Anime 40417 Fruits Basket 2nd Season Reviews

Fruit's Basket season 2 is a great continuation of the 1st season, and in my opinion more interesting than the 1st season so far.

Now that they're animating things from the manga that we as viewers didn't see in the original, they're able to show a little more of their own style. The story is becoming much more mysterious, and I love it!

All of the characters have their own plots and each feel really special. If you're looking for a fun, mysterious, and comedic show, this is a really great option.

My favorite characters so far are Kyo and Momiji.

I’m not the first to say it and certainly not the last. 2020 has been one of the worst years in modern history with natural disasters, the global pandemic, and social issues. Even the anime industry was hit hard by the various delays and production issues. But if there’s one anime that gave hope for a chance to rise up, a chance to be something special, something that connects to the audience, it’s Fruits Basket.

The modern remake has already graced us with a wonderful span of 25 episodes since its previous run. With the news that the anime would be a full adaptation, we are ... once again given the chance to explore the Fruits Basket universe at its full potential. Being another 2-cour show, Fruits Basket touches upon important elements such as dealing with character identity, emotional connections, and realizing one’s own mistakes. It’s a heavy show with emotional drama but exemplifies the best for what a shoujo can offer. This is why the Fruits Basket is still celebrated as a successful franchise to this day.

Back to the characters, it shouldn’t take long for the audience to get comfortable with the main cast again. Of course, we’re talking about Tohru, Kyo, and Yuki. As the core cast, these characters contrasts greatly between each other yet all can be identifiable by their vulnerabilities. No character in this show is perfect and some greatly suffers from events in the past that emotionally impacts their present lives. One of the most prominent example outside of the core cast is Rin, the horse Zodiac. When she first made her appearance in season 1, we are shown an emotional withdrawn character who isn’t keen on making friends with anyone. But in season 2, we also learn exactly why she behaves such way. The second season explores sensitive topics such as parent abuse that shapes the character that Rin becomes in the present. She is emotionally distant and in her past, only one character was kind enough to offer a helping hand. That would be Haru, the Ox Zodiac whom she falls in love with. However, love and relationships comes at price as viewers will find out with their connection to Akito. That being said, she represents a darker side of Fruits Basket and a character who had been mentally broken. Even on the human side, there exists individuals such as school council treasurer Machi Kuragi. As one of the recurring characters, she is emotionally distant as influenced by events of her past and mother. It would seem Fruits Basket balances the way parents treat their children and how much impact they have on their lives. On one side, we have the loving mother of Tohru and on the other, the overbearing guardian of Machi.

Speaking of Tohru, she has grown to be more and more confident this season. She’s still a compassionate girl who cares deeply about those who are close to her such as Yuki and Kyo. Even during their troubled times, Tohru remains optimistic and offers to help others with her selfless nature. Yet, in this season, she’s able to speak up for herself more. With every progressing episode, Tohru becomes less naïve and more of herself. It’s one of the strengths of her character, being able to speak her mind towards others without bias. Even during times of distress, she’s able to be honest about her feelings. Meanwhile, Yuki and Kyo still continuously deals with their own personal demons and the Zodiac curse. As one of the most prominent plot elements of the show, this curse plays a central role through family generations. It’s as if the Sohma family is trapped by destiny, which one cannot escape from. The story explores more details through the consequences of the curse and how it affects the Sohma family.

Watching Fruits Basket Season 2 also reminds me how relatable characters are. From the main cast alone, you can draw similarities to real life characteristics such as the selfless nature of Tohru or Kyo’s charisma. Like real people, the cast undergo changes. Kyo is one of the most prominent examples as he evolves from a brash individual to a calmer and more mature person thanks to Tohru’s influence. Rin’s change to becoming more accepting others is also due to Tohru’s kindness and showing that there is a light in the dark tunnel. This list goes on so you’ll see for yourself how the cast evolves. Fruits Basket’s ability to make us understand these characters is one of the most important draws of the show.

The ever expansive story of Fruits Basket continues to be more mysterious with the biggest culprit being Akito. Menacing and always seemingly being the root of trouble in the story, we continue to learn more about Akito’s relationship with others such as Yuki, Kyo, Rin, and other members of the Sohma family. Furthermore, Tohru’s encounter with Akito shows how much the two characters contrast between each other. As Tohru treats her friends with love, Akito treats those close with contempt, hate, and intimidation. It draws a line between how characters raised under different circumstances can be so different. Unfortunately, this season alone doesn’t conclude Akito’s full story so be prepared for a lot more thrown into our way.

Even as a show with so much emotional drama, Fruits Basket does know its lighter side with its innocence and charm. Remember Yuki’s fan club from the first season? Well guess what, they return full fold with their leader Makoto still fawning for their prince. Other main supporting characters such as Arisa and Saki makes their return as well. We are also introduced with new faces such as student council members Naohito and Kimi. The latter brings in a large amount of comic relief moments with her childish personality. Furthermore, let’s not forget that the show loves to often poke fun at its character interactions whenever it gets the chance. With Kimi antagonizing Prince Yuki’s club as her hobby, you can see plenty of comedy this season.

