Creative Staff:
Story/Art: Natsuki Takaya
Translation: Sheldon Drzka
Lettering: Lys Blakeslee
What They Say:
The curse might have been broken, but the big questions still lie ahead for the Sohma family. Now that Kyo is free to dream of his future, what will he make of it? Does growing up mean growing apart, or will his bond with Tohru only strengthen with time? Perhaps their first date will decide! And at long last, the meaning of Kyoko’s ominous words “I’ll never forgive you…” becomes clear.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Fruits Basket will have ended 11 years ago this November, but I don’t think its impact with ever cease to affect me as much as it did the first time I read it. Tohru goes about changing the lives of the members of the Sohma family in the story, but she’s done so much more for everyone else that’s read it. From the story of the rice ball with the pickled plum, Fruits Basket has always been about recognizing those things that you can’t see in yourself. Fruits basket has always been about accepting the weakness in your own self, and being able to ask for help to overcome those weaknesses. Fruits Basket will always be an uplifting manga that should fill the heart of anyone who reads it with the same joy and warmth that Tohru filled Kyo and Yuki and so many others.
This final volume from Yen is actually twofold: the first half contains the 23rd and final volume of the manga proper, and the second half has a bevy of bonus Fruits Basket- and Takaya-related manga materials, including a few cute bonus chapters, character popularity contests, and even an interview with Takaya to celebrate the release of these volumes in Japan.
At the onset of reading this volume, I didn’t remember that Fruits Basket had an odd number of volumes, so I didn’t know how it would be filled with basically cleaning up what was left of the story (spoilers: it wasn’t much). Even a volume might seem like too much after the curse has already been broken, but none of it feels like filler material. All of these beats were the same beats that Fruits Basket has always partaken in. And they’re showing where everyone’s going from here. It’s not strictly speaking necessary, but it is definitely preferred over something like, say, Naruto that had a quick wrap up of “here’s who has kids with who, and here’s their kids.”
In Summary:
23 volumes of Fruits Basket feels like enough to wrap up this story satisfactorily, but I could certainly read 23 more. Fruits Basket is the kind of manga that I could read a few random chapters of and feel the kind of warmth through the very pages I’m reading. Through a reread, it remains one of my all-time favorite manga.
Content Grade: A+
Art Grade: A
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: A
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: April 18, 2017
MSRP: $20.00