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%%* AffectionateParody: Of {{Shonen|Demographic}} FightingSeries.
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%%* ArtShift: The manga, frequently.
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%%* BadassMindsThinkAlike: Yo and Nikaido in Episode 4.
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* BarbieDollAnatomy: Shiraume gets out of the bath in episode 9, lacking nipples.
%%* BeachEpisode: Episode 7
%%* BedmateReveal: Ayame to Yō in TheStinger to episode 3.
* BigDamnHeroes: Ayame and Satou in episode 6, coming to Yarizui's aid after she was ambushed, beaten up, and then surrounded by a group of Wolves determined to do more of the same.
%%* BladeRun: Ayame does this on a ''shopping cart''.
%%* BlandNameProduct: "Picky" and "Bretz", among others.
%%* BeachEpisode: Episode 7
%%* BedmateReveal: Ayame to Yō in TheStinger to episode 3.
* BigDamnHeroes: Ayame and Satou in episode 6, coming to Yarizui's aid after she was ambushed, beaten up, and then surrounded by a group of Wolves determined to do more of the same.
%%* BladeRun: Ayame does this on a ''shopping cart''.
%%* BlandNameProduct: "Picky" and "Bretz", among others.
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* BarbieDollAnatomy: Shiraume gets out of the bath in episode 9, lacking nipples.
%%* BeachEpisode: Episode 7
%%* BedmateReveal: Ayame to Yō in TheStinger to episode 3.
nipples.* BigDamnHeroes: Ayame and Satou in episode 6, coming to Yarizui's aid after she was ambushed, beaten up, and then surrounded by a group of Wolves determined to do more of the same. \n%%* BladeRun: Ayame does this on a ''shopping cart''. \n%%* BlandNameProduct: "Picky" and "Bretz", among others.
%%* BeachEpisode: Episode 7
%%* BedmateReveal: Ayame to Yō in TheStinger to episode 3.
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%%* BrickJoke: [[spoiler: every Nom de Guerre]]
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%%* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Oshiroi. Sen is also shaping up to be one in a way.
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%%* ComedicSociopathy: This is basically what Satou does in between brawls. As in, acted upon him.
%%* CryForTheDevil: Episode 9 may or may not have had this effect for Ume.
%%* CryForTheDevil: Episode 9 may or may not have had this effect for Ume.
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%%* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: The Omelettits (Matsuba's winning recipe) in episode 7.
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%%* DraggedIntoDrag: Satou in episodes 4 and 5
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%%* FatBastard: Boars
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%%* GrowlingGut: And it's AWESOME!!!
%%* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: Matsuba.
* HimeCut: Because she is an Ojou and Class Representative, Shiraume Umehas has the picture perfect style of the even bangs, long hair in back and sidetails.
%%** Elder Sawagi Kyo
* HomoeroticSubtext:
** Ume is a [[{{Yandere}} bit]] [[ClingyJealousGirl too protective]] of Hana. She also does borderline rape to Ayame later on.
%%** The elder Kyo for Sen.
%%* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: Matsuba.
* HimeCut: Because she is an Ojou and Class Representative, Shiraume Umehas has the picture perfect style of the even bangs, long hair in back and sidetails.
%%** Elder Sawagi Kyo
* HomoeroticSubtext:
** Ume is a [[{{Yandere}} bit]] [[ClingyJealousGirl too protective]] of Hana. She also does borderline rape to Ayame later on.
%%** The elder Kyo for Sen.
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%%* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: Matsuba.
%%** Elder Sawagi Kyo
*
**
%%** The elder Kyo for Sen.
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%%* TheJuggernaut: Boars
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%%* KissingCousins: Played with by Ayame and Yo.
%%* KnownOnlyByTheirNickname: Brunette, Monk, and Beardy.
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: The identity of Orthros is initially a mystery because their victims always end up beaten so badly that they somehow remember facing Orthros, but not seeing them.
%%* MacGuffin: The bentos with the Honor Seals.
* MagicSkirt: Females involved in the brawls fear not flashing their goods.
%%* KnownOnlyByTheirNickname: Brunette, Monk, and Beardy.
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: The identity of Orthros is initially a mystery because their victims always end up beaten so badly that they somehow remember facing Orthros, but not seeing them.
%%* MacGuffin: The bentos with the Honor Seals.
