You know, the thing that really bothers me

about this is the way both Nodoka and Athia are

lying to themselves.



    I've spent a lot of time since The Clan first

came out, and Nodoka's attitude bothered me, though

I didn't understand why at first. With time, however,

it became clear.



    Neither of the women are making even the slightest

attempt to put themselves out of business.



    I can hear you all going "Huh?"



    Any soldier or policeman, if they're honest, will

tell you what they want more than anything else, is a

world where soldiers and policemen aren't NEEDED. And

if they have the time and ability, they work towards that

goal. (Granted, there are a few who signed up for thrills

and kicks, but that's rather disgusting in my book.)



    Someone once said that 'Magic is just science that

hasn't been figured out yet'. Given enough time, research,

and effort, raveners could likely be disposed of by normal

humans. Ranma's doing a pretty good job of it so far.



    In my opinion, and ONLY in my opinion, if Ranma's

mother were to be honest with herself, she'd be working

on ways to duplicate her ability to force a ravener to

kill itself, _without_ a person needing to become a

vampire to so influence the ravener. Or, for that matter,

any number of ways of disposing of the disgusting slugs

that don't require magic.



    One that popped to mind was when Ranma was told

that when the fire goes out, the ravener comes back.

Okay.. just so happens there's a fire that never goes

out. It's been burning for several billion years already,

and you can see it for yourself, every morning when it

rises. *grin* Point being, there's one way to dispose

of a ravener that needs no magic at all. Just money,

planning and technology.



    Nodoka and Athia seem to have forgotten a human

truism. Tradition is nice, yes. But anything that nature

(or supernature) can do, man can duplicate. Takes time and

effort, but we do manage it.



    I don't know if you intended it, Chris, but in

an odd way, you seem to have done the same thing

Takahashi-san did with the original series.. that is,

you've pointed out the irritation some people feel

when they're fettered by the decaying shackles of a

dying tradition.



    Don't get me wrong.. I love the past, I learn

from the past. But I never forget it's a brake on

progress. A needed brake sometimes, but always a brake.



    Something both Nodoka and Athia should give a

LONG hard thought to.



    As for Akane.. well, there's not a lot I can

say without falling into a character debate. It seems

to me that she's being very IC.. the trouble with that

is, like always, she wants to take shortcuts. And she's

desperately afraid of not being able to defend herself.



    She seems to forget that her inability might be

part of what attracts Ranma to her. Let's face it, who

WOULDN'T get a kick out of being the hero of the piece?

And Akane makes an excellent victim. She gets kidnapped

(in the anime) on a regular basis. Hell, she's the

designated kidnap victim. Stay near her and you're

practically GUARANTEED a once-a-month, EVERY month chance

to be a hero.



    So, she takes shortcuts. The Super Soba, the Battle

Dogi. And each time, she finds that they come with a price.

And each time she bitches that the price isn't fair. She

wants a Rolls-Royce with a lifetime service contract and

she doesn't want to have to pay for it. *shrugs* Then

again, don't we all? She seems to forget that you pay MORE

for a shortcut than you would if you hadn't taken it in

the first place. Taking out a loan is easy.. paying the

INTEREST is the bitch. Just ask Nabiki. ^_^



    Guess that's mostly all I have to say, Chris. It's

been a fun ride, and I can't wait to see the big finish,

as well as what happens to the families when the dust

settles.



    Take care, write on, and have a fun time.



    Ed Becerra



    "Dreamers may die, but the Dream is eternal..."