Comments on: My Favourite Anime Episode – Honey And Clover 2 Episode 7 (H&C II)

By: StrawberryCupcakez

StrawberryCupcakez — Thu, 05 May 2011 02:36:42 +0000

First, let me thank you for putting this one aspect into the light; you dont know how happy it made me to find this one single blog post that didnt just delve into the fluff layers of Honey and Clover, the romantic triangles and love. Im 16 and this would be my second go ’round of looking at this anime, but its so hard to find people my age to have a indept conversation about this anime, they all think its either “boring” “emo” or not enough “action” for them. But to me, its so much more; this was one of the few animes that actually got me to cry, that I could relate to in a way I couldnt connect with any other anime with. I remember the first time I watched ep 7 of season 2 I didnt really understand and waved it on, however, with episode 6 (which happens to be my favorite) I couldnt help but just stare at the screen in utter hopelessness. It was like, at that single moment, when Hagu talked about boxes and lifetimes, she truly understood me in away I couldnt even admit to myself. I remember after she had said those words, I could feel the tears falling down my face, as I stared at the screen in confusion and sadness, because here it was, a complete animated character, who wasnt real in any sense, could sum up my biggest fears and I could relate to more then my own friends and family in that one instant.I couldnt believe it, and this day, just thinking about gets me alittle sad, which just goes to prove that this anime/manga series is truly one of a kind

By: Sorkin

Sorkin — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 15:48:43 +0000

I completely agree with you, this is probably the strongest episode in this series. But Turtle also has a valid point with episode 6.
I can relate with both since i’m a writer and i keep having ideas that i want to write about, but ultimatly i can’t help but to relate with Tatsuo, because of my insecurity about my work and finding that there is always someone better and more talented no matter how hard you try. It’s unbelievable how much that can destroy a person and fill him/her with negativity, but no matter what you can’t help but to sympathyse with him.
Both are very powerful episodes that duelve on purpose, achievement, meaning, and many other topics.
But they aren’t the only ones.
I watched this at least 2 times.
This anime touches interpersonal relations and manages to keep a realistic feeling giving the characters time to explore themselves and what meaning they want to give to their lives. While doing that the viewer can’t help but to feel involved, especially if the viewer has been through college and young adulthood. It’s so rare to see such a thing that i can’t believe how lucky i am.

By: aiayumi

aiayumi — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 23:51:33 +0000

I agree with you completely. This ep left a huge impression on me, even the first time i watched this series (i’ve rewatched it 3 times now). I was still young and didn’t understand a lot of the stuff being said in the series, but this ep alone hit me hard and straight in the heart. I remember crying so hard when I watched this ep, esp during Tatsuo’s talk with Kaoru when he’s carrying him on his back, Tatsuo under the purple sky, and when he was lying in hospital and Morita’s dad kept on repeating “I will never forgive you…even if you reborn a hundred times over…”

I think everyone will relate to Tatsuo some point in their life, unless they are Morita…but ppl like him are rare, and you’ll def find someone better than you some point along your life. I cried really hard because I related to him completely, crying for myself in a way too, because that’s something you can never change. Which is why I understood completely when Tatsuo sold out the company…it’s as if to show Morita’s dad “I can finally top you once…” But Morita’s dad ultimately won in the end, because he is kind-hearted. THAt is the light Tatsuo can never destroy…not his ingenuity

You are def not taking this story too seriously. This is how deep H&C gets, it’s MEANT to convey this much…which is why I love it to indescribable levels. All of its analogies and symbolism…regardless if it’s Takemoto’s bike ride, or Hagu’s box opening…H&C talks about life on so many levels it’s life itself! Many ppl fail to see that. I feel a pity for them, because they failed to see the true beauty behind H&C, and only get caught up in Yamada/Mayama/Rika love triangles etc. That’s only a surface fragment, a drop in the sea of this magnificent work

