Topic: Themes that Rumiko Takahashi Will Always Put in

[Redmustang03]

For those who have seen and read her work which is everyone on this site, you know what to expect when your reading her work and her new work No-Rinne.  She always puts in these things in here major works:

1.  A short tempered female
2.  Old man and woman character
3.  A perverted character
4.  A love triangle
5.  Super natural events (except in Maison Ikkoku)
6.  A dog and a cat character
7.  Sexual Tension between the main female and male character
8.  Some reference to a mallet and a microphone
9.  Tomboys
10. A transvestite

I could go on forever but whenever you read her work there will be a reference to it.   

[veehive]

Well, SO FAR ....

If anything, the beginning of Kyokai no Rinne has been marked by an absense of so many of these standard-Takahashi-traits.

Sakura Mamiya, the female-lead, is anything BUT short-tempered. She could give Clark Kent pointers on being mild-mannered. And, there's very little tension between Sakura and Rinne Rokudo, sexual, romantic, or otherwise. Which has the fan-base struggling to comment.

The "Old" characters have been ... human-looking! None of the shrivelled-up dwarves (Cherry, for example) of her past works. In fact, Rinne's grandmother Tamako is ... quite good-looking: tall (!) and slender (!!) . Attractive. I could go for her (don't cry, Sand!).

There is gender-bending but its far more gently-bent than previous. The example that comes to my mind is when the "medieval" princess was believed to have been re-incarnated as the male gym teacher.

Now, having said all that, there are some commonalities with her earlier series that you've listed. We have a dog-or-cat character as comic-relief (the bakeneko Rokumon). And, while we haven't seen any mallets or microphones (YET!) there are plenty of goofy devices around (the ungakyo with a taxi-like meter atop it, running up the expense of its use). And, supernatural events a-plenty (expected from a series centering around a shinigami and a girl who can see ghosts).

It's still way early in the series. Plenty of time for the transvestites and  tomboys to show up, mallets and microphones to appear, and a budding relationship between Boy and Girl to blossom. Sit back and watch the fun!

[Redmustang03]

Even though its only 9 chapters in, you will see a lot of these themes come up later but I fully expect this manga to be around 9 to 12 years depending how well the anime does.  The anime usually appears 2 to 2 1/2 after the manga came out but still Rumiko isn't doing this for the money because if she did, she would have quit a long time ago.  Still,  I expect No-Rinne to very similar to Inuyasha where there's more action than comedy like how Ranma 1/2 was more comedy like Urusei Yatsura. 

[cata]

What's so wrong about Ranma and UY? I love Ranma and UY. One of the things that made me stick to them was the fact that the humor isn't forced like in Lucky Star (so many people say it's awesome and hilarious. I could only last 7 episodes because it's so boring. I only GIGGLED once and never laughed. Keep in mind that I used "Lucky Star" as an example.

Also, UY's and Ranma's stories is really good.

I haven't read any Manga and I doubt I will because I just don't enjoy reading at all, so I can't talk about her new Manga story.

[Redmustang03]

Are you missing out on the Ranma 1/2 manga.  I mean you really will laugh if you start reading from volume 23 on.  Give it a try, what will it hurt.  Go to www.mangafox.com and type in Ranma 1/2 and I want you to read the Fishing Rod of Love arc and I bet you anything you'll start reading the manga. 

[cata]

I don't enjoy reading. >.<