Musabetsu Kakutō Ryū

[[Category:Musabetsu Kakutō Ryū (無差別格闘流—"School of Indiscriminate Grappling") more commonly known in English as Anything Goes Martial Arts, is a fictional school of martial arts from the anime and manga series, Ranma ½. It was founded by Happosai and is the art used by the protagonist and title character Ranma Saotome, his fiancée Akane Tendo, and their fathers Genma Saotome and Soun Tendo, respectively. ]] [[Category:History:It is most commonly believed that Musabetsu Kakutō Ryū was founded by martial arts master and perverted lecher extraordinaire Happosai during his travels around Japan and China long before the start of the series. How long ago is disputed as his exact age has never been disclosed. In the manga, Happosai is at least 118 and at most 230 years old (and in the anime a little over 300) with his training trip happening when he was still a young man. If this figure is true, then it is safe to assume that the school itself, or at least its beginnings are quite old. What is known is that, sometime before the start of the series, Happosai took two young apprentices, Soun Tendo and Genma Saotome, as his students, an act which would lead to both the creation of the two main branches of Musabetsu Kakutō Ryū, as well as his lengthy hibernation without food or water.]] [[Category:Philosophy: True to its name, Musabetsu Kakutō Ryū or Anything Goes Martial Arts, is based on learning and adapting many different styles of martial arts, taking what works and discarding what does not. As such, Musabetsu Kakutō Ryū is not confined to a single way of thinking or philosophy when it comes to martial arts combat. This gives the practitioner of Musabetsu Kakutō Ryū the advantage of adaptability and unpredictability in a fight since he or she would ideally know moves and techniques from many different schools that complement each other, minimising perceptible weaknesses. In this respect, the ideal practitioner of Musabetsu Kakutō Ryū is its heir apparent, Ranma Saotome. Throughout the course of the series, Ranma not only learns multiple styles and techniques from both friends and enemies, but also displays the uncanny ability to adapt or modify these techniques in mid-battle to catch his opponent off-guard.]]