Some time ago, someone (I forget whom) posted an idea about crossing Ranma
with the works of Robert Anson Heinlein. The idea was based on the fact that
Ranma's cursed form, Nodoka, and Maureen Johnson all have red hair. It
involved Nodoka being Lazarus Long's sister. I do not recall any actual plot
details, but Ranma could be eligible for Howard benefits, if Genma's parents
were alive at the time of his marriage, and if he married someone with living
grandparents--Shampoo would almost certainly qualify, and Akane might.
Heinlein does relate the story of someone whose father had drowned, but still
qualified based on his grandparents life. I do not believe that the cause of
Mrs. Tendo's death is ever given in TOS. (Many fanfics do say that it was
cancer, which definately disqualify Akane.)
My own twisted mind couldn't let this go, and took it a step further. When
the Time Corps was considering attempting to prevent WWII, guess who they sent
to do research in pre-war Japan? That's right, Maureen Johnson
Long--apparently she was their only agent that spoke Japanese. She posed as a
Canadian tourist. However, it is highly likely that the Time Corps would have
deemed the information learned as a tourist to be insufficient, gave her some
cosmetic surgery, and sent her back with a different cover story. What if
Nodoka Saotome and Maureen Johnson Long are one and the same?
There are a few possible holes that would have to explained away, the most
glaring of which is why Maureen would remain in Japan after the war. Once
Ranma is born, she'll remain for his sake--rejuvination technology coupled
with time travel makes lifespan issues almost irrelevent.
The society the Time Corps bases itself in--that of the planet of Tertius,
several centuries in the future--is notoriously uninhibited when it comes to
sex. This could be the cause of Nodaka's ideas of manliness. (And also means
that she would almost certainly _not_ have remained faithful to a husband
absent for ten years.)
Maureen single-handedly got the Time Corps to authorize a mission to retrieve
her father from the middle of the Battle of Britain (said operation was
expanded to enable the British to win that battle, thus shortening the war and
preventing the use of atomic bombs on Germany), so it's unlikely that she
would leave her son in 20th century Japan when she leaves herself. It might
be...interesting...to drop Ranma and his fiancees in a society where manogomy
is the exception rather than the rule.
The Time Corps would probably value Ranma's abilities as a martial artist. In
Time Enough for Love, Lazarus Long demonstrates proficiency with a staff, and
the Time Corps does operate in eras in which their usual weapons would make
them a tad conspicuous.
Heinlein's concept of World As Myth allows for crossovers with absolutely
anything else--he himself brings Camelot, Wonderland, and Ox into one of his
novels.
I doubt I'll be writing this myself, but does anyone want to run with it?
Defender of the Light
Elite Mage
Junior Member of the Inner Circle of the Mage's Council
"Contrary to popular opinion, magic and science _do_ mix."
"Of _course_ I cheated. Scientists think magic is cheating, and mages think
most forms of technology are cheating. I use both."
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