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[yuchinari]

Hello. I've read your post on how you could psychologically view the characters of Hatsuharu, Yuki, Shigure, Akito. I found it very insightful and interesting. I wonder, how would you analyse Tohru's psychology? She is so much deeper than what can be first assumed, what is still yet assumed by the newcomers at this point in the remake. I'd love to have your opinion.

Sorry for such a late response, I’ve been so busy and honestly I’ve been putting this off because I could write a whole essay about this

But long story short, Tohru REEKS of resilience and kindness.

The reason I also didn’t include Tohru in the post was because I’ve seen a couple of other posts and videos describing and delving into Tohru’s character more already. She’s not just a perfect character with no flaws nor just a Mary Sue like new anime watchers would misconstrue. In fact, you can finally start to see the cracks of it in this second season, when Kyo asks her what she’s going to do after high school. Tohru starts freaking out and desperately asks Kyo to please change the subject and talk about him instead. And I rly think that’s the first we see that Tohru is not perfect nor has it all together as we/and she likes to believe.

The thing with Tohru is *and major spoilers ahead* puts a lid on her feelings, similarily to other zodiac members (yuki). She doesn’t suffer from any disorder like the others, but she does have feelings that she bottles up for the sake of herself. And she’s vaguely aware of it because she knows if she opens that up, she’s going to lose something and she’s not ready for it.

A major part of this stems from Tohru’s reaction to her mother’s death. Yes she cried, and mourned, but she’s still holding onto her and it’s done with so much light and kindness that people don’t realize that some of it is a little odd and covering up something more. Like she brings her photo into a hot spring, and while it can be seen as her loving her mother, is that really the actions of someone who’s really let her go?

Tohru’s whole thing is she’s afraid of letting go of her mother, she’s afraid to where she even lets grandpa call her “Kyoko-San” because that is something both of them realized they did to remind them that Kyoko did exist. She even thought of her dad as a bad person, because she was scared of losing her mom, despite remembering him kind.

Tohru’s problem through the first season is she’s not “selfish” enough and doesn’t put herself first and chastised for this by Kyo and others. But in fact, she’s already had a selfishness and she finds that this makes her “dirty”. Tohru isn’t perfect at all and she’s had her own weaknesses and fears that make her that much more easy to see the hurt in others as well.

But along with all of that, Tohru represents the epicenter of “healing” for the whole story and the characters. Despite these inner flaws and fears, she’s led by everything her mother left her with: that kindness is strength, how it is to live in a warm safe home, how it is to love someone and be loved so much and believing in others despite the doubt and darkness in the world.

She teaches and shares all this warmth with the zodiac members she meets without even trying most of the time.

Tohru’s built up so much resilience from all her adversaries- from living in a tent, losing her dad, losing her mom, teased by classmates, being mistreated by family members- by sticking to her beliefs, pushing herself to do her best and always gives 110% even if she shouldn’t.

Which is another thing others try to help her with, which is often over-doing herself and giving herself a fever.

Despite thinking her selfishness makes her “filthy”, she’s seen as strong and so deserving of love by Kyo. This is her opening her lid and getting accepted for it, regardless. Welcomed by it- because it’s a thing she couldn’t even share to her mom. And that’s part of the healing for her.

“It’s okay to be discouraged. It’s okay to be selfish once in a while. It’s what we deserve.” -Kyoko

So to reiterate, while Tohru is not a perfect person and has her own weaknesses, she’s built up so much resilience From it. And this is the character viewers might misjudge without realizing why she’s strong. She would not be who she was without her mom. And furthermore, without meeting the Sohmas. and she shares this strength with everybody she meets by what she was taught. Which all align with how she is. Kindness and willingness to understand.

[yuchinari]

Thank you for the addition!! I didn’t know if it happened in other scenes so this is great backing up the feather motif

Everyone remember this moment, when they are holding hands and a feather floats by?

This is when the curse broke.

I thought it was odd a feather suddenly showed up in the middle of the scene, when I don’t remember it in the manga. And then I looked it up:

“A feather signifies the [connection] between the owner, the Creator”

A dove’s gray feather also represents a coming of peace in your life.

Akito was letting go and accepting the curse is breaking even a minute before Kyoru hugged. (Because in the manga, I thought it was exactly at when they did) And this is what the anime utilized to show that.

[yuchinari]

Everyone remember this moment, when they are holding hands and a feather floats by?

This is when the curse broke.

I thought it was odd a feather suddenly showed up in the middle of the scene, when I don’t remember it in the manga. And then I looked it up:

“A feather signifies the [connection] between the owner, the Creator”

A dove’s gray feather also represents a coming of peace in your life.

Akito was letting go and accepting the curse is breaking even a minute before Kyoru hugged. (Because in the manga, I thought it was exactly at when they did) And this is what the anime utilized to show that.

