Blow, Wind! To Be Young is to Go Gung-Ho

Blow Wind! To Be Young is to be Gung-Ho (吹けよ風! 青春は熱血だ) is the 55th episode of Ranma ½ Nettohen.

In his eternal quest to harass the students of Furinkan High School, the Principal hires a new homeroom teacher for Ranma's class; the bombastically optimistic and naively gung-ho Higuma Torajiro.

Relation to the Previous Episode
None.

New Teacher
The episode begins with an assembly called by Principal Kuno at Furinkan High. They hear a new teacher would be joining the staff, named Higuma Torajiro (translates to "bear"). He arrives sprinting and kicks a football into the crowd which knocks the Principal in the face. All the girls seem to love him, except for Ukyo and Akane, who stay behind with the rest of the boys while the crowd rushes toward the new teacher. Mr. Higuma rambles on about "youth" and how running can help solve problems. He becomes the 1-F homeroom teacher and asks them about their youth. Akane is chosen first, and she decides to pick martial arts. Ukyo prepares an okonomiyaki for him stating it as her passion. He commends both, then decides to choose the not-so-enthusiastic Ranma. He nonchalantly replies with martial arts, and Higuma reprimands him for the attitude he has when stating it. He assigns Ranma the "homework" of preparing the way he will introduce his passion. At break, Mr. Higuma confronts two students, Ranma's friends Daisuke and Hiroshi. They admit to him that they like Akane Tendo, and he convinces them to profess their love. Later Akane and Ranma head home and she reminds him about practicing his speech. Soun Tendo finds Ranma in the dojo trying act pumped-up. At school the next day, Daisuke and Hiroshi are asked to announce their affection towards Akane to the class, which ticks-off Ranma as her fiance. Kuno comes storming in and whacks Mr. Higuma in the face. Higuma decides to hold parent-teacher conferences, much to the students' dismay.

Sayonara, Higuma Torojiro!
During lunch, he uses the intercom to broadcast the relationship between Ranma and Akane. Ranma confronts him and they argue over the intercom. Later, Higuma enters a classroom and tosses textbooks out the window. He then appears at the kendo club's practice and gets hit in the face again by Kuno, then begins to cry as he declares him as passionate. Higuma shows up at Ukyo's restaurant asking about her parents and disapproving of her holding down a job while being a student. Her customers all leave. Genma in panda form walks in and offers to pretend to be her father for food. Back at the house, Ranma runs out the door hoping to avoid seeing Higuma. Akane stops Ranma long enough for Higuma to arrive. He tells the two that they are young to marry, so they invite him in to say that to Soun. Instead, he asks Soun to consent to their marriage when they are older, which he finds unexpected but happily agrees.

Feeling accomplished, Higuma Torojiro decides his time as come to leave Furinkan. The principal holds another assembly where Higuma decides to end with a student-teacher rugby match. The teachers are trampled and the students are excited. Higuma runs off kicking the football back to the students, which smacks Principal Kuno in the face.

Trivia

 * Higuma's insistance that the students call him "coach" is only in the dub.
 * Higuma's mannerisms and obsessions with youth are similar to that of the Naruto character Might Guy, though Higuma predates the latter's creation by at least 10 years.
 * In the dub, Higuma has his name said in Japanese order as opposed to western order, which the subtitles correctly call him as.