Mr. Villain’s Day Off Volume 7 Review

“All C-018 wanted… was to be useful…”

In Mr. Villain’s apartment on Earth, the little robot cat has – with the best of intentions – managed to drop Mr. Villain’s delicious red-bean and chestnut paste steamed bun on the floor, also breaking the plate. He was only trying to help… and now Mr. Villain has left the apartment and C-018 has no idea when he’ll be back or even if he will. But the sudden triumphant return of his owner, brandishing another steamed bun – they hadn’t sold out! – brings much relief.

Back at the Evil League headquarters, there’s trouble in the cafeteria as the General’s colleagues attempt to open little plastic packets of Earth’s condiments like tomato ketchup, salad dressing and soy sauce.

On Earth, on his day off, Mr. Villain visits the park to talk to the two tree spirits (one a boy, one a girl) and to bring them snacks, only to find the boy not at all happy because the girl is playing with a little dandelion child. Could he be jealous?

Meanwhile, the Red Ranger is, as usual, lost – but he spots Mr. Villain and follows him. He’s puzzled when he senses another alien presence and notices that Mr. Villain is trying to avoid this interloper (it’s Rooney). When he eventually returns home to the Rangers’ base, he can’t help asking, “Why would someone run away from their own ally?”

And then at Earth Defense Force, we get to meet Shizuku, the younger brother of the Sky Blue Ranger, who’s paying a visit. He resents the amount of time his big brother has to spend with the other Rangers and really dislikes the Red Ranger – although he has plenty of time for Toka, the Daybreak Pink Ranger! So, what will happen when he and Red get locked in with a lost little girl and have to wait to be rescued?!

It’s been a while since the last volume of Mr. Villain’s Day Off (April 2025) so this is a very welcome addition to Yuu Morikawa’s ongoing series. Though perhaps ‘ongoing’ suggests a linear narrative; these little vignettes are very much not ongoing but snapshots of the people with whom Mr. Villain/the General interacts, either in Japan (downtime) or back at the Evil League’s headquarters (in full monster/villain mode). The stories are infused with the same feelings of melancholy and gentle humour, as well as contrasting what goes on in the Evil League with the everyday life of the Earth Rangers. And Mr. Villain still spends his time enjoying ice cream, steamed buns and anything to do with pandas (cats, too, but cats on Earth are fickle creatures and disdain his attentions). The illustrations are, as always, a delight: the mangaka’s dandelion spirits are delicate and magical – and the depictions of the children, whether the Green Rangers or the tree spirits, are especially well captured.

Most fascinating (and shrouded in mystery) is the General’s intimidating body armour when he’s back at the Evil League’s headquarters. For the first time we realize that the powerful, articulated dragon-like tail and the clawed hands that rest on his shoulders are not just for decoration; they have a life of their own!

Square Enix Manga bring us Mr. Villain’s latest exploits in another attractive trade paperback to match the others, with a splendidly brooding colour page portrait at the front. The excellent translation is again by Julie Gonwich with a wonderfully apt range of lettering from Kelsey Denton. The mangaka is currently working on the next volume but there’s no date yet in Japan, so I expect it’ll be a while before we see it. Meanwhile, there’s plenty to enjoy here, with a few one-page stories, inventive splash pages, and an undeniably cute little minion of the General’s that needs reviving after a soy sauce-based episode.

Read a free preview on the publisher’s website here.

Our review copy from Square Enix Manga was supplied by Turnaround Comics (Turnaround Publisher Services).