* MagicSkirt: Females involved in the brawls fear not flashing their goods.
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%%* KnownOnlyByTheirNickname: Brunette, Monk, and Beardy.
%%* MacGuffin: The bentos with the Honor Seals.
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%%* NotSoAboveItAll: Nikaido has these moments throughout the BeachEpisode.
** Sen really doesn't like losing (episode 8).
** Sen really doesn't like losing (episode 8).
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%%* RetailRiot: This is pretty much the premise of the whole series.
%%* RetiredBadass: [[spoiler:Matsuba aka the Monarch Butterfly]]
%%* {{Revenge}}: [[spoiler:The reason behind the East vs West War.]]
%%* TheRival: Ayame and Sen seem to be developing a relationship of this sort.
%%* RetiredBadass: [[spoiler:Matsuba aka the Monarch Butterfly]]
%%* {{Revenge}}: [[spoiler:The reason behind the East vs West War.]]
%%* TheRival: Ayame and Sen seem to be developing a relationship of this sort.
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%%* RuleOfCool: The show pretty much runs entirely on this.
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%%** Ayame is also one.
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%%* TookALevelInBadass: Yo in Episode 2.
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* BoobsOfSteel: Zig-zagged. Ayame is the bustiest character (so far) but is below a less-endowed Yarizui in terms of fighting capability, but Matsy used to be the "Monarch Butterfly", the strongest Wolf in the east, and she's bustier (even back then) than Yarizui is.
%%** And then there's Brunette...
%%** And then there's Brunette...
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* LongTitle: Episode 10 of the anime is titled "It tasted warm and kind, just as my grandmother used to cook. Japanese food, kind to the heart and the body. Fried chicken with plums, dried sardines and seasonal vegetables. 480 kcal."
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* FoodAndBodyComparison: In the PoolEpisode the characters are put into battle for a special custom bento of omelet over rice dubbed "Omelettitties", as they were modeled after a buxom woman who served as the "God of Discounts" for the area.
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%%** And then there's [[GagBoobs Brunette]]...
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%%** And then there's [[GagBoobs Brunette]]...Brunette...
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%%* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: The Omelettits ([[GagBoobs Matsuba's]] winning recipe) in episode 7.
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%%* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: The Omelettits ([[GagBoobs Matsuba's]] (Matsuba's winning recipe) in episode 7.
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** Brunette is TheFaceless entirely ''because'' of male gaze - even the camera can't stop staring at [[GagBoobs her chest.]]
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** Brunette is TheFaceless entirely ''because'' of male gaze - even the camera can't stop staring at [[GagBoobs her chest.]]
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[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/main_bent.png]]
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''Ben-To'' (ベン・トー) is a comedic Japanese light novel series written by Asaura with illustrations by Kaito Shibano, which was published by the Super Dash Bunko imprint from 2008 to 2014 for 15 volumes. The story was spun off into a manga prequel (''Ben-To Zero: Road to Witch'') in 2011 and an anime adaptation that premiered in the Fall 2011 season. Creator/FUNimation picked up the US streaming rights in February 2014 and released the dub Summer 2014.
A freshman high school student named Yō Satou sees some half-priced (translate: 4-hour old) pre-packaged bento (think: lunchboxes) in a nearby grocery store, and goes to grab one, only to end up unconscious on the floor of the store a brief moment later. He soon discovers that the half-priced bento are SeriousBusiness in this neighborhood. A group of young punks referred to as "Wolves" fight each other in a series of ultra-violent brawls just to get one of the discounted packages, and Satou is warned to stay away from them if he values his life.
However, he continues to ignore the warnings of both his classmates and the stockboy at the store until one day, when the "Ice Witch" offers to train him in the ways of the Wolves. [[MundaneMadeAwesome With her help, he just might survive long enough to buy a half-priced bento box at the grocery store]].
----
!! Ben-To provides examples of:
* ActionDressRip: Played with. During her first fight, Shaga's wearing a dress she was forced into, and uses a pair of chopsticks to hike it up to her hip.
%%* AffectionateParody: Of {{Shonen|Demographic}} FightingSeries.
* AlternateCharacterReading:
** Some of the [[RedBaron second names]] (e.g. the Wizard, the Monarch) are written in Japanese but read in English.
** Kyo and Kyo Sawagi's names are pronounced the same but written with different characters.
* AlwaysInClassOne: Sen's class is 2-1 when Sato goes to find her.
