Fruits Basket, looking back as an adult

[Basil-tofu]

I really loved Fruits Basket when I was in middle school/early high school. I thought the art was great, the emotion was great, the plot was great, and the characters were brilliant.

Now it's been roughly eight years and understandably my opinion of the manga had changed. I still like the art (not that it's my favorite style, but pretty people will generally always be pretty people), and I take a somewhat childish glee in the emotional melodrama and angst.

But when I look at the characters and the plot, there are just a lot of things I can't get over. What's more, lately I can't seem to stop thinking about it. I keep trying to analyse where Fruits Basket falls short. Not that Fruits BAsket is the only one. I spend just about the same amount of time mulling over Yu-Gi-Oh, but at least Yu-Gi-Oh has some great fanfiction writers that approach the series in the same way. Fruits Basket... not so much.

I was wondering if there's anyone out there who still remembers Fruits Basket (or enjoys it now!) and would like to share their thoughts or questions. I'd be really interested in other people's reasons for liking it/not liking it/being unsure. Is there something you wish the series did that it didn't? Were you happy with how everything was resolved?

I"m looking for intelligent discussion, so please no bashing. You don't have to like Fruits Basket or appreciate it, but here just isn't the place for that. I'm sure if you make a rant/complaint thread, you'll get a lot of responses.

Looking forward to reading your thoughts!

[XxXNaomisDaughterXxX]

love it

[Starshine]

Ohh FB, takes me back, now I feel old lol

I think it's a fun anime with enough light heartedness and comedy to balance out the angst that the majority of the characters seem to have experienced/is still experiencing.

What it falls short on is logic. In high school I thought everything made sense. Now there's no way I'll believe that everyone would follow someone sadistic and cold just because of a curse. They seem to all have too much free will for that. Sure old clans have strong family values, but this is set in modern times.

[DevilishMaiden]

Starshine

Ohh FB, takes me back, now I feel old lol

I think it's a fun anime with enough light heartedness and comedy to balance out the angst that the majority of the characters seem to have experienced/is still experiencing.

What it falls short on is logic. In high school I thought everything made sense. Now there's no way I'll believe that everyone would follow someone sadistic and cold just because of a curse. They seem to all have too much free will for that. Sure old clans have strong family values, but this is set in modern times.

I read it in high school also (when it first came out) and was thinking about reading it again as an adult to take a different look at it.

However, I agree with the quote above, there are those little logical things that would drive me nuts because I'd feel like it's too hard to believe now. Even back when I was reading it a few of them stood out as being a bit .... unrealistic...or something.

[Starshine]

DevilishMaiden

Starshine

Ohh FB, takes me back, now I feel old lol

I think it's a fun anime with enough light heartedness and comedy to balance out the angst that the majority of the characters seem to have experienced/is still experiencing.

What it falls short on is logic. In high school I thought everything made sense. Now there's no way I'll believe that everyone would follow someone sadistic and cold just because of a curse. They seem to all have too much free will for that. Sure old clans have strong family values, but this is set in modern times.

I read it in high school also (when it first came out) and was thinking about reading it again as an adult to take a different look at it.

However, I agree with the quote above, there are those little logical things that would drive me nuts because I'd feel like it's too hard to believe now. Even back when I was reading it a few of them stood out as being a bit .... unrealistic...or something.

Haha, the Yuki fanclub is another one of those extreme unrealistic things xd

[Basil-tofu]

Starshine

DevilishMaiden

Starshine

Ohh FB, takes me back, now I feel old lol

I think it's a fun anime with enough light heartedness and comedy to balance out the angst that the majority of the characters seem to have experienced/is still experiencing.

What it falls short on is logic. In high school I thought everything made sense. Now there's no way I'll believe that everyone would follow someone sadistic and cold just because of a curse. They seem to all have too much free will for that. Sure old clans have strong family values, but this is set in modern times.

