@@Marinanor You can always put the emphasis on Year of the Boar if it helps. 'sides, there's a lot to be said for having time for a nice long rest and a big meal and STILL being capable enough to earn a place anyway. ^_^
Red : "I never understood why people always assume the rat is manipulative." Also Red: "...and the Rooster 10th. Yeah that's right rooster. That's what team work gets you."
I love the more positive reasons why all the animals placed the way they did. I was always told the pig was lazy and that's why it came in last. Telling a kid they can take things at their own pace in their own way and still make it is a much better message to tell them.
The "lazy" attachment is almost certainly a modern interpretation, although considering both east and west have terribly exploitative work cultures, I couldn't make a guess at who started it.
I honestly think this is a better interpretation too. If the pig was actually lazy he wouldn't have shown up, like the cat. But the pig had motivation to be a year spirit and turned up and forded the river. He just made sure not to destroy himself in the process like the Tiger and Rabbit did.
My fave part about the Year of the Pig myth is that the universe is allowing them a relatively peaceful stretch of lifetime in exchange for a potential dreadful tradeoff - a preparation for sacrifice. This sign is basically the proverbial "pig for slaughter", and most people with this sign may have already started experiencing the sacrifice at some point; it's not literal sacrificial death, just... hard to extreme suffering
Some of them are very positive indeed. Pig, as you said, tiger and bunny can be interpreted as "you might be badass but don't overdo it", dragon as "if you're THAT badass you might as well be cool about it", goat, ape and rooster as a classic "the small are taller on each other's shoulders", and the rat as "with charisma and encouragement, you can push others to great deeds and ride along in their accomplishments", which is mostly positive. But the bull... I can't see it as anything more than "sometimes you will carry people and you should just accept it", the snake is basically an evil rat who uses fear instead of encouragement, the horse is perhaps a cautionary tale against snakes, and the dog sounds an awful lot like "you could have done better if you just had focused on the task".
Basically my entire friend group falls within a goat-monkey-rooster spread of years so I love that our Zodiac animals were all buddies too! (Also, my sister is Year of the Goat/Sheep, an Aries, & has a name that means "ewe"; this is all pure coincidence, but we joke that she clearly has some sort of cosmic connection to the ovine)
I'm from the Year of the Boar and I was surprisingly satisfied with your explanation for why the Boar was last in line. "I know I'm not gonna get anywhere in the top 10, no matter how hard I try, so I'm not gonna be an over-exerter. The calendar needs 12 spirits and there's 11 others racing. I'm gonna finish the race when I damn well feel like it and these try-hards can sit there waiting for me until I decide to show up."
Ironically lines up well with how I've been described as someone that knows "life is a marathon, not a sprint" & "the fastest way across town is stopping at each red light, instead of waiting for them all to turn green"
Except in Fruits Basket it's a banquet not a race, and the Rat straight-up gave the Cat the wrong day to make sure he didn't make it. No "sorry, forgot to wake you", no he made sure Cat wouldn't even be there.
@@BadgerPride89 Yeah we eventually learn the truth of what really happened with the original Zodiac animals and god, including why the cat was cursed, in the context of the Fruits Basket story (the manga and anime reboot).
I'm surprised the Jade Emperor allowed a monkey to even compete. After all, there was that Monkey that caused quite a headache for him while he was trying to throw a party.
“Yeah, that’s right Rooster. That’s what teamwork gets you.” Hey, I’m sure the incredibly humble and cooperative rooster is just happy to be included because they’re chill and understanding and rad.
In the tale I had heard Boar was slow, stopped multiple times during the race to rest and to root around for snacks, but Dog, his ever loyal best friend, refused to let him stop racing, which is why Dog came in so late. In similar tellings, Dog is shih-tzu and needed boar to get across, boar let him take 11th because they were best friends.
*Baby Red keeps showing up in episodes on astrology* "As a card-carrying astrology disliker" OK, not to point out the obvious, but I think that maybe there's a chance that Red *used* to like Astrology a lot when she was younger. Call it a wild guess 😅
Back when I was little the internet wouldn't agree on wether I was bunny or cat, got very confused by it when I found out the most popular one is bunny
I apologize, but oh my god, I'm a year of the rabbit kid and the way you portrayed the rabbit, especially in the bit with the dragon helping it, it's literally just me. I am loving this
This is one of my absolute favorite myths, so i am so happy that you did this. For the record, I'm a fire dog. Also the quip of "The mountains were probably busy making Journey to the West harder" is top-notch.
"How dare you label and sort me, as though one singular uncontrollable factor in my birth would influence the entirety of my life! ...Hmm? Oh hey, Capricorns will be 'gifted in love _and_ money' this week, I'm in luck!"
See that's the noob astrology move. The real setup is, no one is a single sign. In fact, even if we just focus on Chinese astrology, nearly every layer of time (from the year down to the hour of birth) corresponds to a sign, meaning one behaves according to one sign for a certain situation, then another sign for another situation.
The version my grandma always told me for the rat’s betrayal was that when the Jade Emperor announced this race, the cat had forgotten to attend the meeting, and so had to ask the rat when the race was. The rat lied and told the cat it would be on the day after the actual race, causing the cat to show up on the wrong day. Edit: Just cause it’s getting attention, I’ve never seen the anime Fruits Basket before 😂 I thought it was a standard Shojo love triangle, had no idea that it incorporated the Chinese zodiac mythology into it
I love how there are so many variations on a story I know! The version I grew up with is different again, I know it as the rat and cat both teamed up with the ox, who (knowingly) gave them both a lift, with the understanding that they would all win and sort out first/second/third once they got there, but the rat pushed the cat into the river (don't worry, the cat survives) just as they were at the finish line and jumped off the ox and across the finish line first. Also in this version, the race was pre-arranged between these thirteen animals and there were originally thirteen places, but by the time the cat finally made it out of the river after being pushed in and caught in various currents, everyone had forgotten that there were supposed to be thirteen places, so the twelve had been finalised without the cat. Really annoyed me because cats are my favourite animal, so I always wished I could have been born in a Year Of The Cat, but there wasn't one! Also, I grew up with there being a sheep instead of a goat, but I've seen variations with each. My birth year is sheep/goat!
Two things i liked about the video: 1. The boar basically enjoying his day and geting last place(I'm from the year of the boar) 2. That all-star cover was absolute fire
My mother is a year of the rat, and I am a year of the ox and we've always enjoyed that mythical team up. It helps that I'm physically larger and stronger than her so the analogy really works xD
Red's zodiac being the rat who used smarts and trickery to win makes so much sense. And I love the cat roasting.🤣 Red getting her revenge for Cleo clawing her leg.
Red discovering that her zodiac sign was the rat as a child is a hilarious parallel to me, around the same age, discovering that I was born in the year of the dragon! My childhood self enjoyed an inflated sense of ego for a minute there before puberty struck...
