The Color Of Water

Earlier this year, First Second released the first part of Kim Dong Hwa’s masterful manhwa, The Story of Life on the Golden Fields in an English version called The Color Of Earth. The story chronicled the life of Ehwa, a girl growing up in 19th Century Korea, as well as her widowed mother. Today, the second part of the trilogy has been released as The Color Of Water ($16.95).

Anybody who has not read The Color Of Earth will not be too lost, since Kim does an excellent job making the story accessible to newcomers. It helps that both of Ehwa’s would-be love interests from the previous book – the monk Chung-Myung and scholar Sunoo – have been removed from the stage. In their place is Duksam, a young wrestler who becomes smitten with Ehwa. While the two teenagers get to know each other, Ehwa’s unnamed mother continues her romance with the “Picture Man,” a traveling artist who pops into town every now and then to make her heart race.

Kim maintains his excellence in telling Ehwa’s story as she grows, as he writes more metaphors about flowers and womanhood. There are more appearances by Bongsoon, a friend of Ehwa who comes off as annoying and a little perverted. It is through Bongsoon, however, Ehwa learns a few lessons about “being an adult”; one scene in particular might seem racy at first glance, yet it is tastefully done. Kim also throws in a few antagonists into the mix for the first time: Duksam’s Master Cho and a village shaman. Since Ehwa awakens a part of Cho that isn’t exactly his heart, he seeks to buy Ehwa’s hand in marriage, much to the horror and disgust of her mother. It is almost amusing to see Cho and the shaman make their case, not believing that a young girl such as Ehwa could be anything else except a burden.

Artistically, Kim remains constant. His work ranges from the occasional cartoon-like facial expressions to the detailed scenery of the village and surrounding areas. This is a graphic novel for anybody in particular; even those who don’t read graphic novels are served with an after-story breakdown of how the format works, as well as discussion questions the first two volumes. So far, Kim’s first two installments in the trilogy have been superb. With The Color Of Heaven due out in September, Ehwa’s story will be coming to an end, but it will be an end that all graphic novel readers must buy.

-Jason Borelli