I read it in high school also (when it first came out) and was thinking about reading it again as an adult to take a different look at it.

However, I agree with the quote above, there are those little logical things that would drive me nuts because I'd feel like it's too hard to believe now. Even back when I was reading it a few of them stood out as being a bit .... unrealistic...or something.

Haha, the Yuki fanclub is another one of those extreme unrealistic things xd

I think it takes a lot of thing you would generally see if you lived in japan (not, of course, people turning into animals, but a lot of the kinds of family issues and abuses that happen and the fan clubs and school dynamics) and exaggerates then waaaay into the ridiculous. Which i guess a lot of humor series do, but for some reason it seems more prominent in fb? I'm not really sure why though.

[ElectricBeat]

I really like it biggrin
I'm still a huge fan of TohruxKyo xD
There are parts that are sort of ridiculous (ahem..YUKI FANCLUB) but that sort of makes it even better for me biggrin
I can't read manga that's too serious or else I melt into a puddle of intellectual goo.

[Danny320]

Not gonna lie, I loved Fruits Basket. But sometimes it was a bit too unnecessarily dramatic and Tohru was an annoying character. Also, the ending was a bit eh. I mean, although I was happy that the curse was broken and ultimately that's how I wanted the story to end, I don't see "why" it broke, I feel it was too vague and sudden. And some of the plot was maybe unnecessary as well?

[SaphireJ]

I love Fruits Basket

[Basil-tofu]

Danny320

Not gonna lie, I loved Fruits Basket. But sometimes it was a bit too unnecessarily dramatic and Tohru was an annoying character. Also, the ending was a bit eh. I mean, although I was happy that the curse was broken and ultimately that's how I wanted the story to end, I don't see "why" it broke, I feel it was too vague and sudden. And some of the plot was maybe unnecessary as well?

That's exactly how I felt! Somewhere in the middle or so, the whole curse plot seemed more of a hinderance than a focus. Like the relationship details and intrigue and everything was more important than figuring out how the curse worked, or it was just used as an excuse to make characters unhappy at various points. I really wish the breaking of the curse had more planning to it. And made more sense.

[Basil-tofu]

SaphireJ

I love Fruits Basket

I'm glad! Do you have any thoughts on what you like best about it?

[Starshine]

Basil-tofu

I think it takes a lot of thing you would generally see if you lived in japan (not, of course, people turning into animals, but a lot of the kinds of family issues and abuses that happen and the fan clubs and school dynamics) and exaggerates then waaaay into the ridiculous. Which i guess a lot of humor series do, but for some reason it seems more prominent in fb? I'm not really sure why though.

Oh I actually don't have a problem with the people turning into animals part. I can accept the curse as part of their world/storyline. The parts that are annoying and illogical is that perfectly intelligent, caring, successful and self reliant adults are standing by and doing nothing while child abuse, etc happens.

I really loved FB back then, but if I read it now I would want them to tone the angst down a lot before I can enjoy it as much rofl

[Miss-dark8607]

I didn't really like it then and I wouldn't bother re-reading it now. I thought and still think Tohru was an unrealistic boring mary sue type and I still do. Seriously, your whole family dies, you live in a tent, and then get adopted in by cursed family and through it all you just smile your way through? BULLSHIT to the highest degree. No one is that well adjusted and have that much reliance.

Which is why I kind of preferred the anime over the manga and the changes they made.

[ChemicalKidBITES]

Gahh twas my first manga! and I have almost all the books! (a few are out for loan right now) C:

[Rio diGennaio]

I've always liked the zodiac, be it Chinese, Western, or what have you. Fruits Basket was really a great series, even though Tohru really fell short for me as a main character. I was so happy that the plot made it to where Yuki didn't end up with Tohru, but a minor side character that was introduced late near the end of the series. (Which, honestly, was a first for me at the time to see.) I watched what I could of the anime and wished it lasted longer. All in all, a great series for its time.