Review: Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint vol 1 – Umi(REDICE STUDIO)
Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint, Vol. 1by Umi(REDICE STUDIO), singNsong, Umi(REDICE STUDIO)
Series: Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint #1
Publisher: Ize Press
Publication Date: December 12, 2023
Genres: Fantasy, Graphic Novel
Pages: 252
Source: Edelweiss
I received this book for free from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
My rating:
As a struggling office worker, Dokja Kim’s sole joy in life is an online novel so obscure that he’s its only reader. Then one day the story comes to an end…and so does the world. People all around the globe suddenly find themselves being massacred by horrific monsters or pitted against each other in sadistic scenarios straight out of the novel. However, only Dokja is aware that this is merely the first chapter of what is to come. Knowing that devastating plot twists are on the horizon, he can no longer afford to sit back as a reader-it’s time for Dokja to step up and write his own destiny!
While my reading material tends more towards romance, there’s nothing quite like a well-written apocalypse survival story. It’s always been a favorite of mine in regular literature so of course I’d put aside the shoujo isekai romances to pick this up, especially after hearing a friend rave about it. And based on this first volume I’m completely hooked!
Dokja has spent the past 10 years of his life reading a web novel. While it started out with quite a few readers, he’s the only one to have kept reading and commenting for all 3,000+ chapters. And now with the final chapter over, he’s a bit disappointed. But that’s usual for him. After all, he’s used to comparing himself to others and coming up short. But everything changes when the subway train he’s on suddenly stops and is informed by a creature that Earth has left the tutorial phase and the real game has finally started – complete with monsters and horribly sadistic tasks. To Dokja, this is all horrifyingly familiar. After all, it’s how his favorite web novel started…
“One thing I do know is that the genre of my life is undeniably realism and that I’m a reader, not the hero.”
It’s an interesting take on the typical apocalypse survival manga. Thanks to the novel, Dokja has a good idea of what’s going to happen. But avoiding all those events – and the main characters – isn’t as easy as he thought, especially when his actions start changing things. Of course, Dokja’s already started building up his team to help him. From Hyeonseong, an army lieutenant who immediately takes control of the situation, to Sangah, the coworker and probable love interest, it’s an interesting and varied group of characters. Some of them Dokja recognizes from the novel so he can predict their actions while others… well, Dokja’s changes might have some positive consequences, right?
The art is absolutely gorgeous and perfect for the often horrific storytelling. Considering the aim of whoever’s running this game seems to be pitting humans against each other, the story gets dark and violent very quickly. The characters’ faces are very expressive, displaying the range of emotions, positive and negative, that Dokja’s fellow passengers feel. With that said, this was originally a webtoon and adapting that for a physical medium has some drawbacks. Things inevitably have to be cropped and some of them felt less than ideal. Some spreads that I remember having a big emotional impact from the web version don’t have quite the same feel in this version.
But with that said, if I was someone reading this for the first time I doubt any of that would be noticeable. The story quickly grabbed me and drew me in and the quick pacing kept me hooked. While Dokja already shows signs of being OP (and how could he not be?) it’s still very entertaining to watch him come up with solutions and manipulate those around him. After all, he can’t reveal the real motivations behind his actions so he’s got to be quick on his feet.
Overall, a great start to the series. While this is available online, the convenience of having it in paperback can’t be beat and I’ll definitely be picking up the future volumes!
Content notes: View Spoiler »
