Fruits Basket Episode 4

Fruits Basket Episode 4

What Year Is She?

Have I mentioned that I’m really like Fruits Basket in any of the previous episode reviews? If not, I’m really liking Fruits Basket. It’s a nice change of pace from both the shounen battle series and just bad trashy series I’m watching this season otherwise.

And, although it’s a shoujo, which means the focus is typically on the hot men, it has some pretty cute girls as well. Last week I believe I mentioned how great Tooru in her ponytail was, and this week we’re introduced to a new, possibly best, girl: Kagura.

We were initially introduced to Kagura at the end of episode three when she appears at Shigure’s house asking if Kyo was around. At this point I had assume she was another one of Tooru’s classmates who happened to have a crush on Kyo, but this turned out not to actually be the case.

Instead, we learn that she’s another member of the Souma clan who just happens to live at the main family home. And, as with the male members of the Souma clan, she too houses a spirit of the zodiac within her. Though, her exact zodiac animal is kept a secret until the end of the episode.

So, let me just briefly include my thoughts on this mystery. I don’t know if we were actually supposed to be able to figure out which zodiac animal Kagura was before it was revealed, because even Tooru didn’t know, but maybe if you’re really into that sort of thing you would.

The whole time I was trying to figure it out along with Tooru, and when it was finally revealed I felt cheated. Nothing I saw would have led me to the correct conclusion, but maybe that’s just on me. Were any of you able to figure it out?

Kagura Souma

And, not onto Kagura herself. She’s madly in love with Kyo, and has been ever since they were children. Her only dream is to one day marry him, and this has been something she’s pursued relentlessly for years, even going so far as to threaten his life so that he’ll agree to it.

But, before you label her as a classic yandere, I don’t think she actually fits that description. Kagura isn’t exactly a yandere, she’s probably closer to bipolar. She has extreme mood swings, and can swap from telling Kyo she misses him to punching him in the face in mere seconds.

Then, once Kyo has been sufficiently beaten to a pulp, she suddenly becomes caring again and asks who hurt him like that. But, I think one of the main reasons I would classify her as a yandere is because she only focuses on Kyo. She never threatens Tooru despite viewing her as a romantic rival

Kagura Souma punching Kyo Souma from the anime series Fruits Basket (2019)
Kagura punching Kyo

It’s also later revealed that one of the many reasons she’s interested in Kyo is because he’s a fellow animal spirit. Apparently, while animal spirits turn into their respective animal when hugged by the opposite sex, this doesn’t apply among animal spirits, meaning that if Kyo and Kagura hug, nothing happens.

But, it would be incorrect to say that’s the only reason she loves Kyo. Despite her violent tendencies, she does seem to seriously care for and cherish him, even if he doesn’t return the favor. I mean, she even carries around an orange, cat-shaped backpack which represents him.

Before watching this episode I was worried that Kagura would steal Kyo away from Tooru, but afterwards I think I prefer the Kagura x Kyo pair.

The Souma Women

After Kagura’s introduction, and we learn that she’s a member of the Souma clan, it’s revealed that there are actually two other female members of the clan as well.

One of them is pretty clearly shown during the ED of the series, and is either the tiger or sheep. However, the final female Souma is still a mystery to me. I’m confident that it isn’t the German kid, because although they dressed like a girl, I’m pretty sure they’re a boy.

That said, perhaps he prefers to be referred to as a girl and so Shigure was counting him as well. This is possible, but I’m still convinced that this isn’t the case, and that he was included as a “trap” in order to check off all the male character tropes.

So what animal do you think the other female Souma is if we already know one is the boar and another is the tiger/sheep? I’m feeling like the snake is a good guess, but maybe that’s just because I’m thinking of Nadeko Sengoku from Monogatari.

Maybe next week I’ll actually count up all the characters shown in the ED and try to figure out if the last female Souma was actually depicted among them or not. And, maybe it’ll turn out that I was wrong all along and the German kid is actually a girl.

The Year of the Boar

At the very end of the episode it’s finally revealed that Kagura is the boar of the zodiac. Seriously, if you guessed this purely based on what was shown in the episode, then you have my respect. Nothing she did screamed, “boar” out to me in particular. But, like I mentioned, I’m no pro at the zodiac.

Luckily, I think pigs are pretty cute, so the fact that Kagura is the boar is a plus. That said, she’s not even the best anime pig around. I’d have to put Tonton from Naruto and Hawk from The Seven Deadly Sins above Kagura. Even Hawk’s mom is probably higher up on my list for now.

Kagura Souma - Boar from the anime Fruits Basket (2019)
Kagura Souma – Boar

Before ending for today I have one more thing to bring up about Kagura, and that’s her living conditions. While Shigure’s house is indeed owned by the Souma clan, it’s not actually the main household, which is why the only Soumas living there are himself, Yuki, and now Kyo.

And, although Kagura wants to live at this house along with Kyo, Shigure reminds her that she isn’t able to. So why is this? Is it just because of the relationship she wants with Kyo? Probably not. Is it because of her age? We’re told that she’s two years older than Yuki and Kyo, so again, probably not.

In the end I think it comes down to the head of the Souma clan wanting to control everyone else. It’s probably this person who refuses to allow Kagura to move out of the main Souma household, though the reason for this is still unknown.

Conclusion

So, what did you think of this week’s episode of Fruits Basket? Do you think Kagura and Kyo make a good pair? Did you figure out that Kagura was the boar before it was finally revealed? Let me know in the comments

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My review of the next episode is available here.

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