By: ika chan

ika chan — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 23:51:12 +0000

…I don’t know too…but this anime seems to be my favorite…for as long as I can remember. The moment I saw it…I already knew it was going to be good…and it did…and exceeded all my expactations…I remember I used to cry a lot when I watch the anime…(and I’ve seen this for like what? 3 times?) Gosh! The whole story really hits me… the ‘Ayu – Nomiya’ story…I really could relate to that…(I cried so hard when I found out Mayama and Rika “got together”) …I felt it was so sad…

By: Theowne

Theowne — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 06:01:57 +0000

Yes, I found the scene with the light enveloping the unopened boxes to be very moving as well, and very tragic. There is so much in this world to experience and also so much to accomplish, but no time….. Think about all the fields of human learning, literature, art, music, science….., yet even one of these fields is too much for a single person to handle within their lifetimes. So all we can do is resign ourselves into neat categories that society hands us and follow through on one chosen path, hoping that this is the path that we will least regret.

H&C is already a little-known anime, but all the H&C fans I’ve known just seem to like watching the romantic subplots and think its just an anime like NANA. Only on the internet can I find H&C fans who can see the deeper points, the comments on human nature which are so astute and so honest.

By: Turtle

Turtle — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 05:25:55 +0000

First let me say I commend you on this article as well as your other H & C piece. It is extremely comforting to see that there are other people out there who had began to watch this anime with the hopes of getting some mild entertainment value out of it. Only to be thrust back when it begins to touch on very sensitive life issues that quite frankly are never really brought up in your average day to day conversations. I can also relate to how you feel about H & C II episode 7. Well in the sense that that when you say that that episode will be forever etched in your brain, that’s the same way I feel about H & C II episode 6. See I’m a fictional writer and my head is always filled with different stories, and so I map it out in my head and start to put it on paper. But as you must know it consumes a lot of time to do this. So when I saw the scene of Hagu working on a project and then she turns around and sees the light rising to reveal all the boxes and she say, “I want to open all of these boxes but, a mortal life span is too short to do such a thing.” While at the same time this beautiful piano melody, (which is not only soothing in nature) but providing weight to the words she’s saying. I literally clutched my chest involuntarily because it struck me out of nowhere. It really hurt me because I realized that I was doomed to that same fate. It’s as if she voiced out loud what my subconscious dared not to speak. Then I also began conclude that even throughout history of all the greatest actors, writers, musicians, politicians, artists, scientists, and other people who were deemed the masters of their crafts. Despite all their talent and good fortune they would never be able to reach their full potential to investigate every idea or settle every little problem. Now I know some people would merely see this situation as common sense, that you can’t live on forever and that there is no way to fix that problem so you shouldn’t dwell on it. But it is still something that is bothersome to me. Well I’m terribly sorry for all of this rambling I know it was quite long. However I would again like to extend my deepest gratitude to you and the other people that feel so deeply about H & C, it’s nice to know you’re not the only one.

By: admin

admin — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 00:21:53 +0000

Hey Cristian, thanks so much for the comment. I’m so glad that people are inspired to write these long comments and have detailed discussions about these things. Sometimes I wonder if I’m the only one who ever takes these stories so seriously, they move me so much emotionally while others seem to just consume it as entertainment than move on. But moments like these are forever etched in my mind.

By: Cristian

Cristian — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 12:21:20 +0000

Nice review and I agree that this is possibly the best episode of the series. I would like
to forward a little suggestion though, that I believe the anime subtly hints at as well. I
believed that both Kaoru and Tatsuo were being blinded by their lack of skill in a certain
area, that they missed out on their good parts. Living always in the shadow of the light
that was Morita, or his father respectively, they begun to think that this was the model
of a successful, talented man. And while their personalities were indeed exemplary, life
is far more complicated than creating a clear split in the road, or easily pointing out
the weeds from the roses. It became more of an intrinsic frustration of theirs, than a
rational observation, but needless to say I understand both their feelings and the writer brings the characters to such a stage where such questions flow naturally.

