Akuyaku Reijou nanode Last Boss wo Kattemimashita

The villainess trope is something we’ve seen a couple of times now as it has slowly become more popular. I myself was questioning if this could follow up on the success of something like My Next Life as a Villainess. I must say, I think it kind of did as this was an enjoyable ride to sit through, but by all means, it isn’t perfect and can be a little bit goofy at times. I'm the Villainess, So I'm Taming the Final Boss is a fun watch for those interested in it, but it can definitely have been improved upon.

Art: 6
I always say that ... art isn’t the biggest factor in my enjoyment of an anime, and while the art style and animation aren’t the worst, it's honestly not the best either. Sometimes character movements seem stiff, and to be honest other than the main duo the character designs themselves were a little bit boring, but conversely, I thought the colors meshed well together and really made some moments pop out. I also thought the ost was fine at best as well.

Characters: 8
I believe this is where this anime strived the most and is really where it kept me in my seat. I think Aileen is a pretty good female lead and has a certain charm behind her serious yet nurturing personality. I also really liked how they portrayed Claude as well, they showed both his softer and stricter side very well. To be honest I dont have many complaints when it comes to the side characters either, other than designs. My main issue lies with the antagonist as their motives never were the clearest, and kind of seemed a little shallow, but overall, the cast was great.

Story: 6
While I do think the characters made the show enjoyable, the story wasn’t anything too special, as the pacing at times would be a little all over the place, and the main antagonist kind of got less interesting to watch after the first arc which affected the overall plot as they were the main driving source for it to move forward. That being said, I dont think it's bad enough to drop the whole anime and for the right person, this can be an enjoyable watch.

I’ll give it 6 almonds out of 10.

HameFura (you know, the one with the lovable dense blonde MC Bakarina Claes), MobSeku (you know, the one with the shitty MC Leon Fou Bartfort), and finally the 3rd entry in the now Isekai space that is the Otome Game sub-genre: Akuyaku Last Boss (or AkuLas for short feat. yet another blonde MC). Damn, looks like Isekai has a new winning formula that's only starting to pick up right now, but only getting more predictable as time passes.

Out of the Otome Game adaptations we've had so far, I really have to concede the fact that HameFura is the overall better handled show that we have ... seen of this now start-up "Villainess Otome Game" isekai sub-genre. And while MobuSeka was just ugly throughout and kinda rushed in its adaptation, Akuyaku Last Boss a.k.a AkuLas is the mix between the both the good and the bad being a decent show overall, with the same overarching story that is already beginning to wear the audience out of its idea, but with the execution being both favourable and not depending on where the game's route goes according to the original LN author that is Sarasa Nagase. But if there's one thing that we can all agree on, is that the show's pacing whacks in your face being faster than the speed of dating and harnessing a harem all at once, with everyone being the wiser.

But I'm getting ahead of myself here, let's rewind from the start. If you've watched either HameFura or MobuSeka for that matter, AkuLas's story is essentially the same copy-pasted blurb setting of its main female MC being Isekai-ed into the game, with her memories intact of how the game is being played out and navigating thereabouts so that she can reach the outcome of the game's "good end" and avoiding the "bad end". But as the saying goes: "Truth is stranger than fiction", and even if the game turned out to be predictable, there is always that small hole-sized void that'll plunge the female MC into self-perception if there exists an area that wasn't part of the main story (e.g. special spin-off character routes), regardless of how well she can memorize the entire game inside out to play exactly as how it would be panned out.

