I’ve wanted to do this post for a while, but I haven’t gotten around to it because I felt like I should have finished transferring most of the Recommendation posts I originally did over on the Realmgard blog to this blog.
I’ve since mostly gotten over that mindset, mostly because I’ve felt less bound by recommendations on this blog needing to fit the Middle Grade Fantasy context of Realmgard, so I’ve been encouraged to branch out.
Funnily enough, this post actually probably would fit in with Realmgard…
And I’m happy I’m finally getting around to writing this post, because The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated! is one of my favourite animes. Because it is absolutely one of the most relatable animes I have ever watched.
And, FYI: The exclamation point is part of the title, not me editorialising…
I think this also ties in nicely to the Strong Women of Sci Fi & Fantasy giveaway I’m currently invovled in, because – as you might be able to glean from the title – the Great Jahy’s sheer, stubborn refusal to lose is absolutely at the core of the series and her resilience is one of her defining traits.
To set the scene and provide some context, be aware that the title of the anime’s second opening is a mix of Japanese and Spanish that translates to “Life is Hard, Give Me Money.”
“Regal.” “Formidable.” “Beautiful.” “Feared.” “Venerated.”
The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated!: TV Asahi and Silver Link. image via Crunchyroll.
These are words that can no longer be applied the the Great Jahy…
(Named, incidentally, after an ancient Persian lust demoness)
Previously serving as the second-in-command to the Dark Lord ruling over the Dark Realm – think fairly stereotypical Fantasy Villainous – Jahy has been banished to Earth following the Dark Realm’s destruction at the hands of her Magical Girl rival, in the process losing her powers and becoming trapped in a feeble, child-like form.
The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated!: TV Asahi Silver Link. image via Crunchyroll.
I’ve definitely I’ve been over this before in my capacity as a professional we(e)b writer, but I can’t remember if I’ve done it here…
If you’ve been paying any attention to the medium of anime and/or manga since the 2010s or so, you’re probably familiar with the term “Isekai.” Because, like, Isekai anime are so hot right now.
In fact, here’s a big ol’ list of Isekai anime.
Honestly, if you’re reading this blog, you probably already know what an Isekai is, but bear with me: At its most simple, it’s the genre where a character is either transported to, or reincarnated in, another world. I feel like the most common variation lately is the character gets sucked into a video game, or at least a world that transparently runs on video game logic…
Jahy is what you’d call a Reverse Isekai – a character from the Fantasy world ends up on Earth.
I bring this up not just to flex my knowledge of anime terminology – again, professional we(e)b writer – but also because one of the two key components of the humour of the series is the fact that Jahy is a Fantasy arch-villainess who ends up stuck in our world, living in a crappy little apartment, working a dead-end job, and getting nowhere in life.
Like I said, it’s one of the most relatable animes I’ve ever watched…
It’s not exactly a “Villain Tries to Not Be Evil, Can’t Quite Manage” plot, because deep down, Jahy is actually pretty nice and gets nicer as she has more interaction with the Human cast.
But, coming from a Fantasy world and position of godlike power and absolute loyalty from her minions, Jahy has to adjust to a world where she can no longer just demand that everyone else do her will.
The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated!: TV Asahi Silver Link. image via Crunchyroll.
Hilarity ensues.
See also, the How It Started/How It’s Going images above…
The other major element to the humour in The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated! is just how endlessly, relentlessly unlucky Jahy is.
The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated!: TV Asahi Silver Link. image via Crunchyroll.
The Dark Realm has been destroyed, the Mana Crystal that gives Jahy her powers (and even her ability to maintain her true form) has been shattered, Jahy has lost all the power, prestige, and privilege she possessed as the Dark Lord’s second-in-command. She’s trapped on Earth. She’s working as a waitress, living paycheqye to paycheque.
She can’t even afford a pair of pants, apparently…
She’s at rock bottom. And, yet, somehow, things are constantly getting worse in contrived and hilarious fashion.
Her former minion has gone on to become a wealthy and successful business owner in the Human world. She lives next door to some sort of rock-and-roll ghost.
See also, the How It Started/How It’s Going images above…
Admittedly, this is somewhat mitigated by the fact that several of the other characters are similarly unlucky. Jahy’s rival from the Dark Lord Saurva relies on unnecessarily complex schemes to usurp Jahy that inevitably backfire on her. And, as a condition of her powers, the Magical Girl is cursed with supernaturally bad luck caused by the Mana Crystals that empower her.
