Chocolat (manhwa)

Chocolat
Cover of the Yen Press edition of Chocolat vol. 1 (2002). Art by Baek Hye-kyung.
Genre	Romantic comedy
Author	Shin Ji-sang
Illustrator	Geo
Publisher	Sigongsa
English publisher	Yen Press
Original run	2002 – 2012
Volumes	8

Chocolat is a manhwa written by Shin Ji-sang and illustrated by Geo. It is published by Sigongsa and was originally distributed in the United States by Ice Kunion, and later completed by Yen Press.

Plot

All Kum-Ji wants in life is to meet her favorite boy band, DDL. When she finds that the roster for the fan club is full, Kum-Ji despairs on ever having the chance to meet them face to face. Just when she believes all hope is lost, she decides to con her way into the boy band circuit by faking an interest in another band, Yo-I, and joining their fan club. Once in, she will have access to other bands, including her beloved DDL, who often plays the same shows. However, the best laid plans so frequently go awry, and her deception is very quickly discovered by one of the band members, E-Soh. E-Soh originally decides to blackmail Kum-Ji into doing whatever he wants, but he never planned on falling in love!

Characters

Kum-Ji

She's a true fan of DDL, a boy band that is currently at the top of the charts, and will do anything to get a glimpse of her favorite member, Jin Ryu. Kum-Ji is very sweet and kind, but also has a big rebellious streak running through her. She joins the Yo-I fan club only because the DDL fan club was already full. She thinks nothing of treating E-Soh like a pest, even though he could have her kicked out of the fan club at any time. Kum-Ji also has a bit of a tomboy in her at parts, and is very active. She has good endurance, and can sit outside waiting for a glimpse of DDL for hours at a time! When E-Soh confessed his love for her, Kum-Ji thinks it is a trick and kicks him in the side. Kum-Ji swears that she only loves Jin Ryu, but she finds herself thinking more and more of E-Wan with each passing encounter. Though she scolds herself for not falling for nice guy E-Soh. Kum-Ji is also the niece of Yo-I's coordinator, Yoo-Jung, which gives her even more perks as a Yo-I fan club member (such as visiting Wu-Hee's family with the band in volume 4), and even more access to the stars even when she leaves the Yo-I Fan Club in volume 3. She soon falls for E-Wan, and confesses her feelings to E-Wan in volume 5. E-Wan rejects her in volume 6.

E-Wan

Quiet, reserved, and more than a bit cold, E-Wan shares his innermost thoughts with no one. He is close with Jin Ryu, for reasons that he will not discuss. There are rampant rumors that he is in a relationship with one of his band members, Eun-Sung. When his mother died, E-Wan became even more introverted until Kum-Ji hit him over the head with a bag of clothes. His mother died of a broken heart because of her husband leaving her for a younger woman, even going so far as to have an illegitimate child with her. This leaves E-Wan's views on love skewed beyond compare, and he has bluntly put to Kum-Ji that he doesn't understand the devotion between fans and their idols, or even between two normal people. After a few run-ins with Kum-Ji's famous temper, E-Wan has begun to slowly come out of his shell. As he emerges he starts to develop feelings for her that he is not yet prepared to experience. E-Wan gets into an accident in volume 7 and seems to have turned a new leaf towards Kum-Ji.

E-Soh

This semi-spoiled rising pop star didn't know what to make of Kum-Ji at first glance. He was the first to realize Kum-Ji's true intentions about joining the Yo-I fan club. E-Soh first meets Kum-Ji while taking an elevator up to the rehearsal room. He refused to let Kum-Ji on, so she proceeded to attempt to kick his butt and call him names. When Kum-Ji is shocked that he is a member of Yo-I, E-Soh realizes that no true fan wouldn't know the members of their favorite boy band. Despite his initial reaction towards her, E-Soh found his feelings for Kum-Ji, and eventually confessed his love. His timing was less than perfect, as he confessed to her immediately after insulting her. E-Soh's battle for Kum-Ji's heart has become even more rocky since he has a possible new rival in one of his band mates, E-Wan. Despite E-Soh's bluster, he can be a very nice person at times and can also be very protective of Kum-Ji. When Kum-Ji was beaten up by jealous fan girls he was surprisingly gentle, but it is unknown what he will do when he discovers who is behind it all. E-soh supports Kum-Ji through the story, especially when she gets attacked by Barbie again in volume 5. E-Soh is not an orphan and his parents are actually professional photographers, and used E-Soh as their model when he was younger.

Che-Ryun Yang/Barbie

The incredibly beautiful persona of "Barbie" hides an incredibly ugly personality. She was initially tolerant of Kum-Ji, when she thought that she was merely the niece of the manager. The more casual Kum-Ji acts towards the members of Yo-I, the more ugly Barbie's actions become. She thought nothing of sending Kum-Ji to a house to be beaten by a horde of fan girls. Barbie has yet to receive any repercussion from this incident, as Kum-Ji has not yet told anyone. Barbie is incredibly jealous of Kum-Ji and E-Soh's close seeming relationship, but also appears to have an especially soft spot for E-Wan. In volume 5 she and Kum-Ji finally square off face-to-face and come to terms, but chances are it won't last when she finds out Kum-Ji likes her beloved E-Wan.

Jin Ryu

Not much has yet been revealed about this popular star, except for his friendship with E-Wan. Jin Ryu is very devoted to the stage and his fans, which helps his meteoric rise to stardom. He was hospitalized during volume 2 of the manhwa due to a car crash, but the reasons behind the crash are not yet known. During this time Kum-Ji was able to meet him, thanks to E-Wan, and Jin Ryu was very polite and friendly to her. However in volume 4 it has been revealed that his personality may not be as nice as it seems...

