This manhwa would have been much better if:
a) if was more serious in tone
b) It was about 20 chapters shorter
c) More background was given to the ML
No, I expected a same old boring shojou, just with a yandere (auf, my guilty pleasure), but this surprised me! While most of the manhwa is a bland and boring shojou, the end and the beginning were tight, gripping and unusual. Considering what ML does for the Fl in the end, I would not easily call this a typical shojou. and his yandere moments were... uneven, to say at least. I selected this manhwa specificaly since I heard that Isaac was a intense yandere, but I didn't see it in the start and barely made it do chapter 70... Then the fun started, but boy, did you have to take up your time so much? The lack of steam in the middle really bogged evrything down and still leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
But at least Isaac becomes a full blown yandere at that point. While they could have expanded on his yandereness a bit more, it was more than satisfying the way it was. But this is the fundamental problem with this manhwa - this should have been a serious josei with touches of humor. There are so many heavy, triggering topics touched here - abuse, slavery, obsession, murder, revenge... Clea's whole setup is in fact pretty tragic and warrants a more nuanced look on the whole situation. And her HP system was inconsistent - while hilarious at times, it was out of sync with a world which was obviously not an Otomne game. And it gets old too soon. But, to get to the point, I think by pandering to a wide audience and making this a shojou with some edgy stuff was a omission. This deserves to be a hard core, divisive manhwa, but ends up a slightly more intriguing shojou.
The art was a mixed bag, but I came to love it by the end. Especially Isaacs's face expressions and his lacy outfits (yep, the artists loves lacy sleeves here!). And Isaac's background is so blurry I never got him as a cold blodded war machine. he's just shown as a uptight, but fair nobleman with a ruthless strike. Learning more about him, and giving him more depth, would have been a rare treat indeed! Also a plus - supporting chars are more than cardboard cutouts! Phan, the Demon King and Eclise were actually moderately interesting chars and not that easily forgotten.
But as I said, the yandere moments were delicious indeed, and it's worth reading the stuff for. It would have been better if the yandereness was more expansive and dominant. And I like it that he's one speaky bastard, so refreshing for such a manhwa!
Overall, not too bad, but missed the point and could have been much better!
(-158)