Meanwhile, I had a good laugh about me being year of the pig. I think I was like "I'm a pig. Heh. My animal's fat" though didn't complain too much because pigs are cute. Also, considering in Okami the Pig brush god Bakugami is the god of explosions is even more fitting considering I tend to play mage characters in TTRPGs and as such FIREBALL!
I'm a "dragon" too, and judging by your comment, puberty was tough on you too, huh? XD Boy, I had ZITS. Thankfully my skin has cleared up a lot (still get zits, but they're very minor compared to when I was 13, ho boy).
The version I remember, Ox realized he was so slow that he'd never outpace the others so he started in the middle of the night while everyone else was asleep. And then Rat hitched a ride because he knew it didnt even matter how much of a head start he had, he wasnt getting to the finish line on his own.
I don't think people say it enough, but I really love the outro covers you do! You've got a great laid-back singing voice that really fits the acoustic aesthetic! Also, I love this completely unbiased review of a brief summary of rat superiority and also 11 other animals I guess.
4:14 Ok, I know you made it clear there are many valid versions of the story and Its redicula's to nitpick here, but I cant help but point out the objectively better variation of this part of the story where the 3 animals create a living totem pole to cross the river -Sheep is on the bottom as a flotation device -Monkey in the middle using a stick to paddle to the shore -Roster on the top as lookout and giving directions to avoid rapids In the end sheep steps on land first, monkey jumps of sheep, roster jumps of monkey, creating the order It booth makes more sense and lends itself to lots of teamwork and Voltron jokes😂 Again, absolutely adore this video and all of your work, and I feel bad for nitpicking like this.....but I couldn't resist😅
@@LostInTheInternet93 See, that I tell you🤣 Its even acurate to how they worked together Although to be even more story accurate, sheep would form legs and butt, since that's usually the flotation device🤣
@@timothymcleanI also had concerns with the sheep being on the bottom. Unless he/she got a shave to be as aerodynamic as possible for the race, that's one animal signing up to drown.
That foolish, untrustworthy rat. Probably robbed the dog whenever he thought he could get away with it. Why yes, my little brother was _also_ born in the year of the rat! How could you have guessed?
Chinese years are a little weird because I was born in 95 but I was born in January 17th which would make me a Dog instead of the Boar. The Chinese New Year cut off is apparently the last day of January
This may be the most spot-on adorable video I've seen in ages. The dog being doggish! The dragon being a stand-up celestial being! The power of interspecies friendship!
I first heard this "Great Race for the Zodiac" story when I watched PBS Kids shows on TV. Later in life when I read Fruits Basket (not to the end, but far enough to know the story of Tohru's parents being a delinquent student-meets-cool teacher romance and of Young Kyo Sohma meeting Kiyoko Honda when Tohru was little), I learned about the "Great Banquet for 12 animals" variation of the Eastern Zodiac origin legend. It was in that context that I first learned about how the Cat is sometimes the fourth animal in the Zodiac, depending which country in Asia you observe Lunar New Year in, and also a casual explanation as to the "why do cats and rats hate one another" question.
"This is ten percent luck Twenty percent skill Fifteen percent concentrated power of will Five percent pleasure Fifty percent pain And a hundred percent reason to remember the name" - Rabbit
@@hamu08 Yeah, pretty much. Same in China. People try to conceive towards the end of the year of the rabbit. It’s more ✨auspicious✨ to have a child born in the year of the dragon.
I went through a similar phase and took out a book about the Chinese zodiac. It explained that bunnies are common in China, but when the calendar crossed borders into Korea, people weren't familiar with bunnies there, so they replaced it with a similar, small and fuzzy creature: the cat
Fun fact: Vietnam actually has the cat replace the rabbit in the Chinese Zodiac. Each animal also represent 2 hours in the 24 hour cycle, based on its behaviour or people's perception. Rats usually operate around 23 pm to 1 AM in the morning so it's called "Rat hour" (also the reason for Denjiro's nickname in One Piece". 7 A.M to 9 A.M , people look up and see clouds shaped like dragon, so it's called "Dragon hour"
The story I learned is that the Rat and the Cat both rode on the Ox's back but the rat pushed the cat into the water right before taking first place making the rat very not blameless
@@atlassolid5946 The cat survives in the version I know, but gets caught in a few currents and doesn't get across the river until the race is long finished, so doesn't get to be part of the zodiac. This is an explanation for why cats hate water (being pushed in the river/losing the place in the zodiac) as well as why they chase rats and other rodents.
I like to think he didn’t even know it was a race, they just saw the other animals doing it and followed to see what was going on, and is still confused about the divinity he has been awarded.
I'd like to share the version of this tale that I grew up with! The Wolf was part of the race too, he bit the Goat to slow them down, and came in ahead of them at 8th place. The Pig - which in Chinese culture represents being lazy, fat and slow - was trotting along merrily at his own pace when he came across the wounded Goat, and stopped to help them. The Goat managed to finish the race, with the Monkey, Rooster, and Dog making up the rest of the zodiac. The Pig, slow and fat, came in at 13th and didn't have a place in the zodiac. However, the Goat told the Jade Emperor of the Wolf's attack and the Pig's kindness, so the Jade Emperor decided to disqualify the Wolf and place the Pig at 12th place, to reward him for his good deed. I always liked this version because it doesn't matter that you're slower than everyone else, it matters that you have a good heart. From a Year of the Pig kid
I just realized as a woman born in the year of the Rooster, I would be the Little Red Hen... Yeah! Team work is never teamwork! Now I have a head cannon where the Little Red Hen is a nth descendant of the Zodiac Rooster.
I"m a rooster too ( I even got a fancy pendant with one on it). SUpposedly we're stubborn and like to show off. I"ll own up to the first, but I"m super shy.
There are so many adorable and awesome supplementary interactions between the different characters and animals according to different folk tellings. One I remember was between the Tiger and the Dragon. Their rivalry was legendary, and they would have gotten into a fight, having reached the finish line at nearly the same time. But the brave little Rabbit hopped in between the two of them to keep them from dishonoring themselves before the Jade Emperor. And that's how the humble rabbit finds itself between two legendary and powerful beasts on the zodiac.
I've just realized how different some versions are. While studying japanese i had to learn the standard japanese version and its SOOO different. Example: 1-God ( the jade emperor but we are in japan soooo) tells the animals DIRECTLY about the zodiac saying they need to be there at new years. 2-The cat wasn't there to hear the explanation so he ask the mouse , and because the mouse is smart ( this version likes to say that a lot) he tells the cat that god asked them go to the mountain AFTER the new year. So the cat falls asleep late. 3- All of the animals have to climb a mountain in this version 4- The boar was actually the first one out but he got lost and he was last because of that 5-The dragon saw the serpent and got confused and so he follow it to the top of the mountain 6- The roster the monkey and is a funny one. Apparently the monkey and the dog were fighting a lot and the roster was just standing there trying to calm them down. so when they reached the mountain god put the roster between the monkey and dog so they won't fight ( it is said that monkey year people and dog year people don't get along for that reason.) 7-The horse and the sheep went together and the sheep let the horse go first to the top of the mountain
that's quite funny to me that dog and monkey never get along in the story because i coincidentally don't get along with my mother who was born the year of the dog, and i am *monke*
Fun fact: the MMO Guild Wars 2 has an annual festival based on the Chinese New Year called Lunar New Year. It happens every year around the time of the CNY, and certain aspects change every year to fit what the current year of the CNY is. There are a bunch of festival activities you can do, but the one I want ro mention here is the mount race. You race around the city where the festival is held, but racing alongside you are NPCs of the 12 zodiac animals. Now unless you pull a Cat and nap through the while race you'll beat them handily, but if you stick around at the finish line you'll see that the NPCs finish the race in the exact order of the Zodiac. Rat jumps off Ox at the last second to win, Snake jumps off Horse, Monkey, Goat and Rooster all finish at the same time, and Boar is last. Its a cute little detail that most people wouldn't notice, but im glad the developers added it.
