Ranma 1/2 Top 10 Highest Rated Episodes
By: Harley Acres & Dylan Acres
It's interesting to be able to chart the audiences following a show over its life, which shows started slow and built an audience, or which were strong out of the gate and held their audience until the end? To give context, the numbers here are a percentage of total television owning households in the Kanto region which is the largest television market in Japan. It is important to note that comparing ratings from similar days, months and years is somewhat useful, however it would be unfair to compare ratings from the 1980s to thows from the 1990s, 2000s or later due to the fragmentation of the television viewing audience (due to the addition of more and more television channels, streaming services, and video games).
When possible anime programs that aired in the time slot before
Ranma 1/2 (and
Ranma 1/2 Nettohen) and anime that aired against
Ranma 1/2 on other networks are cited to give further context.Here we examine the highest rated episodes of
Ranma 1/2 (and the lowest rated episode as well).
Director: Tetsuya Endo (遠藤徹哉)
Animation Director: Hiroko Kazui (数井浩子)
Script: Shigeru Yanagawa (柳川茂)
Storyboards: Tamiko Kojima (小島多美子)
Two episodes actually tied with an viewership rating of 13.2, this episode and Nettohen episode 87 and Nettohen episode 108, so you can take your pick for which you might wish to count among the top ten. Tetsuya Endo worked on many other shows such as Oishinbo (美味しんぼ), YAIBA and Saiyuki Reload (最遊記RELOAD).
Airing prior to Ranma 1/2 Nettohen in the 5:00 pm timeslot was Kariage-kun (かりあげクン) episode 42 "Have You Finished Your Summer Vacation Homework?" which rated a 9.5. Airing against Ranma 1/2 Nettohen on this night was a reshowing of the 1970s anime series Hutch the Honeybee (昆虫物語みなしごハッチ/Konchu Monogatari: Minashigo Hatchi) episode 90 "In Mom's Arms (Part 1)" on NTV which scored a 4.2 rating. Asahi Broadcasting Nagano aired the sentai show Chikyu Sentai Fiveman (地球戦隊ファイブマン) episode 26 which rated 1.8. [1]
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Director: Shinji Takagi (高木真司)
Animation Director: Asami Endo (遠藤麻未)
Script: Shigeru Yanagawa (柳川茂)
Storyboards: Junji Nishimura (西村純二)
Shinji Takagi worked on both Ranma 1/2 and Nettohen as well as Oishinbo, Jin-Roh (人狼) and Dr. Stone New World.
Airing against Ranma 1/2 was Asahi Broadcasting Nagano show Chojin Sentai Jetman (鳥人戦隊ジェットマン) episode 50 "Each Death Battle" which rated 8.0. [2]
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Director: Hideki Tonokatsu (殿勝秀樹)
Animation Director: Asami Endo (遠藤麻未)
Script: Naoto Kimura (木村直人)
Storyboards: Hideki Tonokatsu (殿勝秀樹)
Hideki Tonokatsu worked as the unit director on the well-remembered OVA Robot Carnival (ロボット・カーニバル). Additionally like many of the crew of Ranma 1/2, he also worked on Oishinbo and The Big Adventures of Robin Hood (ロビンフッドの大冒険/Robin Fuddo no Daiboken).
Airing against Ranma 1/2 was Asahi Broadcasting Nagano show Chojin Sentai Jetman (鳥人戦隊ジェットマン) episode 2 "The Third Warrior" which rated 8.1. [3]
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Director: Akihiko Nishiyama (西山明樹彦)
Animation Director: Asami Endo (遠藤麻未)
Script: Shigeru Yanagawa (柳川茂)
Storyboards: Junji Nishimura (西村純二)
Akihiko Nishiyama worked on Oishinbo, Stop! Hibari-kun (ストップ!! ひばりくん!), Mobile Police Patlabor (機動警察パトレイバー/Kido Keisatsu Patoreibaa) and the Dominion: Tank Police (ドミニオン) OVAs. Junji Nishimura worked on Urusei Yatsura before directing the Ranma 1/2 OVAs as well as the third Ranma film. Following Ranma 1/2 he moved on to work on You're Under Arrest (逮捕しちゃうぞ/Taiho Shichauzo).
Airing against Ranma 1/2 Nettohen on Asahi Broadcasting Nagano aired the sentai show Chikyu Sentai Fiveman episode 41 which rated 7.0. [4]
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Director: Mihiro Yamaguchi (山口美浩)
Animation Director: Atsuko Nakajima (中嶋敦子)
Script: Yoshiyuki Suga (菅良幸)
Storyboards: Kazuhiro Furuhashi (古橋一浩)
Atsuko Nakajima is perhaps most strongly associated with Ranma 1/2 as she was also the character designer and did a great deal of the promotional artwork for Urusei Yatsura and Maison Ikkoku in the 1990s. Yoshiyuki Suga wrote scripts for Urusei Yatsura, Dragon Ball (ドラゴンボール), Yawara!, and Slam Dunk.
