Viral Hit Vol. 1 by Taejun Pak

 I'm on the edge of screaming 'Happy Book Birthday' this one, since it comes out the beginning of April, but I'm going to hold it back. Still, I'm very excited to have the chance to take a quick peek at it before it hits the shelves.

This read seems to go in the direction of bullying, internet, and more, and I'm hoping it takes an interesting and original twist. Action would be nice but with thought. So, let's see if it's a whammy or not.

VIRAL HIT VOL. 1

by Taejun Pak

Illustrated by Kim Junghyun

Webtoon Unscrolled

YA Action   /   Graphic Novel

288 pages

ages 12 and up

COMING...

APRIL 1st!!!

Scrawny high school student Hobin Yu is probably the last guy you’d expect to star in a video channel that revolves around fighting. Tormented by bullies and working a part-time job to pay for his mother’s medical expenses, Hobin Yu is truly at the bottom of his school’s hierarchy. After he accidentally uploads a video of a fight with his classmate and goes viral, Hobin starts to think there may be another solution to his bullying and money problems.

After following some advice from a mysterious creator, Hobin is soon knocking out guys stronger than him and raking in more money than he ever dreamed. But the pressure starts to build, and one day Hobin might meet his match.

This graphic novel collects episodes 1–8 of the sensational WEBTOON comic Viral Hit.

GOODREADS

MY TIDBITS

Fight scenes mix with deeper themes of bullying and collecting social media views to create a read with more heart than first appears.

Hobin Yu is skinny, unimportant, and simply trying to figure out how to hold everything together while his mother is being treated for cancer. That includes paying the bills, and his part-time job doesn't really quite make ends meet. The severe bullying at school doesn't help matters, either. When he agrees to help one of the bullies record a video for the guy's new channel, he ends up in a physical fight with him...which accidentally gets uploaded and immediately achieves tons of views. Not even near to being a fighter, Hobin still finds himself with the possibility of earning the money he needs...if he can figure out how not to get completely destroyed in the process.

There are some obvious triggers in these pages (bullying, fairly violent fight scenes), and the first of these hits with a strong impact to make the tale grab right away. Hobin Yu is easy to sympathize with, while everyone around him comes across as simply terrible. It's a rough school and the bullying is harsh. The tale takes about 25% of the book to get going as readers sink into his situation. Hobin Yu's actions are easy to understand as he tries to use things for his advantage, while not completely losing his moral compass. 

While the fight scenes will grab fans, there's more to these pages. Hobin Yu has a lot to learn and struggles to find balance in the entire situation. He also doesn't feel good in his own skin and, I'm assuming, this will offer character growth throughout the next volumes. There's a little, tiny hint at romance and new forming friendships. But everything has a long way to go. 

The illustrations are well-styled for the theme and let the fight scenes come across with punch. The text is well written and flows naturally. Some of the scene changes jolt and take a second to figure out where the next moment comes from, but the story, interestingly, grows on the reader as it goes on, and these problems don't bother as much as they could. I'm hoping that the rest of the series will bring more depth to the characters surrounding Hobin Yu, but this is only the beginning. And it is a solid beginning.