I’m not going to lie, watching this season’s animation quality feels like a cinematic experience. In particular, this season’s second theme song is among one of the most realistic I’ve seen, almost like a painting that came to life, like a poetry in motion. Character expressions carries a great deal of realism to make their emotions feel real, such as Rin, Machi, and Kagura. Ultimately, I believe this season’s animation quality not only improved but also able to show how exactly modern remakes should be made.

If you made it to the final episode of Fruit Basket Season 2, then congratulations. You just followed an emotional journey crafted from the brilliant mind of the author, Natsuki Takaya. Series director Yoshihide Ibata is also able to show us how the world of Fruits Basket can be so elegant with what it has to offer. But seriously, after 50 episodes of this modern remake, it’s a matter of time before we get to experience perhaps even the best of what’s ahead.

A good show always establishes its objectives early on to keep its audience interested. Whether that be a particular goal of a character, an overarching conflict, or just have a wholly devoted linear plot -- which then you could branch out to a more complex narrative. This show, Fruits Basket, failed in that department.

Story:

Episode after episode, we, the audience, still don’t know what this second season is about. Each passing episode, we get to see characters interacting with each other, going on an excursion, or just sitting around and talking about nonsense that doesn’t serve in the progression of the ... over all plot. It has become increasingly difficult to make through each episode because there is nothing, and I mean zero, things going on. If you have to make characters sitting around and talk in your show, at last make it interesting, and most importantly, it has to serve in the progression of the narrative. What this show has done so far is having the characters talking about each other’s feelings. However, once there is an opportunity to explore that element, the show does a complete 180. Outside of that, the each episode of the show shifts to different scenes in trying to taut together the plot. By the end of it, you’re left knowing nothing.

Characters:

Because of this show’s incompetence to form a decent linear plot, the characters of this show suffer. We do not know what their motivations are, and how they serve the overall narrative. Which makes them an empty shell. Sure, there is some hint of their involvement, but it’s barely explored. Just as an example, when Hiro Souma criticized Tooru’s every mention of her mother, she goes into this melancholy mood. The narrative could have taken advantage of this and do some character explorations. But nope, she got over her feelings within a span of a single episode. When Yuki was called to meet with Akito Souma, it alluded to a possible event that could instigate what the plot is about, but it cut to the scene of the beach. Just to be clear, I have no problem with this type of presentation. But, if the show has not presented its objectives -- which this show has not -- people are going to lose interest. This type of cheap baiting writing is what hinders this show from being at least attractive.

Enjoyment:

Like I stated earlier, this show is not easy to make it through unless you’re willing to turn off your brain for 25 minutes. Which you could have used that time doing something more productive.

Score: 4/10

TL;DR Fruits basket season 2 is a great follow up to the already well made season one unlike the original anime of fruits basket this follows the canon manga just like it should. If you love to see great characters with awesome development and a main story that so far seems super interesting but is progressing extremely slowly then fruits basket is definitely a must watch.
EDITED VERDICT BELOW WRITTEN AFTER FINISHING THE SHOW.

Characters(10/10):
The thing where fruits basket shines the most are its character. Literally every single characters is developed excellently their designs are very unique as well with the exception of a few. The ... main reason why the show's story hasn't started in full pace yet is because they are currently developing all the characters and the canon relationships, and I must say they have done an incredible job almost every one of them is entertaining to watch and unique and the ships are just too precious lol. I only expect to see them develop more and more as the show goes on and I can say I sure am hyped and excited to see how things unfold surrounding each of them.

Enjoyment(9/10):
I truly enjoy watching fruits basket. I love the comedy and I love to see the relationships especially canon couples develop it is just very entertaining to watch every episode.

Story(7/10):
The main story of fruits basket hasn't even started properly yet so far they have developed the main plot with little teasers and nothing else thats the main reason why I gave the story 7/10 for now since it hasn't even started developing yet I'm sure it would turn out to be great when it finally starts developing so far there is nothing out of the ordinary here except some teaser for an awesome story and the plain slice of life anime stuff.

Sound(10/10):
The music is stellar, I love every single track used in this season and how well each of them are placed. All of the 4 openings and ending songs are also phenomenal.

Art(9/10):
I personally love the artstyle that fruits basket 2019 uses its perfect and it suits the characters so well that I can't imagine seeing them in their old art style of the other trash show. The shading is done well, the characters and beautiful scenes are drawn in a great manner that it all just fits amazingly.

Overall(9/10):
In verdict I would say if you love slice of life and great character development you would absolutely love fruits basket and its characters. Definitely give it a shot you would be amazed.

Edit: After finishing the entire show I can say this is easily a 9.5/10. Makes Yuki a very good character instead of being a generic prince and does phenomenal development for Kyo and Tohru. My favorite character from the new ones is easily Manabe he is the main person responsible for Yuki's development.

