Twenty-something Jang Geu-rae has been struggling to adapt to One International, a global trading firm.

He is not a college graduate -- he barely finished high school but instead focused on baduk, and he doesn’t speak English nor has any computer skills. His colleagues are all highly educated, carrying around various certifications and qualifications. It intimidates Jang from time to time, but he keeps learning and learning without complaint, facing trials and errors and moving forward to becoming a “valuable trader.”

If you sympathize with Jang and are cheering for him, you might be one of the 1.2 million daily readers of the webtoon, “Misaeng,” through portal Daum, where Jang appears as the protagonist. The everyday struggle of the rookie has long been the drama for all salaried workers who have lived, are currently living or will live his life. 

It’s not only Jang Geu-rae but thousands of characters in webtoons, or comics published online, are loved by Koreans who have wider and easier access to the Internet. Naver, which started its webtoon service in 2005, currently has more than 120 posted every week and Daum, which launched its webtoon section in 2003, has more than 70 weekly webtoons. And both companies has more than 150 million page views a month with an average of 3,000 comments per episode posted by readers.

“Nowadays hardly anyone reads comic books. Webtoons have absorbed all the readers and have even created new fans,” said Professor Lee Hae-kwang, dean of Sangmyung University College of Design.


Rejection led to webtoons

Field experts agree that this unique form of cartoons displayed on the web, released regularly in episodes mostly through portal sites, was developed by Kang Full, who is now dubbed the godfather of webtoons.

In an interview, Kang confessed that webtoons were not his prime choice.

“Back in 2002 I was stripped and wanted a chance to be known badly. I submitted several manuscripts to magazines but they all turned me down saying my drawings were sloppy. Then I turned to webtoons, which was then something for etude among amateur cartoonists. And that’s how I started,” he said.

Kang’s rough and “unbeautiful” drawings with strong political or social messages quickly grabbed people’s attention and he quickly became the star of Daum’s Manhwasok Sesang (Cartoon World).

“Kang’s case represents the character of webtoons -- anybody can join in and if people like you, you are a star,” Lee said.

After the “fall” of comic books allegedly due to illegal scanning and redistribution, some of the noted cartoonists moved to the new world and enhanced webtoons’ reputation. Acclaimed cartoonists Huh Young-man, Yun Tae-ho, Hwang Mi-na, Cheon Gye-young and others, who have a solid fan base already, joined hands with Daum and started a new career.


Easy access

The primary reason for the remarkable growth of webtoons is the easy access. According to the Jungbu Ilbo newspaper, Korea’s Internet penetration rate as of 2009 was 95.9 percent and OECD acknowledged that the Wibro penetration rate here marked 100.6 percent, double the OECD average.

“Now that Koreans own more than 20 million smartphones they can read cartoons easily, everywhere,” said Kim Byong-ho, a Korea Creative Contents Agency officer.

“The fact that it takes less than three minutes to scan over an episode is quite attractive,” said Park Young-ho, a 34-year-old office worker. “After lunch when you are a bid dozy, sipping coffee and scrolling down to read a webtoon is a good way to recharge your energy.”

“I read it in subway during my commute with my tablet PC. All I need to do is touch the screen and scroll down. How simple can you be?” said 25-year-old university student Lee Ji-eun.

The fact that webtoons are free is a big merit, too. Portals have no plans to charge their users for looking into one of the biggest netizens’ attractions.

“Webtoons are an important asset of Daum. It is original content and it differentiates Daum from other websites. It is directly related to the competitiveness of the company, too,” said Lee Seul-gi, a Daum spokeswoman.


Variety of topics

“I don’t think people read webtoons to kill time,” said Lee So-young, PR officer of Naver. “They read it because it is intriguing. Each piece is different but at some point relatable to the readers’ lives,” she added.

“Gyeolhonhaedo Ttokgatne (I’m Married and I Like It)” portrays the joy of marriage through a struggling cartoonist couple. Ju Ho-min’s “Shingwa Hamkkae (With God)” satirizes the world through the eyes of God, a messenger from Hell and others, depicting afterlife. Cho Kyung-kyu’s “Omurice Jam Jam” depicts a loving family of four who tracks down Korean soul food. “Maeumeui Sori (Voice Within)” is a typical slapstick cartoon but speaks up about social issues such as unemployment, isolation in society and others.

“Youthful and smart people have come to the webtoon industry and are offering various topics to readers. They are fresh and contemporary. It is a good thing,” professor Lee said.

As diverse as they are, all webtoons have one thing in common -- they are relatable to their loyal fans.

“Everyone has fond memories of sharing food with their families. I think my work has touched that soft spot,” Cho said.

“I have managed to catch a glimpse of it when I was watching a TV documentary. I think people find my work fun not only because of a funny storyline but also because everyone has a fear of death,” Ju said as explaining the reason to the phenomenal success of his work, which is signed off to become motion picture and translated to other languages.


Made for attraction

Just as comic books amp up the drama in the ending of each book to attract more readers for the next volume, webtoonists use a similar method, too. They carefully juggle the gap between pictures to elevate the thrill.

“I try to control the phase. I calculate the gap between each scene. Readers are now exposed to various webtoons and in order to hold up to them you need careful planning,” Yun Tae-ho said.

Regular posting also holds readers. Every day, people visit the portal sites to read the latest updates of their favorite webtoons. If the authors or websites managers are late, they face fierce complaints from the fans.

“They are fed regularly at the same time. They are addicted to it,” said professor Lee.


Fad or boom?

Whether webtoons have longevity is still under debate. Professor Lee is dubious.

“The webtoon itself will remain but I doubt whether people will love it this much in the future. I see many other options for entertainment rising and the quality of webtoons is going down because too many webtoonists-aspirants who have proven little talent are increasing with stimulating and less-respectful storylines,” he said.

Ju differed. “I think webtoons will go on forever. Maybe in the future we will not be reading it on smartphones or ipads. But people will be reading this interesting type of cartoon for a long time because they can truly relate to it and use their imagination for it,” he said.

By Bae Ji-sook (baejisook@heraldcorp.com)