Customer Reviews

Bride of the Water God, Vol. 1

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A beautifully drawn manwha/manga, even if some of the images are a bit stilted (one character looks as though the same image has been used and used again in each scene). Lots of lines, carefully drawn, although some might be turned off by such "busy," distracting artwork. And some artwork is just thrown in, without any particular reasoning except to look pretty. Otherwise, a simple story: young lady, sacrificed to water god, who is weak by day so is in the shape of a boy (and he turns into a full man at night, which our leading lady doesn't know, thinks this is two different people, Habaek and Mui). She spends most time just wandering around while everybody else does the action (which shows how sheltered she is here). I wish I could have seen more of her learning about this world, not just simply accepting it (although it is her nature to accept things, it seems). Not a lot of angst here or action. I do wonder what will happen in the next volume. I don't anticipate this being a long story. And, no nudity, sex, or violence.

This book had the most beautiful introduction--a picture of Saoh in her bride-to-be outfit, and colored too! The book's art is absolutely gorgeous, and every page i wanted to just stare at the art in awe. Each character has a unique outfit and facial features(no worrying about who's who!). I thought the flying wolf and the mother of Habaek (Seowangmo) looked especially interesting.
As for the story line, it's entertaining enough to keep one reading. However since this is just the first book in the series, mostly every scene has unanswered questions and mysterious interactions with characters. The characters are still kind of flat, although all interesting and likeable in their own ways. I'm just hoping the second book doesn't turn the plot into a cheasy romance like the tons of other mangas out there.

I am absolutely enchanted by this series already and I've only read the first volume. It's Mi-Kyung Yun's first manwha, so some of the paneling is awkward and the story is a little disjointed (I wonder also if it is in part due to the translation from Korean?) thus far, but shows promise!

The story is darling and I do expect it to be a cheesy shojo romance, but those are the types I love.

This manga, or manhwa if you want to be technical, is very beautifully drawn. Costumes, sceneries, they all look like they took a great deal of attention. I love mythical stories so I thought I'd give this one a try. However, the plot is very meandering. Contrary to a previous reviewer who thinks it'll be a short series because of the lack of plot, I think it'll be a longggg series because of the lack of plot. The plot trickles in every volume and it takes forever for something simple to even develop (I'm on book 6 btw, so it's not like I haven't given it a decent chance).
The idea really has the potential to go somewhere much better. I'm itching to rewrite this entire story. For example, you'd expect to see the young bride adjust to her new home. You'd expect a palpable interaction & bonding between the spouses. You'd expect the bride to wonder at each conflict that arises, to prod further into everything that's happening. Because you know, we'll be on the same journey that she's on. Instead, her main concern is "zomg, i'm married to habaek but i've the hots for mui, but they both've the hots for dead nakbin." Since the main character doesn't take efforts in discovering her world, readers are dependent on flashes of other interactions, which of course involves everyone speaking in codes completed with vague conspiratory smirks. Vol 6 finally moved somewhere but then I realized they moved down the amnesiac road. Honestly? What is with Korean stories and amnesia.
Panel arrangement is also frequently a problem in this manga. I get confused at which action was done by which character, and who's saying what. Transition from scene to scene isn't so continuous and I wonder if this is because the author is still a novice.
I love holding the books in my hand and marvel at the pretty covers. Even the paper material feels so nice. But the superficial in me is no where near the superficial in this story. Best try it out in the bookstore first before buying.

Seriously, the artwork is so amazingly gorgeous that I feel it was worth the price of the book. It kind of had to be, though, because the story wasn't, really. Or maybe it was; I couldn't understand what was going on sometimes. But I'll read Volume 2, and hopefully the story will be better, or at least less confusing. And if nothing else, it will be beautiful to look at.

"Bride of the Water God" is one of my most favorite series. It's beautiful, incredibly so, and the story is intricate and interesting. It uses Korean mythology as a backdrop for a story of romance, tragedy, mystery, power and political intrigue. The sheer beauty of the series is breath-taking. No detail is spared as each character their surroundings are lovingly drawn. Their emotions are treated with the same love and care. Their setting and roles may be fantastical, but they are very realistic in their personalities and behavior. Soah, the main character, is intelligent, loving, and kind. She has the reader hoping that her wishes and dreams will be fulfilled. The Water God is a deep, cold, and mysterious person, yet vulnerable and terribly alone. The rest of the cast is given the same treatment. Each has their own personality, agenda, and needs. Each is sympathetic and believable.

The story is complex, and be confusing if you don't read it very, very carefully. This isn't a light-hearted shojo story. There is a mystery here, and the reader has to pay great attention to what happens in order to understand it. A knowledge of Korean mythology will help as well. The author assumes that the reader has that knowledge in order to focus on the story at hand, but I would have preferred a bit of back story as an introduction. Westerners may have to do some research in order to fully understand the world of Soah and the Water God, but that's not a bad thing. The story starts off a bit slowly, but it does so in order to set the mood and introduce the characters. It's very much worth it to stick with.

If you love mythology, romance, and incredibly beautiful art, buy "The Bride of the Water God". You won't be sorry.

this first book is a good start for the rest of the story. The art is great and the characters are already starting to become "alive" in the story. Looking forward to reading the second book.

...But I never picked it up never even read the synopsis. It wasn't until I saw that it was already on it's tenth volume that I thought it might be worth reading. And lo and behold it's only five bucks brand new on amazon....talk about sweet deal!! I already own 1-9 now I'm just waiting on number 10 to come out. :D

When I ordered this book I was beyond excited for it to come in and it did not disappoint me. I loved this manhwa and cannot wait until part two comes in!

Soah is sacrificed to the Water God for the sake of her village, to end the drought that they have been suffering for five years. When the Water God saves her, she is surprised to find out he is only a small child. Little does she know that a curse has been placed on him that turns him to a child and only at night he turns to full a grown man - who Soah begins to have feelings for.

This is a manhwa - which is basically a Korean manga. What's neat about manhwa is that you can read them left to right like a graphic novel since Korean is also written in the same direction as English. Another thing is that manhwa are larger than manga, which I loved, especially for this particular one.

What I love the most about this manhwa would have to be the art, it's beautifully drawn. The landscapes, the traditional Korean clothes and the characters are drawn with such detail that even if you hate the manhwa you can't but help buying a copy just for the beautiful artwork.

I loved the story, although confusing at times, it's rich with the lore and mythology of ancient Korea. I found Soah to be a strong heroines unlike the many feeble and weak minded heroine I've seen in many other manga. Habaek seems a bit stereotypical at times but later on in the manhwa I believe becomes a better and more interesting character. There are few characters but all are intriguing in their own way. The names, like in most manhwa I've read, are so hard to keep track of, they're just so long and sound so similar. The only two I could remember were Soah and Habaek.

I have the first five volumes in this series and I can assure you that the story becomes better and better. Out of all the manga, manhwa and graphic novels I read, Bride of the Water God definitely has the best artwork.