Fruits Basket is about a poor orphan who has a gigantic heart. She finds a home with the Sohma family and soon learn their secret!
There are definitely some interesting relationships that develop around the magical and mysterious Sohmas as well as some good humor but if you want a plot-driven anime, look elsewhere.
Animation:
This is the show in which I learned that shoujo was synonymous with huge eyes, even for an anime. Shoujo also means overly-attractive male characters as well.The drawing quality is average stuff, in fact pretty plain by standards now. There were some pretty deep themes in this for a shoujo and I felt that having the cute and sparkly look didn't do the seriousness justice at times.
Sound:
Overall, the music was average. The OP was calming but I'd typically fast forwards through it. Each character has their own music theme that represents their personality, one of which really annoyed me (Ayame's theme). In terms of voice acting, I think Yuki needs to get a deeper voice (Aya Hisakawa is awesome and all but Yuki IS a male). However, Yui Horie performed wonderfully as expected.
Story:
The story is quite interesting as you have a girl whose mother passed away, and yet refuses to be taken in by her remaining family. She then stumbles across the Sohma family, which essentially "adopts" her. The majority of the series shows Tohru meeting and getting to know the various Sohmas. Only in the last few episodes is the plot really advanced.
Despite the long character expositions, you do get quite a bit of humor and an occasional rush of emotion. If the ending had been more conclusive, I would have given this a higher rating.
Character:
For me, this was what stood out about this anime. The entire show is about the development between the innocent, friendly, and always-helpful Tohru and the Sohmas. It really is a striking contrast as Tohru is as nice as they come and totally willing to help anyone in need, and the Sohmas are a completely secretive and mysterious family that shuns outsiders.
Tohru is able to warm the Sohma family, helping them see past their curse and enjoy themselves for once. Again, there is a lot of character development so you will thoroughly enjoy the many relationships between the characters. The only reason I didn't give this a 9 is because of the few Sohma's that really got on my nerves. Personally, I really didn't like rabbit boy Momiji (who was apparently only one year younger than Tohru but looked like a 5th grader) and Akito (who apparently is just an idiot who rules over the Sohma clan doing whatever he pleases).
For the guys: there are some female characters here but other than Tohru they are pretty minor as it really is about how Tohru bonds with the Sohmas (the majority of whom are males).
Value:
It was an interesting watch but it could have been better. Due to the inconclusive nature of the anime, I'd rather recommend the manga (more Sohmas and much more conclusive).