Yoo-Jung

She's Kum-Ji's aunt, as well as the coordinator of Yo-I. Yoo-Jung is dedicated to her job, as well as to the members of Yo-I. She has begun to see the stirrings of attraction between E-Soh and Kum-Ji, and at the request of E-Soh, has decided to play matchmaker. Yoo-Jung is also the object of desire for the studio's president, as they have been dating secretly.

Wu-Hee

She's the vocalist for Yo-I, and is from outside the country. Though it is shown in volume 4, that Wu-Hee is actually from the country; but is from a tiny town started by her father. The town has a total of 2 people. Wu-hee's father and her mother. Wu-Hee once went on a blind date with E-Soh. Wu-Hee is a little on the strange side, but is incredibly sweet, so it is hard for any one person to dislike her. Wu-Hee also has been blackmailed by E-Soh.

Eun-Sung

There are rumors circulating that he and E-Wan are in a relationship. Eun-Sung is the one person in the band who is closest to E-Wan, and frequently can see through his shields and masks. He doesn't seem to be fazed by people who encourage the rumors of his gay relationship.

Manhwa

Volume 1

Kum-Ji thinks she has the ultimate plan to gain access to her favorite band, DDL. She is going to infiltrate another band's fan club, and thus gain access to her objects of desire. However, the band members of Yo-I (the fan club she joined) quickly saw through her charade, as she couldn't even identify the members. Kum-Ji immediately clashed with one of the lead band members, E-Soh, who blackmails her into doing favors for him, such as cleaning his band room or fetching food for him. Kum-Ji also seems to have gained the animosity of Barbie, the controlling president of the Yo-I fan club, who has a reputation for being down and dirty with the people she dislikes. What's a fan girl to do?

Volume 2

Kum-Ji is beginning to feel the wrath of Barbie, as she begins to receive hate mail from jealous fan club members. E-Soh, against his will, begins to develop feelings for Kum-Ji, the girl who treats him normally. He confesses his love for her, only to have his feelings rebuffed, as Kum-Ji sees it as one of his mind games. E-Wan, the quiet reserved member of Yo-I, also seems to be developing feelings for Kum-Ji, who called him out on his rejection of other people's concern over his mother's death. Kum-Ji finally gets to meet her favorite guy, but messes up horribly and embarrasses herself. Not all is well in the life of Kum-Ji, as tensions mount and the facade of her fake devotion to Yo-I start to wear on her, and she begins to debate about quitting the Yo-I fan club. Can she really go back to where she was before? Does she really even want to?

Volume 3

Barbie has a problem she can't seem to ignore or get rid of: Kum-Ji, the youngest coordinator's niece. So what's a jealous fan to do? Send a mob of girls after Kum-Ji to beat her up and scare her away, and get the president of the band to revoke her fan club membership. E-Wan and E-Soh both realize that they are becoming rivals for Kum-Ji's affection, but what will become of their feelings when Kum-Ji quits? Also, Kum-Ji goes on a vacation with two guys out to be her one and only.

Volume 4

Kum-Ji thought they were going to Miami, but she ends up stuck in the smelly countryside! To make things worse, the water snakes attack her! Ah - the dream of the beautiful beach of Miami has all blown away! Moreover, when she open her eyes, she finds herself in the arms of E-Wan! E-Soh gets jealous as can be, while Kun-Ji can't make her heart stop beating so fast!

Volume 5

Kum-Ji may have started following Yo-I to get closer to her favorite boy band, DDL, but it's E-Wan of Yo-I that she can't get out of her head! With E-Soh's confession still heavy on her heart, a confused Kum-Ji joins her fellow fan girls in strategizing for the next tour. But Barbie, the fanclub president, has other ideas. When a surprise attack leaves Kum-Ji bruised and beaten, it's E-Soh who becomes her knight in shining armor! Will this dashing rescue be enough to change Kum-Ji's affections?

Volume 6

With her confession rejected outright by E-Wan of Yo-I. Kum-Ji is driven to despair. Luckily, throwing herself into DDL's new tour gives her a way to get her mind off the heartache. But when her former nemesis Barbie, unaware of Kum-Ji's feelings for E-Wan, asks her to join Yo-I's fan club and E-Wan himself gets rushed to the hospital in quick succession, Kum-Ji can't avoid the situation any longer! Will E-Soh be able to overcome his own rejection and stand by her?

Volume 7

When E-Soh issues an ultimatum to Kum-Ji, she has to choose him on the spot or watch him walk away for good! Happy couplehood seems imminent for the two friends until former Yo-I Fan Club president Barbie makes her debut on the idol scene. Is this a new ploy to win E-Wan over?! And will it work against E-Soh and Kum-Ji's budding relationship...since Kum-Ji still hasn't quite gotten over her broken heart?

Volume 8

Kum-Ji takes pity on E-Soh and tells him where her heart truly lies. But speaking candidly with E-Soh doesn’t automatically give her an opening to grow closer to E-Wan. Just when she decides that it’s time for her to stop clinging to her fantasies and come back to reality, the band gets in a terrible accident. Some of the members are hurt badly, and there are fears that the band may not be able to carry on . . . Kum-Ji wants desperately to help her friends, but what can one girl do?! Find out in the long awaited conclusion of Chocolat!

Note: Volumes 8 to 10 were published as a single omnibus edition.

External links

• Press release about ICEkunion's release of korean manhwa
• Official Chocolat webpage from Yen Press
• Chocolat (manhwa) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia