Crazy Food truck vol 1 by Rokurou Ogaki

Gordon is living the dream: making boatloads of BTLs or Squid burgers to sell on his food truck. His only problem? There aren’t many customers to be found in this war-torn, post-apocalyptic landscape. One day, on his way to find some customers, Gordon narrowly misses running over an air-conditioned sleeping bag in the middle of the road. Inside the bag is a naked woman who is ravenously hungry. Gordon brings her aboard the truck and sets out some food and water, which she devours instantly. She proceeds to the devour all of the BTLs he made, plus pretty much all of his other provisions, prompting a trip to the desert ocean where he can fish for wildlife that has evolved since the oceans dried up. Later, Gordon and his new companion help a town being held hostage to make beer at a brewery, and the military catches up with them. Both Gordon and Arisa seem to have a past with the military, and this shared adversity makes them deadly fighting partners against the trained soldiers.

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There are so many post-apocalyptic stories coming out right now, but this one is set apart in its inclusion of food manga tropes. The back includes all of Gordon’s recipes, like many food manga do, and there are many comforting images of food and folks enjoying what they’re eating. Arisa is naked more often than not, and the “boss” of the brewery has many women attending him that he treats as sex toys, so this is probably not one for the school shelves. The focus on Arisa’s naked or clothed chest is obvious - most illustrations of her include an angle from which her bosom is largely featured. Aside from the objectification of her bits, she is an extremely skilled fighter and pretty powerful - she knocks dead a giant squid with one well-placed karate chop. There might be some more serious notes coming in further volumes, especially with the mystery of Gordon and Arisa’s past, but even if it’s just two folks going around trying to feed people, I’m ok with that too. This was a fun adventure and a little bit different of an apocalypse story that has sort of worked into my brain and made me intensely curious for what other shenanigans the two can get into.

Sara's Rating: 8/10
Suitability Level: Adult

This review was made possible with an advanced reader copy from the publisher through Net Galley.

Publisher: VIZ Media
Publication Date: May 17, 2022
ISBN: 9781974727292 (Paperback)

​Tags: Rating: 8/10, Suitability: Adult, Manga, Dystopian, Culinary, Humor, Action Adventure, VIZ Media