Summary: Kade is a rather introverted guy who lives his everyday life alone. One night, he hears a loud crashing sound and goes outside to check what happened in his backyard – only to find a girl flying out of her UFO and fainting. That’s Zaida. He brings her inside, and after she regains consciousness, she has one request: she asks Kade to teach her how to be an earthling.
- Status: Ongoing
- Chapters: 258+
- Genre: Modern Romance Manhwa with Fantasy
- Creators: Pookie Senpai
- Platform: Webtoon
- Release year: 2020
- News: Down to Earth is getting an Anime
- tropes: ML still hung up on his ex, not realizing feelings, forced proximity
Is Down to Earth worth reading? Short review
Yes, but it depends on what you’re looking for. If you want to read a lighthearted comic about heartbreak, new beginnings, and friendship, with many cute interactions between the main characters, you should check out the Down to Earth webtoon.
However, if you strongly dislike a very slow, drawn-out relationship that feels believable at first but less so by chapter 241, this might not be for you. Still, Down to Earth has a very interesting premise and a strong start. And Zaida is such a precious and fun female lead that it’s worth it. To be fair, Kade does get some character development, even if it happens slowly.
How the story starts
I love how Pookie Senpai sets the mood. You’re immediately drawn into the story. You also get a quick sense of who Kade is: he’s unmotivated and emotionally unavailable because he still has feelings for his ex-girlfriend. So you immediately know what to expect.
I also love their first interactions and the small things Zaida notices that she isn’t familiar with –like Kade’s stretched earlobes because of his plugs.
Protagonists: Zaida and Kade
Zaida and Kade can be seen as opposites – at least personality-wise. While Zaida is very positive, trusting, and curious, Kade is pretty cranky, negative, and suspicious of others. Both of them go through a lot of character development, especially Kade. Over time, Zaida begins to question Kade’s decisions – or rather his very cautious approach to letting her leave the house or try things on her own.
With Zay’s help, Kade slowly opens up to the people around him, finds new friends, talks things out with acquaintances, and just starts to let people in. Most importantly, he becomes more open about his own feelings. I don’t want to spoil too much, but we do see him cry and reflect on situations very differently compared to the beginning.
Romance: frustrating and slow, with cute moments
After Zaida literally crashes into his life and Kade decides to take her in, he makes up three rules:
- contribute (he doesn’t want to do all the cleaning himself)
- trust (he will provide a moral compass for Zaida) and *drumroll please*
- no feelings
Well, we all know where this is going – rule three get’s thrown out of the window slowly but surely. Even in the first few chapters, Zaida flusters Kade several times, and he already feels attracted to her. What really throws him off, though, is that Zaida reminds him of “HER”, the mysterious (at that point) girlfriend he once loved deeply.
the best thing about Down to Earth: Zaida
Zay is just so precious. The way she asks for things, the way Kade gets swept up in her requests, and even the way they argue and communicate.
There’s a great example during a short dancing lesson. Kade suddenly starts sniffing, and Zaida asks, “Kade, are you crying?” Kade replies, “No! Why would I be crying, you dumbass?” and Zay shouts, “I can hear it in your voice! May I please confirm?” That “may I please confirm” really got me. Zaida is incredibly kind, but her awkwardness as an “alien” still shines through in moments like this.
Read if you…
- like to read about an alien slowly getting to learn the „Earthling“ ways
- like it when almost all the characters have a punk rock vibe
- love the forced proximity trope. They live together right from the start
- love it, when the female lead is very adorable, curious, and kind
Skip if you…
- don’t like it when the male lead is still hung up on somebody else in the beginning
- don’t like unique art. It has a really „comicy“ feel – I don’t know how else to describe it. From the colors to the line art and the faces
- don’t mind knowing as early as chapter 60 that they’ll end up together, even though it takes a long time for it to actually happen because the male lead has to sort out his feelings while still being “terrified to confront her,” as he says in chapter 241
- don’t like it when the (very interesting) backstory of the FL doesn’t get explored in favor of second MLs and other storylines
