The Fated Magical Princess: Who Made Me a Princess

Episode 11

Poor Jennette. The slow release of her hands, so that instead of clutching each other, hopefully they hung by her sides, says more than any of her lines have thus far. While we still don't know much about how Duke Alpheus has raised her, his facial expressions as his every attempt to replace Athanasia with Jennette is thwarted speak volumes: he doesn't care about Jennette; he cares about whatever plan he's fomenting. And if Jennette can't be used in that plan, I suspect she's pretty well worthless in his estimation.

Apart from being something no child should experience, this also continues playing with the isekai elements of the story. Athy may no longer be reincarnated into a novel, but there are real threads of that running through the plot in ways that don't depend upon it being an active piece of the puzzle. Although Athy was never a villainess in any sense of the word – she was just neglected – what she's afraid of is the denunciation scene so common in villainess isekai, where she's refuted in favor of Jennette, the “true” heroine. Like many of those tales, Athy and Jennette are undergoing a role reversal, but instead of “villainess vs. heroine,” it's “loved vs. neglected,” which actually works remarkably well to emphasize the fairy tale feel of the story. By calling both “The Kind and the Unkind Girls” and “Cinderella” tale types to mind, The Fated Magical Princess: Who Made Me a Princess adds a layer to its storytelling. It's hard not to see Jennette as a Cinderella figure when she's not allowed to go to the ball.

Duke Alpheus seems to be operating on the assumption that the story hasn't changed, which is interesting because technically only Lucas and Athy should be aware that the plot has deviated. He also shows a tenaciousness that might be admirable under different circumstances – undaunted by his attempts to foist Ezekiel off on Athy as a study buddy, he's now trying to ensure that Jennette enters the palace as Athy's companion (a possibility he's raised before), while oh-so-subtly making hints about how Claude would surely be an excellent dad to more than one child. This is where tenacity appears to win over intelligence, because somehow Alpheus doesn't factor in how much Claude still mourns Diana – something pretty much everyone else seems to be aware of. At best, he's making Claude think about the missed opportunity to have more children with his beloved wife; at worst, he's implying what Claude would surely think of as unfaithfulness in the form of remarriage or an illegitimate child…which could sound like a threat to the prickly emperor. None of this is making the duke look particularly brilliant; he's more like a petty villain every time he walks onscreen.

And maybe that's all he is. The mysterious man cosplaying the Phantom of the Opera certainly provokes more of a reaction in Claude than the duke ever does, and he also seems like he may be the one pulling the strings. But no matter who's most involved in the plotting, they're going to have an uphill battle. Athanasia isn't sitting back and taking it. If her illusion of her mother shows anything, it's just how strong her love for her family is – and how determined she is to keep it.

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The Fated Magical Princess: Who Made Me a Princess is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.