NINETEEN, TWENTY-ONE REVIEW

Short review: Nineteen, Twenty-One is a slice of life with a simple premise but a meaningful message. Sometimes we feel that we are too young and restless to do anything consequential, or too old to have great adventures anymore. This short manhwa captures the feeling of being stuck in between and at a loss for what one can do. It also reminds us that no matter how small you think your actions are, they are worth something.

Full review:

I did my best to make this spoiler free!

The basic plot of Nineteen, Twenty-One is: Girl wakes up from a two year-long coma, skipping the year of the college entrance exams and feeling delayed compared to the rest of her batchmates. She meets a boy two years younger than her, and somehow they start taking care of the stray cats in their neighborhood. I like how the story was taken care of in twenty-one chapters (haha) and it wasn’t overly saddled with drama to stretch it out. Short and sweet, I somehow ended up attached to all the little kitties and falling in love with the main characters and their simple yet very human struggles.

This is one of those stories that mostly revolves around only the two main characters, but they are likable enough for you to stick around. The FL, Yunlee, is usually down because of her situation on having to take the exams again (and late a year too), but she shows a lot of cute sides and is a kindhearted girl who really cares about others. The ML, Donghwi, is the cute and refreshing type, a bit childish, but difficult to dislike anyway. Their love story is simple, but it makes sense that pure-hearted people would gravitate towards each other.

The little drama in the story is mostly about how unwanted the stray cats are and how difficult it is for them to live in a suburban neighborhood. The little actions of Yunlee and Donghwi help save the lives of a few cats and provide homes for others, and also slowly affect the outlooks of the neighbors around them. While reading this, I had a smile on my face most of the time lol

The art is really pretty, the chapters are titled with flowers and colored with a ~spring~ sort of feel, and the cats are super adorable, too! The whole thing is very easy on the eyes.

Overall, it’s a light, quick read (you can do it in one sitting), and I’d recommend it to just about anyone looking for a short series or an easy entry into the world of manhwa.

Sometimes the world can really bring one down, but this little piece reminds us that life isn’t all that bad, and we all can go at our own pace, no matter how old (or young) we are.

Plot 7.5/10

Art 9/10

Characters 8/10


Overall personal enjoyment 8/10

Thank you for reading!