"My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!" was made into an anime before "Since I'm a Villainess, I Tried Raising the Last Boss," and has been well-received, with a movie release scheduled for soon. However, both are classic "villainous lady" works. The charm of the protagonist is directly linked to the charm of the work, and since both protagonists are attractive, I would like to compare and analyze the differences in their charms from various perspectives.
A little review of "My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!"
This work was born on "Let's Become a Novelist" and began serialization in 2014, and was adapted into a comic in 2017, and is still being serialized. The first season of the anime aired in 2020, and the second season aired the following year in 2021. The movie "My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! The Movie" is scheduled to be released in 2023.
"Hamefura" is the catalyst for villainess stories!
The original author of "My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! The Movie" is Yamaguchi Satoru, a female light novel writer. Villainess stories were already established as a popular genre, but the success of the "Hamefura" anime has increased awareness and interest.
When will the memories of the two main characters' past lives be revived?
Let's start by comparing the timing at which the memories of their past lives come back to them: Irene, the protagonist of "Since I'm a Villainess, I Tried Raising the Last Boss," commonly known as "Akuras," and Katarina, the protagonist of "I've Been Reincarnated as a Villainess Who Can Only Be Ruined in an Otome Game...," commonly known as "Hamefura."
Resurrection in a completely different situation
The two were reincarnated into the world of the otome game they played in their previous lives, Irene's game "Saint, Demon, and Maiden Regalia" and Katarina's game "FORTUNE LOVER". And the timing is when the memories of the previous life come back, but Irene's memories come back in the event "Engagement broken by the Crown Prince" near the middle of the game, and not all of them, but the most important parts are missing. As for Katarina, when she was eight years old, she fell and hit her head while walking in the garden with the third prince, Geordo, and fainted. When she woke up, her memory had returned due to the impact of hitting her head.
The difference in the timing of her revival leads to a difference in the development of the story....
Irene was already in the middle of the game, and when her memory returned, she was in the worst situation with only three months left until the bad ending. On the other hand, Katarina's memory returned when she was eight years old, and the game started when she turned 15 and entered the magic school, so she had seven years to spare. This difference is big, and Irene has to act immediately to avoid the bad ending, but Katarina had seven years before she enrolled, so she had time to take measures.
Are the two villains in the first place?
The two are reincarnated as villains who bully the heroine in the game, but were they still villains after their memories returned? I would like to compare the two, including the environments in which they grew up.
Irene, the hard worker
Irene, who was raised by a strong father, has a clear mind and a mentality of steel. Since she was also involved in the business management of the duke family, she had the ability and drive to start her own business. And since she is originally an honest and kind-hearted person, she is loved by people who understand her true nature by interacting with her. So what happened after her memories of her past life were revived? In the end, nothing changed. Considering that she had strange dreams and fragmented memories of her past life since she was a child, she may have inherited her personality from her past life. Being the fiance of the Crown Prince, she was jealous and envious, and as a result of treating the heroine harshly, she was labeled as a villainous lady, but Irene is the main character who is only thought of as a villainous lady.
Katarina the Airhead
Born as the daughter of a duke, Katarina grew up to be selfish. If she didn't like something, she would get mad and do whatever she wanted. When she fell and hit her head at the age of eight, her personality and memories from her previous life returned together. Originally a normal, cheerful, nerdy high school girl, she is indifferent to the common sense and etiquette of the nobles. Her family and the servants of the Duke's household are puzzled by her change from her previous arrogant and selfish personality, but they end up accepting her anyway. After that, Katarina continues to behave in unexpected and incomprehensible ways, but as they interact with her, who is honest, cheerful, and full of humanity, those who have suffered some kind of emotional wound are healed and drawn to her. In other words, the moment Katarina regained her memories, she was no longer the villainous young lady.
I don't want a bad ending! Here's what the two of them did!
In "I'm a Villainess, So I Tried Raising the Last Boss," no matter which route you take, the final boss, the Demon King, awakens and the protagonist, Irene, dies in a horrible way in the confusion of the event. On the other hand, in "My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!", if the heroine and the target of the game have a happy ending, Katarina is exiled from the country, and if it's a bad ending, she is killed by the target of the game. In the end, there is no happy ending for Katarina.
What actions did Irene take to avoid the bad ending!
The only way to avoid Irene's bad ending is for Claude to remain a human being thanks to the heroine's love. However, at this stage, that event has not been released, so the heroine cannot do it. In other words, the only way to prevent the awakening is for Irene to be loved by Claude instead of the heroine. The action Irene took to do this was to "propose to Claude".
Katarina came up with a solution!
Thinking that there was still time before the story of "FORTUNE LOVER" began, Katarina took action by training in swordsmanship and farming. She trained in swordsmanship so that she could fight back even a little when she was about to be killed, and after learning that Geordo's weakness was snakes, she devoted herself to making snake toys. The next thing Katarina thought about when she was exiled was, "If I could use magic, I wouldn't have any trouble finding a job." However, Katarina could only use weak earth magic, so how could she hone her magical powers? The book on magic said, "It is important to communicate with the source of your magical power."...Communicate with the earth...plow the soil and create a field! So Katarina became interested in agriculture.
Now! To avoid the bad end!
What will actually happen to Irene and Katarina as they try to avoid the bad end? Let's compare the characteristics of the completely different protagonists and the works.
Irene struggles to avoid the ruin event!
Irene proposes to the Demon King Claude, but is naturally turned away. However, in order to avoid the bad ending, she cannot stop. She proposes to the Demon King Claude, avoids the ruin event, starts a new business, and pushes forward with her brains and drive. Before that, there is harassment and sabotage from the heroine and the crown prince, but Irene avoids them with her friends who admire her. Eventually, the monsters began to open up to Irene, and Claude, who saw this, also began to like Irene, and the distance between the two of them narrowed.....The story unfolds at a good pace with the active heroine, and there is a romantic comedy with the tsundere demon king, and a tense game with the heroine, so you can't take your eyes off it.
Unconsciously the strongest! Katarina's superb skills!
Katarina is working hard on her sword training and farming to avoid the bad ending, but her true power is completely different. Her greatest weapon is her natural charm. Before she enrolled in the magic academy where the story begins, she conquered all four of the targets: the third prince Geordo, the fourth prince Alan, his brother Keith, and the prime minister's son Nicole. Katarina unconsciously heals their emotional wounds by facing them cheerfully and honestly, and captures their hearts. Unaware, Katarina only thinks about avoiding the destruction flag, and she manipulates the four targets without noticing their affection. She also "seduce" Alan's fiancee Mary, Nicole's sister Sophia, and even the heroine Maria after enrolling in the academy... The characters are manipulated by Katarina, who is straightforward, considerate, unconventional, and full of humanity. Watching them fight over Katarina and unite and cooperate for her makes you smile. The destruction flag is gone, and the characters are "seducated" by the lovable Katarina.
Summary
Irene is intelligent, strong-willed, and highly proactive, but also honest and kind-hearted, while Katarina is full of humanity, unconsciously using her "natural flirting" to captivate those around her. I compared the protagonists of both works, and both were unique and attractive characters. Although they are both about villainous young ladies, the protagonists are completely different types, and the works also have different charms. If you enjoyed "I've Been Reincarnated as a Villainess in an Otome Game with Only the Destruction Flag...", please also watch "I'm a Villainess, So I Tried Raising the Last Boss". Please enjoy the exploits of Irene, who has a different charm from Katarina. Thank you for reading to the end.
