SPOILERS BEWARE
The sequel to Honey and Clover is just as enjoyable as the prequel once more I found myself captivated by nearly every single episode and every single arc that was portrayed as this anime doesnt have specific MCs as its more a gathering of characters that make up the show and arcs are shown from their PoVs. The way these are shown is done very well which helps the show immerse the viewer like myself once more its a beautiful story that comes to an conclusion in a good manner I feel like it wasnt the greatest ending that completely blew me out of the park but it was still well done and satisfying in the end.
Mayama and Rikas arc was truly wonderful and the 4th episode may honestly be the best one of this season since the feels in that one were really high needless to say the feels are very present throughout the series since it is a romance and drama anime after all its another anime that portrays realism and it does it well to a degree I have seen shows which handle realism better than Honey and Clover but this anime was still very enjoyable nonetheless and like I said earlier it captivates me so whenever an episode would finish I would already be pretty excited to watch the next one thats normally a good sign for a show as its keeping me interested. The final arc of the show which is Hagus literally comes out of nowhere there was no indicator that such an event will occur so shortly after the only indicator I would say there was would be when the narration begins and there is a storm brewing on the horizon as the saying goes calm before the storm the narrative really was the calm before a major plot point occurred which would bring the cast of characters together once more which couldve potentially been their very last time spending time together as a group. This arc basically gives closure for the major questions we still had for some characters it becomes clear that Hagu treasures both Yuuta and Morita but chooses to stay with Hanamoto as he has been there for her since she was a child by literally saying please give me your life or something along those lines which almost sounds like a wedding vow so that puts closure on Hagu and Moritas feelings also the final scene at the train station is truly heartwarming and answers the title of the show too that one time the group were looking for a four leaf clover but unable to find any in the first season this time Hagu had a bunch of them and she gave them to Yuuta to send him off in order to protect him from harm kind of as a good luck charm they were served in sandwiches with honey? Hence the title of the show possibly I dont quite get if honey is meant to be a reference to anything but the clover surely is so the attention to detail is exquisite.
The first season used many insert songs throughout their episodes but this season had 12 episodes and used 12 insert songsthere was indeed a song per episode which is insane to me somehow the song choices really complement the scenes for example I mentioned the 4th episode earlier the song from that episode was incredible when it played during the scenes with Mayama and Rika so when it comes to OST this series is a masterpiece it really knows what it wants when it comes to music emphasise there are also piano versions of both OPs which also compliment the scenes that they are used in the OST of this anime is truly a hidden gem and deserves all the praise. To put that in context going into Honey and Clover I heard 30 new songs throughout both seasons that had vocals which is just mindblowing.
Reading comments on some of the episodes it came to my attention that this was written by the author that also wrote 3gatsu and well the reason I found this anime was because of 3gatsu so that makes complete sense the animation and art for this show is truly ahead of its time and need I remind you that its 20052006 this show wasnt adapted by Shaft like 3gatsu yet the art was still truly magnificent. It was pretty noticeable at times how the story gave me 3gatsu vibes and I mentioned in my other review but Hagu has Hinas resemblances also the final few episodes of this show Hagu looks beautiful with her long golden hair flowing down it really suites her better this way but she really does look gorgeous by the end of the show and even a lot more matured.
Now another question that I was wondering about while watching this series is over how long of a period does this show span for? Mayama answered that for me in one of the final episodes the answer is 6 years which would mean Hagu is 24 years old when her accident happened which also explained why she looked so mature and beautiful right at the end of the series 6 years span in only 36 episodes is a really large time leap from here and there but it didnt feel rushed or anything I just wondered the exact period since we see the Hamabi festival at least 3 times I believe so I was getting a rough idea of the time span but 6 years damn is just so long Yuuta was in love for 6 years before finally getting closure on his unrequited love and final goodbye 6 years is just so long for thatbut as he said in the end he was glad he fell in love as it taught him many things and not for a moment would he ever regret falling in love with Hagu.
Overall this season and its predecessor were both incredibly enjoyable to me and I had such a blast watching nearly every single episode like I mentioned the ending was different then what I would have expected but this again tries to portray realism its not always smooth sailing in life falling in love is pretty complex when that special person doesnt reciprocate your feelings back as it turns into a pretty heavy unrequired onesided love which often happens in real life so this is something that Honey and Clover does really well showcasing the struggles of life and how brutal it can be you can very clearly see the similarities between this and 3gatsu which is also written by the same person both shows have somewhat of a similar kind of genre which is why I love both Honey and Clover being slightly weaker but still very damn enjoyable. If you loved one then I guarantee you will love the other so definitely check these out as they are very realistic takes on portraying hardships of real life and the brutality of life.
82
/100