As much there’s an undercurrent of “It’s funny because it’s not happening to me,” the series never really feels mean-spirited. Jahy always at least kinda-sorta deserves a lot of the things that happen to her, since they’re usually the result of her own schemes backfiring. That’s pretty much Saurva’s entire character arc. And the magical girl takes an almost saint-like, Suffering Servant approach to her constant misfortunes and views it as preferable that they’re happening to her rather than someone else.
So, at the very least, Jahy’s in good company.
There’s also the fact that most of it has a decidedly cartoonish, Looney Tunes sense of humour rather than a “Let’s revel in the misfortunes of this terrible person” sense of humour — it’s slapstick, not a statement on the human condition.
To the series’ credit, there’s actually a lot more emotional weight to that part of the humour than just slapstick comedy happening at Jahy’s (or occasionally the other characters’) expense. There are some legitimately powerful and moving heartwarming moments created both by Jahy’s sheer refuse to be, well, defeated and how constantly and unconditionally her friends support her.
The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated!: TV Asahi Silver Link. image via Crunchyroll.
The two most prominent Human characters are the pair of sisters who are Jahy’s Boss and Landlord – while they do have real names (Chisa and Ryou, by the way), Jahy almost invariably just calls them “Boss” and “Landlord.”
Quick sidebar: the Boss owns a pub and in Japan it’s customer to address the proprietor of a bar with a term of respect. My understanding is that the common term literally translates to “Master,” but is generally translated as “Boss” in English – cf. the video game Catherine.
Sidebar to the Sidebar: for as weird a game as it is, Catherine is actually a really profound insight into the nature of human relationships and intimacy.
Getting back on track, the Boss is one of the absolutest nicest characters I can think of in all of the anime series I’ve ever watched. She acts like Jahy’s Mom: She’s unconditionally and endlessly supportive, she’s relentlessly nice, she manages to unintentionally sabotage several of Saurva’s schemes just by being friendly at her. Even her “I’m not mad, just disappointed” voice never goes further than “Let’s try to do better next time, okay?”
Conversely, the Landlord is abrasive, short-tempered, and she will fight Jahy when she falls behind on her rent. On the other hand, she clearly cares about Jahy, to the point that she doesn’t ever actually push Jahy too hard about the rent and when they do end up fighting about it, it’s mostly because Jahy provoked her by deliberately and loudly refusing to pay her rent. And, in fact, there are several – mostly notably by calling the cops on the Magical Girl when she shows up to fight Jahy. Both Jahy and the Landlord are significantly nicer than they outwardly pretend to be.
Similarly, despite becoming a hugely successful corporate businesswoman in the Human world, Jahy’s former minion Druj remains fanatically devoted to Jahy (to an even romantic degree) and most the reason she doesn’t just use her wealth and influence to solve all of Jahy’s problems is because Jahy is just too stubborn to ask for help – sort of circling back to the “Jahy kinda-sorta deserves most of the things happening to her” point.
Even the Magical Girl ends up becoming Jahy’s friend after they realise they don’t really have any reason to be fighting.
And when the former Dark Lord of the Dark World makes an appearance in the series, we find out that she has also been de-powered and stuck in a childlike form. Instead of sharing in Jahy’s desire to restore the Dark World or even do anything particularly Dark Lord-ly at all — in fact, her portrayal in the series presents her as almost like a non-verbal autistic child — she’s content to crash with the Magical Girl.
I’m not lying or exaggerating when I say that The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated is one the most relatable animes I’ve ever watched.
I think especially as an entrepreneur who kinda hoped to be making more than $32 a month by now (incidentally, please consider joining one of the paid tiers of my Patreon), Jahy being stuck going nowhere in life and seeming to fail at basically everything really hits me.
On a more positive note, I think what most resonates with me is both the fact that Jahy won’t stop no matter what she’s up against and maybe even more so the fact Jahy has so many people who love and support her. I think especially being stuck going nowhere and seeming to fail at everything, like, yeah, sucks – but it always makes me grateful for the people in my own life I know love and support me.
So, in the spirit of the Great Jahy, I guess the thing I want to make clear to other entrepreneurs, business owners, and professionals is this: You don’t have to go it alone. Find people to help and rely on.
In particular: If you need an editor, I know a guy.
Really, that applies to everyone. Given the context, I just think it makes the most sense to highlight other entrepreneurs…
I did not think this is how this was going to play out when I started this post, but as much as it seems like I’m veering way off course, let me end with the wise words of a Canadian icon:
The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated! is streaming on Crunchyroll. The original manga series is published internationally by Square Enix.
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