And the main female character in this game is this girl called Aileen Lauren d'Autriche. Having been reincarnated from the real world, knowing fully well that she's the villainness whose destiny is programmed for death, she does what any other character would do to turn away from the fated death that awaits them. Only this time, AkuLas takes a very different approach and hinges it on the demonic side of the family rather than the stereotypical kingdom noble royalty, which provides something new to the table to make things interesting. This is especially so if you can get the reference of the source title itself to tame the "Final Boss", and for one, Alieen already has her sights set on the game's "Final Boss" that is Claude Jean Ellmeyer, the lord of the demons, and simultaneously the older brother and former heir to the throne whom he lost his claim to his younger brother Cedric, who is the default love interest of the game's heroine. And what's a prince without the princess a.k.a the game's heroine, and she is none other than Lilia Reinoise, the proclaimed self-righteous princess to stand alongside Cedric as the Holy Sword Maiden, which imbues her with power enough to defend against demons. I swear that the way that I'm sounding here makes you think that there're lots of characters, and yes there are many, but easier to follow than the almost cluster-fish that is HameFura.

Having already gone though both HameFura and MobuSeka in the same manner, you should already know that the game isn't definite on everything, and it's the same choice for Aileen here. Having been kicked out of the kingdom due to Cedric's incompetence of his older brother Claude being the more intelligent and bright of the two, the self-centered narcissism of Cedric forcing his way to get revenge for rejection, Aileen's a smart girl who knows her way around such travesties, and chose to join the dark side instead where Claude is posted at, at his demonic house, which has no short of assistants ready at the sound of his call. Claude's servants of right-hand man Keith Eigrid and Beelzebuth handle the small, intricate details while refining their loyalty towards the Demon Lord himself. Keith is a naturally competent assistant who's a jack of all trades and master of all, and it's no wonder if Claude is out on business that Keith can be in charge being the acting lord. Beelzebuth a.k.a Bel may be rowdy with his non-mannerisms and etiquette, but at least he respects Claude's space by trying to not embarrass him as much as possible. Rounding off the demons is a crow named Almond, after Aileen managed to successfully be tamed it to get to like her. Also, this may be a minor spoiler, but the duck scenes in the show are absolutely hilarious to say the least.

Overall, this demon dynamic has been a somewhat subtle affair of Stephen King's quote: "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me three times, shame on both of us." To be presented the same setting 3 times in a row, albeit following the game's different layouts and characters symmetrical to the plot, it's a hard one to swallow for both anime-onlies and even LN source readers. As an example, the manga that was based on the 1st game alone covers 3 volumes, and the show manages to clinch that record in 4 episodes. That is some blazing blitz speed if ou ask me, the amount of sacrifice just reeling for content to reach its eventual end point, leaving the audience perplexed and confused about missing plot pointers that could help expand the story more. Sadly, under studio Maho Film's in-house director Kumiko Habara, it felt like sound advice was abandoned in favour of content adaptation as quick as it comes, and I swear at times that I was jawdropped at how fast things were going, to the point that aspects such as character development would get overshadowed. To my dismay, the worst fears are realized, and the anime is done in such a way that it dishonours the source material.

But there's a silver lining in all of this. Despite the fast pacing, the characters are fun to watch, especially Aileen and her group of demons after successfully "taming" them, even Claude himself to reckon herself as his lawful wife as means to get back at Cedric for the shame that he incurred to her. Karma deserved on Cedric's part, which is actually good since villains have a hidden side to them that makes us feel pissed off at them all the time. Where the story falters, the characters make up for the slack, and I would say that the good balances the bad to make for a decent product overall. And despite being produced at Maho Film, the visuals do pop at times, which more actually more reminiscent towards the studio's light-hearted works like Leadale no Daichi nite a.k.a In the Land of Leadale.

It's been quite some time since I've ever heard a Rie Takahashi song ever since the many displays of the Takagi-san franchise, and truth be told that her OP song was one that at first, I despised it for the same zany, off-the-whack vocals, but it grew on me and I began to like it the more listens it got, being very energetic and lively, something that I've come to expect of the typical RieRi song. ACCAMER's ED song is pretty much the same, except that it was forgettable at best, even with the playful visual drops accompanying the song itself, which is a nice touch to say the least.