Final Fantasy 14 also does a few things for Chinese New Year, and LET ME TELL YA "Year of the Rooster" was completely over the top, in all the silliest ways :D
@@clarehidalgoIt's also just more accurate because it is in fact based on the lunar cycle(New, Waxing, Full, Waning), which completes in 28 nights. This is why Lunar calenders vary so much on some years because every few years rather than 12 lunar cycles, you get 13 lunar cycles, as the spare days from each year eventually add up to a new complete lunar cycle.
Been following this channel for a long time, and its really cool to see a video come up about a story I grew up with! You told it a lot differently than my mom, but funny to hear it again in the spirit of "the rat is clever and also the hero actually" (she's also a rat year)
I always loved the version where the rat and cat hitch a ride with the Ox, as he's very generous. But as they approach the other side the rat realises the cat (who's taking a nap) will be faster so pushes him into the river!
I can relate with the Ox because not only I was born in 1997 that was the Year of the Ox but I'm hard working, simple and never wanted to be the centre of attention.
The version I heard was that it wasn't so much a race, but rather there was a party and Rat offered to deliver the invites. Shrewd as always, Rat asks Ox to help carry them around since they need to do alot of traveling and Ox is happy to help. After delivering all the invitations, Rat and Ox head to the party and are the first to show up. Ox is nearly set as the first to arrive until Rat squeaks up that they are the reason they both arrived early. Ox is happy to give the first spot to Rat and so the order is set and the rest of the guests arrive in various order depending on their traits. Love the whole 'power of friendship' bit with Goat, Monkey and Rooster though.
@@georgeray1906 As a fellow 1997 Ox I totally get that. The Ox may have taken second place, but it could at least be satisfied that it gave its all in the race.
the version my mama told me as a child has the gentle and kind ox willingly helping the rat across the river after the rat asked if he could hitchhike. as soon as the ox reached land, the rat ditched him and beelined straight to the finish line
Fun fact: according to the Vietnamese zodiac we have the cat instead of the rabbit and a water buffalo instead of an ox. Reason being the rat and cat rode on the water buffalo together and the rat shoved the cat off into the water so that the rat can get first place. The reason why we have a water buffalo instead of an ox… idk. Maybe we just really like water buffalo
@@chronikhiles can’t remember which episode number it is, but it’s when Gohan, Krillin, and Dende steal the Dragon Balls from Vegeta while he sleeps. Vegeta mutters in his sleep: “First immortality…then the bitches…”😂
I do like the version that adds on the cat sneaks into the zodiac as a secret 13th sign since it ends up matching the numbers up back up to the greek zodiac with now many use Ophiuchus as a 13th sign.
Red definitely not being biased when it comes to the Rat is hilarious , also found it odd they didn’t post this during Chinese New Year , as this story and the Chinese Zodiac as a whole , is most usually brought up during that time of the year .
I was born on the year of the dragon and was always confused as to how the dragon could have lost with it being y'know a dragon, but knowing my zodiac animal got 5th because they spent their time being a good & moral individual who didn't care if they won brings warmth to my heart
JUSTICE FOR KYO! Lol I love that you covered this story. I'm a teacher, and I always do a unit on the Chinese zodiac and let the students research their year and what it means. We also compare it to other zodiac sets. The Vietnamese one has the cat instead of the rabbit. I always see a sigh of relief from a few students when they learn that the cat is included somewhere. But yeah, kids are still obsessed with learning about all the ways their birthday is special. It's one of my favorite units to teach!
The way I explain the cat vs rabbit thing is that once the cat realized that it overslept it was so enraged that the jade emperor gave it the rabbit’s spot on the calendar and turned the rabbit into the moon rabbit.
1) Count of Monte Cristo reference made me gafaw, 2) Song choice as usual is perfection, 3) I too once forgot how years and birthdays and school work when talking about the zodiac, but had no excuse as I was the teacher 😂 It was only after all the kids start calling out exactly 3 animals out of the 12 that I remembered I could have figured this out for them ahead of time and made more copies of the coloring pages 😂
Small fun fact about me: When I was learning to talk, my family was at a chinese restaurant with the chinese zodiac placemats. I spoke my first word there and it so happened to be the same as my Chinese zodiac: dragon. So yeah. I'm totally validated in both my love for dragons and pride in an east-asian calendar system I have no affiliation to.
The only part I'd add is that beyond knowing what zodiac you land on, the specific year dictates what element you are. Unlike other calendars, this makes narrowing down a person's birthday a whole lot easier. I happen to be a wood snake. It also just so happens that I like Serperior. A coincidence most appreciated.
Yup! It’s a pretty big deal too and leads to some interesting facts. A fun one is that 2000 babies are not only dragons, but metal dragons (sometimes called gold dragons)! So, uh, I guess 2000 babies can be especially smug about their birth year. An unfun one is that Fire Horse girls are considered bad luck and have been blamed for disasters in the past. Back in 1966, fear of the curse was so prominent that the Japanese fertility rate saw a sharp decline that year before returning back to normal the next.
This year is my dad's year, element included, while my best friend just had her first born a week ago; yay for an easy reminder. She and I are metal sheep. The only bad thing I have heard about sheep is that China prefers not to have sheep children the most. But I did see someone comment once that a zodiac didn't help them figure out how old someone was because it changes every year. You can't count to twelve? And surely you can spot a twelve-year difference in age. 24, 36, & 48 do not look the same.
Red, being a Chaos deity and her animal being the one who tricked the cat, makes so much sense. ❤️😁 Edit: I actually remember a BL manga involving possession by the twelve zodiac and, as punishment for tricking the cat, the rat was left without a name for part of the year, leaving it vulnerable to being destroyed. It also meant the mc had a very upsetting time because they were possessed by a cat deity.
@@FrisbeeGorbeh Eto Irokoi Zoushi. Be warned it’s explicit and not for kids. If you are just curious about the rat, it comes up in Ch. 4 and features less skinship until the end part.
The version I know is basically the same except only 13 animals are invited. The cat and the rat hitch a ride on the ox (I think the ox agrees to this) but at the last moment the rat pushes the cat into the river and jumps into first place followed by the ox. The cat never recovers and loses the race in 13th place this vowing eternal hatred for the rat. Always enjoyed variations in tales like this.
