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| Title | Cooking with Wild Game Volume 1 |
| Author | EDA |
| Illustrator | Kochimo |
| Publisher | JP: Hobby Japan EN: J-Novel Club |
| Original Release Dates | JP: Feb 20, 2015 EN: Feb 9, 2019 |
| Genre | Cooking, Slice-of-life |
Author’s Note: I discuss details of storylines and characters which could be considered minor spoilers. No major spoilers will be revealed.
Cooking with Wild Game tells the story of Asuta Tsurumi, a seventeen year old apprentice chef who finds himself whisked away to another world. Life was fairly normal for the chef-in-training, working at his family’s restaurant, until unsavory business rivals begin harassing him and his father. The harassment escalates to where Asuta’s father is hospitalized, and on that same day, Asuta drops everything to see him. During the visit, his childhood friend, Reina, calls him in a panic, saying their restaurant has been set ablaze. His father had been in good spirits up until that point, but now stressed, requests Asuta to retrieve his most prized possession: his family’s chef’s knife. Asuta understands; his old man can overcome anything as long as he has that irreplaceable knife. And so, Asuta sprints home, reassures Reina, and doesn’t hesitate to enter the burning restaurant and retrieve that most precious possession. Yet, just as he locates and takes hold of the knife, the restaurant collapses on him.
Asuta soon wakes, surprised and confused, as he feels no pain from any burns, nor does he feel the crushing weight of his collapsed home. Instead, he now finds himself in the middle of a lush forest. He feels the thick grass, smells the verdant scents, and wonders why such a dense canopy of trees hangs above him. Thinking he died, yet feeling very much alive, it seems fate has intervened for Asuta, giving him a new chance at life in this unfamiliar world. Of course, he doesn’t quite understand this fact just yet.
Still disoriented, Asuta is soon forced to move when spied and charged at by a terrifying boar-like animal. Running for his life and while doing so, wondering why any of this is happening to him, he stumbles into a hunter’s trap. The trap, a simple pit, is fortunately soon checked on by the hunter who set it; Ai Fa.
Ai Fa is the only woman hunter of the Morga Forest’s edge, and the only member of her Fa clan. Wary of this unfamiliar young man who looks more like a townsfolk than a person of the forest’s edge, yet also realizing how weak and helpless he seems to be, Ai Fa takes pity and decides to bring Asuta back to her home.
The world Asuta has been brought to is in an iron age, a stark contrast to the modern Japan from where he comes from. And, the settlement on the Morga Forest’s edge he finds himself in is even more primitive still. Its denizens consist of clans who are completely dependent on giba; massive, ferocious boar-like creatures that threaten the safety of the neighboring lands. The men of the forest’s edge hunt these creatures, while the women take the roles of crafting, cooking, and raising their families. They are utterly dependent on giba for their livelihoods by consuming their meat and selling the tusks, horns, and pelts in the nearby post town. It seems life at the forest’s edge is exceedingly difficult, with many threats and daily struggles, but too few joys. However, with Asuta’s arrival, the forest’s edge is about to undergo some tremendous changes.
Cooking with Wild Game Volume 1 begins Asuta’s tale; a trainee chef from another world who lends his skills for the betterment of those he will soon call family and friends. Asuta will face many challenges throughout his new life, but alongside Ai Fa and his new compatriots, he is determined to transform the lives and mindsets of his adopted people. Volume 1 jumps right into Asuta’s first real challenge, which is to convince Ai Fa, his new clan head, of the fact that delicious food can bring joy and strength, as well as lead to new opportunities. Such an opportunity, and second challenge, comes by way of a renewing of familiarity between Ai Fa and members of the Ruu clan, who will later become cornerstones of friendship and support in the coming volumes. In all, Asuta is fully aware that he is completely out of his element, and so he relies on Ai Fa and his culinary background to do what he can. And despite the shock of his situation and his stumbling at times, he manages to make his first bit of progress in his goals to improve the lives of those at the forest’s edge.
