And so ABgA transferring hosts to animeblogger.net has been completed for the most part. What we have to show for it is a better banner, better tab management and better category management so far. Our old blog will announce the change and be left running for a while to allow any regular readers to hear the news and switch over. Once we settle in though, the old blog will be deleted. So that’s all for now, on to what this post is really about and what most of you probably want to read instead of this lame intro XD…

Loli Hagu for the ultimate win!

Synopsis:

No fooling around this time, a Hagu centric episode right from the start. Yamada goes to visit Hagu who is in the process of the painful rehabilitation process. While waiting for Hagu to show up Yamada notices another rehab patient, a boy who was in a car accident, who is acting much unlike Hagu and crying like a little girl. The rehab doctor tries to explain the immense physical and mental pain one experiences in rehab and says that most people will opt to quit when healed to a sufficient enough point. However, Hagu must undergo the rehab until its completion if she ever hopes to draw again.

Hagu then shows up and in a valiant display of Yamada’s support poor attempt at comedic relief, Yamada’s cooking is reborn. This time it’s boiled beef tendons mixed with kumquat…nice. As her cooking apprentice Hagu thinks it’s delicious, however it all but kills the rehab doctor, the other rehab patient and his mother.

Back at Yamada’s apartment she reminisces about Morita and his constant disappearances, especially at a time where Hagu is in so much pain. She eventually decides to send an email to Mayama asking for his undying love him to find Morita and tell him what happened to Hagu. This brings us to a brief visit of Spain, and thank God it was brief because this arc just plain sucks. Being the first time Mayama has heard of the accident, he’s a little shocked as well.

The next day, or what seems to be the next day at least, Morita comes barging in asking where Hagu, affectionately nicknamed “Mouse” at this point, is. Yamada tells him what hospital she’s at and off he goes, impressively hurdling out the window as his professor and peers appear at the mere mention of his name for various reasons. Takemoto goes all angsty and emo on us again and realizes that if he doesn’t do something, and most likely even if he does, Morita will take Hagu. And off he goes, trying to mimic Morita he tries to hurdle the window, and in an obvious attempt at foreshadowing, falls flat on his face. And so to reclaim his dignity, he does the only thing he can, rides a bike! >_>”

Back at the hospital we see Hagu and the boy from earlier on in rehab, Hagu bearing the pain and the boy whining like no tomorrow. Shuu-chan suggests going outside for a while for a change of scenery. This scene was absolutely beautiful, the animators somehow made Hagu look amazing. Beyond the animation we get some deep plot development, Shuu-chan tells Hagu that it’s alright to complain and cry. Hagu says that she’s afraid she won’t be able to stop venting her feelings if she starts and apologizes for burdening Shuu-chan. He reminds her that even when she used to wet the bed, he still took care and loved her, that will never change. Hagu then has a mini-breakdown and questions the meaning in her life if she can’t draw, we also get an elongated flashback of the whole “I met God and started drawing” scene from before, loli Hagu!!!

Cue Morita, stage left. Taking advantage of Shuu-chan getting something to drink, Morita sweeps in and snatches Hagu away, much to the dismay of Shuu-chan and the recently arrived Takemoto.

Morita takes Hagu to his secret base, where he and his brother used to hang out. Hagu seems excited from Morita’s arrival, she begins to bombard him with questions, what he saw, where he went, what he’s been making. She then promises that her hand will heal soon, asking him to wait for her so things can go back to how they were. Then Morita says what I’ve been thinking for the past two episodes and what the others SHOULD have been telling her: “It’s all right, you don’t need to draw anymore. It’s absurd to think that your life won’t have a meaning unless you leave something behind.” He says this obviously drawing on his own experiences, Hagu is left in awe by his words of sincerity and kindness. The scene fades with the two locked in embrace.

Cut back to the school, it’s revealed that Shuu-chan is taking a three year sabbatical from work to dedicate to Hagu’s rehab. But now with the arrival of Morita, it may have all been for nothing, he seems to realize this more than anyone. Takemoto also picks up on this and tells him to tell Hagu, to tell her how much he’s sacrificed for her and to pick him over Morita. Takemoto says this knowing the feeling, because he too, without any hope or means, told Hagu the same thing, albeit in a different context. And so the ED kicks in as scenes flash, Takemoto alone, Shuu-chan alone, Hagu and Morita sharing a futon.

Thoughts:

Honey and Clover II continues to look good heading into the ending stretch, will this anime finally break the chain of animes that fall apart at their endings?! Only time will tell. But as for this episode, it was amazing. At first I was worried that the Hagu arc was an indication that Honey and Clover had lost its flare and was resorting to cliche plotlines, killing its slice of life feel. However, it has turned out pretty well, although the atmosphere is drifting away from its slice of life mold, it’s actually a good thing.

The Hagu arc based on a more dramatic subject is a breath of fresh air for Honey and Clover. I suppose it wasn’t that they were resorting to distancing the anime from slice of life, but rather that they realized they hit a dead end and had to do a 180 to save the awesomeness. And save it they did, while keeping the subtle yet powerful one liners as good as ever they took the anime in a completely new direction without losing anything along the way.

The resolution seems to be lining up with my predictions, that Hagu will not make a full recovery and have to make the difficult decision of whether to end her life as she said she would, or continue in a new path. What I didn’t expect was such a serious speech coming from Morita of all people, he now has my respect for more than his awesome comedic relief. Both Morita and Takemoto genuinely love Hagu, but only Morita is effectively pursuing the relationship and advancing it, whereas Takemoto is horribly indecisive.

As for the Rika arc…as I said, it just plain sucks. Although rika and Mayama did get their spotlight screentime both last season and this season, it’s sad to see them relegated to cameo appearances (in Rika’s case, not even that). Where is the justice in the random Spanish guy getting more screentime than Rika!?!

But all in all Honey and Clover II is on the road to becoming immortalized very high in the list of my all time favourite animes. It has grown so much from the tale of a group of university art students and is set to have one hell of an ending.

Cause

Effect: Yamada Genocide! Nooooo~

I want that screensaver so badly! Someone, find it for me, nao!

The animators have done the impossible, Hagu attains bishoujo status! …

…errr…for a while

Morita: Takemoto: 0

Victories

- Insert song, just amazing
- Animation, *points to Hagu bishoujo pic* end of discussion.
- Morita ftw
- Sakura petal screensaver
- Shuu-chan comedic relief
- More awesome “one liner” cliches

As usual I’ll just cut it off here and say the whole Hagu arc in general.

Phailures

- Rika Spain arc
- Yamada comedic relief
- Lack of Morita’s random insanity, though it wouldn’t have worked
- Takemoto pwned, but one of them had to lose

~ Shirukii ~