cover image Oath to Love and Passion

Oath to Love and Passion

Sook Ji Hwang, . . CPM, $9.99 (216pp) ISBN 978-1-57800-712-7

This Korean manhwa effort opens on a note of tedium and turgidly drags the reader into the adolescent romantic adventures of sisters Jung Yul and Sa Rang, identical twins possessed of opposing temperaments. The siblings are constantly at each other's throats, with the nasty Jung Yul clearly dominant, and the bulk of the narrative consists of sweet Sa Rang's book-length litany of insecurities and whining, trite contrivances that only intensify with the introduction of cute romantic interests Yoo Shin Jung and Nan Soo Go. Nan Soo has a father who, in an incongruous bit of business, is depicted as a talking polar bear for no adequately explained reason. Hapless Nan Soo Go falls hard for the unpleasant Jung Yul and suffers multiple indignities during his pursuit of her, while her sweet sister pines for the seemingly indifferent Yoo Shin Jung, all of which comes across as teen angst soap opera and weak comedy. The stilted translation does not help matters, and teamed with the stiff, unappealing artwork it adds up to an outright dud of a graphic novel. (Apr.)