Fruits Basket

I see Funimation has gotten the English rights to this anime so I will let you know what the series is about. I saw seven episodes of this show subtitled at the Ryerson anime club.

Schoolgirl Toru Honda has been living with her grandfather since her mother passed away. Grandpa is getting the house renovated so they have to move out for a while. Grandpa goes to live with his son's family but Toru ends up living by herself in a tent. As it turns out she is squatting on the land of the Soma clan. One of the family recognizes her from school and invites her to live with their all-male household for a bit until her grandfather's home is rebuilt. Toru soon gets a big surprise because the Soma's have a secret curse like Ranma 1/2.

I like the opening and closing songs written Ritsuko Okazaki. She sings in a soft, whispery style that suits the melancholy mood of the show.

I understand the manga and anime are doing very well in Japan so check out the English version when it appears.

This is one of the best storytelling I've seen in any popular entertainment be it movies or television series. What originally look like a Ranma 1/2 clone turns out to be something of a character study where every single character shows painfully real emotions and feelings.

The show started out with the main character, Tohru Honda, stumbled onto the Sohma's family house after she had set up her tent in the surrounding forest area that is owned by the Sohma. Tohru later on is offered by Shigure, the owner of the house to stay with him as well as two other Sohma members, Yuki and Kyo in exchange of doing household chores.

After only one day, however, Tohru finds out that the Sohma is not your usual family. They hide a secret that no person outside the family has ever found out until Tohru accidentally uncovers it.

I LOVE fruits basket. It's the only reason i watch TV. I love the story line and characters. They give the characters such wonderfully realistic feelings that ricochet toward you. For example, when one of the characters is sad, you feel sad too. Or, if one has feelings toward another character, you get that warm, fuzzy feeling with them. It's that good of a show. I can watch this show over and over and over and never get tired of it, ever. And every time I watch it , I either learn something or notice something I didn't before. And every time it makes me laugh, cry and feel good. I have never read the manga novels, you don't need to. If you watch the DVD series, it doesn't matter. It's just that good

Wow, I am blown back with this. This Anime has really just made me feel, well I can't describe it, but I tell you what, it has all the qualities of what I look for in a good Anime or a good Movie. And really I'm impressed. After reading the first volume of the Manga series, and keeping that all in mind, I wasn't sure how I would react to this adaptation. But of course I found it spectacular. I tell you I don't think I've seen quite another story like this one. I mean it sounds like the dumbest thing on earth, but when you really start getting into it, it's just wonderful. Glad I didn't judge this book by it's cover.

Story/Adaptation:

Very nicely done. While some of the literal translations seemed a little much, and there we're certain sort of mix ups and cut outs it's really quite good. Because mind you, writing a Manga and a Screenplay are no easy tasks. Especially trying to adapt into an X amount of time for a series. So it was really nicely done. They really bring the characters out, (as is common in Shoujo) and no one really get's needlessly lost in translation. With nicely constructed duologue (Although it is easy when you have a cheat sheet) and nicely paced. Maybe it can be slow, but it doesn't bother me to much. After all this is a Shoujo/Comedy/Drama Anime so it's only natural for it to be on the slow side. And the story in General, of course I'll be treading into the Manga a bit, but it's really nice. I've only read Volume 1 but I've exceeded that with watching disc one of the DVD. I love the drama it creates, Tohru is all alone in the world it seems, but she has so many people that care for her. Two friends that are so fiercely loyal to her, it's amazing. Thoru is such a happy-go-lucky girl, but she's also very selfless. I like when characters aren't warped in vanity, that just drives me nuts when they are so vain. Even the infatuated Prince Yuki Fan Club President, has a soft side to her. Some of the other aspects I loved, strong sense of freindship. Hanna and Uoh, thoes two, just have hearst of gold. They love Tohru like a sister, and you can just tell they want to take care of her and protect her. They seem like the type who would take a baseball bat to a persons head if that person harmed Thoru.

Acting:

VERY NICE! A very superbness dub, and you people say all dubs suck. I got to tell you it's filled me with a bit of confidence for when FUNI dubs Tusbasa. Laura Bailey does absolutely wonderful with Tohru. Although her Japanese counter part is much higher, she really brings the character out well. I don't find any voices to be on the really annoying side. At least the guys sound like guys, and gals sound like Gals. (Even if Yuki is a bit of a she-male)

Original Score: Rather weak. Nice usage, but could be better in my opinion. But not so bad. Some nice movements, but the themes aren't so wonderful. But still at least there are memorable melodies in this series, as opposed to no music at all. That Piano Theme at the end of Episode 25 was, wow amazing.

Animation:

Superbious quality. What more can I say?

Overall: This has really been on my mind quite a bit lately. And it's become one of my Favorites. It's a nice shoujo even for soft guys like me. I strongly recommend it to just about anyone who is looking for a great comedy-drama b/c I enjoyed it. This Anime has just moved me to tears at times, I was bawling in the end it so sweet. It has given me just warm feelings all around So check this out, you might just like it.

Fruits Basket can be summed up in a few phrases: Girl meets boy and cousins. Girl accidentally hugs one cousin. Cousin turns into bright orange cat with a bad attitude. Girl also has full body contact with boy and his other cousin, and is presented with a rat and a dog as well.

Part romance, part comedy, part drama, part action, Fruits Basket blends together characters that feel real and people can identify with. The animation quality is high end, with soft coloring and amazing watercolor backgrounds.

The animation is based on the manga of the same title by Natsuki Takaya. Fans of the manga will recognize many of the scenes as some are taken straight from the manga panels. It remains fairly faithful to the original manga.

If you enjoyed the manga, you will enjoy the anime. Funny, thought-provoking, and sad, Fruits Baskets will make you feel all of your emotions in a way you've never felt them before.