Cheese in the Trap Season 1

Aug 13, 2013

PinkShippuden

Recommended

Preliminary (98/27 chp)

This is actually my first review, so don't expect much.

I'm not really a big fan of mystery, but this one takes the cake...or something.

Almost the whole story is being told by Hong Sul, the main character's point of view. The things she encounters, the trouble she goes through and the people she meets. There isn't any fantasy or anything supernatural in this story, yet it is by far one of the best things I have read.

Give this try, even if you're thinking it'll be boring. In the end, It doesn't hurt to try does it? I actually thought about not reading this at first, ...

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Dec 6, 2014

quips

Recommended

Preliminary (Unknown/27 chp)

Cheese in the Trap takes a common shoujo premise: popular, aloof guy who has it all suddenly starts paying attention to a "normal" girl and comes to her rescue in various ways (with bullies, studying, etc), and shows what would happen in real life: Sul is suspicious of how Joon's seemingly randomly decided to become her friend and she's often got more important things to worry about then him, issues of family and friendship that can't just be handwaved away by some random rich guy. The story is funny, heartwarming and full of mystery.

The Good:
Characters: The cast of characters is amazing! The main character, Sul, ... is intelligent, introspective, and very perceptive, but that doesn't mean she doesn't have her flaws. Joon, on the other hand, on the surface appears to have it all: money, good grades, and a friendly personality that has everyone on campus dying to be his friend or girlfriend. Sul's quick to catch on that Joon's not as friendly as he seems, however, and during the first chunk of the series you spend a lot of time veering back and forth between wondering if Sul's overthinking things to wondering if Joon is in fact a villainous sociopath. The side characters are just as fleshed out as the main characters. They don't feel like props used to move the plot around; Sul's friends have their own troubles and even many of the characters that are antagonistic to Sul have sympathetic aspects to them, even if they don't justify their actions. There are characters you hate and characters you love and each one feels like a person you could meet in real life.

Story: With flashbacks being interspersed with the present day, the mystery of Joon keeps you on the edge of your seat, but no matter what you're always cheering Sul on. But while her relationship with Joon is one of the main plot points of the series, that doesn't mean Sul's life revolves around him. She spends just as much, if not more time worrying about her family's financial struggles, her relationships with friends and family, and her school life. Anyone who's attended university will be able to relate to Sul's struggle to prepare for life after college (maintaining good grades and figuring out her future and getting work/volunteer experience? It's a lot to do!) and interact with coworkers and classmates who are sometimes slackers or annoyances or just outright don't like her. Her problems might not be world-ending, but they still have you celebrating each small victory and cussing out the unfairness of the world when things go wrong.

The Bad:
Nothing to say here.

The Meh:
Art: On the one hand, I occasionally feel like the perspectives or proportions are a little off (but that might just be because Sul is so short!). On the other hand, while the artwork isn't necessarily "beautiful" (you aren't going to find sweeping landscapes or intricate detail) the artwork is unique and does it's job: you certainly won't have trouble distinguishing the characters and the facial expressions capture emotion perfectly, showing everything from wry amusement to exasperation to stilted smiles. With everything else about the comic being so amazing, I would say that the artwork seems average in comparison––not bad, but not the reason I recommend it.

In conclusion: Want to know why I gave this series a ten? Because not only is it one of my absolute favorites, but I honestly can't think of a way this webtoon could be improved.

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Jun 19, 2013

anachit

Recommended

Preliminary (66/27 chp)

This is by far the most realistic slice of life manhwa (korean manga)/webtoon I have read. I like the character design, nothing is exaggerated. You have a fun time exploring the character, and as the heroin Hong Sul, gets to know other character, you feel that you too are getting familiar. The multiplicity of perspectives helps the story progress smoothly and keeps the plot interesting.

Moreober, the format is really interesting, the story alternates between the past and the present, giving you a better understanding of the situation. Though, I admit it takes time getting used to it. But the constant shift in the timeline is ...

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Jun 4, 2014

bobolee12

Recommended

Preliminary (Unknown/27 chp)

ART_ 10
The audience would appreciate the art if he/she loves Pop art from the 60's.
It has a strong sense of simplicity and minimalism.
Rather than detailing so much, the simple things pops into the viewers eyes.
Its clean and absolutely fantastic.
I was getting tired of unrealistic eyes, nose, lips, etc... but this was FRESH.

STORY_10
Realistic, Fresh, and Understandable and Reasonable.
It has just the right amount of thrill and romance. Past and the Present.
...

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Aug 23, 2020

Clara_Lawliet

Recommended

Deep psychological dive into relationships.
Uncovering the consequences of one´s actions.
Finding the way to understand each other.

This will be a review of the whole series. No spoilers, don´t worry.

When I finished reading this series I felt a void in my heart. A gap, that won´t be filled with any other manga. I´m confident to say that this one of the best manga/comics about relationships, ever. The suspense makes it even more enjoyable. If you´ve already seen the K-drama... to be honest, prepare yourself to discover a whole new series. The TV drama didn´t do comics any good. It didn´t touch on the one of the most ...

