My favorite comic with anxiety, romance and other gamer problems (Opinion)

WEBTOON’s Let’s Play speaks to me on another level. The main character Sam is like an incarnation of what goes on in my mind when she takes her insecurities. The author, Leeanne M. Krecic, known as Mongie, manifests all the characters’ emotions when the characters feel strongly about something like anxiety or depression. It personifies what I imagine these emotions would be like if we could see them. With each new social interaction and life obstacle, the audience feels like they are on a ride with the characters through their game of life.

The main character, Sam Young, has just launched her first game on a service called Indigineer, which allows independent game creators to post games for people to play and apply for jobs at big companies. Sam desires to be a game developer instead of the next CEO of her dad’s software and technology company. Not long after posting her first game on Indigineer, Sam’s favorite game reviewer on Viewtube, Marshall Law, plays her puzzle game, Ruminate. Marshall ignores the instructions and plays the game like a role-playing game instead of a puzzle game. This error results in a bad review and a backlash of his fans trashing Sam’s game. Her Indigineer account is locked and her developer score in ruins. Then, Marshall Law moves into her building the next day, and Sam becomes overwhelmed by all the sudden changes in her life.

Mongie creates a classic geeky character in pursuit of her dreams but still lacks experience with romance. Sam is the embodiment of shyness and lacking self-confidence, however, she is sweet, smart, great at her job, and she has good friends who support her. Her battle through the comic is overcoming her anxieties in professional, social, and romantic situations, which the author personifies the emotions as illustrations. Every time Sam feels overwhelmed by an emotion, I can’t help but relate to Sam’s struggles. Each situation Sam lands herself in is comical and relatable for the audience. When Sam conquers her feelings, the audience watches them shrink and cower like we all imagine our anxieties doing when we face our fears.

This personification of emotions happens for the second lead character, Marshall Law, who seems like an antagonist at first, but he eventually mends his relationship with Sam and becomes a love interest. Marshall Law is well written as a comical character who hides his true emotions because he doesn’t want others to see through his Marshall Law persona. The audience watches Marshall Law on his journey throughout the comic, and like many of the characters, Marshall must face his past, his anxieties, and shortcomings.

Let’s Play bonds the aspects of gamer life like watching Twitch with fun comedies like Friends and Big Bang Theory. This comic shows steady growth not only for the main characters but the minor characters as well. The romantic relationships grow organically throughout the comic, which has fans fully invested in every relationship. This is one of the most popular comics on WEBTOON, and fans are anxiously waiting for season three to be released. An announcement of a live-action television adaptation has gotten fans excited for what comes next for the romance comic. For now, fans are following Kercic as Mongie on social media for illustrations of the beloved characters and re-reading all 127 episodes available of Let’s Play.