If there exists an anime world where neither HameFura nor MabuSeka ever existed, AkuLas would've been treated as something totally new towards the Isekai genre of its many sub-groups and given an equal amount of criticism that would sway towards recommendations. But as it is, my original point still stands that HameFura is the better of the 3 Otome Game adaptations, and this show, while being good in spots, has its own flaws that aren't negligible, and somewhat disappointingly wedges between said shows neutralizing both good and bad aspects of the anime. It's a fine showing, and I really wish to say to give this a watch but beware of the feeling of the Buyer's Remorse if you wish to sink your teeth into what is yet another copy-paste Otome Game setting.

Frustrating. I am sure there is a good story (four stories?) buried in here. I think the main character is interesting and well acted of course. I think this could have been great... if they had only slowed down for a minute!
Side characters are introduced and disappear and pop up again. Wait, that guy was, what, an architect? Or something. Those guys hanging around with nothing to do except dress up nicely were... what again? I am sure I've seen them before. Wait, that girl was at a fancy school for the elite and now she's a chambermaid (what would her parents think)?

Frustrating. That guy ... is the demon lord and that is terrible.. but the demons are just fluffy creatures living in a wood and they love him... what is this all about?
She's just met him... now they're in love... when did that happen?

12 episodes for four stories and dozens of characters. It is just too much. Such a pity.

"Akuyaku Reijou nanode Last Boss wo Kattemimashita" is a 2022 Issekai romance from Maho Film.
The plot is quite simple: the protagonist, as a classic Issekai scenario is supposed to be, finds herself in the world of a video game, where she finds herself in the role of a villain whose destiny is death. The task is clear: to change the plot of the game by defeating the final boss...with her love. Romance, though.

The series itself is divided into three arcs, in each of which the story changes, the characters remain the same (except that new ones appear). In my opinion, the first and ... second arcs are very good, but the third seemed boring and unnecessary, although in general, the plot of the anime could have been finished at 4 series (the end of the first story).

There are quite a few characters in the anime, but not all of them decided to reveal. Of the 5 assistants of the main character, Aileen, only Isaac was given time, while the rest became third-rate.

The music is present, but the same music is played time and time again throughout the anime. A tense moment - long live the medieval melody.
Drawing looks a bit sparse, although maybe Ufotable Studios have lavished me with artistic beauty, but for 2022 it does look a bit lacking. But come on, it's all subjective, it's a my opinion.

I didn't really get the gist of it. Maybe the author wanted to say that even in the game love and friendship work wonders and solve many issues, change the fate, but most likely the anime is just a normal isekai, covered with the feelings of the main characters. Some characters are revealed, discarded, and what is timeless is the beauty and allure of the prince of darkness, Claude. By the way, I would argue with the word "darkness." After all, all the darkness is crows, furry critters, cyclops, and green-haired helpers... Seriously, they even have a fortress? A fortress for one man, two demons and beasts...that's "darkness."

Whatever. I found the anime and its plot entertaining enough, despite the third story. The occasional interesting characters were also fun to watch. I want to mention Kana Hanazawa's wonderful acting as Lilia, it was gorgeous! That's all for now :D

The first 7 or so episodes were really enjoyable and fun. But towards the end it felt so, so RUSHED. I'm so disappointed. This anime could have done with being twice the length it was. I loved how badass Aileen was and how she wasn't the usual useless damsel you normally see in romace manga. She is her own person and makes her own decisions and has tons of confidence in herself. She actually has a personality, instead of being a self-insert character! I loved that. I'm also an absolute sucker for romance framed from the "villainess" POV.

I really enjoyed the back and forth, ... will-they-won't-they of Claude and Aileen's romance and their growing affections for one another. Unlike another certain anime in the same genre, it's so refreshing to see their relationship actually GO SOMEWHERE instead of constantly stringing the viewers along with a reverse harem snorefest. But the last few episodes of Last Boss were really unfulfilling and left me wanting.