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Jan 14, 2014

Sony_Plastation

Recommended

Preliminary (147/27 chp)

Oh guy, I can't prepare for my exams in a proper way because of this thing. So I decided to write a review(the very first on mal).

Story - very good (8/10)
It is very interesting. You can't understand some reasons at the beginning(but not only), so you becoming interesting in it. You read more and more to find out what and why happened. And, I believe the answers won't disappoint you.

Art - good (7/10)
The art is not very ordinary and beautiful, to tell the truth. So I was not sure what mark i had to put - six or seven. But I chose the ...

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Nov 11, 2016

astromancy

Recommended

Preliminary (157/27 chp)

Back in July 2016 during my summer vaca, I remember discovering this hidden gem amidst a monotonous and seemingly endless pool of lackluster, repetitive shoujo manga. Really, I don't know why I bother with the shoujo genre as I have unrealistically high standards (a fault of mine that makes it too hard to find something I enjoy :/), but my efforts always dig up gold in the end. Of course, when I found CITT, it just happened to be midnight but I really needed to end the day with something good so I delved into it, having long since stopped caring. Long story short: it ... was awesome, blew my expectations out of the water, and I ended up falling asleep at 6 am, satisfaction satisfied and sleep schedule ruined.

-STORY- Cheese in the Trap is actually a Korean manhwa and it's set accordingly in a Korean university. Unlike a traditional manga, Hong Seol is a college student, not a high school student, although the plot of the manhwa is still pretty much slice-of-life, revolving around her life in school and work, as well as her relationship with her family and friends. The manhwa focuses especially on her relationship with Yoo Jung, the mysteriously pretty and perfect resident Definition-of-Success who just has to complicate Seol’s life with those darn befuddling emotions. Argh, emotions, always ruining everything! However, I don’t think the plot of CITT is especially special; what is, is the way it’s played out. Instead of high school drama (which let’s face it, is frequently too annoying and shallow), we have something even better: college drama, the more sophisticated and interesting version of high school drama. Characters that are more independent and mature, I find, are more engaging. CITT is also more realistic which I find to be a fresh breath of air from mangakas that are writing out the wet dreams of their ideal high school experience. (That was a low blow, sorry). The events and actions in the story are not completely unbelievable and there are no (not many) weird coincidences. One thing that soonkki, the author, does in the manhwa is switch back and forth from the past and the present multiple times, something that I’ve grown to like. It might throw some readers off but it adds insight to character development, gives background, and also is a method that makes it easier for the author to integrate new information, particularly in an on-going series.

-ART- From the first page, the art in CITT is noticeably different. Its darker hues and bold, sharp lines diverge from the traditional soft colors and watercolor-esque style of shoujo manga. It may take a little getting used to, but it matches the more mature tone of the manhwa. In fact, even though the art is relatively simple, the emotions of the characters are conveyed very well. (There’s some scenes where one of the characters does a scary-face and it’s really quite intense). Once you get into the story, the art grows on you and even though it’s nothing exceptional, it becomes weird to imagine Cheese in the Trap with a different style.

-CHARACTER- Hong Seol is the protagonist and the story is largely told from her perspective. An ambitious and savvy young woman living the broke college student life, I found Seol to be extremely relatable and likable. Her no-nonsense attitude and ability to actually get shit done really warmed my heart. Like all good heroes, she has her flaws but instead of asking her “why, why??” and staring numbly at my computer screen because of yet another incomprehensibly dumb protagonist (something that I find myself doing disturbingly often), I found myself rooting for her. Her reactions to the ups and downs of the plot are again, realistically portrayed, andI gotta say one of my favorite things about her is her common sense. The other characters of CITT, namely the two male leads, are well-developed in their own right as well. Jung may seem to conform to the handsome-rich-boy stereotype initially, but let me tell you, our hombre here has some problemas. The other lead who shall not be named brings a solid different third personality to balance out the trio. Without going into more details, the two leads as well as the rest of the characters are all distinctive and have their own strengths and flaws; you can even sympathize with the dislikable characters (though I find it takes great effort).

In Conclusion: I'm honestly surprised at how the most recent review for CITT was written two years ago. Two years ago? People are missing out. The realistic approach to a slice-of-life plot, engaging and (mostly) likable cast of characters, as well as the story’s humor and drama makes Cheese in the Trap one of my favorite mangas of all time. Highly recommended! Go read it! (Disclaimer: rating does not apply to the K-drama of the same name... you have been warned.)

EDIT: I found CITT under the shoujo tag on the site I was using so I referred to it as such even though it's actually josei.

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Mar 24, 2022

highlighters_

Recommended

I wrote this review because I didn't see a lot of reviews for this and thought I'd write my first review. This is my personal opinion and for the whole series.. but no spoilers.

Story 8/10: Nothing too complex, but there's a lot of drama and flashbacks , sometimes too much in my opinion but these are essential to the story so I'll let it slide. Excluding that I found the story engaging and enjoyable.

Art 8/10: The art is simplistic and you can see it improving over the parts, it goes really well with the story and theme. It captured the character's emotions perfectly in my ...

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