[This review assumes you’ve seen S1. This review is spoiler free for S2, but not S1.] [TL;DR at bottom]

When discussing the Fruits Basket anime, I almost like to regard season one as a prologue. This is not because the story and themes shift heavily from where they begin, but rather due to a dramatic tone shift that occurs roughly a quarter into Fruits Basket S2. While S1 had its flashes of more sobering, dark moments, for the most part, the series maintained a comedic and lighthearted tone. S2, after a brief set of episodes designed to set up events for later episodes, essentially reverses this—Fruits ... Basket becomes a character drama, with flashes of comedy to relieve tension. If you enjoyed S1 for cute zodiac antics and are uninterested and uncomfortable with themes of domestic abuse and a whole lot of trauma, you probably don’t want to continue with Fruits Basket.

With that said, however, the tone shift does not come out of nowhere. As Fruits Basket is a character drama, it develops along with the characters, and strengthens the themes established in S1. It dives deeper into its complex and quite frankly beautiful characters. Excellent characters are complicated people who feel real and motivated—their goals are clear, and what they need to grow and change is evident to the viewer as they witness their arcs. Season 2 expands on these characters’ wants and needs as it begins to answer the series’ questions of family and the future. Tooru is perhaps the best example this. In Season 1, what Tooru wanted was to find a place where she is needed and to care for the ones she loves. Now that Tooru integrated into Shigure’s makeshift home, her motivations expand to wanting to hold onto that, in spite of everything that comes her way. This is also how we, the viewer, learn more about the inner workings of the Souma family and the motivations behind the cursed characters and their own familial ties. In this way, Tooru’s motivations contrasts the cursed Soumas—in them, she found solace and family, and yet, for the zodiac members themselves, such a curse ties them to their family and restricts their futures. This contrast is what creates the true conflict in Fruits Basket… Tooru working to maintain the life she loves against the familial ties that work to ruin it.

While Tooru’s arc continues, the cursed characters get a lot of expansion on their own characters as they approach their future as a cursed zodiac. Among the supporting cast, certain Soumas, like the briefly introduced Isuzu, get more of a focus than others, though all tie neatly together in a beautiful, complex patchwork that is the Souma family. In terms of the main cast, the show quickly gets to addressing Kyou’s own feelings directly after the True Form Arc that wrapped up season one, discussing how he contrasts his own role as the exiled cat with someone like Tooru caring for him. This results in some beautiful episodes and moments that were, for me, some of the highlights in an incredibly strong season.

In particular, though, most of the latter half of season two gives some much-needed development to Yuki. While Yuki was never a simple character, season one focused more on Tooru and Kyou than Yuki. Season two gets very deep into Yuki’s own perceptions of himself and his role as the “strongest” zodiac member. Yuki’s arc is excellent and filled with some incredible turns throughout. They really inform his character and even recontextualize his actions in season one. This arc introduces Yuki’s student council duties, as well as the four colorful characters who make up his staff, including the ever lovable Kakeru. Kakeru is a great new foil to Yuki, and seeing their relationship grow into one of the most likable and interesting dynamics in Fruits Basket was an excellent experience. In particular, though, what I really love about Yuki’s arc is the way that Fruits Basket addresses the age-old romance trope of the “flawless prince” character. It goes deep into how and why Yuki would present as such a person, and what it does to his own ideas of self-worth.

One thing I love about all of these arcs is Fruits Basket’s approach to link them all. Instead of covering one character’s growth before switching to the next, Fruits Basket opts to show bits of arcs between others, making one, connected interpersonal story. While this might bother those who prefer faster pacing or feel character moments must have instant gratification to be meaningful, Fruits Basket shows how strongly such characterization can work to expand the complexity of a story. In fact, I’d consider certain moments from this season to be a masterclass in setup and payoff—every important moment from the start of the season (and even things from season one!) return to inform the story and reinforce its themes. This makes the series feel incredibly gratifying.

In terms of visuals, Fruits Basket remains gorgeous. While its animation is nothing too complicated (there’s not many action scenes here to show off), the visual design is detailed and consistently great. Characters are expressive, and the show compliments its dialogue with great, subtle indications of emotion. The backgrounds remain stunning as well, and the show’s lighting and color design have some standout moments, like the numerous beach scenes in the first half of the season.

Music also remains well-utilized in the series, as it often serves as a means to cue and foreshadow upcoming events. The first opening as well is a great song, and one I highly suggest listening to all the way through! The seiyuu work is equally strong as last season’s, with Nobunaga Shimazaki’s Yuki and Takuya Eguchi’s Kakeru being particular standouts. The series also has a dub, and, as someone who tends to be quite lukewarm on dubs, I’m happy to say this dub is excellent. I was incredibly impressed with the quality as I watched it alongside the sub, and even prefer some dub performances to their sub counterparts. Laura Bailey’s Tooru comes to mind in this regard.

