What's bothering me the most is the fact there are two manga adapations about this novel at the same time!
Both have different art style, details and POV.
It can be very confusing.
But the original story theme is good.
Waaah.... What's the other one?
I'm pretty sure the other was a oneshot
Well Sheeeeeit
Ty!
yeah unfortunately THIS ONE is the promotional...i think it only gets maybe 10 chapters?? the one linked in this comment thread is, unfortunately, the one being fully serialized. which big rip since i majorly prefer the art in this one~~
Aww forreal? Damnit. I also prefer this one too ╥﹏╥
Can anyone recommend mangas or novels that criticize and challenge noble society?
There are so many countless stories that romanticized and glorified the status quo of monarchy no matter how bad it is for the commoners.
Correct me, if I'am wrong but I think these stories are about MCs challenging the current aristocrat system:
Empress of Another World
Light and Shadow
Saving 80, 000 Gold Coins in the Different World for My Old Age
Potion Tanomi de Ikinobimasu!
Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear
Ascendance of a Bookworm is a well written piece but it bothers me that the MC is very much handicapped and has to submit to the social hierachy and rules of the nobles. She does her best to adjust, climbs the social ladder, makes positive changes and some reformations for the common people. However it seems in most part of the storyline she is powerless against the nobles and has to be constantly rescued by her allies.
I ve read the light novel version and spoilers in NovelUpdate.
I don’t know if you’ve read it, but I think “A Returner’s Magic Should be Special” is a good recommendation for what you may be looking for :)
The MC in May I Ask For One Final Thing literally beats all them up for their bullsh*t. It's quite satisfying but... only 10 chapters out rip
My problem with this story is the superior ML! No matter how powerful Scarlet is, for some specific reasons she is powerless against that bullying tsundere prince :(
I don't understand why the author give that ML such special treatment/plot armor.........
Thanks. I also like to recommend Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear.
Sorry, my bad. I already did ;)
ahh loved empress of another world and light and shadow too!
My suggestions for series may not be finished but should have enough to read and enjoy for now hopefully. They also may be more loose with your requested suggestion for commoners making change.
(writing this after looking at my read list for awhile and realized there really isn't quite as good of a match to what you suggested unfortunately sorry D: I'm sure they're out there but partial problem is some I have an idea to suggest, but without knowing the rest of the story idk if it would really line up. also sleepy oops)
Arte (now former lower noble to apprentice starting female artist trying to make her way+paint her noble clients/getting to really know them in/out of their noble bringing)
The Villainess Reverses the Hourglass (A true villain in a sense lady mysteriously goes back in time and aims for revenge. Using future knowledge of events, she decides to change her fate & image but she's still the same cute terror on the inside. NOTE: she has to change people's perceptions of her as a bratty spoiled commoner to that of just some poor girl who had a rough start in life. Very loose on your suggestion so idk if really counts.
JK Haru wa Isekai de Shoufu ni Natta (NSFW/SEXWORK/DUBCON[?] WARNING: it's not as large scale to challenge noble society but I guess just society as a whole with how differently females are treated there. Kinda deep perspective of MC in the industry where she strives to be as independent as can be but please be warned of above warnings and its kind of depressing sometimes.)
more light reads below
Sengoku Komachi Kurou Tan! (girl somehow travels to older Japan and accidentally(?) changes history and change preconcepted notions of females taking charge of new things. Mostly gets carried by nobunaga in terms of changing other's notions.
This Mage Desires Mediocrity
(girl gets isekai'd and challenges other nobles here and there on their playing field.)
Thank you very much for the recommendations.
To be honest, I ve read most of them already except Haru wa Isekai Shoufu ni Natta.
And what I find very frustrating about Sengoku Komachi Kurou Tan! is that the MC is constantly the getting "whipped" by asshole Nobunaga. She has all the knowledge and power to change things but she is so powerless against and scared of him! Even though she has the equipments/invention to overpower him! Nobunaga himself admitted that she is valuable and dangerous. But she is so dense that she can't even stand up against him :(
She is practically his slave.
CAUTION ...coz she is not op from the start, and if her mana surge too much she will explode (it will be explained how later)....
Maoyuu Maoyuusha.
np and yeah looks like you've been trying hard to find good reads as well.
and aghhh yeah you're totally right with the mc in Sengoku Komachi Kurou Tan!! She's making changes to the system but its more by the whim of Nobunaga so it's a major loss.
You know it would have make a great difference, if she pretends to be weak in front of Nobunaga and has ways to taunts him... But all she does is crumble in fear everytime Nobunaga shows his dominance. It's is always cringy when she has to bow down and plea "Please don't kill me my Lord"!
Why did the author make her such a whimpy pushover even though she has such great potentials???
that would have been cool but I think they were might have been concerned with over shadowing some big historic figures so might have been a little touchy topic.
They really could have tried pushing for a bit more backbone for her though.
It strikes me that the historic figure Nobunaga is always always portrayed in a glorified light in any Japanese pop culture and grenres.
Just search any movies, mangas or animes that involves Oda Nobunaga.... Even if he appears as a villain, he is always portrayed as a popular proud powerful cool dude.
By the way, the MC/Villainess turns out having magical royal blood from another country...
So she doesn't really count as a commoner since her biological father is a prince or king .
It annoys me to see that trope again and again: Make the MC's background more special than she actually is by revealing she is the hidden lost unknown princess of a foreign country... How many times did you hear that twist already?
o that's the full idea? I vaguely saw some spoilers but darn.
