Plus-Sized Elf

Plus-Sized Elf (Japanese: エルフさんは痩せられない。, Hepburn: Erufu-san wa Yaserarenai, lit. 'Ms. Elf Can't Lose Weight') is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Synecdoche. It was originally serialized on Wani Books' Comic Gum website from December 2016 to June 2020, with its individual chapters collected into eight tankōbon volumes. After Wani Books' license to the series expired, Synecdoche self-published the series from April to May 2021, then started a continuation manga titled Plus-Sized Elf: Second Helping! (新・エルフさんは痩せられない。, Shin Erufu-san wa Yaserarenai, lit. 'Ms. Elf Can't Lose Weight New') in Akita Shoten's monthly seinen magazine, Dokodemo Young Champion, in October 2021, with its individual chapters collected into four tankōbon volumes. Both manga are licensed for English release in North America by Seven Seas Entertainment. An anime television series adaptation produced by Elias aired from July to September 2024.
One night, Tomoatsu Naoe, an osteopathic massage therapist, meets a new client. She is Elfuda, an elf from another world who gained an excessive amount of weight during her stay on Earth by eating French fries, who needs his help shedding pounds so she can be able to return through the portal that leads her home. As Tomoatsu assists with Elfuda's weight loss, many other overweight mythical creatures come seeking his help.
Plus-Sized Elf is written and illustrated by Synecdoche. The manga was published digitally by Wani Books on their Comic Gum website from December 21, 2016, until June 17, 2020, at the manga's 45th chapter, before Synecdoche announced that Wani Books' license with the series had ended and that the manga would enter on hiatus in order to find a new publisher; Synecdoche took over posting the 46th and 47th chapters on Twitter, released on April 30 and May 29, 2021, respectively. On September 1, 2021, after revealing that Akita Shoten would be taking over as the series' publisher, Synecdoche ended the first manga and started a sequel, Plus-Sized Elf: Second Helping!, which continues the story. Plus-Sized Elf's chapters have been collected into individual tankōbon volumes across both series. Eight volumes of the original manga were published from June 26, 2017, to November 18, 2021, with Wani Books publishing volumes 1–7 and Akita Shoten publishing the eighth. The first seven volumes were reprinted by Akita Shoten from June 20, 2022, to February 20, 2023. As of August 20, 2024, four volumes of the continuation has been published.
Seven Seas Entertainment acquired Plus-Sized Elf for English publication in North America on November 17, 2017. On March 8, 2023, they acquired its sequel.
An anime television series adaptation was announced on January 15, 2024. It was produced by Elias and directed by Toshikatsu Tokoro, with scripts written by Yuki Takabayashi, characters designed by Katsuyuki Sato, and music composed by Cher Watanabe. A censored version of the series aired from July 7 to September 22, 2024, on Tokyo MX and BS11, while an uncensored version aired on AT-X from July 8 to September 23, 2024. The opening theme song is "Fried☆Pride" (フライド☆プライド, Furaido☆Puraido) performed by Real Akiba Boyz, while the ending theme song is "Minna de Diet" (みんなDEダイエット, Min'na de Daietto, lit. 'Let's Diet Together!') performed by the cast of the series. Sentai Filmworks licensed the series in North America, Australia and British Isles for streaming on Hidive, simulcasting the uncensored version.