* AnimalMotifs:
** Wolves: Fighters that compete solo (although mentor/mentee relationships abound off the battlefield) for the food that they want.
** Dogs: Novice Wolves, too inexperienced to know the rules of battle or how to fight.
** Pig/Boars: Fighters that blatantly break the unspoken rules of the Half-Price battles, such as harassing the staff or taking more than one bento.
** Hounds/Gundogs: Above dogs, but below wolves; they fight in packs to get what they want.
%%* ArtShift: The manga, frequently.
* AssShove: The guard threatens to shove a ''D Battery'' upside Satou's ass.
-->'''[[ScaryBlackMan Guard]]''': ({{re|fugeInAudacity}}peatedly) "[[BlackComedyRape I'll screw it into you!]]"
** The same guard is seen again in episode 11. Except he now has ''four batteries''.
%%* BadassMindsThinkAlike: Yo and Nikaido in Episode 4.
* BalanceOfPower: [[spoiler: The Club of Heracles ostensibly ejected Orthros from the brawls in order to preserve this. In fact, it was just so he could win.]]
* BarbieDollAnatomy: Shiraume gets out of the bath in episode 9, lacking nipples.
%%* BeachEpisode: Episode 7
%%* BedmateReveal: Ayame to Yō in TheStinger to episode 3.
* BigDamnHeroes: Ayame and Satou in episode 6, coming to Yarizui's aid after she was ambushed, beaten up, and then surrounded by a group of Wolves determined to do more of the same.
%%* BladeRun: Ayame does this on a ''shopping cart''.
%%* BlandNameProduct: "Picky" and "Bretz", among others.
* BlindIdiotTranslation: "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhUlggWo3XU I gotta turn it on]]" (the main battle theme) is this played straight. It's in ''grammatically'' correct English and surprisingly catchy, but it has [[ConfusingMultipleNegatives double negatives]], strange word placement (e.g., "the" before "all" when it should be "all of the") and odd word choice. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Q5t-P6xe_E This doesn't mean it doesn't work]] [[VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends in a completely unrelated setting]].
* BoobsOfSteel: Zig-zagged. Ayame is the bustiest character (so far) but is below a less-endowed Yarizui in terms of fighting capability, but Matsy used to be the "Monarch Butterfly", the strongest Wolf in the east, and she's bustier (even back then) than Yarizui is.
%%** And then there's [[GagBoobs Brunette]]...
%%* BrickJoke: [[spoiler: every Nom de Guerre]]
** [[spoiler:The thrill of winning compared to an easy victory.]]
* ButNotTooForeign: Ayame's half Italian.
* CatGirl: Asebi, constantly wearing a hat of a cutesy cat's head.
* CatchPhrase: Ume's "May I <insert threat>."
* CerebusSyndrome: Quite possibly started by the appearance of the Monarch. [[spoiler:Subverted, since Sen, You and Ayame get to stop his plans]].
** And then restarted when Orthros shows up.
* ChekhovsGun: [[spoiler:[[FridgeLogic You may have thought it'd be weird for an employee to rip off the arm of his costume and leave it on the ground so he can apply pricing stickers instead of taking off the costume entirely]], and you'd probably be right... but then Satou wouldn't have been able to use the arm as a rudder. [[GagPenis Over his erection]].]]
%%* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Oshiroi. Sen is also shaping up to be one in a way.
** Asebi isn't even aware of the bad luck that she causes.
** Kazura in the prequel manga
** And also the twins primarily the elder.
* ColorCodedForYourConvenience: The students are color coded according to year.
%%* ComedicSociopathy: This is basically what Satou does in between brawls. As in, acted upon him.
%%* CryForTheDevil: Episode 9 may or may not have had this effect for Ume.
* CurbStompBattle: [[spoiler: Satou vs. Monarch]]. More humorously, Shaga vs. Satou in VideoGame/VirtuaFighter 2.
** Even more humorously Ayame/Asebi/Satou vs Sen in VideoGame/VirtuaFighter. Nine matches, nine losses. Sen should just stick to actual fighting.
-->'''Announcer''': EXCELLENT!!!
** On a more serious note, Episode 10: [[spoiler: When Orthros (the Sawagi twins) beats the hell out of Satou, Nikaido, Shaga, ''and Sen,'' '''ALL AT THE SAME TIME.''']]
