On his way home from work, Eita comes across a super villainess in a dumpster and decides to shelter her instead of turning her in. She's unused to kindness, but it isn't long before Eita's sincerity melts her evildoing heart.

I Took In a Villainess has story and art by Himuro Shunsuke. English translation is done by Oak Phoenix. and lettering by Joe Lou. Published by Irodori (December 4, 2025). Rated M.

Lucas DeRuyter
Rating:

So Himuro Shunsuke's I Took in a Villainess is misusing the word “villainess” in the current anime fan community lexicon. That term is almost exclusively used today in reference to a sub-genre of isekai where a character, usually a young woman, is reincarnated as the antagonist of an otome game. While the basic set up has evolved quickly, it's important to know that this work is using “villainess” quite differently than in the feminist reclamation of isekai sense. In I Took in a Villainess the titular villainess is a member of a tokusatsu coded evil organization who's taken home by a kindly passerby when she's found defeated in an alleyway. So, think more Miss Kuroitsu From the Monster Development Department and Love After World Domination and less My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!.

If it seems odd to focus so much on this distinction, that's because there really isn't a lot to analyze in I Took in a Villainess. The same-face (but fit) protagonist takes in this (stereotypically hentai shaped) woman and nurses her back to health, she's grateful, and they end up having sex for the rest of the work after she sorts out her initial hesitation. I Took in a Villainess isn't doing much thematically and I think people's enjoyment of it is mostly going to boil down to whether or not they appreciate seeing a character with a sexualized “tokusatsu antagonist” design having sex in various scenarios.

The art, while a bit rough, does capture the intensity in what are supposed to be wanton sexual encounters. Cygnus', the villainess', expressions are enticing without dipping into being over exaggerated and Himuro Shunsuke finds novel ways to sexualize her body, like having water pool in the small of her back during a shared bath. While I Took in a Villainess focuses on Cygnus being a 29-year-old virgin in a way that feels tacked on and unmotivated, I think my chief criticism of this work is how both Cygnus and the male protagonist lack much interiority and character motivation. While I don't need characters to have a wealth of characterization in my smut, and I want to be cognizant of this being a shorter work, any details or traits to make these leads feel a bit more unique in their dynamic would have been appreciated.

I Took in a Villainess also wraps with the introduction of two new members of this evil organization, one petite and one MILF shaped, meaning this is likely to transform rapidly into a harem manga in future volumes. If these new characters lead to the entire cast being better defined by comparison, I think this series should have legs and is worth checking out by anyone familiar enough with tokusatsu tropes to appreciate what it's going for.