Ok, last entry of the day... Maybe. *winks* We'll see.

For my birthday (it was last Friday, and thanks to all who added to it and helped make it a very special one *smiles warmly*), Michael gave me another Anime series--the first volume of four?, I believe--to add to my Anime collection of movies. Fruits Basket, it's called. (It's named after the Japanese version of the kid's game, "Farmer In the Dell.")

It's cute and addicting. (I watched all six episodes in one sitting.) Part mystery, part comedy, with a hint of overzealous romance--if you see the series, you'll know why I used the word 'overzealous'--I laughed uproariously in parts, so much so I was afraid my mother would come in and demand I contain myself. Michael predicted right that I'd love this series. (I'll have to email and tell him so and thank him again.)

I wish I had all four volumes. Heh. I just finished getting the rest of Oh My Goddess!, another OVA/Manga series he started me on. I have the first volume and I just ordered the second one, plus the full-length movie a few days ago on Amazon.com. Aaanndd there's a third series I'm itching ta get, Full Metal Panic, but it may have ta wait 'til I get the rest of Fruits Basket.

Fruits Basket involves the Chinese Zodiac and is about a unique family and a young girl of 16 named Tohru Honda. "The Sohma family is cursed. However, this is no ordinary family curse. When a member of the family is embraced by a person of the opposite gender, they transform into an animal of the Chinese Zodiac! The Sohmas [have] managed to keep the curse private for generations, but when a young girl stumbles upon their secret, life at the Sohma house changes forever. Conflict erupts as Zodiac rivals clash in this most unusual household. Young Tohru Honda must promise the secret will remain her own, or face the consequences!" (from the summary on the back)

I love it; part of the hilarity in this series comes whenever one of the Sohmas are accidentally embraced. No one but Tohru is allowed to know their secret and so the antics she and they go to to hide a transformed Sohma often left me with tears in my eyes.

The incorporation of the Chinese Zodiac is another reason why I like this series. (I was born in the Year of the Rabbit.) I'm not much into Astrology; oh I read my horoscope from time to time, but I don't avidly follow it. I'm more into the Sun Signs or descriptions of the Zodiac and how closely mine fits me. I'm definitely a Crab and a (Chinese) Rabbit.

I like the inclusion of the Chinese Zodiac because it shares a tale I never knew it contained--and here we are, *blushing* finally at the reason for this entry; geesh Mom and Kami are right: I go about a tale the long way 'round. =0S It also involves the Cat as the underdog, and those who know me know I always route for and have a soft spot for the underdog. Plus, I just plain love cats.

The Rat, who heard the news spread it far and wide, yet when he came to his best friend, the Cat's, place he paused.

I'm one of the smallest animals and less favored, he thought to himself, if the Cat goes I won't stand much of a chance in being one of the 12!

So the Rat lied to his best friend, the Cat, and told him the party was in two days, when the Jade Emperor had really set it for the next day. The Cat was estatic, dancing for joy. A party! He loved parties, and to have a year in his honor, that would be a special treat! That night he had sweet dreams of the coming banquet and slept late into the morning, unaware of the animals gathering and going to the banquet being held in their honor.

The Rat rode on the Oxen's back all the way to the party, hopping down as his ride neared the emperor's palace. He raced the rest of the way to be the first to be greeted by the emperor. This is how the Rat claimed the first year of the zodiac and why the Cat wasn't included.

When the Cat found out he'd missed the party, he was furious and heartbroken. He'd been betrayed by whom he thought was his best friend, the Rat! This is why cats hate rats and chase them.

moon phase