But as I was saying earlier, it is subtly, suggested that these 2 have
extraordinary skills. In the episode with Tatsuo, it is Tsukasa himself that while working
in the office and giving Tatsuo permission to buy more stock, says that I’m leaving this
to you as I’m not good with these sort of things. The reason I bring this up, is because
had this line and scene been placed at some other time, its impact might have been
mitigated, but it seems explicitly placed right before the moment of betrayal and while
Tatsuo’s motives are being revealed through interior monologue in parallel. The contrast is effective and it points out that perhaps, without the financial skills of his friend, Tsukasa couldn’t have applied his great mind to begin with. And this too is an aspect of life where many great people lack other skills that would have prohibited them completely from reaching those heights. The sad part is that these men in the shadow, not receiving the recognition that our society only bestows on some skills, doubt their own purpose in life.

The writer goes on to mirror this episode in the story of the two brothers, but note the
catharsis that we uncover at the end of this story. Upon leaving for his own self-discovery journey, Morita is told by one of his brother’s associates that Kaoru will be
fine, because he has great imagination, talent and energy… and let’s face it – to have
built such an empire and systems that swindle 50 yen from all the children in the world it takes skills. In retrospect, Kaoru and Morita are reenacting Tsukasa’s and Tatsuo’s parts, on a larger scale and in a different timeline. They also bear with them the knowledge of what has happened and that’s what is saving them. They have only different skills, it’s not a matter of who is worst or better, just a matter of perspective. Morita is great at doing jobs that require a lot of talent, but all the organizing and leadership were Kaoru’s.

On the other side, Morita himself understands this and battles the notion of talent, in
the name of which people love, hate and generally throw any other emotion they can muster at you . In a moment of existentialist philosophy, he tells Hagu that a man mustn’t necessarily leave anything behind, just living is enough… well, it also turns out that moment was one of weakness for him, but he does raise a point… there’s little purpose in doing anything that does not bring fulfilment to you… if you’re going to paint, paint because you can’t live without painting, because it gives purpose to your life, like Hagu does, and not because you want to prove a point, or otherwise. In finding this activity that gives purpose and meaning to one’s life, it can generally be assumed that you have also found your forte, the light that will not fade no matter what, as Tatsuo calls it.

Sorry for the long comment, but I really felt like writing it after reading your review
and I thought it might help if you ever get a chance to read it. The episode is truly a
magnificent display of storytelling in the medium of animation.

On another note, thank you so much for the fugainaiya (soundtrack version) piano score sheet. It would have been great if you had the split soundtrack version as well – that does incidentally appear in episode 7 when Tatsuo gives Kaoru the news of his company being taken over and then faints with the smile on his face… beautiful scene, beautiful pacing, beautiful music … I love the ball falling from the sky, almost as a ball of light, and him turned away, the intercuts, the color palette, the mise en scene… ah but there’s too much to say and this is just a comment.

So don’t worry too much, there is no actual split in the road, it’s just us humans that creates it. You can arrange music for piano, I can’t. But I can do other things.

By: wizarcane

wizarcane — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 08:33:55 +0000

Wonderful review, I’d say. And I agree, this is one of the best episodes of Honey and Clover. I just watched this episode last night and still I’m watching it over and over again specifically on the scene where Tatsuo was confined in the hospital.

In reality, this is what people, including myself, feel the same as Tatsuo felt. Some sort of insecurity is growing to a person who seem ‘behind’ or incompetent as compared to some people who are gifted enough and surrounded by people who love them. Nevertheless, this served as an ‘eye-opener’ to me.

This anime is truly realistic. People who are melancholic in nature should watch this, although I’m not sure if this would inspire or destruct their lives. I won’t go further into details anymore ’cause you have elaborated and reflected well on the episode.

How I wish I get to know more movie and series, not only limited to anime, which come with the same genre/theme. Cheers!

By: wizarcane

wizarcane — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 08:19:10 +0000

Wonderful review I’d say. And I agree, this is one