Tower of God

This will be my first written review of this platform and will be taken by what is considered by many to be the best manhwa:

10/10 story: wonderful just that, Siu is a genius when it comes to creating a story that catches you from the first chapter read, for many it seemed boring to me, the story enchanted me, as if he is revealing us little by little Little the mysteries of the world of TOG ES is simply incredible, this is one of the few mangakas as well as an ode that tells you an event in chapter 1 and it is not if not within 100 chapters that reveals it, that makes for me tower of god be one of the best manhwas par excellence

art, here I will divide it into two: first season 3/10, it was disgusting the truth, why deny it, the characters and almost everything seemed to be with paint and it is understandable since Siu at first was disgusting drawing, I think the only thing it goes down that he drew were the scenarios but nothing else.
Second and third season 9.5: my goodness, but here the thing changes, the drawing, the lines, the art of siu gives a tremendous high, that makes it more enjoyable to continue reading the story

Characters 8.5: all the characters are well-worn, well-worked, and with a back story that makes you adore them unconditionally, they all have their moment to shine, here is not only the leading role that stands out, to be honest there are characters who are better at personality and stand out more than the protagonist himself and that is good, it is not like others that have been read where the protagonist is the center of attention, literally the protagonist can die and history will go its own way.

Enjoy 10/10: to some it may seem slow or boring, but for me it is the opposite, each chapter that I see fills me more and more with emotion, I cannot find it piece read more than 80 or 100 pages, and at the end a chapter I feel like reading more.

Overall 9.5 / 10: He said, and if I gave it a low rating with everything written, I would be commenting on sacrilege and offending one of the best stories I'm reading.

Frequently dubbed "the One Piece of manhwa" by the animanga community, this 10-year old series is undoubtedly a legend in itself, a giant in the manhwa industry, and for very good reasons. For me, a story that can match ToG are very few and far between.

Story: 10/10 | Art: 9/10 | Character: 9/10 | Enjoyment: 10/10 | Overall: 10/10

What I like best about ToG: In terms of Worldbuilding, from SIU's blogposts, you can see how much dedication he has given to it, to the extent of laying down plots and characters that appear 6-8 years later in the story. I love discussing these mysteries with the community.

Theme-wise, I'd compare it to the level of Shingeki no Kyojin (AoT), for its more serious narration & setting (with a dash of occasional humour), the cruel undertone that permeates the society, the diversity in character perspectives, the moral ambiguity, the mystery, and how the plot progresses. Just my cup of tea.

This review is from the perspective of a fan who've been reading this since 2015. I will tell you why to me, this series stood out among the 50+ manga and manhwas I've read, analyse the good, the bad, the phenomenal, the most common complaints and praises of the series, and the reasons why so many readers are addicted to it.

Personally, I think the 3 strongest points of Tower of God are:

1. World Building,
As part of the bigger Talse Uzer Story, The Tower has its own lore, history, rules, hierarchal system, power struggles between factions, and characters with their own lives, triumphs and setbacks. There is further differences between each floor, and it is hinted that the world outside the tower is completely different. The world is mind-bogglingly huge, and it is an enjoyment to find out more about it. Wiki is your best friend.

There is no "average villain", every arc is unique in plot, story, characters, and setting. Yet, they do not feel like a filler because they have a role in the overarching story, which leads back to the main plot line.

2. Mystery,
where the reader follows the main character into this unknown world, to find out what happened to the Tower in the past 10,000+ years, that lead to what it is today. There's no end to discussion with the community, especially on discord. As the story progresses, more and more mysteries are unveiled, but just enough to keep you on your toes, and ask more questions.

How much you immerse in the universe, I feel, is the biggest difference between "addicted" readers and most other readers. Readers who enjoy discussing the hints, mysteries, and predicting the story seems far more likely to enjoy the series than a casual reader. Discussing and asking questions in the community, such as the r/towerofgod discord community, really makes a difference.

3. Plot,
where a coherent storyline is planned out many years in advance, and the author seemingly never run out of materials. Since the beginning, it has shifted from Hunter x Hunter / My Hero Academia style of lessons and tests, to One Piece style of world building, and to Shingeki no Kyojin style of ideological / political fights and wars. As of 2020, it has published for 10 years, and is still going very strong.

Personally, I'd add a few more points:

4. Moral ambiguity,
Tower of God has some thought provoking themes as it goes along, this is not a typical "the MC and those who help him can do nothing wrong" series. Throughout the story, the MC have received help from outright villainous characters, who often have their own motivations. Even as we learn about their back story, most do not try to justify their actions with "sob stories", nor are they portrayed as unreasonable, insane people. This is what I like about this, and what makes it stand out from other typical "shonen" series. There is no clear "good" or "bad" side, yet the story doesn't harp on it, but integrate it naturally into the culture of the Tower.

5. Themes
Some notable themes for characters in this story, include "devotion", and "fighting fate". I enjoyed how SIU explored the theme of "devotion" outside of romantic feelings, by elaborating the emotions, thoughts, experiences, behaviours and nuances when it comes to desires. Fate is another theme in this story, where individuals fight to free themselves from shackles imposed onto them by a higher establishment. It can become very gruesome, yet it is not the run of the mill "tragic" story. Oppression is well elaborated and not "forced" onto the story. As a person who grew up under an oppressive government, I really appreciated the realism that is portrayed.