One unfortunate note I have add is that the main translation floating around, Crunchyroll’s subs, have a number of awful mistranslations that vary from removing character vocal quirks to blatantly rewriting lines. This changes their meaning and harms the characterization of the speaker. As dialogue matters so much to this series, this is incredibly upsetting. To emphasize how bad certain translations got, Natsuki Takaya, author of the original manga, found out about one particular mistranslation and commented on it. The dub, somehow (I’m assuming they work from a different, better translation?) managed to actually fix most of these issues, putting character quirks back in and fixing mistranslations. So, if you’re the kind of person who can stomach dubs, I would suggest it on translation alone as the more accurate version of the series. If you do opt for the sub, I would make note that if a character said something wildly out of character, it’s probably a mistranslation.

Overall, though, Fruits Basket’s ability to expand on its sweet, episodic first season into a complex character exploration is something you rarely see executed this well. The show’s combination of fully realized characters growing and changing over the course of their arcs set the stage for an upcoming bombshell of a third season that will (hopefully) live up to what’s established in season two. If you can handle the darker themes, I cannot suggest this series enough.

[TL;DR]

+ Excellent, fully realized characters who grow more complex as their arcs continue.

+ Strongly paced arcs that weave together naturally.

+ Great visuals, with good character expression and stunningly detailed backgrounds.

+ Well-utilized music with good OP and ED themes.

+ Excellent voice cast who add to their characters and a solid dub.

- Crunchyroll’s subtitles are horribly mistranslated at certain parts, harming characterization for a number of important characters. Dub translation corrects these.

- Transition from comedy-leaning to drama-leaning results in some much darker themes that might upset certain viewers who prefer their anime lighthearted.

Recommended? Yes

9/10

I'm so in love with this anime, and am overjoyed that the reboot is animating the manga accurately. I'm really hoping they will be able to keep up the good work. the characters are this series' strongest point, I must say that I adore almost all of them. The comedy is good, the interactions are really sweet and the character development and story are great. If you haven't watched season 1 of this version, I recommend doing that first. This version is following the manga almost perfectly, which the old version didn't do, so some things are different. An added bonus is an improvement in ... quality in terms of animation and sound too.

Highly recommend this one for fans of shoujo, romance or drama. Even if you don't normally watch this genre you might like this one.

Thanks for reading, and if you do watch it, Enjoy!

"It's okay to feel weak sometimes. It's okay to be afraid. The important thing is that we face our fears. That's...that's what makes us strong." - Yuki Soma

It shouldn't come as a surprise that the re-adaptation of Fruits Basket under mangaka Natsuki Takaya's supervision aims to go far and beyond her own work, and now into Season 2, we're two-thirds of the way through of the complete manga adaptation, with the imminent finale of the soon-to-be Season 3, which will conclude the remainder as a whole.

As is what is known in Season 1, it was mostly a set-up between Tohru and the eventual reveals of ... the Soma family members according to their zodiacs. And if you'd think that Season 1 was already very emotionally mixed in happiness and some solemn moments, wait till Season 2 here blows the predecessor out of proportion, and definitely out of whatever we're thinking of how crude can Tohru's relationship with the Somas be manifested in such a way that the Soma Curse is pretty much a leading cause of enigma, and the fight for change is set in stone. Without further ado, let's dissect on what Season 2 here continues where Season 1 left off.

The Soma Family Holiday:
If you'd know the head god of the family Akito by now, she is more than just the figure of lashing hurts and defciencies, and there's a reason why even as a big family together, just her presence alone makes the family members shudder at their feet (except Hatori and Shigure). Furthermore, Tohru's first meeting with the zodiacs that we haven't seen and yet revealed in Season 1 only drives the exacerbation of the problem that is Akito. ANYTHING and everything is connected to her, and each member has severe consequences for disobeying the traditions of the family. And need I say that Tohru is NO exception to the rule?

Inter-Family Romance:
Anyone who've watched Fruits Basket by now should know that the romance/relationship part is pretty much taboo in the Soma Family, and that at least we saw the many scars that drive the intention of a god that wants to "command and conquer" the family, and let no one control it from the outside. One example this season showed is the complex relationship between Hatsuharu and Isuzu "Rin", and if you'd thought that what Akito conflicted and wrestled control of Hatori concerning his failed-and-broken relationship in Season 1, you ain't seen nothing just yet. The only way to best experience the sheer horror of Akito is to watch it yourself, because that's how we can relate with the travesty of a control freak that's desiring to have more control over the family until what's left of them are empty husks of emotionless hearts. That is easily a summed up personalition of character development for everyone concerned.

