Pick Me Up

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8.9/10


This manwha review has been on the back burner for a hot minute due to my indecisiveness on the score. However, I can affirm that as more and more chapters release, the mystery, action, and lore build on the previous, creating a tense and striking read at all times. Where I have trouble with this is sometimes it’s too tense, as there is just constant rising conflict, where enjoyability isn’t the author’s main goal.

To note on the characters, they are spectacularly done. Each individual pertain a personality unique to them, causing emotions of pity, empathy, and attachment to swell. Though, I will say that ... some of them have predictable outcomes and purposes in the story, and it becomes somewhat underwhelming despite all of the former flashbacks to make the readers more attached. Despite this, once the characters hit, they hit.

The plot is relatively unique with the Gacha summoning merging with the reincarnated into a game genre. The lore of the story is investing; however, I do find that it’s immensely slow-paced (Manwha will end around chapter 300 at this rate), and there’s a huge risk of using up all the diversity in ideas at the beginning, creating the following chapters to have a “hollow” feeling, as it will be content that has been recycled (this has happened).

It is an enjoyable read with not many moments of awe or relaxation, but rather suffering; if that intrigues you, go for it, just don’t expect anything lighthearted.

—-
A 101 Chapter update:

Ill try to keep this short, since MAL technically doesn’t like it when you “update” your reviews but … sorry but not sorry :)

This has gotten better than I anticipated, and it seems to be a common trend with this story — I wasn’t a massive fan of it at first, but it continues to grow on me with the passing chapters, since the lore for each character is just amazing and well-thought out.

I do have to retract my former points of the lack of enjoyment via conflict, since the story does utilize comedy here and there, and it does it in a way where the serious atmosphere isn’t ruined by some jokes, but it does just enough to make you grin and keep scrolling out of enjoyment/happiness.

I still have complaints about reused/boring plot points that the manwha for some reason loves utilizing, but on the bright side, there’s an equal to an even greater amount of unique and interesting storyline directives.

One of the very few instances where a story gets better with the amount of chapters, since the lore is so strong. Enjoy!

Reading Rankings (Portnoy inspired & A Huang Teizan Original)
10 – God’s penmanship
9 – Must-read. Drop everything else.
8 – Instant bookmark
7 – Entertaining
6 – Good to pass time
5 – Why are you reading this?
4 – Bad.
3 – Typical garbage.
2 – My head hurts.
1 – Retirement is a thought.
0 – “Did they even give you a story?!”

Reviewer Rating 10/10
One of the top-tier Manhwa I have read so far. Another great read by red-ice studio artists.
Do you love playing RPG games and wish there was a manhwa like that OR Have you read Omniscient Reader and wished for a similar manhwa is different setting, this is what you are looking for.

This is a unique story you might have never read so far, ever wondered, what if you were a character in a RPG game how would that life will be?
MC enters a RPG game, in the game if you die in a campaign/dungeon fight you are dead for real, the ... grind MC does to become strong, grind he does to make othr people strong, the near-death situation MC & his team face, the death flags, the thriller & suspence make it really bingeable.

You should definitely read this if you are looking for
• A manhwa where MC is not OP & donesn't have the cheats like the MC's you see in all other manhwas
• A manhwa full of suspence, thrills, near death situations, death flags, etc...
• Great artwork with insanely good fights
• Something which will let you binge for hours
• A RPG world
• A manhwa similar to Omniscient Reader

Isel best girl !!

"Pick Me Up!" puts a unique twist on the whole isekai/mmorpg genre with real stakes and a captivating mystery.

Ratings first:
Art - 10/10
Story - 8.5/10
Character - 7/10
Enjoyment - 9/10
Overall - 8.5/10

First of all, it is set in an incredibly brutal world, where the mc must struggle to survive each floor that he climbs, with comrades who may or may not survive. Whilst of course there are core characters, I have no doubt that many of them will be in the dirt by the end of the series.
...
Secondly, the mystery behind the mc's reason for being sucked into the game is fascinating, and is only accentuated further each episode. Instead of bsing the mc's reason for being ultra strong, we see his undying will to survive and while he is given a little boost in the beginning, in no way does that make him op at all. His power is of his own effort, and it's incredibly refreshing.
I can only compare it to something like a combination of: AOT, TOG, and L.A.G. (lots of acronyms, I know).

