“Avoid the bad ending at all costs! When her fiancé breaks up with her in front of the entire student body, noblewoman Aileen d'Autriche is devastated-or she would have been, if that wasn't also the exact moment memories of her past life came crashing back! Turns out, she's been reborn as the villainess of a dating sim…and according to the story, she's slated to die at the hands of the demon king in three months! But Aileen's already got a plan: Step one, get Demon King Claude to fall in love with her. Step two, live!” (Yen Press)
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Trapped inside a dating sim, where prince charming is actually the worse choice one can make, sets “I'm a Villainess” up as a ‘third wall breaking' comedic gem. Certainly, the first volume celebrates its colorful cast of characters chocked full of riotous interactions as Aileen forces her way into the dark lord's grace, demanding marriage. Awkward yet endearing, the vibrant lead lady stumbles through perfunctory etiquette, her lack of tact showing her limited knowledge of the dating sim format. Undeniably, series creator Sarasa Nagase has managed to turn a typical cast into a comedic force. In particular, Aileen carries many of the common tropes of a heroine stuck in another world, but her expressive mannerisms and cunningness (trying to poison the king with an aphrodisiac), make her a larger than life exaggeration of a ‘princess on a mission'.
Tasked with recreating the light novel for manga, Anko Yuzu does an admirable job of conveying both humor and elegance of the varied cast. Once again Aileen takes center stage, wherein Yuzu manages to perfectly capture all the manic moods of the main protagonist – joy to see the collected, somewhat vain, persona melt down into an expressive burst of anger. Furthermore, fantasy elements are conveyed with skill that helps to elevate the fantastical world. Undeniably, the combo of strong characters and expressive art brings charm to the work, yet, this wears off under the weight of poor direction.
Sadly, the allure of “I'm A Villainess” starts to fall apart in its disjointed narrative that struggles to expand on key plot points. The concept of the dating sim, and young Stella's quest to ensure she gets the ‘good ending,' exists as an under-explained plot device that creates confusion over intended whimsy. As such, the text heavy manga begins to slowly drown out the inventive cast in confusion and underdeveloped plot lines. The series, sadly, misses the mark wherein personalities are meant to compliment the narrative, not overshadow it.
Released the same month as the light novel, the title feels better suited for the written format. It is obvious that internal dialogue would have aided in bringing cohesion to both lore and character interactions. As such, it is easy to imagine that the manga would be better served as a compliment to the light novel as opposed to a stand-alone experience – the lack of a needed cohesiveness to draw in audiences is painfully apparent.
Thankfully, you can also check out the first volume of the light novel from Yen Press. If that tickles your fancy, the manga may be worth revisiting with a better comprehension of the narrative. The series is set for an anime adaptation, further pushing the prospect of wanting to come back to the title at a later date. Unfortunately, as a singular experience “I'm the Villainess” gets washed out in a sea of aimless dialogue that makes for a rather tedious affair.
