#WOW AKITOS NAILS ARE LOOKING BEAUTIFUL

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MV ICONS FROM THE NEW LIVING MILLENNIUM MV!

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FRUITS BASKET S2 EPISODE 25 (SEASON 2 FINALE PT 2!!!) RECAP

Yayyy, I'm finally here at the last episode of season 2... I'm honestly still working through my final thoughts on this episode and I've just been waiting to write it out so I can stop swirling it around my head.

Oh Kureno...

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Mmmph... ain’t it beautiful. 😈

- Vibing extra hard to the opening cos it’s the last time I’ll hear it for a while (and also cos I’m distracting myself from the sads again)

I think I might do a ranking of the openings and endings so far at the end of this recap!

- There’s this music in the background that always plays when Akito’s manipulative powers are at work that goes so well with the uneasy tone of the scenes and it’s great.

Hana was giving me hardcore Tomoyo from Cardcaptor Sakura-vibes in this episode. I think it might’ve been the hairstyle but I dunno, Hana’s also obsessed with her best friend too so they might be more relatable than I thought lol

Ok. I hate to be predictable but Rin obviously gets Outfit Appreciation this episode. IT’S JUST FACTS. This is Rin’s best outfit so far. I wanna draw it, I wanna wear it. Yes. We should all aspire to include more arm sleeves in our outfits. 5 STARS.

Omg Yuki, tone it down 😂 WE GET IT. SHE’S MADRE.

Lol, where’s Kyo? I’m sure he wants head pats too. But, myyyy boy, Momiji...

...Did he really just pull the ‘let’s pray about it... together 💕’ move?! I am cackling 🤣

I kid, this was another cute moment between Momiji and Tohru. It’s just funny how everyone wants Tohru’s praise and affection... you know... like a GOD.

Ooooo, I hate to admit it... but I’m starting to love Shigure in full Trickster God mode. This whole episode he was sinfully delightful to watch. Voice acting - of course, was amazing. John Burgmeier makes Shigure’s lilty, carefree tones have such dark and sinister tone this episode. It’s not shocking enough that it feels like it’s a totally different person but it’s almost like as if you’re noticing something new in the painting you pass by everyday. That darkness was always there...

I am Hatori. Hatori is me. I’m starting to understand why Hatori stays friends with Shigure... 😅😅😅

*sigh*

“And now we move on to Kureno Sohma, 26, who is about to watch a random DVD given to him by a high schooler”...

I feel like a lot of things that happen to or around Kureno never seem quite right... or legal lol 😅

Oh Kureno... you poor Begotten Child of Eve... This scene is beautiful. But in general, Fruits Basket is so good with the use of colours and shadow and FRAMING in pretty much all of its scenes and scenarios. The way the whole scene is mostly dark but there’s a hint of purple showing how even though he is away from Akito, he’s never truly AWAY from Akito. It’s a nice touch.

It was soooo... cool to see Shigure in his true form. Haha, I have no other way to say it. He was being such a smart-ass and was incredibly cold towards Kureno but it’s really satisfying to see Shigure’s ‘real face’. Which is ironic because throughout this whole phone call we don’t actually get a clear view of Shigure’s face. 

That absolute drop in Shigure’s voice in the English dub was excellent as well.

All the pawns are falling into place... He really is the worst. I don’t like it. I like it.

CINEMATIC. I love how dramatic this scene and this anime is!!! Also, Kureno’s outfit is great, a long coat is always good. There’s also something very ‘Edward and Bella’ about this meeting and this reveal of the truth. It’s just... so early 00s and it’s great lol

But oh, look wow, Kureno doesn’t have the curse (!)

I love Kureno’s description of the curse breaking, it sounds so euphoric and beautiful! Also, I have to say, Ian Sinclair was fucking killing it this episode. I was a bit worried about him being Kureno at first because I’ve only known his performances as dynamic and slightly eccentric characters. But, he really nailed down Kureno’s calm and robotic kinda demeanour so that when his eventual breakdown happens...

It almost sounds alien and so broken like he’s been holding back his tears for so long but also a little bit pathetic which I personally love as a take on Kureno. Because... he is a little bit pathetic. 😬 His whole life is on stand still because of a promise he made to a 7-10 year old girl... when he was in middle school?! I know that tradition is tradition but I genuinely agree with Shigure berating him for letting this go on for so long.

I guess that’s always been my personal problem with Kureno. He could’ve potentially stopped so many Akito-caused disasters in many of the zodiac’s lives just by even telling his own truth. And I know that it’s explained that Kureno just wanted to calm Akito down and reassure her and I definitely felt for him in that moment... but I think I need more of an exploration of how Kureno genuinely feels about Akito without the loyalty promise. I just don’t understand why he’s carried this promise on for so long.

But anyways... I found Tohru’s reactions to what Kureno was saying very interesting...

Almost... like she finds this... relatable? (I dunno why I’m even trying to be coy when I’m behind rn lol) I’m definitely seeing the reflection between Tohru and Kureno now, lol

BIG REVEAL(!) I remember when I first found out that Akito was a girl from the manga and I don’t think I really thought anything of it 😂 Like I don’t really think I thought much about her gender, I definitely knew she was feminine but I kinda just read her as androgynous? Kinda the same as how I read Ayame at first. How did the anime-onlys receive this reveal?

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OPENINGS AND ENDINGS RANKING!

