Summary

• Lookism is a popular webtoon that explores themes of beauty and physical attraction, featuring a protagonist who can switch between two bodies.
• The Lookism Universe includes spinoff webtoons like Manager Kim and Viral Hit, which also feature action and fighting elements.
• Questism is a standalone series set in the Lookism Universe, where a gamer is granted special abilities and must navigate territorial wars.

The following contains potential spoilers for Lookism, Viral Hit, Questism, and Manager Kim.

Franchises sharing a universe isn't a new idea, especially in comics. Many already associated the concept with movies, TV shows, and Western comic books. Now, other media also attempt to expand on their most renowned series. While that's partly in the hope of earning more money from familiarity, another is to give the fans what they like. This is also true in the world of webtoons and manhua. While many readers may not be aware, numerous equally renowned webtoons share the same universe as Lookism.

Lookism is a Korean webtoon that was originally published on the Korean platform Naver WEBTOON. The webtoon has received a warm reception and has risen in popularity over the years. It received an official English translation in 2017, and, more recently, an animated adaptation from Netflix. It's also received numerous spinoffs, resulting in a veritable Lookism Universe. With its continued popularity, now is the perfect time to catch up on the franchise's extended universe by looking at all the Webtoons available for binge-reading.

Updated by Timothy Blake Donohoo on January 20, 2024: Webtoons have become increasingly popular, with the modern Korean Wave making any form of South Korean entertainment become an international hit. One series that remains quite popular is Lookism, which explores various societal themes involving beauty and physical attraction. The Webtoon has had numerous spinoffs, creating a shared universe that's almost understated at times. This gives readers the best of both worlds, with the Lookism Universe being strong enough to notice but not too cumbersome to avoid.

Lookism Is a Central Comic in This Webtoon Universe

The progenitor of the eponymous Lookism Universe, Lookism is the story of the not-so-conventionally handsome Daniel Park. Due to his physical flaws, he has been on the receiving end of bullying for years. He hopes to start anew by transferring to a new place, despite his family's financial struggles, which pays off. Before school starts, he suddenly wakes up in a different body, which is not only physically attractive but also very athletic and strong. However, there is a catch: His old body still exists, and he must juggle between two bodies in order to keep them safe and to prevent the world from learning his secret.

Lookism may seem like the standard drama with a focus on bullying, but it is far more than that. It is more of an action drama featuring juvenile gangs and territorial wars. But it does tackle serious social issues, including bullying, running away from home, peer pressure, and the like. It's just that the series' true charm shines during the fights. Daniel's new school houses numerous strong fighters, but most of them are good people. It just so happens that they get entangled in serious issues that involve sketchy organizations. To live peacefully, they have no other choice but to defend themselves.

Manager Kim Makes Lookism's Fights Look Like Child's Play

Manager Kim is centered on the title character, who seems like a typical single father to his daughter, Minji. However, Manager Kim is actually a former black-ops agent—not only for South Korea but also for the North as well. He is forced out of this lifestyle after the birth of his daughter and the webtoon narrates how he managed to achieve such a feat. When Minji turns up missing, the mild-mannered company manager returns to his brutal ways in an effort to gain all the information he can about his daughter.

In the Lookism Universe, there are four major crews, and Manager Kim is connected to the crew of runaway families known as Hostel. While the present Hostel consists of hundreds of juvenile runaways, the original group only consisted of a handful of individuals. However, it is important to remember that Lookism is an action webtoon. Most members of Hostel can fight well, especially their male members. The titular character of Manager Kim is the one who took Warren Chae, the designated uncle of Hostel, under his wing and trained him. Once again, it's somewhat similar to street-level and delinquent anime and manga.

Viral Hit Takes Call-Out Culture to a New Level

Viral Hit follows the story of Hobin Yoo, a high school student who has received the short end of the stick in life in the Lookism world. Not only is Hobin living a life of poverty, but his only family member, his mother, requires constant medical attention. He is forced to take multiple part-time jobs to pay for his mother's medical expenses, as well as provide for their daily necessities. The thing is, Hobin is also a really scrawny kid. Due to this, he becomes a favorite victim of bullying, which is made worse by the fact his bullying is broadcast online. However, Hobin's life changes after he accidentally becomes viral on NewTube. He uses that to start a NewTube career calling out bullies.

Like the other two series in the Lookism Universe, Viral Hit is also jam-packed with fights and action. Hobin learns from a mysterious man online and uses the techniques he learns to take down bullies. Interestingly, Viral Hit shares a lot of elements with Manager Kim. Taehun Song's father is the same Hansu Seong who helped the titular Manager Kim accomplish his missions. Lookism and Viral Hit also share a brief crossover during Lookism's Workers Arc, where popular social media influencers gathered for an event. Of course, they also share the same brand modification modifications, like NewTube for YouTube and Kwitch for the video streaming platform Twitch.

Questism Is More of a Standalone Series

Questism is about the rise to glory of a certain Suhyeon Kim, an avid gamer who is also, unfortunately, a frequent victim of bullying. Just like a lot of gamers, he wishes for his life to become like the games he loves to play. The only difference is that Suhyeon's wish becomes a reality. A quest window pops up in front of him, detailing both his mission and its reward. After accomplishing his mission, he is granted a certain card that boosts his looks and abilities. Now, Suhyeon must continue following the system's demands if he doesn't want all of his hard work to go down the drain.

After Lookism's Daniel Park defeated Johan Seong, the Gangbuk was divided into four regions—North, East, South, and West. That's where Questism is set. What seems like a quirky webtoon about completing quests is actually an action series featuring turf wars. The system forces Suhyeon Kim to become West Gangbuk's top dog and join the territorial wars. He slowly builds his crew, and among his companions is Jihyeok Jang, the brother of Lookism's Jin Jang. But other than these details, Questism rarely crosses over to the other, previously mentioned manhwa in the Lookism Universe.