Lastly, as a female reader, I appreciated the relative lack of female character sexualisation and obsession on "boobs", similar to Shingeki no Kyojin. Female characters are often ranked among the strongest of the Tower inhabitants, and have their own unique character, as well as important contribution to the progress of the story.



Moving on, the 3 most common complaints of Tower of God are:

1. Too many? characters, not enough development for some side characters:

Tower of God is of the Epic Fantasy genre, which naturally features a large cast. While it is beloved for its diverse cast of side characters, it can also be a downside to some who have difficulty remembering everything. Although it's not something that can't be resolved with wiki and some discussion or questions on discord and reddit.

Due to the nature of the story, where the Tower is a big place (with 134 known floors the size of the American continent), and the fact that the MC is far stronger and needs to grow quickly to defeat the ultimate archenemy, eventually some side characters will fade away from central storyline. It can be sad to get attached to a side character who has relatable backstory and motives, but then the character doesn't show up for 2-3 years.

As the plot progresses, more new characters are introduced for their role in the story. This can be an upside for those who enjoy the world building (and more new favourite characters!), but a downside for those who prefer sticking to familiar characters. Still, many side characters are still very well loved for their design, character development, and their role in the story. On discord, there's a sizeable number of fans who join the "teams" for side characters, and that speaks a lot.


2. Art (season 1)
Everyone knows that the drawings didn't start off well, but it does tremendously improve. (see: imgur.com/gallery/fxbQdYW) It started with amateurish anatomy, by around 80-150 chapters, it has already improved beyond recognition, with refined colouring and style that takes your breath away, on par with the best of mangas. The series is fully coloured which is its strong point, well loved for its details, as well as the fact that the characters actually change their clothes.

But having read many other works with much cleaner action scenes, some fighting scenes can come off as slightly confusing due to the vertical format of the Webtoons, and some 3D modelled ships can seem to have flat textures. The artist was also injured for a while and you can see the art style evolve through different arcs. Regardless, I'd give this an 9/10 for its excellent art, and it's fighting scenes are still great.


3. Plot & Power scaling
A big bottleneck for this series is the early Hell Train Station arc (around post chapter 200), where some people agree that the plot became unbearably slow, even when reread. It seemed like SIU took feedback from his readers that the previous arc was "too fast paced", and tried to adjust it, which in my opinion didn't turn out well. If you can last through that arc, imo the best is yet to come. All my favourite arcs are after that.

Because of how the story itself evolves through different themes and segments of the Tower, some may lament that what initially attracted them to the story is not the main focus now. But the story has something for everyone. There are those who are still very fond of the wit and epicness of S1 and early S2, despite how long ago it was. Some enjoy the later seasons, for the characters, world building, mystery, art, thought provoking conflicts and much more.

The Power scaling and progression had also came to question, as the story progresses to include more and more characters from the upper echelons of the tower. While earlier battles relied more on tactics and tricks, later on it sometimes felt like a spam of flashy moves. Regardless, it simply reflects the overwhelming power difference as one moves up the tower, and many are happy to have epic scenes like these. i.imgur.com/eI1URJZ.jpg



In conclusion, you will probably love Tower of God if:

1. You enjoy epic / dark fantasy and discussing about the mysteries.

2. You like diverse characters, with moral ambiguities and different perspectives.

3. You like political fights and the journey towards toppling the establishment.


Hope you find Tower of God as addictive as we do!

I'm currently still reading Tower of God and it is no where near its end. So take what you read below with a grain of salt. Also no spoilers.

This series took forever to end up on MAL because what MAL attributes to an actual series is something that is published/aired on TV/showcased in a theater. Dumbasses.

HOWEVER we now have this series on MAL and a freaking anime adaptation coming out soon to boot.

Until the series has concluded, I'm just going to write down my current thoughts on the series so far.

Tower of God has been, for the past 4 or so years, been my number one shounen story. Yes, this Korean Manhwa is very much a shounen. It showcases the struggle of one boy as he continues to hone his skills. He meets many friends whom he, at many points in the story, helps on their journey to the top of this crazy ass tower. That's a fucking shounen dawg.

Speaking of the tower, the world in general in this story is crazy detailed amazing. The world building is absolutely top notch. Even in sections where the author isn't going out of his way to fully flesh out the surroundings, you pick up on it whether it is the artwork or dialogue from the characters.

The artwork starts out dog ass. Yes it isn't that appealing to look at for the first 50 or so chapters. SIU, the creator of this story, obviously had growing pains with the artstyle for a good while. However, it very much improves over time and from season 2 onward, the artwork is fantastic.

The character designs are amazing as well. Each character looks so unique and they match the tone they are expelling in all scenes.

I'm like, super deep into the chapters (I tend to catch up, wait a year, then re-read all the way up to the current chapter) and I can say that this is my most favorite written media thing that I've read in the past 10 or so years. It does drag a little bit towards the middle/end of season 2 but not at all enough to make me bored of it all together. This really is a fantastic piece of work and anyone who loves shounen anime/manga owes it to yourself to read this.

