The Spring 2025 K-Comics Guide

I Will Kill the Male Lead

What's It About? 

Kwon Jinha is a fit and healthy kindergarten teacher until she gets too obsessed with a silly web novel. Gradually, she starts feeling the aches and pains of the main character, the maid Elby Tindale, until she suddenly enters the novel as Elby! Facing a toxic secret relationship with the male lead, Flynn Raiders, Jinha's version of the novel is a virtual reality game in which her mission is to figure out how to kill Flynn... or be forever stuck with this obsessive creep!

I Will Kill the Male Lead has a story by Han riang and art by Team. DIANIB. Localization produced by Kakao Entertainment. Published by Tapas Entertainment. (April 16, 2025) Rated T+.

Is It Worth Reading?

Dee
Rating:

I Will Kill the Male Lead is for every joseimuke fantasy fan who's ever suffered through an asshole male love interest and wondered, “What do people see in this creep?” In other words: me. This story is made for me.

This is an isekai of the old-school “sucked into a book and trying to get home” variety, as Kwon Jinha unwillingly possesses the body of Elby, the long-suffering protagonist in Jinha's favorite trashy web novel. It's a familiar premise that comes with two key elements that set the tone and keep the story fresh.

The first (and best) is that Jinha is an adult who's under no illusions about the difference between reality and fantasy, nor about what kind of story she's reading. We don't have to slog through chapters of her realizing “uh-oh, this thing I liked in fiction is terrifying in real life!” No, Jinha is well aware that Elby's life is a nightmare and Flynn a textbook abuser, using his traumatic childhood as an excuse to belittle, assault, and control her. Jinha hates this dude from the jump and wants nothing more than to put him six feet under.

The second, riskier twist is that Jinha can't just grab a sword and start stabbing. The story has set “missions” and “quests” for her to complete. Whenever she fails one, the narrative corrects itself and the characters' memories. In other words, every time she kills Flynn, he comes back from the dead with nobody aware that she tried to kill him in the first place.

The gamification is mostly an excuse to extend the story, but thankfully, the series doesn't get bogged down in game mechanics. It's much more interested in Jinha gathering allies to her cause, with occasional breaks to enjoy eye candy courtesy of Flynn's mysterious bodyguard Luke, or to make silly little jokes like naming Flynn's gun “The McGuffin.”

While I Will Kill the Male Lead feels a bit like a horror story in the early chapters, Jinha's headstrong personality and self-aware internal monologues inject much-needed levity (and satisfying comeuppance) that keep things from getting too heavy. Once Jinha puts some distance between her and Elby's abusers, the series settles into a revenge comedy that loves to poke fun at itself. Jinha remains a snarky delight of a protagonist and carries the story with aplomb.

I'm docking points from this not-even-remotely-objective review for one reason: the art is kind of a mess. There are some cute chibis, sleek scene transitions, and eye-catching clothing, but the overall package is unrefined, littered with off-model or flat character designs. CG backgrounds are overly detailed and awkwardly integrated with the hand-drawn art, leading to some distractingly off-kilter angles and inconsistent visual depth.

No matter. I forgive it. I Will Kill the Male Lead is a delicious plate of nachos made with all my favorite toppings, and I can't wait to finish writing this review so I can go scarf down some more.