Spoilers ahead:

We never get an explanation for why the empress dowager was doing what she did. We never get an explanation for who Lilia really is and her actual motives, nor any meaningful discussion between her and Aileen about being isekai-ed into an otome game besides some petty squabbling/exposition. I mean come on, you meet someone just like you who also wound up in another world, there is no way you wouldn't want to talk about that more to someone, right?

I cannot for the life of me understand why Cedric would continue to like such a callous person as Lilia after all that time and seeing how she acted.

The whole subplot with Elephas was glossed over, was poorly explained and left the viewer to guess just wtf was actually going on.

Certain parts of the plot end up so rushed that the reasoning behind them are super unclear. Aileen and Claude didn't even kiss at the end of the final episode. 6/10 for me. Left me feeling very unsatisfied.

uhhhh i started it because i thought it would be a nice shojo romance, stayed for the overall goofiness. To be honest, objectively, it wasnt good. BUT there' s a badass woman MC, witty, quick-thinking and kind which makes you want to see what she does next. Background characters although there were never fleshed out, but yk, cool romance.

Overall, the plot jumps around a lot, the pacing is super weird, (there's a whole ass arc that could be 6-7 episodes crammed in 2-3) and there were a lot of points or problems solved in ways i didnt really get, but instead of trying to ... make any sense of it, i just vibed and went along. That is generally the mindset you have to have with these types of anime. It was my trash anime of the season, goofy and fun. If you re into more traditionally good anime maybe you should skip this one.

This is the third Otome-game Isekai I could make comparisons and talk about the others, but it would be unfair to do so, especially as HameFura is such a stand out, and takes some beating.

This anime has a strong start, the first arc is really well done, it is entertaining, well paced and everything you want from a series like this.
The MC is reincarnated into the villainess, she is jilted by her former fiancée, she has to avoid her 'doom flags' as well as recover her social standing and economic standing, so she decides to get engaged to the Demon Lord.
We have quite a ... bit of plotting from all sides, some twists and turns, and a sprinkling of humour, the MC is interesting and there is a decent cast of characters.
So far so good.

BUT, it doesn't stay that way for long, because after the first act we get the issues.

The second act sees a new location, new characters, new storyline, new plot points, and it gets a whole lot sillier
The main issue is that it's fairly boring as we are waiting for the eventual reveal and resolution to the plot as none of the twists are twists because having gone through act 1, none of the 'surprises' are surprises, and the pacing is just 'weird' as the story isn't given enough time to be developed and we don't get that invested in the second arc, which is why we're waiting to get back to the 'good stuff'
If it wasn't for the characters and some of the comedy, the second act would just be boring as you'd just be waiting for it to wrap up.

The third act is somehow worse than the second act, because at least the second act is fun
The third act is a mess, the pacing is dreadful, the plot is confused and doesn't make much sense, the Holy Sword changes from a sword that can kill demons to a MacGuffin that can do anything and everything that the plot needs it to, and I think what is worse for this series, is that it brings in even more characters, that are supposed to be pivotal, and for most of them, we get little to no time with those characters, don't learn anything about them, or their motivations, and they seem to be mostly an afterthought

Act 3 went for drama, it just forgot the essence of storytelling, don't look too closely, don't think about it, don't ask about these other characters or their motivations, don't look too closely at the plot or ask how these things are supposed to work.

I feel like saying "what the first arc and leave it there" because honestly, if I was scoring it only on that first arc, it would be 8/10 easily, however, even as bad as it gets, the MC Aileen, carries this anime and still makes it worth watching.

The plot progresses too fast. They fit 3 separate arcs into a 1-Cour anime. It all felt very rushed and left little to no time for character development. Didn’t even get a chance to form meaningful attachments that would make me care about what was happening to the characters… should’ve been 3 seasons minimum instead of crammed all into 1.

Honestly kinda bummed with how this turned out bc the initial plot line sounded intriguing… details and fluff are not the enemy in situations like these. I would’ve preferred the story actually go more into depth about the events of the first arc.

