With more people reading manga and Webtoons (aka vertical scroll comics) than ever before, Beat’s Bizarre Adventure gives three writers an opportunity each week to recommend some of their favorite books and series from Japan, Korea, and elsewhere. This week we have people transforming into animals, rude elves, and, of course, skeletons.
Fruits Basket
Writer/Artist: Natsuki Takaya
Translation: Sheldon Drzka
Lettering: Lys Blakeslee
Publisher: Yen Press
Fruits Basket is about a young orphan girl named Tohru Honda. After a landslide destroys her tent, where she has been living for some time, she is taken in by the Sohma family. They include her popular classmate Yuki, his cousin Shigure, and Kyo, who makes his appearance by crashing in from the roof—and turns into a cat the moment Tohru accidentally knocks into him. It turns out that the Sohma family have a secret: they are cursed to turn into their zodiac animal if touched by someone of another sex. Kyo, as the cat who has been left out of the zodiac, believes that by defeating Yuki, who is the rat, he can find his place.
Fruits Basket was created in 1998 by Natsuki Takaya. The series gave birth to many beloved tropes that we see in modern stories today. My appreciation for it grows on every reread. At first glance, Tohru feels like an unrealistic character in that she is unwaveringly kind and optimistic. How can she stay so positive after everything she has been through? But as you read on, you realize that being kind takes a tremendous amount of strength and courage. Every other character too, including the antagonist Akito, is just as beautifully layered.
I can’t forget about the romance either. I watched the original anime before I read the manga and one of the complaints I had was that the relationship between Tohru and Kyo was paced a little too fast. If you felt the same way, you should read the manga to see the little moments between the two and how they became closer. Fruits Basket is a classic for good reason! — Hilary Leung
Money Forest
Writer/Artist: Kyohei Tawara
Translation: Melanie Westin
Localization: Lapin Inc.
Platform: MANGA Plus
Shueisha’s recent lineup of new Shonen Jump titles has already sparked curiosity, and Money Forest, the latest series from Kyohei Tawara—best known for Rengoku no Toshi—might be the most intriguing of them. At first glance, it’s a familiar fantasy setup: a forest in danger, humans invading, elves resisting. But Tawara twists expectations by centering the story not on a noble warrior or mystic sage, but on Rhodri, a sharp-tongued, money-driven merchant elf who operates with the cynicism of an antihero and the poise of royalty. He’s what intrigued me most about this story.
The premise is simple but biting. Humans have become a destructive force, enslaving elves, burning forests, and stripping the land for profit. Rhodri is tasked with confronting the crisis. Yet he approaches everything through the lens of negotiation, economics, and self-interest. His philosophy is ruthless: humans are “inferior” and “filth.” But do not be fooled. Time, to him, is far more precious than morality. He saves a female elf not out of compassion but because “finding another guide would waste valuable minutes”—a perfect snapshot of his worldview.
Elves are traditionally portrayed as peaceful and in tune with nature. Rhodri though is a walking contradiction. He rides a horse with silk equipment and golden shoes. He feeds the horse special carrots that help the animal march for hours which he calls “Ten-Thousand-Step Carrot Gold.” But Rhodri’s weapons, an expensive barrier shield and a crackling lightning sword, hint that he may not be who he appears to be. That suspicion becomes a major narrative hook by the end of the second chapter.
Visually, the series is striking. Tawara blends clean fantasy aesthetics with playful shounen exaggeration. One human merchant even sports goggles and expressive brows that evoke classic Dragon Ball—Master Roshi vibes included. The art style moves comfortably between beauty, comedy, and suspense, supporting the manga’s tonal mix of satire and adventure.
If Money Forest has a flaw, it’s that the human-vs-elf dynamic can feel overly binary at first. Tawara seems aware of this simplification though. Rhodri’s secret identity suggests that deeper political and moral layers are waiting.
Money Forest flips the fantasy action formula we all know into something sharper and more playful. And chaotic, smug, brilliant Rhodri is the kind of antihero I didn’t realize I needed. The second chapter left me itching to see what he’s really planning and where this whole mess of secrets will lead. If you enjoy worlds that bend familiar tropes and characters who keep you guessing, this is a series to keep an eye on. — Ilgın Side Soysal
The Skeleton Soldier Failed to Defend the Dungeon
Story: Wolhet
Art: Kangye Seul
Original Novel: Sosori
Platform: Tappytoon
“I have Armor Lock, you cannot possibly hurt me!”
“I count six seconds, fuckface!!”
That memorable meme introduced me to this webtoon, especially as a longtime Halo fan. Why was this bald knight guy crouching down? Who was that skeleton looming over him menacingly with a big stone in its bony hands?
The Skeleton Soldier Failed to Defend the Dungeon began publication in 2020; it now has 400 chapters. The story centers around a Level 32 skeleton soldier who is slain along with his succubus master by what are assumed to be heroes. He suddenly reawakens in the past, back when he was merely a level 1 skeleton raised to serve the heiress Rubia Ray. The skeleton soldier decides that if he can protect Rubia from assassins, then he might properly defend his succubus master when the time comes.
But the skeleton soldier realizes this is easier said than done when he is killed…again! And reawakens from the start, again. This is Groundhog Day meets Re:Zero but told through the eyes of the screaming terrifying skeletons from The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall. You know, the ones who go “Groooaaaghh!!!” It is an interesting perspective shift as we rarely get stories of this type told through the eyes of video game enemies. Even though our main character is the “villain” of this story, we are cheering for him to become stronger and make it further into his adventures.
The Skeleton Soldier Failed to Defend the Dungeon is drawn in the anime/manga inspired style you see in many webtoons. The skeleton itself was clearly created via a rigged 3D skeleton character model. The artist Kangye Seul did their best to color and shade to make it appear less like a 3D model. I don’t blame Kangye for doing this; try drawing a human skeleton based on references at various angles and poses for almost every single panel of the story. It would be very time consuming! So these time-saving measures are understandable and work within the story itself. At least it makes our titular skeleton stand out from the other characters who are hand drawn.
When it comes to the characters, surprisingly this webtoon doesn’t rely too much on the typical cell shading and highlight style of coloring and rendering. Instead, Kangye relies on solid black shadows to imply depth with almost everyone given just flat colors. The use of shadows reminds me of 70s fantasy comics, which could have been an inspiration during development of the series. Overall, the art immerses the reader in a fantasy world while allowing our skeleton friend to stand out.
I am thoroughly enjoying this series; if not for the memes, then for the art and writing. That’s no doubt a testament to Sosori‘s source material, which I might give a read in the future. But if you like stories following a villain’s growth from zero to absolute menace with some Groundhog Day mechanics involved, do give The Skeleton Soldier Failed to Defend the Dungeon a read on Tappytoon. Remember, inside all of us is another Skeleton Soldier! — Justin Guerrero
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