The relationship between the handsome, rich and ostensibly perfect Seung-Ha and the sad sack, clumsy and unfortunate Nan-Woo continues to mystify.
Creative Talent:
Writer/Artist: YoungHee Lee
Translation: Jackie Oh
What They Say
Seung-Ha is a model student, star athlete and every girl in school would love to be on his arm. But Nan-Woo sees a different side of Seung-Ha that no one else does. However, the meaner he is to her, the more she puts on a brave face, and this only makes him like her more. To make the relationship even more complicated, Nan-Woo’s mother openly disapproves of Seung-Ha and it all comes to a head at Nan-Woo’s birthday partyà
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
This volume, containing some very nice color pages, opens with what seems to be a staple of manga and manhwa – the school sports meet. Seung-Ha is in charge of the meet and in his pissy mood he gives students the most inappropriate assignments for his own amusement. Especially singled out is Chang-Gyu, the guy who likes Nan-Woo and who remains in the background watching over her; Seung-Ha removes him from the basketball team and places him in wrestling and the 1000- meter relay. Everybody is hating this and her fellow students entreat Nan-Woo to intercede with Seung-Ha, but he isn’t talking to her either. Nan-Woo shows that she can give him hell when she wants to, but this is tempered by her admission that while she hates him, she still really likes him. The sports meet ends with Seung-Ha doing a star turn on the basketball court for which he is extended praise by Chang-Gyu. This extension of a hand of friendship doesn’t matter, Seung-Ha still hates him.
Seung-Ha and Nan-Woo resume their uneasy relationship, one in which Seung-ha throws some crumbs of kindness towards Nan-Woo and she gets to slave it up. One day at the school day’s end, Seung-Ha sees Nan-Woo approached by an older guy in an attempt to embrace her. He intervenes to protect his property/slave only to find out that Nan-Woo’s attacker is none other than her mother, Jae-Yung, returned from the road with her band.
After a bit of a showdown between Seung-Ha and Jae-Yung, where each realizes how much alike they are, the subject of Nan-Woo’s birthday party comes up and Jae-Yung invites Seung-Ha to the party. Jae-Yung, who has picked up on Seung-Ha’s slick persona and is suspicious as to why Seung-Ha is interested in her daughter, decides to let this play out.
In Summary:
The party, catered by Nan-Woo’s uncle Jay, is a long drawn out affair that ceases to be amusing once the family dynamics are played out. Yes, Nan-Woo and her mother express affection through fighting, often physically, but this goes on way too long, is unfunny, and doesn’t further the story, which desperately needs to start on some exposition as to why Seung-Ha is involved with Nan-Woo. We have seen some clues in previous volumes and this volume provides a hint about a woman from Seung-Ha’s past whom he wants to forget. Let’s hope the next volume can satisfy the reader’s curiosity.
Content Grade: C
Art Grade: B
Packaging Grade: B
Text/Translation Grade: B
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: January 6th, 2009
MSRP: $10.99