The centre Trio: Kyo, Tohru and Yuki
Fruits Basket, for its entirety, focuses mainly on the centre trio that we've come to expect from the beginning, but what is shown in Season 2 here, really can't be drawn in comparison to how Season 1 has very uniquely set-up a give-or-take function between the two chads and one girl. Think with me on this: a family to love, and a family to care about. While Tohru has been with the both of them every step of the way, this season expands upon their character development and directs them to a new path of light, wherever they chose to shine, like it or not. The biggest revelation is how both chads see Tohru each in their individual light, and that is easily one of the game-changers of the entire Fruits Basket manga. What do I really mean from all of these, you'd have to watch to find out, because this is a very spoiler-heavy section that I won't divulge!

School Life - Student Council:
Without a doubt the singularity of the season itself, Tohru, Kyo and Yuki brace through school, but in a totally different mindset. Kyo is the same as always, but Yuki being the popular figure in school and landing himself into the Student Council, things start to change amidst the drab atmosphere. Nothing is full of bed and roses for similar characters, and there'll be outcasts in the process (just like how we've seen Arisa Uotani and Saki Hanajima fuse together with Tohru, becoming BFFs in Season 1). One such character is the mysterious Machi Kuragi, and this is where Yuki, in a nutshell, manages to find his solace within her for being similar in their parental upbringings. All I can say is, there is truth in wine, and for the valiant efforts to reach out and save someone from despair, Yuki is one character that has outpaced his character growth and begun to change his life from the inside out.

That's all for pretty much what Season 2 had in content, and Season 1's set-up was magnificently done for a wonderful follow-up for the issues and situations left in store to build up to the finale season that's coming very soon.

In other aspects of the show, Fruits Basket sure knows how to have good songs that are approporiate for the measures that this re-adaptation run has dealt with. Great double set of OP/EDs for this seasonal run, though I'd much prefer the mellow EDs more in contrast to the OP pairings. The art style has basically been the same for the most part with TMS Entertainment and subsidiary 8Pan's bright and lush environment that is still gorgeous to look at, no shit Sherlock here.

If I have to commend anything about Season 2, is it character development truly takes up a notch as compared to when Tohru and Co. first started out being strangers-turned-friends. The amount of vibrancy of each and every one of the characters has improved, and hopefully they can be reconciled by the end of Season 3.

An exemplary follow-up to Season 1, and I honestly can't wait for Season 3 to drop soon in the future to wrap up the entire series to close the entire Fruits Basket conjecture for satisfaction.

Sksks, this is my first review so apologies if its wordy and stupid sounding lol!

*CONTAINS MINOR SPOILERS FROM THE MANGA*

Fruits Basket S2 is a perfect continuation of the first season, even though they're removing some of the scenes every fan has been waiting for, at least we got a sequel so we should feel thankful imo.

Story: 9/10
The story is probably the best thing about it, the constant wanting to know who Tohru likes, while also bearing with the hilarious comedy and characters. Even though the series might dodge a few important matters (tohru's parents, etc), it doesn't mean we wont get it ... in the next adaption- if they do decide to make it. Even though some may say the story line is very predictable, but I reassure you it isn't. The reason why I didn't give it a 10 is because the storyline of fruits basket constantly switches back and forth between characters and scenes which can be annoying if you've seen a specific scene multiple/countless amounts of times. The ending was definitely promising, im disappointed we didn't get any word on season 3 but hopefully we'll be getting one next year.

Art: 8/10
The artwork is pretty good, doesn't seem to have many issues. Even though there aren't many issues, I have noticed some of the artwork in some of the scenes looks really weird, like they're animated wrong. I don't know if i'm noticing minor details but it bugs me sometimes. Might not be much of a issue for others though. In my opinion, I think the animation has definitely improved for the better in season two.

Sound: 8/10
Okay, the sound is just perfect for Fruits Basket. The nostalgic OST's, Openings, and Endings are what keeps me hooked onto the shows melody. The voice acting is also very good, as well as the loudness of the background music/ost's. No real issues here, except sometimes the voice acting is very low which makes it hard to hear the voice acting.

Characters: 8/10
Some might say the characters are very generic but they all have important plot. Although having a good plot isn't always good. I do find in the storyline, the characters seem like copies of each other just so that another has a match. Take Momiji for example, his past is very emotional and sad, his mother went crazy after having Momiji and Hatori eventually wipes her memories, which leaves him with no real mother. His past is very unique, but when it comes to some of the other characters pasts, it seems to be copies of other pasts except they're changed in little ways that are still noticeable. I loved the episodes with Machi, even though they skipped the mother and fathers past, it was still an enjoyable sequel. & Even so, the characters development is what runs fruits basket, the anime did a very great job at animating from the manga.

Enjoyment: 8/10
Despite Furubasa's flaws, its a very great show, and the enjoyment makes it so much more fun to watch. Especially the Cinderella Play and the tad bits of comedy that are thrown here and there. The faces are also something that shouldn't be sneered at! would definitely recommend if you like pretty much pointless comedy here and there.

Overall: 9/10
Looking forward for the third (and final?) furubasa season! <3

I've never written a review before, but I just had to for this one.

