Lost in Translation (webtoon)
Lost in Translation (also stylized as LOST in TRANSLATION) is an English language webtoon written and illustrated by Jjolee. It was first published in WEBTOON's self-publishing section "Canvas" since July 21, 2017 and has been republished as one of the platform's "official" webtoons ("WEBTOON Originals") since February 14, 2020. Set in South Korea, the webtoon follows the struggles of a rookie K-pop boy group, with particular focus on one of its members who is forced to take on a controversial persona for the sake of boosting the group's popularity. As of  March 2021, "Lost in Translation" garnered 545.4 thousand subscribers, 3.3 million likes and a rating of 9.72. Synopsis. 25-year-old K-pop idol Ahn Jae-won, a.k.a. Wyld, is a member of the rookie group Mayhem. Unbeknownst to his mother and to his co-members, he is being tormented by the group's boss who coerces him to take on a fake controversial persona in order to boost the group's popularity. As he quickly becomes, in the public eye, Mayhem's "bad boy" who is seemingly caught in successive scandals, Jae-won has to endure the suffering masked  by the glamour of their rising fame while fearing he might soon become his own false persona. Background and publication history. Though its serialization formally started in 2020, "Lost in Translation" began as a self-publishing webtoon in 2017, a "personal project" of its author, webtoon writer-illustrator Jjolee, who at that time was working in a pharmacy. On July 21, 2017, Jjolee uploaded the first chapter of "Lost in Translation" (then stylized as "LOST in TRANSLATION") in WEBTOON through its self-publishing section "Canvas" where webtoon authors can earn income (through Patreon) based on page views. Two years later , WEBTOON selected it for licensing to become one of the platform's official webtoons under "WEBTOON Originals". The 78th (final) chapter of the "Canvas" version of "Lost in Translation" was uploaded on July 21, 2019 and in a written message to readers ten days later, Jjolee said that there are things about the webtoon that she wants to "change and add" though she will still "keep the integrity of the [webtoon's] story." The re-launching and serialization of "Lost in Translation" as part of "WEBTOON Originals" began on February 14, 2020 with the uploading of its prologue and first  three chapters. Jjolee collaborated with Korean artists YooLee (Daniel Lee), Day6's Jae (of whom she is a fan), Kim Soo-yoon and Eliit to provide voices for its four main characters Jae-won, Dae-hyun, Dong-ho and Min-soo, respectively. YooLee, who has made music for webtoons, is also in charge for the production of two songs in the "Lost in Translation" universe, "Find a Way" (2020) and "Be The Change" (2021). Music. As a third generation webtoon, "Lost in Translation" employs the use of music as part the universe or story and as part of the overall  artwork. The following are the musical pieces that are part of the "Lost in Translation" soundtrack: Reception. The "Canvas" (2017-2019) version of "Lost in Translation" gathered 417.2 thousand subscribers and attained a rating of 9.85 (in a 1-10 scale). As of March 2021, the ongoing "WEBTOON Originals" version garnered 545.4 thousand subscribers, 3.3 million likes and a rating of 9.72. The webtoon has also generated a fandom called "Mayniac", taking after the fandom of the webtoon's fictional idol group Mayhem.