REVIEW: ‘Plus-Sized Elf’ Episode 1 — “The Elf Of The Forest”

Plus-Sized Elf Episode 1 is this season’s newest ecchi anime from studio Elias. The anime features a unique blend of fitness and fantasy and introduces us to several peculiar characters. While one would think these elements result in a uniquely engaging experience, this episode, unfortunately, proves otherwise.

Plus-Sized Elf Episode 1 follows Naoe Tomoatsu, a massage therapist who manages a modest establishment with his boss. One night before closing, he meets a strange customer. It turns out that the customer is actually an Elf named Elfuda who came to the human world to indulge in vegetarian-friendly dishes that her world doesn’t have, specifically french fries. Unfortunately, she was a bit too indulgent. She became overweight. She eventually begs Naoe to help her lose weight, and the two begin a journey to physical fitness and self-improvement.

The episode sees the two characters engage in several activities, including exercise, dieting, and, oddly enough, body massages. While the montage felt more like a farce than a motivating moment, it resulted in Elfuda losing weight, only for her to throw away all the progress she made near the end of the episode.

The episode’s outcome further proves that the anime’s physical fitness theme should not be taken seriously. So far, it is less of a fitness anime and more like your usual ecchi anime, but with a theme latched on to it, which is disappointing.

What’s worse is that as the anime has an annoyingly short run time of eleven minutes, not much is revealed in the first episode. All we know about Naoe is that he’s a massage therapist with a handsy boss and that Elfuda is an Elf who likes fries. We’ve yet to learn about how mythical creatures can easily visit the human world, Elfuda’s origins, or anything about the protagonist. However, this isn’t a surprise, as the episode only lasts less than half of a standard anime episode.

Despite its shortcomings, the episode still delivers some well-executed humorous scenes. While a bit one-note, the characters possess likeable qualities that make them endearing in their own way.  Traits like Naoe’s friendly attitude, genuine interest in helping people, and Elfuda’s unearned pride make the episode somewhat entertaining.

The last few minutes of the episode showed that more characters, specifically a dark elf, will be featured in the coming episodes, so it’s likely more hijinks will ensue. Whether or not these episodes will also showcase better world-building and character depth remains to be seen.

Production-wise, Plus-Sized Elf Episode 1‘s animation is far from spectacular. Everything in the first episode, from the character designs to the backgrounds and motions, is of standard quality—nothing fantastic, but nothing abhorrent. The aspect of the episode that stands out the most was the voice acting, as the cast did a fantastic job of breathing life into characters, especially during funny moments.

Besides that, the anime features many ecchi scenes that appeal to a specific audience who prefer particular body types. What’s shocking about these scenes is that they feature almost full-frontal nudity, so those who intend to watch the anime anywhere remotely public should be advised otherwise.

Overall, the first episode of Plus-Sized Elf Episode 1 is far from anything special. The anime has its funny moments and its hook of being a gimmick anime with a reverse isekai twist is unique. However, its presentation falters due to its lackluster narrative depth and overreliance on blatant ecchi scenes.

Plus-Sized Elf is streaming now on HiDive.