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Orthros, since [[spoiler: the Club of Heracles essentially ejected them from the only thing they'd wanted to do since they were toddlers. They were traumatized to the point where they retired from hunting for three years, moved to another city, and still have nightmares over the incident]].
* ADayInTheLimelight: Episode 9, for [[TheScrappy Shiraume]]. It went pretty much [[AttemptedRape the]] [[{{Yandere}} way]] [[DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale you'd]] [[UnprovokedPervertPayback expect]].
* DefeatByModesty: SubvertedTrope for [[SlipperySwimsuit Brunette]] in [[BeachEpisode episode 7]] - she's shown later in the fight drop-kicking someone while placing her hands over her breasts.
* {{Determinator}}: Pretty much a necessary quality for all of the Wolves.
** Satou shows this fairly early on, as he keeps going back for half-priced bento, despite a near concussion and the warnings of several people.
** Yarizui also deserves mention. She is ambushed on her way to a store, but still manages to stumble into the market, determined to fight a larger, and demonstrably powerful fighter to claim her half-priced bento. And with a BigDamnHeroes moment by Shaga and Satou, she delivers the coup-De-grace and wins.
%%* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: The Omelettits ([[GagBoobs Matsuba's]] winning recipe) in episode 7.
* DoItYourselfThemeTune: The ending theme, "Egao no Housoku" is sung by Creator/MariyaIse (Sen).
* DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale: Largely averted. Ume's chronic assaults on Satou are shown to be ''not OK'', and occasionally get PlayedForDrama.
* DoubleStandardRapeFemaleOnFemale: Not here. Ume forces her way into Oshiroi's room to sexually harass her. The scene is quite creepy and Oshiroi is in visible distress throughout. The sad thing is that Ume is more than likely very sincere about her affections for Oshiroi.
** Played straight in episode 4. Shaga physically wraps her arm around Oshiroi's back and attempts to remove her bra twice, as Oshiroi struggles to get away. Both times it was played for laughs, and the closest Shaga ever got to being called out was for Sato to calmly tell her to stop. Yet, Sato often gets called a pervert often for doing far less.
* DoubleStandardRapeMaleOnMale: Oshiroi ain't just [[MuseAbuse writing yaoi of Satou as "Saito"]], she's writing yaoi of "Saito" being raped.
%%* DraggedIntoDrag: Satou in episodes 4 and 5
* EarlyBirdCameo: Ayame in episode two was seen [[CurbStompBattle curb-stomping]] Satou in VideoGame/VirtuaFighter 2.
* {{Ecchi}}: More so in the second half of the series.
* EmbarrassingNickname: [[spoiler: Nikaido brands Satou as "Pervert". This also applies to just about every nom de Guerre, despite most sounding cool on the surface]].
* EnemyMine: It is not uncommon for rival Wolves to team up against common threats, like Boars and invading Wolves.
* EvolvingCredits: The opening credits for Episodes 10 & 11 are updated to include the Sawagi twins. In addition, the opening theme uses the second verse and chorus instead of the first.
* EyeCatch: One having a hand pull off the cover of a bento with the show's logo upon it, with "Ben-to!" being said along with revealing the contents which included a female character relevant to the episode lying in it in a fairly {{Fanservice}}-y way. Episode 9 had the hand try and fail to pull the cover off and stopped saying "Ben-to!" half-way through the "o" sound. [[spoiler: In the Bluray release, this episode's eyecatch had the hand reveal the entire female cast naked, instead of failing to pull the cover off.]]
%%* FatBastard: Boars
* FirstEpisodeResurrection and PosthumousNarration: Both are briefly parodied at the beginning of the first episode before revealing that the main character is just being melodramatic.
** Second episode as well.
* {{Flanderization}}: Oshiroi goes from straight up {{Cloudcuckoolander}} to CovertPervert, and whether she still fulfills the "lovable" part of LovableSexManiac later on depends on whom you ask, [[DoubleStandardRapeMaleOnMale probably due to her unashamed male-rape fetish]].
* FoodPorn: The bento boxes are made to look mouth-wateringly delicious.
* {{Foreshadowing}}:
** Among Oshiroi's [[YaoiFangirl brainstormings]] is the idea that "Saito" will be attacked by two opponents, alluding to the Orthros fight later in the episode.
