Summary
- Ranma 1/2 remake faced leaked episodes, impacting its Netflix debut on October 6, 2024.
- Despite the leak, well-received by fans for manga adaptation, cutting filler episodes.
- Celebrates with new clip for “Love Letter from China,” but song only officially available in Japan.
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The Ranma 1/2 Remake was one of the highlights this year. Highly anticipated after being announced last June, the series was, unfortunately, one of those Netflix anime that leaked online weeks prior to its official debut. This leak happened due to security issues regarding Iyuno, a post-production partner of Netflix. It also affected Crunchyroll, but Netflix was probably the most affected service, with major titles leaking online.
For this reason, the remake probably garnered less audience than it would have without the leak when it debuted on October 6, 2024. But, despite this issue, it has been well-received among fans, especially for cutting out filler episodes and adapting the manga more faithfully than the first anime. A second season is already confirmed to air at a later date.
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To celebrate the new series, a new clip for “Love Letter from China” was released. Additionally, the song is available on Spotify, Apple Music and other music streaming services, but apparently only in Japan. At the time of writing, we couldn’t find the song on those platforms (we could find another version of it, though).
The Original Love Letter from China
A classic from the 1980s
“Love Letter from China,” known in Japan as “Chaina Kara no Tegami,” is part of the soundtrack of the original Ranma 1/2 anime. It was released in 1989 only in Japan, and it was performed by Kappei Yamaguchi and Megumi Hayashibara, who play the male and female versions of Ranma (respectively).
Apparently, the music is still the same. There are no significant changes to believe they asked the actors to record it once again, but that could have happened. The description of the video (in Japanese) also doesn’t state the music was re-recorded. Since the voice actors are reprising their roles in the new animation, there was probably no need to re-record it (differently than what happened with the Urusei Yatsura opening).
The video features animation from the remake, but they added effects to make it look like it is screening on an old TV. The way the lyrics appear in the video makes it look like it is a karaoke video.
Anyway, though international fans can officially check the song via YouTube, it seems they will not be able to listen to it on other music streaming platforms.
Ranma 1/2 is now streaming on Netflix, both subbed and dubbed.
Source: Official Ranma 1/2 Account