ISEKAI’D BY:
Truck-Kun…?
Juvelian is a villainess so hated by everyone that even her lover and father leave her to die a pitiful death. Just as she’s about to face her fate, she gets the chance to change the course of her story. In order to avoid the tragic end she knows awaits her, she breaks up with her lover and gives up trying to win her father’s love. Instead, she focuses on using his wealth to enjoy her new life to its fullest! But while she prepares for her extravagant life as a lady, her father begins looking for her new suitor. Afraid that he’ll marry her off to the infamously unpredictable and stormy prince, she lands on a desperate solution: a dating contract. And the best candidate is none other than her father’s student. Based on the hit novel.
There are some REALLY BIG HONKIN SPOILERS HERE. Good? Cool.
My dudes, this is one of my favorite genre subversions. I missed out on the release of season 3 back in the day and finally went and reread the entire webtoon from front to back— and I was not disappointed.
I’m not taking a whole lot of screenshots on this one because I got too into reading (my b) but I desperately hope we get a paperback release of the LN and the webtoon.
See, this starts with a villainess isekai opening, complete with car accident*, and then it spins a web that complete turns the beginning on its head. They whip it around, and it turns out it was never an isekai. This is a time loop and only a time loop— born from utter love and devastation.
It really starts as a miscommunication romcom and ends with me sobbing at midnight over the whole damn thing. We have story A— disguised prince falls in love with female lead and they need to avert disaster (hence the title, Father, I Don’t Want This Marriage). Story B is finding out what happened to Juvellian’s father, and his utterly heart stomping love story. Story C is fealing with the over 30 year conspiracy that ties everything together and ends with some absolutely stunning artwork.
There’s a certain joy to reading comics that you don’t often get with any other medium: the comic’s art grows and changes over time.
Where we started:
Where it went:
It’s a romance story and a family story. I found myself actually worried at the end because I couldn’t think of a way they could make it without dying and they exceeded expectation for me as a reader. The art was consistently fun and reflected the moods well.
The romance felt fairly good— I love stories that derive love from someone feeling comfortable and taken care of, and willing to make compromises to be better in order to express things to their partner. The major misunderstanding did not stop the plot, but helped move it forward, and it was resolved with heartfelt apologies and explanations with a partner who was willing to listen and understand. The love between the pair extended outward and encompassed the people that needed the love to also become better. Most of the side characters were legitimately interesting in some way and remained consistent throughout the story. There were even very minor characters who has their own sort of character arc and became kinder people. Hell, the empress who neglected and emotionally abused her daughter ended up finding a redeeming moment to close her arc.
This was so fucking refreshing to read after Fourth Wing. It’s funny and the previews between episodes were hilarious or serious or just downright fun. There were moments where it knew it didn’t need to take itself seriously and there were moments where it drives a reader mad.
Plus, the smut happened and it was well-beloved. People smiled and had fun and were natural— the artists made an R15 and R19 version, for both kinds of audiences. The intimacy was fantastic, and yeah, the doting husband thing is adorable.
At some point there was no will they/won’t they. It became they will, and how will they solve everything that’s in the way? How will they resolve the conflicts surrounding them? How will they deal with the problems as they magnify? How will the characters grow and change?
It was satisfying.
And honestly I found the perfect reaction image to the very very end (side story 8):