[yuchinari]

How anime onlys think Yuki sees kyoru as: 💖💕💝💗💓👍🏼

How Manga-Yuki really was: 💨💨🏃🏻‍♂️🏃🏻‍♂️🤜🏼🤜🏼🥵🐀

[yuchinari]

Yuki’s so hot and cool with Machi but they make him like this in the anime for what

[yuchinari]

I know everything is up to personal interpretation but the way people focused on Yuki liking Tohru romantically rather than how it was Yuki mad about how “Kyo wanted to be him” but it was vice versa since they were kids and his own admiration of kyo

pains me

[yuchinari]

U telling me the Yuki who I praised for being so deliberate yet calm toward Machi was made to run frantically in the anime

[yuchinari]

Then skipping on Yuki calmly answering the phone while in the train and telling machi to stay there to Yuki saying “who’s this?” When machi called is why I go through the five stages of grief

[yuchinari]

Things that’s been in my brain lately: have you considered fruits basket masks

[yuchinari]

Anime onlys saying they miss the “old shigure” and I’m like babes, he was always like that he just knows how to charm over his ulterior motives

[yuchinari]

While it would have been nice to have the chance to see it firsthand (and in a bit more detail), I’m really pleased that Fruits Basket Another took the time to explore Akito’s post-curse character development beyond the whole ‘she grew out her hair and started wearing pretty dresses and magically became happy’ ending we got in the original Furuba. 

Not at all to imply I have a problem with Fruits Basket’s ending. Believe me, I really don’t and Fruits Baskets ending remains one of the most enduringly satisfying of any manga I’ve followed to date. Endeavouring as an author to wrap up every single character’s happy ending in a single time-skip chapter is always a challenge, and Takaya sensei did what she could with limited pages to split between each character (and god knows there were certainly enough of them). But I know I speak for quite a few fans when I say that when that  final chapter was published 14 years ago (I was 12 then, god I feel old), it was hard not feel a little frustrated that Akito’s character development was left so lacking, especially after everything she herself had been through and all the cruelties she had subjected other people to as well. 

So I’m incredibly happy that Fruits Basket Another has provided a bittersweet  but for the most part happy ending for Akito that not only actually feels much more realistic, but also serves as an masterclass on how to handle a character redemption arc for a previously abusive and toxic character really damn well. 

Akito was a grossly abused and neglected child who grew in to a violent and controlling adult. Akito the victim can not be separated from Akito the abuser, but at the same time her own victimisation, trauma and poor mental health can not be used to take away her culpability for her own actions. 

In addition to the psychologically abusive behaviours she picked up from her own mother, she frequently used - often extreme - violence as a means of control, and left both mental and physical scars on her victims as a result. Scars that have remained long after Akito herself had come to terms, however bitterly, with her horrendous childhood and all the harm she had inflicted on other people, and quietly and privately moved on with her life; reclaiming her role as head of the family in a positive direction, settling down, marrying and eventually - through accident or otherwise - giving birth to a child of her own and becoming a parent. Something which, previously, had been completely unimaginable. 

But while Akito herself may have changed - and honestly, its been beautiful to see such a previously tormented, violent person grow in to such a gentle, loving  parent - we can only speculate that her the damage she has done to the other former Sohma children is still very much felt. In fact, we know that the damage is very much felt; we see in the latest chapters Shiki receiving notes telling him his mother is ‘human trash’ along with other threatening messages. There are still people within the family with enough anger towards Akito to target not only her but her young son. And while harassing a child over the past actions of their parent is obviously deeply, deeply wrong, the level of anger still directed towards Akito is understandable. And Akito herself accepts this. 

And as a result, a massive part of Akito’s character redemption arc involves her not, as so often happens in fiction, attempting to reconnect with her former victims to seek their forgiveness and ‘repair’ the relationships she, herself, destroyed. In fact, in what I think is a first I’ve seen for this kind of storyline, she does the total opposite.

She distances herself from them entirely. 

Not because she doesn’t want to rebuild relationships or be forgiven,

But because she understands that recovery for her victims depends on her no longer being part of their lives.

And in a medium where I have seen far too many abuse-related storylines resolved by the victim ultimately forgiving their abuser for what they have previously done (or even continue to do) to them, this choice of narrative direction is, I feel, a powerful and important one. 

It’s sad to picture Akito remaining - as she always has been - largely isolated and alone within her own family, but she’s made the healthiest decision possible for her victims and I think that’s the point these latest chapters have placed emphasis on. She’s moved on with her life, grown as a person, begun her own family, and while it feels almost heart-breakingly bittersweet, for the most part I’m happy for her. I’m glad we got this little snap-shot of her future, and I’m so grateful that her character development, after all these years, got a chance to be expanded a little further.

[yuchinari]

I actually got booed that I said the sohmas don’t need a god, they just needed a friend which is exactly what Tohru was and I was BOOED

Tiktok insisting Tohru needs to be the new god for the sohmas missing the whole point 🤢

[yuchinari]

Tiktok insisting Tohru needs to be the new god for the sohmas missing the whole point 🤢

[yuchinari]

Wait I thought so too, but it’s just following the translation arrows directly. The writing at the head says Yun

The fact that Yuchi slapped him and Machi hit him is the best thing.

[yuchinari]

THE NEXT TIME IT SNOWS, WILL HE STILL REMEMBER HIS PROMISE? WILL HE WALK WITH ME? I HOPE IT SNOWS SOON.

[yuchinari]

Is it me or did Yuki’s animation look ridiculously good this episode? I was kind of blown away by it. When he was leaning on Kakeru with those big expressive eyes, I wanted to have a little cry.

[yuchinari]

My unpopular opinion is that I love Motokos confession towards Yuki at her graduation. She doesn't ask him to love her. She doesn't get overly romantic. She says that she had fun because of him, he made her happy, and that he made her high school experience wonderful.

Thats what Yuki has always wanted to hear from people. That he made a difference.