English Dub Review: I’m the Villainess, So I’m Taming the Final Boss “The Villainess Steals the Show”

Overview (Spoilers Below):
James is suspicious of Aileen since she knows of his demon form. However, Ribbon’s existence and Aileen’s words, “I want to protect you”, soften his heart, and he decides to work with her on the case. The day of the school festival finally arrives, and Aileen patrols the area with James in duck costumes. Meanwhile, Claude tosses his work to the side and goes to the school festival to have some fun. He meets a certain duck again when he enters the swordsmanship tournament.

Our Take:
Aside from maintaining her disguise, Aileen seems to have a habit of getting close to having her cover blown. This episode is unsurprisingly no different, with James being suspicious of Aileen for knowing about his demon form. Luckily, Aileen regained James’s trust by summoning Ribbon as proof that she was not working for the church. Additionally, James reveals that he was born as a half-demon and was given the name Ashtarte. This indicates that the mysterious demon might be using James’ real name to frame him for the attacks.
Afterwards, the episode shifts its focus to the plot involving the school festival because every anime has to have one. Here, we see the arc showcasing more of its amusing scenarios, mainly Claude attending a swordsmanship tournament to make new friends. Unfortunately, this also puts Claude in another conflict with Aileen, who disguises herself as a duck mascot. One of the hilarious parts of this arc is Claude’s unawareness that his mascot rival was his wife in disguise because of its humorous misinterpretations. It also has Aileen comically attempting to keep her composure around Claude, so she doesn’t blow her cover. This episode, in particular, has Aileen accidentally challenging Claude to a duel while preventing the demon incense from transforming him into a dragon. This moment continues to provide some entertaining humor in the silly rivalry that would only end with Aileen showing her true colors to her husband.
But, of course, that’s not the only problem Aileen and the others are dealing with during the festival, as the White Lily Princess pageant is coming up. Rachel chose to compete against Selena but got injured by her competitor. As a result, Aileen would have to step in to compete for Rachel, even if it meant exposing her true identity.