“Maybe that stabbing spree was cathartic.” Well, that’s fine – as long as Akito got something out of it, it’s all good.
We’ve reached a difficult part of the journey now. There are people that are perfectly fine with this turn of events in Fruits Basket, and it’s not my intention to shit all over their feelings. Their interpretation is just as valid as mine. But the hard truth is this whole criticism thing is about stating my interpretation, and that is that as a denouement this part of Furuba sucks balls. Please don’t take it personally, and I can only ask your forbearance – where my feelings on this are concerned, it is what it is.
I have quibbles with the Kyou-Tohru side of this to be sure. But it’s almost pointless to talk about those, because the Akito debacle hangs over everything. There was only one part of it that worked for me, and that’s when Momiji said that the ones letting Akito get away with literal attempted murder are “useful idiots”. I can’t think of a better phrase – Momiji always did have more sense in one of his floppy ears than most of the Sohmas do in their entire bodies.
Did Takaya telegraph this development? Of course, but that doesn’t make it any less hard to swallow. Akito was always going to be narratively exonerated, and it was always going to be due to Tohru’s magical words of healing. I think it’s problematical in the first place that the two most recent episodes of the series are basically three long inner monologue speeches – Kyou last week, Tohru and Akito this week. And a cliff randomly collapsing at just the right moment? Sure, why not – I guess it’s that “fate” thing again. But Akito being given the stamp of approval because she was lonely? Sorry, wrong number.
I hate this idea that because Akito was lonely, it’s OK for her to literally terrorize people – usually children – for her entire adolescent and adult life. But she’s pushed a child out of a second-story window and stabbed the one person stupid enough to support her at her worst literally in the back, and it’s only by pure chance that neither died. And now she’s stabbed another child twice (so what if it chanced to be in the arm? Are we to believe Akito was being careful?). Her entire existence has been making the existence of others miserable. Are we to forgive that because she was unhappy, or because she had a lousy mom? At what point does Akito have some responsibility for her own actions?
No, useful idiots is what these people are. No one is a bigger idiot than Kureno of course, but Tohru comes pretty close. All I can do is pretend Akito never existed, and focus on the drama between she and Kyou. This business with choosing between Kyou and Kyouko (almost the same name, almost the same hair – hmmm) is way overplayed and really not suited to be the basis of the entire ending, but it’s at least a legitimate psychological phenomenon. Unlike Akito Kyou actually deserves her forgiveness – in fact he really doesn’t even need to be forgiven for anything. Their drama is far from flawlessly executed, but it’s a thousand million times less galling than Akito.
None of this is helped, really, by the anime’s odd pacing choices. It moved glacially in the two-cour second season, faithfully adapting every trivial and banal sidebar from the manga. And it’s moved like the locomotive from Spielberg’s War of the Worlds in the final season, compressing the final arc in a pretty significant way. Maybe there really was a late decision to lose a cour here, because I can’t think of any other obvious reason why the anime chose to go that route. As cattywampus as the manga ending is, after 15 damn years I would have at least like to have seen it get a full airing.
Jeremy Smith
June 2, 2021 at 10:15 pmIt’s true that Akito has committed alot of atrocities and she obviously cannot and should not be easily forgiven for them, however it’s also true that she was in a way just as much a victim of the curse as everyone else. I personally believe that it’s never too late for someone to change themselves for the better, although depending on their crimes one may have to spend their entire life making up for what they’ve done. Also in a way just the fact that Akito now regrets and feels sorry for what she’s done means that she’ll be suffering from strong feelings of guilt for the rest of her life which is a harsh punishment in and of itself.
Guardian Enzo
June 3, 2021 at 6:43 amShe needs some punishment a lot more literal and specific that guilt.
Licca
June 3, 2021 at 11:55 amIf it’s any concellation, (removed)
Guardian Enzo
June 3, 2021 at 1:02 pmLet’s not spoil that for people.
IMO, if you have to wait 15 years for a sequel to explain it, the development is kind of invalid.
Jeremy Smith
June 4, 2021 at 12:03 amPersonally I think having to bear the weight of so much guilt for one’s entire life is probably a more painful punishment than any literal one would be. I think jail works better on the unrepentant than on those who are already feeling strong remorse. Punishing someone by putting them in jail when they feel like they deserve to be punished for their actions in my opinion only gives the victims some feelings of satisfaction. Not blaming someone who desires to be blamed and punished is probably more cruel.
Snowball
June 2, 2021 at 10:50 pmI’m glad I’m not the only who thought this whole finale was BS. Kyou’s misunderstanding of Kyouko’s words just didn’t work for me. Tohru confronting Akito with a knife and falling off a cliff was just idiotic and contrived. Akito was just so damn abhorrent. The only saving grace for this finale was Momiji’s statement that sums up my feelings for Akito.
Guardian Enzo
June 3, 2021 at 6:45 amThe whole “I’ll never forgive you” thing is just so overplayed. It’s not something to conclude the main plotline of the entire series over. And the cliff thing is just a total headdesk moment. But really, it all pales in comparison to Akito’s get out of jail free card. That’s just a total disaster.
Being pissed off about this again 15 years later is a thing, boy.
Rasu
June 3, 2021 at 7:46 amEven in the manga the whole “I won’t forgive you” thing felt out of place, along with Kyo being there the day of Kyouko’s accident and him, “playing dumb” since day one. Despite it being showed as a flashback of all the traumas he had due to his cat curse, it just didn’t make sense, neither did Yuki’s suddenly (and convenient) Edipo Syndrome towards Tohru.
But, oh well. Tohru’ll be perceived as an eternal saint “missunderstood” as an idiot, instead of allowing the audience to know that she sndeed saw herself un Akito (it wasn’t only that longing for eternity or the actions they choose to do un order to avoid lonelyness which made her forgive her).
Anyway, I guess we won’t get to see yet the real beginning of the curse. No, we have to endure the dullest couple of Yuki and Machi, one more time.
Kim
June 3, 2021 at 6:03 pmThe cliff never bothered me because it calls back to the first episode or so when Tohru’s tent collapsed because that land is unstable
As for Akito well yeah she deserves jail and in normal situation she would have got that but as all her crimes happened “within the family” she is able to get away with them.
Antony Shepherd
June 3, 2021 at 6:39 pmIt’s a long long time since I read the manga, but while watching the series I’ve often found myself thinking “No, seriously, why the heck are they not going all ‘Murder on the Orient Express’ on Akito?
Lately though I’ve been thinking the series should really end with Akito going to jail for a long time.
Ressie
June 3, 2021 at 10:31 pmIf akito went to jail it wouldn’t solve anything. I find it funny how you’re ok with forgiveness as long as it’s your favorite characters. Momiji is allowed to be the bigger person and forgive akito but kureno and tohru aren’t? Tohru was raised a certain way to always look for the best in people you can’t fault her for that. I’d rather the characters get development into better people who solve their problems than them being stagnant cliches that first appeared as.
Guardian Enzo
June 3, 2021 at 10:41 pmTwo counts of attempted murder, at least two of assault with a deadly weapon. Set aside the massive karmic debt for torturing everyone else in her orbit for her entire life – that’s pretty cut and dry. Momiji has nothing to do with it. All I said about him is that he was right for calling Akito’s enablers useful idiots.