toushin wrote:The bitter end syndrome is what I call when authors depict the problems in Akane’s and Ranma’s relationship as entirely his fault. That all Ranma needs to do is get rid of his fiancées and stop insulting Akane and everything will magically fix itself. This does not mean that the fic is bad take Relentless and Heart of Ice. In the former after Akane masters the bakusai tenketsu she is suddenly strong enough to defeat Shampoo and when they go save Ranma he is moved to tears as he finally realizes how much he as held her back. While in Heart of Ice the entirety of Akane’s training revolves around her learning to ignore Ranma’s insults.
My question why are there so many of these fics. the reason I call it Bitter End syndrome is that fic basically deconstructed this idea. Ranma suddenly stop insulting Akane won’t do anything in fact it most likely would make her more suspicious (which is has). It just seems like a convenient excuse to force the relationship instead of allowing them to grow as a couple
There are a lot of reasons why this was (and still is) a thing.
Firstly; Akane is the Designated Heroine of Ranma 1/2. The manga in particular pushes the idea that Ranma and Akane WILL get together, and all the other characters are just nuisances who're getting in the way of a destined couple. This naturally entices a lot of readers to sympathize with her first and foremost.
Secondly; the canonical humor of Ranma 1/2 runs a lot on the trope "Double Standard". It's okay for Akane to be violent and temperamental towards Ranma because she's a girl and he's a boy, and that's the stance a lot of media takes.
Thirdly; whilst Akane actually provokes a number of their conflicts, Ranma is more obviously the agent provocateur on a more frequent basis, and this earns him a more negative reception amongst many fans. This trait tends to be emphasized due to the above reason; people are more likely to sympathize with Akane and rationalize her bad behavior than to do the same for Ranma because, again, it's different when a girl does it to a boy.
Finally; it's the easy way out. That's the major reason why it happens. Ranma/Akane pairing fics are the oatmeal of the Ranma 1/2 fic writing community - they're the most common variety of fic by far, with everybody wanting to write them, and usually not wanting to put a lot of effort into them. Handwaving the whole messiness of the coupling by just placing all the blame on Ranma's shoulders (especially since Akane and her whole family do the same thing in canon) makes it easier to write a RAkane fic - you just have Ranma "miraculously" stop being such a bully and voila; your perfect heroine gets her perfect life, and the reviews come flooding in.
Water, water, everywhere, and all was cursed and black!
Drowned ones cast bad spell and out come pig, girl, duck, panda!
Swirl, swirl, slithery pond, and join with magic spring!
Swirl, swirl, dirty pond, and rid the cursed sting!
Here my prayer, I beg you please!
Now turn these curses BACK!
http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-boys-names.shtml
http://www.issendai.com/rpgs/japanese-girls-names.shtml