Dorothy of Oz, Volume 1

Dorothy of Oz #1

by Son Hee-Joon

When Mara Shin's dog Toto gets lost one fateful day, she goes in search for him along some yellow brick road and ends up in the wonderful land of Oz! Everyone starts calling her Dorothy, but these aren't the cowardly lion, scarecrow, and tin man adventures you remember! This fantastic fairy tale features familiar characters... but with a definite animated twist!

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Manhwa, Graphic Novels, Adventure, Young Adult, Comics Manga

200 pages, Paperback

First published November 21, 2007

Reviews

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting comic, though I could have done without the blood and profanity.

[Sara Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dorothy of Oz is a serial graphic novel from Korea. It was a nice change of pace to read a Korean book instead of a Japanese - not that you could really tell the difference. Son Nee Joon has a wicked sense of humor that shows in his works. They are done in black and white which can inhibit a reader from completely escaping into the world but Son Nee Joon made the lack of color work (even included a joke about not being able to tell the difference between blood and ink because everything was black and white).
Dorothy of Oz is the story of Mara who finds a yellow brink road in an alley in her hometown in Korea. The road takes her into Oz where people believe she is Dorothy. The first book starts kind of in the middle of the story and goes back to explain how Mara came to Oz.
The second book is more flashback starting from Mara meeting the Witch of the East to when she finds the Scarecrow.
That is the only two books our library has at this moment so I can not comment any further.
The books are entertaining but may not be suitable for younger audiences. Mara gets a pair of boots from the Witch that turn her into a witch when she clicks the heels together - the transformation causes her to be nude for a moment. The drawings are discreet but in her Witch form Mara is quite sexual in her appearance. There is violent fights and deaths but because of the nature of this type of book - the violence is very subdued.

[~Cyanide Latte~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

It has been far too many years since I last visited this manhwa. I had originally owned a copy, bought while I was still in high school, from the local Borders, and it wound up being one of those things my parents forced me to get rid of. I've regretted that ever since, and it's so nice to have a copy again. This time I'll work on collecting the entire series.

As with the other reviews I've worked on today, I don't have the mental energy to type up a very in-depth review for this, but as a long-time Oz-lover, this manhwa still scratches that itch while also being very much its own fun, playful thing with a dark shadow hanging out of sight over it. Whether you're an extreme Oz fan or a casual one, I do recommend giving this title a try with me. It's very fun and has just enough intrigue to keep you hooked, so it's more than worth the search for it, in my humble opinion.

[ali · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am going to be honest. I did not really like this book at all. I thought it sounded super awesome, but I ended up not liking it. I did really like how Mara aka Dorothy turned into a witch though. I thought that was awesome.

[Roxanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Freya got this for Christmas. First few chapters were a weird extended battle scene without a lot of context; about halfway through, we finally went back to find out how “Dorothy” got there. We have two more volumes which I’ll probably read at some point.

[Bethany (CozyLittleBookNook) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was cute and I look forward to reading more of this story.

[Alyssa (The Shady Glade) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dorothy Of Oz, not to be confused with an upcoming animated sequel to the Wizard of Oz (which I found out about in my Google searching for images), is the story of Mara Shin. Like Dorothy, she finds herself unexpectedly in the Land of Oz, and is chiefly interested in finding her way back home. Though in a twist of events, she ends up in Oz more like Alice ends up in Wonderland, by following Toto down a dark alley that leads to a yellow brick road. There, she meets up with the typical characters: scarecrow, tin man, cowardly lion, though not necessarily in the form you would expect them. I won’t give away how they are different here, as it would ruin the plot. Everyone is so excited to meet her, because they think she’s Dorothy, who’s been prophesied to return to Oz and fix everything that’s gone wrong since she left. The problem is, Mara isn’t Dorothy, she’s Mara, and she doesn’t want to save Oz, she just wants to get back home to Korea.

Read the full review at The Shady Glade

[Jim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Manhwa (Korean manga). This is here as a warning, the art is cute and welcoming but there's a couple crotch/snatch shot that though, its just of underwear, some parents might freak at even though nothing is shown.

