Manhwa To Read If You Like Shonen Manga

Since its inception, manga has captivated audiences worldwide, with shōnen standing out as a beloved genre among both children and adults. It keeps narratives simple, introducing characters and plot settings in a straightforward, yet captivating manner. This genre masterfully evokes emotions, be it raising one’s arms to gather energy for Goku’s spirit bomb or cheering up for Izuku Midoriya as he strives to rescue Eri. With legendary titles like Dragon Ball and One Piece, Japan has long been recognized as the cradle of shōnen. However, this dominance is now being challenged.

With the rapid proliferation of stories, manhwas have started to catch up. Titles like Solo Leveling and Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint are changing the genre, offering nuanced character development and refined plotlines. Such changes are opening the chapter to a new age of storytelling experiences. However, when it boils down to shōnen, several manhwas have arguably already achieved that form.

Updated December 7, 2024, by Hamza Haq: Shonen Manga’s widespread appeal is undeniable. While the concept is mainly targeted toward a young, male audience, rooting for the underdog overcoming adversity is at the core of the human condition, and draws audiences in like nothing else. Admittedly, it’s not all sunshine and roses for Shonen Manga fans, as tired tropes that have long been overdone still plague the scene which gets very tiresome very quickly. Manhwa are often a breath of fresh air for manga readers, mainly because the manhwa writers do not have to adhere to the strict limitations manga writers do. They can be more brutal, bloody, and visceral in their depiction of the story, adding a sense of stakes that are hard to convey in a manga.

11 Mythic Item Obtained

A Tale of Myth and Magic

• Author: Seonyul Jeong
• Illustrator: Hess
• Genre/Themes: Action, Fantasy

Monsters and mythical creatures have infested a world filled with technology and magic. To combat them, mankind has started to produce raiders (awakened humans with supernatural abilities). The main hero, Min Jaehyeon, is one of the struggling raiders, failing at life, until he finds a mysterious eye, taking him back in time, and giving him a second chance at life along with some perks. While this is a straight ticket to success, Min soon realizes the imminent danger lurking above.

Now, it’s a race against time, with Min hailed as the fated enemy destined to fall to Zeus, a tyrannical god that hasn’t thought twice before destroying legacies and civilizations. Mythic Item Overload takes the most mundane tropes and elevates them to large-scale lore that is both compelling and goosebump-inducing. Now, together with Helia, and the rest of his party, Min must do everything in his power to grow stronger, making use of the dissipating power of the prophecy to hide away from Zeus.

The sense of tension and imminent danger in Mythic Item Obtained is balanced by levity in all the right spaces. The protagonist is a young boy who goes from being a weakling to a deity-defying hero, just like a Shonen manga.

10 Cleric Of Decay

Not All Heroes Are Holy

• Author: Sadadm
• Illustrator: Jetae Yoo
• Genre/Themes: Action, Fantasy

In a world of fantasy and magic, a cleric is known to be a holy entity, healing the injured, and doing lots of community service. But in the lands far away, there exists a goddess of decay laying waste to thousands, if not millions of lives as she rots their living souls from existence. After the forces of humanity finally managed to seal away, Marnac, an everyday gamer was called from his world to become her messenger, a cleric of decay.

Now, armed with the abilities of the undying, Marnac travels the world finding the ancient relics to restore his mother back to her glory. However, a few holy knights have caught onto this, beginning a game of cats and mice, but this cleric is not someone to be trifled with. Cleric of Decay plays to its strengths, showing us a world where even the bad have a purpose, and that the dark side is not always the bad one.

Cleric of Decay is an excellent example of the transmigration done right. Like Shonen manga, it has elements of progression fantasy and weak-to-strong, but the added element of the MC being not an absolute clueless idiot is a breath of fresh air.

9 The Reaper

Vengeance Runs Deep in a Sea of Blood

• Author: Woogack
• Illustrator: Inkyo
• Genre/Themes: Action, Fantasy, Martial Arts

One day, in the ancient lands of Murim, around 100 children were abducted to attack a certain clan. They experienced ruthless trials and tribulations. A lot died, and a handful survived; creating a deadly assassin trope. However, their mission was way out of their league, pitting them against the strongest in Jianghu, the trope was wiped out, with one unfortunate survivor. Stumbling upon an ancient secret, this assassin, Pyo Wol, now maddened by the deaths of his comrades, seeks to destroy the orchestrators of this tragedy.

