a primer on Fruits Basket

Fuits Basket was one of the first

anime titles

i have viewed. somewhat to my surprise, i immediately liked it. it was, and still remains, one of my favorite series — hardly a surprise, considering how popular it has become.

Five minutes into the pilot episode, i knew right away i was going to enjoy

Fruits Basket

(proof: i didn’t realize i had this fatuous grin on my face, until i stole a glance in the mirror and almost scared myself in the process), without a clear idea of how the story was going to unfold. what prompted me to watch this 26-episode series though was the consistently good buzz it generated from various sources — reviewers, fans, industry reports, etc.

Fruits Basket starts on a funny-bittersweet note. You can’t help but instantly empathize with Tohru Honda, a recently orphaned 16-year-old high school girl who unwittingly sets up camp (literally!) in the wooded vicinity of Shigure Sohma’s house. After a series of interesting developments, she eventually becomes part of the Sohma household, which also included the squabbling cousins Yuki Sohma and Kyou Sohma (also her classmates). In exchange for room and board, she agreed to housekeep for the flamboyant trio.

It isn’t long afterwards that she stumbles upon the family’s well-kept secret (and what a funny scene that was — you ought to see it to appreciate the slapstick humor). In the process of interacting with the mind-boggling, colorful members of this fascinating family, she manages to teach everyone that there is more to strength than stoical toughness.

However, the road is not smooth for the slightly ditsy protagonist. In the course of the 26-episode story, Tohru learns to cope with jealous schoolmates (Yuki’s rabid fan club) and judgmental relatives, and to survive the chaotic, over-the-top and hilarious reactions of various ‘cursed’ Sohma clan members. Her major stumbling block is Akito Sohma — the frail, but bitter and manipulative leader of the Sohma clan.

Fortunately for Honda (for all her quiet resilience and unquenched optimism), she has two protective and devoted friends, Hanajima and Arisa, who are both a study in mental toughness themselves. She also forms an unlikely but strong bond with Yuki and Kyou, who — in their own touchingly awkward fashion — try to help and shield Tohru from the worst of Akito’s vengeful machinations.

Seamlessly mixing drama and comedy, Fruits Basket is one series where the characters are sharply delineated; despite the huge cast, it’s easy to single out and identify a character, mostly due to the concept of Jikkan-Juniishi (based on the Chinese zodiac, which comprises 12 animals that each ‘cursed’ Sohma clan member correspondingly personifies), and the way the show’s creators deftly handled the story. The fact that it is based on a hugely popular manga series (recently concluded, but i’m not including any spoilers here) in Japan and elsewhere, particularly in the US, also works hugely in its favor.

Other factors that contribute to its mass appeal is the art and the music it employs to complement (but never gratingly overwhelms) the scenes being portrayed. The opening and closing songs are also appropriate for the series.