I read the full season one and half season 2 of Tower God a few days ago so I will give you my honest thoughts about it here. I first heard of this manhwa becoming an anime not too long ago from Joey (AKA The Anime Man) and wanted to check it out straight away, instead of waiting every week for all episodes to fully air.

Basically when I first read all 78 chapters (season 1) of this manhwa, I actually thought it was quite decent at first . Rak and Khun were the most likeable pair I've come across in the series. It's always adorable when Rak always calls everyone different types of "Turtles" and going over the top with things. Khun was like this chilled out dude with a slick style and whom you really want to be friends with, and even him falling out with Rak numerous of times for various stupid reasons, was absolutely hilarious! In all honesty, I had no time for Bam because he was always just non-stop talks about Rachel and he was just such a headache to look at lol!


SPOILERS AHEAD IF YOU HAVE NOT READ SEASON 2 YET



So fast forward to reading season 2.... It was a serious hot mess tbh.... They added in pointless numerous characters who don't add up to the story and story was just all over the friggin shop with non stop repeating itself!! They even got rid of most of the old crew but when they kept a few such as Bam (who you know I don't like but still) and Khun, they are completely different characters altogether! I felt their personalities abruptly changed which I honestly hated, especially Khuns! Also no Rak so that made my reading experience pretty frustrating and that resulted in me dropping the season altogether at 27 chapters... Very disappointed but yeah we can't like every single webtoon out there lads!

I don't care if you disagree with my opinion or not but this wasnt the best manhwa I've ever read to be quite frank with ya!

To end on a more positive note with my negative review, the opening song of this in the anime adaption is pretty lit!

Tower of god is a fantastic and amazing story siu is one the most creative Mangaka out there today. The story may be a little hard to follow at first but be patient everything will be explained in time. One of the primary things that attracted me to tower of god was it’s amazing cast of female characters the majority of the primary female characters are bad ass unlike Sakura from naruto or Orihime from bleach they actually have value and can fight and have a personality. Overall this is probably most diverse cast characters I’ve read in awhile. Now the power system is like nen from hunter x hunter but a lot stronger the tog universe in terms of power scaling is way stronger than let’s say naruto one piece etcetera but not as Strong as dbz or toriko. The world building is truly Fantastic and has a great deal of mystery involved the only story that compares would probably be one piece and hunter x hunter. The artwork in the first season is average but becomes amazing in the next 2 seasons. Overall the people who dislike this series are people who are either too dumb to understand it or did not give it a chance. Be patient and you will love this story. The characters are amazing the world building is outstanding and again the female characters are by far the best I’ve seen in manga webtoons manhua you name it. The only cast of female characters that can compare would be claymore. When you read tog I also highly suggest reading the wiki for it will help you gain more insight into the tog universe. The only story that compares imo is hunter x hunter. At first I thought tog was gonna be weird it turns out as was wrong when you finally decide to read tog prepare yourself for a legendary experience.

I started reading this manhwa because I saw it was getting an anime adaptation. Before I watched it I wanted to give it a go on its original version (and it's the first time I happen to cross a manhwa adaptation in a japanese animation).

So, well, the first season is perfect. Neverending suspense, touching characters once you come to know you're bound to, schemings behind hidden plots, a lot of humour and the right amount of action.

I can't, however, bring myself to draw the 10/10 perfect score because of one thing, happening mostly in the second season I'm currently reading: it gives me headaches. Because it is confusing. Focusing on the suspense, the actions are chaining really quickly and that's great for the heart-pounding feeling. But, the backfire is that I can't process all the consequences of the informations provided and add them up to those I've gathered. So, for those who don't look more into it, everything's fine, but as I need to stop every 5 chapters to fathom what just happened, who's who, who betrayed, who joined, and why's that, and more importantly what does it implies for the coming next floor, I can't say it's perfect.

Why did I give such a hign score though? Well, the story is very unique and as I can't bring myself to not read it every day since I started, it shows I'm hooked. I'm worried because I still have some spare chapters because I catch up to the latest release, and I'm already unable to sleep without brainstorming about the schemes and motives of all the characters.

So prepare yourselves before you start reading it, because it won't release you until you've reached the end. But, you shouldn't miss such an opportunity. And finally I'm not sure I'll see the anime version, it could be too weird for me as I'm very wary of adaptations.

I finally have a chance to pitch in a vote for my absolute favorite webtoon.

Over the years i have picked up series and enjoyed them. I've gotten obsessed with keeping up with all sorts of manga and then grown bored with them weeks or months later. My tastes have have changed and all sorts of series i liked don't interest me any longer.

The only series that has consistently stuck with me is TOG. The only series that I've been keeping up with for years and still get excited week per week for goes to this magnificent piece of art.

Please do yourself a service and read this.
I promise you wont regret it if you have any misgivings about the art know it gets vastly better.

This is by no means a perfect Manwha.
It is however my favorite one by a long shot, and has been for the past five or so years. If you're looking for a shounen with great world building and a multilayered plot I definitely think this is a read for you. However, if you want a deep well thought out story that will make you contemplate life this might not be your thing.

I will mostly be pointing out flaws and things that annoyed me while reading so the score I gave might come off as conflicting in regards to the review itself, but I really do enjoy reading this on a weekly basis despite all its flaws and I think a majority of people would too which is why I'm scoring it a 10/10.