The show is such a dumb one, the story is SO much repetitive and boring, and jesus christ - it's a big drag and NOT at all fun to watch.

The story tries to be emotional but it's like they have the few characters with the few "bad" things that happened to them - and they just repeat, repeat, and repeat the same dreadful things and there's no fun at all!

Why did I watch 15 episodes? I have no idea. Perhaps I wanted to complete it, but the show is so boring, I ... really cannot see it anymore. I have not seen a more boring anime ever before.

Quick Thoughts:
There was quite a bit of focus on character development/backstory this season. The balance between these stories and more lighthearted, SoL content was heavily skewed. It ended up feeling like a 20+ episode pity party.

Story:
The first several episodes establish what I think will be the central conflict the rest of the anime. The rest of season is non-stop slew of backstories for several characters, which help explain why these characters are so emotionally invested in this conflict. These got kind of repetitve/redundant after a while; I feel like the point could've been made in less than 20 episodes.

Characters:
One benefit of the large ... amount of exposition this season is that the side characters are more fleshed out than usual. Several characters are introduced this season, and we're given a good look at their interests and motives. It makes it easier to understand any actions they take that would normally be questionable. There's also a pretty complex web of relationships that's much easier to follow after this season.

Enjoyment:
This season a bit of a downer, but I did get some enjoyment out of it. I'm still a fan of the art style, the 2nd OP was really good, and I did enjoy how the main cast (Yuki and Kyou specifically) developed.

This show is way too highly rated. The first season was honestly very good, it brought up a good story and developed an interesting main cast. But the second season fell apart in my opinion. From my understanding the manga came before the first release of the anime at the turn of the century, but that doesn't help the fact that the cast of characters in S2 is just too big. There is no reason a show so driven on emotional attachment to the characters should try to stretch itself so thin. When I watched S1, I fell in love with all the main cast, ... and the team did such a good job of attaching us to them. But as you enter S2 and every main and side character has episodes solely for flashback and setup just to see Tohru cry... that is not emotional attachment. That is just using our beloved main to try to trick us into caring about these side Soumas that honestly we have no reason to care about. Furthermore, I think that the development of the main cast was... well, close to nonexistent. S1 brought us heart-wrenching episodes about the mains and their interactions, but S2 didn't develop much of anything for them.... Bringing the lens further in, I think the finale is super underwhelming... a good reveal, but I want to see what that does for us, not just an empty promise of living.

TL;DR:
The show tries too hard to get you deeply attached to too many characters, and I miss the smaller main cast (and development of said cast) from S1.

What a disappointing second season to this anime. Following on from the first season nothing really changes with the story or the characters. There's very little character development apart from Yuki who grows a decent amount. We're introduced to the remaining Zodiac animals throughout the season with a few short arcs that don't really matter.

By far the worst part of this season is Akito. Akito is such an unlikeable character in every single way and is just frustrating to watch. Well-written villains can be a joy to watch, but in Akito's case there is absolutely nothing redeemable. Akito treats everyone like crap, and no ... one seems to care. Akito attempts to murder one of the Zodiacs, and no one seems to care.

The "curse of the Zodiac" is never explained. All of the Zodiacs are supposedly bound to Akito's side, but it's never explained why, or what happens if they leave. The viewer is left wondering why for the entire season and it just feels like weak plot armour.

Overall it's fine. It's not bad and it's not good, and it's a shame the story didn't progress at all from the first season.

I would recommend only the first half of season 2, up to wherever you feel that the story really starts repeating itself. All the characters become the same. It's an endless cycle of events:
A new character is introduced. The story then proceeds to tease at the deep problem/troubling backstory/whatever the fuck happened that made them so "uniquely" similar to every other character in the anime. The reveal then happens, with much dramatic flair. I find myself feeling less and less sympathetic for each new character as we learn about their mental illnesses. The new character's savior tries to help. The character refuses the help. ... After reaching the climax of the tug-of-war, the character breaks down, and. the. cycle. repeats.
It's not just this storyline that keeps repeating. It's also the characters themselves. Everyone is so... cliched, shallow, and unrealistic that I'm starting to cringe at every action. I'm going to direct that especially at Tohru and the characters who needed a savior. The only thing that's keeping me from dropping this is our childish main antagonist, who hasn't appeared for at least 3... 5.... episodes because we're onto another character arc. Basically, this series is worth watching. But it gets bad real quick.

