Views for original webtoon increased more than 20-fold
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The webtoon adaptation of Judge Han-young Lee has seen a dramatic spike in readership following the release of its live-action series adaptation on January 2.
According to Naver, views for the webtoon version increased more than 20-fold during the first two weeks after the live-action series premiered, reflecting renewed attention across the franchise. The surge coincided with heightened interest in the original web novel, whose download numbers jumped 147 times compared to the period before the teaser for the series was released.
Originally published as a web novel on Naver Series before being adapted into a webtoon on Naver Webtoon, Judge Han-young Lee follows a corrupt judge who time-travels 10 years into the past and uses his second chance to fight against systemic corruption.
To capitalize on the momentum, Naver Series has expanded its promotional campaign, increasing the number of free web novel episodes available and offering daily free access passes for both the webtoon and web novel during the broadcast period.
The web novel, which was written by Hae-nal Lee, was serialized in Naver Series in 2018. The webtoon, drawn by Dol-dol Cheon, has been serialized in Naver Webtoon since 2020.
Currently, neither the webtoon nor the web novel are available in English. Tapas is however releasing Hae-nal Lee’s The Ghost Doctor webtoon series in English.
Author Hae-nal Lee welcomed the renewed attention, noting that the expansion from web novel to webtoon and now live-action has allowed the story’s universe to grow while reaching a broader audience.
Sources: Newsis (Jung-min Yoon)
