Han Kyoung Chal, Cover Art, Spirit Fingers, Webtoon.
Spirit Fingers – Information
Author of Story: Han Kyoung Chal
Chapter Count: 162 + 4 extra chapters
Status: Completed!
Content Warnings
These content warnings do not reflect the contents of the review below; only the literary work itself.
- Bullying
- Body image / ED / food / anti-fat bias
- Mental health
Spoiler Disclaimer
This recommendation post may contain small plot spoilers for review purposes. Any major spoilers are hidden by default and are able to be revealed via click or tap.
Spirit Fingers – Plot Summary
Note: I refer to this series as both a manhwa and a webtoon in this review. The webtoon uses new names, whereas other manhwa translations may use the original Korean names for the characters.
The Spirit Fingers manhwa focuses on Wooyeon Song (age 17, also known as Amy Song in the webtoon version), who is a plain and imaginative young student working her way through her last years of high school and moving towards adulthood.
She unfortunately has very low self esteem, and greatly desires to be a beautiful and talented person.
The story starts when Wooyeon runs into a group of interesting people who are croquis drawing in a busy public area (croquis drawing is a quick sketch of a live model). They request that she be their model, and proceed to draw her with varying levels of artistic talent.
To Wooyeon’s surprise, she is invited to join their group; and although reluctantly, she accepts! This starts the main plot of a sweet story about learning to love and discover oneself. Although this story does have romance aspects in it, they are more slow-burn!
After all, it is important to love yourself properly regardless of others’ opinions, which is the main theme throughout the Spirit Fingers manhwa.
Another great aspect of this story is that it is very funny and a bit childish. There will be lots of silly moments and expressive characters, so you will get a lot of laughs while reading this story. It is a great lighthearted manhwa/Webtoon to brighten your day!
Why I Enjoyed Spirit Fingers
Firstly, the story is sweet and touching. It has a wholesome message and a satisfying ending, wrapped up in a fun and whimsical style. It is delightfully silly. You’ll get a good laugh often, since these characters are so vibrant and unapologetically themselves. You’ll love each and every one of them!
I also love the unique art style found in Spirit Fingers. It feels very artistic with a fun use of colors and a variety of character designs!
Han Kyoung Chal, Volume 8 Cover, Spirit Fingers, Wisdom House.
You can even see how the background colors represent the emotions of what’s happening in each scene! Sometimes, the author even draws scenes that look non-digital, which is such a nice touch. Overall, the style feels very appropriate for a story about an art club!
The artist of the Spirit Fingers created many gorgeous characters who aren’t afraid of being themselves; silly or expressive faces are very common in this story! There are lots of humorous moments, and even the handsome and beautiful characters have very interesting personalities.
I feel like this makes it feel much more relatable and realistic. Nobody in Spirit Fingers is “perfect,” and that’s how it’s meant to be! We also get to see characters from many walks of life come together to support one another and enjoy a hobby.
The author also shows us all the characters in a wide variety of outfits, which is so fun and unique!
Another great thing about this story is that the romance is so cute and well-paced. The male lead, Gijung Nam (known as Kevin Nam in the Spirit Fingers webtoon), falls first and he falls really deep!
The romance is very appropriate for the high-school aged characters, and they help support each other through challenges and hard times. Their personalities are so different, but they fit each other so perfectly!
However, don’t misunderstand. This story’s romance isn’t the type where the FL becomes confident once she gets a boyfriend. Instead, Wooyeon discovers love for herself through her own hard work, with some support of those around her!
Gijung also discovers more of himself in the Spirit Fingers manhwa. He is known for being “only good for his looks,” or as an overconfident jerk to some. However, throughout the series we see a change in his character as he begins to prioritize other things in his life and mature a bit more.
Any Cons?
Spirit Fingers doesn’t really have many cons.
The rom-com aspects were perfectly paired with the overall message by keeping things lighthearted, and the art mediums used in this story were beautiful and fun! The only cons I can really think of are just realistic depictions of how some people in real life behave.
For example, there’s one character that continuously refers to Wooyeon in a derogatory way which sort of bugged me, but that’s honestly speaking more to his character (and he actually begins to correct himself after a while).
Han Kyoung Chal, Spirit Fingers, Webtoon.
There are other characters in the Spirit Fingers manhwa who act mean as well, but they all play important roles since this story is about becoming a strong person, loving yourself, and discovering your passions.
Just like in our own lives, there are people who will judge you for who you are, but it’s necessary to focus on accepting your true self. I think the less-likable characters in this story help shape that important message.
The only other aspect I was worried about was that this story was giving the vibe of anti-fat bias for a short time, because of a character continuously complaining that she’s on a diet and doesn’t want to gain weight.
However, it does actually end up being a part of the “love yourself” message in the story. Basically, you don’t need to change anything about yourself to be loved!
More In-Depth Review (Warning: Spoilers!)
The Spirit Fingers manhwa is very clearly a story about finding your true self and learning how to love every part of it. Although low self esteem and insecurity can root from a variety of things, it’s pretty obvious from the start that Wooyeon was never given a chance to love herself.
For example, her own mother compares her to her brothers often and doesn’t seem to see any of Wooyeon’s efforts or good points. She constantly nags her to improve in only aspects of academics and keeping up appearances.
Even at school, one of Wooyeon’s friends is easily jealous and competitive, and says hurtful things more often than what would be considered playful. She definitely cares for Wooyeon, but sometimes is a bit too rough and has a habit of lashing out.
Both of these side characters simply act out due to their own insecurities, which once again ties into the story’s overall theme. However, the person who makes a difference in their lives, and her own, is Wooyeon!
It’s really nice to see Wooyeon meet people in the Spirit Fingers manhwa story who can encourage her and teach her to love herself. We get to see Wooyeon grow throughout the series and become stronger as a person!
She becomes more confident in herself, standing up to her mom and bullies, and even becoming more honest to her friends.
I like that instead of abandoning her original friends, she instead opens up to them and allows them to slowly change themselves as well. It’s a collective growth between the three of them thanks to honesty, vulnerability, and communication!
Another aspect of the Spirit Fingers manhwa that I loved is that our sweet, shy, and calm main character falls for the eccentric, loud, confident character. They are total opposites, but help bring out the best in each other!
I love that they lift each other up and provide support for one another when needed. I especially like that even though Gijung played an important role in comforting or helping Wooyeon at certain points in the story, he is not the main factor of her change.
Instead, it is the collective efforts of Wooyeon’s friends, family, and herself that help mold her into a stronger person. She makes the first step to be brave, gets helps along the way, and ultimately changes her own destiny. Go Wooyeon!
Final Thoughts
The Spirit Fingers manhwa overall is a very enjoyable read. It’s got a lot of sweet messages throughout that warm your heart, but also a lot of childish and silly moments that’ll make you laugh.
It’s really sweet, and I loved seeing Wooyeon and her friends grow throughout the series. Definitely give this one a read!
Disclaimer: Any images used for this blog are for illustrative purposes only, are not owned by me, and are under ownership of the artist or publisher.
Images Credit: Han Kyoung Chal. Spirit Fingers. Wisdom House, 2020. Webtoon, 2019. https://www.webtoons.com/en/drama/spirit-fingers/list?title_no=1577.
