Color of Heaven V3

 

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The Color of Heaven was written by Kim Dong Hwa and published by First Second in 2009. It was previously published in 2003. This is the beautiful conclusion to his coming-of-age manhwa trilogy, The Color of Earth. Note there is some sexual content in this volume.

Compared to the first two volumes, Color of Heaven is a bit slower in story. Duksam leaves the village after burning his master's fields in revenge of the old man trying to buy Ehwa's marriage when he knew Duksam wanted to marry her. Afterwards, both Ehwa and her mother spend most of the book waiting for their men to return. There is a lot of talk about waiting and longing, and a woman's curse is "planting love in our hearts."

We also see pieces of other people's relationships. Ehwa's friend, Bongsoon, is having sexual relations with one of the village boys, Dongchul, complete with euphemisms. We also see what the husband's family is supposed to do after the bride comes to live with them, and what happens when the young woman is married for status and not love-- a young man is beaten, possibly to death for loving someone above his station. Ehwa's mother brings up an interesting point here. Marriages may be arranged by social station but "since when is love a sin?" This is where the image of the fire butterfly comes into play since women are flowers and men are butterflies, but the fire butterfly has a short life (a deep love or passion for a single flower).

There's some long-distance courting between Duksam and Ehwa and her mother talks to her about what marriage will bring. Ehwa will leave her home, her mother, and her village to be with her husband. She also starts teaching Ehwa how to be a housewife. 

Finally, Duksam returns and he and Ehwa are engaged. This is the point I like the most. While realizing what it'll mean for her and her mother once she is married, Ehwa visits the other two men she'd liked in the past, Chung-myung, the monk and young master Sunoo with the orchards. It's a nice reminder of how much she's grown up.

The book ends with Ehwa's wedding and her wedding night with Duksam. While this is an explicit scene, I think it's done respectfully. There are no details on the drawings, everything is covered by angles or blankets, and frames are often cut just above any inappropriate images. The scene is juxtaposed with an older farmer and his wife attempting to rekindle their love through sex. It's a drastic difference from the romantic love of Ehwa's first time.

Over all, this is a very sweet conclusion to the story. Ehwa has grown up, found love, and realizes things ma not always be perfect but she is happy. My only complaint with this volume is how slow the opening and middle are. there's not much going on between Duksam's escape and his return and I feel like there's only so many times I can be told "waiting is the hardest part."

The art style is nice and simple, which limits some of the facial expressions, but i think it also helps how more with more respect to the characters and the people they are based on (remember, this is based on Dong Hwa's mother's life) than many other styles.

Very good and a definite read for anyone who has read the first two volumes. 

I am an affiliate with Z Publishing House. I do get a small commission from any items purchased through this link: http://www.zpublishinghouse.com?rfsn=1831564.e6264