Manga Diaries – Fruits Basket Volume 5

If you don’t know what my diaries are, please go here. Spoilers ahoy!

Otherwise, let’s go!

• Page 10: I’m the exact same way. Anybody else’s heart pound during timed events? Or even just really difficult boss fights? As much as I rag about Fruits Basket, she seems like an cool person to hang around with.
• 12-13: Kyo and Tohru bringing down Japan’s average IQ.
• 18: Shigure showing off his smarts.
• 19: Tokyopop using more Japanese.
• 20: Personally, I thought it would be funnier if Kyo and/or Yuki have had the (unfortunate) experience of Shigure’s driving. And they would be traumatized, like Chiyo in Azumanga Daioh.
• 22: Yuki looks scarier than Kyo here. He definitely doesn’t want to see his brother.
• 23: I hope the editor gets a discount on stomach medicine. She’s going to have ulcers all her life.
• 25: Tohru: “It must be my fault!” She’s definitely no genki girl or tsundere. I don’t even know what to call her. Maybe tenten: “tennen” (airhead) + “tenshi” (angel). I have just made it up. Sure sounds like a class of characters. “She’s a tenten!”
• 27: I can barely tell there is any tracks.
• 29: I wonder if Hatori reads any fantasy books with dragons in it. Maybe not so much now, but when he was younger maybe.
• 32: Tohru kind of reminds me of Mikan from Gakuen Alice in this panel. And Kyo is still lowering Japan’s average IQ.
• 33: Now I wonder who hits on rat-Yuki more: males or females. I mean, both men and women adore Yuki’s appearance in human form, so maybe his beauty passes on to his rat form? (No, I have no idea why I’m thinking about this.)
• 37: Cat-Kyo finally has another expression.
• 40: I don’t know if I just haven’t noticed, but Shigure’s pen name is KIRITANI Noa. I wonder if I would read his books…
• 42: I have a feeling Tohru would fall down long before they got to the lake.
• 47: Aaya really does look good in his outfit. And what’s Shigure speaking? Korean?
• 49: Talking about video games is more interesting than what many authors talk about.
• 51: Isn’t it obvious? Dragons and snakes are both reptiles, but of course dragons would be the boss of reptiles.
• 58: This seems like a pointless name-drop, but it actually does mean something.
• 62: I actually agree more with Ayame here.
• 68: I wouldn’t have blamed Yuki for punching Aaya here.
• 70: And here it is. Didn’t see that coming when I first read it.
• 72: Is it just me, or does Yuki look as if he’s in a play in the opening shot? “Oh, Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?” (I’m sure Yuki is going to pop out of the book and hit me for that one.)
• 77: Well, she’s technically right…
• 78: By the way, the coolest tiger is Rajah from Aladdin.
• 80: Kisa’s nickname seems really weird in English. “Sa” comes from Kisa’s second kanji in her name, and “tchan” is the double syllable/vocal break + chan. So it could also be written as “Sacchan”. Otherwise, it looks like the English word “sat” + chan.
• 84: I want to play a Tokimemo game. Although I really want to play an Angelique game. The remake of the original is due on Vita this winter. Come on, English release! There’s Kin’iro no Corda/La Corda d’Oro as well, but I’ve heard it’s hard. And, at least in the manga, I wasn’t too impressed with the guys. I do like when games say at least the default name. OK, getting off topic here…
• 85: I am.
• 89: Zombie…
• 92: And, of course, more life lessons from the Honda family. Their lives must have been like an episode of Full House or something.
• 97: The Tohru harem is growing again. In Monokuro Shounen Shoujo, there’s these short comics about the heroine becoming a level one/two/etc. cat master by reading cat because some of the other characters are panther, tiger, etc. Anyways, Tohru has become a level two cat master.
• 102: Again, I’m the same way. I wonder how many people lost their Ribbon in Final Fantasy VII this way… I usually just end up reloading my save, even if the party is just going to be separated for a while.
• 108: Amida kuji is fun! I love playing it!
• 121-123: I do feel like this is a good point. I might not go as far as Yuki says about finally forgiving yourself, but going on about yourself is one of the things I hate about job interviews. There’s a reason why research says interviews are one of the most inefficient ways of finding good employees.
• 128: Kisa looks awful in this panel.
• 141: This might be one of more creepier “school prince’s fan club” clubs I have ever seen…
• 149: I need to read more manga starring Hanajima-types. Denpa waves or not. Get on it, manga creators. We need more of these epic “complete strangers” lines.
• 151-152: The girls are creepy, but they have excellent reactions.
• 153: Well, no one’s ever going to trust her with their secrets anymore.
• 158-159: Megumi 1, Yuki Fan Club 0.
• 171: There’s a lack of Kyo in this volume, so here’s his pagetime.
• 177: “Sigh…desu” is so right. “I caught a cold, I’m so pathetic!” Sigh…desu.
• 189: I’m a big baby when it comes to needles…and doctors…and dentists…and bugs…and I’m not a fan of heights. Basically, I’m a wimp. Hatori is scary when you annoy him.
• 191: Kisa still looks around nine. I can’t remember is anybody else comments on the “oji-chan”, but I can’t imagine Ayame or Shigure being thrilled.
• 193: Nice one, Momiji!
• 197: Tokyopop says in the interview Shigure writes under the name “Karitani”. Wrong.

Well, this was a fairly Yuki-heavy volume. Tohru really isn’t as prevalent in this volume. It kind of bounces between Yuki, the Mabudachi Trio, and Kisa. It’s the kind of volume where both a lot happened and nothing happened. Yuki is running for student body president, we meet the Tiger, and Shigure and the teacher know each other. For as much as Kisa clings to her onee-chan, it’s really Yuki who truly helps her. So Tohru’s big “angel in human form” moment is usurped by Yuki. She spends the last chapter upset about failing an exam. But of course, it’s not that she failed; she’s upset at letting down her mom and Yuki. I know it’s basically the last promise she ever made with her mother, but she could really use some of her own advice. Take the Hanajima route.

From the next volume summary, I remember the big secret comes out then. I didn’t realize it was just around the corner.