You're amazing! Growing up, I would have done anything to be a "year of the cat" ... But I've always had a thing for someone who got the short stick. The dragon is so pure; love it. Year of the sheep checking in.
Help this is so adorable!! I love the rabbit "au contraire I was born on the road to victory! - but yes i am drowning" also the dog is perfect and the best boi
It's fun to see how new personality quiz stuff (e.g. what is your werewolf name given your birthday) is basically a modern version of the zodiac. Sometimes you are something awesome that you tell all your friends about, and sometimes, you're "Moon Moon".
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That's my zodiac, I've gotta get it now 😂
Hooray, I’m a pin now!
You think the Rat is the lamest? I'm the year of the Pig.
@@Marinanor You can always put the emphasis on Year of the Boar if it helps. 'sides, there's a lot to be said for having time for a nice long rest and a big meal and STILL being capable enough to earn a place anyway. ^_^
I would totally buy a shirt with your version of the zodiac on it
The dragon throwing away his massive advantage to go help others is the most wholesome thing ever.
Clark Kent behavior
I think we dragons can claim the moral victory here.
Dragons are deities themselves in this case so it checks out.
Oh course. Only typical of us noble and ever so humble dragons.
Probably why the Year of the Dragon is the most desirable birth year: win or lose you are automatically the best person ever
Red really took Cleo clawing her leg during that eclipse video very personally😂😂😂
Cleo was instinctively avenging her ancestor.
@@corvusalbus7276 Yeah that checks out. XD
I was surprised she didn't use the *other* version for why the cat didn't make it, but I guess this one gives the rat a better look
Man the PETTINESS on display is amazing to behold 😂
@@meiliyinhua7486 Which is?
Boar: “Well SOMEBODY is gonna be last, and I see no reason why that shouldn’t be me.” *hits snooze*
"You idiots realize it's cyclical, right? Being first will matter exactly once" -boar
“Well, at least I’m not the cat.”
@@maxschechter4156 In the Vietnamese version of the Chinese zodiac, the cat replaces the rabbit, and the naga replaces the dragon. So, yeah.
"Somebody"... Smash Mouth... I see what you did there 😂
The dog just having an absolute blast in the water, tackling the Jade Emperor, and then rolling on the beach makes me so happy.
Red learning that being a Year of the Rat kid is actually cool, only to immediately realize how kindergarten works, is both relatable and hilarious!
"No monkey could ask for a greater adventure!"
Sun Wukong: *And I took that personally*
I mean, he didn't "ask" for it, per se.
@@greenhydra10 he demanded it
I like to imagine that this was one of the Flower Fruit Mountain monkeys too.
Do we ever get an explanation as to why they decided on working together
@@mysteryxio9957 Because monkey, of course. There is no other explanation required.
Red : "I never understood why people always assume the rat is manipulative."
Also Red: "...and the Rooster 10th. Yeah that's right rooster. That's what team work gets you."
Mina pfp spotted. Have a nice day, friend
@@thomasackerman6415 Where's that character from?
@@kjarakravik4837 Upcoming indie game made by the same people who created Shovel Knight
@@kjarakravik4837Mina the Hollower, upcoming game from the creators of Shovel Knight
@@kjarakravik4837 Mina the Hollower, new game from the devs of Shovel Knight.
I love the more positive reasons why all the animals placed the way they did. I was always told the pig was lazy and that's why it came in last. Telling a kid they can take things at their own pace in their own way and still make it is a much better message to tell them.
The "lazy" attachment is almost certainly a modern interpretation, although considering both east and west have terribly exploitative work cultures, I couldn't make a guess at who started it.
I honestly think this is a better interpretation too. If the pig was actually lazy he wouldn't have shown up, like the cat. But the pig had motivation to be a year spirit and turned up and forded the river. He just made sure not to destroy himself in the process like the Tiger and Rabbit did.
My fave part about the Year of the Pig myth is that the universe is allowing them a relatively peaceful stretch of lifetime in exchange for a potential dreadful tradeoff - a preparation for sacrifice. This sign is basically the proverbial "pig for slaughter", and most people with this sign may have already started experiencing the sacrifice at some point; it's not literal sacrificial death, just... hard to extreme suffering
Some of them are very positive indeed. Pig, as you said, tiger and bunny can be interpreted as "you might be badass but don't overdo it", dragon as "if you're THAT badass you might as well be cool about it", goat, ape and rooster as a classic "the small are taller on each other's shoulders", and the rat as "with charisma and encouragement, you can push others to great deeds and ride along in their accomplishments", which is mostly positive.
But the bull... I can't see it as anything more than "sometimes you will carry people and you should just accept it", the snake is basically an evil rat who uses fear instead of encouragement, the horse is perhaps a cautionary tale against snakes, and the dog sounds an awful lot like "you could have done better if you just had focused on the task".
@@marcospatricio8283Well the ox is a beast of burden, so that tracks.
Basically my entire friend group falls within a goat-monkey-rooster spread of years so I love that our Zodiac animals were all buddies too!
(Also, my sister is Year of the Goat/Sheep, an Aries, & has a name that means "ewe"; this is all pure coincidence, but we joke that she clearly has some sort of cosmic connection to the ovine)
The Ox "just brute forcing it" makes me feel more of an affinity with my zodiac animal than I thought possible.
I'm from the Year of the Boar and I was surprisingly satisfied with your explanation for why the Boar was last in line.
"I know I'm not gonna get anywhere in the top 10, no matter how hard I try, so I'm not gonna be an over-exerter. The calendar needs 12 spirits and there's 11 others racing. I'm gonna finish the race when I damn well feel like it and these try-hards can sit there waiting for me until I decide to show up."
More than just 12 animals. The cat for sure, and probably a bunch of others that didn’t place in the story. Like pandas!
Ironically lines up well with how I've been described as someone that knows "life is a marathon, not a sprint" & "the fastest way across town is stopping at each red light, instead of waiting for them all to turn green"
It’s fitting for the boar’s representation in chinese zodiac, as empathetic, people-focused, and an enjoyer of creature comforts.
@@-lijosu- Well if that doesn't describe more accurately than "Virgo" ever did
The only real losers are the ones who didn't show up
"And now you know a whole lot of the tension behind the "Fruit's Basket" Curse"
@@CopperCanary21same
Except in Fruits Basket it's a banquet not a race, and the Rat straight-up gave the Cat the wrong day to make sure he didn't make it. No "sorry, forgot to wake you", no he made sure Cat wouldn't even be there.
Thanks for reminding me of this pearl from my childhod
@@broEye1 well, that's how the story was written down in universe but it's not the actual story in fruits basket.
@@BadgerPride89 Yeah we eventually learn the truth of what really happened with the original Zodiac animals and god, including why the cat was cursed, in the context of the Fruits Basket story (the manga and anime reboot).
I'm surprised the Jade Emperor allowed a monkey to even compete. After all, there was that Monkey that caused quite a headache for him while he was trying to throw a party.
