I view it highly likely he was busy for a few hours. There were three people who would have bothered him for longer than that. For him to be busy or not be busy given the information we have is near 50/50. The world leaders being aliens is a far smaller percentile.

As for taking it to seriously most everyone who posts on this site are already taking a fictional world to seriously. I tend to treat fictional worlds as if they were real worlds. That being the case, there are more than one option. Some fictional worlds like Batman for instance they even show other options in the form of alterverses. For this it is very easy to show more variables because only two variables are required, had time to study and didn't have time to study.

The toilet comment, was to only point out that many things happen that are not shown.

[windstorm]

Back to the true point of this thread, listing actions people found incredibly stupid in the series, which isn't a debate topic.

Obviously some of the stupidity in the series is needed to make it both funny and interesting, but whatever, listing stuff like that is fun at times. So without further ado my list (though I won't add stuff that was already mentioned).

Ryouga:
-For following Ranma to China for a fight over bread after he was three days late.
-Blaming and trying to extract revenge on Ranma for his curse before he actually knew Ranma was responsible for it.

Mousse:
-Trying to keep Ranma from preventing Shampoo being locked as a cat when she was captured by Mamolin (the ghost cat), even if it did mean he had to kiss her.
-The sheer number of times he does not wear his glasses.

Akane:
-For throwing cold water on Ranma when she found Shampoo sleeping with him and putting his life at risk.
-Her first insistence of Ranma being a pervert when she walked in on him in the bathroom on the basis that she is a girl.

Soun:
-For allowing the Gambling King to take his dojo when his claim was invalid given that both Ukyo and Ranma discovered that he had cheated when the initial bet was made. Ranma also never had authority to bet the dojo as a kid anyways since he was neither the owner nor the real holder of the deed.

[Necavit]

His ignorance of the material is pointed out many times. Yet we see no effort on screen to read it.

But you argue that as soon as hes off screen he tries to read it but has no time becuase of unavoidable errands.

I dont understand your book example. These adventures were eventually told to you, therefore happnened, therefore the auhtor wanted you to know.

My problem is that you invent things that the author dosnt write about, and the series is done so nothing else is coming.

Commonly assumed things are that Ranma uses the toleit and eats. Yes many things happen that arnt shown. Because there mundane. If its important, were told about it.

Ive decided this is moot. We thrown are arguments down.

And Yes yes back to the topic.

[antimatterenergy]

But you argue that as soon as hes off screen he tries to read it but has no time becuase of unavoidable errands.

If its important, were told about it.

That is part of my argument. What he did at that time was not important to the storyline. Any number of things could have happened that really do not have impact on the storyline. For all we know Happosai stole his copy of the play and he spent most of the time trying to get it back. We do not know the details of what happened at that time any number of things could have prevented him from reading it, the only acceptable to you seems to be that he didn't feel like it.

The core of my argument is simply we do not know why Ranma did not read it. There are many completely valid reason that he might not have done so. Therefor it is or isn't a stupid act depending on what his reason for not reading it was. Since we do not know the reason we can not say with any accuracy whether it was or not.

Didn't feel like it = stupid.
Happosai and such bugged him preventing him = not stupid.
Didn't think to read it = stupid
Copy was destroyed and circumstances prevented him from obtaining it = not stupid. etc...

I dont understand your book example. These adventures were eventually told to you, therefore happnened, therefore the auhtor wanted you to know.

My problem is that you invent things that the author dosnt write about,

They were told in passing like what was Harold doing when I was fighting the damn dragon. He was fighting in the merchant army. Aren't actually told anything. Had a point to the story to explain why character wasn't there, else we wouldn't have known anything about it at all.

I'm not inventing anything. I am showing that there is more than one variable. More than one thing could have happened at the time.

To keep on topic, technically debating is on topic, a stupid thing done is Genma training Ranma in the Neko-ken without finding out the complete details of the technique or trying to steal the nearly worthless object from Ranma's mother.

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Come to think of it, here's a defining bit of stupidity from Soun that, now I realised it, I'm amazed no one brought it up before: he never kept in contact with Genma, despite intending to marry their children together, after they went their seperate ways post-Happosai. Genma stayed in fairly regular postal contact with Nodoka after he left, and surely Soun should have asked him to keep him appraised of his future son-in-law in the same way, shouldn't he?