Lastly, the development of characters is quite interesting, especially the side characters who seem to be a lot more dynamic as compared to the mc. I'd love to see how he grows, because as of now he is simply a cold and calculated mastermind, of which we've seen the archetype of a million times before.

Overall, this has the potential to become one of the greatest manhwa of all time, though with 48 chapters out right now, only time will tell.

Signing off, HeyMyHead

Pick me up! A story you must read

Pick me up is based on a web novel with the same name and which manages to adapt mostly well. A story that although it may seem simple, is full of mysteries, adventures, difficulties to overcome, sad moments, despair and joy (I know this because although the manhwa is not finished the novel is).

The main character Han is one of the most "human" characters that I have seen better represented in any manhwa, with a representation of an adult mentality in my opinion very well achieved, some people will confuse him as an EDGY character and I ... think they can not be more wrong. It is a character that is not easy to "read between the lines" because little by little he is showing how he is, he is not a character with a past in which he has lived through an ordeal and is looking for revenge. No, his principles are different and the desperation that he and his companions suffer in order to survive every day is what gives emotion to this story and makes the characters be the way they are and act the way they have to.

The world in which they live is not an easy world full of roses, NO! It is a cruel world in which the weak die either by the high difficulty fights carried out in the tower or by the care of not being synthesized by their master. A world that brings out the best and the worst of each person that arrives and that only the most capable to adapt to the situation they are in are the ones that have the best chance to survive.

--------------------score:-------------------
Story: 10
Art: 10
Characters: 10
Enjoy: 10
Overall: 10

---------------------Conclusion:------------------

Definitely one of my favorite stories that I would recommend to read to anyone (both manhwa and WN) unless you don't like serious stories and with a development full of mysteries.


----------------------------------------------REVIEW EN ESPAÑOL-----------------------------------------------------------


Pick me up! Una obra que debes leer

Pick me up esta basada en una web novela con el mismo nombre y el cual logra adaptar en su gran mayoria bien. Una historia que aunque pueda parecer simple, esta lleno de misterios, aventuras, dificultades a superar, momentos tristes, de desesperación y de alegría (esto lo se porque aunque el manhwa no este finalizado la novela si lo esta).

El personaje principal Han es uno de los personajes mas "humanos" que he visto mejor representado en algun manhwa, con representación de una mentalidad adulta en mi parecer muy bien lograda, algunos personas lo confundirán como un personaje EDGY y creo que no pueden estar mas equivocados. Es un personaje que no es facil "leer entre lineas" ya que poco a poco el va mostrando como es, no es personaje con un pasado en el que haya vivido por un calvario y anda en busca de venganza. No, sus principios son otros y la desesperación que sufren tanto el como sus compañeros en poder sobrevivir cada dia es lo que le da emocion a esta historia y hace que los personajes sean como son y actué de la forma que tienen que hacerlo.

El mundo en el que viven no es un mundo facil y lleno de rosas, NO!! es un mundo cruel en el que el débil muere ya sea por las luchas de alta dificultad llevadas a cabo en la torre o por el cuidado de no ser sintetizados por su maestro. Un mundo que saca lo mejor y lo peor de cada persona que llega y que solo los mas capaces a adaptarse a la situación en la que están son los que mas chance de sobrevivir tienen.

--------------------Puntuación:-------------------
Story: 10
Art: 10
Characters: 10
Enjoy: 10
Overall: 10

---------------------Conclusión:------------------

Sin duda una de mis historias favoritas que recomendaría leer a cualquiera (tanto manhwa como WN) al menos que no te gusten las historias serias y con un desarrollo lleno de misterios.

[the maze runner story in sword art online tower setting]

Plot is definitely better than most isekai/regression webtoon.
Plus, good thing about it is the MC being realistic without instant OP.

