Reviews for Magic Artisan Dahlia Wilts No More - NeonIME

I've been waiting for this story to pile on for many, many years, and I'm so glad to be able to finally savor it. Much of this story is 50% character interaction, 30% crafting (with many overlaps between these two areas), and 20% inner reflections. And the story shines in every single part. It's a strange thing to comment here, but I do have to note how feminist the overall narrative is. While she's no warrior queen or badass schemer, Dahlia shows a quiet determination and consideration that easily matches the best of Otome Isekai protagonists. The core foundation of this story is Dahlia's desire to nolonger 'wilt', to be able to keep her head up high both as a magic artisan and as a woman, but her secondary motivation is to help others.

And not only does the narrative continuously showcase both pursuits, *the dedication persists*. Unlike too many otome isekai or RoFans who glosses over MC's initial goals to focus on the politics, drama or, most often, *romance*, the narrative here never forgets its main purpose. Every steps taken only boosts Dahlia's determination to live proudly as herself. And both her own success and the warmth from people around her only adds to Dahlia's desire to help people with her invention. This may sound like a generic Japanese shonen protagonist, and in some ways it really is, but it's so rare to see this level of earnestness being dedicated to a young woman. And it's even rarer to see a narrative that knowingly and full heartedly walks together with the protagonist to be nothing more but kind and helpful.

Both the writing and the art also fleshes out Dahlia's thoughts well. Whether it's a melancholic musing about her late father, a cutesy illustration of her wild imaginations, or a serious consideration of her troubles, each and every moment are layered and full of thoughtfulness.

Appropriate for a character as fleshed out as Dahlia, her background is sadly realistic. It may not be full of strife and struggle like some OI protagonists, but her background and circumstances are very painful in how real it is. Here is a young woman, first an engineer who overworked herself to death in a job that she doesn't even like, now reborn with a loving father whose care and love still ends up creating a gilded cage around her.

I must say that the narrative navigates the complexities of Dahlia's situation really, really well. The narrative doesn't just portray the overarching sexism of this world as this two dimensional evil. Even her failed engagement, dissolved JUST on the day of their wedding, are arranged out of love and meant to protect her from the world.

...And therein lies the tragedy. I've seen so many real women living this exact kind of mundanity; situations where they have to settle in this safe yet unfulfilling life to protect themselves from the cruel world. So many people in real life have let their own brilliance be stifled and hidden purely out of good intentions and self-preservation, and the way the narrative fleshes out this part of Dahlia's life really elevates her failed engagement beyond a stepping stone to advance the plot.

Tobias, Dahlia's ex-fiance, becomes even more of an asshole precisely because he's very...mundane. He's every mediocre man who drags a brilliant woman down, not out of some devilish malice or sociopathy, but purely to protect his own fragile ego. He fell in love with a different woman not because of some manipulation or mind control, but simply because that woman elevates his ego in ways Dahlia never did. It's very pathetic, very human, and again, the narrative is very feminist in the way it refuses to look at the injustice in two dimensional lens.

In contrast, Volf, the ML... hoo boy he's easily one of my contenders for best green flag MLs. He's a cool warrior with golden eyes and a dark past, yes, but the narrative doesn't even waste a single episode before showing Dahlia his other side; a lonely but loyal young man with a child-like fixation towards developing magic swords.

This duality of Volf's character already provides a lot of moving room to develop Volf and Dahlia's relationship, but the narrative isn't content with just that, no. They added so much devotion and care between one another. Whenever Dahlia and Volf aren't dealing with their own things or (hilariously) working together to develop new prototypes, they spend so many of their waking moment trying to help and protect each other. Reading this comic reminds me of titles like [Skip and Loafer] or [April Showers Bring May Flowers]; every single bit of their relationships are so damn sweet, so patient, but before we talk about romance they're first and foremost a very deep and meaningful show of care between two friends.

Yes, friends. A romance this is not. Not even a slow burn, for now.

Don't get me wrong, the developing bonds are THERE. So is the care, the yearning, and the devotion. Even people around them have noted how much devotion the two of them are giving for each other. But both Volf and Dahlia are still refusing to entertain the idea of a romance, and as such their intense bond remains nothing more but platonic for the time being. Skinship is also very, very minimal here. So if you're reading this for romance...I'm afraid you'll be disappointed, just like [Accomplishment of the Duke's Daughter].

But if you're here to see the warm and intimate bond between two youths struggling to define their own future, then you'll be very, VERY pleased. At this point I even consider the bonds between Volf and Dahlia much more fleshed out and well-written than many romance titles.

Of course, the story is more than just that. And the rest of the cast is also stellar characters in their own right. From commoners to nobles, from guildmasters to craftsmen to soldiers, from men to women, everyone is written with a delightful nuance and depth and I just love them. While Dahlia is brilliant, and the narrative sure doesn't shy in reminding us of that, she is NOT this untouchable goddess. She's an ordinary if talented woman, surrounded by other talented people, and the narrative is able to portray competence in so many of these NPCs without diminishing Dahlia's brilliance and vice versa.

And just like [Skip and Loafer] or [April Showers Bring May Flowers] I mentioned above, the narrative can and does shift perspective to the side characters effortlessly and charmingly, exploring a brand new perspective without breaking the immersion of the story.

~~I love Marcella the most tho. I'm sorry I'm thirsty.~~

I also enjoy the constant flashbacks between Dahlia and her father. While her father...is not perfect (a flaw acknowledged by the narrative itself), he clearly has nothing but love for his daughter, and after seeing too many stories with greedy and abusive family members, this is just so heartwarming ughghghgh.

And as the cherry on top, Magic Artisan Dahlia is also a very good business story.

Again, the way the story is written mirrors [Ascendance of a Bookworm] a LOT, but the narrative sure stands on their own two feet. Despite being Isekai, the narrative doesn't really make Dahlia, the titular MC, this unstoppable juggernaut of invention. In fact, most of the fun in this story lies in her humanity. Dahlia goes through almost every single phase of product development by herself. From design, R&D, creating prototypes, negotiation, production, until release... she struggles and learns. She seeks help and brainstorms for solutions with other people.

The narrative sure streamline the process, eliminating much of the excess fat and repetitive failure one would usually encounter in product development, but what remains is still a very good glimpse of the world of craftmanship--a world I rarely see.

Somehow, SOMEHOW, this story manages to drive me to yap this long. And somehow, the story actually manages to weave these disparate points into one beautiful story.

I shan't waste your time with more yapping. Long live our Baroness of Athlete's Feet.