Cursed Princess Club

''Cursed Princess Club'' was a weekly webtoon written and illustrated by LambCat. The strip began publishing on February 24, 2019 on Webtoon and ended on March 4, 2024. The strip was published in seasons, of which there are four, and during these seasons new comics were published on a weekly basis every Monday.

The series has received praise for its artwork and storylines.

Synopsis

The series predominantly focuses on Gwendolyn, a sixteen-year-old princess of the Pastel Kingdom who was raised with the utmost love and consideration from her father and three siblings. She, like her siblings, have all been raised in their castle and kept somewhat hidden from the outside world. This results in Gwendolyn developing a sweet disposition but also becoming a bit sheltered from the outside world and its norms. As a result Gwendolyn is also unaware that her green skin and hair, particularly when contrasted against her siblings' conventional good looks, sometimes causes others to mistake her for a monster or witch. It isn't until Gwendolyn and her two sisters are introduced to their future husbands that she truly becomes self conscious of her appearance, as she overhears her fiancé Frederick refer to her as ugly.

This rejection causes Gwendolyn to develop low self-esteem and question her existence. It is then that she receives an invitation to a club referred to as the "CPC", which her family assumes is a well known and influential princess organization. When she eventually gains the courage to attend one of the gatherings, Gwendolyn discovers that the CPC actually stands for the "Cursed Princess Club". This organization is made up of princesses who have been ostracized from their respective kingdoms for various reasons, ranging from enchantments and curses to their appearances. Led by President Calpernia, the CPC teaches its members to love and support themselves and others, as well as to question and challenge the norms that consider them to be outcasts.

Development

Cursed Princess Club was originally created as an entry for a contest on Webtoon. LambCat chose to focus on fairy tales due to several tropes common to the genre and because it caused them to ask the question "What if the spells didn't break and there wasn't a happily ever after? What would that scenario be like?", which in turn led them to consider themes of insecurity and self-love. While not selected to proceed past the first round, LambCat was contacted by an editor who encouraged them to continue developing the series.

LambCat has stated that they have the ending plotted out, but that "It is still going to be very difficult to get there."

Publication

Webtoon

''Cursed Princess Club'' began publication on February 24, 2019 on the webtoon hosting service Webtoon. As is typical with webtoons, the strip is released in seasons, each of which are made up of a varying amount of episodes. As of January 2023 the webcomic has been read over 232 million times and has approximately 2.1 million subscribers.

Print

In November 2021 Webtoon announced their new imprint, Webtoon Unscrolled, through which they would release print editions of select series. The announced series included Cursed Princess Club and on January 3, 2023 the first volume was published. The different publication style required some alterations to the layout and speech bubbles.

Reception

The series has received praise for its messages of body positivity and self-love. In a review for the first volume of the series the ''School Library Journal'' stated that it was an "affirming first volume in which the cast acknowledges inner beauty and stands firm with one another." CBR praised the series for its messages and art style, noting that the series had a wide appeal and that "The overarching theme of challenging stereotypes and finding beauty within resonates with a universal audience."

Awards

* Ringo Award for Best Humor Webcomic (2021, nominated)

References

{{Webtoon (platform)

Webtoons
2019 webtoon debuts
2010s webtoons
2020s webtoons
2024 webcomic endings
Fantasy webtoons
Naver Comics titles
Webtoons in print