Smile Brush

Yakoz Feb 9, 2017

7

Smile brush is a gag manhwa in sketches that shows vicissitudes of a long haired guy named Waroo. Every chapter is really short, around 3-5 pages each. It's a fast and relaxing read for kids and adults.  Plus/minus considerations. STORY: this webcomic is a collection of gags, so each chapter is a different moment in Waroo's everyday's life. Waroo can be part of each one of us: there's room for the reader to relate to Waroo. Generally, I think the author does a good job, simplistic but effective. In my opinion, what gives a great boost story-wise is the introduction of some saddening stories (in particular the dog's and the kid's) that stop abruptly the plain comedy proposed up to a certain point. (++) ART: this is the demonstration that you don't need an amazing art style to create good content. The sketches are basic but somewhat unique, especially when the dark side (greedy, opportunist) of people is represented with an evil face. (++) CHARACTERS: I didn't like at first the fact that Waroo really looks like a girl, even tho there's a reason why this happens. But overall he's a great character that people can relate to. The other characters are randoms that appear just one time, but it's a webcomic gag manhwa, who cares. (+) I liked the stories to an extent. Safe to say that I liked way more the sad ones compared to the "funny" ones by far, and I'm not sure if that's supposed to happen in a gag manhwa. Maybe defining this a gag manhwa isn't accurate, maybe calling it a slice of life compilation of sketches would be better. It's a really fast read, I'd recommend at least checking it out because you'll have a good 15-20 mins. 

nathandouglasdavis Jan 22, 2021

5

These are the types of vignettes people might share at a casual social gathering--just unusual enough to be somewhat interesting, but still basically everyday occurrences. Other than chapters 20 and 29, the chapters are all slice-of-life stories about Waroo. It largely has a light-hearted, comical feel--with self-depreciating humor and embarrassing moments--but there are a couple tragic stories thrown in as well. Even though the artwork is simplistic, I found it pleasant. There are no linear borders between the panels and the pictures are more just separated by space and text. Chibi characters, with background characters being clay people. Duck mouths. And a nightmarish evil grimace. It's...okay. I could see myself appreciating the nothing-happening vibes if these were presented as between-chapter extras or something, as a palate cleanser. But as a series itself, it's pretty lacking. I think just reading it all at once made the repetition of the mundanity stand out.