Maou no Ore ga Dorei Elf wo Yome ni Shitanda ga, Dou Medereba ii?

[Random_Passer-by]

Warning: Spoilers for the first 4 chapters ahead.

It might be silly to wax lyrical about a shounen manga that's so clearly based on the male fantasy, but I can't help thinking about all the subtle things it's doing to give itself literary value.

For one, such manga usually begin by giving the protagonist everything he's ever wanted. However, in this case, Zagan begins with power and riches... neither of which seems to give him any real satisfaction. Here's what he lacks:
[ul][*]A comfortable lifestyle (Delicious food, comfortable furniture etc)
[*]Security (he constantly has to worry about intruders)
[*] and, chief amongst all these: human contact. (He has no friends to speak of, let alone a significant other. Barbaros is a frenemy at best.)[/ul]The manga details his bumbling but successful efforts to achieve these things, because these are the things that will give him actual happiness. I don't think anyone can argue that he lived a good life before meeting Nephie.

Then there's the big symbolic value of exchanging his entire fortune for Nephie at the beginning. None of it was things he'd earned; rather, it was things he'd got from another mage. In essence, he decides to exchange his old life for a new one! He leaves behind the ill-gotten gains of the past, and begins earning his living by doing things that help other people. With that, he becomes part of a community instead of a pariah.

I... might need to get a life.

 

[Sakai]

chap 8 raw is up,english when?

 

[yldDavid]

RIP

 

[toolongdidntread]

lies, the title wife is his wishful thinking ??)))

 

[Roasty]

Nice.

 

[lonewolf]

wooo update

 

[MCX01]

Thanks for the chapter ?

One of the better mangas out there.

 

[firosahoge]

this manga is so adorable and cool at the same time, I wish there were more like this one

 

[getmepills]

like how to summon demon lord but better

 

[MazzieB811]

I freakin love this story, I wish manga authors would take note of ppl’s comments here and get it through their heads that certain things are just overdone and, to be honest, too stupid for some of us to read. I’m a grown-up, one who likes manga, but it’s hard for me to find manga that doesn’t make me want to bang my head into a wall. Harem? Ugh, just no. Love triangles? Not much better than harem. Sis con? Eww, just stop it. Isekai is just getting old. Stories where the guy almost gets the girl but never quite locks it down? Boo! Boob falls (bc who falls when their hands straight out?), panty shots (bc who fights in a short-ass skirt and then gets pissed when ppl see her panties?), and “Pervert!!!” accusations illicit nothing more than a disgusted eye-roll from anyone who can call themselves a real life adult, so it’s refreshing to see a story like this. PLEASE keep them rolling bc it’s one of the few I can go to, as an adult, and not be disappointed. This story is just amazing so far.

 

[lolikoki]

Dear sir, might you have CAUGHT THE FEELS for this elf???

 

[JinkaHigane]

I need help. I can't rate this higher than 10.

 

[Gumak]

cute

 

[Random_Passer-by]

@MazzieB811 It's even more impressive than you say, because this manga doesn't shy away from fan-service either. Ch. 4 p. 7 is the most obvious example, but there are others, like the lap-pillow in ch. 8. Still, those scenes 1) aren't overt, 2) are also sweet apart from just titillating, 3) don't make you think that the character is being debased, and 4) have a good reason for being in the story in the first place.

 

[haru553]

I fanboy'ed too much on this manga. Its very good read, the MC is not trashy either with good value he upholds. His interaction with Nefie is too cute!! I might say this manga needs some more attention and eventually becoming an Anime

 

[ExLegendary]

Best mango of 2018...

 

[WaffleTime]

I forgot a manga was being made of this, I read the light novel before the first chapter was translated lmao.

 

[Blacklight240]

No! I needz de englesh tranclaction! (Trying to make it funny yet cringing to the spelling errors...)

 

[WhiteCap]

Great manga, 11/10 would talk foolishly all over again and shame myself in front of my elf waifu

 

[MazzieB811]

@Random_Passer-by And that’s the thing, I don’t mind at all more mature “fan service”, I like it when it’s done the way it is here. It’s just as adorable for me to see Zagan’s inner dialogue, LOL, as it is to see her offering him a lap pillow. For me, anyway, it’s just so much better than a male character being called a perv every 2 seconds (bc when this happens they’re usually not being pervs at all, the chicks just need to be more self-aware, LOL). One thing I find very interesting is how a culture that’s been so historically repressed in some ways can come up with such cringe-worthy subject matter (im sorry, I just don’t get the Sis-Con stuff, and to be honest while homosexuality doesn’t bother me in the least, I don’t get the obsession with boy love either). It makes me wonder what has inspired that culturally speaking, in a society that revolves around social graces (using honorifics while hitting on your brother is still weird, haha), but I guess that’s another conversation. Not judging, just curious. Anyway, I suppose this manga shows the difference in doing things for cheap applause and doing them WELL. Even that which bothers me when done cheaply is welcomed when its done well. Sorry I rambled, but I enjoy having these convos, there’s just no one for me to have them with, haha.