Lauvil's manga / #Female CEO(1)

No More Questions - Let's Sleep Together

Ongoing | Mariko sawamura | 2019 released
2020-10-18 18:35 marked

I was having a hard time putting into words what it was about this manga that totally rubbed me the wrong way, and I think I finally got it. The premise is that the mc is a strong, independent woman who's had to work hard in order to chase her dreams and fulfil her ambitions. As a female business owner, she's used to dealing with misogyny, sexual harassment, being underestimated and looked down from her male peers. Which is not really unusual in male-dominated fields where power is involved (and even those where it isn't). The struggle is very real and the manga's the portrayal of that aspect is very realistic. It's these things that makes it very infuriating to be a woman, sometimes, and it kinda hits where it hurts. So, it's really disappointing and infuriating that the FL's struggles are only used as a backdrop. At least to me it seems that it's only included to make the reader relate to her and understand her stubborn personality (as if it needed justification). The ML and the romance seems hellbend on diminishing and trivialising her struggles and undermining everything she stands for: The strong woman who despite all odds, has realised her dreams in a man's world. For rather than having a ML that sets an example for men - treating women as equals and with respect, and who doesn't view them as (sex) objects - we get a smug, insensitive, sexually harassing bastard who (imo) treats the FL as nothing more than a challenge to be conquered. I mean, the MC developed her stubborn and prickly personality because she's had to go against the flow to get to where she's at. What's the ML's excuse? I get that the author just wanted a rivalry between the couple, which wouldn't work if the ML was a totally complacent guy, but you CAN actually make rivalry between two characters, WITHOUT one of them looking down on the other as a person. Because that's the vibe I get from the ML... At least to me it seems that the message this manga sends is that a woman can be strong, but there will always be a man out there who can conquer her and make her submit.