After a family tragedy turns her life upside down, 16-year-old high school student Tohru Honda takes matters into her own hands and moves out… into a tent! Unfortunately for her, she pitches her new home on private land belonging to the mysterious Soma clan, and it isn't long before the owners discover her secret. But, as Tohru quickly finds out when the family offers to take her in, the Somas have a secret of their own—when hugged by the opposite sex, they turn into the animals of the Chinese Zodiac!
This tv show contains 55 potentially triggering events.
Of course, there are references to Chinese mythology, and the story of the Chinese Zodiac comes up ("God told the animals..."), but the head of the Sohma household being referred to as "God" is moreso metaphorical.
Almost all of the zodiac members have abusive parents. For example, Kyo's dad blames him for his mom to committing suicide, despite how it was his abusing her for giving birth to the cat that drove her to it. She in turn kept Kyo from going outside and pretended to love his true form when she didn't, until she couldn't pretend anymore and killed herself. Yuki and Ayame's parents parents kicked Ayame out at a very young age and used Yuki's existence purely for self-gain, since the Rat is considered "special" by the Sohma family, worth a lot of money and prestige for the parents.
this series is about cycles of abuse and is actually pretty good about NOT letting this trope happen! most characters distance themselves from their toxic families, or outright call them out. generally speaking, abusers are not forgiven. the acceptation is akito at the very end, who is forgiven by SOME of the people they've abused. this is directly called into question by another character who questions whether they can really forgive them, and they are not told that they have to.
The head of the family often lashes out on others. He often hits and tortures the rest of the family. there are brief flash backs and the trauma of it is talked about very often in the series. Several family members hide there relationships because they know the head of the family will harm them severely.
The head of the family is extremely abusive and is seen draped over other other characters. He is also seen holding others intimately before harming them. While there isn’t any on screen sexual assault it can be very triggering seen as an allegory. There are also jokes made by an adult man “appreciating there beauty” of highschool girls. as well as one of the highschool girls having a romantic relationship with an adult 9 years older than her
Not sexual assault but a male character is frequently physically abused in a slapstick/comedic way and it is typically played for laughs, in contrast to the otherwise serious way the series handles abuse.
One character prepares to hang herself for comedic effect; a character is traumatized from watching their mother commit suicide in front of them; a character's mother stabs herself in front of them but survives.
A character is seen in the hospital through out the show and refusing to eat much, but this is due to a medical condition with her stomach and she’s scared of getting sick if she eats.
One of the main characters mothers kills themself. It is a very big part of the characters back story as he is made to believe it is his fault she took her life.
No direct misgendering in this case but there's a character who could be read as trans, but who's identity isn't taken seriously by others and the narrative, which could be difficult for trans viewers.
Another character who could be read as trans is basically seen as "just a man in a dress" who "needs to grow up" according to the others. Their character is treated as somewhat of a joke.
This is not direct hate speech but the identity of character who could be read as trans is not taken seriously by others and the narrative. This could be difficult for trans viewers.
Ritsu's portrayal can come across a bit dated. They are explicitly stated to be a male cross-dresser, and not a trans woman, but their gender nonconformity is treated as a symptom of their neuroses (it "calms them down") and when their mental state improves by the end they are dressing in masculine clothing.
Temporarily homeless... In the first ep, Tohru is living in a tent. She lies to people about where she is staying while her grandfather has renovations done on his place because she didn't want to be a bother to anyone. The Sohmas discover her on their land and invite her to stay with them in exchange for helping out around the house (i.e., cooking/cleaning).
(Minor Spoiler?) A major character's parent is hit by a car and ends up dying as a result of her injuries. There are a few scenes in the third season that depict this in detail.