Why are we so drawn to villainess isekai and the stories of morally grey female protagonists? These romance fantasy tales challenge traditional gender roles and redefine what it means to be a "good girl" in fiction. From My Next Life as a Villainess to Villains Are Destined to Die, we dive into how these reincarnation stories tackle themes of patriarchy, feminism in fiction, and the power of rejecting societal expectations. Join me as we explore why these bad girls are winning our hearts and reshaping isekai tropes.
on the cover: villains are destined to die
media used: check the right bottom side of the video, I made sure to add captions/sources to all media when they appear on screen.
sources (links in the pinned comment):
[1] Casey Baseel, "Why Are There So Many Reincarnation and Villainess Anime and Manga," 2022
[2] Britney Jones, "The Rise of Isekai: A Dive Into The Subgenre’s Popularity," 2023
[3] Louis Kemner, "Why Are Reincarnation Isekai Anime So Popular," 2023
[4] Timothy Blake Donohoo, "How Isekai Anime Reflect Modern Society’s Escapism," 2024
[5] Giovanni Tagliamonte and Yaochong Yang, "Isekai: Tracing Interactive Control in Non-interactive Media," 2021
[6] Joseph Campbell, "A Hero with a Thousand Faces," 1949
[7] Simone de Beauvoir, "The Second Sex," 1949
[8] Maria Tatar, "Heroine with a Thousand and One Faces," 2021
[9] N.A. Bunaeva, B.S. Sosorova, and A.A. Orsoeva, "Transformation of a Female Gender Identity in South Korea," 2022
[10] Y. Yoon, "A Study of the Development of Sunjong Manhwa by Hwang Mina, Kim Hyerin, and Choi In-Sun," 2001
[11] Jaqueline Berndt et al., "Shōjo Across Media," 2019
[12] Lauren Berlant, "Cruel Optimism," 2011
[13] Leah Phillips, "Female Heroes in Young Adult Fantasy Fiction," 2023
[14] Linda Barlow, "The Androgynous Writer," 1992
[15] Elise Ringo, "Villainesses Required: Why the Dark Side Needs More Women," 2018
[16] Sarah Gailey, "In Defense of Villainesses," 2016
[17] Eleonora Sereni, "When I'm Bad, I'm Better," 2020
[18] Adriana Clavel-Vázquez, "Sugar and Spice, and Everything Nice," 2018
[19] A.W. Eaton, "Robust Immoralism," 2012
[20] Jessica Coen, "Gone Girl's Biggest Villain Is Marriage Itself," 2014
[21] Eleonor Botoman, "I Have Complicated Feelings About Shiv Roy, You Should Too," 2023
[22] Tania Sharmin and Sanyat Sattar, "Gender Politics in the Projection of 'Disney' Villains," 2018
[23] Eva Illouz, "Hard-Core Romance," 2014
[24] Vivian Graciela Chertian, "Villainess Protagonists’ Performative Acts," 2022
[25] Sue Austin, "Women's Aggressive Fantasies," 2005
[26] Gillian Flynn, "I Was Not a Nice Little Girl," 2015
music in order of appearance:
ben elson / orthosie
chill cole / calm cadence
toby tranter, smartface / enlightened
rocket jr / berries
deskant / dystopian dream
osoku / fountainhead
bomull / nyår
kikoru / the storyteller
jobii / delhi dusk
wave saver / ultra orange
jobii / shrimp tanpura
luella gren / a little murder for dessert?
dreem / phobia
ben elson / orthosie
jharee / skitch
of water / firebird
william claeson / last cassette
polar nights / the source of existence
william claeson / not what i hoped to be
courtesy of www.epidemicsound.com
00:00 do we need to be good girls?
00:44 why villainess?
03:39 1. CRUEL OPTIMISM
04:26 isekai (for boys)
08:37 good girl fantasy
11:09 cruel optimism
12:42 the villainess is free
16:10 2. BAD GIRLS
17:55 villainesses (in pop culture)
19:52 antiheroines or how to make a bad girl likeable
22:02 rough heroes
23:34 rough heroines and gender norms
25:19 oi villainesses as Good Girls 2.0
26:31 true villainesses or why Penelope is "unlikeable"
29:22 3. CONFLICT AND COMPASSION
29:42 happy endings for bad girls
31:08 compassion for the villainess
33:16 the fantasy solution to female rage
36:41 the villainess vs the heroine
39:51 we need more stories about bad women
40:54 why these stories are special
tags:
villains are destined to die, korean manhwa villainess, Villainess isekai, otome isekai, romance fantasy genre, villainess stories, Gender roles in stories, female-centric fantasy, modern femininity in fiction, patriarchy in fiction, feminist storytelling, female villains in media, anime and manga tropes, storytelling and gender dynamics