Does feel like a bit of a cop-out where we need a whole big backstory to explain the mc's run in with 'magic' transportation/timetraveling when we can easily say it was an odd phenomenon and leave it simply as that like Empress of another world when we already have so much juicy substance to go off of anyways.
Iris - Lady with a Smartphone has also a very similar plot twist: She is not the biological daugher of her current baron/noble household, she is not a blood relative to her brother and the King from another country has the same red eyes... Yeah, you can already guess the revealation...
This trope also reinforce the idea that family members would never deliberately harm their own unless it turns out they are not blood related! I ve seen this also in many Chinese novels/manhuas - There are of course few exceptions.
Empress From Another World does feature a commoner as a MC who is very intelligent, couragous, adaptive and quite competent.
Iris - Lady with a Smartphone has also a very similar plot twist: She is not the biological daugher of her current baron/noble household, she is not a blood relative to her brother and the King from another country has the same red eyes... Yeah, you can already guess the revealation...
I recommend Beware of the Villainess ヾ(☆▽☆)
To be frank, I find Wonyoung's whiny behaviour pretty too pathetic.
He really should just accept his mistakes, stop bothering Yoon and move on.
The painter is the seventh prince and turns straight for MC... The fuck... But that plot twist was kinda expected in this very dumb melodramatic story.
I figured but I highly doubt he was gay to begin with. Like I'm pretty sure he just said that so she wouldn't worry.
Is there actually a femme fatale or a prostitute who isn't just evil or psychotic in Korean novels/webtoons?
High Class Courtesan Veronica from "ARTE" is a smart and kind woman who knows how hard/harsh the world is towards women and that is why she use men with her skills to survive. At the same time she takes care of her own family. Instead of fighting or sabotaging other women because of one man, she gives them the advice: "Don't fall in love when you make a big career. You become too foolish vulnerable and lose everything"
I wouldnt say it's the main plot, but in The Villainess Turns The Hourglass, the FL's mother was a prostitute who used her beauty to marry a Count. She brought her daughter (FL) along although she could've easily abandoned her. In the manhwa, it's still far from the mother's story. But in the novel, the mother finally claimed freedom from the Count who had never actually respected her as the Countess. She also wiped away all the Count's wealth too. It was awesome.
Too bad that she is a side character in a supporting role. I think she is more interesting or has more potential than the MC.
I didn't like the plot of The Villainess Turns The Hourglass that much since the typical cold perfect superior ML threatens and bully the MC into loving him....
Oh noo don't worry. The ML was trying to approach her, but because she doesnt know him, she feels threatened. The ML is actually not cold at all, he was genuinely interested in her because of her intelligence but she mistook his intentions. She never really gives him a chance to speak anyway. If you read the manhwa here, i believe it already got to the part where he gave her lilies but she dropped it to the ground. The lilies represent the empire as in he's interested in her as a crown prince, but FL misunderstood it as he was being hostile and secretive by giving the empire's flower instead of his own house's (every house has a flower representation, but a noble who gives lilies instead of their own flowers meant to show patriotism).
But he did manhandle her at their first encounter. And after that he keeps teasing her and she can't do much about it because he is stronger than her and deep down she is still a typical receptive maiden.
I did read the first 10 chapters of the novel and webtoon + Spoilers. The story is not exactly my cup of tea.
I really appreciate your arguments but I prefer "Tearmoon Empire Story" . Mia the MC is a funny conniving self-serving bitch with a redeeming heart who can dominate many situations. Her survival and motivation is not underminded by any MLs.
Sunako is so much stronger than Tsukushi Makino and she would have beat the shit out of Tsukasa Domyouji leader of F4.
What a random comparison to make. And while this is great, Hana Yori Dango is a timeless masterpiece.
Timeless but considering how the Fl gets tortured and how glamorized the ML and the bullies are...
I mean the ML is literally the antagonist who cause pain and sufferung.
They all move past that
Forgetting your important memories and gettting rebooted over and over again...
This is an endless hell!
Reminds me of The Good Place and 50 First Dates.
Anterograde amnesia
I like to see the so called crazy prostitute becomes an ally to Giselle against Carter :)
Clearly the enemy is that lowlife of husband.
I hope she doesn't become psychotic stupid.
Am I the only one who doesn't really like the prince/ML?
I ve read ch 84-88 and his POV was convincing relatable. It shows his father the king is the greatest asshole of all. But it also showed how immature, childish and condescending he is and his reasons to harass MC was quite pathetic.
I would like him more, if he were able to stand up against his mother and father and wouldn't use his talents to test and provoked the MC so frequently.
His nice brother was probably suffering under the Second Lead Syndrome.
Isn't it bothersome that no matter what MC do the ML is always easily superior than her?
He basically gets the girl in the end despite his anti-social behaviour.
That prince could have suffered more or worked harder on his redemption, if the FL wouldn't have fall for him so quickly.
The Crown Prince could have ended up defeated like Ian from "Beware of The Villainess", if badass bitch Melissa were in Chartiana's place ;)
I mean look at these two, they are the same kind only with few notable differences.
I like the art style and the quality of this webtoon but I personally dislike the ML and that the MC didn't stay consistent with her attitute against the prince.
I know,i absolutely get you
Thank you
I am happy you think so as well, i mean i hae been thinking about it but it seemed to be an unpopular opinion
Fuh finally someone say it i thought i was the only one thought about that I totally agree with you(๑•ㅂ•)و✧
Even though I like this story the artstyle could be much better!