'Surviving a Shounen Manga' is another "survival" novel following the common cliché setting that a reader messages the writer, and the writer drops the reader into the novel - on in this case, the manga. However, the uniqueness in the story comes from the fact that the setting is a shounen manga. So what does that mean?

In other stories (The Novel's Extra is a typical example) the protagonist would transmigrate, have knowledge of the setting, then set out to proactively change things. The tension comes from his interactions with the... more>> existing characters, their possible suspicions, and unintended butterfly effects. But the world's starting point is static and well-understood.

Not so here - the world itself is a manga made up of chapters and scenes, and the protagonist's start synchronizes with the start of the serialization. That means it's very hard to make any strong changes that can twist the flow of the story, and if the protagonist tries to change too much he is in danger of being 'deleted' by the author. That means the protagonist has to play along with the author, accept it if the author tries to give him roles in in an ongoing chapter, and scheme to survive if the author plans to have him fight against a new character to show off their prowess. Getting strong and fighting off all comers? Zero chance of that in an ever-escalating battle manga where the power levels keep rising with every new map.

So, in this novel, the main character's goal is not some kind of nebulous future. It's to secure a part in the chapter coming right next, to somehow impress the readers and the writer, and in doing so, get some kind of assurance that he will continue to re-appear. This is a very different type of tension than the usual fodder we get in this transmigration-survival genre.

I hope y'all have as much fun reading it as I did! <<less

I think the premise wore out it's welcome.

It is an interesting idea and I think the author fully commits to the concept. However I dont believe it translates well to novel. The story feels disjointed, the MC is always rushing but its only ever to the next set piece.

There isn't any time for development, or powers or even world building. Being on the 5th confrontation at ch35 (with minimal setup) should give you an idea of how fast and disjointed its moving.

Had this been a shounen gag manga itself where... more>> the format IS typically broken up I would of loved it. There in lies the irony I guess... <<less

I've personally enjoyed the story a lot so far, but feel that it suffers from the MC. He's interesting and has a lot of potential, but so far I have yet to feel the payoff. My biggest problem is the lack of proper motivation, his only goal, is pretty much survival, and even almost 50 chapters in, he hasn't properly received any other changes. He's grown as a character, and even said a few cheesy shonen lines to a few characters about his goal, but it's either left ambiguous as... more>> to whether or not he means it, or made abundantly clear that he's saying that with a clear ulterior motive. Even if survival is kept as his primary goal, I was hoping he could have some sort of long lasting or overarching goal, like witnessing the end of the "manga" with his own eyes. Aside from that I like the MC and find them both unique in their actions and often amusing as well. The only other problem I have is that the series basically teases that he's going to change appearances, and then stops and implies that maybe he won't. I just wish it would choose one or another rather than going back and forth. There are quite a few things I'm anticipating and hoping will be future developments with the main character.

On the other hand, the novel really shines with it's setting and supporting cast. The novel's setting of a "shonen manga" really helps with accepting anything that could be considered unreasonable. Because it's a "shonen manga" the reader naturally accepts certain character and other tropes as being reasonable. On top of that, the world of the "manga" is interesting enough that it could probably be it's own story. A lot of the details and power systems are well fleshed out and possess a good combination of simplicity and complexity. It's simple enough to understand and get a grasp on while also having enough depth to make it interesting. And because the world and systems are well designed, the exposition is genuinely interesting, due to the author develops the world through the plot of the "manga", allowing the reader to experience the world through a story rather than simply feeling like pointless dialogue. In addition, the supporting cast is one of the best parts of the series for me. The majority of the characters who are directly involved with the main character were "failed" or "unused" characters in the "manga", because of that, it's really gratifying to watch them grow out of their "roles" to become 3-dimensional characters. Unfortunately, this has the side-effect of making the protagonist (of the "manga") feel extremely lacking due to his relatively short appearance time in the novel (so far). As the "protagonist" he feels as though he should play a bigger role in the story, as he's been mostly neglected as a character so far, only being granted a lot of typical "shonen protagonist" traits rather than a proper personality

A lot of this is based entirely off of my own opinion, so feel free to disagree with any of my points, however I would definitely recommend trying this novel out if you enjoy shonen manga, as the author does a good job of capturing the feel that comes with reading it. <<less

A brilliant premise with really strong execution. Our hero gets transformed into a generic mob villain in a Manga he likes, and will disappear if he cannot find a way to get involved with the plot. One of the most refreshing novels I've read all year, give it a shot!

