Well, this is something different! It’s not everyday that you see a manga staring a protagonist who’s on the pudgy side. Since I’m not exactly slender myself, I was excited to see some representation of different body types in a romance story. Way to go, Mito!
Synopsis:
Otsu can’t help but be a little suspicious of his co-worker, Minegishi. The man is handsome, good at his job and popular, yet he pays an inordinate amount of attention to Otsu, even though he’s a chubby and kind of gloomy guy who everyone else overlooks. On top of that, Minegishi’s always buying him delicious food and looks weirdly happy when he watches him eat it. Could… could he be trying to fatten him up in order to assert his dominance as the alpha man at the company? Or is there, possibly, some other explanation for his behavior?
Review:
Manly Appetites: Minegishi Love Otsu, is a cute and funny series about a love-sick hunk who adores plump guys and the clueless man who’s captured his heart, but who can’t comprehend that someone so attractive could be into him. Minegishi delights in feeding Otsu and loves him just the way he is, but Otsu’s lack of self-confidence means that poor Minegishi’s intentions are constantly misunderstood. It’s pretty clear to their co-workers what’s really going on, though, and the reactions of their colleagues to the ongoing romantic drama is some of the most hilarious parts of the manga.
Tanaka, their junior co-worker who has no luck in love and who is becoming increasingly jealous of Otsu and Minegishi’s will-they-or-won’t-they dynamic, has some of the best responses to our heroes confounding relationship. I couldn’t help but laugh at how awkward Tanaka feels, being constantly stuck between two people who are clearly crushing on each other but who can’t seem to make any progress. Just keep cheering them on from the sidelines, Tanaka, I’m sure they’ll figure themselves out… eventually.
Minegishi and Otsu make a sweet pair. Minegishi is eager to please and loves doting on Otsu, who, despite having a huge cynical streak, clearly loves all the attention and pampering. Not that he’ll ever admit it! They’re both loveable leads and I’m hoping that they’ll make some progress in their relationship soon, however, I suspect that this is going to be a slow burn romance. Manly Appetites feels like the type of series that will maintain the status quo as long as possible so that it can keep mining the comedic set-up. Luckily, the series in entertaining enough that I’m on-board either way.
Manly Appetites is a very charming and fun boys love manga with a good mix of comedy and romance. I’d recommend this to any boys love fans looking for a light-hearted romance with an atypical protagonist.
Final Score: 8 out of 10
What did you think of this series? Are you interested in seeing more different body types in manga? Let me know in the comments!
For more information on this series, visit Seven Seas Entertainment’s website.
Be sure to check out some of my other recent BL manga reviews:
- Birds of Shangri-La Vol 1 Review
- Canis: Dear Mr. Rain Review
- There are Things I Can’t Tell You Review
- Koimonogatari: Love Stories Vol 1 Review
- Toritan: Birds of a Feather Vol 1 Review
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Al's Manga Blog 
Always good to see protagonists who have a different body type!
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