Danica Davidson
April 20, 2023 
Plus-sized Misadventures in Love! is a charming, original manga that rises above the usual formulas, and not just because the heroine looks different. At the beginning, the main character, Yumeko, is miserable. But after a serious bump to her head, everything changes. In real life, a head injury can bring about all sorts of serious problems. But since this is a manga, it changes her from miserable to happy. Instead of berating herself and slumping around, she is full of self-esteem, a cheeriness and kindness that is infectious both to the reader and the characters around her. She also has a new dedication to her work.
There is one serious thing that happened with her injury, though: she lost her memories. She’s surprised to open a notebook and see writings where her old self wrote things about being worthless. She also doesn’t understand why she has a bunch of photos of a handsome man on her phone.
At work she cheers on the people around her. She sees the best in everyone. And she comes up with a very successful idea for the company. The handsome man she took photos of turns out to be the vice president where she works and she tries to figure out what the connection was between them.
All of this is lighthearted and there are many funny moments. But this manga also has heart to it, and it has a serious underbelly. Police show up, thinking there may have been something sinister behind her head injury. Someone may have tried to kill her! So now there is also a mystery swirling, and pieces of the past slowly rise to the surface. Who was Yumeko before her accident? Did anyone around her have threatening motives?
The mixture of lightheartedness, humor and attempted-murder mystery might not sound as if it would mix well, but the mangaka pulls it off and delivers a great story. And while the title may give the impression this is just a romance comic, it’s actually more about Yumeko finding a way to love her life. She sees the silver lining in just about anything and is ready to help others. This is a great read for fans of shojo manga who want something different from the typical formula.
Story & Art: mamakari
Publisher: MangaPlaza
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Danica Davidson is the author of the bestselling Manga Art for Beginners with artist Melanie Westin, plus its sequel, Manga Art for Everyone, and the first-of-its-kind manga chalk book Chalk Art Manga, both illustrated by professional Japanese mangaka Rena Saiya. Check out her other comics and books at www.danicadavidson.com.