So my favorite aspect of this Manwha and the reason I do enjoy it so much is the world building. SIU has managed to create a world that has so much going on it truly feels alive. There is so much information and little details about it (both in the manwha itself and a lot of information you can gather outside of it) that it really does feel like we could follow any other characters in the world and it'd still be a very engaging story. The world does revolve around our main cast the same way it usually does in a lot of shounen work, however if the main cast were to be taken out of the story it still feels like the world would keep spinning and there would still be stories to be told.
As far as the story itself goes it is too complex to briefly explain. This is both a good thing and a bad thing. On the one hand there are a lot of intricacies in the story, and when you notice them it certainly feels like every little thing lead to this conclusion for a reason. However, it also makes the story hard to follow sometimes.
It tends to jump all over the place and the pacing is very inconsistent. Certain arcs feel like they drag on for way too long when the conclusion is already obvious, while other arcs (or perhaps certain fights, more specifically) go by in a blur and it feels like you missed out when there are a lot of loose ends left by the end of it.
Despite all this, the story has certainly been engaging and up to a certain point it felt like there was always something at stake. This Manwha however has the typical power-creep problem a lot of shounen has. This leads us into the magic system.

So the magic system in Tower of God is set up with different roles being presented. Every role has something they specify in which is their strength, and to be able to climb the tower efficiently you'd need a full team of all the different roles to complete and compensate for each other's flaws. This system clearly had a lot of thought put into it and a lot of the early chapters put in a great deal of information explaining it all. Unfortunately this is all thrown out the window after a certain point and it is once more about who can shoot the bigger explosions at each other. This isn't necessarily a bad thing but it feels wasteful when so much time was put into a very interesting magic system.

This has however had a great impact on the art, which has been improving chapter by chapter. Comparing some of the early chapters to the recent ones are night and day and all the big blasts and explosions compliment the great art very well. The character drawings are definitely not anything to scuff at either so overall the art is good.

Speaking about the characters, there are a lot of them. I mean a LOT of them. And again, this is both a good thing and a bad thing. It adds to the world building that there is so much going on at any one point. But because a lot of them do not get a lot of exposure it makes them feel unmemorable. Another issue with it is that due to the length of the Manwha and that the arcs aren't laid out in a traditional sense you often tend to forget characters that later return. What I mean by this is unlike other works where the story might move from one place to another leaving characters behind and finding new ones as they move along Tower of God is set up so everyone is working towards the same goal. All the characters move forward albeit at their own pace but towards a common goal so characters tend to reappear perhaps years later in real time. If five or ten characters suddenly reappear two years later and they never got that much exposure in the first place it feels very understandable the reader would not be able to remember them. At least not remember their personal plot lines which often times would just pick up and continue as if you read about the in the previous chapter. The main cast however feels very well developed. They get enough time put into them that you are able to understand their personal motivations/reasons for moving forward and so on. None of them are super special or anything, but cool and memorable enough to make for a good cast of characters.

Overall I think Tower of God suffers from a lot of problems that most webtoons tend to suffer from. Why this is the case I think is really hard to answer, but it is by far the most polish work out there. The story will keep you on the edge of your seat the whole time and if nothing else it is a beautiful battle Manwha that I think will be worth your time.

Tower of God has been a hot topic for quite some time and anywhere you went you would stumble upon people recommending and praising it like it's the best written thing ever which is far from the truth. Very, very far.

ToG starts off with an introduction of Rachel who wants to climb the tower in order to see a sky, stars and whatnot. After she disappears from Bam's sight in a flash of light Bam vows that he'll follow her till death and his climb in order to meet up with her once again- begins.

This premise doesn't sound so interesting on it's own and in order for it to be captivating and compelling it needs good characters. Unfortunately, Tower of God has none so the whole reading experience feels like a chore. It was painfull, slow and boring to read that I regretted the day I began reading it. I mean, I gave it more than a fair chance, but after 50 chapters seeing how nothing changes and how its still boring and uninteresting, I just had to stop reading it.

Now, there's a bunch of people saying how it gets good later on, but no one has the time or willpower to sit through dozens and dozens (or maybe even hundreds) of chapters hoping it might get good.

Bam, like every other character in this series is so uninteresting, forgettable and shallow that I couldn't care less about him. To make things even worse, author overloads you with a bunch of characters like these to the point of skipping some of their dialogue just so you could get them out of sight.

There is not a lot to talk about art because it's more than terrible. It's horrendous. It looks like some fanfic drawn by a twelve years old kid.

All in all, Tower of God is more than an overrated, generic shounen filled with terrible, one-dimensional characters, plot that moves at snail pace and horrendous art.

What about this manhwa, other than that it's just one of the best comic books that I have the opportunity to read so far.

Once I pass the first few chapters which for my taste start slightly, but still allow us to admire the amber, dark and original style of this new universe, we are entitled to a story that is incredibly addictive.
Indeed, the seemingly ordinary scenario turns out to be of a completely different kind because the main objective of climbing the Tower takes a step back (while remaining ubiquitous), to become a backdrop on which the true story unfolds.
It is full of humor and rebound to the point that it manages to surprise the reader several times.
The almost total lack of information given to the reader as to the characters, which could be taken first and foremost as a weakness, turns out to be on the contrary a great scripting force. Each climbs the Tower, without really knowing what it is and what it contains.
The characters are very well developed and become very endearing because of their diverse personalities, forged by their past and determining their goal within the Tower.
Trials and battles are well worked but are not a goal in themselves because they are more often intended to serve the scenario, and not the opposite.

