The Fall 2024 K-Comics Guide

Your Throne

What's It About? 

Tensions are brewing under the seemingly calm surface of the Vasilios Empire, a kingdom ruled by the Imperial Family and the Temple. Lady Medea Solon has lost her place next to Crown Prince Eros but resolves to do whatever it takes to win back what's rightfully hers. However, she'll have to rewrite her entire revenge plan when she wakes up in the body of her sworn rival.

Your Throne has a story and art by SAM, with English localization by WEBTOON, Inc. Published by WEBTOON Unscrolled (October 1, 2024).

Is It Worth Reading?

Never take anyone at face value. That's the indisputable truth at the heart of Your Throne, which starts out looking like a typical villainess manhwa before craftily shifting to something much more interesting. It opens with Medea Solon looking on as Psyche Callista prepares to take the role that should have been hers: fiancée to Crown Prince Eros. It looks like Medea is furious with the state of affairs, that she feels usurped and scorned. It's easy to assume that Medea is as horrible as everyone says she is, helped by a character design that deliberately leans into those elements. And, of course, she's got that name – in Greek mythology, Medea is best known as the woman who killed her children after being spurned by Jason and her name can be synonymous with “evil woman.”

But what about her last name? Solon comes from Greek history, too, and he was one of the founders of Ancient Greek democracy. Medea's family name is an acknowledgment that she's a lot more than just her given name would imply, and it hints at the intelligence we see rising to the surface as the story goes on. When she's furious about Psyche (another loaded name) becoming Eros' new fiancée, maybe what she's upset about isn't losing her power, but that Eros is likely to make Psyche a victim. This is the real heart of the volume: slowly stripping away our assumptions and all of the tropes we've come to expect from a story with characters who look like Medea and Psyche until we're made to realize that rather than simply following The Lazy Author's Playbook, this is attempting to be a much more involved game of chess.

Your Throne's first volume creeps up on you. Everything that feels like a basic plot conceit – Medea and Psyche swap bodies thanks to divine intervention at one point – turns out to be more than it appears, and the book is very good at showing us what happened to the women in their childhoods to make them turn out the way they did. Medea was forced into her role as a means of survival and self-preservation, while Psyche's “goodness” starts to look like an artificial naivete curated by her family, her personality and view of the world carefully molded into a doll-like being who doesn't know anything else. The translation definitely helps with this, and the use of loaded names, while a bit on the nose (we also get a character named Helio Niccolo, presumably for Helios and Niccolò Machiavelli), does help to set the scene. It's a great take on what we assume of villainess stories, and I highly recommend picking it up.

Elegant art meets noble intrigue in the supernatural otome manhwa Your Throne. Seemingly the tale of two women who couldn't be more different than one another, Freaky Friday shenanigans force them to work together, then realize just how much they have in common. Against the opulent backdrop of fantasy kingdom politics, a ruthless woman and a gentle one are compelled to find common ground in an enemies-to-friends story that will have you hooked on both of its protagonists.

I first began reading Your Throne on WEBTOON during the 2020 pandemic lockdown. For me, this review was a re-read of its 12 earliest chapters. As somebody who remains up to date with this gripping weekly soap opera, it's amazing to see how the art has changed so much, but the vibe never has—Medea's cool confidence and four-steps-ahead chess moves and Psyche's brave choice to always opt for optimism in the face of opposition have never wavered. But the relationship between the two of them has evolved significantly. Where the story is now, they are partners in crime, the ultimate duo. But as this volume reflects, they were once rival crown princess candidates fighting over a prince whom they slowly learn is not worth either of their time. It was delicious to revisit the way Medea and Psyche gradually realize that one another rule, actually, and that Crown Prince Eros is a total garbage human. Set against a political landscape where even a subtle wrong move can be deadly, these ladies have one another's backs and their (eventual) friendship is what fuels the story.

Your Throne is one of those opulently drawn manhwa that has me worried about the creator's health, because it can't be easy to deliver this level of artistic quality on a weekly basis. I especially love the strong, consistent character designs. Medea and Psyche never wear the same outfit twice but they are always on brand: Medea in gothic, inky purple and Psyche in glowing amber. It's also a plus that Eros is a piece of crap—it takes effort to create a villain who's so delightfully fun to hate. In my opinion, the art only gets better over time as SAM opts for a more exaggerated style with extra sparkle. Check out why this manhwa has been a hit since launch, and I dare you not to pick up the next volume.