My Happy Marriage is a cute, fairy-tale-like shoujo anime for your romance cravings. But how far do the fairy-tale allusions go? Is My Happy Marriage a Japanese Cinderella Story?
If you're wondering about the similarities between My Happy Marriage and the Cinderella fairy tale so far, keep reading!
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Is My Happy Marriage a Japanese Cinderella Story?
In many ways, My Happy Marriage can be read as a modern Cinderella retelling.
It's a romance anime with a conventional, though not boring plot. From what we've seen so far, it seems that Miyo's plight will be resolved like a fairy tale.
Similarities Between My Happy Marriage and Cinderella
Already from Episode 1, My Happy Marriage has a lot in common with one of the most retold fairy tales.
Here are a few examples of its similarities with Cinderella:
An Orphan Heroine With an Evil Stepmother
As is the case with many female-led fairy tales, including Cinderella, Miyo lost her mother while she was young. Since then, her father remarried, but Miyo's stepmother mistreats her.
Since her stepmother had a daughter, Kaya, things only took a turn for the worse.
In Miyo's world, supernatural abilities are important and run in families.
When Miyo displays none, she's treated as a second-rate family member, while the more talented Kaya grows to be spoiled and abusive toward her half-sister.
Already, we see many similarities to the Cinderella plot in Miyo's circumstances.
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The Heroine Is a Servant in Her Household
Like Cinderella, Miyo doesn't partake in family life in her household. Instead, her family treats her as a servant and expects her to spend her days doing chores.
To make the Cinderella allusions stronger, the first episode features Miyo getting soot on her face while doing housework. Her half-sister, Kaya, notices and mocks her for it.
A Male Lead Who Has Rejected Many Chances at Marriage
Like Cinderella's prince, Kiyoka Kudo has waited for someone special, and he had driven away many potential matches.
His circumstances are quite different from the prince's and he gets a more detailed arc -- that doesn't involve glass slippers-- but as the story progresses, it becomes clear that he will settle for nothing less than the woman he loves.
A Blissful Marriage That Signals a New Life
Fairy tales have often been criticized by modern audiences for solving the kind-hearted heroine's problems by means of marriage.
For Miyo, her engagement to Kiyoka marks a new beginning and a chance at happiness.
As long as the relationship itself isn't exploitative, there's nothing wrong with a self-indulgent romance.
Since Miyo and Kiyoka's relationship starts with an engagement, rather than the marriage itself, it will probably be developed a bit more than in the classic fairy tale, giving them time to really know each other.
What Are the Differences Between My Happy Marriage and Cinderella?
Despite the first episode's many similarities, My Happy Marriage isn't only a Cinderella story.
As we established above, the main couple gets more than a chance encounter at a ball to get to know each other.
Moreover, while Kaya, Miyo's step-sister, will, at some point, try to steal Kiyoka for herself, Miyo's birth family will only play a major role in the first arc.
From there on, the story will focus more on Kiyoka and Miyo's engagement and the other challenges that they face before the story's culmination in their happy marriage.
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