This will be my first and only review , because ToG is such a special reading for me , it's unique, it has alot of characters to simpatize with, the artstyle changes through time in a ridiculous insane good way.. SIU is a beast and to put it shortly ... Just READ IT ... NOW !!!!

I like the changes from arc to arc .. It doesnt feel rushed in mostly of times, the introduction of new characters is great and so the process of them gaining new powers and so on , the fighting panels are understandble and ToG never loses its own way about what it wants to show for the reader.

I fully recommend it ... you would be surprised what a lil bit of ToG in your life could do .. its a must !!

Its easily a 10 out of 10 story .
I dont like to do reviews so I just wanted to put the more simple as I could do .
Have fun reading ToG !

Hey, I know a lot of people are going to disagree with this post due to the fact that I am putting a negative review on this anime but I have some good reasons to back this up. (I have read the webtoon aswell)

1. The story is very lack luster and does not explain that much of why the characters are going up the tower and why the actual hell was Bam and Rachel are in a Cave to begin with?
(Never Explains this in the Webtoon)

2. The characters are some what genuine on how they portray themselves but do it in a pace that makes it an eye sore to focus on.
(Webtoon is the same)

3. I don't understand the reasoning on why the Administrators exist if the are putting order towards each floor by monitoring it's rules but not following Jahads rules such as allowing Anak to wield something that isn't hers but from her bastard of a mother that broke one of Jahads laws?
(Never Explained Either)

It just seems like the story is very off track and confusing as all hell for it to even be viewed as good. I really think the people who like this show are just over hyping that crap out of it so it can stomped on later in season 3.

ToG is legit one of the best graphic novel ever created. The intricate writing Siu displays in such a complex & lore filled world is quite convincing. No character goes to waste no moment meaningless albeit it's defo a slow burner since the setting of ToG is so abstract and different that people will naturally have a hard time getting into it so it's understandable if people didn't like the first part. ToG is a series where everything is explained progressively while the story goes on and some people don't like this kind of organization in a series. If you want to be satisfied while reading/watching ToG, you need to wait the time when something in the series changes and the things bagin more clear and that happens step by step. Overall 10/10

First time writing a full review, so hopefully this goes well.

Well, what can I say, Tower of God by SIU is probably one of my most favourite webtoon that I've read so far. The story of Bam and his companions climbing the tower just brings so much joy and draws me in completely. Anyways, let's get to the real cookie.

Story: 10/10
The story contains probably one of the best plot. On the surface, it seems like a simple Isekai-like webtoon where characters climb a tower or levels to grow stronger. But after reading so many chapters, you can see the plot stretch out so much as Bam learns about his past.

Art: 8/10
I'm giving this an 8 because, to be honest, the first 50 chapters of art was not very good. But I can guarantee you that SIU IMPROVES so much. He draws really well now!

Character: 9/10
I'm giving this an 9 because SIU because of an character called Rachael. But overall, the character development is so visible in everyone as Bam not only grows in his power, but also discovers his past and his "true-self"

Enjoyment: 10/10
What can I say. If I spent 50-100 hours in a week to binge this. You should too!

Overall: 10/10
Plain and Simple

Good luck to everyone picking up TOG, hope you really enjoy it! I think its currently 476 chapters, so lots for you to read. Also looking for other long and enjoyment webtoons so send those to me :)

This is going to be my first time writing a review for anything, I'll try my best not to sound like a fangirl gah

STORY 10/10

Definitely the best part of the whole webtoon!
The first time I read this, I was in awe by how complex the world-building for this story was. From the characters, the team positions (light bearer, scout, etc.), to the history and mysteries of the tower. The first time I reread this, I was amazed by all the details and how everything is connected with each other. Small details in the first chapters would be hints to something important that would be revealed later on. SIU is a genius TT

ART 9.5/10

I admit I'm one of those people who procrastinated in reading this at first because of the art. If you're of them, then STOP PUTTING IT OFF AND READ IT NOW or you'll regret it! The art has improved exponentially since the first episode and is still continuing to improve! I always wonder how they manage to release those long af episodes with those detailed coloring every. week.

CHARACTERS 8.5/10

ToG has amazing characters that are well-written, very interesting, and lovable personalities. I love seeing how some of the characters develop, especially Baam, Khun, and Rachel. I also really love the dynamics between a lot of the characters like Rakhunbam, Khun-Hatz, Anaak-Ran, etc. Their interactions are so entertaining to read!

I just think there are some issues with how the series handles some of its characters. Like, they introduce these really interesting characters that get me really hyped, but after several episodes, they become kind of... bland? They become treated as background characters and even lose their personality. I know its because new characters keep on getting introduced which makes it impossible for SIU to focus on these characters but idk, I just feel inconsistency for a lot of characters in the series;;
SPOILER-ish: I'm talking about characters like Boro and Hoaquin. They were characters that start off really cool and intimidating, then they become characters that are just,,, there. They get bits of lines every now and then, they fight when they are needed, but they lost the charm they had when they first appeared.

