Anime review: Fruits Basket (2019-2021)

 

This is show has a very strange concept: A girl who’s been living in a tent gets taken in by a classmate’s family only to discover that he, and many of his relatives, turn into animals when hugged (even accidentally) by a member of the opposite sex¹. Then what would seem to be a fantasy sitcom setup turns into something more like a group therapy session. It’s weird but it works…until the very end of season 2, when the show starts to break what I thought was one of its key themes. Season 3 resolves things in a way that the characters are supposedly happy about, but which left me disappointed.

 

1. And yes, it does appear to be opposite sex, not opposite gender, but more on that later.

 

            The main character, Tohru Honda, is a high school junior who seems cheerful, hardworking, and accepting of others to a nearly supernatural degree. As the story progresses, we learn that – while she is indeed a paragon who has positive effects on everyone around her – this is partly a response to the tragedies she’s faced. She developed her extremely polite way of speaking after her dad died; since she doesn’t look like him, she started imitating his mannerisms to keep him present for her mom. Then she lost her mom too. Most of her relatives are jerks, apart from a grandfather who is rather too old to take care of her, so she became very self-sufficient. Part of her character arc involves admitting her own vulnerabilities and lack of confidence, and letting others take care of her for a change. It should also include acknowledging her own wants and pursuing her own goals...but that only happens with one specific thing.

            The classmate who invites her in, Yuki Soma, lives with two male relatives of indeterminate degree: Shigure, an author, and Kyo, a red-haired dude about Yuki and Tohru’s age who keeps trying to fight Yuki, smashing up Shigure’s house in the process. It is in trying to intervene in the first of these fights that Tohru discovers the Somas' secret: 12 members of the family carry the spirits of the Japanese zodiac animals (Yuki is the rat, Shigure the dog), while Kyo is the cat – the one who was excluded from god’s banquet. For a bit, there is a threat that Tohru might need to have her memory of this erased, but the Somas – and Yuki in particular – are surprised and rather pleased to find that she doesn’t think they are unnatural or frightening at all and is happy to keep their secret.

While a majority of the zodiac Somas are guys and all are very good-looking people, this never becomes a love-triangle or “reverse harem” situation - it is weird how refreshing that is! I was also delighted to see that Tohru has strong relationships with women too. Uotani and Hanajima are both very protective of Tohru, making a point of visiting the Soma house to make sure nothing sketchy is going on. Uo is fearless, brash, and competitive, and used to be in a gang. Hana is a quiet goth with psychic powers. She can tell the first three Somas, at least, mean Tohru no harm², but that there is something a bit turbulent and almost inhuman about their “waves”. Tohru’s mom Kyoko shows up in so many memories that she is an important character as well. She initially seems to be just a super kind and supportive parent…which she is, but she also had her own secrets and adventures, having once been the leader of a biker gang who went by the name “Crimson butterfly”. There are a few mean girls/jealous bitches, of course – namely the “Prince Yuki Fanclub”, who resent Tohru for getting close to him. Not to worry, though: Hana and Uo have her back.

                   Left: Uo, Hana, Yuki, and Shigure                              Right: Kyoko with little Tohru

2. This is a little confusing, actually, since Shigure has a reputation for being a bit of a perv who likes high school girls…but none of the girls, even the psychic, seem to feel uncomfortable around him. But he does like to mess with people, so maybe he’s just trolling the boys?

 

            As Hana detects, the Somas are dealing with emotional scars of their own. Besides the general feeling of isolation due to their secret, or the occasional bullying they received from other children for having unusual hair or eye colors, most of these traumas were inflicted by either “normal” parents or the family head, Akito. Episode 12 of Season 1, a terrific one for character development, includes Akito showing up at the school Tohru, Yuki, and Kyo attend. Tohru thinks at first that they seem nicer than expected, considering that Akito supposedly blinded Hatori – the Soma family doctor - in one eye over his forming an “unsuitable” relationship. But then Akito turns on a dime to threaten Yuki: “What would possibly make you skip New Year’s with me?...Especially when I have been so generous to you lately…I wonder if this means you need a little re-educating. Perhaps some time in your special room is in order.” Their quiet tone is genuinely scary, and some combination of that and Yuki’s traumatized expression is enough to make gentle, innocent Tohru shove Akito away from him, excusing it with a polite: “I’m sorry. But we have to get back to class now…Or else we’ll be in trouble.” This is the bit that made me start wondering if the “curse” the Somas talk about – something that seems to go above and beyond the animal transformations – is actually real, or just something Akito made up to control them. That guess turned out to be incorrect in a direct way, but kind of true in a broader or longer-term sense! Kyo is in the worst position: as the outsider to the zodiac he has a more monstrous true form (besides the cute kitty version), and tradition says that once he is 18 he’ll have to be literally locked away for the rest of his life. Tohru, and Kyo’s martial arts master and adoptive father Kazuma, are not about to let that happen!

