Eleceed

Edit

What would you like to edit?

SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links  

Finally, Eleceed has it's own MAL page!
When I found the official release on Webtoons in 2020, i'd never even heard of it before - but, being fairly bored, I decided i'd spend the rest of my day reading it. I'm pretty glad to say that i've never regretted my actions.

This story is fairly simple, but engaging - Jiwoo, the wholesome, positive energy is it's protagonist, and we follow his journey into the complex world of superpowered people known as the "Awakened". But he isn't alone; the deuteragonist, Kayden, is known as one of the stronged Awakened ones alive, but unfortunately for him, he is ... forced to place his conscience into the body of a cat, leading him to rely on Jiwoo for help.

Over the story, various kinds of abilities are introduced, and with superpowers comes superhumans, who make up the wide range of characters that make up the story. Each of the main characters are given a great deal of depth and development after their introduction, and the story is constantly introducing interesting new plotlines, characters and obstacles to overcome - many characters are known as "affiliated", being members of larger organisations that help to build the world of Eleceed, both within Korea and internationally.

The Art is amazing - fights are colourful and impactful, and the character designs are unique and consistent - its amazing how chapters are released just 7 days apart. One of my favourite things about the fights has to be the panelling - everything is clear and easy to understand, even during the fastest moments of combat.

Eleceed has an amazing balance of it's various tones - it is often quite lighthearted, with many hilarious moments that have made me laugh out loud, but they never get in the way of more intense or emotional moments. It's always engaging, in many ways.

Eleceed, in short, is a fun, exciting, hilarious, powerful story with great characters, colourful art, an interesting story and, most important, is INCREDIBLY entertaining. I always anticipate the next chapter, its very fun to read. 10/10

While at the beginning and mostly throughout I've enjoyed the story and characters, there is one aspect which I just can't stand in the storytelling, and it is the fact that whenever Jiwoo gets in a situation which he can't solve and needs saving, the cat teachers come and help him. I've not honestly seen any personal growth out of him for a long time now. If the saving had happened only once or twice I would understand, however, it happens pretty much at the end of every single arc. In the end I just see it as the author taking the opportunity from Jiwoo ... to grow by himself.

*Minor Spoilers*

[Introduction]

Before I begin, I want to state that Eleceed is a manhwa with wholesome moments and hilarious comedy tidbits. Reading it can be enjoyable. Nevertheless, I feel like sharing some of its poor story-related elements since every other review here on MAL does not overview Eleceed's negative parts in great detail.

[Main Character]

To start, let us tackle its main character, Jiwoo. In fighting stories, you almost always have a protagonist who grows as they experience adversity. In Eleceed, however, Jiwoo's personality never changes, even after experiencing torture, abduction, fights, and more. No matter what happens to him, he remains a wholesome, angelic fluffball of positive ... energy. During slice-of-life moments, his personality is great. He feeds stray cats, hangs out with friends, and more. However, seriously speaking, you would imagine his personality to shift after everything he goes through.

[Plot Convenience Part 1 - Overarching Master]

Moving on, Eleceed features an overarching master who mentors Jiwoo. While I will not elaborate much on this individual, they essentially ruin all the tension in the story. When Jiwoo wants to become stronger, the master provides top-tier assistance. When Jiwoo finds himself in difficult situations, the master always arrives to save the day. When Jiwoo becomes terminally injured with an incurable condition, the master uses his connections to save him. Because of the presence of Jiwoo's master, no conflict ever feels serious since we, as readers, always know everything will turn out alright. Moreover, because of the master, the author often gets away with creating hopelessly impossible scenarios since he knows he can resolve any situation conveniently through the master.

[Plot Convenience Part 2 - Befriending Enemies]

Earlier, I mentioned the main character being a bundle of positive energy. The author uses said energy to befriend almost every enemy that appears after a fight. When Jiwoo fights a neighborhood kid, they become friends a few chapters later. When Jiwoo spars against a school bully, they become pals later. Etc, etc, you get the point. For whatever reason, most enemies become allies after they fight the protagonist to help him fight greater enemies.

[Plot Convenience Part 3 - Forced Plotlines With Idiotic Explanations]

Eleceed has a lot of events that severely buff Jiwoo's opposition with impossibly ridiculous advantages for seemingly outlandish reasons. A blatant example of this is when one of the world's top experts fails to prevent an assault, all because they forgot their battle animal at home (and became useless as a result). Later, they explained that the animal was too expensive to maintain, which is an absurd excuse considering their obligation to protect many students under them. Besides this, there are many other instances of forced plotlines with useless explanations, but I will not cover them since it is hard to describe them without spoiling much of the story.

[Formulation Part 1 - Action Arcs]

Building off my second plot convenience part, I want to explain Eleceed's formula for action arcs (not including arcs with conflict directly against the main antagonists). Personally, this story's weakest part is the fact that it often recycles the same story-line that goes:
1. Jiwoo and his buds have opposition.
2. Each side trash talks and banters to add fuel to the fire of their conflict.
3. Both sides spar.
4. After fighting, the main cast are the winners overall.
5. Both sides power up through training.
5. When new opposition appears, both sides join together to fight back.
6. The same cycle repeats on a larger scale.

[Formulation Part 2 - Main Character Battles]

Beyond action arc recycling, Eleceed also uses formulation for Jiwoo's battles. Of course, not every battle follows obvious formulas, but most essentially follow three paths:

{If the enemy is stronger yet not overpowered}
0. ^ Happens every action arc
1. Enemy underestimates Jiwoo.
2. Jiwoo goes on a mini-training arc.
3. Jiwoo fights the enemy and seems to be worse off.
4. Jiwoo charges his one-shot move against the enemy and wins.

{If the enemy is weaker}
1. Jiwoo beats them up and wins.

{If the enemy is overpowered and cocky}
1. Jiwoo is beaten hard.
2. Jiwoo charges his one-shot move, and the enemy accepts it with open arms.
3. The enemy is affected, compliments the one-shot move, and keeps fighting.
4. The master intervenes to save Jiwoo.

[Conclusion]

I have more points I could cover, but to be genuinely honest, this review has taken 3 hours to write, and I am out of motivation to keep writing. In short, consider these points before deciding to pick up this story:
- Eleceed often leverages plot convenience to contrive unrealistic scenarios.
- The main character has an unrealistically optimistic personality.
- Arcs often follow predictable formulas.

For those expecting a well-written, look elsewhere since better stories exist. This story has good comedy and wholesomeness, so if you are interested in its slice-of-life aspects, perhaps this is worth reading. You can check out the other Eleceed reviews if you want more elaboration on stuff like that.