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[The Strongest Assassin Gets Transferred to Another World With His Whole Class] Review:

score: 2/10
[Due to the Manwha's absence from MyAnimeList, I have posted it as a comment to my profile instead]

▶Summary and recommendation: -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Edgy lowbrow wishfulfilment fantasy. If you just want to turn off your brain for an evening, you can do worse. Though not a lot worse. There are some truly mind-numbing writing in this manwha.

There are only 11 chapters released as of this writing, but it is hard to see how it can turn into something better when it starts out so low.

I do not recommend this Manhwa, and if you end up reading it; expect the worst.

And also expect some scantily clad female characters.

▶Story: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is an edgy wishfulfilment fantasy through and through.

A standard isekai story of a social outcast "who is secretly a super awesome badass" being transported into a fantasy world where his previously hidden skills can shine. It feels very much like the author is inelegantly targetting low esteem individuals who are social outcasts themselves with this story. Hoping perhaps that they will rate it higher than it deserves due to the story pandering to them directly.

If you have read one story like this before, you have read them all. In this week's isekai an entire classroom of teenagers are transported into a fantasy world. They all receive magical powers, with the protagonist receiving the weakest power of them all at first glance. In actuality it is the most underrated power of them all (I bet you have never seen that plot twist in this genre before).

The protagonist is secretly a super powerful assassin with supernatural / fantasy powers even before being sent to a fantasy world. It is a somewhat minor thing, but I am very bothered by this. It either implies that our world in this manwha also has magic and supernatural powers, or (and more realistically) that the author has no idea what a real world assassin would be capable of. Even if intentional, it really lessens the fantastical elements of the manwha.

If I had to levy one positive at this manwha, it would be that it starts with its main plot front and centre instead of bumbling about for a few dozen chapters before it gets going.


▶Setting: --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The setting is as generic as it gets with isekai. It is a nondescript Medieval European inspired fantasy setting with demons, knights and scantily clad priestesses.

▶Characters: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The protagonist is the typical brooding mysterious dark haired outcast who thinks being anti-social is a badass character trait. He is in addition a true Marty Stu who knows everything, keeps calm in every situation, can handle challenges those around him can only dream of facing and show off in front of blushing girls.

All the side characters have no distinct characteristics, and are instead just walking talking tropes. So far in the story, the side character that has been given the most time to shine is a girl whose purpose so far in the story has been to be the sole witness of the protagonist's badassery.

▶Artwork: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The artwork is at best adequate. The character art is passable, but while there are scenes where the background art looks quite decent; for the most part it is simplistic, underwhelming or lazily drawn.

▶In conclusion: --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It will no doubt become an action filled power fantasy isekai one day for sure. It is still too early to tell how good it will get, but at this early point, the prospects are not looking good.

At best, I am sure it will provide several evening's worth of mindless entertainment if you are capable of turning your brain off.

[Survival methods of the Cannon Fodder daughter] Review:

Score 2/10
[Due to the Manhua pending approval on MyAnimeList, I have posted it as a comment to my profile instead]

▶Summary and recommendation: -----------------------------------------------------------------

A subgenre within the Otome Isekai genre. [Survival methods of the Cannon Fodder daughter] is one of those stories where the protagonist reincarnates into the body of a powerless child. They use their isekai knowledge and skills to melt the frozen heart of a powerful man, gaining their favour and saving them from the dangers they face.

This Manhua is best skipped. Not due to egregious portrayals or problematic themes (though it has those too), but because the story is simply quite bad.

I recommend [I Shall Master This Family] if you want a good story about a reincarnated child manipulating adults to their advantage.

▶Story: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The story starts with the protagonist, a middle school student from our world fainting and then waking up in the body of a small child from a novel the protagonist has read.

In the story, the child is abused by their father, the emperor. The protagonist uses knowledge of the story to their advantage to gain the favour of their previously cold and uncaring father. A power fantasy through other avenues.

The story is littered with tropes, plot holes and contrivances. It forgets plot points as quickly as it conjures them. In one scene the protagonist is in urgent danger because they are hiding, but they must go to the toilet. In the next scene they somehow fell asleep and their urges are whisked away as it is no longer needed for the plot.

You have to turn a blind eye to a lot of bad writing to find enjoyment out of this manhua.

▶Setting: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Unlike most Otome Isekai, this is set in a Medieval imperial Chinese inspired setting. Other than that, it is not a very well developed setting, and the setting tropes are similar to Otome Isekai inspired by Medieval Europe. Court drama, succession fights, and more servants than you can count.

▶Characters: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The protagonist was originally a child of ages 12-13 before reincarnating into the body of an even younger child, so their behaviour is not a jarring as most stories where the protagonist becomes a child.

The father figure is an abusive father with no redeeming qualities. The way this sub-subgenre works however is that as long as the authorative figure is kind towards the protagonist, it does not matter how abusive they are towards other children and people.

▶Artwork: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The art is decent, even pretty at times, but has some issues with body proportions, with hands in particular sometimes reaching ridiculous sizes.

[This Isekai Maid is forming a Union] Review:

[Due to there not being a MyAnimeList page for this comic, I have posted it as a comment to my profile instead]
Review as of chapter 109. Score 7.5/10

▶Summary and recommendation: -----------------------------------------------------------------

❗❗Be aware that the central focus of this isekai is classism, racism, imperialism, colourism, homophobia, child abuse, workplace abuse, domestic abuse, and other sensitive topics. The author has done a fair job addressing these topics.❗❗

As class struggle is in the very title of the comic, you have to go into this expecting social commentary.

