Highlights
- Key Takeaways:
- The manhwa medium has gained worldwide acclaim and has shaped the world of Korean comics, attracting global attention to the industry.
- Manhwa like Sweet Home, Kubera, and The Boxer have garnered unprecedented acclaim for their engaging storytelling and distinct art styles.
- True Beauty, Noblesse, and Solo Leveling are among the most popular manhwa series due to their well-written stories, enduring appeal, and impact on the medium.
The manhwa medium, before gaining worldwide acclaim, was only preferable to a streamlined audience, a select few. The global perspective of the medium has now shifted through the exploits of some of its works, which have played crucial roles in shaping and defining the world of Korean comics.
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Boasting distinct aesthetics and a capturing presence, these manhwa have influenced the later generation of creators and offered insight into manhwa’s ever-expanding potential. Cutting across multiple genres and subgenres, these manhwa, through their engaging storytelling and distinct art styles, have garnered unprecedented acclaim and appeal to the point of shifting global attention toward the manhwa industry, allowing for the industry’s growth at a rather impressive rate. Here are some of the manhwa that fit into the classical criteria.
10 Sweet Home
| Author/ Illustrator | Kim Carnby / Hwang Young-Chan |
| Genre | Horror, Thriller, Action, Drama, Suspense |
| Chapters | 141 |
Sweet Home is one of the first names of the horror genre for manhwa and for all the right reasons due to its distinct art style and wildly thrilling plotline. The manhwa made so much of an impact on the genre that it received a Netflix live adaption. The series is created by the brains behind another popular thriller, Bastard. Sweet Home follows the life of Cha Hyun-Soo, a suicidal teenager who, after the death of his family, leaves his family home and moves into a new apartment complex.
Things start to go awry when the complex’s occupants, Hyun-Soo included, experience weird and abnormal symptoms. Hyun-Soo soon realizes the world is no longer as he knew and is now going through the Monster apocalypse, where people turn into monsters that reflect their deepest and darkest desires. The stand-out feature of the series is its seamless exploration of heavy themes, all of which are portrayed and examined in a straightforward but deep context.
9 Kubera
| Author/ Illustrator | Currygom |
| Genre | Fantasy, Action, Comedy, Adventure, Romance |
| Chapters | Ongoing |
One of the most popular female lead-driven manhwa, Kubera is a staple for the fantasy genre. With a minimalist and straightforward art style, the manhwa tells a tale of revenge, reconciliation, and the otherworldly. The story is set in a fantasy world divided into realms where Gods, Suras, and humans exist.
The plot revolves around Kubera Leez, a young girl whose entire village is destroyed by the monster Sura on her 16th birthday. Having lost her only family and the place where she belonged, she is offered revenge mixed in with salvation after joining hands with a mysterious magician by the name of Asher, and together, both begin their quest for answers. At the same time, across the realms, fates begin to intertwine, and a storm of destiny is brewing, with Kubera at the eye of the storm.
8 The Boxer
| Author/ Illustrator | Jeong Ji-Hoon |
| Genre | Drama, Sports, Action |
| Chapters | 123 |
The Boxer is a fictional documentation of what it means to rise to the pinnacle of Boxing as a sport, specifically from the perspective of a prodigy. Capturing in detail the minuscule intrigues of human differences, relationships, and the primal instinct of supremacy embedded within every person, The Boxer presents a gripping tale of multiple experiences, all leading to a single question.
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The story follows the main character, Yu, a prodigy with an unrivaled talent for boxing but also a boy who has only known pain and emptiness for the more significant part of his young life. With nothing to live for, he is promised a life-changing experience after an encounter with the world-renowned boxing coach, K. What follows is a step-by-step reveal of Yu as an instrument of K’s lifelong philosophy of supremacy. It remains to be seen whether Yu finds something more to life than emptiness and pain, even in the face of all the glory the life of boxing offers.
7 Windbreaker
| Author/ Illustrator | Jo Yeongseok |
| Genre | Action, Drama, Sports |
| Chapters | Ongoing |
Windbreaker, rather than the typical narrations of bullying that are usually infused into high school-themed plotlines, takes its thrills through a sport-like route. The series tells a tale of varied expectations of success from the perspective of a high school student who realizes that his dreams may be something that goes beyond getting good grades in school and taking on the medical field.
The story follows the protagonist, Jay Jo, the perfect model of a high school student who has excellent grades and is even the student council president. On course to become a medical doctor, like his mother wants, his life begins to steer in another direction when he winds up joining his school’s cycling team. A decision that brings back a passion so intense and had once been buried deep.
6 Cheese In the Trap
| Author/ Illustrator | Soonkki |
| Genre | Romance, Drama |
| Chapters | 300 |
Gauging levels of impact among manhwa, it’s hard to look beyond the live-action adaptation series and movie adaptation that the Cheese In The Trap manhwa has received after its publication. One of the first names to be mentioned when it comes to the romance manhwa genre, Cheese In The Trap is an evergreen project that continuously grips attention.