OVERALL 9/10
Tower of God was one of the first webtoons I've ever read and still remains my most favorite one today. Its the kind of series that I wish I could forget and read all over again because the experience of reading it for the first time will never compare to whenever I reread the whole series. I think the only thing this series needs to work on is the characters, and sometimes I think the 'comedy' bits get a little stale tbh, but overall its such a good read that I'd definitely recommend to shounen fans. Its a perfect mix of action, adventure, mystery, drama, and even has themes of psychology and philosophy!

Tip for new readers: I personally prefer to read ToG in bulk chapters, reading one chapter every week is too painful. I also recommend rereading the whole thing at least once after you caught up to the latest chapter, you'll realize how much details were put into making this webtoon and will make you appreciate it more! Lastly, I recommend visiting the Tower of God wiki because there are lots of additional info. in there that wasn't really said in the webtoon. Have fun reading!

I wrote this for people who are already aware of the events in the anime or the majority of season 1.

There are moments when this series can drag on, and when I first decided to read Tower of God I dropped it rather quickly. For a lot of people the 450+ chapters can be quite daunting, and at the time I didn't see the point of trying to read through all of that. Eventually though, I picked it up again and made myself persist through the muddy patches. Lo and behold, it actually turned out to be really quite good!

The real crowning feature of this series, I think, is the worldbuilding. Which incidently takes a bit of time and thought to appreciate. Everything from shinsu to the ten great families is fascinating. One could go on and on about any of the setting, premise, or power system of Tower of God and never run out of things to say. The tower is just such a mysterious place, and I found myself wanting to find out more about it.

In terms of character writing, the series varies, but I think overal it's good. I think Rachel is the poster child of well written characters in Tower of God. Her utter detestibility, is a testament to SIU's ability to write characters that emotionally affect readers. While I was reading this, honestly hated Rachel. She was just so incredibility hard to find sympathy for, even when she was pouring out sob stories, and that's amazing.

Personally, Baam as a character really didn't click for me. Even in season 2 or season 3 there really wasn't much that I particularly liked about him. There were moments when I felt he was a bit thick headed, being that in season 1 and the beginning of season 2 he never blamed Rachel for ANYTHING despite all the clear signs that Rachel was off. Which, admittedly, is a part of his personality. I just found it infuriating.

THE ART. Oh boy. So when I was first reading then series the art style was a real turn off, and that's probably why I had trouble reading it. However, SIU improves drastically throughout the years, and honestly I'm so proud of them. Drawing is incredibly hard, and rendering all those complex ideas and poses, is hard, especially with color. Now that I'm caught up I can't help but feel amazed at the improvement. So if you think the art is bad, just keep reading, you'll see! I rated the art as a 7 overall, but I think currently the art would sit around a 9.

Long story short, not perfect, but great. I don't regret investing my time into this. And if you decide to read/continue reading the Tower of God manhwa, I don't think you'll regret it either!

Tower of god is a story about a boy named 25th bam (or night) and his goal to chase after his friend rachel who decided to climb the tower of god. You can get anything you want if you manage to climb to the top of the tower of god.
That description itself is already more revealing than the one on webtoon and anymore would probably be spoilers.

Story: 10/10
The story itself is really interesting and, if you are like me, will have you looking to the wiki simply out of curiosity. (I highly recommend you do not visit the wiki until you are up to the latest chapter, as it is very easy to accidentally read spoilers. However once you do catch up, you should because apparently there is a fair bit more information revealed through the author's blog and if you are genuinely interested in the story, setting and world building then you will like it.) The story is told in a way where we receive about as much info about the world as the mc, where there isn't any random info dump where a character will start rambling on unprompted. Some might not like it since you don't get the answers to your questions right away. Some one else said that it seemed like the author was making stuff up in an as-you-go style, but it doesn't feel that way to me at least. The world of tower of god is so massive and there is so much going. Each floor is basically a world of it's own but it never seems like there is too much going on for it to work together. Idk if this would fit into a setting category but there isn't one so I am just gonna put it here.

Art: 9/10
I say 9 solely because of the, um, rough art in the earlier chapters. Trust me, it gets a lot better. In fact just recently, in chapter 480 and the fight looks amazing. It probably won't hurt to have a look if you are a beginner cause the events are so far away that its basically not even spoilers.

Characters: 10/10
Pretty much all the characters make sense and have pretty valid reasons for doing what they are doing. I say pretty much cause there is just 1 that I don't think anyone understands and you'll know who i mean when you start reading.
The character development is really something, especially the development for bam. It is really enjoyable to have a character develop so much. He is still the sort of "I must save everyone" shounen mc but he in every other aspect he develops so so much and he is still developing. He literally changes in the latest chapter.

Enjoyment: 9/10
I put it at 9/10 cause I did have to somewhat grind through the start. It was certainly interesting at the start, but bam being way weaker than everyone + the art + the overcomplicated games made me pause and come back a few times. But I have definitely binged the last 250 chapters at least. Most of the overcomplicated games have stopped. This means that the fights are more similar to other shounen fights of just punching your opponent harder but it is still quite enjoyable. I just wish khun would use his brains again cause he hasn't done anything particularly cool in a while, mainly just relying on his latest power up.
The chapter length is also really good, with chapters being significantly longer than other series (or webtoons at least). Unordinary is another webtoon (that is also really good) and it can take less than a minute to get through a chapter whereas tower of god will take a few minutes to get through at least. This means you have a lot to binge through and I personally enjoy bingeing it more than waiting on a week to week basis.