So, OK: We’ve already got characters who feel alone, different, or broken for both magical and mundane reasons (animal transformation or psychic powers vs. tragic backstories and/or unusual appearance), but who Tohru accepts unconditionally. The show then seems to double  down on this “accepting difference” theme by queer-coding the hell out of a large subset of the characters³. This starts with Hatsuharu (the ox), who has very strong bi vibes – at least at first – and even casually remarks to Tohru that Yuki was his first love. In the next episode, Hatsuharu and Momiji (the rabbit) have joined the school and gotten creative with their uniforms, Hatsuharu leaving the collar open and adding a bunch of jewelry, Momiji combining a girl’s sailor-suit jacket with shorts. Tohru thinks they look great, Kyo is embarrassed, and Yuki would rather just not draw attention. The student council president starts chewing them out:

[President] “A boy wearing a girl’s uniform is unprecedented! Brazen even! Not to mention the length of those shorts! Shameless!”… [Hatsuharu sighs] “Another idiot appears.” [President] “What gall! This coming from an obvious ruffian! You’re practically jangling with jewelry! And don’t even get me started on your ludicrous bleached hair!” [Yuki] “Actually, president, that is his natural color…Trust me on this one.”… [President] “Now, shall we move on to the little sprite?...Is this some rebellious statement on masculinity?...” [Momiji, tearing up] “I think this uniform looks much cuter on me.”… [President] “…I’m abiding by common sense, as well as the rules of this institution that I am sworn to uphold.” [Hatsuharu] “Shut up…Why don’t I ask you some questions now? You think wearing a tie means you’re not a bully?...That people with one hair color can’t murder a man? Just who do you think you are?...Excuse me, ladies. I wanna know what you think. Take Momiji Soma over there. He looks fine in that uniform, right?...” [President] “Don’t let him brainwash you! You’re unleashing chaos! Why can’t you just follow the rules?” Haru’s response?:

 

3. I actually wondered if it was going to do this from the start: “Wait. If your friend or kid transformed into a bunny when you cuddled them that would actually be sort of cute, but it would lead to some real awkward romantic situations. But there is one loophole… No. No, that can’t be why this is called ‘Fruits Basket’, is it?” Not to worry, that isn’t the the joke. Apparently there is a sort of musical-chairs game called ‘Fruits Basket’ in Japan that maybe refers to Kyo being the odd one out. Still a weird choice of title, though.   

 

            Then we meet Yuki’s older brother, Ayame (the snake), a flamboyant character with long silver hair who does custom fashion design. He and Shigure joke around about being lovers a lot. For example, when Kyo complains that Ayame slept in his room without permission: “‘Shigure’s got a room too, ya know!’ [Ayame]: ‘No, that wouldn’t do. He never lets me get a lick of sleep.’ [Shigure]: ‘Careful now, honey. Think of the kids.’” Then there’s Ritsu (the monkey), who seems to be a trans girl with self-esteem issues. Tohru thinks she’s really pretty, and then is confused when Ritsu transforms with a hug. Shigure rudely says that Ritsu is “actually” a boy and does not offer any reassurance to her anxiety about whether she’ll be able to keep dressing in the way that makes her feel comfortable when she enters the  adult world⁴.  Tohru actually has to talk Ritsu off the roof at one point which, given real-world trans suicide rates, is almost a bit too real! Fortunately, Ritsu forms a bond with Shigure’s equally dramatic editor who, even after Shigure outs her again, is excited to have Ritsu demonstrate how to wear a kimono properly. Other characters have lighter doses of queer coding. Yuki is considered extremely pretty by everyone, regardless of gender, but seems uninterested in romantic relationships, at least initially. When, in response to Tohru's vague post-graduation plans, Uo notes that she could just get married, Hana replies: “In that case, perhaps I should go to college. Then I would be better able to support us.” Uo says she meant to Kyo or Yuki. Hana:“Well then. We’ll just see which of us wins”. Maybe she’s kidding – marrying another woman still isn’t legal in Japan, after all – but Hana is such an intense and serious character you have to  wonder⁵! Last but not least, we have Akito. I was confused when Tohru started calling Akito “he”, because the voice actor sounded female, and despite androgynous clothing they had a bit of a femme-fatale vibe. Then it is revealed what role Akito plays in the zodiac legend, and I was like: “Oh, that’s why they deliberately made this character’s gender ambiguous! Neat!”  But then at the end of Season 2 Akito’s “real” gender is revealed. That starts the downward spiral and leads into some of the messages from season 3 that I actually found to be kind of icky. But to talk about that, I’m going to have to get into **spoilers**.

 

                  Left: Embarrassed introvert Yuki with Ayame                                        Right: Ritsu     

4. Ritsu “agrees” with Shigure’s description of her. But she would, even if it isn’t true - her self-esteem is practically zero. She never describes herself as a boy of her own accord, and other characters use non-gendered language; her mother calls her “my child”, for instance. So it seems like she should be considered either a “she” or a “they”. Incidentally, she really admires Ayame’s style and confidence!