In my opinion, season 2 is great so far, even better than Season 1. For someone who read manga two or three times and finished old version of fruits basket, it is nice to see the remaining stories of fruits basket coming into life as anime after many years. And IT IS DONE BEAUTIFULLY. The music, atmosphere, and voice acting all very on point with how I imagined when reading manga. I am very happy they did this fruits basket project for whole story in manga.
Every little stories from manga is told in very detailed and carefully manner, which I like. Since it ... was not told in rushing way, i can see that it could possibly be little too slow paced for some people, especially for non manga reader.
However, it is a joy for others like me that the productions put so much effort into putting emphasis on every little details from manga and make it come to life.
9/10 for me. Not 10/10 only because I could understand for new fruits basket viewers to feel stuffy with how they may feel the pace is too slow

Season 2 is overall a really smooth transition from the first one. It further shows more and more characters and their struggles and them opening up more to Honda. This season feels more lively and action pack than the first and the romantic tense increases where Kyo is developing to understand Honda more and Yuki is going out of his comfort zone. The artwork is beyond amazing as well and this anime deserves all the hype and I hope that there shall be many more seasons and episodes to come in the future because waiting for new episodes to come out is really testing my ... patients since im trynna binge.

Fruits Basket (2019-20) has become the best shoujo anime according to me. If you haven't seen the first season, what are you doing here! Go watch that first, sheesh xD

First off, I have seen a bit of the OG Fruits basket anime series as well. And there's a very stark difference between them which you will notice if you have seen it too. The OG series had a more comedic take on the series and did not bother to explore backstories or care much about the major back plot of the manga.
Since this 2019-20 anime follows the manga more accurately, the current series ... takes its time showing the development, backstories, and personalities of each of its characters, even the supporting ones! which I ADORE since you start relating and investing in the story all the more.

Plus, the art and the background music is absolutely GORGEOUS. The focus of background music is to draw out the emotions of the audience and Fruits Basket's soundtracks do that fantastically. Even when you don't wish to cry, the tears just come streaming down T_T

I simply love the slice of life elements in this series, the few dark themes that usually Shoujo anime do not contain, the slight funny sexual innuendos (Not too much to make it pervy or ecchi) which all of us enjoy >_<

The storytelling, the concept behind the plot, you can SEE how much time and effort has been given to each character's personalities and how each has a story to tell, a major role to play, and so So much to give to the series. You can't wait to know more, explore more, see what happens next! It is so exciting! The way the story unfolds, giving you the answers to your questions is SO BEAUTIFULLY done.

It truly isn't just your typical shoujo anime where a boy meets girl and drama issues, rather its a slow build and you see how the characters grow to understand, become friends, and then learn love and support each other. THE FEELS JUST... GAAHHH! The love triangle in the series (Kyo, Tohru, and Yuki) is amazing. You empathize and love both the leads and you see why they would fall for the girl because Tohru is an absolute darling. She's caring, kind, selfless but at the same time a bit of an airhead and has her own personality flaws. You can never hate her.

No one is perfect in real life, and neither of the protagonists or the supporting characters in this series is. They all have their flaws, their dark past, and how they're struggling to accept themselves and learn to grow up. You simply cannot hate anyone... except the antagonist of course.

And of course, currently, the plot thickens. I can't wait to watch more.

I would totally recommend this to honestly everyone because guys and girls alike would love this series, It's got drama, romance, mystery, numerous slice of life moments, extremely lovable characters, very dark themes, and intricate backstories, it would pull anyone in!

Fruits Basket - Season 2


A story that I initially thought was a simple tearjerker with no grounding proves to be a quality tearjerker that knows exactly what it's going for.

Despite its appearance, Fruit Basket is a series for a slightly older audience, since it appeals to a lot of adults and has more somber themes. And also revolves greatly around the sex lives of some of the characters.

Anyway, the second season picks up where the first left off. There are new everyday episodes, and new small events and you see more and more interference from Akito. What impresses me the most here again ... are the character's backgrounds and their problems. Very rarely does an anime/manga manage to address these stories properly without making it seem like melodramatic theater, and yet they've done it here. In fact, I'm almost thrilled with the backgrounds and characters.

Of course, this anime does have its serious drawbacks. For example, the pacing is mediocre, there are often unnecessary flashbacks that fortunately don't last long. Many scenes lack creativity and variety. And especially disappointing are the dialogues. I so often get the feeling that the author doesn't know exactly what he's letting the characters say, as soon as there's no topic about Akito or their backgrounds. They stand around, always looking at each other in shock, acting like goofballs. The comedy moments make up for this to some extent, but when a normal non-story dialogue takes place, you know it's going to be torture. If you don't know what the characters are supposed to say, it's better to replace it completely with another scene. These awkward silences and copy-paste interactions don't help at all.

[Story 4]

The story contributes practically nothing new, except that you see more of the character's backgrounds. Also light information regarding Akito and the Soma family.

[Characters 6]

Many characters are just blunt stereotypes, but this is balanced relatively well by their various complexes, traumas, and backgrounds. This results in the characters seeming understandable and the viewer actually cares about them. Especially since there is a healthy mix between happy and unhappy characters and not everyone is traumatized by something.
And as said, the backgrounds of the characters are relatively realistic and not exaggerated in any way. Many people react to problems differently and especially here, there are a lot of broken parents who think it's okay to ruin their children's lives. And this doesn't just happen out of thin air. Predominantly, the parents themselves are just overstressed people who blame their children for their failures. But there are also some parents who simply should never have become parents.

