I'm the Villainess, So I'm Taming the Final Boss

nathandouglasdavis Feb 21, 2020

9

So, in the first three chapters, I felt that this was a perfect manga. It completely captured my interest and had a fun twist on the already-classic scenario of someone entering the world of an otome game as the "villainess daughter" and working to avoid the Bad End. I found Aileen and Claude to be an adorable couple. Aileen's so awkward and yet straightforward, while Claude's so obvious with feir emotions (because fe subconsciously affects the weather) and yet is also unsure of what fe's experiencing. And seeing Keith snicker at their cute interactions just reflects how I feel inside and adds extra enjoyment to it. Belzebuth has some funny moments because of feir simplistic loyalty. And Almond is cute. The rest of the characters aren't worth mentioning. But from chapter four onward, the relationship has lost the freshness and dynamics which made it mega-adorable. Claude starts expressing feelings of wanting to tease Aileen (which I don't find appealing) and feelings of jealousy toward feir ex-fiance Cedric. We also start seeing some more administrative and managerial plotlines, with Aileen leading a drive to have the humans and demons coexist. And I didn't get into this manga to see fem running a business or bringing innovations to this world, so these chapters don't excite me. And then the final few chapters of the manga end with Aileen having to fight against the possibilities of the plotlines from the original otome game coming to fruition. There are three such conflicts fe must overcome. The first one (ch. 7-8), I don't really care for too much. It brought up some unresolved questions about the nature of free will within this world, and just seemed like a sloppy way of creating romantic tension. The second one (ch. 9-10) is more interesting, or at least the background story involving Keith is. The actual resolution of the problem isn't anything to write home about, and mainly just seems to serve to lead into the third conflict (ch. 11-12), which was anticlimactic. Throughout the story, it had built up tension and suspense involving the threat of Claude "awakening" into feir dragon form, but then all that tension just fizzled out. To be clear: I don't like the ending, I'm largely okay with the midparts, and I absolutely adore the beginning. The strength of the first few chapters, and the residual happiness they bring me, is almost entirely the reason why this is rated so highly.

Ponyo18 Jun 21, 2020

9.8

This is an amazing manga. The plot is perfect. This is my ideal fantasy. It's hilarious, I can't get enough of it. The characters are the best. The ML is so cute and wholesome and I love his reactions to the FL. And the FL is just the best, she's smart, brave, and her futile attempts to seduce the demon lord (ML) is so friggin funny. A highly recommended manga with a lighthearted, yet serious read.  There's so much more emotion in the story and I love that. I love that I became so absorbed in it and it's such a shame that it ended with only a few chapters. See ya.

BlueDevil Nov 15, 2020

8

A hilarious twist on the currently popular reincarnation/isekai/villainess trope. The female lead, Irene, is reincarnated into an otome game as the villainess. Since she played it in her previous life, she wants to avoid the bad end - with all routes leading to her eventual demise and untimely death. After her engagement to Prince Cedric gets annulled, and her business overtaken, she begins her scheme to live with revenge sprinkled in. She plans to avoid this by marrying the demon king, Claude. What ensues is hilarious antics, especially with Claude's fluctuating emotions causing the weather to change. Irene is a breath of fresh air for a female lead, considering the fact that she's both emotionally and physically strong. In comparison, Claude is the opposite - being a powerful demon king with magic, but being incredibly shy and unable to deal with his emotions at times. They complement each other well, and character development is ever-present throughout the short series. Overall, a hilarious comedy with some dark parts, but mostly a wholesome love story to the villainess trope with a twist. Finally, I would definitely recommend reading this if you're looking for a breath of fresh air to the villainess genre, with a cute romance to boot.