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EP. REVIEW: Fruits Basket the Final


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Maidenoftheredhand



Joined: 21 Jun 2007
Posts: 2633
PostPosted: Sun May 23, 2021 7:03 am Reply with quote
Yeah the fact that they took their time with all the earlier stuff but are now rushing the final arc is majorly disappointing. I am not saying it’s necessarily bad but things do feel rushed when they didn’t before.

And the thing is I don’t remember every detail from the manga because I have not read it in a long time but I remember a lot of scenes having way more impact for me in the manga and I do believe that is because things are just happening way to fast in this last arc.
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yuna49



Joined: 27 Aug 2008
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PostPosted: Sun May 23, 2021 10:27 am Reply with quote
I wouldn't be surprised to learn that the creative staff wanted another full season, but the production committee said no.

Look what happened to Akane Kazuki's Hoshiai no Sora. Originally planned for 24 episodes but cut down to twelve, I believe while the first cour was airing.

Frankly I never understood why this season has only one cour. It's one thing for a production committee to manhandle an anime-original work like Hoshiai no Sora. It makes much less sense when we're talking about one of the most famous and beloved manga of all time. Have disc sales of the first two seasons been running below expectations?
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Key
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PostPosted: Mon May 24, 2021 9:42 pm Reply with quote
Manga readers have been complaining that this series has been moving along too swiftly, so I'm curious to see how they react to episode 8. Frankly, I felt it dragged, and badly enough to kill whatever emotional impetus it should have had.

I should clarify that this is far from the first time that I've felt that the series is taking self-doubt and self-recrimination to the point of overkill; indeed, this has been a regular point of frustration for me especially this season, and to a lesser extent in the previous one. I totally get that there was a lot to convey here, but surely there was a better way to do it than to have Kyo drone on in a morose monotone for most of an episode? By the time it finally came for Tohru to speak the line that some have been waiting ages to hear, too much of the energy had been drained away.

I will say, though, that the final scene was interesting. Not totally surprised that such a confrontation arose, and at least the storytelling and direction did right by setting that up to happen when both characters are at their lowest.
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Zhou-BR



Joined: 28 Feb 2008
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PostPosted: Tue May 25, 2021 1:31 pm Reply with quote
Key wrote:
Manga readers have been complaining that this series has been moving along too swiftly, so I'm curious to see how they react to episode 8. Frankly, I felt it dragged, and badly enough to kill whatever emotional impetus it should have had.


This episode only covered 2 chapters, which was this show's usual pace before the final season. It worked for me, but it feels odd to see the show slow down after four consecutive fast-paced episodes. Also, it means the five remaining episodes will have to cover almost 3 volumes' worth of material, and at this point I lost any hope of seeing chapters 90-93 adapted.
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PonSquared



Joined: 27 Dec 2006
Posts: 246
Location: Lost in the Catskills
PostPosted: Tue May 25, 2021 2:12 pm Reply with quote
I sure hope Tohru channels is a little bit of her mother in The next episode and smacks the living universe out of Akito. I'm so tired of akito getting to run roughshod on everyone. Since no one else is going to stand up to her it sadly seems to fall to Tohru to do something about it. It's not in her nature but she is her mother's daughter so here's to hoping! At least, if Kyo and Yuki aren't there to deal with akito I don't want anyone else to save her she needs to save herself this time. If there is an Akito beat down then all the better.
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kurichan69



Joined: 16 Feb 2009
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Location: Seattle, WA
PostPosted: Tue May 25, 2021 5:26 pm Reply with quote
Zhou-BR wrote:
at this point I lost any hope of seeing chapters 90-93 adapted.


I have always hoped they'd include the Kyoko/Katsuya backstory because I love it so much but after watching the whole series more than once, you know what? I'm fine with them leaving it out. Maybe they'll make an OVA! If there are only 13 episodes, I would rather they leave out the backstory than other important plot points. I hope people will go and read all the manga but especially those chapters to learn more about the relationships but I don't think anime-onlies are going to feel they are missing out on much. I've had discussions with anime-only friends and not a single one of them has expressed a strong interest in knowing the backstory and they don't really seem to care about it and they really don't need to. I wish the manga readers would stop obsessing about this and just enjoy the beautiful and faithful adaptation we're watching.