[Music 5 / Animations 6]

The intros in the anime really make me rethink my whole life. Especially when I'm lying in bed and can't skip this bullshit. Mediocre vocals with montages of characters walking and looking in directions. It's not a disaster, but an intro should be appealing or at least reflect something.

The outros are shockingly actually good and enjoyable.

The osts are average and nothing worth mentioning.

Regarding the animations, the budget has increased slightly as you can see, and the backgrounds have also gotten better. But nothing to talk about.


[Conclusion 6]

The second season of Fruit Basket has been more convincing than the first, also making up for some shortcomings and building more momentum. If the third season keeps this quality or even gets better, I will be more than satisfied.

[Enjoyment 7]

So, having watched the original, nothing could have prepared me for Season 2, Episode 10 when it became apparent that Fruits Basket is a full-throated story and not just a sweet, slice-of-life, familiar feel good world to slip into.

One of the things I love and am fascinated by (not to mention rebuked by) is how emotionally intelligent anime's treatment of character development can be. I realize how self-indulgent and often childish and flailing I'm used to being, how entitled to outbursts and my own selfish motivation I am by comparison.

The themes anime plays with ... what does it truly mean to be unselfish? ... What does it truly mean to fall in love with someone and how can that be perverted by interior motivations ... um ... WOW! I wasn't planning on being Akito-styled face-slapped in my values by FRUITS BASKET today but that's what happened.

And I love it.

GORGEOUS character development. For those struggling a bit with the first season and Tohru's unending cheer and what seems, at times, over-the-top giving nature ... I promise if you stay with it, this remake brings that into focus in a beautiful way in season 2. I wasn't expecting this to suddenly become THIS good and isn't that the great thing about anime?

Tohru Honda literally changed me as a person.

I mean it when I say it. I think everyone should aspire to be like Tohru Honda. She shows complete compassion to her peers and people around her at all times. I've watched Shojos before and haven't really liked them all that much. I was kind of hesitant when my friend told me about it but damn. This is a HUGE eye opener for me.

The story follows directly after the 1st season (not surprisingly) which is about the zodiacs and the crazy shenaniganians that go on in their family!... i should phrase that a little less implying ... that it's a fun adventure when in reality it's a pretty deep plot involving a psycho maniac head of the house and his crazy obsessiveness over the over family members and how Tohru interacts with them. It is something you need to see to believe.

The art style is pretty good. It isn't attack on titan but you can definitely appreciate the animators and you can tell which character is which. But that shouldn't be a problem since if you're reading this you should be able to tell anyway. :P

The music in my opinion just doesn't live up to the 1st season. It's not bad but I find that it is kind of stock. The OP's literally just have the characters walking. That's it. After seeing what they did with the OP's and ED's in the 1st season I seriously felt that the ones this season were lacking.

Every single character in the show feels like a real person. They are so unique and they have pro's and con's for each one of them....



...except for Honda as she is perfect in every way.

That was a joke. Tohru, while she may seem perfect to some people, she definitely DOES have some irredeemable qualities. She is a very submissive person in the whole series up to now and I am interested in seeing how she changes in the final series. I would hope so at least. I didn't read the manga.

I loved this show and you will too. If you watched the first season and are on the fence on whether you should watch the second or not. Don't think.
Just do it. You will NOT regret it...

Overall 9/10

You know, I remember coming out of the last season of this and thinking I had no idea what the overarching story was. Thankfully, this season finally told me. I more or less only want to talk about story in this review as I feel like most of my thoughts about this season come from that, so here it goes.

Starting with the negatives and why this season didn't get a ten from me, there were a small amount of episodes this season that didn't interest me at all. Some of the episodes that didn't heavily feature Tohru were still good for building up other characters ... that provide good elements to the story, but a few of the episodes were uninteresting to watch since it just felt like background story for characters that don't play much of a role. Branching off of that, I've noticed this season that certain plotlines will be elaborated on while others only get revealed without any expansive content. These things are tiny issues, and they only affected my enjoyment a small bit, but it's worth mentioning.

That's all the negatives I have about this season, though, because this season did so much to progress the plot on both the story and romance sides. There were still some areas of discussion about the story and romance that were vague in the terms it used and didn't provide any solid understanding of what was going on, but this season also took strides in that area by clarifying some, if not all, elements of the story and romance. It was nice to have an explanation of, for example, the zodiac curse. It was nice to see characters putting their feelings into actual, straightforward words rather than hinting at it.

On top of that, some of the episodes this season were just plain awesome to watch, either because the story was told really well or the characters were developed markedly. Last season, I thoroughly enjoyed watching Fruits Basket, but it didn't blow me away. This season did. The tone shifted into something more serious and dire than before, and it really added weight to everything that happened this season and last season. I couldn't have asked for a better sequel, and I'm definitely excited to see what comes next.