Summary
- Few isekai manhwa have finished stories due to ongoing projects or indefinite hiatus.
- Some protagonists in isekai manhwa rebel against their fate and aim to return to their original world.
- Unique isekai manhwa like "Kill The Villainess" stand out for their endings, plots, and characters.
Although there are many of them, few isekai manhwa have finished stories. Most of them are ongoing projects or have been on an indefinite hiatus, waiting to be picked up. Of the finished manhwa, only a handful of them feature a protagonist who wants to go home, and that's because most isekai manhwa use transmigration or reincarnation as their plot device to get the main character to another world.
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After being transported to another world, these characters used modern-day knowledge to help them in their new lives.
In these situations, the protagonist is forced to abandon their own identity and live under someone else's name. Over time, they accept what's happened to them and continue living as the characters they've become. However, there are some stories where characters rebel against their position and can return to their original world.
1 Is This Hero For Real
A Student Rejects The Hero Life
- MyAnimeList Score: 6.70
- Chapters: 101
- Published: 2022 to 2023
- Genres/Themes: Action, Fantasy, Isekai
- Author: Parnar
- Illustrator: Ppayong
In certain isekai, a whole classroom will be summoned by a god to save the fantasy world. However, Kang Hansoo doesn't want to be a hero in this manhwa, but instead of being sent home, he's cursed and dropped into a dark forest. With no one to help him, he's able to get the aid of a loner god, who grants him the ability to nullify damage done to him. With his cheat ability, he's able to go on an adventure to find a real way home.
Is This Hero For Real is an interesting story that subverts many classic isekai elements, especially with its characters. It moves away from a narrative about heroes and becomes one about students desperate to go home. The plot and characters go through many changes, but it unfortunately gets cut off abruptly, ending in a rather anticlimactic fashion. If it could have resolved things more consistently, it'd be a much more complete story.
2 Newbie Management
A Trapped Hero Escapes A Time Loop
- MyAnimeList Score: N/A
- Published: 2022 to 2023
- Chapters: 69
- Genres/Themes: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
- Author: Sangmin
- Illustrator: Kihyun
Most stories with hero narratives are incredibly long, but Newbie Management doesn't need a ton of chapters to be interesting. In this manhwa, Presidio Cage is summoned to a fantasy world and tasked with defeating the Demon Lord, and after many years of fighting, he's finally able to do so. Unfortunately, instead of returning home, he regresses to the start of his journey, which becomes a loop he repeats hundreds of times. He figures the only way to end it is to get another hero to do the job.
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As usual for manhwa like this, Cage doesn't return home until the very end, but the journey to get there is funny and filled with great moments. Cage and his new hero, Shin Yubi, are a great duo that keeps the story exciting and unpredictable, especially when the timeline is reset every other chapter. It's a pretty simple plot, but there are quite a few surprises that make it worth reading.
3 The Final Raid Boss
A Beta Tester Uncovers A Gaming Company's Secrets
- MyAnimeList Score: 6.49
- Published: 2021 to 2023
- Chapters: 114
- Genres/Themes: Action, Fantasy, Video Game
- Author: Janghun Kim
- Illustrator: Seongshin Ha
Video game manhwa can be hard to categorize as isekai, since in most of them, the characters can come and go. However, in this story, Daejang Gong gets trapped while doing a beta test for the new game Astrom. He's forced to become an NPC and required to complete quests to avoid penalties. Somehow, Daejang must complete his quests while looking for an escape from the game and outsmart the AI that trapped him in the first place.
Technically, Daejang never left Earth, since everything is taking place in a VR game. It's his consciousness that's been digitized and stranded in the body of an NPC. On the surface, it's a fun manhwa with lots of action and funny moments, but there's also a mystery element going on in the background. It does feel a little chaotic because there's so much going on, but it's still an entertaining story at the end of the day.
