Anime Based on Popular Korean Manhwa

While anime is often associated with Japanese manga, it also draws on Korean manhwa and webtoons. Webtoons—digitally released comics meant for phones—have surged in popularity, and many began as web novels before branching into other media. Adaptations sometimes change details, such as transposing a story from South Korea to Japan, but Korean-made stories are increasingly represented in anime.

Solo Leveling (2024) follows Sung Jinwoo, a weak hunter who becomes the player of a mysterious System and grows stronger; A-1 Pictures adapted the webtoon into an action-heavy anime. Lookism (2022), produced by Studio Mir as a Japanese-Korean co-production, centers on Park Hyung Suk, who alternates between his original self and a handsome alter ego as the series tackles bullying and poverty.

Noblesse (2020) features Raizel, a noble who awakens in a modern city after centuries asleep; its adaptations include an animated short, OVAs, and a television series that resets the story from South Korea to Japan.

South Korea

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