Overall: 10/10
If you average it out, it would be 9.5 but even though there are 9s in there, tog is definitely a 10.

It was, (seemed like), a masterpiece, the trailer and aesthetic from the anime is what pulled me in. I was so excited to read the Webtoon.
It sucked.

The premise was really good, with a tower that you have to climb and you have anything you want yada yada. It seems good, but it isn't.

(minor to kinda important spoilers)
It keeps you reading on and on, and people say it gets better on episode 500, (essentially chapter 500 on Webtoon). They're probably right, but getting through the torture of looking at such, (no offense), terrible art and anatomy, a horrible tedious story filled with filler, bland characters (not with common tropes sometimes, which i have to commend siu for), and the battle scenes although kinda good, are hideous compared to other Webtoons'. (sorry for that run-on sentence), I can't read it anymore. I just can't. The story doesn't progress from what i can see, and i waited at least 30 episodes from the announcement of the devil train, to even SEE the devil train by the protagonists. ALSO, I had to wait episodes, (a little less than 100 episodes), to see Rachel and Hazelnut, (im sorry i forgot his name), to even interact or be in PROXIMITY.

tl;dr; tog seems good, and if you are fine with slow pacing, and spending days just trying to get to season 3 or minor plot points, or if you're just generally a saint, then it is good for you
if you are a normal person, & don't have the time or patience just to read 500 episodes, then it is NOT for you

I found this on Webtoon and have reread it 4 times since. I was a bit reluctant to read it because the art in Season 1 (poor compared to Season 2 and 3) but it evolves over time into one of the best drawn webcomics on the app.

Story: Its quiet interesting and evolves over time but sometimes I feel like there is a better path it can go with some poor choices. The story also has very large time skips from 6 years, 1 year, 1 month, 2 years.

Art: the art in Season 1 is quite poor but Season 2 and Season 3's art makes up for it. It gets better later on so dont stop reading if the artstyle isnt to your taste.

Character: Now, this is a hard one. Some characters are meant to be relateable like Rachel but I feel the opposite. Her actions are something nobody in their right mind would think to do so it feels immensly exagerated. Ovverall they r ok tho.

Enjoyment: Binge worthy. I finished this in 3 days (cuz im a speedy reader) and reread it 3 more times after. Its really fun to reread. This would be a 12 for me.

I highly reccomend rereading because little details make a HUGE differnce whene u reread. This is an action packed fantasy with LOADS of betrayal (DO NOT TRUST THE BLONDES THEY ALL SHADY IN THIS WEBTOON except lero ro) but there is always small peices of romance lurking in the corners with the mc oblivious to it.

Are you a fan of One Piece? Are you a big fan of manga that are set in a massive, sprawling world filled with a large variety and number of characters? Do you want an unforgiving world overflowing with treacheries, wars, and a battle to arrive at the top? A world where our main characters, puny and unproven, must embark on a journey to change the world? Then you’ve come to the right place, as we look into the Korean webtoon, Tower of God.

Before we get into the thick of the review, I must set up the criteria I’m going to be using to analyze the webtoon. I like to judge graphic novels according to 3 primary components, those being plot, characters and finally, art. Off course, given the massive amount of content present within the webtoon, I will have pros and cons present within each of these components. First, we will start with the cons.



Cons:

1) Plot: A few story arcs have slow setups and start to them. The plot doesn't pick up until the arc is halfway through, and this may be seen as boring for some people. Sometimes, the setup will feel like its dragging on until the plot picks up, and some corners could've been cut in these setups to improve the pacing of the story arcs.

2) Characters: Honestly, there isn’t much I can criticize over here. The webtoon’s strongest point is its large and diverse cast of characters. One minor criticism I have is the fact that the villains of the first few arcs of the webtoon lack the sufficient amount of characterization they needed; however, they very much make up for it with their charisma and menacing presence. But this problem is very soon resolved with a cast of well developed and interesting villains.

3) Art: The art in the first season of the webtoon is, to be blunt, not very good. The characters are drawn very roughly, with inconsistent linework, and there is a clear lack of depth in certain frames. The backgrounds are somewhat decent, credit where credit is due. The strongest aspect in season 1 has to be its panelling, while still not perfect; it helps the scenes play out seamlessly as you scroll down.