4 Her Summon
An Otaku Is Summoned And Learns A Valuable Lesson
- MyAnimeList Score: N/A
- Published: 2018 to 2021
- Chapters: 117
- Genres/Themes: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Isekai
- Author: Park Jin-Joon
- Illustrator: Park Jin-Joon
In Her Summon, Jin-kyung is a loner who never leaves his room after having developed severe social anxiety three years prior. One day, he is suddenly summoned to another world by a young girl named Maina in need of help. In this other world, Jin-kyung's anxiety disappears, and he's able to wield great power. Together, they go on an adventure that changes their lives.
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In this story, Jin-kyung is kind of like a familiar, so he's able to go back to Earth a few times. He's only summoned to the other world when Maina needs him, but it's evident he prefers being isekai'd over being at home. Because of Jin-kyung's personality at the beginning, this manhwa can be a little cringy, but it's a great story about personal growth and maturity. It even has some of the best art seen in manhwa.
5 The Live
A Hero Returns From An Epic Isekai
- MyAnimeList Score: 6.62
- Published: 2020 to 2023
- Chapters: 176
- Genres/Themes: Action, Fantasy, Survival
- Author: Heuk Ain
- Illustrator: Seongmoo Heo
The Live is a pretty traditional action-adventure manhwa that features a journey to another world. After the death of his daughter and wife, Kim Yoonjae lost his will to live, but upon discovering a mysterious journal that detailed events in another dimension, he jumps at the chance to revive his lost family. However, this alternate reality is fraught with danger, and reading about it is much different from actually living it.
Like many other fantasy isekai, this story features special abilities, skills, and a special system for the characters. Things like this usually lead to overpowered protagonists, but Yoonjae is fairly balanced. Readers love his character because of the trials and challenges he goes through, so his power level isn't much of a problem. The beginning is incredibly strong, but things get quite convoluted in the middle, as new factions and details are added.
6 Kill The Villainess
A Unique And Exciting Villainess Story
- MyAnimeList Score: 7.85
- Published: 2021 to Jan 1, 2024
- Chapters: 102
- Genres/Themes: Drama, Fantasy, Isekai, Psychological, Villainess
- Author: Sawol Saeng
- Illustrator: Haegi
In villainess manhwa, the main character is usually forced to stay in the fantasy world, but in this one, she finds a way home. The protagonist transmigrates into a novel as Eris Miserian, the antagonist who kills the female lead and ultimately dies herself. Since the first day she arrived in that world, she's been looking for an escape, but when it's evident that changing the story isn't working, she decides to play her assigned role until the end of the story.
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Telling a story through the eyes of the antagonist, these villainess manga create fascinating characters and interesting worlds.
Kill The Villainess stands out not only for its unique ending, but also for its interesting plot and characters. Eris never tries to adjust to her new world or fix her situation, and while she stays static throughout the story, the people around her are constantly changing in the face of her indifference. Despite the pessimistic themes in this manhwa, it has a pretty happy ending.
7 Surviving Romance
An Author Escapes Her Own Creation
- MyAnimeList Score: 8.02
- Published: 2021 to 2023
- Chapters: 101
- Genres/Themes: Horror, Suspense, School, Survival
- Author: Yeon Lee
- Illustrator: Yeon Lee
It's pretty common for characters to be isekai'd into novels as the main character. In this manhwa, the protagonist becomes the popular and beautiful Eun Chaerin, the star of a romance book. On the day she's meant to receive a confession from the male lead, a random zombie outbreak occurs, and she dies. This starts a time loop that resets after every death, and Chaerin is stuck there until she can figure out the truth behind her circumstances.
Surviving Romance is a great manhwa that has one of the best tonal shifts in its story, transitioning from a classic romance to a survival horror with incredibly high stakes. Che Haerin's character goes through amazing development as she steps away from her role as a protagonist and becomes a real person, recognizing her peers as individuals rather than faceless background characters. It has some great messages about isolationism and sociability.
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