Last edited by kurichan69 on Fri May 28, 2021 1:40 am; edited 1 time in total
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1dbad



Joined: 12 Jul 2015
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PostPosted: Tue May 25, 2021 6:24 pm Reply with quote
Anime-only watcher here, and I can confirm that I felt like things were rushed/being left out since fairly early into this season. In fact, my lack of knowledge regarding the manga/fan reaction is what lead to me pulling up this thread. I wanted to see if I was just imagining things or not. It's disappointing having my suspicions confirmed, but I'm glad I'm not the only one feeling this way.

I'll still see the season through to its end, but I do feel let down on the reboot's promise. Now I feel like I have to read the manga afterward rather than doing so because I want to enjoy the story a second time.
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KitKat1721



Joined: 03 Feb 2015
Posts: 952
PostPosted: Wed May 26, 2021 5:20 am Reply with quote
You know how people say when a parent says they’re disappointed in you, it hurts worse than them actually being mad or upset? Apparently this also applies to love confession rejections. Good to know, Fruits Basket.

Since this episode was one of the most straightforward of the season (its just Kyo unloading everything on Tohru with special guest appearances by Akito and Yuki "I already dealt with my past last season" Soma), I want to talk about the "I'm disappointed in you" line. Partially because I've always found it to be an interesting choice and partially because I'm a bit tired that every Fruits Basket discussion seems to be revolved around whether or not this season is rushed. I've already said my piece on it, and considering where we are in the story and what's left, I don't really see that view changing. The larger, more dramatic storyline cuts work while the smaller relationship-building cuts are missed - but its not nearly the season-killing detriment some manga fans make it out to be.

Anyways, throughout the show Kyo has always been the one who reassured Tohru that opening up about her true feelings (or her “selfishness”) wasn’t wrong. No matter what she was venting about (everything from her insecurities or anxiety about the future to how conflicted and guilty she felt for painting her father “as the bad guy” in her mind when she needed to), or how ridiculous her guilt might have seemed to him at the time - he never forgot to make sure she knew she was fine and that he didn’t think any less of her. Most often just by giving her encouragement and space to talk, most overtly last week by literally telling her “you won’t disappoint me.”

Now Tohru’s taken a big leap of faith after all that, not only telling Kyo she loves him (good for you girl, although not sure a rainy day was the mood-setter you thought it'd be), but that she outright doesn’t agree her mom would say such a thing to him. And even if she did, it doesn’t matter. The last words of the person she considered most important to her, and the person Kyo knows has always been most important to her, won’t change how she feels. He's told her time and time again that she can tell him anything, and he whole-heartedly accepted confessions she herself had a hard time not only admitting to anyone, but carrying/accepting just on her own. But its a lot easier for Kyo to be all “hey Tohru, its okay to speak up and be honest, nothing you say will change how I see you” when her words don’t actively run counter to every shred of insecurity, guilt, and self-hatred he has. A lot of which he’s kept bottled up for a long time. [As a related side-note, the anime also changes something: that Kyo has "repressed" Kyoko's death until seeing the baseball hat. I've seen a lot of people take this at face value, but I think they're implying that he's repressed the emotional impact it had on him and that he more or less disassociated from reliving the actual memory. Not that he repressed the fact that it happened at all, since we've seen him relive flashes and think back on the event multiple times before and even voice his own regrets about that day in Ep. 14].

It’s one thing to be rejected and not have your feelings reciprocated. It’s a whole other thing to be told that, because of how you feel and what you said, you’ve let them down. Echoing back a once reassuring phrase to reject her, it’s surprisingly on-the-nose for what seems to just be said in the moment and clearly coming from a place of disbelief rather than malice. Like “I can’t believe you would be foolish enough to still say you love me after everything I’ve told you. I’ve tried to keep a lid on everything for everyone’s benefit, including my own sanity, and you’ve now made that impossible. I wish you hadn't.” And when he's running away, it comes across more like avoidance than outright rejection (otherwise I don't think Yuki would chase him down). But still, at the end of the day, his response to Tohru’s honesty is that he’s now “disappointed in her.”