That wasn't Queen Mother of the West who hold the banquet?
To be fair, I don't think he'd even met Sun Wu Kong yet
yeah this would be, ya know, at the beginning of calendar keeping?
Thank heavens for grace....and grace...and more grace...and a little grace over here!
tbf, the race was millennias prior to Wukong’s birth
“Yeah, that’s right Rooster. That’s what teamwork gets you.”
Hey, I’m sure the incredibly humble and cooperative rooster is just happy to be included because they’re chill and understanding and rad.
As a rooster in the chinese zodiac i totally agree ahahahha
@@YakoAmore seconded by another rooster
In the tale I had heard Boar was slow, stopped multiple times during the race to rest and to root around for snacks, but Dog, his ever loyal best friend, refused to let him stop racing, which is why Dog came in so late. In similar tellings,
Dog is shih-tzu and needed boar to get across, boar let him take 11th because they were best friends.
"But yes, I am drowning!" That Rabbit is my favorite hands down.
Always nice to see young Red, weirdly always shows up while explaining a zodiac, wonder why that keeps happening.
Theory: red will become a zodiac
Stars it's always the stars
I am curious as well
Red is secretly a star. She is hiding her true power so the planet isn’t vaporized in an instant
*Baby Red keeps showing up in episodes on astrology*
"As a card-carrying astrology disliker"
OK, not to point out the obvious, but I think that maybe there's a chance that Red *used* to like Astrology a lot when she was younger. Call it a wild guess 😅
Fun Fact: the Vietnamese version of the zodiac includes the cat! It takes the place of the rabbit.
This! Kinda bummed me out (as a vietnamese) that she didn't mention this.
@@just_a_guy9688maybe she didn’t know about it?
Red did give the caveat that there are a bunch of different stories and just went with this version for this video.
She did say it's a widespread story with multiple versions. Probably stuck to telling just the Chinese variation so we're not here all day.
Back when I was little the internet wouldn't agree on wether I was bunny or cat, got very confused by it when I found out the most popular one is bunny
I apologize, but oh my god, I'm a year of the rabbit kid and the way you portrayed the rabbit, especially in the bit with the dragon helping it, it's literally just me. I am loving this
This is one of my absolute favorite myths, so i am so happy that you did this. For the record, I'm a fire dog.
Also the quip of "The mountains were probably busy making Journey to the West harder" is top-notch.
But of an odd claim, though. It's not like the rivers in that journey were slacking.
And I'm... A Fire Tiger! ^_^7
"How dare you label and sort me, as though one singular uncontrollable factor in my birth would influence the entirety of my life!
...Hmm? Oh hey, Capricorns will be 'gifted in love _and_ money' this week, I'm in luck!"
The will of the stars is arbitrary until it benefits me.
Yeah, it's how the mind works, no use getting mad at it, haha. As long as you keep it under control it's just a fun thing to have.
Well I guess seduction through words is my talent of the week this week
I'm a Leo. I don't even believe in astrology but people just keep using it to make my excuses for me so I'm not gonna fight it🤷♀️
See that's the noob astrology move. The real setup is, no one is a single sign. In fact, even if we just focus on Chinese astrology, nearly every layer of time (from the year down to the hour of birth) corresponds to a sign, meaning one behaves according to one sign for a certain situation, then another sign for another situation.
The version my grandma always told me for the rat’s betrayal was that when the Jade Emperor announced this race, the cat had forgotten to attend the meeting, and so had to ask the rat when the race was. The rat lied and told the cat it would be on the day after the actual race, causing the cat to show up on the wrong day.
Edit: Just cause it’s getting attention, I’ve never seen the anime Fruits Basket before 😂 I thought it was a standard Shojo love triangle, had no idea that it incorporated the Chinese zodiac mythology into it
I love how there are so many variations on a story I know! The version I grew up with is different again, I know it as the rat and cat both teamed up with the ox, who (knowingly) gave them both a lift, with the understanding that they would all win and sort out first/second/third once they got there, but the rat pushed the cat into the river (don't worry, the cat survives) just as they were at the finish line and jumped off the ox and across the finish line first. Also in this version, the race was pre-arranged between these thirteen animals and there were originally thirteen places, but by the time the cat finally made it out of the river after being pushed in and caught in various currents, everyone had forgotten that there were supposed to be thirteen places, so the twelve had been finalised without the cat. Really annoyed me because cats are my favourite animal, so I always wished I could have been born in a Year Of The Cat, but there wasn't one!
Also, I grew up with there being a sheep instead of a goat, but I've seen variations with each. My birth year is sheep/goat!
@@lenabluejay1166 must be why cats hate water
Fruits Basket uses this too in the beginning of the manga, though in FB the race is replaced with a banquet
This is EXACTLY fruit basket's in lore story of the zodiacs!!
i like the version where the rat push the cat to the water
Red: "...there is no cat on the Chinese Zodiac"
Meanwhile the Tiger.....
Two things i liked about the video:
1. The boar basically enjoying his day and geting last place(I'm from the year of the boar)
2. That all-star cover was absolute fire
My mother is a year of the rat, and I am a year of the ox and we've always enjoyed that mythical team up. It helps that I'm physically larger and stronger than her so the analogy really works xD
Red's zodiac being the rat who used smarts and trickery to win makes so much sense. And I love the cat roasting.🤣 Red getting her revenge for Cleo clawing her leg.
Forgive but never forget.
That definitely tracks.
That's Red to a tee.
Ah, so that's why Cleo was clawing Red up real good. She wasn't trying to get affection, she was playing with her food.
Dammit! I'm the 666th like!
Red discovering that her zodiac sign was the rat as a child is a hilarious parallel to me, around the same age, discovering that I was born in the year of the dragon! My childhood self enjoyed an inflated sense of ego for a minute there before puberty struck...
Wooo, dragons!
Meanwhile, I had a good laugh about me being year of the pig. I think I was like "I'm a pig. Heh. My animal's fat" though didn't complain too much because pigs are cute.
Also, considering in Okami the Pig brush god Bakugami is the god of explosions is even more fitting considering I tend to play mage characters in TTRPGs and as such FIREBALL!
I'm a "dragon" too, and judging by your comment, puberty was tough on you too, huh? XD Boy, I had ZITS. Thankfully my skin has cleared up a lot (still get zits, but they're very minor compared to when I was 13, ho boy).
I discovered I was year of the dragon at some point in my teens and concluded that was the coolest thing, because _dragon_
Dragon is still cool
Year of the ox and Gemini
The version I remember, Ox realized he was so slow that he'd never outpace the others so he started in the middle of the night while everyone else was asleep. And then Rat hitched a ride because he knew it didnt even matter how much of a head start he had, he wasnt getting to the finish line on his own.
4:18 I'm year of the goat. This must be why I like the Power of Friendship and Found Family so much
As a year of the monkey person, same
Also goat and same. I despise people that betray family, friends, and their word.
As a year of the rooster, the found family troupe is my
How come 😅. I'm also 🐏 and my favorite characters are loyal, willing to help others and great leaders.
