All Yō Satō wants is to eat food that isn’t ramen every night after school. With what meager funds he has as a boarding student, he heads to a nearby convenience store hoping to pick up a discounted bento box. But when he gets there, he finds himself beaten up as people battle one another for these tasty cheap eats.
One of the students he recalls from that night, Sen Yarizui, invites him to join the school’s Half Priced Food Lovers club. Yarizui explains to them the rules for these nightly conbini battles. Those with the skill and desire to succeed and leave with a discounted meal in hand are known as Wolves, those with Cup Noodle or Calorie Mate are called Dogs. Under the tutelage of the girl known as the Ice Witch, Yō trains hard to earn the title and respect of his fellow Wolves.
When they aren’t fighting for their meals, the members of the Half Priced Food Lovers club can be found in their club room. Their third member, Hana Oshiroi, is usually writing some sort of fetish story featuring Yō while he plays Virtua Fighter or another SEGA game, and Yarizui either reads or gives them more insight into the lives and history of the Wolves. Outside of the club room, the group hangs out with Yō’s cousin Shaga, attendee of Marutomi Academy and also a well-known Wolf with the moniker “Beauty by the Lake”.
Each episode features different types of bento lunches: grilled eel, oyakodon bowls, sushi, and my favourite of the series, the “oppai” omelet. And these are just a few. Each episode is titled after the bento in the opening credit sequence, and there are other bentos featuring the characters from the show marking the commercial break.
Just when Yō has become a decent combatant, a new threat arrives that puts all of the Wolves on high alert. Could this mean the end for the Half Priced Food Lovers club and their Wolf friends?
Ben-To is a 12 episode series coming to Blu Ray in North America thanks to Funimation in July 2014, available for preorder now thanks to RightStuf.