Story:

Vampire romances are from rare, so what makes Orange Marmalade so good? The execution. In vampire shoujos, more often than not, the vampires are perceived as cool or alluring by the humans. Orange Marmalade, on the other hand, decides to take a realistic shot at the relationship between vampires and humans. When reality is suddenly invaded by the supernatural, you shouldn't be thinking along the lines of "Oh, he's so cool" or "Dude, I wanna be the friend of that vampire/werewolf/ghost." The characters of Orange Marmalade act just like how we would; we follow stereotypes and don't take action when others are ostracized due to the fear of also being ostracized.

Furthermore, the main source of conflict aren't the cheesy & angsty love triangles. Instead, it revolves around the relationship between vampires and humans, not boys and girls.

The manhwa has its fair share of heartwarming romantic moments. The romance starts somewhat early, so you won't just be left with 1 confession a chapter before the last chapter. You get your hugs, kisses, and what not.

Like all stories though, Orange Marmalade has its flaws.

I, for one, think the drama is a bit too excessive and sometimes over the top. There appears to be more drama and rage moments than happy ones. Most of the problems could be resolved through being rational and talking it out, but hey, if you wanna get technical, I guess the exaggerated drama contributes to the story's realism. Humans aren't exactly the most rational species.

Secondly, while the story ends on a happy note, you are left wanting more. The conflict itself was wrapped up quite nicely, but within that lies a problem. Now that the main female lead doesn't have to hide her identity anymore. You want to see her take advantage of that. Anyone would want a really cute moment or a final kiss after all that's happened. Also, the final line is one of those "I can't wait for the future" kind of lines, which I think is a bad way to end a story. This is one of those times, where you should definitely "show, not tell."

In short, Orange Marmalade is a vampire romance with a different and realistic take on the view of vampires which in turn, results in quite a big amount of drama. There are plenty of nice romantic scenes for romance lovers, but the ending could've been better in that regard.

Art:

It's pretty hard to find a manhwa these days that doesn't have good art. Luckily for us, Orange Marmalade is in the majority. The characters and the scenery are appealing. I have no complaints in the art department.

Characters:

The characters feel like actual people. None of them are perfect or crazy altruistic. They're mindset is just like ours. For example, in order to fit in, people are willing to whatever it takes even if it means joining the others in bullying someone. No one likes that kind of person, but you have to admit that it's a real thing. The characters take similar if not the same action as just described. They all do redeem themselves at one point or another. They took some time to reflect and realized what they did was wrong. If you don't end up forgiving them though, well your loss. You can't completely blame them for their actions considering reality took a dive into the supernatural, something which people would definitely be wary of. I'll go a little bit more in-depth, but only with the 2 main protagonists.

Our first character is Ma Ri Baek, the female protagonist as well as the vampire of the story. She's initially cold at first, but that's just because she's afraid of being hated. She'd rather have them think of her as an ice queen than get close to them, just for them to call her a monster when they find out. However, because of Jae-Min and other new found friends, she slowly starts to open up. At that point, you find out deep down, she's a sweet and caring girl. You just can't help, but feel bad for her when things take a turn for the worst.

The male protagonist of the story is Jae-Min, a human. He's a good-looking guy who in the beginning, had absolutely no interest in women. Right in the first few chapters, he develops feelings for Ma Ri Baek. He may come off as annoying sometimes, but he's certainly different than the male protagonists we have today. He's not a perfect prince nor is he a complete jerk. He simply has good qualities and bad qualities, which we all have. Also again, considering the circumstances of the story, certain actions aren't completely unjustifiable. In the end, he becomes someone mature and understanding.

Overall:

Orange Marmalade is a unique story that manages to perfectly utilize a mainstream topic, vampire romance. Rather than being a generic story about which vampire guy the girl will end up with, it explores the idea of how human societies treat vampires and vice versa. Of course, it also breaks it down to the relationship between a vampire girl and a human boy, which results in a nice romance.

While the ending could've certainly been better in the romance department, the story did have romantic moments, a good realistic environment, and a happy ending.