Summary
Dark, gritty science fiction stories aren’t as common as many would like them to be. It’s a shame because adding that layer of mystery and eerieness to fiction is never a bad thing. It’s precisely whydark romance has always thrivedamong fans—even more so than conventional romance—and why dark macabre themes, in any form or medium, get more attention than vanilla elements. They serve their audience with a sort of edge and philosophical depth that can only be achieved by exploring non-traditional routes to a particular premise.
This is why an immaculately creative story, perfectly blending narrative ambiguity with scientifically plausible elements, is the hallmark of quality science fiction. Adding a touch of darkness and existential crisis elevates it from good to amazing. However, what truly propels a piece of writing to the next level is the incorporation of visual storytelling and art—it’s why manga and manhwa resonate so deeply with their audience.
Other Genres
Mystery, Romance
Automatais the prime example of a dark sci-fi manhwa that’s been blended to perfection.Automata’s art, with all its futuristic tech gadgets, advanced human beings, and an absurdly unique take on AI, seems almost too perfectly aligned with its premise. After all, Kim Dazzi has always been renowned for their dark, gritty art and their out-of-the-ordinary twists on genericfantasy/supernatural tropes—TACITbeing another one of their masterpieces.
Automatais about a world that’s excessively dependent on machines and technology. But the thing about machines is… they’re machines; simply a jumble of screws, parts, and metal. They have no means of self-sustaining and are counter-dependent on humans to keep them healthy and running. But in this particular manhwa, maintenance of these machines is a dangerous task that requires specialists with special powers. It involves these professionals shifting their consciousness to a realm that exists between the real and the machine world. If, in the unlikely scenario, one of them gets stuck in the in-between, there is no way to get them out and they’re left there as bugs and viruses.
Drama, Androids
One of the most recognized dark fantasy sci-fi anime in the industry is a cyberpunk-themed original known asErgo Proxy. It explores the possibility of sentient robots and their unforeseen need to suddenly understand human emotions.Dogmais exactly like that. It’s a cyberpunk-themed dark sci-fi with art so eerily enchanting that it leaves readers unsettled yet unable to stop.
What makesDogmastand out from other books and anime of the same type is thedynamic humans and robots share in this realm. Unlike other works, in which the premise largely revolves around robots working for humans and being mistreated until they rebel, this particular manhwa shows more of an equal footing between the two groups. Humans want to attain the strength and physical resilience robots have, and robots want human emotions. It’s an odd relationship that is dealt with, through layers of philosophical themes and existential dread for both parties.
Action
Gepettotakes place in the distant future where humanity has to deal with the consequences of their actions. Following the dangerous choice of imbuing their robotic counterparts with excessive “personality” and “sentimentality,” humans are forced to confront the reality of these robots spiraling out of control and banding together to seize power. Fortunately, despite the overwhelming odds, humanity eventually manages to reassert its authority overthese legions of AIand take back their land.
The problem is, now that they’ve won the war and have to rebuild their way back into the world, they can’t. The aftermath of the war has left them with a crumbling economy and utterly zero resources. On top of that, Dr. Gepetto, the renowned roboticist behind the creation of these sentient robots, has another sinister secret brewing behind the scenes that could reignite the already highly destructive war.
Mystery, Psychological, Supernatural
Imprisoned supernatural kids and teenagers with immense, uncontrollable destructive powers have been a very common trope in anime and manga;Elfen Liedis one of the biggest examples of this. Most of these works end in the kid escaping and wreaking total havoc all around them until they find a character they like enough to trust.Monster Childdoes explore this trope but ends up adding aplethora of psychological elementsand other heavy topics to it.
It follows the story of a homeless high-school dropout who, after getting fired from his job recently, is desperately in need of another gig. He comes across a dubious-looking man who offers him a substantial amount of money for simply showing up at a particular location. Despite being reluctant and wary, he’s desperate for a little cash and has no other choice but to take on the sketchy offer. Unfortunately, his suspicions are proven true when he’s drugged and locked in a small bloodstained room along with a peculiar infant called Charlotte. He’s now stuck not only protecting himself but also the child from terrors lurking in the shadows of that room.
Horror
Having a bold, over-the-top, almost absurd sci-fi scenario that gets the mind going is one thing, but having a subtle one with little intricacies followed by avariety of other genre elementsis an entirely different game.Never-Endling Darlingcomes off as exactly that—a typical drama manhwa save for its unique art—until it isn’t.
It explores biology and DNA cloning in a very nuanced yet unsettling way. The main character, Yun Ha-im is in love with a man who makes his living by cloning people. Their life is pretty ordinary, apart from the obvious cloning aspect, and they’ve been together for five years with no problems at all—until Ha-im finds her corpse in their shared house accompanied by a note that tells her she’s not real.
Action, Horror, Fantasy
L.A.G.is essentially a more mature, more macabre, and generally darker version of thetypical power-scaling genre manhwa, likeSolo LevelingandOmniscient Reader. It follows a similar format, and puts its protagonist through a bunch of disturbing/gruesome situations for his “character development” and “growth.” The only difference is the obvious addition of sci-fi elements and excessive violence.
The backdrop of the manhwa is set in a hyper-advanced building with multiple floors that count as levels. The protagonists and other characters are stuck in the said building and have to fight their way (against monsters) to the lowest floor to escape. The thing is, life inL.A.G.is never-ending and restarts every time upon death.
Horror, Aliens
Evolution: Road to Space Monsteris essentially the manhwa equivalent ofAlien: Isolation(or naturally, theAlienfilm franchise), but from the alien’s point of view. It has all the elements one would see in asci-fi-heavy, outer space-based video game, and is accompanied by some very detailed art and violence-heavy sequences. What sets it apart, perhaps for better or worse, is the fact that the protagonist himself is the series' very own bad guy.
There aren’t a lot of moral/ethical considerations that go into the story, considering how the main character is an alien who thrives solely by killing and consuming humans. With each life taken, the alien “evolves” into a stronger version of himself and advances within the system. The entire manhwa is likeSolo Levelingbut from the viewpoint of a monster within its realm.
