This late review contains three parts; the first part, the second part, and the final part. (Spoilers Ahead!!)
Back then, the Shoujo magazine was pretty popular. It’s probably a misconception for the anime community that when it comes to Shoujo magazine, it’s full of moe elements and cheesy romance. The magazine was dominated to the max, and many anime fans received numerous mangas and anime adaptations like Sailor Moon, Cardcaptor Sakura, Ouran High school Host Club, and many more. But nowadays. not all Shoujo animes are easily popular than Shounen animes. Some of the animes from the Shoujo animes back then were classic but it left unsatisfied for most of the fans of the magazine for its adaptation. And Fruits Baskets is one of them.
Fruits Basket is a romantic comedy-drama from Natsuki Takaya, based from her one of her popular mangas from the Shoujo. I heard from one of my girl classmates that back then, it was pretty popular manga and Shoujo anime until it was butchered by the adaptation of Studio Deen. It’s the first popular anime that made one of my very favorite voice actresses, Yui Horie, debut in her career. Just like in FMA, they received an anime original ending, due to incomplete content of the manga. But later on, the popular Shoujo manga got received a reboot adaptation, revamped the animation, and promised to give it a “Brotherhood” treatment, just like what happened in Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood with 63 episodes. But do you think they kept their promise? Let’s dig in! And almost forgot, this is not a reverse-harem!
The Difference between the OG and the reboot;
I’ll keep this short and straight to the point. The adaptation of Studio Deen was like a typical romantic comedy. Whenever you see a usual Shoujo romcom, the OG looks like that. They changed the atmosphere that was intended for the manga, by giving it a romantic and comedy vibe. The animation of Studio Deen was suitable for its vibe until they changed some scenes and added an anime original ending. If you didn’t read the manga, it was pretty enjoyable. However, if you already read it, it will seem that they didn’t give justice to the manga.
The reboot was superior to its adaptation because they followed closely from the manga and the tone shifted from the romantic comedy vibe, into more Slice-of-Life Drama romance. You might say that they gave justice to the manga and the animation revamped into the next level. The better moment from the reboot, was you can feel the true intention of the story from the manga and Natsuki Takaya’s feelings to the audience.
If you want a romcom vibe that you will find funny and fun, watch the OG. But if you want to feel the true essence of the mangaka and its proper story, watch the reboot.
First Part 
The story follows Tohru Honda, an orphaned girl that was left to live on her own, in a tent. Until the Sohmas found her and took care of her. Her parents died due to an accident in different ways and she was left on her own, with her friends at school. She knew the Sohma’s family secret that they can be turned into animals, based on their zodiac curse. Thus, her everyday life begins with her new life with the Sohmas. The first part was the only “Introductory Arc” of the series. They introduce the main characters, the side characters, the world, and their demons in themselves. They showed the pain, scars, and how they did end up with themselves. The first part was pretty light-hearted and a bit dramatic. The characters were relatable as their finest and the atmosphere was great. I know that it was slow at first, but it’s a build-up for the upcoming events of the story. If you will invest your emotions and patience, you will find it very interesting. Even Akito, the main antagonist of the story was intriguing, because his character was cruel, evil, and most of all, selfish. The chemistry of the trio was very great, especially their intentions and their presence in Tohru. I like when the characters, especially Tohru’s best friends became meaningful to her, because of her mother. Kyouko became the light to guide their path in the most meaningful as possible. She’s an amazing character, despite her former status as a leader of the gang, she became a doting mother to Tohru and a good woman to the people that she ever encountered. She gave life lessons to Tohru’s friends, as well as lessons to ourselves. To make us reflect, as a human person. The character of Kyo became an improvement from the first part, as they showed his horrible past and his horrible curse. But still, he found a person that will accept who he was. His feelings for Tohru were gradually progressing, but I’ll discuss it in the second part. The first part wrapped out when Rin approached the Sohmas.
