Dhruv Sharma
Almost 2 decades after its release, bringing new life to an old classic is not an easy task. However, TMS Studio still took on the responsibility of reviving a shoujo bestseller and it paid off pretty well. With its enhanced visuals and loyalty towards the source, ‘Fruits Basket’ has now come with the commitment of bringing a complete and refined adaptation to the world. And undeniably, so far, it has been delivering exactly what we expected from its emotional character-driven storyline.
The first episode of season 2, titled “Hello Again!”, starts off by giving us a glimpse of Yuki’s current mindset, his insecurities, and Mokoto’s obsessive feelings towards him. Apart from that, it also introduces us to the new eccentric characters of the student council.
Fruits Basket Season 2 Episode 1 Recap
In the opening scene, Mokoto spies on Yuki through the window of a classroom and confesses how much she has always liked him. She hates how Tohru got close to him and completely changed him. In the moments that follow, Tohru recalls everything that has happened so far, giving us a brief recap of season 1. Turns out that she has been living with the Somas for almost a year now and she really wishes to help them out by unraveling more about their curse. Soon after this, while Tohru and Shigure discuss the all about the summer break, Yuki decides to leave for school to meet his new students’ council members.
As he enters the meeting room, he finds papers and files scattered everywhere and is then introduced to Machi and Manabe. Manabe later passes on a comment of Yuki’s feminine looks and Yuki realizes that he is making fun of him. In the meantime, Rika Aida and Motoko break into the students’ council room and find Yuki there all by himself. Seeing this as an opportunity, Motoko tries to get close to him and even tells him that he has changed a lot. In the closing moments of the episode, Yuki and Tohru can be seen washing dishes while they talk about how everything has changed and how they’ve learned to grow through all the lessons that their past taught them.
Fruits Basket Season 2 Episode 1 Review
Throughout the first season, we saw Yuki consciously addressing all of his insecurities and then growing out of them to become a lot more mature than he used to be. Although he still struggles to open up about everything, he is slowly breaking out of his shell. Even his reaction towards Manabe’s comment says a lot about him. There was a time when he would casually brush off an insult from someone, but now, he expresses anger and almost catches Manabe off-guard.
Speaking of Manabe and the other members of the students’ council in that matter, the addition of these new members adds another intriguing character dynamic to the show’s premise. Previously, Yuki rarely interacted with anyone outside the Soma home. Although Manabe and Machi are seemingly a pain in the neck for Yuki, they’ll bring in some much-needed gags to the show.
I personally feel that Motoko was better off being a secondary antagonist. The fact that the current season is shedding some light on the inner linings of her thoughts is a little off-putting. As far as her fangirlism for Yuki is concerned, it’s funny and very well comes in tandem with what we’ve known about her. But the seriousness that she brings with her obsession with Yuki in the first episode almost makes you sympathize with her, which I don’t think is a good thing. Her love for Yuki will probably not even lead up to any major plot points in the future, but it still shows how she needs to be more realistic about her expectations from a boy she knows almost nothing about.
As far as the animation of this season is concerned, nothing much has changed and it’s as good as it ever was. The opening theme seems to have downgraded a little compared to season 1 but the ending theme makes up for this with both its incredible visuals and music. Episode 1 certainly lives up to the hype surrounding it and also ends on a very satisfying and heartwarming note. With such a great start, season 2 marks the beginning of another beautiful journey, reminding us why certain remakes deserve to be made.
Read More: Best Shoujo Anime of All Time
