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ofoceansandtombsanew · 2 years

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Tohru Honda: a Subversion of Shoujo’s Nice Girl Trope

Fruits Basket absolutely nails subverting your expectations of character tropes in anime.

Momiji is introduced as the cute childish boy but boom we are slapped with the fact that he a mother who hated him so much she had her memories wiped of him. Shigure right off the bat looks like the typical perverted uncle of anime when in reality he is one the most manipulative characters in the series. Ayame is the flamboyant, boisterous one whose bravado hides his regret and desire to repent for his past neglect of his younger brother. Which ultimately brings me to the protagonist of Furuba itself, Tohru Honda.

I'll make it no secret that I have a huge soft spot for Fruits Basket as a series. It was the first manga I read, I watched the 2001 series and I was right on the hype train when I saw it was getting a remake that would follow the manga storyline. But I did my best to be as objective as possible in this essay of sorts saying why I believe Tohru is a great example of subverting the "Nice Girl Protagonist" of Shoujo. Tohru is the protagonist of Fruits Basket and when it comes to those who don't like her, it seems she can be hit or miss due to the assumption that she is perfect.

The general consensus of those who do not like her or find her bland compared to the rest of the cast is that Tohru is a perfect and bland protagonist with no issues of her own. That all she does is wave her healing wand of warm smiles and makes everything better for those around her.

However, that opinion couldn't be more misguided. In reality, Tohru is just as emotionally broken as the Sohmas and they mend her heart just as much as she mends theirs. As such, I hope to show those who find her bland or otherwise boring that there is more substance to Tohru's character than they believe.

At first glance, Tohru does seems like your typical Shoujo protagonist. She's nice, almost to a fault. She would rather talk her way out of a situation instead of throwing hands, she doesn't get mad in situations other typically would, and she has a hard time asking for help. Oh and with a dash of anime originality, she's an orphan. However even as early as episode 1, you can see hints that Tohru is not going to be the usual nice girl protagonist with her desire to work and be as independent as possible. The mangaka does a great job throughout the series showing with hints and broad examples that Tohru is just as complex as the colorful cast around her.

Ironically enough though, when hints of Tohru's trauma are sprinkled throughout the series it is seen as annoying even when the Furuba takes time to give insight into why she does the things she does.

She mentions her mother constantly in anecdotes of whimsical stories or snippets of wisdom her mother imparted her with.

Compared to the death of parents to other anime protagonists, Tohru's situation is a bit more unique. Tohru's father may have died when she was young but the same cannot be said for her mother, Kyoko, who died fairly recently. When the series begins, Kyoko has only been dead for a few months and it is more than apparent as early as episode 1 that Tohru is desperate to keep any semblance of her mother's existence alive. Kyoko died before Tohru's first year of high school even ended and worse, was told in the middle of class. Tohru has had barely any time to heal from this loss and it is evident in how she talks to her mother's photo.

Yes, in Japanese culture, it may be typical to have photos of departed family members, making a shrine for them and leaving offerings from time to time. But Tohru takes this to a completely different level, showcasing how deep her trauma runs.

When she is digging frantically to take out her mother's photo after the landslide destroyed her tent, she cries "She can't breathe in there. She's in pain." And that's just episode one.

Nobody completely over the death of their parent would speak like this, referring to a photo as a living person. She lost her mother and she didn't even get a chance to say goodbye, even feeling guilt to an extent about the situation. Tohru didn't wake up to tell her mother that she would see her later. There is no way that simply getting up to tell her mother goodbye would have changed the outcome of her fate, but Tohru still feels that way. That it didn't matter if she had tests or work or the next day, the one she should have put first was her mother.

Anyone who has or is currently experiencing the grief of losing a loved one has likely done the same. Wondering if, if the situation was anything other than illness or old age, there was something they could have done. Things they should have said or could have said differently. What more could they have done to help and the feeling is all consuming. Even if it is unprompted, they somehow will manage to insert their lost family or friend into a conversation that didn't include them or may randomly begin talking about them. A lot of the time, these people don't even realize that they're doing it which is shown in season 2 with Tohru when Hiro asks her why she talks about her mother so much.

