Because Hijinks Are Better When Multiplied By Four

Review: I.N.V.U.

Manwha/Fandom

Reviewed by: Lianne

Title rating: 13+ due to some typical teenage romance content

-3+ manwha volumes, originally ran in Korea (2001-present), translated into English by Tokyopop (2002-present), all still running

We need more international comics in America. The Japanese manga invasion has undoubtedly taken America by storm, but the more of an international flavor we can introduce to our publishing industry, the better. I heard a manga fan once say why she liked Korean titles: she was so used to Japanese manga that a change of name styles and different cultural elements in her comics held that fresh new appeal Japanese manga originally gave us American-comic-readers in the first place.

Korean comics have slowly seeped into our comic market the past few years, pretty much starting with the fantastic manwha (Korean manga) Island and branching out from there. From the leading company in manwha exposure (Tokyopop--leader of most everything these days) we have I.N.V.U., the first Korean shoujo in America. I read it, originally, for that reason alone. Now I read it because it's one of the most clever and subtle love stories you can find this side of the Pacific...and because no girl can resist a bishounen on roller blades.

Manwha

For clarification, I.N.V.U.'s third volume hit American bookshelves in the summer of 2003 and we're still without a fourth. I've been informed that the Korean version of Volume 4 hasn't been completed yet and will hopefully be out sometime in the future, but it looks like all of us who agonized over the late release of Paradise Kiss Volume 5 are in for another round of Power Waiting.

I.N.V.U. follows the adventures of four Korean girls as they try to reach their dreams in high school, something all of us in reality have discovered to be a complete waste of time. Sey is our female lead, a fairly jaded, intelligent heroine with a girlishly sentimental side and an uncanny talent at playing Hard-To-Get. Her roommate is Hali, a brooding and boyish beauty pretending to be her dead brother and thus keep the fragile mind of her delusional mother in check (don't ask), and her two closest friend are Rea and Jae Eun, a talented and savvy model wannabe and a cheerful otaku with a thing for pretty-boy pastry chefs, respectively. The story begins when Sey's mother, a famous and very embarrassing writer, moves to Italy and leaves Sey to live with Hali and Hali's family--but the plot device simply serves as a springboard for the reader to enter the lives of the four main protagonists. I.N.V.U. isn't about plot, it's about life.

Don't get me wrong. This manwha takes a very dangerous route--often-shifting goals, multiple main characters with varying focus, and plenty of unoriginal shoujo hooks--and pulls off a series so fantastic that at first I wondered if it succeeded by mistake. Multiple readings have proven to me that Kim Kang Won is a brilliant mangaka (artist/writer) who knows how to subtly pull in a new audience and give seasoned shoujo fans a run for their money.

Case in point: when Sey first moves in with Hali, Hali is masquerading as a boy and treating Sey with cold indifference and cruelty. As Sey is infuriated and completely preoccupied with the beautiful "boy" driving her crazy, she has a few run-ins with Siho, the hot bad boy at school who seems to carry a flame for her. Her feelings for the dangerous Siho are mixed, but she even puts him higher than that gorgeous jerk she's living with. This is a typical shoujo plot device--Siho is the right boy for Sey, but Hali, despite "his" infuriating nature, will eventually develop a hate-then-love relationship with Sey. The catch? Shortly afterward Sey discovers that Hali is a girl, and her preoccupation drops immediately as she slowly begins her hate-then-love relationship with Siho.

Fake-out! Brilliance!

Hajun, the Hot Teacher. Although his love story with Hali is melodramatic and aggravating, its place in the manga is to keep ahold of the many teenage readers who crave that sort of thing.

But rather than write a 50-page essay on the nuance of this manwha, trust me when I say the story is very, very well crafted. As long as a reader has nothing against a plot revolving around being a high school girl, I.N.V.U. can masterfully pull any reader into its witty, appealing tangles without infuriating its audience with typical love-story annoyances. It's rare that a reader will find herself hating any of the four main girls--rarer still that she'll be wishing for anything but Rea's success and Jae Eun's happiness. The cast and story are so subtle and well-meaning that it's hard not to develop a strong liking for them.

Despite what I've heard others claim, however, the art in this manwha isn't "good." Here we have a typical example of people confusing "good" with "appealing"--Won's artwork is inconsistent, her bodies somewhat stiff, and her sloppiness apparent far too often. However, as anyone who reads Mark Shallow's work knows, art with personality can be far more fun than lush art devoid of feeling, and here we have a prime example of artwork lacking in technical quality but overflowing with life. Character designs, hairstyles, clothing, and facial expressions in I.N.V.U. all reflect the laid-back attitude and fun-loving honesty of the story itself. Although a bit less sloppiness would have been appreciated, Won's art works for her manwha and very rarely detracts from the enjoyment of it.

And although it pains me to say this (as I absolutely love the editor who handled this title), the Tokyopop English script is also rather sloppy. An obscene overuse of ellipses is its biggest fault, since its slightly rambly quality actually worked pretty well for the story--like the art, the English script is sufficient for the overall manwha but comes off as a little unprofessional. The art and script of I.N.V.U. have a cutesy amateurish appeal that extends just a bit too far for a manga on the cutthroat international market.

Fandom

Forget it. Despite the very decent popularity of I.N.V.U. Stateside, finding any fanwork beside a smattering of information and an excess of online reviews is next to impossible. There's a cute little Italian fanpage here, and the Sequential Tart reports and Anime Fringe review are also worth a look, but I bemoan the lack of fun and image-filled shrines for this title (which the weak pictures present on this review reflect).

For a few fun facts, though, the newly-contracted Rising Stars of Manga 2 finalist Tania del Rio draws in a style very heavily influenced by I.N.V.U., and Kim Kang Won herself had a book signing in California through Tokyopop a year or two ago...so although this title's influence may be subtle here in the West, make no mistake that it's certainly made its mark.

No shoujo is complete without the Chick In A Cowboy Hat.

Overview

I.N.V.U. is a very good manwha. Tasteful, understated, and almost always likable, at first glance its many appealing qualities seem to hint at a mangaka with good intentions but a lot of luck--don't let that fool you. Kim Kang Won is a terribly clever woman and every little plot twist and cutesy hair barrette is placed with utmost precision to pull you in. Despite its noticeable art and English script flaws, kudos to this title for proving the story in a girls comic can appeal to its readers subconsciously as much as it does consciously. 3.8 stars out of 5.