Hi, I’m Laura Mucciarone! I’m a certified educator in the state of Texas that loves art and literature. When I’m not being monopolized by children, my own or others, I’m holed away in a quiet space devouring as much shojo manga as I can get my hands on. My other hobbies include cooking, drawing, watching anime or playing good RPGs. I get my writing fix by posting opinions on various series at Heart of Manga, my shojo manga review website.

BOYS OVER FLOWERS: JEWELRY BOX

BY YOKO KAMIO • VIZ • 176 pp. • RATING: TEEN

Yoko Kamio’s shojo series Boys Over Flowers ran in Japanese publication Margaret from October 1992 to September 2003. The final volume, translated as Boys Over Flowers: Jewelry Box, is the long-awaited conclusion to this eleven-year series. Since this volume is an epilogue to the series Boys Over Flowers, some spoilers may be mentioned within this review. No whining — you’ve been warned!

Boys Over Flowers: Jewelry Box begins with main heroine Makino Tsukushi arriving in France for a wedding. We are informed that it’s been almost a year since the closing of the final volume of Boys Over Flowers, and Tsukushi has just graduated high school. While in France she meets up with the F4, the group of wealthy, high society boys who dominated her high school years. This includes Tsukasa Domyoji, whom Tsukushi seriously dated until he graduated and left for New York, promising to come back for her in four years. The two are reunited after a year apart and Tsukasa declares he wants a commitment from Tsukushi. The next two short story segments, “Shall I Talk About Myself – Parts 1 and 2,” are from the perspective of Rui Hanazawa, the boy in the F4 that Tsukushi first fell in love with. Now three years later, Rui has accepted his own love for Tsukushi, even though he knows she loves Tsukasa. He still is around in her daily life in Japan to support her. When he finally accepts what his place in Tsukushi’s heart is, he is able to dedicate himself to watching over Tsukushi and Tsukasa’s relationship for the sake of their happiness. He sets a plan in motion to unite the couple at long last.

I first planned to read this story as a stand alone, and review the volume itself. Yet my initial impressions of the characters in Boys Over Flowers: Jewelry Box left me confused as to why the author would write such a long-running story to this particular conclusion. Although my opinion of this volume would not have changed at all, I knew there would be loyal fans of the series out there.  So to placate all of you, I went back and did my homework. I did a marathon read of Boys Over Flowers. After all of the emotional, exasperating events of that series, I was left with the same feelings as when I’d only read Jewelry Box.

When I imagine all the hate mail that Yoko Kamio must have received for volume thirty-six of Boys Over Flowers, it’s no wonder she was encouraged to write Jewelry Box.  If you were hoping for a satisfying ending to Kamio’s soap opera-worthy series about these two angsty teens from opposite backgrounds, you’re going to be annoyed. Sure, there’s a wedding, but sorry, it’s not for our main couple. Maybe Kamio thought she could appease readers by letting Tsukushi finally wear the prom dress from volume thirty-six. No? Well, there’s an exchange between Tsukasa and Rui acknowledging their feelings for Tsukushi. We discover that poor Rui is a teensy bit bitter that Tsukushi doesn’t care that he’s dating another girl. When Tsukushi has an accident because she’s distracted by Rui’s emotions, Rui guiltily rushes to Tsukushi’s side at the hospital. Tsukasa shows up too, only to be turned down once again by Tsukushi. Fickle girl, make up your mind! We’re finally thrown a bone at the very end of the volume. It’s not what most shojo fans would accept as a happily ever after; doubts abound thanks to the way Kamio wrote Tsukushi and Tsukasa’s characters. In their relationship, it seems, nothing’s ever final.

If I had to choose one thing that this volume has going for it, that would be the artwork. Kamio has a good handle on paneling, and her character designs are pleasing to look at. She has a fine grasp of toning — sparkly in just the right places and effective enough to set the right mood for the scene. Also, her sense of perspective is good. I really enjoyed the scenes of France and Italy, as her drawings were quite accurate and detailed. If you’ve invested time into this series, then Jewelry Box is a necessary read to get any kind of fulfillment. If this is your first introduction to the series, my advice is don’t bother. The volume itself doesn’t stand alone well, and if you decide to read the rest of the series, you will only end up disappointed in the end.

Boys Over Flowers: Jewelry Box will be available October 13, 2009. Special thanks to Laura Mucciarone for her wonderful guest review! She’ll be posting a full series review of Boys Over Flowers at her site Heart of Manga soon, so be sure to subscribe to her RSS feed so you don’t miss it!

Review copy provided by VIZ Media, LLC.