She is too positive.

Tohru's positivity is one of the most easily seen aspects of her character. Where others might see the glass half-empty, Tohru sees it as half-full. Her positivity is even noted upon by characters within the show, Saki (Hanajima) mentioning that she doesn't believe she could personally smile like that so soon after the death of a loved one.

Tohru doesn't like thinking about her problems. She doesn't like expressing her sadness. She doesn't want to worry those around her when they likely have their own problems to worry about. Saki predicts that this ability Tohru has to act this way is because she would scold herself if she ever showed a hint of sadness. And Saki was right because we see Tohru later on doing exactly that, crying but forcing herself to try and smile and scolding herself for not keeping it together.

Rather than let Yuki comfort her when she is in tears, she smiles and completely changes the topic even though tears are coming down her face.Tohru tells Kyo that she needs a minute to get herself together because breaking down in tears in front of him wasn't what she planned. She was supposed to smile when she saw him again.

Tohru would rather pretend everything is fine even when she is seconds away from falling apart because toxic positivity is something she struggles with.

No one can be that positive all the time, not even Tohru.

Tohru has a hard time asking others for help.

Yes, Tohru is kind-hearted by nature but she genuinely does believe that she could burden those she troubles for help. Considering how her maternal side of the family wanted nothing to do with her and her paternal side of the family talks poorly about her, it isn't difficult to see where that frame of thinking came to be. When her mother died, her paternal side of the family didn't argue over who wanted to take Tohru in, they argued over who should take Tohru in and that is an important distinction. Even more so the fact, they had these arguments in front of her. When it was finally settled that she should live with her grandfather and that was uprooted due to upcoming renovations, it makes sense that she would rather be homeless in a tent than bother her friends who don't have the space to provide for an additional person even if that.

In Tohru's mind, it was shown very clearly by her family that she is a burden. She's an extra mouth to feed and an unwanted mouth at that, as her family never holds back in disparaging Kyoko even if Tohru is present.

As such, when Tohru is in a situation where she has no other choice than to accept their help, she believes she should be extremely grateful. They're taking their time to help her when they easily could have done otherwise, so why should she want more? Why should she complain? If she has any desires, she pushes it down because of that belief because she feels awful and that she shouldn't want for more when people are already going out of their way to help an extra mouth to feed. Because of this mentality cultivated by the bulk of her paternal relatives mistreatment, she will seldom voice her wants.

She never gets angry or upset.

To say Tohru never gets angry or close to physical in her reactions is far from the truth. Tohru gets angry when the issue impacts those that she cares about.

Tohru can tolerate being mistreated but she will always draw the line at the abuse being directed to someone else. When she first meets Akito and she sees Yuki's clear discomfort and fear, she pushes Akito away from him immediately. When she witnesses Momiji being punched by Akito, she immediately steps in and places herself in front of Momiji to physically shield him. When Rin tells her not to meddle with the curse and involve herself, Tohru, without cruelty, shoots back that she will absolutely meddle and involve herself because she refuses to lose the people she cares about to someone who has clearly been abusing them emotionally and physically for years. Tohru's tolerance for mistreatment has a limit, she is just unfortunately not included in that limit. So when we finally see her get angry in a scenario that includes herselfー when Kyo tries to run away because he feels he doesn't deserve her love, it's incredible.

There is so much more to Tohru than meets the eye. Tohu's reaction to Yuki getting a cold isn't just Tohru overreacting for the sake of being a nice girl, it's because her father died from a cold he brushed off and that cold turned into a fatal illness. For Tohru, colds aren't something that can just be brushed away because what if it turns into something worse.

Tohru would rather wear clothes until they practically fall apart than buy new clothes because she knows that she can't just spend her money haphazardly. But when it came to Valentine's Day and wanting to express her gratitude for those who cared about her, she had no problem dropping an entire check to purchase the ingredients to make enough chocolate for everyone.