Airing against Ranma 1/2 Nettohen on Asahi Broadcasting Nagano aired the sentai show Chikyu Sentai Fiveman episode 28 which rated 7.6. [5]
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Director: Nodoka Yoshida (よしだのどか)
Animation Director: Azusa Shiratori (白鳥あずさ)
Script: Hiroko Naka (中弘子)
Storyboards: Nodoka Yoshida (よしだのどか)
Beyond her work on Ranma 1/2 Nettohen, Nodoka Yoshida also worked on Super Zugan (スーパーヅガン). Scriptwriter Hiroko Naka worked on Perman (パーマン) and Obake no Q-Taro (オバケのQ太郎). She has written for Crayon Shin-chan (クレヨンしんちゃん) for over 30 years.
Airing against Ranma 1/2 Nettohen on Asahi Broadcasting Nagano aired the sentai show Chikyu Sentai Fiveman episode 45 which rated 9.1. [6]
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Director: Hideki Tonokatsu (殿勝秀樹)
Animation Director: Satoru Isono (磯野智)
Script: Hiroko Naka (中弘子)
Storyboards: Tamiko Kojima (小島多美子)
Kojima would go on to storyboard episodes of Maison Ikkoku, Ranma 1/2 and Oishinbo. Throughout her career she worked almost exclusively as a director and storyboard illustrator however she did write a single episode of Urusei Yatsura, episode 102.
Across the dial was Asahi Broadcasting Nagano's sentai show Chikyu Sentai Fiveman episode 40 which rated 9.0. [7]
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Director: Shinji Takagi (高木真司)
Animation Director: Atsuko Nakajima (中嶋敦子)
Script: Shigeru Yanagawa (柳川茂)
Storyboards: Junji Nishimura (西村純二)
Shigeru Yanagawa wrote scrips for Urusei Yatsura and Maison Ikkoku. Beyond his Takahashi-related work, he also wrote for Sailor Moon (美少女戦士セーラームーン/Bishojo Senshi Seraa Moon) and Stop!! Hibari-kun!.
Airing against Ranma 1/2 Nettohen on Asahi Broadcasting Nagano's was Chikyu Sentai Fiveman episode 45 which came in at 8.9.[8]
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Director: Kazuhiro Furuhashi (古橋一浩)
Animation Director: Satoru Isono (磯野智)
Script: Yoshiyuki Suga (菅良幸)
Storyboards: Kazuhiro Furuhashi (古橋一浩)
Ranma 1/2 Nettohen's strongest ratings were in the Fall and Winter of 1990. Kazuhiro Furuhashi worked on Urusei Yatsura, Maison Ikkoku and Ranma 1/2. He also worked on the Fatal Fury OVAs (バトルファイターズ 餓狼伝説/Batoru Faitaazu Garo Densetsu), Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn (機動戦士ガンダムUC(ユニコーン)/Kido Senshi Gandamu Yunikon) and Spy x Family.
Airing against Ranma 1/2 Nettohen on Asahi Broadcasting Nagano's was Chikyu Sentai Fiveman episode 43 which came in at 6.6. [9]
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Director: Kazuhiro Furuhashi (古橋一浩)
Animation Director: Atsuko Nakajima (中嶋敦子) & Others (他)
Script: Taku Nomoto (野本拓)
Storyboards: Kazuhiro Furuhashi (古橋一浩)
The final episode of the original series before its cancellation, retooling and relaunch on another day and time, this episode marks the highest rated program of the two Ranma 1/2 television series.
Ranma 1/2 primary ratings rival, Obocchama-kun (おぼっちゃまくん) did not air the night of this episode, but it was regularly in the 9 to 12 rating range (Ranma 1/2 was typically in the 7 to 12 range). [10] For more about Ranma 1/2's ratings challenges, please see our video. For context, the highest rated anime of this year (1986) was the October 30th 1,000th episode of Sazae-san (サザエさん) which scored a 34.5%. [11]
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Director: Yusuke Yamamoto (山本裕介)
Animation Director: Satoru Isono (磯野智)
Script: Hiroko Naka (中弘子)
Storyboards: Yusuke Yamamoto (山本裕介)
Airing against Ranma 1/2 Nettohen on Asahi Broadcasting Nagano's was the show that was the original basis for Might Morphin Power Rangers (恐竜戦隊ジュウレンジャー/Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger) episode 16 "The Great Sneeze Plot" which came in at 4.8. [12]
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Dylan Acres is a psychology professor at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. Harley Acres is an art history professor at Pikes Peak State College. The brothers founded Rumic World in 1996.