Cooking with Wild Game Volume 1 is an immersive read, bringing together rustic elements, a persuasive style, and the theme of cooking to create a unique story. This is a slice-of-life story at its core, as we experience Asuta’s new life and his working through the challenges of a modern teen dropped into a primitive world. The overarching theme is of traditions and stubborn mindsets meeting his new ideas and practices for the betterment of his new people. And as one could expect, there are plenty of conflicts, as ideologies clash when Asuta works to convince others that what he brings will be a medicine, not a poison, to the forest’s edge. Although his challenges will set off tempers and bring frustrations to himself and those close to him, there is also plenty of light-heartedness and humor throughout his days. It all makes for an entertaining read that seamlessly incorporates conflict, biases, challenge, and the feelings those evoke, as well as humor, kindness, and genuine care for family and community.
I think the strongest aspect here is that Volume 1 does an excellent job of combining different tones, moods, and emotions to create this intriguing, unassumingly deep story. Firstly, the writing offers a distinguishable rustic atmosphere, an element which heavily plays into the difficulties Asuta and Ai Fa will face. With this setting comes many fitting mindsets and practices, such as deep-rooted traditions and seclusionist attitudes. Further, personal conflicts arise when the new ideas and techniques Asuta brings begin clashing against those more traditional mindsets held by clan heads and older members of the forest’s edge. These clashes provide palpable feelings of frustration and displeasure by those too stubborn to move, as well as amazement, satisfaction, and hopefulness to Asuta and those who experience the benefits of his efforts. And I have to say, the reoccurring narrative style of depicting old, complacent ways and attitudes versus Asuta’s thoughts and feelings plays out surprisingly well. His slow, steady convincing of others and his initiating of the growing changes in thinking and behavior of the people around him are what ultimately move the story forward. It’s clever, surprisingly deep, and impassioned, making for an overall impressive start to Asuta’s tale.
Another admirable point of Volume 1 is just how much is packed within its pages. We’re shown Asuta’s backstory and arrival to the forest’s edge, his destined meeting of and moving in with Ai Fa, and his encounter with Rimee Ruu. We also see his first experience meeting another clan of the forest’s edge, in which he meets the key members of the main Ruu family. We get to see the rustic nature of life in the forest, how daily life unfolds for its people, and how mindsets and attitudes shape the interactions amongst them all. And lastly, we’re also given a glimpse of the looming background antagonists in the brief encounter with Diga Suun and the few mentions of the Suun clan. As a whole, Volume 1 lays a praiseworthy foundation which introduces us readers to the world Asuta lands in, many of the core characters that will influence and be influenced by him, and sets up an adversary that will continue to develop and hover over in the next four or so volumes.
Despite my praise and overall satisfaction with the story, there are a few issues I can’t easily overlook, as they did affect my immersion and enjoyment of the read. For one, the translation quality could have been stronger, as it has a number of questionable word choices and phrases. For example, I find it hard to believe that Asuta, jokingly I’m sure, would call the eight-year-old Rimee Ruu a “big dummy.” Silly or not, using that to address a child he just met doesn’t sound right. Other translation issues include improper grammar, spelling errors, and double words. Presentation will always be a factor, and Volume 1 needed a bit more polish. Another issue, the author uses Asuta’s thoughts to describe the appearances of the people he interacts with. For the women in particular, these descriptions can be excessive. I realize Asuta is a healthy seventeen-year-old boy who will notice a woman’s beauty, but I feel these descriptions need to be toned down. At times, the descriptions are in such excess that I would say they’re in poor taste.
Regarding tone and mood, surprisingly, the story can feel quite stressful when arguments and rationale clash. Asuta carries lots of stress when he comes up short or feels lacking, and although it serves to make Asuta more empathetic, it can feel overwhelming. Also, the read can become rather violent, specifically regarding Ai Fa and the way she expresses herself. In fact, I could argue that many of Ai Fa’s interactions with Asuta border on abusive. I understand physicality in this nature could be considered comical. However, as a means to imply her lack of social grace and when taking Asuta’s overall situation into consideration, I found the threats and physicality to, again, be in poor taste. Even then, I believe the strengths of Volume 1 outweigh the cons, and the overall quality of this volume’s story will still provide a satisfying experience, as I had when reading.
More thoughts on the start of this slice-of-life cooking journey on page 2 ->