She disregards herself and the efforts she puts forward. When she feels she has failed in helping Arisa, she specifically says "everyone around me has always helped me and when it is my turn to do the same, I can't." These aren't problems she overcomes herself by simply "smiling through the pain" as some who discredit her argue. Tohru is repeatedly loved and helped by those around her who care for her and opens herself up to receive that love and help over time. She is taught by her grandfather and Sohmas that is okay for her to be selfish and ask for things.

Her friends teach her that she helps them so much and that in reality they feel like they are never there to help her when she needs it.Her friends get upset that the same amount of money she would spend on them, she wouldn't spend on herself.

She is told that the way she villainized Katsuya after his death because doesn't make her dirty or a bad person because she was a child that was scared to lose her mother. That her fear and desperation to make her mother acknowledge her was understandable. That mimicking her father in her attempt to draw her mother's attention probably helped more than she realized.

Tohru is not just a "Nice Shoujo Girl" Protagonist, she is a girl with trauma who would rather focus on the issues someone else has than look to her own.

Like I said before, this isn't me trying to get Tohrus haters to like her. People are entitled to like and dislike whichever characters they please, but it is a complete disservice to Natsuki Takaya's writing to say Tohru is bland and has no struggles of her own. Tohru has many problems and struggles she has to deal with throughout the series and seeing those issues she overcomes being brushed aside as her being perfect and having no problems is a complete oversight. As such, I just simply wanted to peel back Tohru's layers and showcase that just as characters such as Momiji, Shigure and Ayame are more than the tropes they are introduced as, Tohru is as well.

[i wrote this on reddit too]

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princepsed · 9 months

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Fragile little child

#fanart #fruit basket #fruits basket #fruba #akito sohma #shigure sohma #sohma family #anime

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iam-what-killed-the-dinosaurs · 30 days

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#love #anime memes #anime #funny #humor #jokes #memes #fruits basket #yuki sohma #momiji sohma #tohru honda #hatsuharu sohma #shigure sohma #rin sohma #kyo sohma #fruba

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multi-fandom-imagine · 4 months

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Shigure Sohma taking f!reader out to eat and teasing her under the table.

A/n: MY MAN! He would do this shit. Sidenote: This takes place after the curse.

It was odd, Shigure never thought that he'd find his happiness in a simple baker, but yet he did. He loved you and the moment the curse broke he showed how much he loved you.

God he loved those little sound's that escaped your lips when he fucked you.

But you've been such a tease lately, teasing him when he had to work. So he was going to take it upon himself to show you that he could do that same damn thing.

It was a nice restaurant, something you knew that you could never afforded before meeting Shigure.The man placing his hand on your lower back as he guided you to a more dimly lit part of the restaurant.

"It look's amazing."

"Anything for my princess."Placing a kiss to your temple, he the pulled out the chair for you. Once everything was situated, once the food was placed you nearly jumped feeling Shigure's hand on your knee.

"S-Shigure! W-what."

Leaning forward, Shigure's eyes darkened as his hand then slipped under your dress as he started to rub your thigh. "Shh, just enjoy this love.."

Biting your lip you slowly nodded your head, a glint appearing in Shigure's eyes as his long and slender fingers pushed your panties aside as he then slowly pushed his panties into your warmth. A small whimper escaped your lips.

"Now, now darling. Not to loud, we don't want people to hear."Shigure's voice was low, you could tell he was doing his best to suppress a chuckle as he continued thrust his fingers in and out of your pussy.

"You're such a good girl for me...I can't wait to get you home. Maybe I'll rip the dress off of you, or maybe I'll just push it up your thighs." The man nearly growled out as his thumb rubbed your clit. "Or maybe I'll just fuck you on all fours."

"S-Shigure please." You whimpered, you were so close though just as you thought you would hit your orgasm the man with drew his fingers as your food was placed down in front of you.

"Enjoy your meal love."