Pros:

1) Plot: Although occasionally Tower of God may stumble in its setups to story arcs, once it gets going, and all the way to the climax and the end, it’s always a seamless ride, with clashing character motivations, political intrigue, and of course, climactic battles. It is especially mesmerizing how SIU can branch out sub-narratives within an arc, and always have them smoothly converge and combine in the finale, with almost nothing going to waste. The political intrigue of the tower is also fascinating and interest to watch, as different factions vying for power form and break alliances to achieve their distinctive goals. This ultimately leads me to the lore of the tower; as such a massive and expansive world has a history just as rich and captivating as you would expect it to be, with the history itself deeply rooted into conflicts that ultimately culminated in the challenges our protagonist and his allies face. Credits must be also given to the battle design of the webtoon. The concept of shinsu (Korean for ‘water of God’) is simple, neatly balanced in the middle of the scale between soft and hard magic systems. It has enough mysteries and intrigue behind it to give the readers a desire to know more, and it also has enough technicalities to make the battles interesting to follow. Add to that an interesting concept of battle positions and weapons based on fishing (e.g. Fishermen, Wave controllers, Light Bearers), and you have in your hands a well-balanced battle system that doesn't teeter too much on either side of the extremes. Another thing I have to mention is how the series deals with comedy. Normally, shounen battle manga will have downtime ‘comedy’ arcs, where in-between serious story arcs, a few chapters will be dedicated to a comedic lighthearted romp to cool down after a gruelling high stakes arc. But Tower of God seldom has those, instead opting for downtime arcs that offer more personal character reflections and conversations. Instead, the comedy is generously scattered across the webtoon, with small moments of reprieve and comedy in-between serious conflicts acting as a way for the readers to calm down and collect. What I like about this approach is that it allows the series to keep a consistent tone throughout, i.e. instead of dedicating chunks of the story to comedic arcs that introduce tonal shifts; it instead opts to sprinkle the comedy throughout the series, allowing for a more even and consistent tone.

2) Characters: The best part of Tower of God, undoubtedly, is its characters. The main cast all has well-defined motivations and distinct personalities. Development is also top-notch, with the characters developing both in terms of morality and capability. Both the protagonists and antagonists have clearly defined goals, and the decisions they make based on their objectives are also largely influenced by their past experiences and personality, adding a sense of continuity to the plot. The characters in the series follow a revolving door style of appearance usually seen in such epic and massive stories. Aside from a few mainstays, characters will come and go, with some leaving for hundreds of chapters on end before having a triumphant return in a story arc. But in the context and scale of the story, such a format is believable, as the characters will not always possess the same interests and goals as our mainstays, and may only return when their paths happen to converge. The protagonist’s side all possesses distinct personalities that seamlessly bounce off of each other and their camaraderie is fulfilling to watch. The series does a good job of balancing the allied characters in each story arc, giving them all moments to shine. The antagonists all have a level of moral intrigue to them, and they aren’t exactly complete black or white in terms of morals and actions, and even though you’ll usually find yourself in disagreement of their actions; looking from their perspective, you’ll come to understand and sometimes even sympathize with them. However, the star of the show definitely has to be the main protagonist of the series, Bam. Normally, shounen protagonists will start off with a distinct and boisterous personality that demands your attention, but in contrast to that, Bam starts as a blank slate. He lacks the charisma or the intrigue that is required in such a high energy series. Instead, the first season is carried by its side characters, especially the cunning and calculating Khun Aguero Agnes and the attractive and deadly Endorsi Jahad. But a blank slate is just that, an empty canvas the artist can freely draw on, and draw SIU does. Of course, any further delve into how this blank canvas is drawn on begets spoilers, and I'd like this to be spoiler-free.

3) Art: After a shaky start in the art department in season 1. The webtoon finds it footing with season 2, and by the time you're halfway through, it has improved to the point of some really well-detailed art. It brings in some jaw-dropping wide-angle shots; brimming with detail and character, as well as well pronounced action frames with meaty impacts that you can feel bursting off the screen and sending tremors down your body. Character designs are also very well done, with each character having a distinct silhouette, style and clothing. One of the thing that the webtoon does that sets itself apart from its shounen contemporaries is that most of the main cast has a very dynamic wardrobe, and with every new arc, you can expect most of the characters to go through some sort of outfit change. I find it very refreshing, especially in a medium where artists choose to have a very static wardrobe for their characters.



Side note: In regards to the anime adaptation recently completing its adaptation of the first season of the webtoon (as of the writing of this review), I would still very much recommend that you instead read the webtoon from the start. The anime cuts out a lot of the smaller character interactions that make the series special for me, and it's also very crucial in developing said characters. But the anime does have its strong suits, especially the brilliant soundtrack done by Kevin Penkin, a stellar voice acting performance done by an all-star cast of voice actors, excellent art direction and good animation. So wrapping it up, I should instead recommend that you begin by reading the webtoon, and upon finishing season 1 of the webtoon, watch the anime up to season 1, make your conclusions, and then jump back into the webtoon with season 2 (this is optional and you can just skip the anime entirely if you are tied for time). However, later seasons of the anime may be released and depending on their overall quality in comparison to the webtoon, you may instead choose to watch the anime and not be wrong in doing so. But even so, I’ll still recommend that you read the webtoon to get the full experience.



In conclusion:

Tower of God is an epic, tower spanning adventure filled with mysteries and battles; where a rich world and political landscape acts as a backdrop for a colourful yet complex cast of characters, and a larger-than-life clash of morals and goals. Anybody who is a fan of battle shounen or shounen for that matter needs to make it their top priority to check this one out. To top it all off, all of it, from the start to the current, still ongoing chapters as of the writing of this review (which all currently adds up to 484 chapters!), is available for free on Webtoon, completely legal and available on their mobile-friendly app. So I don’t see any excuses for waiting on this one. With a solid 10/10 on plot, 10/10 on characters, and 9/10 on art, this is a must-read 10/10 for me.