Man Kyo, you really managed to reject her in probably the worst way. And its not only because of echoing back his words from last week, but because we've seen a slow and steady build-up of encouragement and support from Kyo towards Tohru over time. Its earned the right to hit so much harder than any generic throwaway line.
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Stelman257



Joined: 26 Jul 2013
Posts: 266
PostPosted: Tue Jun 01, 2021 5:11 am Reply with quote
This weeks episode was absolutely WILD oh my god. So much and I really loved it all. Tohru was always a character I liked a lot, but I think this season, plus Laura Bailey's fantastic performance has really got her as one of my top 3 favourites in the show for sure. Also mad props to Colleen Clinkenbeard's Akito! I know some manga fans have had rough thoughts with this season, but as someone who's totally new and experiencing Fruit's Basket for the first time, I've been absolutely in love with everything this 2019 series has done.
Key wrote:
Manga readers have been complaining that this series has been moving along too swiftly, so I'm curious to see how they react to episode 8. Frankly, I felt it dragged, and badly enough to kill whatever emotional impetus it should have had.

I should clarify that this is far from the first time that I've felt that the series is taking self-doubt and self-recrimination to the point of overkill; indeed, this has been a regular point of frustration for me especially this season, and to a lesser extent in the previous one. I totally get that there was a lot to convey here, but surely there was a better way to do it than to have Kyo drone on in a morose monotone for most of an episode? By the time it finally came for Tohru to speak the line that some have been waiting ages to hear, too much of the energy had been drained away.

Nah I disagree completely, and definitely concur with how the reviewer felt giving the episode a nearly perfect score. We finally see everything about what makes Kyo tick, and I loved the way the accident was animated too. Plus the haunting words by Tohru's mother at the end? I can understand some frustration I guess, if you don't like Kyo as a character and having to watch a whole episode of him bearing so much to Tohru. I think if I'd gotten an episode like this back in season 1 I probably would've agreed with you. But Kyo has grown a lot over season 2 and this season, and I've really come to appreciate what the show has done with him, and his relationship with Tohru.
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KitKat1721



Joined: 03 Feb 2015
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 01, 2021 1:25 pm Reply with quote
I've always been a big fan of how Tohru and Akito's character arcs come together by the end. It creates a connection between them that's justified and shows how no one else would really be able to reach Akito in the same way, nor would Tohru have been able to get through to her had she not gone through everything she did in the series and came to terms with her own trauma. The parallels between the two (fears of abandonment, change, and moving on) have always been there, but they're really brought to the forefront now while never feeling like it came out of nowhere, even if just in hindsight for some. Even with the characters being complete opposites in almost every other aspect (upbringing, status, temperament, etc...), neither side's confession/inner monologue felt unearned/tacked on or like it was doing all the heavy lifting for the sake of forcing a parallel. Even when Tohru first learned about the true nature of the curse + Akito's role within it in S2, and was lamenting how awful it must be to be bound like that, she still had an additional separate concern for how Akito too, is unfortunately bound.

I do appreciate that Ibata managed to restrain himself in certain aspects. The man usually loves to exaggerate any and all "falls" in the series for... some reason?? Kyo just pushing/scratching her back in S1 turned into him yeeting her 20+ ft in the air. Tohru tumbling down the roof during Ritsu's episode was a weird addition considering everyone else just watched it happen and did nothing (heck, Shigure didn't even flinch). Then there's Akito and Rin's fight at the start of this season looking like that scene from Fire Force where they crashed through the different rooms haha

On a lighter note, I have been loving all the "third wheel Yuki" memes on twitter recently, because this is the third time he's just been standing there awkwardly while a romantic moment is taking place, but this time he finally just walks away Laughing The man is so done.
Stelman257 wrote:
...plus Laura Bailey's fantastic performance has really got her as one of my top 3 favourites in the show for sure. Also mad props to Colleen Clinkenbeard's Akito!