Dorothy isn't Dorothy, she's Mara, but because she can see the yellow brick road and she's in Oz and she's got an annoying terrier named Toto the natives just assume she Must be Dorothy. Along the way back home to Korea she meets the (don't call her Witch) of the East and kills her, a part lion/part girl mutant chimera, a cyborg (codename Tin Woodsman), a clone (codenamed Scarecrow). And when Dorthy gets angry she strips, off screen, and morphs from an average seventh grader in a really hot babe w/powers and and witch hat. The villians get beat up after being stunned by what they saw that we only imagined.

i gave up on this last year, but finished it for this class. Not as bad as it sounds or could have been. Probably shouldn't been in a less than high school library, but don't know why anyone in h.s. or older would want to read it.

[Hannah Nerdin-Phillips · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is Oz like you've never seen it before. Mara (aka the Dorothy figure) can transform into a witch, the Tin Man is a cyborg, the Cowardly Lion is a chimera, and the Scarecrow is a telekinetic clone. The four companions begin their journey together and cross into a seemingly innocent village. After several minutes, however, the group is attacked by monsters and it's revealed that the four-some are wanted criminals for killing the Witch of the East.
I liked this fair enough. It wasn't the best graphic novel I've read but it was interesting to say the least. It definitely presents Oz in an unique way. Content wise, there's some profanity and inappropriateness concerning genders. I'd rate it PG-13.

[Kaotic · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Hee-Joon Son's art style. It's really cute and works incredibly well for the stories that it accompanies.

This is an interesting take on the world of Oz, and I'm definitely interested in reading more of it. (I think there are only four volumes out, which is sad because it's another ongoing series, but whatever, I'll keep reading.)

The first series I read by this author was PHD: Phantasy Degree, so when I found out who this one was written and illustrated by, I was super excited.

This volume was more of and introduction to the series, so here's to more reading! (I'm not really sure what to write about it yet.

[Reader17 Der · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not your normal Dorothy of Oz. There is so many strange things that happen in this series. Dorothy seems to have some powers that she can use when she changes, along with the Tin Man, Scarecrow, and the cowardly lion. There seems to be a lot of fighting in this story, with swords, magic, guns, things blowing up and creepy characters after them. I did enjoy this I didn't know what to expect next with everything blowing up and everthing. If you are looking for something different then your Dorothy of Oz I would check this one out.

[Selena Pigoni · Rating 5 out of 5]

A goofy rendition of the Wizard of Oz, the story is of a Korean girl named Mara-Shin who happens upon the yellow brick road. She is then whisked away to a land of "witches" (scientists with magic), "Tin men" (robot), "Scarecrows" (telepathic clones), and lions (human-hybrids that aren't so cowardly and are more hungry).

It's an amusing story. Only complaint is that the story either goes too quickly or too slowly at some points.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have always loved the Wizard of Oz so when I saw this book at the book store I had to get it! I mean it’s a take on the Wizard of Oz and it’s a manga/graphic novel (whatever you want to call it.) But it wasn’t anything special, I found it boring and confusing. It is a good “fluff” read but nothing special.

[Christina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting manhwa interpretation of the Oz story, where the scarecrow has telekinetic powers, the tin man is a mecha cyborg and the lion a chimera in semi-human form. Dorothy also has powers, and is the only one who can see the yellow brick road which she follows from her home in Korea to Oz. The main problem for me is the story is too disjointed to follow easily.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story. Jumps around a lot, can be kind of hard to follow, though I don't know if that's a result of my not being familiar with the mechanics of manga. Innovative use of the Wizard of Oz elements.

[Hannah Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting take on the whole Dorothy and land of Oz. I enjoyed the humor of this manhwa but it has depth to it. The story line and the artwork is very well done (in my mind) and I would love to see how this turns out in the end.

[Jessikah · Rating 3 out of 5]

No bad Korean graphic novel... I like the art... The story starts in the middle which is a little weird but it goes back and explains the origins. Worth a look at the book store.