The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1 review: Jill's second start in life has a promising storyline

The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1 was released on October 9, 2024. The anime is an untalked series from the Fall 2024 anime season that promises a bright future through its genre-specific narrative and an interesting storyline with hints of some famous time-travel-themed anime series.

The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1 featured Jill's journey as she was given a second chance in life after her first one was a big disappointment due to her choices. However, life being a gamble in itself, Jill was put in a spot again where she chose a strong person as her husband who was also the person who destroyed her kingdom in the previous life.

Disclaimer: This article contains potential spoilers from The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1.

The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1 review: Jill gambles everything when fate gives her another chance to correct things

Jill as seen in The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1 (Image via J.C.Staff)

The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1, titled I Tried to Avoid the Route to Destruction and Somehow Ended Up Courting My Greatest Enemy, commenced with a scenario where Jill was running away from her kingdom's forces as she was branded a criminal by her fiancee, Crown Prince Gerald.

Jill's monologue revealed that she was used by her fiancee as bait because he wanted to pursue a romantic relationship with his sister. Moreover, after Jill and Gerald got engaged, he started blaming her for no reason and eventually got her imprisoned, leading to the current scenario.

Jill was then captured by the Kingdom's forces and Gerald appeared before her, trying to threaten her with his sword. He then handed her to the forces, demanding them to kill her. However, she escaped and jumped from a clock tower, claiming that she was leaving Gerald forever. As she was falling, an arrow pierced her and before this happened, she begged for another chance in life.

Jill and Hadis as seen in The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1 (Image via J.C.Staff)

Fortunately, her plea was heard and she was reincarnated to six years in the past when Gerald proposed to her to undertake his plan. However, she now knew of his schemes and tried to avoid every encounter with him. When reaching an end, she just sensed the power of someone and claimed that she refused to marry Gerald because she loved that random person whose power she sensed.

Even though she escaped the harsh fate of her previous life, nothing better could be said about her second one because she chose Hadis Teos Rave as her crush. Hadis was indeed a handsome and powerful man but in Jill's previous lifetime, he was the one who betrayed her kingdom and destroyed it.

Surprisingly, Jill's sudden confession didn't surprise Hadis and he took Jill to his ship as they were on their way to Hadis' kingdom. On their way, Jill was pampered by Hadis' hospitality but she mistakenly told him that all of this was a mistake. This popped out a small dragon from the ship, which was named Dragon God Rave.

He told Jill that she met the requirements for something and that she should marry Hadis. After several incidents and getting scared of encountering the man who ruined her in the past, The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1 ended with Jill agreeing to stay with Hadis as his future bride.

The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1 review: Evaluating the narrative and production

Jill as seen in the anime (Image via J.C.Staff)

The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1 was animated by animation studio J.C.Staff, so there were no doubts about the episode being a letdown, at least when talking about the animation. The direction, the music, and everything else were neither bad nor amazing, which could be considered standard for most seasonal anime series.

Leaving all the formal stuff, the spotlight of this anime's premiere was its narrative that combines the shoujo genre with time travel. The time travel wasn't like that of big giants like Re: Zero and Steins: Gate where the protagonists can give themselves restarts on will. Yet, The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1 still took this approach mildly.

Hadis as seen in the anime (Image via J.C.Staff)

This could be because the series belongs to the shoujo genre and is not that focused on time travel. However, the time travel site well with the series' narrative entirely centered around Jill (hence the show being a shoujo).

Another key detail of the show was how Hadis wasn't a part of the storyline in the first part, making his later entry from a supporting character to one of the main protagonists special. This also made his character interesting as there is no telling whether he will turn to evil just like he did in Jill's previous life.

Final thoughts

The Do-over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor episode 1 proved that despite the series having close to no advertisement due to it being a non-famous series when compared to the big giants, it was one worth keeping tabs on.

Moreover, the start of the series was moderately paced, making it easily digestible for the fandom having a hard time understanding time travel in general. However, it is hard to declare the series a must-watch one because its entire performance cannot be judged through a single episode.

10 most anticipated Fall 2024 anime, ranked

5 most promising new Fall 2024 anime series

10 Fall 2024 anime more anticipated than Dragon Ball Daima

Edited by Meenakshi Ajith