Monkey too hellos friends. Wanna build raft?
I don't think people say it enough, but I really love the outro covers you do! You've got a great laid-back singing voice that really fits the acoustic aesthetic!
Also, I love this completely unbiased review of a brief summary of rat superiority and also 11 other animals I guess.
4:14 Ok, I know you made it clear there are many valid versions of the story and Its redicula's to nitpick here, but I cant help but point out the objectively better variation of this part of the story where the 3 animals create a living totem pole to cross the river
-Sheep is on the bottom as a flotation device
-Monkey in the middle using a stick to paddle to the shore
-Roster on the top as lookout and giving directions to avoid rapids
In the end sheep steps on land first, monkey jumps of sheep, roster jumps of monkey, creating the order
It booth makes more sense and lends itself to lots of teamwork and Voltron jokes😂
Again, absolutely adore this video and all of your work, and I feel bad for nitpicking like this.....but I couldn't resist😅
The Ram: Form Feet and Legs!
The Monkey: Form Arms and Body!
The Rooster: ... And I'll form The Head!
All: Let's Go Zodiac Force!!
@@LostInTheInternet93
See, that I tell you🤣
Its even acurate to how they worked together
Although to be even more story accurate, sheep would form legs and butt, since that's usually the flotation device🤣
I don't think sheep float as well as you assume they float. They can swim, sure, most animals can, but their wool isn't inflatable.
Bremen Town Musicians vibes
@@timothymcleanI also had concerns with the sheep being on the bottom. Unless he/she got a shave to be as aerodynamic as possible for the race, that's one animal signing up to drown.
3:04 the Cat did set an Alarm, The Rat Was Alarm XD
That foolish, untrustworthy rat. Probably robbed the dog whenever he thought he could get away with it.
Why yes, my little brother was _also_ born in the year of the rat! How could you have guessed?
As a year of the Ox guy, I'm glad that "Your hard work will be taken advantage of by other people." is something of a spiritual through-line for me.
As someone born in the year of the Horse, I can relate.
As a goat, teamwork makes the dream work.
But mostly for me.
Year of the Monkey kid, here. The power of frienship is strong
Chinese years are a little weird because I was born in 95 but I was born in January 17th which would make me a Dog instead of the Boar. The Chinese New Year cut off is apparently the last day of January
@@fist-of-doom487Does that mean you're the goodest boi? x3
This may be the most spot-on adorable video I've seen in ages. The dog being doggish! The dragon being a stand-up celestial being! The power of interspecies friendship!
I first heard this "Great Race for the Zodiac" story when I watched PBS Kids shows on TV. Later in life when I read Fruits Basket (not to the end, but far enough to know the story of Tohru's parents being a delinquent student-meets-cool teacher romance and of Young Kyo Sohma meeting Kiyoko Honda when Tohru was little), I learned about the "Great Banquet for 12 animals" variation of the Eastern Zodiac origin legend. It was in that context that I first learned about how the Cat is sometimes the fourth animal in the Zodiac, depending which country in Asia you observe Lunar New Year in, and also a casual explanation as to the "why do cats and rats hate one another" question.
"This is ten percent luck
Twenty percent skill
Fifteen percent concentrated power of will
Five percent pleasure
Fifty percent pain
And a hundred percent reason to remember the name"
- Rabbit
Fun Fact: In Taiwan, there's actually more people being born in the Year of the Dragon because the dragon is considered divine.
So people like, time their pregnancies or something?
@@hamu08 Yeah, pretty much. Same in China. People try to conceive towards the end of the year of the rabbit. It’s more ✨auspicious✨ to have a child born in the year of the dragon.
@@hamu08 I'd assume.
@@hamu08 People have been timing pregnancies for the children to be born on the First January of 2000.
@@cartoonishidealism582 that's pretty interesting
4:34 this drawing of the dog jumping up on the Jade Emperor made my day
3:05 I appreciate Reds really subtle DBZA references and this is the cutest one of them all
"First Immortality... then the fishes."
I understood that reference, but now Minnie the Moocher is playing in my head. 😂
I went through a similar phase and took out a book about the Chinese zodiac. It explained that bunnies are common in China, but when the calendar crossed borders into Korea, people weren't familiar with bunnies there, so they replaced it with a similar, small and fuzzy creature: the cat
No, Korea has rabbit. It’s Vietnam that has cat.
Fun fact: Vietnam actually has the cat replace the rabbit in the Chinese Zodiac. Each animal also represent 2 hours in the 24 hour cycle, based on its behaviour or people's perception. Rats usually operate around 23 pm to 1 AM in the morning so it's called "Rat hour" (also the reason for Denjiro's nickname in One Piece". 7 A.M to 9 A.M , people look up and see clouds shaped like dragon, so it's called "Dragon hour"
For my purposes, may I know when Snake Hour is please? Is it 9-11 am?
The Chinese zodiac actually represents the whole Sinoxenic cosmology. There’s also elements involved and they represent the numbers 1-60.
@@nicodalusong149 Correct. That's when snakes slither out but doesn't harm anyone
Red: "You're a goddamned dragon! You have no business being this disappointing."
"Many long years plotting vengeance in Chateau D'If"
Red! Le Comte de Monte-Cristo, when?
4:20 So THAT's how they met before Momotaro showed up...
Not exactly correct set of animals.
Momotaro teamed up with Monkey, Dog and Pheasant
The rooster getting stuck with 10th place explains why I never enjoyed group projects in school.
The story I learned is that the Rat and the Cat both rode on the Ox's back but the rat pushed the cat into the water right before taking first place making the rat very not blameless
This is the version I knew too!
They both hitchhiked on me
so did the cat just.... *drown?*
@@atlassolid5946 The cat survives in the version I know, but gets caught in a few currents and doesn't get across the river until the race is long finished, so doesn't get to be part of the zodiac. This is an explanation for why cats hate water (being pushed in the river/losing the place in the zodiac) as well as why they chase rats and other rodents.
Yeah, dog being second to last sounds about right. I'm not built for staying on task.
I like to think he didn’t even know it was a race, they just saw the other animals doing it and followed to see what was going on, and is still confused about the divinity he has been awarded.
Same. And as a Gemini, I'm doubly unable to focus. Case in point, I'm procrastinating from my procrastinating to watch this video. 🤣
Red's rat-snark followed directly by fucking All Star by Smash Mouth was like a punch to the face
I'd like to share the version of this tale that I grew up with! The Wolf was part of the race too, he bit the Goat to slow them down, and came in ahead of them at 8th place. The Pig - which in Chinese culture represents being lazy, fat and slow - was trotting along merrily at his own pace when he came across the wounded Goat, and stopped to help them. The Goat managed to finish the race, with the Monkey, Rooster, and Dog making up the rest of the zodiac.
The Pig, slow and fat, came in at 13th and didn't have a place in the zodiac. However, the Goat told the Jade Emperor of the Wolf's attack and the Pig's kindness, so the Jade Emperor decided to disqualify the Wolf and place the Pig at 12th place, to reward him for his good deed. I always liked this version because it doesn't matter that you're slower than everyone else, it matters that you have a good heart.