5. Similarly, Ayame was, on one level, clearly joking around when, as student council president, he suggested that the problem of boys sneaking off to the red light district could be solved by just having them all sleep with him. The adults weren’t going to go with that. But jokes, especially when repeated over and over, can sometimes reveal actual beliefs or desires.

 

            I do want to acknowledge that this show has a lot of good messages. For instance, having Kyo accept that his “real” father is Kazuma, the person who always loved and looked after him, when his biological father rejected him...that’s terrific. I also think he realizes that, even if his mom couldn’t handle the stresses that came with being mother to the Cat, her suicide wasn’t directly his fault - though that is less clear. The idea that trying to force other people to love us and stay with us is bad, and that we have to accept uncertainty in order to form real relationships, is an important one too. However, there were two ideas that I thought were going to be central – ideas that I personally think are really important – and the third season basically blows them up and adds in another idea that I hate.

             First, the show seemed to be going for a “you can be loved and accepted despite or even because of the things that make you different” message. But then, not only do the zodiac members stop transforming when their spiritual bonds to Akito break, they get the most heteronormative set of happy endings I’ve seen since the last chapter of “Harry Potter”. I should have maybe seen warning signs when Hatsuharu's hot girlfriend (Rin, the horse) is introduced - because why was he flirting with everyone else until exactly that moment, if they've been secretly dating for a year or more?  But Yuki didn’t seem to be into him, and Hatsu and Rin are an insanely good looking couple, so I wasn't going to complain. Then Akito is revealed to “really” be a girl whose mother made her pretend to be a boy. What? Then why is she still dressing that way now that she’s in charge if that’s not what she wants? Yuki kisses the odd, quiet girl from student council (OK. He never said he wasn’t interested in dating, and they are kind of cute together). Then Ayame seems to be declaring his love for his female shop assistant (Seriously? The guy who would make Aziraphale look straight as a ruler by comparison?). Then we see that Ritsu has cut “his” hair and looks perfectly happy to pass on “his” kimonos to a female cousin (F-ing WHAT?!!). Thanks, I hate it!

            It gets even worse than that, because many of these relationships have age and/or power imbalances that disadvantage the woman. Tohru is going to help Kyo realize his dream, but still shows no sign of wanting anything for herself. Kureno originally rejected Uo not because he’s in his mid-to-late twenties and she’s in high school and that would be weird but because Akito was using his pity to keep him around as a sex toy/punching bag. Now that Akito’s let him go, their relationship – which Uo built up in her mind from two interactions – is apparently just fine. Ayame’s sudden love interest is both his employee and significantly younger. As for Akito, she says she is expressing her true self by wearing women’s clothing. But that flower-patterned kimono was a gift from Shigure, who has for years apparently wanted her love for himself, rather than having to share it with the rest of the zodiac. He was willing to use anyone, even innocent little Tohru, to break those bonds. And he tells her he wants to be with her and gives her this kimono when she is at her most vulnerable, not believing anyone could ever forgive her or care for her on her own merits, rather than because she is a special being born to have the others’ devotion. That is evil.

            That brings me to the second theme that tanked: How do we deal with abusive relationships? It seemed like the message was going to be “break those bonds and walk away, even if hurts.” But that’s not what happens. Rin – who Akito pushed out a second-story window and later imprisoned and humiliated – declares that she doesn’t understand how the others can forgive Akito. I’m with Rin on this! While understanding the factors that may have led someone to hurt you and internally forgiving them can be an important step in healing from trauma, it doesn’t mean you have to be that person’s friend. Now, of course Tohru would offer that forgiveness and friendship. She’s ridiculously kind, and self-deprecating enough to think she’s like Akito because she’d tried to keep her relationship with her dead mother frozen in time, even though that didn’t ultimately hurt anyone but herself. But none of the Somas should be willingly hanging out with Akito. No amount of loneliness or insecurity excuses the physical and emotional torment she put them through! In a way, I wish I could make myself believe that being with a manipulator like Shigure is meant to be Akito’s punishment. But I’m not a big fan of “eye for an eye” punishments, especially not like this, and the framing suggests we are meant to be happy for them, which is unsettling.

 

Overall recommendation: The first two seasons had a lot of promise in showing characters talking through their feelings of being outsiders, or of having no self-worth, or whatever, and growing stronger as those conversations helped them bond with others. That’s why the third season is so disappointing. This show doesn’t have as epically and obviously bad an ending as “Game of Thrones”. But it is insidiously bad in the way it implicitly links happiness not just to being in a romantic relationship but with being more “normal” and tacitly equates trauma-related quirks like irritability or an inability to talk about your feelings with using your trauma as an excuse to actively and egregiously abuse others. If you want to check it out and form your own opinion, though, the first two seasons are available in sub or dub form on Hulu, the third season here on anime network.