| 61st | Top programs broadcast by Animax |
| Honey and Clover | |
|---|---|
![]() A promotional image for the Honey and Clover anime series, featuring the main characters |
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| ハチミツとクローバー (Hachimitsu to Kurōbā) |
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| Genre | Comedy-drama, Romance |
| Manga | |
| Author | Chica Umino |
| Publisher | |
| English publisher | |
| Demographic | Josei |
| Magazine | |
| Original run | June 2000 – July 28, 2006 |
| Volumes | 10 |
| TV anime | |
| Director | Ken'ichi Kasai |
| Writer | Yōsuke Kuroda |
| Studio | J.C.Staff |
| Licensor | |
| Network | |
| English network | |
| Original run | April 14, 2005 – September 26, 2005 |
| Episodes | 26 |
| TV anime | |
| Honey and Clover II | |
| Director | Tatsuyuki Nagai |
| Writer | Yōsuke Kuroda |
| Studio | J.C.Staff |
| Network | |
| English network | |
| Original run | June 29, 2006 – September 14, 2006 |
| Episodes | 12 |
| Live-action film | |
| Director | Masahiro Takada |
| Writer | Masahiro Takada Masahiko Kawahara |
| Studio | Asmik Ace Entertainment |
| Released | July 22, 2006 |
| Runtime | 116 minutes |
| TV drama | |
| Director | Masaki Tanamura Hiroaki Matsuyama |
| Writer | Shigeki Kaneko |
| Studio | Fuji TV Drama Seisaku Centre |
| Network | |
| Original run | January 8, 2008 – March 18, 2008 |
| Episodes | 11 |
| TV drama | |
| Feng Mi Xing Yun Cao | |
| Director | Li Yun Chan |
| Network | |
| Original run | May 25, 2008 – August 31, 2008 |
| Episodes | 14 |
Honey and Clover (ハチミツとクローバー Hachimitsu to Kurōbā) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Chika Umino. It is also known as HachiKuro (ハチクロ) and H&C. It is published by Shueisha, initially serialized from June 2000 to July 2006 in the magazines CUTiEcomic, Young YOU, and Chorus, and collected in ten bound volumes. The series depicts the lives and relationships of a group of art school students who live in the same apartment building. In 2003, the manga won the 27th Kodansha Manga Award for shōjo.
The series was adapted as an animated television series by J.C.Staff, initially broadcast on Fuji TV in two seasons from April to September 2005 and June to September 2006. The series was also adapted as a live action movie, which was released in theaters in Japan on July 22, 2006, and two separate live-action television dramas in 2008, one broadcast in Japan on Fuji TV from January 8, 2008 to March 18, 2008 and the other broadcast in Taiwan on CTS beginning on May 25, 2008.
Contents |
Yūta Takemoto, Takumi Mayama and Shinobu Morita are three young men who live in the same apartment complex and are students at an art college in Tokyo.
One day, one of the art professors, Shūji Hanamoto, introduces his cousin's daughter, Hagumi Hanamoto, who has come to live with him and is a first year student at the art school. Upon introduction, Takemoto and Morita fall in love with her. Morita expresses his love for Hagu in ways that scare her, especially calling Hagu 'mousey' and constantly photographing her, while Takemoto hides his feelings and tries to be a friend to Hagu. Hagu herself, though initially timid and afraid of company, gradually warms up to the three.
The group also includes another female: Ayumi Yamada. She is a master of pottery and is well-known by her nickname "Tetsujin" (Iron Lady). When not at school or hanging out with friends from the college, she helps run the family liquor store. She is very popular with all the guys, whether they are from the liquor store's shopping district or other pottery students, but Mayama is the only man she is in love with.
Unfortunately, although Mayama considers Yamada a friend, he does not return her love and is busy chasing an older woman; Rika Harada. Rika runs an architecture studio which she used to run with her husband before he died in a car accident which left Rika disabled. Rika Harada and Shūji were very close friends and roommates in college. Mayama is sent by Shūji to help Rika, who has a hard time taking care of herself and running her business.
The story follows these five characters in their love triangles, unrequited love, graduating from college, finding jobs, and learning more about themselves.
