Welcome to the third edition of K-Comic Beat’s Monthly Manhwa Recs! Our team has come together to provide you with a variety of recommendations to sample. If you check them out, be sure and let us know what you think of them in the comment section!
A Villainess’ Revenge is Sweeter Than Honey ⸺ A Villainess’ Revenge is Sweeter Than Honey by Jiyonnu and MUSO tells the story of Alexandra, the female lead who rises to become the empress of the Reyes Empire by helping her husband, Prince Kleio, ascend to the throne. However, once Kleio becomes emperor, he betrays her. On her deathbed, Alexandra prays desperately for a chance to take revenge on her husband. Her prayers are miraculously answered, and she wakes up six years in the past…on the day she married Prince Kleio.
I absolutely adore villainess stories. It doesn’t matter if the leads are ruthless, redeemed, petty, kind, or anywhere in between—I just really enjoy them. One of my favorite aspects of A Villainess’ Revenge is Sweeter Than Honey is how Alexandra refuses to let go of her (very justified) grudge against her husband. She follows through with her quest for closure, and it’s incredibly satisfying. While I do enjoy stories about personal growth, it’s always a little frustrating when a scumbag male lead gets a pass in their second chance just because. Alexandra, on the other hand, is calculating, clever, and relentless in getting what she wants. Yet, she’s far from heartless. Beneath her sharp exterior lies a deeply vulnerable, soft side that craves genuine affection. This complexity makes her such a compelling character.
A Villainess’ Revenge is Sweeter Than Honey is complete on Pocket Comics, featuring 108 episodes, including seven side stories. It is also available to read on Tappytoon. ⸺ HK
The Emperor is HARD to Please! by FANTAMANI and JEONGHA (Tappytoon) ⸺ On the surface, young, wealthy and handsome emperor Eric Dyk has it all—every nook and cranny of his estate swarm with rumors of his wild sexcapades. In truth, he’s been battling the cruel ailment that is erectile dysfunction for the past year. A chance encounter with Candy, a foul-mouthed, spirited maid who lives by the motto “tough love” teaches Eric’s “Dyk” one thing or two about pleasure.
Yes, it’s as pleasantly ridiculous as it sounds. I stumbled upon this completed, short, Mature-rated VSC today and gave it a chance for the heck of it. And although I’m only a handful of chapters in, I still wanted to mention it here in case someone is in need of some escapist entertainment this week. It’s kinky, it’s hilarious, and I don’t think you can find any other comic with the spectacular line that is “Stop making beats with someone else’s butt!” I mean, Shakespeare who??!! ⸺ MG
I Refuse to be Executed a Second Time ⸺ I Refuse to Be Executed a Second Time, written by Barusamiko and produced by Studio SORAJIMA, tells the story of Ella Walker, who regresses ten years into the past after being executed due to her wicked stepsisters’ schemes. Determined to change her fate, Ella steps down as the prince’s fiancée and focuses on reviving the land entrusted to her as its lord. However, her plan for a quiet life is derailed by her stepsister Isabella’s relentless efforts to sabotage her happiness, forcing Ella to take charge of her destiny rather than passively hoping for the best.
When I first started reading I Refuse to Be Executed a Second Time, I wasn’t immediately hooked. The opening episodes felt a bit slow, and I found Prince Gil’s weak character somewhat irritating. But I stuck with it, and I’m glad I did. Throughout Season 1, most of the characters (Isabella being the obvious exception, lol) experience tremendous growth, becoming much more compelling and relatable. The romance between the leads is a slow burn, but it feels wholesome and perfectly complements the plot. If you enjoy regression stories where good triumphs over evil and a strong heroine takes control of her fate, this webcomic is definitely worth checking out on Pocket Comics! ⸺ HK
Like Mother, Like Daughter ⸺ This was one of two Korean comics series that won 2024’s Today’s Our Manhwa Award and had an English translation, so of course I had to check it out. Like Mother, Like Daughter is a thriller comic by YIDAHM that is currently being serialized on Webtoon. It starts with a strong hook: the young heroine, Somyoung, suspects that her overbearing single mom murdered her younger brother. Even worse, her mom knows that she knows! Her only option is to study hard enough to be recruited into a high-profile boarding school so that she might escape her influence. But will escaping the cycle of violence and control really be that easy?
