Noticing that it was coming to the end of season 1, I thought it would be a great idea to review Return Of The Blossoming Blade so far. Updating every Friday, the comic has recently published its 71st episode and will be releasing its season finale/72nd episode in a few days!
As I read the first episode when it was originally released, I expected to drop it after the first couple of chapters as I do with most action comics on webtoon. However, the historical setting in China sparked my interest and I decided to wait for the next episode to be released since then, have kept up with the comic. Our main character Cheongmyeong, like most action protagonists in comics, is overpowered and basic. He is the opposite of a motivating character who starts off with nothing and has to practice and train to get better like in other comics such as Solo Levelling. I am still not quite sure why I read this comic every week when it’s updated but it must have something to do with the sheer stupidity of it and the fact that the storyline is so predictable. Cheongmyeong is incredibly powerful and nobody expects much of him since he looks weak so he stands up to them and defeats them instantly. The plot is as simple as that and essentially just repeats over and over again. Reading the new episode every Friday night is like an escape, there are no complicated plot points where you’re waiting intensely on the edge of your seat to find out if Cheongmyeong is able to defeat these new characters. Because you know that he will be able to do it easily. The comic is just a way to watch the protagonist beat condescending characters with a satisfactory and easy victory. It’s brain-numbing yet addictive.
I have not lost all hope for the comic yet as it still has a few redeeming qualities. Its setting is something that I haven’t seen used successfully many times before in comics and the art style is perfect for the story. Not only is the art in general impressive but especially the fight scenes, It is hard enough to convey the power, force, and speed of a fight within drawings but studio LICO certainly outdid themselves this time as I can easily say It has some of the best art that I have seen before in a manhwa.
A great storyline paired with this art would make it a must-read for any shonen lovers out there so I am still holding out hope for season 2 where we will hopefully get some more character development from cheongmyeong and watch him face more problems and perhaps even get defeated once or twice.