Watch the first 9 episodes and stop. The first 9 episodes are 10/10 the last 3 ruin the rest of the brilliance that is this anime. It goes from light hearted fun to trying to drill some twisted dramatic plot and completely ruins the humor and fun of the show. I can't believe I enjoyed what felt like the first 3 seasons cause every to or three episodes feels like a season. you'll see. but the 4th killed it for me.

The story is not quite unique as we have other animes that do the villainess thing and do it well but this does take ... a different approach to world building and comedy. The reverse harem in this game is not as obtrusive as it is in some of the other otome game animes i have seen it is appreciated.

I have very mixed feelings with this. The first third of the show I absolutely loved however the next two thirds just felt like a repeat and poor imitation of the first. It started to feel like a slog to get through. We don’t get enough time to see the characters develop their bond, the main character feels like mild Mary-Sue. She is interesting to watch but she does the absolute bare minimum and it’s hard to see why the characters like her despite seemingly spending so little time with her.

Each third of this anime could have and should have been an entire season on ... its own.

With all the other isekai / villainess options out there, this one really falls short of the mark. The MC's are not compelling, the art style turns me off (personal preference), and the plot pacing is inconsistent and not compelling. I've tried to watch this two times and both times couldn't make it past the first few episodes. I would rather spend time on Hamefura / Raeliana / Doctor Elise / 7th Time Loop, which all have similar tropes but higher quality execution. That being said, if you've run out of viewing material and just need to kill time, maybe this one can help with ... that.

As a big consumer of josei isekai manhwas, I was quite interested in that title, considering it's the same exact genre. And I'm pretty disappointed. The romance build up lasted only 4 episodes. And not only relationship, but the overall plot too, were extremely rushed with barely any developments of any direction. The entire thing was a sum of very overdone cliches, with nothing standing out to make up for it. Plotwise, one most similar title I can think of right now is The Remarried Empress.
From 5th episode onwards though, the plot actually has something going for it. While it gets more interesting, I still ... wouldn't really recommend it.
On the plus side, the ending is a real banger, both the song and the animation.

another isekai anime where the MC of the anime become the villain instead of the protagonist. Nothing new.

The story building, the relationship & character development are not going in a good pace; the MC (aileen) & the supposed to be the love interest (claude), show love attraction too easily, on episode 3 you already see them in a lovey dovey state. I was expecting claude is going to act like "play hard to get", and see aileen trying to get him while develop herself for the better. It's like you'd already know whats gonna happen, so whats the point of watching the rest? ... esp. if there are other anime with the same theme, genre, plot, etc. Also other side characters don't get proper introduction, so many characters just come in one episode and get along pretty well with the MC. Just like that.

something is just off for me about how the MC (Aileen)-in flashback- narrate the story like it was hers, that she actually experienced & felt. e.g when she got flashback in the hall (ep. 3) about keith, she said something like "I know how it feels to be compared with my siblings". There is no clear back story about the MC before the isekai, isn't that what Aileen experienced, not her? how can she actually empathize. most isekai anime I've watched, the MC do not talk about whats inside the game like it was theirs.

it seems like isekai genre still popular the anime industry for the past few years, they keep making anime with similar stories. here are some anime with the same story.
7th Time Loop: The Villainess Enjoys a Carefree Life Married to Her Worst Enemy!
My next life as a villainess: all routes lead to doom
Villainess Level 99: I May Be the Hidden Boss but I'm Not the Demon Lord
The Saint's Magic Power is Omnipotent (not the villain instead side character, but it is the same thing- not the protagonist)

Decent series, some may like it and others may not so watch it if you like, this is my first villainess anime series and according to that it was decent, the plot was like a story taken from a Disneyland movie it was a general plot. The art style and animation were decent, more magic powers should have been shown, and there were ok fights, but it could have been improved. The characters were also decent, their personalities were OK. The good thing about this show is seeing our female MC trying to change her fate which also improved a lot of people's life directly ... or indirectly.
I give it 6/10.