OPENINGS

Again - Beverly (Season 1, Opening 1)

Home - Toki Asako (Season 2, Opening 2)

2001 Opening

Prism (Season 2, Opening 1)

Chime - Ai Otsuka (Season 1, Opening 2)

ENDINGS

Lucky Ending (Season 1, Opening 1)

2001 Ending (THOSE STRINGS!! 🎻)

Eden (Season 2, Opening 2)

The Charm (Season 2, Opening 1)

One Step Closer (Season 1, Opening 2)

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Ahhh, I’m so glad I can now fully envelope Season 3 now. This was a great climax episode. Ian Sinclair really got me good in Kureno’s scene - teary eyed at 2am lol 

See you in Season 3!!! Yayy!

[yearoftheyuki]

Details in episode 7

So, as I mentioned in my last post, this was my favorite episode so far. In this post I wanna get a little more specific as to what I really meant by that. There’s a lot I loved, I’m considering making a future post on either Akito’s  portrayel in this episode or the perfection of Kyo and Tohru’s conversation in this episode. To talk about the whole episode would be overwhelming, as I’d wanna go into everything that I loved which makes writing difficult so I really want to focus on the beach scene between Yuki and Tohru because it is very important to me and it fits the theme of my Yuki centered blog. That was the first scene I saw of the manga. That scene is so very important for Yuki’s character. And I’ve read that scene so many times, I can still remember wishing I could see it animated. That being said, when I say I loved this episode I mean that the anime really did a good job of playing it out EXACTLY how I pictured it in my head. The chances of the anime doing that are very slim because these scenes are all very subjective; we’ve all read Fruits Basket and constructed our own thoughts or interpretations, so to satistfy everyone’s thoughts would be very difficult. I happen to love this episode because this time the anime nailed it, in how I pictured this scene. Some may have pictured it differently. *𝘗𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘸𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘵, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘣𝘦 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘪𝘵!

So what did they do that I loved? Well lets start with the fact that since this scene is so important to me, it must be treated with care. The care this scene was treated with is evident in how the choices the anime team made like:

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗖𝗢𝗟𝗢𝗥𝗦: The colors were absloutelty BEAUTIFUL in this scene. Such a soft, calming pallete that really fit the vibe of this scene. I pictured the night exactly like this; that kind of nighy where the sun is setting and blending into a purple sky (if that makes sence). It really set the tone for the whole scene; subtle but important. By subtle I mean that the colors were simple, by important I mean that they stand out enough to draw you in and make you realize that what’s going on is worth paying attention to.

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖: Wow, they gave this scene a special song, as they should! The music they chose was the kind that makes you choked up as your’re listening to it, in the moment. This really works because Yuki is overwhelmed at the moment with lots of feelines; love, gratitude, sadness, fear, confidence, but above all hope. And that is why he is so choked up. He is so thankful for Tohru and is now hopeful for his future because of her, and he’s trying to show her that. Seeing Yuki cry isnt enough, I think the way the violins are playing during that part really accentuate those emotions.

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗦: Let me tell you, nothing is more pleasing than watching a scene that I read sooooo many times in pen come to “life” in animated form. It was like my manga had come to life in front of me. Sometimes the anime misses certain movements, and I get it, we don’t want a 100% copy of Takaya’s work, and neither does she. And sometimes it doesn’t fit the timing. Most people don’t notice. But when there’s a scene you’re passionate about you notice EVERYTHING. That being said, I know this part like the back of my hand. I was so happy that they didn’t leave out any movement. This was not the scene to cut things. They got every thing down, from how Yuki goes from holding Tohru, to kissing her, to leaning on her. They even made it a little more obvious that he was crying which I LOVE. Nice job😍

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗖𝗥𝗜𝗣𝗧/𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: This scene stayed very true to the wording of the manga, at least from subtitles. And his voice actor KILLED it. I should make a section for the acting because he really gave it his all in this. I mean the voice crack, and the way he said “you didnt know it was always you saving me”. UGH HE NAILED THAT, I really felt that. Thats just how I pictured Yuki’s saying it! I’ll have to really listen to it when the dub comes out to extend on this part. But I love how Yuki said everything that he said in the manga, almost identical. I get upset sometimes when its not the same but thats a me thing😂 Though, I’m curious to know why they took out “I love you”? I should be more upset but idk “so dear to me” actually sounds more genuine. We know he loves her, I just thought “dear to me” was sweet. So yeah, go anime team!

𝗙𝗔𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟 𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗦𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦: Yuki is actually really expressive. It may not be as explicit as Kyo’s facial expressions, but you can really tune into Yuki’s feelings from watching his face. In the manga, I loved Takaya’s art during this part because I felt that Yuki’s eyes said so much during this part, without words needed. I actually think they exaggerated that in this scene, and I’m all for it. Tohru asks why he’s so sad for good reason, and we need to see that. We need to see him saying one thing but his facial expressions saying another because there’s something important that he’s not telling her. I’m so glad that the anime team really understood that.

Oh man, lets look at another please

Wow. Here in this picture we see beautiful colors (and a beautiful person hehe), a top tier facial expression, a movement directly taken from the manga, tied in with appropriate music in the background, with appropriate wording, and all done with care. THAT is what care is to me. They took a scene that I had very high expectations for and met them flawlessly. That, among other things, is the biggest reason why episode 7 has been my favorite so far✨