Onigiri Fest: Subplots of hell

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Yesterday, I sang praises to ten of Fruits Basket’s unforgettable moments. Part two of my mini-Onigiri Fest is slightly different.

Welcome to the land of sucky subplots. Or should I say a few of my complaints about FuruBa.

Once again, I warn you, dear reader, SPOILER ALERT.

  • Mommy Tohru.

    Not for one second do I buy the idea of Yuki thinking of Tohru as a surrogate mother. Puh-lease.

    Earlier in the series, Yuki’s strong affection and his princely demeanor towards Tohru were given heavy emphasis. You can attribute it to possible misdirection, but the instances of Yuki’s more-than-friends behaviour was truly obvious. I mean, there’s the very sweet kiss…

    Don’t get me wrong. I have no inclination to YukixTohru but I refuse to accept that Yuki sees Tohru as merely a “mom”. The feasible rationale that I am thinking is that Yuki simply denies his affection when he finds out the strong romantic affection between Kyo and Tohru. Afraid to rejected, he subconsciously backs down and rethinks his relationship with Tohru.

  • The YukixMachi affair.

    The YukixMachi pair is closely tied with the “Mommy Tohru” bit. And all I can say is “Boo!!!”.

    For the longest time, I thought I was the only one who did not view this coupling as a complete failure. (I don’t hang out with the FuruBa crowd too often.) Thank gawd for newt’s admittance of her dislike for the duo.

    I don’t see any chemistry at all. Ugh. Plus, Machi extremely annoys me. Now, if Yuki becomes enamoured with some like Kakeru’s personality, I would most likely appreciate this twist. I actually wish that Yuki chose Toudou.

    So, yeah. I really, really, really disapprove of the YukixMachi pair.

  • Partner-less Momiji.
    Momiji

    Well, I don’t want this kid to be part of couple simply for the sake of it. But geez, everyone in this goddamn series has an other half. Let’s see. For the kids, there’s Kyo and Tohru, Yuki and Machi (Ick!), Rin and Haru (Sexy!), and Kisa and Hiro (Awww..). And then there are the adults. Although, they are slightly trickier. Hatori and Mayu are on the right path. Kureno falling in-love with Uo is inevitable. Ayame managed to snag Mine. Ritsu surprisingly found Shigure’s overworked editor. Heck, there’s even the creepifying boinking of Shigure and Akito.

    Ten of the 12shi happily linked to someone. So why can’t Momiji have one? It’s so unfair.

    (You’ll notice I’ve left out Kagura. She doesn’t support my argument so I conveniently excluded her. Then again, she spent majority of the series vying for Kyo’s attention. So she’s somewhat romantically linked. ;p)

  • An ill Yuki.

    Remember the Hatsuharu introduction chapter where Yuki fell sick. Remember the complicated system he, Kyo, and Tohru devised to bring Yuki home. Haru had to change to his animal form to carry the ill on his back. Tohru had to hug him all the way to Shigure’s house. They argued that they couldn’t use a cab because Yuki might accidentally transfer into a mouse.

    Sounds fine, right?

    Not really.

    It would’ve been simpler and more efficient if Yuki morphs into his mouse form and Tohru ends up carrying him. This way they would’ve been able to ride a cab.

    Yes, this has been eating me up since forever. I know that the long route was intended to introduce Haru’s form. But still…

  • B*tch Slap.

    I still can’t quite forgive the fact that Kagura raised her hands towards Tohru. It was harsh and uncalled for. Kagura might be upset and jealous but she had no right butt into Tohru and Rin’s conversation by using violence. And she even had the gall to refuse to apologize. Brat.

    The act was unnatural. It only served to shock the audience and no other purpose at all. I am disappointed.

  • The face-off.

    It took approximately eight seconds for Akito to accept Tohru. A brief conversation cannot erase months of hurt and confusion. I know this is shoujo, but damn. To make it worse, the cliffhanger is an outside source (i.e. Tohru falling down the cliff) instead of a direct contact with Akito herself. Hmph, I expected better.

  • Operation Let’s sympathize with Akito.

    Akito is a psycho. By adding Ren, her mom, in the mix, the manga-ka tried to make her sympathetic. Oh, come on.

    I see the logic. But I’m still miffed.

    —–
    These are a few things on the top of my head. Some are minor, others are more significant. The most disconcerting thing, which made me temporarily disenchanted with FuruBa, was the lack of warmth in the middle volumes. It started to become uber- soapy. With too many characters in its belt, it was hard to give a proper balance to the cast. Some were over-used, some were under-used.

    While I adore the lovely story of the original banquet, I have certain questions need to be answered. The transformation into animals via a hug needs to be explained. If it were a gift, why does it deprive the human form of the affection of human touch? Why does the cat have an “ugly form”? When did the gift become a curse? Why did the bond begin to weaken?

    I really want answers.

    • Beware of Spoilers. You have been warned.

    08.19.06 @ 11pm
    Fruits Basket