And before anyone says that he did, the only letter he got from Genma was the one to let him know that the Saotomes would be arriving soon- he tells his daughters that he's never met Ranma, which I admit could be taken literally, but if he had been told about what sort of person Ranma was via letters from his father, wouldn't he have tried to illuminate his daughters on the nature of the boy who would soon be family?

[Necavit]

Agreed debating does feel on topic, but some people can be picky here.

Its a variable yes, just not a likely one.

Ranma's lack of attempts to study on screen, and lack of concern for studying are evidence that he never really meant to do so.

You have no evidence that he intended to study, only that people might want to fight him.

That why I beleive my varialble likely and yours a more in the realm of a personal creation. Mine has evidence, while yours could happen in the Ranmaverse, Rumiko leaves us nothing to beleive it did in fact happen. I also find it hard to swallow that Ranma couldnt esacape to somewhere and learn his lines if he truly wanted to.

And my token to staying on topic.

Ryoga:

Learning a new technique and using that new technique and only that new move in his fights with Ranma. Like hes begging for Ranma to find a counter.

[mondu_the_fat]

Come to think of it, here's a defining bit of stupidity from Soun that, now I realised it, I'm amazed no one brought it up before: he never kept in contact with Genma, despite intending to marry their children together, after they went their seperate ways post-Happosai.

Among old friends, such remaining in contact isn't necessary. Both of them made a promise/contract/pact, and they trusted each other enough to hold each other's end of the bargain.

surely Soun should have asked him to keep him appraised of his future son-in-law in the same way, shouldn't he?

Nope. Suon trusted Genma to raise his son well enough, without having to ask.

wouldn't he have tried to illuminate his daughters on the nature of the boy who would soon be family?

It wasn't necessary. I'm not even sure that Suon factually knew that Ranma was male -- he had faith that Genma would produce a son. That was enough for his (and Genma's) goals.

It all boil down to their faith on one another, and faith isn't that's connected to stupidity/intelligence.

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Given that it would have been more helpful for him to prepare his girls for this arranged marriage that seems to be his be-all, end-all reason for existing, I still feel it's pretty stupid not to at least find out some basic details (looks, likes, dislikes, etc) about his future son-in-law.

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

Just to point out to whoever commented on it, when I said it was stupid of Ranma not to manipulate Kuno for the last wish from Manganmaru, I meant he didn't even think of trying to use Kuno's twisted view of the world to his advantage, like he does at various other points throughout both canons.

Say Ranma-kun approached Kuno and offered to "release his evil hold on the Pigtailed Girl", in exchange for Kuno allowing him to make a wish upon Manganmaru or making Ranma's wish for him. How would Kuno have reacted? Most likely, he would have forked over the sword without the slightest compliance, and Ranma would have blithely gone on his way after using the sword to cure himself- he doesn't really give a damn about Kuno, and there are all sorts of way he could justify not fulfilling his end of the bargain (not least of all the fact that the pigtailed girl never existed in the first place, nor did he have any control over her).

[three headed dog]

Ranma does try that in that arc at least in the manga: http://ranmahentai.ranma.ws/RanmaManga/ ... 15-043.jpg

[SpaceKnight of Chaos]

I mean go to him as a male and make use of Kuno's other delusion, that Ranma-boy has enslaved Ranma-girl. He tries to charm him as a girl in both canons, but both times Kuno's ego makes him "misinterpret" what the Pigtailed Girl is asking and he blows the wish on a commemortive statue.

[three headed dog]

How would Kuno have reacted? Most likely, he would have forked over the sword without the slightest compliance, and Ranma would have blithely gone on his way after using the sword to cure himself

Or Kuno may have wished Ranma dead or that the pigtail girl was no longer enslaved. One would kill Ranma the other would just waste the wish since the pigtail girl was not really enslaved. Why would Kuno give "male" Ranma it? There is no reason at all to think he would give it to male Ranma, which is the main reason Ranma tried to get it as a female. Since Kuno is a helluva lot more likely to give it to the pigtailed girl than Ranma. What ever male Ranma says would not work. May even give Kuno the idea to use the wish to enslave the pigtail girl to Kuno.