However, Jianghu is not forgiving, and ambitions don’t always reach realization. The Reaper visualizes this sentiment perfectly, plunging Pyo Wol into a series of perilous situations, making him re-imagine himself, with every instance deadlier than the previous one.

Shonen readers will be familiar with the sole-survivor revenge trope, which is what The Reaper essentially boils to. Fans looking for something more mature and brutal while still being a Shonen at its core will find themselves right at home with this one.

8 Return Of The Blossoming Blade

A Swordsman Reborn

• Author: Biga
• Illustrator: Lico
• Genre/Themes: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Martial Arts, Reincarnation

The Mount Hua sect, hailed as the strongest in Jianghu, stopped the Demon King by sacrificing themselves. The hero, Chung Myung, was the one to deliver the final blow, in what otherwise was the destruction of the world. Hundreds of years have passed since, with Chung Myung being reincarnated as a child, only to find out the current Mount Hua sect is but a shadow of its glorious days. As a devout member and a proud alcoholic, he takes it upon himself to re-enter, rebuild, and re-glorify the sect.

The manhwa uses a blend of light-heartedness and humor to deliver those hard-hitting moments. Sure, Chung Myung’s methods might be tough, but it is his ideology that made him one of the three great swordsmen in the past, and it will be that same ideology that will define his future!

Manhwa often tend to be bloodier and more pessimistic than manga, which new readers often find jarring. Return of the Blossoming Blade doesn’t have that problem, though, offering readers an upbeat down-to-earth MC and an excellent progression fantasy that’s hard to put down for any Shonen fan.

7 Tower Of God

From Weakling to Tower Titan

• Author: SIU
• Illustrator: SIU
• Genre/Themes: Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Mystery

Desires, ambitions, hope, everything exists at the top of the tower. Climb it and one shall find their answers. Meet the twenty-fifth Baam, a simpleton who follows a girl named Rachel to this mysterious tower. Getting separated in her pursuit, Baam must climb the floors, reach the truth, and ultimately find a purpose.

As he climbs, Baam finds a greater meaning to his existence, to resolve the conflict between seven great families, and to meet Zahard, the man residing on the highest floors of the tower. But, will his simple and trusting nature let him reach those heights? All shall be answered in the tower.

Baam is a clueless protagonist who, over the course of the story, gains wisdom, strength, and overpowered abilities to crush his enemies with. While the focus of the story often shifts away from the MC, which is not something Shonen fans are used to, it follows the core formula of the weak-to-strong trope to a tee, making it an easy recommendation for this list.

6 Revenge Of The Iron-Blooded Sword Hound

Betrayal, Regression, and Revenge

• Author: Lego Babasseo
• Illustrator: Arang Seol
• Genre/Themes: Action, Fantasy

Welcome to the Baskerville family, where soldiers are trained to be obedient, and lethal, baring their fangs as ordered. The story revolves around a man named Vikir, who gets framed by his elder brother and is therefore executed by the family head. With a desire for vengeance, and to make things right, Vikir strangely finds himself back when he was a child.

This time it’s going to be different! Revenge of the Iron-Blooded Sword Hound gives the spotlight to Vikir, as he rises to the top of the clan, forgiving those who wronged him, and executing revenge against the ones who mistreated him, because once the fangs are bared, it must end up with a kill.

Revenge Of The Iron-Blooded Sword Hound is a story with a distinctly Korean twist, as the culture’s obsession with regression and time travel shines through. At its core, though, it’s a bloody take on the Shonen genre, something fans might not be used to but will quickly grow to love.

5 Nano Machine

Science Meets Murim

• Author: Hanjung Wolya
• Illustrator: Geumgang Bulgoe
• Genre/Themes: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Martial Arts

Cheon Yeo-Woon is one of the many children of the great heavenly demon. But, unlike his brothers from the seven great families, Cheon has lived a life filled with challenges ranging from his mother’s passing to several assassination attempts. Just when Cheon Yeo-Woon thought he lost it all, a mysterious man claiming to be his descendant appears from a time machine and injects Cheon’s body with a mysterious sci-fi-like liquid called Nano machine.

Now, holding the knowledge of the future paired with other superhuman abilities, Cheon Yeo-Woon is ready to partake in a long bloody battle to sit on the throne of the Heavenly Demon. This manhwa is anything but child-friendly, showcasing the most extreme sides of the Murim in the most casual ways possible.