From a Year of the Pig kid
As a Year of the Rooster guy who cannot work in teams, I really felt that "That's what teamwork gets ya."
Indeed; we've learned our lesson
I just realized as a woman born in the year of the Rooster, I would be the Little Red Hen... Yeah! Team work is never teamwork!
Now I have a head cannon where the Little Red Hen is a nth descendant of the Zodiac Rooster.
As a fellow rooster, I definitely prefer to work alone in projects than work with other people
I"m a rooster too ( I even got a fancy pendant with one on it). SUpposedly we're stubborn and like to show off. I"ll own up to the first, but I"m super shy.
@@DDlambchop43 I literally did both of those yesterday. Hard agree.
4:14 - frickin love the waterlogged, terror-stricken horse here
"And who could forget dear Rat Girl?"
There are so many adorable and awesome supplementary interactions between the different characters and animals according to different folk tellings.
One I remember was between the Tiger and the Dragon. Their rivalry was legendary, and they would have gotten into a fight, having reached the finish line at nearly the same time. But the brave little Rabbit hopped in between the two of them to keep them from dishonoring themselves before the Jade Emperor. And that's how the humble rabbit finds itself between two legendary and powerful beasts on the zodiac.
I've just realized how different some versions are. While studying japanese i had to learn the standard japanese version and its SOOO different.
Example:
1-God ( the jade emperor but we are in japan soooo) tells the animals DIRECTLY about the zodiac saying they need to be there at new years.
2-The cat wasn't there to hear the explanation so he ask the mouse , and because the mouse is smart ( this version likes to say that a lot) he tells the cat that god asked them go to the mountain AFTER the new year. So the cat falls asleep late.
3- All of the animals have to climb a mountain in this version
4- The boar was actually the first one out but he got lost and he was last because of that
5-The dragon saw the serpent and got confused and so he follow it to the top of the mountain
6- The roster the monkey and is a funny one. Apparently the monkey and the dog were fighting a lot and the roster was just standing there trying to calm them down. so when they reached the mountain god put the roster between the monkey and dog so they won't fight ( it is said that monkey year people and dog year people don't get along for that reason.)
7-The horse and the sheep went together and the sheep let the horse go first to the top of the mountain
that's quite funny to me that dog and monkey never get along in the story because i coincidentally don't get along with my mother who was born the year of the dog, and i am *monke*
@@tslex6477 lol , im a year of the monkey too !!
But yeah it’s well believed that people from those years don’t really get along well
I've missed Myths!!!
……Fables and Folktales smh. Tut tut
It's kindof annoying to get greek, norse or Japanese every time
Same.
@@fireisawesome1466Cope lol
Exactly !
Fun fact: the MMO Guild Wars 2 has an annual festival based on the Chinese New Year called Lunar New Year. It happens every year around the time of the CNY, and certain aspects change every year to fit what the current year of the CNY is. There are a bunch of festival activities you can do, but the one I want ro mention here is the mount race.
You race around the city where the festival is held, but racing alongside you are NPCs of the 12 zodiac animals. Now unless you pull a Cat and nap through the while race you'll beat them handily, but if you stick around at the finish line you'll see that the NPCs finish the race in the exact order of the Zodiac. Rat jumps off Ox at the last second to win, Snake jumps off Horse, Monkey, Goat and Rooster all finish at the same time, and Boar is last. Its a cute little detail that most people wouldn't notice, but im glad the developers added it.
Final Fantasy 14 also does a few things for Chinese New Year, and LET ME TELL YA "Year of the Rooster" was completely over the top, in all the silliest ways :D
People also like saying "lunar new year" because Other Asian countries celebrate it not just China
@@clarehidalgoIt's also just more accurate because it is in fact based on the lunar cycle(New, Waxing, Full, Waning), which completes in 28 nights. This is why Lunar calenders vary so much on some years because every few years rather than 12 lunar cycles, you get 13 lunar cycles, as the spare days from each year eventually add up to a new complete lunar cycle.
@@clarehidalgo Yes. In universe the LNY festival is used to celebrate the lunar calendar and culture of Cantha, a country largely based on Korea.
Yeah, a lot of Western MMOs have little nods to their Asian playerbase, that most Western players miss entirely.
Man I had no idea Fruits Basket was such a popular anime they would go back in time and base a calender around it
Been following this channel for a long time, and its really cool to see a video come up about a story I grew up with! You told it a lot differently than my mom, but funny to hear it again in the spirit of "the rat is clever and also the hero actually" (she's also a rat year)
5:10 The Tiger: *cough cough*
In a refreshing turn of events, Drangon is not here to win, he is here to make friends 😊
I always loved the version where the rat and cat hitch a ride with the Ox, as he's very generous. But as they approach the other side the rat realises the cat (who's taking a nap) will be faster so pushes him into the river!
I can relate with the Ox because not only I was born in 1997 that was the Year of the Ox but I'm hard working, simple and never wanted to be the centre of attention.
@@georgeray1906 '84 rat here.
Cheers for the lift!
@@georgeray1906sounds alot like me, but I was born in the year of the Rooster
The version I heard was that it wasn't so much a race, but rather there was a party and Rat offered to deliver the invites. Shrewd as always, Rat asks Ox to help carry them around since they need to do alot of traveling and Ox is happy to help.
After delivering all the invitations, Rat and Ox head to the party and are the first to show up. Ox is nearly set as the first to arrive until Rat squeaks up that they are the reason they both arrived early. Ox is happy to give the first spot to Rat and so the order is set and the rest of the guests arrive in various order depending on their traits. Love the whole 'power of friendship' bit with Goat, Monkey and Rooster though.
@@georgeray1906 As a fellow 1997 Ox I totally get that. The Ox may have taken second place, but it could at least be satisfied that it gave its all in the race.
the version my mama told me as a child has the gentle and kind ox willingly helping the rat across the river after the rat asked if he could hitchhike. as soon as the ox reached land, the rat ditched him and beelined straight to the finish line
the inner dialogue and art in this is fricking amazing! well done!
Fun fact: according to the Vietnamese zodiac we have the cat instead of the rabbit and a water buffalo instead of an ox. Reason being the rat and cat rode on the water buffalo together and the rat shoved the cat off into the water so that the rat can get first place.
The reason why we have a water buffalo instead of an ox… idk. Maybe we just really like water buffalo
2:55 is…is the cat snoring a paraphrase of a DBZA reference!?!? Awesome!!!
I was so surprised I wanted to find out if the line was originally from somewhere else, but I guess it's from DBZA. Love that.
@@chronikhiles can’t remember which episode number it is, but it’s when Gohan, Krillin, and Dende steal the Dragon Balls from Vegeta while he sleeps. Vegeta mutters in his sleep: “First immortality…then the bitches…”😂
@@mitchellneui read that in abridged Vegeta's voice
@@mitchellneusame
Good Spot! I can't believe this isnt the top rated comment!
