Summary
When it comes tovampire stories— especially in Shoujo — it’s almost a given that the bloodsucking heartthrob is the male lead. The trope has been done to death and has explored almost every little nuance possible, and not just inmanhwa. There are a plethora of vampire stories in almost all forms of media — from brooding immortal lovers to dangerously seductive anti-heroes.
Fortunately, with great numbers come fairly diverse stories. Notall vampire manhwa follow the same formula. Some ditch the romance-heavy, male-dominated vampire trope and give their audiencefemale vampireswho are just as, if not more, powerful. These ladies are ruthless — whether in hunting, ruling, or even going around and bringing down their own kind. Some still follow familiar conventions, but when they’re an absolute powerhouse, it never feels overdone.
unfins
2024
Status
Ongoing
Vampire Family,despite its very dark and grungy art, is a slice-of-life comedy manhwa revolving around the rivalry between vampires and vampire hunters. While defining it as such may come off as a bit vague, the entire story is about the hilarious way a vampire tries to integrate into a human society only to coincidentally befriend a vampire hunter.
Natalia Dragomiris the daughter of the Dragomirs — an ancient vampire family who’ve made it their goal to stay as far away from humans as ‘humanly’ possible. Natalia is different, though. She’s tired of living her life in hiding and demands that her family let her out to explore the human world. They reluctantly agree to do so on the condition that she tries her best to hide her real identity. Unfortunately, that’s easier said than done when the very aura Natalia exudes scares humans out of their minds.
2021
Completed
Savioris a GL romancemanhwa that explores love trianglesand the concept of jealousy. The main character of the story,Wohn Ku, is a timid vampire who’s gone through some traumas that make her the way she is. That’s precisely why she has trouble finding a source of blood for herself.
That is, until Seyeon, a human girl, vows to become her blood source and her sole friend. Throughout their years together, the two have built a strong bond that comes from Seyeon’s inherent need to protect Wohn from literally everything. Unfortunately, Wohn now wants to come out of her shell and finally explore the world she’s always been scared of. That does not bode well with Seyoen, who considers Wohn’s new friends a menace to their relationship.
2014
Untouchableis a manhwa that startsoff extremely lighthearted and easy-going. The premise of the series is a simple ‘push-and-pull’ dynamic between the main characters. The female lead is a vampire who gets her nutrients not from sucking blood, but from absorbing human energy. In other words, her entire survival depends on her touching other people. On the other hand, the main male lead of the series is a human who hates being touched. He’s a germophobe and absolutely despises any form of physical contact with anyone.
Things go awry when the female lead,Sia, realizes that the male lead, Jiho, has a kind of essence that she cannot resist. They meet when the latter moves in next door, and she’s instantly taken with him. The two try to somehow grapple with both Jiho’s reluctance to touch and Sia’s supernatural identity.
2019
“Dark,” “gritty,” and"morally ambiguous" are preciselythe words that come to mind when one thinks of a dark fantasy vampire romance.Trappedis a manhwa that encapsulates all these attributes and more. It revolves around the cold-blooded, vicious vampire Yunsu, who takes an unhealthy liking to a human convict namedChae Ah.
Chae Ah is instantly repulsed by both Yunsu and his identity as a vampire and she tries whatever she can to evade him. Unfortunately, certain things happen, and Yunsu turns her into a vampire. She now has to grapple with the reality of being the very thing she despises and with the very person she vowed to stay away from. Chae Ah is in a different league when it comes to female leads. Unlike most ‘morally righteous’ characters in manhwa, she does things that make her come off as more cruel than the heartless vampire lead himself.
For those who want to read a manhwa with a unique,almost Victorian-era gothic art style,Delusionis the way to go. It’s basically art within art, following Iho Yun, a painter tasked with painting a rich aristocratic woman on her deathbed. When he arrives to do the job, he expects the woman to be — well, old, since she’s supposedly in her 90s.
However, when she steps into the light for the first time, he realizes just how wrong his sources were.Madam Song, the woman standing before him, is a young 20-something with an immortal beauty unlike anything he’s ever seen, which makes sense, considering she’s a vampire — one rumored to have driven many men before Iho Yun to complete madness.
2011
Vampires being the ‘superior’ species in most fantasy media is a very common trope. They’reessentially indestructible beingswith intelligence and beauty tenfold that of a normal human being. However, being a vampire in a world where they are actively discriminated against is the premise thatOrange Marmaladeexplores.Mari Baekis a vampire girl who is trying to live a normal life while hiding her true nature. She spends her life trying to suppress her instincts to at least attempt to blend in as just another high school student.
Unfortunately, no matter how much she tries to stay invisible, fate has other plans. When she accidentally bites the most popular guy in school, her quiet life starts unraveling. She now has to deal with protecting her secret and shielding herself from prejudice, all while also accidentally being thrown into a completely unexpected romance. Mari proves that being a vampire isn’t just about bloodlust — it’s about survival.
2007
If being a vampire already makes someone terrifying, being the vampire queen takes it to another level.Erga Kenesis Di RaskreiafromNoblesseisn’t just any Noble — she’s the Lord, the absolute ruler of her kind. That makes her one of, if not thestrongest character in the series. She’s the perfect embodiment of a cold, calculating, and vicious vampire lord who does not stop at anything to make sure her kind stays at the top.
However, asNoblessefans have seen plenty of times before, strength alone isn’t enough to keep a group of unfathomably powerful immortal beings in check. With political tensions and threats of betrayal incessantly looming over her head, Raskreia constantly has to prove that she’s worthy of the throne. When push comes to shove, she doesn’t hesitate to remind everyone why she’s earned her position.
2020
If there’s one thing worse than a vampire, it’s a vampire who hunts other vampires — and that’s exactly whatUnholy Bloodexplores in its premise. It revolves around a pure-blood vampire,Hayan Park, who has spent most of her life pretending to be an ordinary human and hiding her rather elite identity. The only reason she does this is because all she’s ever wanted is a normal life, but the world has other plans.
Hayan, being more powerful than most of her kind, is forced to step up when vicious, power-hungry vampires start to harm the human world. However, unlike them, she doesn’t kill for sport — she does it to protect the people she loves. Considering how she holds abilities that outclass even the strongest of her enemies, her goal isn’t as unattainable as it might initially seem.
