Encourage the pioneering spirit
WI MUN-HEEThe author is a national 2 team reporter of the JoongAng Ilbo.
Novel comics are webtoons based on original web novels. It is a new kind of online content created in 2016, as the webtoon industry was developing in Korea. Production companies and platforms prefer novel comics because web novels have existing readers and creating webtoons based on the novels is less likely to fail.
As novel comics are based on web novels, the webtoons inevitably have to follow the popular web novel genres. The success formula in the web novel industry is regression, possession (by a spirit) and reincarnation. The web novel “Debut or Die,” popular among teens these days, is a story that deals with possession. The protagonist, studying for a civil exam for four years, is possessed by the spirit of an aspiring idol and becomes a popular idol. Since “Debut or Die” began its webtoon series in August, it has gotten more than 3 million views a day.
Regression, possession and reincarnation is not just a trend in Korea. Since the 2010s, comics about “another world” started to pour out from Japan. In “Uncle from Another World,” the protagonist, an ordinary man, moves to another world and becomes a hero. Whether the story is about regression, possession and reincarnation or another world, it is essentially a fantasy. The young generation has a strong tendency of finding refuge from reality in fantasy and seeking vicarious satisfaction from cartoon characters.
The webtoon industry is concerned that as popular webtoons are concentrated on a specific genre, drawing styles become similar and the number of “original” works decrease. I am not saying the fantasy genre is bad. “Four Daughters of Armian,” a manga by Shin Il-sook published in 1986, is set in the fictional kingdom of Armian, where only women can be enthroned. The series features strong female characters that could hardly be found in romance comics at the time. The manga series pioneered a new female narrative. At first, the publisher recommended Shin draw a “modern story” as usual. “If I had a hit in the past, I would go for something safe. In the end, the publisher let me do as I wish, and I could work on it,” said Shin.
If you only revisit webtoons on certain days of the week and only read the most popular ones, you may not even know if there are better works on other days. It is also the responsibility of webtoon readers to encourage webtoon writers and the pioneering spirit of the webtoon industry.
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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