[This Isekai maid is forming a union] is a commentary on some of the more problematic tropes of the Otome Isekai genre while also being a competent story by itself.

Genre tropes such as the reincarnated protagonist always punching down by slapping/threatening maids. The protagonist forgiving murderous Male Leads (male romantic interest) just because they are nice towards the protagonist. The protagonist partaking in slave trade or enslaving humans themselves and more.

This comic shows these tropes from the perspective of the victims and justly critique them. I am glad there is a story like this and recommend it to advanced otome isekai readers, as it will nitpick a lot of the things an advanced reader probably also finds irritating.
I do not recommend this as your first comic in the genre. Nor the second, or even tenth. This will be enjoyed more by those with dozens of Otome Isekai stories under their belt.


▶Story: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[This Isekai maid is forming a union] follows Bridgette, a maid who is aware that she is in an Otome Isekai novel world. She knows that people from our world reincarnates into her novel world, and she has reincarnated several times herself, though she did not come from our world.

This comic has a plot deeper than most of the stories it is parodying, and the stakes are a lot higher than is the norm. The path the protagonist and her allies tread is a path that challenges the ruling class and you never feel like anyone is safe.

The author is an African American living in the United States. Their own experiences with racism and class struggle gives them a different perspective than most Otome Isekai stories. A genre dominated by South Korean and Japanese authors.
The author shows an excellent understanding of the genre it is criticising, and the amount of time that that the author spent getting to understand the relevant tropes and themes is showing.

The amount of sensitive themes touched upon by this story is too many to list in this review, but one of the most prominent theme is that of power balances in the workplace. A maid is beholden to her employer, creating a power dynamic that is often exploited by those in power.

With the threat of being fired and blacklisted by all nobility, there is little a maid can do when the lord or lady they are serving are making unreasonable demands or handing out cruel punishment.

Another theme that is given a big focus is the racism, xenophobia and prejudices faced by people of different ethnicities. It is not uncommon for Otome Isekai stories to have 'Barbarians' in it. Barbarians who just happens to have dark skin. Much of the story is shown from the perspective of those 'Barbarians' and their treatment at the hand of their subjugators.

There is a lot of different moving gears in this comic, and one of my only really big complaints is that the very premise of the comic, that of forming a union; is pushed to the side due to all the other moving parts of the story.


▶Setting: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It is like most Otome Isekai set in a bastardized version of Medieval fantasy Europe. An extreme amount of care and love however has been put into crafting the setting of the story. There is an amount of world building that might encourage readers to take notes, especially if you do not plan on reading it all at once.
As the main premise of the story is class struggle, a world where classes are at odds (much like our own) is of course expected, and the author did a good job of it.

There are many obvious parallels to our real world in the story. Both to medieval europe, and current day conflicts on Earth. Unlike most stories where this is just window dressing, or just used as a a stage for the main character to show how virtuous and morally superiour they are to the 'medieval peasants', [This Isekai maid is forming a union] uses it as the basis for the entire story.

Like actual real world medieval europe, this settings features a wide array of ethnicities, cultures and the conflicts that come with it. The author has stated that many of their inspirations for cultures and ethnicities other than Medieval Europe that appear in the story come from Northern Africa, Middle East and Central Asia, and they utilize the setting very well. Making it one of the primary conflicts of the story.

A minor complaint is that when it is trying to introduce a new concept (such as magic) it can be a bit clumsy in how it does it.


▶Characters: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The character designs are very refreshing. They do not follow the controversial beauty norms of South Korea that are often reflected in Otome Isekai. So dark skin or freckles are not treated by the author as blemishes on someone's beauty (though they may be treated as such by some characters in the story).

Not only are the characters visually diverse, they also have distinct personalities and backstories beyond being just tropes. The story probably has the best autistic representation I have seen in this genre yet. I really appreciate how well it was done, in particular the character's sensory issues (and perhaps even misophonia).

Different sexualities and gender identity is also well represented in the story, and many of the prominent characters are bisexual or homosexual.

▶Romance: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You can not write a commentary on the Otome Isekai genre without featuring romance, so of course it is full of it. It is however not the focus of the story. It is the catalyst of much of the drama that troubles the cast of characters, but this is not a story (at least not yet) about the main characters falling in love.

That said, there are a lot of romantic relationships in the comic, they are just not the primary focus.

▶Artwork: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The artwork is very different from most Otome Isekai. Having a western touch that to me makes it both charming and distinct. Not everyone will find it to their liking however, and I have seen people describe it as "sloppy". In addition to that, the face shapes can be inconsistent, and even I have to admit that there were several times when I felt that the art could not properly express the emotions of a scene.

The genre is known for its re-use of store bought assets and quick and dirty background art. The author of [This Isekai maid is forming a union] has put a lot of care and effort into making the backgrounds and character art consistent. It is refreshing to see so much care and effort put into making a cohesive art style.

More like the straight dog turds of Japan art and media LOL

Nice reviews. Thanks for reading stuff for us. All these isekai manga are so ass lol

Nice account name

😂😂

Thanks for accepting my FR

Your reviews are pretty good.

very cool reviews

So, what are your thoughts on finishing reading Shinyaku Seisho??? Anyway, just let me know, and cool avatar.
One thing, welcome to MAL newbie!!!^_____^