Genma is Ranma's father, and is the one who is most responsible for acquiring their curses at the Jusenkyo.Genma, while on a decade long training trip to improve their martial arts skills, he insisted on going to the Jusenkyo in China, a place Genma figured was for martial arts training. Since Genma has no idea how to read Chinese, he didn't realized that no one had used or even been to the Jusenkyo in a long time, due to the fact, that it was cursed. Genma realized to late about the mistake he had made, and was knocked into the cursed spring of the Shonmaoniichuan, the Spring of Drownded Panda, by his son, Ranma, during their training session.
The curse of the springs is, the victim who falls in, turns into whoever or whatever fell in there before. So further on, when splashed with cold water, the victim will turn into what the curse put on them, but when splashed with warm or hot water, the victim will turn back to themselves.
Even though both Genma and his son were cursed, Genma brought his son back to Japan, and made a marriage engagement with his long time friend, and fellow martial artist, Soun Tendo. The terms of the engagement were that Ranma would marry one of the Tendo daughters in order to carry on the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts. In agreement, with everyone except Ranma and Akane, they were to be engaged. Genma and Ranma now live in the Tendo dojo, and Genma hopes that one day Ranma and Akane will get married, and fulfill the agreement.
Genma claims himself to be a model martial artist, and keeps telling Ranma about the right thing to do, even though it is obvious that he doesn't follow what he says. Genma basically looks after himself first, busies himself with food, and is a total coward when it comes to confrontational situations. He is commonly seen playing GO with Soun. Genma has some sort of sense of honor, but is completely more willing to bend the rules more then an average martian artist. Also, despite being cursed, it seems as if Genma likes his Panda form, and goes about in public in it. He uses it to his advantage sometimes, by turning into a panda at the worst moments to get out of something.