In 2003, the manga of Honey and Clover won the 27th Kodansha Manga Award for shōjo.[2] About.com's Deb Aoki lists Honey and Clover as the best new josei manga of 2008.[3] Yū Aoi won the award for Best Actress at the 28th Yokohama Film Festival for her role as Hagumi Hanamoto in the live-action film.[4]
The Honey and Clover manga was written and illustrated by Chika Umino and published by Shueisha.[5] The first fourteen chapters were serialized in the josei (aimed at younger adult women) manga magazine CUTiEcomic from June 2000 to July 2001, when serialization moved to Young YOU. With the demise of Young YOU in 2005, it moved to Chorus, where it ran until July 2006. The 64 chapters were collected in ten bound volumes. The series was also issued in a ten-volume box set in May 2007.[6]
The manga is licensed in North America by Viz Media, which began serializing it in Shojo Beat magazine in August 2007.[7] It is also licensed in France by Kana, and in Germany by Tokyopop.[5]
| No. | Japan | North America | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Release date | ISBN | Release date | ISBN | ||
| 1 | August 19, 2002[8] | ISBN 4-08-865079-4 | March 4, 2008[9] | ISBN 978-1-4215-1504-5 | |
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| 2 | August 19, 2002[10] | ISBN 4-08-865080-8 | June 10, 2008[11] | ISBN 978-1-4215-1505-2 | |
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| 3 | January 17, 2003[12] | ISBN 4-08-865107-3 | September 2, 2008[13] | ISBN 978-1-4215-1506-9 | |
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| 4 | February 19, 2003[14] | ISBN 4-08-865111-1 | December 2, 2008[15] | ISBN 978-1-4215-1507-6 | |
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| 5 | August 19, 2003[16] | ISBN 4-08-865139-1 | March 3, 2009 | ISBN 978-1-4215-2366-8 | |
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| 6 | May 19, 2004[17] | ISBN 4-08-865203-7 | June 2, 2009 | ISBN 978-1-4215-2367-5 | |
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| 7 | March 18, 2005[18] | ISBN 4-08-865273-8 | September 1, 2009 | ISBN 978-1-4215-2368-2 | |
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| 8 | July 19, 2005[19] | ISBN 4-08-865297-5 | December 1, 2009 | ISBN 978-1-4215-2380-4 | |
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| 9 | July 14, 2006[20] | ISBN 4-08-865352-1 | March 2, 2010 | ISBN 978-1-4215-2381-1 | |
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| 10 | September 8, 2006[21] | ISBN 4-08-865358-0 | June 1, 2010 | ISBN 978-1-4215-2382-8 | |
The anime television series was produced by J.C.Staff and consists of 38 episodes in broadcast in two seasons on Fuji TV in the Noitamina programming block.[22] The first season was directed by Ken'ichi Kasai, and consisted of 24 episodes that aired from April 14, 2005 and September 29, 2005 plus two DVD-only episodes. The second season was directed by Tatsuyuki Nagai, and consisted of 12 episodes that aired between June 29, 2006 and September 14, 2006.[23]
Both seasons were rebroadcast in Japan by the anime CS television network Animax, which also later broadcast the series across its respective networks in Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, and other regions. The series was first broadcast in English on Amimax's Southeast Asia network starting August 1, 2006.[24][25]
The anime featured numerous sponsors, including clothing brands we, adidas, Head Porter, visvim and Sally Scott, as well as Weider in Jelly in the second season.[22]
FUNimation got the broadcast rights to Viz Media's dub and it premiered on the FUNimation Channel on September 19, 2009. [26]
The series was adapted as a live-action feature film produced by Asmik Ace Entertainment. It was directed by Masahiro Takada from a screenplay by Masahiko Kawahara and Masahiro Takada, and starred Sakurai Sho as Takemoto, Yū Aoi as Hagu, Yūsuke Iseya as Morita, Ryō Kase as Mayama, and Megumi Seki as Ayumi.[27] It was released in Japanese theaters on July 22, 2006. The DVD for the film was released on January 12, 2007.[28]
A Japanese television drama adaptation of the series premiered on January 8, 2008. It aired every Tuesday at 21:00 JST for 11 episodes on Fuji TV until March 18, 2008. Written by Kaneko Shigeki, and directed by Masaki Tanamura and Hiroaki Matsuyama, the show starred starred Toma Ikuta as Takemoto, Riko Narumi as Hagumi, Hiroki Narimiya as Morita, Osamu Mukai as Mayama, and Natsuki Harada as Ayumi.[29] The music for the series was provided by Shōgo Kaida, Keiichi Miyako (SOPHIA) and Shin Kōno, while the theme song to the series was "Canvas" by the Japanese R&B singer Ken Hirai. A DVD set was released for the series on July 11, 2008.[29]
The Taiwanese television drama adaptation, Feng Mi Xing Yun Cao (蜂蜜幸運草), premiered on May 25, 2008 on CTS. It aired on Sundays at 22:00 on until August 31, 2008. It was produced by Huang Zhi Ming and directed by Li Yun Chan. The show starred Lego Li as An Zhu Ben (Takemoto), Chiaki Ito as Hua Ben Yu (Hagumi), Eddie Peng as Ren Sen Tian (Morita), Joe Cheng as Den Zhen Shan (Mayama), and Janine Chang as He Ya Gong (Ayumi).[30]
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