Just wanted to remark on what appears to be a convention of Ranma fan
fiction:  Akane's magic mallet.  I've read most of the manga available
through Viz, and have seen almost all the anime ditto, and I have 
NEVER seen Akane hit ANYBODY with a mallet, much less one pulled out
of thin air.  She hits & kicks Ranma a lot, and sometimes pummels him
with whatever is available, but that's it.  Is this bit with the
mallet something that actually occurred later in the series (i.e., 
after they lost their colorist and much else & Akane's hair turned 
blue), or did somebody confuse Ranma with Warner Bros. & everybody else 
trod the same path once the initial error had been made?