Spoiler: probably not.
Summary:
- Metallic Rouge is getting a webtoon adaptation, and the first chapter is already out.
- This probably won’t make the anime any less confusing.
- Western fans will probably not be able to read it.
This season’s Metallic Rouge is a somewhat controversial series. That’s not due to any actual content of the anime, though: it is polarizing because of the way it tells its story. Metallic Rouge throws the viewer into the world with little to no explanation and lets them figure it out by themselves.
While this approach is certainly bold, it is also alienating to many otaku. People aren’t going to wait for the plot to become clear: they’ll just watch something else. Now, the anime was announced to get a webtoon adaptation — but fans are wondering if this will help at all.
What is this going to be?
Webtoons are essentially a different format of comics which usually prioritize art and don’t have dialogue. They’re published online and are usually read by scrolling. They originated in Korea — many manhwas can be considered webtoons, and Solo Leveling (Ore dake Level Up na Ken) is one of those — but are now popular everywhere.
Basically, Metallic Rouge is getting a manga adaptation. It will be published on LINE — a Japanese social media app — and the first chapter is already available for free. That said, it doesn’t really help the viewers to understand the series better.
It probably won’t help
We currently don’t know if the Metallic Rouge webtoon will follow the anime (the first chapter somewhat does) or if it will have its own original story. With the webtoon having little to no dialogue, it certainly isn’t helping in making the story and the world more clear.
Besides, it probably won’t ever be translated into English. As such, Western fans probably won’t even be able to read it.
Some fans feel that it’s not that confusing
Some fans actually praise the anime for its bold approach to storytelling. We rarely get “show, not tell” anime nowadays, and many older fans don’t like everything being overexplained, feeling that it dumbs down the plot.
For those otaku, Metallic Rouge is very enjoyable. Others just find the themes of the anime a breath of fresh air from more generic series.
The anime is also probably better when binged. If you find it hard to follow Metallic Rouge weekly, perhaps you should wait until it’s over so you don’t forget the plot details between the episodes.
Not every anime is made for weekly watching — some actually suffer from this release format a lot. Maybe Metallic Rouge would have been more popular if it had been released on Netflix