it's almost as if people (especially anime-onlys) forgot that Tohru used to actually talk to her mom's photograph as if she was still alive, even fairly recently in the anime
that when Hiro took her mom's photo, Tohru referred to it as her mom being kidnapped
that when the landslide destroyed her tent, Tohru panicked because her mom wasn't able to breathe. THE PHOTO OF HER MOM WASN'T ABLE TO BREATHE
like, maybe in the beginning her "quirkiness" was cute and that's why people brushed it off as funny, not really taking it seriously, but it made it extremely obvious Tohru has been unable to process her grief since the beginning of the show and is still holding onto the memory of her mom as the most important thing in her life, trying to pretend that her mom is still around so that she won't be left behind
because Tohru was extremely traumatized by her father's death, not only because her father died, but because she thought her mom would "leave" too, and she'd be alone
that's why it was so difficult for her to admit to herself that she loved Kyo, because how would it not be a betrayal to her mom in her eyes? Tohru promised they'd be always together, that their bond would always be the most important thing to her
so it's just bugging me that people are brushing this off, basically saying Tohru is being irrational and that the love she had toward her mom and that the love she has toward Kyo are different, that her mom would never want her to cling to their relationship as hard as she is
well OF COURSE that's all true, but that's not the point. by brushing off her pain and hurt and saying it's silly for her to think that and for the story to make that a plot point, they're invalidating her loneliness and her fear, fear that real people experience. there are actual people in the world who still cling to the memories of their loved ones, unable to move on, unable to come to terms with their deaths
and it is irrational. but that doesn't mean it's not important.