A beaten, bullied MC facing constant hardships throughout his childhood? A mysterious teacher with overpowered abilities who takes him under his wing? Becoming uber-powerful through grit, struggle, and a little bit of Deus Ex Machina? What more could a Shonen manga fan ask for?

4 SSS-Class Revival Hunter

Dying to Grow Stronger—Literally

• Author: Seonyul Jeong
• Illustrator: Hess
• Genre/Themes: Action, Fantasy

What if one could copy the ability of whoever killed them? The thought sounds utterly useless, and Kim Gong Ja, the person holding this ability agreed with the sentiment until he was killed by a regressor, who went a day back in time whenever he died. Now, having a use for his initially dysfunctional ability, Gong Ja decides to climb the tower, experiencing various mysteries, alongside a fateful romantic encounter in the stories to come.

Despite having a redundant theme, SSS-Class Revival Hunter appeals to its audience because of the short stories occurring within each stage. Is Gong Ja strong because of his abilities, or are his convictions making him strong?

Kim Gong Ja’s story is a typical weak-to-strong trope commonly seen in Shonen manga, albeit with a significantly faster pace than what Shonen fans will be used to, which is definitely a good thing.

3 The Breaker

A Brutal Tale of Murim’s Hidden World

• Author: Jeon Geuk-Jin
• Illustrator: Park Jin-Hwan
• Genre/Themes: Action, Adventure, Martial Arts, Murim

The Breaker takes place in a world where martial arts reign supreme. Supernatural acts of strength and personal power are what define who gets to reach the apex of society and become untouchable and it’s a race to the top where only the strongest win. Shiwoon is a weak, bullied schoolboy who is taken under the wing of an incredibly powerful martial artist named Chunwoo Han, who recognizes his genius and teaches him the Black Heaven and Earth technique, a forgotten technique only practiced by Chunwoo.

Chunwoo, however, has a mission he needs to complete. He only met Shiwoon by chance during an infiltration mission targeting the Martial Arts Alliance, a powerful coalition and a hidden society of Murim who control the underworld. His goal is to exact revenge on this Alliance, especially the head honcho for killing his master out of jealousy. Shiwoon is put in the middle of this conflict and is caught up in a storm of events he doesn’t have the power to face.

The Breaker, and its sequel, The Breaker New Waves, religiously follow the Shonen tropes like weak-to-strong, struggle to win, and save everyone. It’s a more brutal, visceral story than what fans of the genre are used to, but the compelling struggle is more than worth the read.

2 Omniscient Reader

When Fiction Becomes Reality

• Author: sing N song
• Illustrator: Sleepy-C
• Genre/Themes: Action, Adventure, Fantasy

Omniscient Reader is about the life of Kim Dokja, a regular office worker, who enjoys reading his favorite novel “Three Ways to Survive The Apocalypse”. Unfortunately, this novel’s long run time, and complex story mean Kim is the only person who has read it this far, and that’s not really an issue. However, after completing the novel, Kim’s surroundings change, and the novel becomes a reality.

Kim Dokja’s unique position as the only person aware of the novel’s plot twists and outcomes gives him an omniscient-like power, hence the title Omniscient Reader. However, with every change to the main storyline, the future is getting farther away from Dokja’s known world, giving meaning to the dangers lurking within this new fantasy.

Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint shines because of its intense bouts of action and the constant tension that hangs over him as he finds himself in a death trap. Kim Dokja is young and completely out of his depth, winging it just like a typical Shonen MC.

1 Solo Leveling

The Weakest Hunter’s Rise to Ultimate Power

• Author: Chugong
• Illustrator: Sungrak Jang, Chugong
• Genre/Themes: Action, Adventure, Fantasy

The story follows Sung Jin-Woo, an E-rank hunter, who is the weakest of the low-tier hunters in South Korea, struggling to make ends meet and support his family in a world where gates to dungeons with monsters open in the human world, and hunters, humans with magical abilities, fight these monsters to protect humanity.

The narrative shifts when Jin-Woo, on the brink of death in a highly dangerous dungeon, gains access to a unique system that allows him to level up in strength. Now, unlike other hunters who are stuck with their initial power levels, Jin-Woo’s ability to grow stronger is unique, and will become the tipping factor in the increasingly difficult battles to come!

Shonen manga fans will find tons to love about Solo Leveling. Sung Jin-Woo starts out a wimp, with no drive and no hope of success, but slowly through a combination of an overpowered system and his own efforts comes into his own to become the strongest hunter in existence.