Second Part
The second part opened after the events of the first part. In this part, we saw all of the progress, after the build-up of the first part. Tohru’s growth within her relationship with the Sohmas had progressed as well, as she became closer to them. However, her sunny light became to fade, as she learned the truth about the dark curse of the Sohma family. We dove under the deepest parts of each characters’ pasts and introduced some new characters. The second part officially introduced Akito to Tohru, as she learned that Akito was the God of the zodiac. What I like about the second part was her relationship between Kyo and Yuki had progressed and we saw some developments from the characters. Especially for Kyo, he became genuine with his feelings and confesses his feelings for Tohru. He fought with his love for Akito, but in the end, he still lost because one of his pasts became to haunt him, as the story left with some clues that are meant to be answered in the final part. He lost the duel with Yuki and he will be imprisoned to death, as the fate of the cursed cat. Nevertheless, Tohru and Kyo’s feelings were gradually closer to each other. As for Yuki, we saw that the only thing that he wanted was a mother’s love. He found it from Tohru, but he was scared of what will happen. His childhood explained when the challenge between him and Kyo began and his envy for Kyo. It went in different ways of their envy; Kyou wanted the others to accept him but he got friends and “fun” life. While for Yuki, he wanted what Kyo had, to live a happy life and meet new friends. The shackles between the Sohma family were being a hindrance, from reaching the happiness that they desired. Like in Rin and Hatsuharu’s relationship. The curse within them held back their love from each other. Rin sacrificed and suffered so much for Haru, but still, she still loved him so much. The biggest reveal from the second part was Akito’s being a female and the curse began to break. Tohru’s life began, as she found herself in an inescapable situation.
The Final
The final part opened its final curtain after the last revelations of the second part. This was where the climax started, after all the build-ups from previous parts. The answers that were needed began to be revealed. About the curse, Tohru and Akito’s deep pasts, and the revelations of Kyo’s haunted past were began to encounter. Unlike the previous seasons, the final part consisted of 13 episodes only. The question is, it was handled pretty well? In a short answer, yes. Although they skipped some of the parts, it didn’t break the main storyline. We encountered Akito’s parents and why she turned out like that. We saw Shigure’s desire for Akito, and Kureno became a love rival to him. Akito felt that the end is near, as the shackles began to break, but she was desperate that she might be left alone. Kyou’s confinement was getting nearer, and his relationship with Tohru bloomed like a flower. The overflowing emotions of each of the characters were sad yet heartwarming. Like in Haru and Rin’s love for each other, she will sacrifice anything in order to break the curse because of her love for him. Haru began to end her suffering and in the end, he welcomed her home. The plot twist about Kyo’s past was the biggest impact on me. He knew Kyouko when he was a child and she gave him some of her advice. The kid won’t listen but he kept on meeting her. Kyouko began to talk to him about her daughter, like a doting parent, and about he wanted to see her. But in the end, the communication between them broke, as they reunited but he couldn’t save her because he was scared to know his secret. The last words of Kyouko were, “I’ll never forgive you…”. Her line left him the biggest impact of his life until they reunited again with Tohru. It seemed that he knew Tohru all along from the first part. The story progressed even further when the climax between the main characters showed up. Yuki was giving Kyo a head start to confront his past with his father, and to Tohru, as he accepted his past and himself. Forgiveness all the way to the end and the curse was finally broken. The past between God and the zodiacs was insane and the questions were answered. The truth behind Kyouko’s words was very heartwarming, as she reunited with his husband. I had some problems with Akito’s redemption but still, it was fine. The conclusion was very satisfying and wrapped out pretty well. The two main couple grew old with each other and lived happily ever after. And one last thing, their granddaughter was so CUTE!!!
Wrapping up:
As the answer to my very first question, they did kept their promise. This series was one a heck of a ride. At first, I didn’t really say why this series is popular and is loved by most of the Shoujo fans. I gave it a second chance and it was so worth it. The animation, the soundtrack, and the songs were absolutely superb!! I know I may be biased but this is the first Shoujo that left a big impact on me, as a fan of Shounen. I had no expectations for this series, since day one that the first season. But in the end, it exceeded the expectations much higher. This is one of the Shoujo stories that are different from usual Shoujo animes because the story was more mature and a little light-hearted. It became a psychological romantic drama, after the first part. I don’t think I can find other animes like this because, this kind of romance animes that I’ve been craving for. Some of the story plots were very controversial, especially the age gap but remember, this story was released in 1998, where people weren’t very sensitive, no offense.
If you want a great romantic drama, I recommend you to watch this. All of this will be worth it if you will your time and your love for this series. Can’t wait for the Prelude movie for the story of Kyouko and Katsuya, as well as new content, the aftermath of the final season. This show will be put in a very special place in my heart. Thank you, Natsuki Takaya. Thank you, TMS and 8Pan. And mostly, thank you Fruits Basket <3!