Story 7-9/10
Art: 10/10
MC: 8/10
Characters: 7/10
Overall Potential: 10/10
...
note that the rating based from my ongoing chapters read so it might change later

as someone who read a lot of trashy isekai/regression webtoon, this is definitely a unique one. brutal setting, gore, intense action. one thing i'm worried about it is whether the writer can keep up with the consistency of what they wrote so far.

This manhwa... it's like if a gacha game and Darkest Dungeon had wild sex and out popped this beauty. Seriously, it's almost too good to be true, but here we are.

As a gacha fan who's spent way too much on rolls, and someone who dabbles in game design, this manhwa hits all the right notes. It's a blend of addictive gacha mechanics, brutal permadeath, and strategic hero management. Have I mentioned about the sex of Darkest Dunge— Yeah, this is their love child.

The game design? Genius. You've got an engaging gacha system for the gamblers, idle gameplay that lets you grind while you sleep, and ... endless dungeons with branching plotlines. It's like this manhwa was built for sleepless nights. The permadeath is brutal, but that's what makes it exciting. The challenge is perfect, unlike most gacha games that just hand you easy wins. Plus, leveling up a 1-star hero into a 6-star powerhouse? That’s the dream. The whole system is designed to keep you hooked, and it works.

The story? It's solid. Not groundbreaking, but it keeps you invested. The power scaling and gacha mechanics blend well with the narrative, making for a fun experience. I’d give the story an 8 out of 10, but the gameplay design easily pushes the overall experience to a 9.

My only gripe? The pay-to-win system. Why can't they just go with a live service model like FFXIV? That would've made it perfect. Even so, I’m still giving this a 9 out of 10 because it’s that good.

Honestly, if someone ever makes a game with the depth of RimWorld, the challenge of Darkest Dungeon, and the loot grind of Last Epoch, mixed with gacha mechanics, I'd be the first in line, wallet wide open. This manhwa got pretty damn close to that fantasy of what would be the perfect game.

I am not at all a connoisseur of manhwa, this is probably the first one I picked up that really stuck with me, I think this is one of the cooler series I've been reading recently. The leveling up of this is really cleverly done and it made me realize how well the author has captured that feeling of grinding. Of course there's a general idea of plot armor and I know the MC will not die but I like seeing what types of hard work/deus ex machina come clutch to save the situation. I love the vibe of making all your weaker starters into ... godlike characters, that's more my vibe, try to make all characters work and disregard the meta. There's like three general story elements that are overarching that we have a lot of questions to remain unanswered: the fate of the MC's world Townia, the fate of Earth and how that factors into the story, and the mysteries of the company who made the game and the upper levels. Lots of mystery prevail but the action, the growth of characters, the development, I'm excited to continue reading.

The basic premise of the story is the main character gets summoned as hero in a Gacha game he's a top player of, where he's offered limited freedom outside of combat encounters although the MC specifically can make suggestions to the player. It's a very unique story where the MC not only has to progress like any other RPG Manhwa, but has to manage the community of heroes while subtly guiding the player to success without being too suspicious.

Pick Me Up! focuses much more on the party dynamics than other Manhwa because of the party-oriented nature of the Gacha game genre, it does a great ... job of getting you invested in every main character's progression and success, something that RPG Manhwa typically have trouble with as the overpowered MC overshadow the rest of the cast, turning other characters into cheerleaders on the sideline. We know the MC is probably safe despite not being that overpowered because of his special role in the story, so he can never fail a mission without dying (and the story ending or shifting completely) but the author is still great at coming up with scenarios for the different levels, and writing out an interesting plotline where they barely eek out a victory.

The story does a great job of portraying a sense of desperation and urgency but the repeated use of this theme does drag on during the combat encounters a bit too much IMO, would like to see a bit more variety in how they can challenge the characters rather than run out a timer. Paradoxically, as they focus more on characters they do seem to become safer which lowers the stakes a bit, but it's an easily resolvable issue so it's not that big of a deal.

Overall, Pick Me Up! has a lot of interesting concepts and does a great job portraying the dynamics of the characters' community, the writing is very solid so far, and I'm excited to see where the author takes the story.