A brash young martial artist, Ranma specializes in being rude to his father and teasing his would-be fiancee Akane. He has almost as many suitors and enemies as a girl as he does as a boy! Fortunately, he's also a very strong martial artist. Ranma typically dresses in Chinese clothes and always wears his/her hair in a pigtail tied at the back of his/her neck.

Bald, perpetually dressed in a white karate gi and sports-style glasses (when not transformed into a panda), Ranma's father Genma has a knack for thoughtlessly getting his son into hot water. He spends nearly as much time as a panda as he does as a human, probably because as a panda, he's under less pressure to answer uncomfortable questions.

Mustachiooed Tendo patriarch Soun is very nervous and excitable, and will often cry at the drop of a hat. Part of his nervousness is no doubt due to the fact that both he and Genma were trained by the panty-pilfering Happosai-an experience sure to turn the strongest into a nervous wreck.

Gentle, ladylike, homemaker Kasumi is the oldest of the Tendo sisters. She doesn't seem to realize that there is anything at all strange about her family or its guests.

Perpetually scheming middle Tendo sister Nabiki can find a way to make a couple of yen out of almost any situation.