This is kinda fun, this year has been getting many of the good novel translated, this is definitely one of them, its survival based story, but applies way more restriction on the MC, unlike other novels he cant do too much, has to struggle almost every chapter to get to the next one, but overall so far seems fun.

It's probably too early to rate, but I really, just simply want to give it at least a good rating for the laughter this novel gave me, even if I just like, read it to the latest translation, since I don't know how to read Korean and too lazy to read the MTL.

This novel definitely gives me what I want, a mob protagonist, provides me the different view seen from the cannon fodder sides, within the, you know, grandeur stage of a world, that is a Shounen-like world. So far,... more>> the MC here didn't take the cliche plot of overturning the real protagonist and become the new Hero, I shall update my review at the later date, I hope it won't suddenly turn into a disappointing direction. <<less

I don't even normally read stories that don't have at least thirty chapters already finished, much less write a review for them. I was bored last night and just happened to be browing aimlessly, came across this novel which seemed like it had an intriguing concept, read it, and what little time I got with it was well enjoyed. The translation is quality and makes everything read naturally, the author's storytelling is good, and the central concept of the whole thing is interesting. I'd keep an eye on this one.

Made an account to give this a positive review. It is a fun read. Usually I hate novels where the main character has to act to fit in to some "plot" but I had a great time reading this one. I binge read chapters 1-47, then came back the read the newer chapters. While waiting I couldn't help but start speculating where the story was gonna go and how our lovable Squatjaw was gonna react. I realize this might not be everyone's cup of tea, but I would heavily recommend... more>> giving this a shot. It feels like a breath of fresh air to me, and is definitely worth checking it out. <<less

Enjoyable read.

MC is generally a normal person. They aren't evil not overly greedy or cruel but he is also not a doormat. MC is clever but not a genius.

Id compare this story to the various regressor stories. But its not quite the same.

... more>> The author is actively writing the story so thats an interesting twist, while the MC knows of future people and events, they dont actually exist yet, due to the story not being that far along

Its also very clearly a manga world where as long as its plausible it can happen. Some enemies are idiots, because thats how it is in shounen manga. Its quite an interesting way of handling the tropes. <<less

its so damn fun reading this, if you have watched or read one piece or hxh, this is a must read for you!

I was very positively suprised when reading this, it is at around the same quality as SSS-class su*cide Hunter, or at least that is my first impression, that it only has 207 chapters, looks like it might be rushed at some point and it has only been a few dozen chapters at this point. So it might get worse, but at the moment I would highly recommend this, it isn't at all generic and has a few nice suprises, would definitely recommend this.

It is quite enjoyable~

The premise is quite novel and creative. The translations are quality and the characters are quirky and likeable. The novel looks promising.

Edit: Dang, why updates are the so irregular!

It's an interesting concept.

The protagonist has to be present and maintain the interest/affection of the readers or be eliminated from the narrative. He inhabits the character of a throwaway extra. He can't do anything too impactful or against the original plot like directly approaching the manga's protagonist out of the blue and trying to befriend him. So he has to remain relevant via background interactions while relying on his knowledge of the plot and characters.

What's also intriguing is the effect of the author of the manga. There's a sense that... more>> editing is going on and the chapters are constructed based on what happened but not necessarily including every little detail such as our protagonist being present at the sidelines of a scene which increases the difficulty factor. So far things seem haven't been easy for our main character and even though he has a system shop, he hasn't got anything handed to him on a silver platter yet which I appreciate.

