Lauvil's manga / #Beast to Beauty(1)

Julia von Rozental dies a tragic death at the hands of the man she loved and had dedicated her life to, the emperor. His last words to her, as he stabbed her himself, were full of disdain and disgust for her and her appearance, which had been altered long ago by a curse that affects her family. A curse that is finally broken in those last few moments before her death, making everything in vain. Except, she doesn't die and is instead returned to a time, 9 years prior, when she has yet to swear her allegiance to the to-be-emperor-now-crown-prince and suffer his betrayal. Determined not to repeat that bitter fate, she decides to break her curse, refuse the crown prince - both as a ruler and as a lover - and live only for herself, her sword and her empire. So... This story really tries to be an empowering story about a girl boss who bosses so hard she gets the career, the man and recognition she deserves, but unfortunately it trips over its own internalized mysogy. First we gotta talk about the beast-becomes-the-beauty trope, which I'm really not a fan of. I know that beauty comes with a privilege that many envy or dream of achieving, but I personally dislike the trope because I think it perpetuates the idea that for a woman to be worthy of love, respect and attention, she must be beautiful. I especially don't like how they don't even show the face of the main character until she breaks the curse that made her "ugly". As if she wasn't fully a person and was not even worthy of the reader's attention, before she became pretty. One thing is for characters inside the story to dehumanise the MC (which they definitely did), as that is a plot device. But it's something completely different when it's the author/artist who does the dehumanising. What a poor message to send. Not to mention that as part of her transformation, when she breaks the curse, she gets paler skin. So both body-shaming AND racism in one neat little package. GrEaaaT... But, as if that wasn't enough of a red flag, the next - and so far only other - female character we are introduced to is an antagonist. A selfish, vain, superficial, narcissistic villainess character who hates the MC because the men who should be giving her attention, gives it to the MC instead. It just screams: "women in general are awful, but don't worry; The MC is nOt LiKe OtHeR gIrLs"....... What an old, outdated, sexist plot line. Finally, the male characters of this story are not much better. Any man who is not a complete fool, are walking tropes of potential love interest characters. The only male character I found even remotely interesting was the vice commander, employed under the MC. He struggles with the fact that a young woman was appointed as his superior, when he was counting on landing her job himself. She then proves to be much stronger and more talented, which further wounds his pride. I thought it would be very interesting to see him overcome his hubris, accept his position and then learn and grow from his working relationship - perhaps even friendship - with the MC. But the reveal of his thought makes it very clear that I should quash those hopes as he will probably just turn into another low-tier villain. Critique aside, though, I might read on for a little longer. I know some social issues haven't progressed as far in the east and Asia, as in the West and I genuinely think the author WANTS to write something semi-inspiring. Even if it's a poor attempt. So it might be harsh to judge by the same standards, and it really is not nearly as bad as other manwha and LEVELS above most manga. So, for the good points: The MC is strong, cool and independent. She's kind but not a pushover. She's also kinda wild and unhinged, and not apologetic about it. The story also gets points for not treating it as a big deal that she, as a woman, could become a knight. Or framing it as her becoming one "despite" being a woman. It doesn't go unmentioned, but her gender is not the most important part of the conflict surrounding her leadership or knightage in general. It seems maybe Kyrant is the ML, which I don't mind. He's a walking stereotype, but he's at least sensible, respectful and treats her like a peer. We'll see what happens. It could go both ways from here. So I'll give it a solid 3.5/5 stars.