Yeah I have to agree, both of them absolutely crushed it this week. The lines Akito was saying to Tohru on the cliffside right before the big fall were some of Colleen's best reads in the entire show in my opinion. I know Colleen has a unique history with Fruits Basket (the original 2001 series was the first anime she watched because Laura Bailey, her roommate at the time, recommended it), and she's said before she was actually really nervous about playing Akito early on. Which is crazy considering how much success she's had and how many well-received performances she's done. But I can't think of anyone else who would be better suited, and its definitely up there with Hana (Wolf Children) and Riza Hawkeye (FMA) as one of my favorite performances of hers!
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Key
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 01, 2021 3:30 pm Reply with quote
KitKat1721 wrote:
I've always been a big fan of how Tohru and Akito's character arcs come together by the end. It creates a connection between them that's justified and shows how no one else would really be able to reach Akito in the same way, nor would Tohru have been able to get through to her had she not gone through everything she did in the series and came to terms with her own trauma. The parallels between the two (fears of abandonment, change, and moving on) have always been there, but they're really brought to the forefront now while never feeling like it came out of nowhere, even if just in hindsight for some. Even with the characters being complete opposites in almost every other aspect (upbringing, status, temperament, etc...), neither side's confession/inner monologue felt unearned/tacked on or like it was doing all the heavy lifting for the sake of forcing a parallel. Even when Tohru first learned about the true nature of the curse + Akito's role within it in S2, and was lamenting how awful it must be to be bound like that, she still had an additional separate concern for how Akito too, is unfortunately bound.

I was also impressed by how this handled, and how much more smoothly this came together is one of the main reasons why this episode gets a thumbs-up from me when last episode doesn't.

Quote:
Stelman257 wrote:
...plus Laura Bailey's fantastic performance has really got her as one of my top 3 favourites in the show for sure. Also mad props to Colleen Clinkenbeard's Akito!

Yeah I have to agree, both of them absolutely crushed it this week.

Also agreed. (Although for me, Eclair in Kiddy Grade is still Colleen's defining role!) Getting Laura Bailey back for this role was one of the best dubbing-related moves Funimation has done in recent years.
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25thchestnut



Joined: 14 Sep 2020
Posts: 23
PostPosted: Tue Jun 01, 2021 7:18 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
If you have ever lost somebody close, you know it's like they're frozen in a specific time. Since they passed, you've made new friends, watched new anime, and maybe gone through new life events, none of which they have an opinion about since they died before any of this happened. (Is it obvious I'm speaking from experience here?) The worst part is, the longer it's been, the more that the you who knew them differs from the you that exists in the present. You still love them and miss them, but they feel further and further away from your daily life. One of the ways to keep them close is to simply not move forward with new things, the way Tohru was hesitant to do.

This is so beautifully written; it really resonates.


Last edited by 25thchestnut on Wed Jun 09, 2021 10:08 pm; edited 1 time in total
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db999



Joined: 23 Dec 2017
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 09, 2021 9:48 pm Reply with quote
On paper, this episode sounds like it should be rushed, but for some reason, it didn’t feel that way to me. In fact, as an anime-only fan, I don’t see how spending more time on any of these plot points would have improved the story. The entire episode from the moment Yuki and Kyo start fighting all the way to the end is perfectly paced. If the events in this episode had happened over the course of 2 or 3 episodes I wonder if it would have been too slow.
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Oggers



Joined: 29 Nov 2017
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 09, 2021 10:11 pm Reply with quote
One thing I actually didn't mind being cut from this episode was Uotani and Hanajima acting all hostile towards Kyo when he arrives at the hospital to see Tohru. Even if it's in character of them to be protective of Tohru, that moment never sat well with me, especially when they were more forgiving of Akito even though she stabbed someone.

But yeah, despite the constant tone shifts, this episode made that work surprisingly well.
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Key
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 09, 2021 10:31 pm Reply with quote
db999 wrote:
On paper, this episode sounds like it should be rushed, but for some reason, it didn’t feel that way to me. In fact, as an anime-only fan, I don’t see how spending more time on any of these plot points would have improved the story. The entire episode from the moment Yuki and Kyo start fighting all the way to the end is perfectly paced. If the events in this episode had happened over the course of 2 or 3 episodes I wonder if it would have been too slow.

Fully agreed.

Lauren wrote:
(or for the Sohma family servants, a Tuesday)

Certainly not the most poignant line in any review for this series but easily one of the best! Smile
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