A life can be changed by the simplest of events – a spoken word, a change in the weather, a road not taken, a hastily made decision.  Some changes are unexpected, others long planned for.  But even when you know the path that you follow, there can be forks in the road, and which fork you choose can make all the difference in the world.

 

Life is not lived in a vacuum, nor in a sterile test-tube housed in a scientist's laboratory.  What happens to one person will affect others, whether the effects are immediate or not.  Sometimes the changes that you plan for are no better than the others that you didn't, especially if, once you achieve your goal, you're left to find another path to follow, in a what now scenario.

 

As volume 9 of Honey and Clover begins, we get a quick glimpse of the past – a loving father leaves his business, hastening home to his two young sons simply because it is curry night, regardless of the task he has set his own brother to accomplish as quickly as possible – and he takes the time to show the boys the world's smallest robot, which he has named Kabu-tan, an amalgam of their names.  Meanwhile, in the present, Takemoto is contemplating the large scaffolding which surrounds his work, thinking about the long bicycle journey he recently undertook and how impressed people are with this accomplishment when he thinks it was but a simple task.  Yet it has made him realize that if you want to make something really big, you will need bigger scaffolding – and the thought is no longer a disturbing one.

 

Hagu is poring over books with pictures of white marble and dreams of working in stone, wondering how hard or easy that might be – so much to do, so little time.  She also worries about Shuji – she wants him in her life forever, yet she is afraid of what he might have to give up in order to do that and she doesn't think she can ask him to give up his own life to be with her.  Mayama is now in seventh heaven – the older woman he loves and works with, Rika, is summoning him to Valencia, where she is working on a commission – the Spanish architect she is working with is more than a little handsy, and she needs Mayama by her side.  The elated young man sees that as a sign of her feelings for him – perhaps now they can be together.  Being less than tactful, he manages to insult Yamada – who is still nursing feelings for him – but Tomiya is there to try to pick up the pieces.  And Shuji is confronting Morita about the latter walking away from Hagu without seeing her, when he obviously cares for her.

 

Previously in Honey and Clover, we've wondered about Morita and his brother's inexplicable obsession with money.  The truth is now revealed, a story that goes back to when they were mere boys and their father and his brother worked together in the family business.  We learn alot about both sets of brothers and their relationships to one another – the forces which hold them together and pull them apart as well.  Much of what occurs is because of the nature of who each man is.  The boys were witness to the ruthless steamrolling of their father and uncle twenty years before, and they have not rested since in their quest to avenge them.  So much so that it has become their entire lives.

 

The day of the art exhibition has arrived at long last, but nature is having a last laugh – the winds are very strong, disturbingly so, and there is some concern expressed about the outdoor exhibitions, and the effect this will have upon them. When Takemoto arrives, he sees a commotion in the quadrangle and investigates, learning to his dismay that a student has been badly cut by flying glass, caused by the rough wind, and had to be taken to the hospital.  To his dismay, he realizes that it was none other than Hagu – and she has cut her right hand!  Her friends assemble at the hospital, along with Shuji, and now they wait to find out the results of a simple act of nature – Hagu will live, but what of her hand, will she ever feel it properly again, and will she still be able to be the artist she dreams of being, or has this capricious incident changed her life forever?

 

Overall

 

This volume of Honey and Clover was more introspective than usual, looking deep into the hearts and minds of its characters.  And yet there were still happy, fun moments – for example, the bullbaiting that goes on between Mayama and the Spanish architect – in two different languages, no less! – is hilarious, as the two posture for Rika.  It is obvious to me that Hagu loves Shuji, both for himself and for the security which he represents.  Having been afraid of expressing her desire to have him with her always before, how will she ever find the nerve to tell him now, when she may never be an artist again – and if she isn't an artist, what is she?  And if the brothers succeed in taking back the company their father and uncle lost twenty years before to unscrupulous men, what then?  Chica Umino continues to enthrall us with her characters, as we wonder what will happen to them.  Her plots are simple, but effective, because these are the things that make up the fabric of our lives.  And life can be changed in either the blink of an eye or in the course of a long time.  But change is change is change…. and no one knows what it will bring.  Her artwork is simple but effective.  You can't help but ache for what they are going through and hope for the best.  This is a must-read volume for those who've been following the series.  If you are new to it, go back and get the first eight books – it will be worth it.

 

ComicsOnline gives Honey and Clover, volume 9 4 out of 5 bandaged hands.