Ever since the rise of Hamefura, I've been seeing more and more Otome shows getting anime adaptation announcements. "I'm The Villainess, So I'm Taming The Final Boss" on the surface doesn't look like it's going to bring anything new to the table, and in reality it really doesn't. That is not a bad thing per say, because the show manages to execute the Otome game tropes in a good enough way in order to be entertaining. Unlike Hamefura which starts well, but then it falls victim to its mundane storytelling structure and annoying MC, "I am the Villainess" manages to introduce us to e ... likable main character in the face of Aileen and it splits itself in little arcs that move the main plot line forward. The show can become a little stale at times, but it manages to stay entertaining for the most part. It doesn't excel in any particular aspect, but the cast of characters makes it worthwhile.

I have enjoyed the show thus far and and for fans of this genre I can recommend it. As for newcomers - give it 3 episodes.

Great comedy. This show is great for the same reasons that Spanish Telenovelas are amusing.
Animations
The animations usually look nice, although quite stiff. There are some instances, specifically the demons, where they have some nice movement to go along with the drawings or some scenes where it's the Aileen and her fiancé. Either than the two of them, who are arguably the most important, the rest of the cast can feel quite stiff at times. The show uses this to it's advantage because you will get these scenes where it feels like you're watching a telenovela when they do that thing where they pan the camera ... between a few people over and over without changing facial expression or posture. Combining this with some less than stellar voice performances, people saying outrageous things, or some character just popping out of nowhere for seemingly no reason, and you have a cheesy show that genuinely has some good moments when it's actually trying. Episode 11 has changed my view of this show completely, I wasn't convinced it was a telenovela until this episode when they pulled all the stops and went all the way with it. Some genuinely good hentai delivery on some of the lines, especially when people are blatantly lying.
Sound.
As i've said the voice deliveries are really hit or miss, but it elevates the comedy for me. For the majority of the show it's not that bad, main characters have good voice delivery and any mistakes go unnoticed until the scenes get ridiculous. Music has some nice silly themes for the light hearted moments with some actually pretty good transitions into more serious tracks. This show likes to bounce around on it's tone constantly at a fast pace so the good transitions are appreciated.
Plot
Not much to say, it serves it's purpose. Predictable for the most part and decent overall.

Akuyaku Reijou nano de Last Boss wo Kattemimashita is a series that is definitely not extraordinary in any way but still can make you want to watch it. The story itself is pretty simple and so are the characters. Only Aileen truly shines bright and shows some more potential, as expected for the main character. A lot of the charm she has comes from her amazing Seiyuu for sure.

What in my opinion is the main problem of this series?

The pacing.

While some more boring plot points are being dragged on for way too long and we just have to sit through boring conversations, the relationships between ... characters, on the contrary, are being developed way too fast so they feel fake and hard to believe. Although Cedric and Aileen do have chemistry, their love appeared out of nowhere, we had no time to watch them grow and fall in love and as a series that is about romance, it has failed to deliver in that department.

Still, I have to admit, I was anticipating certain episodes when I watched it weekly. Some of the cliffhangers were done pretty well and knew how to keep myself on the edge of my seat. The problem was that those cliffhanger moments were resolved too fast, in the first few minutes of the next episode which in the end made me feel bored watching the rest of the episode focused on just talking.

It's basically up to someone's preferences if they want to watch it or not. It's an easy skip but when as of late anime industry doesn't deliver much romance-themed anime, maybe it is enough for those who crave to see new productions of this genre...

No villainess story has been more for 12-year-olds than this.

As a villainess fan, this is entertaining filler food; knowing the tropes auto-filled missing worldbuilding in my head, and I can focus on the characters. If you're not used to villainess content the pace and underdeveloped sidecast will seem kind of deranged. There's an added lack of depth because of it clearly being aimed at a much younger audience.

Overall shallow and about as good as the show could be with such uninspired designs and mediocre drawings. Forgettable but makes me happy to watch, and if you like the genre, it'll probably make you happy too. xX_VILLAINESSFAN2022_Xx