Man, there has to be a week soon where I’m not completely behind on posting these reviews. Still, better slightly late than never, right?
I’m not going to sugarcoat it – I absolutely loved this episode. Sure, I may say that for most episodes of Fruits Basket, but this time I truly mean it. My emotions were all over the place. I was crying one second, laughing in the next and then completely in shock in the last. An episode which can pack so many different emotions, in my eyes, is a good episode.
In this episode, we see Tooru move out of the Sohma house to join her family in Gramps’ newly renovated home. Her family isn’t exactly too pleasant, mind you. Comparisons to her mother, negative comments about her mother, complaining about sharing a room with Tooru, hiring a private investigator to spy on her, and implying the Sohmas were indecent… Wow. They really didn’t take a look in the mirror, did they? What we see, Yuki and Kyo also see. Because of their own espionage skills, the episode also sees Tooru escape from the household and move back into the Sohma’s. It’s a good job she hadn’t unpacked everything, that’s all I’m saying.
Now, if we exclude how I love this episode for explaining the show’s name so well, I loved this episode for two reasons – the messages and the comedy.
Within the episode, we get a few messages. Firstly, that it’s okay to be selfish every now and again. I tend to have a similar trait to Tooru here: I always follow what other people say, want or do. It’s actually very rare for me to do what I want to do and go against people in doing so. Seeing this storyline again really did make me think a lot about things, that’s for sure.
The second message that came across to me was that no family is perfect and we see this from different perspectives. By this point, Tooru has adopted the Sohmas as her family. Perhaps unintentionally, but she definitely has this love for them and they have the same love for her. They treat her with respect, she treats them with respect. This is completely different from her actual family who we meet in the episode, sure, but the Sohmas are still imperfect, what with their constant fighting, for example. It doesn’t matter that they’re not perfect – Tooru just wants, and deserves, to be respected like everyone else.
The comedy in this episode was something that absolutely delighted me. I kinda feel as if the character of Shigure really shone this episode. I have this nostalgic memory of Shigure being extremely cheeky at times in the original series, yet we haven’t really seen much of this in this adaptation. He’s usually presented as being more responsible this time around, so it certainly made a lovely change to see Shigure teasing Kyo about ‘searching for a nail-clipper’. It was something so simple, yet it brought a big smile to my face for this is the Shigure I know and miss. We need more of this for sure!
Shigure certainly did stand out this episode for me, personally, but the real MVP this episode goes to Gramps himself. We could see that he truly does care for Tooru and the way he stuck up for her against his grandson [?] (there seems to be a lot of confusion around the actual family link here, so if anyone can clarify, please let me know!) was amazing. You go, Gramps!
Despite me loving it, I can’t help but feel as if this episode was slightly rushed. Very slightly. Tooru can’t have spent more than a few hours in her family’s home before moving out again. Although a slightly different perspective from the original series where she, I believe, at least spent a night in this home, I did enjoy seeing the scenes with Yuki and Kyo searching for the house. Definitely a nice touch.
Tooru has had a good, positive result from her ‘being selfish’ and it’s now time for the series to get into full swing. If you think the emotions are finished with and the drama is over now, you couldn’t be far from the truth. This is just the beginning and I am very much looking forward to going through the highs and lows once again. Bring. It. On.
You can watch Fruits Basket (2019) on Funimation, Crunchyroll, and Wakamin, depending on your region!
Missed my last episode review? You can read it here!
Yeah, Grandpa for the win. I think that’s part of why he recommended she find a friend to live with back in episode one, he knew that living with those people would crush her spirit. It was a great episode.
That’s a good point, actually! You’re probably right. Man, what a great grandpa.