#drabbles #drabble #shigure sohma #shigure sohma x reader #shigure sohma x you #shigure x reader #shigure x you #fruits basket #fruits basket x reader #fruba #smut

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yourlocaltrashpandaa · 1 year

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“I Fucked Up.”

hatori & shigure soma x fem!reader

oneshot

request: yes/no: by someone on wattpad

CW: it’s a bit suggestive so be mindful of that

A/n: this oneshot was part of a collection I had titled Smile! wanted to post it here because I can and feel like it would be more appreciated here. Lol

Word Count: 391w

Not proofread

"Hatori! I fucked up!" Hatori sighed as he heard Y/n scamper into his office.

"What happened this time, Y/n?" Hatori asked the young woman. "And I thought you were with Shigure today?" Hatori raised an eyebrow.

Y/n whined. "I was, I was. But like I said I fucked up and said something stupid and Shigure teased me and took it too far." She said.

"And what on earth did you say?" Hatori asked.

Y/n flinched at his question. "You don't wanna know trust me, you'll get mad at Shigure and then me." You muttered.

"I won't. Just... just tell me, y/n." Hatori said softly.

"Fine, promise you won't get mad? Y/n asked for clarification from Hatori.

Hatori nodded at as she took a deep breath as said. "I jokingly asked Shigure if we could have a baby and teased me saying "oh, do you want to do it right now?" like the smug bastard he is. I know he was joking but he... took it to far..." Y/n trailed as she noticed the tick mark on Hatori's forehead.

"I told you'd get mad." You mumbled out.

"I can't believe I have to share a woman with him." Hatori grumbled out.

"You guys agreed to that! You can't back out now, I agreed too." You said.

"Sometimes I regret I did..." He trailed.

You frowned, sulking a bit. Hatori noticed this looking your way. He sighed getting up from his office chair.

Hatori grabbed your chin between his fingers and tilted your face up to look at him.

"Listen, Y/n, very carefully," He started as you nodded. "I love you and I don't regret ever meeting you but agreeing to share you with Shigure is something I'd never thought I'd do." He said.

You chuckled. "That's because you love me! And I love you too, Tori!" You exclaimed.

Hatori kissed you and backed you up to the wall, pinning you there.

"Let's get back at him," Hatori whispered lowly in your ear once he pulled away from the kiss. "Let's have a baby." His voice was hot and husky as he whispered to you.

Your face was turning fifty shades of crimson until Hatori looked back at you with satisfied smirk on his face.

"Okay." You said softly pulling him into a heated kiss.

#fruba #fruba 2019 #fruits basket 2019 #fruits basket #fruits basket x reader #fruits basket fandom #fruits basket hatori #fruits basket shigure #shigure soma #hatori soma #shigure x reader #hatori x reader #female reader #fem!reader

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lionsoap · 1 year

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god i wish i could come up with something funny for this image but my brain has gone diagonal and has not been able to properly utilize the comedy potential that is right in front of me

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psy-ay-ay · 1 year

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look at shigure and kureno in childhood i'm begging you all LOOK AT THIS

#aaaaah kureno <3 <3 #this is the most positive i've ever felt about kureno i love him here #and shigure's 'dunno do I?' and 'i think it's more like i'm filling a void'#but also 'i think it might help that i get to hear how you like them'#which btw is 'everything was bright and sparkly' oh kureno i know what you mean #shigure sohma #fruba #furuba #furubana #fruits basket #manga panel #fruits basket another

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paystery · 5 months

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i love yuki sohma so much can the fruits basket fans come back please

#diggy #yuki soma #yuki sohma #fruits basket #fruba #anime #fruits basket 2019 #sohma #tohru honda #kyo sohma #shigure sohma #hatsuharu sohma

