Fruits Basket (2019) – 10

「だって、バレンタインだもん」 (Datte, Barentaindamon)
“It’s Valentine’s Day Afterall”

Shigure is literally an international man of mystery.

General Impressions

Before diving into the lighter more easy-go-lucky side of the episode, let me take the time to talk about the man of the hour, Shigure. As the father figure for Tohru, Yuki, and Kyo I never once thought of him as someone who would be able to do anything except playfully dote over his “kids”. Which is precisely why I was so bewildered when the story revealed Shigure has a much larger plan in mind and that Tohru could (and most likely will) get caught up in whatever will happen in the future. Looking back at things, I think I’m still confused about what Shigure’s motivations are for trying to make his dream as a kid a reality. I was under the impression it might be related to him and his editor who he seems to have feelings for. That said, that assumption is solely based on what Shigure said right at the end of the episode and there’s no saying whether or not this is something he’s doing because of love.

On a side note, can we all take a second to appreciate just how adorable Shigure looked whenever Tohru caught him off guard? Something about his eyes growing big and freezing up really made him feel like a totally different character.

From there though, I hope I wasn’t the only one who was curious about just what was on Kyo’s mind earlier in the episode. Besides freaking out about Kagura coming to share Valentine’s Day with him, I was trying to figure out why he suddenly reverted to the Kyo from episode one when it came to dealing with Yuki. Besides some trauma that he’s trying to avoid confronting, it makes you wonder what part Shigure has in all of this since he was the one who brought it up.

Changing gears to the lighter side of the episode, I never thought Valentine’s Day in an anime could be so interesting. Tossing aside the typical chocolate antics, I really appreciated just how gungho all of Yuki’s fans were. Effectively copying the tactics of the cuckoo, you’d think these girls would at least trash the evidence somewhere further than the closest trashcan.

Anyways, another episode down meaning we’re one step closer to finding out just what’s going on behind the scenes. And while it’s probably a long ways away before we really dive deep into whatever secrets are being kept from us, I know I can’t wait to find out what they are. See you guys next week!

Preview