YIDAHM’s sense for pacing and the art of the cliffhanger would be enough to ensure Like Mother, Like Daughter’s popularity. What elevates the series, though, is in the title. Somyoung is a lot more like her mom than she would like to admit. Worse, her mother isn’t the only abuser; societal sexism, classism and corruption all affect Somyoung’s life as well as those of her classmates. These aren’t new ideas, but YIDAHM interweaves them seamlessly with the thriller narrative. Every episode brings new horrors (I can’t believe my girl just did that!!!) yet demands that you turn the page.
If I have a critique to make of Like Mother, Like Daughter, it’s that the art is much worse than the script. The backgrounds are the same generic 3D assets you’d find in any contemporary WEBTOON Original. Meanwhile, the character designs aren’t particularly inspired aside from Somyoung’s eldritch mother. I couldn’t help but think reading the series that a transformative TV adaptation (that kept the story’s rough edges rather than sanding them away) could kick it to the next level. I’ve heard that later seasons of the comic go to even more outrageous places, though, so we’ll see! ⸺ AW
Kids Are All Right ⸺ Are you bored of romantasy, isekai and villainess webcomics? Want to read a series that strips out the gloss and production values of the modern WEBTOON in favor of the bare minimum? Then check out Kids Are All Right by HP56, a relic of the time when WEBTOON was still testing the waters for what readers outside of South Korea wanted to read.
Kids Are All Right tells the down-to-earth story of a young boy named Dai who lives with his absent father. His mother is dying in the hospital; every day Dai does his best with what he has. It sounds like a depressing read, and it can be. But Kids Are All Right is, in a way, life-affirming. Dai’s peers treat each other well. The adults are trying to be better. HP56’s art, which is often nothing more than black and white circles and shapes, capture Dai’s childlike view of the world while suggesting the unsparing realities he doesn’t quite know how to deal with yet.
HP56 would go on to draw the series Middle School Girl A (about a high school outcast) and Push-Off (about a girl who grew up in a cult but goes to live with her half-sister) among others. Middle School A in particular became a hit in South Korea and was even adapted into a film. Yet HP56’s work is far removed from what WEBTOON thinks readers in the United States care about. It’s too bad, because Kids Are All Right is a diamond in the rough. It’s the WEBTOON equivalent of a classic newspaper comic like For Better Or Worse; you’ll be so busy smiling you won’t notice you’re crying until the end. ⸺ AW
Love in Session ⸺ Love in Session by YERANG and SEUNG9 just launched on Webtoon in English a few weeks ago, but it’s already super cute! I have a weakness for dating reality TV shows, and this series, with its keen awareness of how artificial the manufactured reality of shows like this is and absolutely adorable art, called to me immediately. Woori’s uncle is the producer of the most popular teen dating show on TV, so when he offers her best friend and secret crush Woojin a role on the new season, Woori takes advantage of her connections to get a spot and use the romantic setting to convince Woojin to date her. Except when the first episode starts, Woojin is nowhere to be seen. Instead, there’s an idol trainee who seems to hate her for no reason, a very friendly actor, and beautiful girls with inscrutable motivations.
So far, I’m really liking how all of the kids on the show seem to have more going on beyond their surface impressions, and how Woori is both a Relatable Normal Girl and very funny in her devotion to her many goals (stay on the show, get the boy, try not to embarrass herself or her producer uncle, etc). And the art style really is almost too cute. Honestly, this is one of those manhwa that feels like a pitch for a live-action TV show. But it’s well-constructed enough in its own right that I’m happy to keep reading it until the inevitable adaptation ends up on streaming. ⸺ MZ
Come back next month for more manhwa recs! Click here to check out every entry of the column.
