This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.
The original was posted on /r/hobbydrama by /u/SarkastiCat on 2025-04-11 20:31:53+00:00.
Warning: Basic information about Webtoon
For those who don’t know, Webtoon is a platform and publisher of multiple webcomics. It’s well-known for its scroll-down webcomics, also known as webtoons
For the sake of clarity, I will only use the term “Webtoon” as the company name and “Webcomics” as online comics name from now on.
Webtoon quickly became an industry giant as artists can easily post their webcomics for free and most of webcomics don’t have a permament paywall. Also, it has special webcomics made by artists with the help of Webtoon’s editors.
You see, webcomics on Webtoon are divided into two categories, Canvas and Originals.
Canvas webcomics are basically indie webcomics. Artists agree to the terms and conditions of Webtoon’s website and then they can upload their work, hoping it will become popular. When that happens, eligible artists can join different programmes and earn money. If they are extra lucky, their webcomic can become Original.
Authors of Originals have a publishing contract with Webtoon. Artists get regular payments for their work and help from Webtoon in the form of editors and ads, while Webtoon gets exclusivity rights. The specifics of the contract are unknown and each artist has a slightly different contract. Not all Originals come from Canvas, but many of them do.
Press Start
Say hello to Let’s Play
“Sam wants to be a game developer, but before her career can get started, a popular gaming personality posts a video of himself playing her first game and gives it a bad review. To make matters worse, she soon finds out he’s her new neighbor! A story about gaming, memes, and social anxiety. Come for the plot, stay for the doggo.”
It appeared on 26th May 2017 and it was doing alright. It’s hard to say how popular it was back in the old days, but thankfully the abandoned Canvas version is still there and you can see few thousand views.
On 18th October, Mongie (the author) announced that Let’s Play would be an Original webcomic on 7th November. There was a big interest as gaming youtubers were famous and popcultural references were in. Plus, there was Markipiller shaped bait aka one of male love interests, Marshall Lee.
The comic was practically an instant success, breaking the counter of likes before it got updated and it was the most popular webcomic for weeks.
Drama patch
With fame comes criticism and drama.
Most of the discourse was fairly contained within the fanbase, but sometimes it leaked to social media. Let’s Play had a couple of dramas (PoC representation and Discord server being deleted, tone shift, etc.), but they are not easy to find. Except for discussion about mature content, which will become important later on.
There was a typical Twilight/50 Shades of Gray discussion that every slightly questionable and focused on sexuality romance goes through. Depending on where you went, people were either loving it or they were shredding it apart. Some points of the discussion include the shift from a romantic comedy focused on gaming to a sexy romance, the potrayal of the protagonist’s self-growth, the nature of her romantic relationship (predatory? toxic?), depiction of consent, etc.
The last bit caused minor controversy regarding its presence on Webtoon as Webtoon readers tend to be young. 70%+ of US readers is under the age of 24 and 75% of readers worldwide consists of younger millenials (currently 29-44 yo) and Gen Z (13-28). Plus, Webtoon has a history of trying to create a safe space for readers of all ages and mishandling mature content.
To make it worse, Webtoon readers complained about the lack of mature tag for Let’s Play for quiet some time. I can’t confirm when the whole discussion started, but all I can say is that Let’s Play got its mature tag fairly late.
Red Ring of Death
Now let’s focus on Webtoon. Webtoon had (and still has) its problems. Many problems. And by many I mean, I am saving resources for a potential write-up about Webtoon’s downfall.
According to the account, Webtoon base pay varied widely but the average base pay was $800-$1200/episode (40-60 panels) and later for $1000-$1200/episode for new originals. Meanwhile, creators of Originals pre-2020 could have a fairly low rate ($500-$800).
The situation gets worse if you are working for the Indonesian or the LATAM branch of Webtoon. LATAM/Indonesian creators and staff would get paid half of what US creators earn, which is especially weird for the LATAM branch as it’s based in Los Angeles. Also, Webtoon was supposedly preying on bilingual artists who were posting on US and LATAM Webtoon website by picking their comics as just LATAM originals get them as cheap as possible.
There was also a whole drama about Webtoon advertising its webcomics as a “side hustle”. To keep it short, Webtoon was doing cheeky one-sentence advertisements. One of the ads had this sentence “Comics are literature’s fun side-hustle.” Multiple creators got angry as many of them were making 40-50 coloured panels (sometimes with small GIFs) per week. Basically, working full-time.
Pick “Run Away”
The whole thing happened in September, but it left bitter aftertaste for a long while.
Going back to Let’s Play, season 3 served a big plot twist, which had mixed opinions. Then on 9th November, another sudden twist was revealed. Mongie posted an open letter to fans of Let’s Play. The following two paragraphs are especially important.
Unfortunately, I must report some sad news. I will not be returning with season 4 of Let’s Play at WEBTOON. This was an incredibly difficult decision, and no single event led to it. There have been ongoing difficulties for several years, most of which I can’t discuss, nor is this the appropriate forum. But some concerns include Let’s Play being excluded from marketing, despite promises to the contrary, and placing LP behind an age gate when there are series with far more controversial content that isn’t restricted. My representation has voiced these concerns and others to the necessary individuals at WEBTOON, but the blame was reflected back at me for incredibly far-fetched reasons. These issues, among many others, have made me feel marginalized and that WEBTOON does not value Let’s Play or me.
On top of this, I have been watching other creators courageously voice their concerns, particularly over the last year. Whether it be about the ad campaign that considers our profession a “side hustle.” The pay disparity for LATAM creators. Or the ongoing lack of transparency and errors in accounting that I’ve experienced personally. WEBTOON is no longer the right platform for me or Let’s Play.
“Too much water”
Disclaimer: Unfortunately, many comments have been lost due to Mongie deleting her Twitter/X account and turning off comments. Thus, I am working with what I could find on Nitter and Reddit.
Having one of the biggest creators on Webtoon leave was a shock. Lots of people were supportive of her decision, but there have been people pointing out how Mongie benefited from Webtoon’s practices.
Marketing
Marketing has been a big topic. Let’s Play was one of two English webcomics to get 10 ~4-5 minutes long animated shorts. Some webcomics never got a video on or even a short. Webtoon had a tendency to over-advertise their most popular series, while barely giving any attention to new ones or those returning from hiatus.
However, Mongie also has a point about marketing. Let’s Play didn’t get any more videos on YouTube and Webtoon’s instagram wasn’t promoting as much as it used to.
Age restrictions
Age ratings for films and video games are messy, but Webtoon’s? They are fairly vague and you never know what will not pass. Even creators themselves are confused and there is only a functioning system for profanities.
Content cut off. Read original on https://old.reddit.com/r/HobbyDrama/comments/1jwzubk/webcomics_lets_leave_this_exposed_side_hussle_the/