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abusedpup · 1 year

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just thinking about lazily sucking shigures cock ^_^ scrolling on ur phone whilst in between his thighs and slobbering on his tip, not paying much mind to the whimper and whines dripping from the man. although unintentionally, you had been overstimulating him for almost an hour as he had already came 3 times. your mouth didn’t dare to actually sink down onto him or do any real work just because you didn’t feel like it. you had an obvious oral fixation so you just loved having something in your mouth (on this occasion it was shigure). i noticed a lot of people preach for him to be a dom but honestly i see him more as a switch with a sub leaning. he moans and is veryyy vocal so whenever he begins to get too loud you graze your teeth over his sensitive tip slightly to shut him up. (ps this only makes him yelp and moan louder)

hey sorry for never posting im simply not a writer lmfao anyways people don’t appreciate my man shigure enough so i decided to take matters into my own hands :3 also thanks for the support on my last post thats super awesome

#shigure sohma #fruba #shigure yukimi #shigure smut #shigure sohma smut #smut #fruits basket #fruits basket x reader #drabble

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coralpaperthoughts · 2 months

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this show HURTS MY BRAINNNN

wdym shigure and akito are in love 😭😭 AND SHIGURE SLEPT WITH AKITO’S MOTHER ??? BECAUSE AKITO SLEPT WITH KURENO ??? THIS MAKES NO SENSEEEEE

and now shigure and akito have slept together ?? 😭😭

#fruits basket #fruba #fruits basket s3 e2 #akito sohma #shigure sohma #coralwatches #anime

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queerplatonic-msr · 1 year

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BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

the Psych2Go channel is using a picture of shigure for this video thumbnail lmao how does this even happen

#shigure sohma #fruits basket #fruba #furuba

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adaptationsvs-polls · 14 days

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Which version of this do you prefer?

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iam-what-killed-the-dinosaurs · 1 month

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#love #anime memes #anime #funny #humor #jokes #memes #fruits basket #yuki sohma #momiji sohma #tohru honda #hatsuharu sohma #shigure sohma #rin sohma #kyo sohma #fruba #cute

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veroniquesboutique · 7 months

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Kinktober Day 6 - Dubcon/Chastity/First Kiss

For Kinktober day 6!

Shigure Sohma x Female Reader

Content warnings: female reader, dubcon, chastity, sex shaming, virginity, first kiss, grooming, fingering, unprotected, body shots, upskirt, shame/embarrassment

18+ MINORS DNI

More under the cut!

A proper lady is meant to keep her legs closed; you should be able to hold a skittle between your knees. You don’t remember where you heard that phrase before or if maybe you read it somewhere, but it’s the only thing your mind can settle on as your best friend’s dad grips your thighs and pulls as them gently, suggestively as his eyes study your face for a reaction.

This, of course, was not the goal of your afternoon. You had hiked all the way up the hill to the remote house of your best friend to borrow the notes you had missed in class the other day. With graduation looming in just a few weeks, now was not the time to fall behind. Unfortunately, the flu never waits, and you were down for the count. Fortunately, on the other hand, your friend was gracious enough to let you borrow his notes.

However, after you huffed and puffed up all the stairs to his house, you knocked on the door and his dad, not your friend, answered it with an air of surprise. Now, Shigure Sohma wasn’t exactly Yuki’s father - maybe uncle was a more appropriate term, you weren’t really sure - but you just never asked for more details on his family situation. You knew Shigure just as you knew all of your other friends’ parents; it was practically the same.

When he saw you, his face changed from pleased surprise to welcoming smile as he leaned against his front door, his eyes darting down your body and back up again before he thought you would notice.

You exchanged pleasantries and banalities and quick glances at each other and before you knew it, he was ushering you inside because “it was really no trouble at all” and of course, “Yuki would be home soon” he was sure of it and what luck you must have because he “just made too much tea and doesn’t want it to go to waste.” You hated having to entertain adults - it always felt so deeply impersonal, like a performance for their sake - but you just couldn’t say no, so you soon found yourself kneeling at their table with a cup of tea in your hand.

Continued on AO3...

#cw sex mention #cw smut #fanfiction #kinktober 2023 #veroniquesboutique #x reader #anime smut #fem reader #female reader #fruba 2019 #fruits basket #fruba #shigure sohma #sohma shigure #shigure sohma x reader #x you #x you smut #x y/n smut

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