Music, and an instrument which it is played often bears its own stories and untold sentiments. Cornelia is a repairer who fixes musical instruments as such. She, who has very high reputation, lives at her workshop in Capetown, Republic of South Africa and is visited by clients who seek to have their instruments repaired, or receives parcels of musical instruments sent from the world.

Cornelia has a special taste: she loves to hear people’s stories. Unless it’s against good manners, she wants to hear stories from her clients, especially the ones related to their musical instruments. Cornelia, a beautiful woman came from Africa, is also a devoted instrument repairer, a person slow to anger, and a good, attentive listener not swayed by how the story is painful and bitter. 

Webtoon <Westwood Vibrato> is composed of three Parts. Part 1 and 2 releases the omnibus stories Cornelia heard during her repair, which sometimes she intervenes and involves herself in. Each story is quite short. Most of them are under two episodes and the length of each episode is also not long.

It is very difficult to complete a story within short length and, at the same time, deliver impression and amusement to the reader. Any story, to deliver sentiments to the reader, needs to have proper body part leading the reader to understand it beforehand; and making it amusing is yet another story. Making a short length story requires both, not very compatible things: high density and a big picture for the reader.

<Westwood Vibrato> amuses the reader with many well-made short stories, thanks to the seasoned author. Each sensible and delicately developing omnibus story doesn’t burden the readers, but it is still touching.

Entering Part 3, it unveils pains of Cornelia and people near her, as it is hinted through Part 1 and 2. Obviously the unfamiliar background and an unusual occupation of her - Africa and a musical instrument repairer - were set there for a reason. 

A sudden appearance of UK diplomat character reminds the reader that Africa is an unstable space with few exceptions. Born in Africa and living in Africa, Cornelia is not an exception herself. She lost one of her leg in her childhood. In a civil war – in Angola, we suppose – she repaired many weapons to survive and now that past burdens her with guilt. When she managed to wipe the sadness and live as an musical instrumental repairer, her past is revealed by people who have their own pains, then Cornelia chooses to leave her place.

It was like a house of cards. Such a result was inevitable by the background of this webtoon. With her extraordinary talent she only maintained a stable life for a short time, only revealing the fact: with an untreated pain the peace eventually collapses. Even her space of stable life was a few steps away from the lawless, violent world. As the author says, she is also a “daughter of Africa”: naturally and eventually is set to go back to Africa.

She is more grown up as a person when she comes back to her familiar world. She doesn’t loathe nor deny, even when she runs into attempts to take over her talent, cruel violence, or her dark past that once broke her. She only sees the world as it is and cries out toward the world. Cornelia, with her crutch, struggling but moving on, is perhaps the strongest person in the continent of Africa.