I Tamed My Ex-Husband’s Mad Dog Volume 1
Artist: Jagae
Adaptation: CMJM
Original Story: Jkyum
Publisher: Tappytoon (digital), Ize Press (print)
Translation: Tappytoon
Lettering: Ivo Marques
Publication Date: Dec 17, 2024
Rating: Teen
Genre: VSC adaptation (S. Korea), Fantasy, Drama, Romance
I Tamed My Ex-Husband’s Mad Dog is a VSC adaptation of the webnovel of the same name from Jkyum. The novel is available in English on Tappytoon as well, along with other VSC adaptations of Jkyum’s novels such as Empress Cesia Wears Knickerbockers on Pocket Comics or To My Rude Darling with Multiple Personalities on Tapas.
I Tamed My Ex-Husband’s Mad Dog’s adaptation is written by CMJM, who has also worked on Touch My Little Brother and You’re Dead, and art was done by Jagae, also the artist behind A Villainess for the Tyrant, both on Tappytoon. Whew! This series is certainly not the creators’ first rodeo.
The main story is complete with 92 chapters on Tappytoon but the epilogues are still being released. Ize Press‘ print edition is only one volume so far, and the continuation is set to be released in March. The first volume of the Ize Press edition compiles the first 11 chapters on Tappytoon and this review will only take these chapters into account. Here’s a spoiler-free look into how one young woman was blessed with a second chance at life, and how she took the reigns of a mad dog for revenge.
Reinhardt was Marquess Lincke’s beloved daughter. There’s never been a day she didn’t look up to her father, and she wholeheartedly accepted the arranged marriage with the crown prince Marquess suggested. Love wasn’t involved, and the crown prince Michel even took another woman hostage as his mistress but still, Reinhardt tolerated the situation. Until that fateful day when Michel sent the Marquess to suppress a riot in his place, and her father returned in a casket.
Now Reinhardt is kneeling in front of his father’s casket for the second time, and Michel is once again annulling their marriage. Realizing that she went back to 15 years ago, Reinhardt’s first attempt at change is to stab this vile man in his leg. As a result, instead of the warm, fertile Helka, she is banished to Luden, where the land is buried under snow half the year. With a burning desire for revenge, she sets out for Luden with nothing but her father’s sword. A young boy saving her life on the way changes her fate’s trajectory once and for all.
I Tamed My Ex-Husband’s Mad Dog incorporates the second chance trope manhwa readers are all too familiar with. Reinhardt travels back in time while remembering the events of her previous life. Knowing the main beats of the timeline, she strategizes to turn the tide in her favor, counting the days until she finally takes Michel’s life. One of those tides in this story, and arguably the most significant one, is Will. The infamous “Mad Dog”.
Will was the ruthless knight who made Michel the emperor he was in the previous timeline. When Reinhardt arrives at Luden with the little boy in tow (whose origins she soon learns about), he immediately becomes an important chess piece Reinhardt decides to build from the ground up.
The young Will barely interacts with others in Reinhardt’s new estate and doesn’t let anyone else touch him, so considering his attachment she assumes turning him into her loyal “Mad Dog” will be effortless. What Reinhardt forgets to take into account, however, is her own compassion and attachment to the boy.
The difference between the attachments the leads of I Tamed My Ex-Husband’s Mad Dog have for each other is quite apparent from the start. Reinhardt approaches Will as if she’s a motherly figure or his guardian because he looks like he’s barely 10 when he’s 16 years old. Will, on the other hand, latches onto Reinhardt with a borderline obsessive strength. The creators subtly underline that this intensity isn’t all childish naiveté and I wonder whether Reinhardt will be able to firmly hold onto the leash of this war machine in the making later on.
One of the highlights of the volume is Dietrich Ernst, Reinhardt’s childhood friend. He was one of the most trusted knights of the Marquess and someone he’d taken Deitrich under his wing. He’s energetic, sociable, well-built, and a man certainly easy on the eyes with her deep green eyes. After all the misfortune that follows Reinhardt, coupled with the dreary color palette used in the series so far, he’s a much-welcomed breath of fresh air. It was also nice to see Reinhardt cheerfully banter and reminisce about the past with someone who truly knows her.
From this first installment only, it’s not possible to gauge where the story will lead these characters, but the volume ends on an intriguing note. Reinhardt is at the cusp of the first crisis she’ll experience as the new ruler of Luden. She knows the cause of the crisis and how detrimental it’ll be, but has to find a way to solve it diplomatically considering the crisis will happen in another domain.
The only aspect that I found lacking is the way Reinhardt’s emotional state is conveyed, all the more important since this is the introduction. We are always reminded that what she wants is to take Michel’s life, but we don’t see a bitter, uneasy, or calculating Reinhardt. If Luden, together with Will and Dietrich, provided a distance for the emotional turmoil and comfort needed for her anguish to dull, Reinhardt doesn’t come off as conflicted enough about the plan she’ll pour blood, sweat, and tears into. Besides these points, having worked towards being the crown princess in her previous life, Reinhardt has the knowledge and wits when it comes to the political dynamics of the empire and the inner workings of the nobility.
As for the physical condition of I Tamed My Ex-Husband’s Mad Dog‘s print version, the volume has a pleasant weight to it. Compared to the VSC version on Tappytoon, Ize Press’ edition is re-lettered by Ivo Marques and re-edited, with some sound effects redrawn and some dialogue changed. Some of the transition panels are cut out from the book to provide a smoother read in the graphic novel format. As I have mentioned above, the color palette heavily consists of browns and blacks with the occasional hues of blue where the only warm tone is Reinhardt’s golden hair. As someone who’s used to the vertical format with ample space between the panels, the full-color pages generally looked a bit too densely packed to me. Still, there are pages with a beautiful composition that convey the emotional impact properly.
A powerful, obstinate, feared man who does everything in his power except go to therapy being at the mercy of the female lead, obeying her and only her, is an understandably popular romance trope. I Tamed My Ex-Husband’s Mad Dog will definitely scratch that exact itch if you’re a supporter of men’s wrongdoings—on paper. The first volume offers enough intrigue to get the reader curious, however, I believe the story gets more gripping in the following volume. It’s also the perfect chance for the fans of the series to put this beautiful printed book on their shelf!
I Tamed My Ex-Husband’s Mad Dog Volume 1 is now available from Ize Press.