The story revolves around the hardworking and zealous Hong Seol, who returns to college after a year-long break following the coinciding incidents between herself and a senior, Yoo Jung, also known as Mr. Perfect.
This is an occurrence that meant that her life would take a turn for the worse as the story presents an alternation between the events of the past and present that lead up to Hong Seol’s decision to take a break from school. Life, upon her return to college, is going smoothly aside from one thing: Yoo Jung is interested in her. What follows is a complex romantic relationship dynamic of the life of a college student.
5 God of High School
| Author/ Illustrator | Park Yongje |
| Genre | Adventure, Fantasy, Action, Supernatural |
| Chapters | 560 |
Despite receiving mixed reviews following the manhwa’s anime adaptation, The God High School manhwa is a reference point for martial arts manhwa and gained massive popularity following its publication. The manhwa infuses mythical folklore of every kind into a modern and futuristic representation of martial arts layered with supernatural elements.
The manhwa focuses on Jin Mori, a high school taekwondo specialist who gets invited to take part in the national God of Highschool tournament, a martial arts competition held for young martial artists throughout Korea. With the promise of granting any wish to the competition winner, Jin Mori allies himself with Yoo Mira and Han Daewi. Together, they plan to win a competition which will turn out to be the catalyst for an event of planetary proportions.
4 Tower Of God
| Author/ Illustrator | S.I.U. ( Lee Jong Hui) |
| Genre | Action, Dark Fantasy |
| Chapters | Ongoing |
Tower of God, upon its publication, was an instant hit, amassing an unexpected following and popularity, a feat that can be attributed to how well-written it is. The series is an appropriate representation of the fantasy genre due to the richness of its characterization and intricate world-building.
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The manhwa centers around a boy named Twenty-Fifth Baam, who has spent most of his life trapped below the Tower of God, accompanied only by his friend, Rachel. When Rachel leaves and decides to climb the Tower, Baam decides also to climb the Tower to find her and is willing to do whatever it takes. Finally gaining access to climb the Tower, Baam soon finds that his initial reason to climb the Tower might be one of many things the Tower can offer.
3 True Beauty
| Author/ Illustrator: | Yaongyi |
| Genre: | Romance, Comedy, Slice of life, Drama |
| Chapters: | 256 |
True Beauty encapsulates what a successful manhwa should look like, and it gives a more than good representation of the slice-of-life and romance genre. Perfectly blending high school tropes of bullying, loneliness, and acceptance, the manhwa tells a tale of two contrasting lives of the same person.
The story revolves around Ju-Kyung Lim, a teenager treated poorly by her family and even bullied in school for being perceived as ugly. To stop being mistreated, she begins to learn how to use makeup by watching tutorial videos. Her effort pays off as she masters the art of makeovers, and by doing it on herself, she becomes gorgeously attractive to the point where her social standing skyrockets overnight. However, whether she can keep up her attractive appearance forever remains to be answered.
2 Noblesse
| Author/ Illustrator | Son Je-Ho / Lee Kwangsu |
| Genre | Action, Supernatural, Comedy |
| Chapters | 544 |
One of the earliest manhwa to be published, Noblesse stands among the pioneers of supernatural manhwa. The series became very popular for several reasons, but a stand-out one was the portrayal of the character Frankenstein. The series earns its place as a classic due to the impact it generated after its publication, which made a proper representation of the enduring appeal and allure of the manhwa medium, a feat cemented after it received an anime adaptation.
The story follows Rai or Cadiz Etrama Did Raizel, a powerful vampire noble who was asleep for 820 years. Finally awakened in an abandoned building in Seoul, Rai quickly discovers the world is no longer as he once knew. He reunites with his servant, Frankenstein, and tries to have an everyday life by enrolling in high school and making friends, but a life of normalcy will prove to be not so easy to obtain in the presence of great power.
1 Solo Leveling
| Author/ Illustrator: | Chugong / Jang Sung-Rak |
| Genre: | Action, Adventure, Fantasy |
| Chapters: | 200 |
The standout origin hero story, Solo Leveling, gained so much fame after its publication, firstly as a web novel before getting serialized, so much that it began to steer the global gaze towards the direction of the manhwa industry. Considered to be arguably the most popular manhwa of the last decade, the Solo Leveling series is much appreciated for many reasons, ranging from its rather distinct approach to the classical hero trope to its impressive world-building and not to mention its thrilling storyline. The series finally receiving an anime adaptation is a testament to its defining impact on the manhwa industry.
The story takes place in a world where supernatural abilities are now a norm due to the appearance of portals that link the human and monster worlds together. Through this phenomenon, a portion of humans begin to develop special abilities(otherwise known as Hunters)to protect the balance of the world. The story focuses on Sung Jin-Woo, the infamous E-Rank hunter, otherwise known as the weakest hunter, who embarks on a quest to become the strongest after awakening a leveling skill following an unfortunate dungeon raid.
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