I do like the version that adds on the cat sneaks into the zodiac as a secret 13th sign since it ends up matching the numbers up back up to the greek zodiac with now many use Ophiuchus as a 13th sign.
Red definitely not being biased when it comes to the Rat is hilarious , also found it odd they didn’t post this during Chinese New Year , as this story and the Chinese Zodiac as a whole , is most usually brought up during that time of the year .
Probably due to it not being made at that point and Red not wanting to wait until next Chinese new year.
Scheduling. Either that or Cleo stole it to get back at the Rat somehow.
"first immortality, then the fishes"
I see your tfs reference. I appreciate your tfs reference
I was born on the year of the dragon and was always confused as to how the dragon could have lost with it being y'know a dragon, but knowing my zodiac animal got 5th because they spent their time being a good & moral individual who didn't care if they won brings warmth to my heart
JUSTICE FOR KYO!
Lol I love that you covered this story. I'm a teacher, and I always do a unit on the Chinese zodiac and let the students research their year and what it means. We also compare it to other zodiac sets. The Vietnamese one has the cat instead of the rabbit. I always see a sigh of relief from a few students when they learn that the cat is included somewhere. But yeah, kids are still obsessed with learning about all the ways their birthday is special. It's one of my favorite units to teach!
1:50 Red pointing at that one kid who was advanced by 2 years holy moly
I always loved that fact that my Chinese and Greek calendars line up, I’m year of the Ox and Taurus so Bull-Bull
I'm both Aries and a Goat! Double (or Deux Bull in your case.) Zodiac Animal gang rises up!
I'm a wood tiger and a taurus. Can't complain.
The lost cousion to moon-moon
I am a Rooster born in the year of Water and an Aquarius. Thus the Chicken of the Sea... I am a tuna fish... 🐟
But what are your 4 pillars? Your Year is Ox and Month is likely Snake, you can figure out day and hour on your own
2:54 I appreciate the TFS Vegeta quote! It made me smile❤
Not the snake jumpscaring the horse at the last minute that had me dead lmfao
Glad to see that experiencing the five stages of grief upon realizing that you’re a year of the rat kid is a universal experience lmao.
Red: says something mean about th cat
Kyo Soma has entered the chat
That one chat bubble in the back "im a tiger c:" made me laugh way more then it should have.
The way I explain the cat vs rabbit thing is that once the cat realized that it overslept it was so enraged that the jade emperor gave it the rabbit’s spot on the calendar and turned the rabbit into the moon rabbit.
1) Count of Monte Cristo reference made me gafaw, 2) Song choice as usual is perfection, 3) I too once forgot how years and birthdays and school work when talking about the zodiac, but had no excuse as I was the teacher 😂 It was only after all the kids start calling out exactly 3 animals out of the 12 that I remembered I could have figured this out for them ahead of time and made more copies of the coloring pages 😂
Small fun fact about me: When I was learning to talk, my family was at a chinese restaurant with the chinese zodiac placemats. I spoke my first word there and it so happened to be the same as my Chinese zodiac: dragon.
So yeah. I'm totally validated in both my love for dragons and pride in an east-asian calendar system I have no affiliation to.
The only part I'd add is that beyond knowing what zodiac you land on, the specific year dictates what element you are. Unlike other calendars, this makes narrowing down a person's birthday a whole lot easier.
I happen to be a wood snake. It also just so happens that I like Serperior. A coincidence most appreciated.
Yup! It’s a pretty big deal too and leads to some interesting facts.
A fun one is that 2000 babies are not only dragons, but metal dragons (sometimes called gold dragons)! So, uh, I guess 2000 babies can be especially smug about their birth year.
An unfun one is that Fire Horse girls are considered bad luck and have been blamed for disasters in the past. Back in 1966, fear of the curse was so prominent that the Japanese fertility rate saw a sharp decline that year before returning back to normal the next.
This year is my dad's year, element included, while my best friend just had her first born a week ago; yay for an easy reminder. She and I are metal sheep. The only bad thing I have heard about sheep is that China prefers not to have sheep children the most.
But I did see someone comment once that a zodiac didn't help them figure out how old someone was because it changes every year. You can't count to twelve? And surely you can spot a twelve-year difference in age. 24, 36, & 48 do not look the same.
I’m a wood rat!
I'm an Earth Snake apparently.
I love how the dog is just having the time of their life.
4:28 As a year of the Rooster guy, I find the sentiment of teamwork being something I'd do but getting screwed by it very relatable.
The snake being flung onto the beach was pretty funny.
“I love how many calendars we have access to now” is the most Red opening to a video imaginable 😂
Red, being a Chaos deity and her animal being the one who tricked the cat, makes so much sense. ❤️😁
Edit: I actually remember a BL manga involving possession by the twelve zodiac and, as punishment for tricking the cat, the rat was left without a name for part of the year, leaving it vulnerable to being destroyed. It also meant the mc had a very upsetting time because they were possessed by a cat deity.
Do you remember the name of the manga? I wanna check it out!
YOU CAN'T JUST SAY THIS AMAZINGLY SPECIFIC STORY AND JUST LEAVE US DRY, This is the seal Loki vs Heimdall all over again!!!
@@FrisbeeGorbeh Eto Irokoi Zoushi. Be warned it’s explicit and not for kids. If you are just curious about the rat, it comes up in Ch. 4 and features less skinship until the end part.
@@elizaripper Thank you 🙏🙏
@@elizaripper Thanks for the title and the warning! I may tell my friend to read it first and let her gauge if it's out of my comfort zone or not lol
I love that acoustic rendition of All Star. It sounds surprisingly pretty.
The version I know is basically the same except only 13 animals are invited. The cat and the rat hitch a ride on the ox (I think the ox agrees to this) but at the last moment the rat pushes the cat into the river and jumps into first place followed by the ox. The cat never recovers and loses the race in 13th place this vowing eternal hatred for the rat.
Always enjoyed variations in tales like this.
The horse was so lucky to have the snake make it look majestic.
0:11 A Count of Monte Cristo reference?
WE ARE SO BACK!
Look, as Year of the Dog over here, I'm just happy to be a part of whatever is going on right now.
Appropriate dog behavior.
"Maybe the cat chaes the rat cause they're so uses to the view from last place" RED
You're amazing!
Growing up, I would have done anything to be a "year of the cat"
... But I've always had a thing for someone who got the short stick.
The dragon is so pure; love it.
Year of the sheep checking in.
Came for the tale, stayed for the roasting
Help this is so adorable!! I love the rabbit "au contraire I was born on the road to victory! - but yes i am drowning" also the dog is perfect and the best boi
It's fun to see how new personality quiz stuff (e.g. what is your werewolf name given your birthday) is basically a modern version of the zodiac. Sometimes you are something awesome that you tell all your friends about, and sometimes, you're "Moon Moon".
2:54 Cat-geta is about to be very very pissed when he realizes it's not really night out
Dear Red, this video has the cutest illustriations. Thank you for your awesome content.