It's only 9 chapters in so it's hard to give an in depth review but I'd like to see where it goes. The translation also seems good! <<less

It's interesting, the idea itself is a cliché but the implementation and writing was amazing, the MC was active from the strat trying to solidify his existence in the manga whistle having to win the favor of the readers and the OG MCs but ultimately end up being hated by The author.

I wasn't expecting much at the beginning but soon I found myself looking for more.

HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

The MC gets transported into a Shonen manga which is sort of a mash up between One Piece, hunter x hunter and tower of god.

The MC is an extra and needs to work hard to integrate himself into the main story and win the favor of fans and the author alike, else he risks being written off. Only 34 chapters translated so far but excellent read, and great translation quality.

This is one of the most refreshingly original takes on the 'novel/game transmigration' genre I have read in... more>> a long time. Highly recommend. <<less

Definitely very interesting. As far as the "original plot" of the comic that the MC transmigrates to, it's fairly generic, I suppose. But it's quite interesting to see the actions he takes to try and survive and improve the plot as a side character who faces the risk of deletion if he doesn't present himself as a character of importance in the story.

The story does seem a bit slow sometimes, but I think there's a lot of potential for things to get good. And well, only 21 chapters translated so... more>> far, so still pretty early right now. <<less

Edit: So after a few more chapters, I have fallen in love. The starting was a little rough, given my previous review but things have gotten really fun now. Things are taking a turn I have never seen before and I'm loving it. I'm glad I didn't drop it. Still, waiting for the reader comments tho.

Previous review:

There aren't many chapters yet so this is just my initial opinion.

So far, the protagonist seems kind of dumb, or rather naive. He is seriously underestimating all the "suspicious" characters and raising red flags... more>> as naturally as breathing. But he is still somehow able to make it out of the trouble, so I guess, fair enough?

The setting is very interesting. I've always liked stories with actively changing og plots according to protagonist's actions so I'm looking forward to the reader's comments. Although the restrictions put on MC's actions are very, very confusing (atleast to me).

But then again, this is just the beginning so I hope things will change and make more sense as the story goes. They aren't bad enough to make me drop it atleast (it's the setting that's keeping me hooked tbh). <<less

Incredible premise, full of potential and inherent depth.

In fact, the story is build on such an incredible initial idea, that even the author can't wait to show you more.

And that's the first problem. The pacing. Everything moves at a breakneck speed, there is no pause, no breather, no breaks. It is quite overwhelming. Especially when you take into consideration that the author tries to tell 2 simultaneous plot lines - about MC who desperately tries to get involved in the original plot; and the original plot itself, that desperately tries... more>> to keep the readers informed on what the actual f*ck is going on.

The story's second sin? Complete lack of characterization. There are no characters besides the real MC. Everyone else is just a placeholder. Nothing more than a name, that (by the powers of almighty narration) at some point in the future, will become significant to the "original plot". But to keep you interested and entertained, the author will spout some exposition on what that "name" is gonna do, what their character will be like, how it's gonna affect the in-story MC and so on and so forth.

Now onto the third flaw of the story. Remember what I said about the author trying to "show off" as much as possible, in the shortest time possible? Yeah, that means no world building. There is quite literally no world to inhabit for those characters. After all everything is "fictional" right? The cities, villages and places are nothing more than the landmarks that were prominently displayed in the "manga". That is quite literal in-universe explanation for the setting. If only the story had vibrant characters...

All in all, my review - the story is dross and MC is a dumb*ss. <<less

Ok, the first 7 chapters arent the best. At first I thought this would be some sort of melancholic survival game type novel, where characters would be erased after each chapter and that the MC is stuck trying to make himself relevent and trying to be near Leo (The Manga's MC) without changing the plot line too much. After chapter 9, this novels really shows its potential and becomes really enjoying. It's really difficult to put this down now.

It is an incredibly fun novel. It does not not drag on and I am always wearing a grin reading it. It is a nice respite from edgier novels.