** While reading up on the Greek myth of Orthros, Satou finds out that the titular dog was killed by Heracles, and then remarks that Orthros' death was a tragic one.
* FriendlyEnemies: Most of the wolves have this kind of relationship with each other.
* FromBadToWorse: Did you think Orthros were obscenely powerful? Well, it turns out that [[spoiler:they're running away from an even more powerful Wolf]].
* FunnyBackgroundEvent: Ume randomly abducting Oshiroi.
* FuroScene: As a CoolAndUnusualPunishment for Ayame, inflicted by Ume.
* GagPenis: In the BeachEpisode, Ayame thinks Yo has one which he could use as a rudder. [[spoiler:It turned out to be the arm from the discount god's costume... worn on his penis to be used as a rudder.]]
* GodivaHair: Done for both while Ume tries to bathe with Ayame
** Two examples in the BeachEpisode: Brunette, when her top bursts; and Nikaido's fantasy of Matsuba.
* GroinAttack: Seems like Ume's been listening to [[WesternAnimation/TheBoondocks Thugnificent's]] Single "Stomp 'em in the Nuts".
%%* GrowlingGut: And it's AWESOME!!!
%%* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: Matsuba.
* HimeCut: Because she is an Ojou and Class Representative, Shiraume Umehas has the picture perfect style of the even bangs, long hair in back and sidetails.
%%** Elder Sawagi Kyo
* HomoeroticSubtext:
** Ume is a [[{{Yandere}} bit]] [[ClingyJealousGirl too protective]] of Hana. She also does borderline rape to Ayame later on.
%%** The elder Kyo for Sen.
* {{Hypocrite}}: Ume, accusing Satou of "harassing" Oshiroi while her every appearance alongside Satou consists her beating him up as UnprovokedPervertPayback.
* HypocriticalHumor:
** In the BeachEpisode, Nikaido tells Satou that he's been spreading around "Pervert" as the latter's nom de guerre. Sato protests, but totally drops the issue to eavesdrop on the four girls discussing their underwear and bodies in the neighboring locker room.
*** Nikaido promptly chews him out for this, but as soon as Matsuba joins in, he starts listening alongside Satou.
** Ayame becomes uncomfortable when Ume gets handsy with her, despite her molesting Hana just before.
* IHaveBoobsYouMustObey: Sen uses it on You and Hana to get them to join the Half-Pricers Club.
* IHaveYourWife: In ''Zero'', [[spoiler:Sen is kidnapped by a Wolf and used as a hostage to force Kaneshiro to lose a bento fight]].
* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: They're all given the name of a lunchbox along with a calorie count.
* ImagineSpot: Satō gets one, of the Ice Witch blushing and covering herself while nude, as he wonders what the Ice Witch said to him beyond the store window and thinks it was a love confession before collapsing from his trauma.
%%
* ImprobableWeaponUser:
** Shaga uses chopsticks to parry and redirect her foes' attacks.
** And in keeping with the supermarket motif, Monarch uses a shopping cart to bludgeon his opponents.
** Orthros use a pair of shopping baskets, one to immobilize their foe, and the other to blind them before sending them head over heels with their [[SignatureMove signature attack.]]
* InSeriesNickname:
** [[spoiler:[[SubvertedTrope Subverted.]] Club of Heracles defeated Othros by letting them take what they wanted without a fight, and is later destroyed by every other named character when he tries it again.]]
%%* TheJuggernaut: Boars
* TheJinx: Asebi. Not even charms will work around her.
* KickingAssInAllHerFinery: Shaga's first fight in the series has her in a frilly white dress. All she needs is an impromptu ActionDressRip and she's fighting with no problem.
%%* KissingCousins: Played with by Ayame and Yo.
%%* KnownOnlyByTheirNickname: Brunette, Monk, and Beardy.
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: The identity of Orthros is initially a mystery because their victims always end up beaten so badly that they somehow remember facing Orthros, but not seeing them.
* LongTitle: Episode 10 of the anime is titled "It tasted warm and kind, just as my grandmother used to cook. Japanese food, kind to the heart and the body. Fried chicken with plums, dried sardines and seasonal vegetables. 480 kcal."
%%* MacGuffin: The bentos with the Honor Seals.
* MagicSkirt: Females involved in the brawls fear not flashing their goods.
* MadeOfIron: In episode 3, You dives into a lit incinerator to try and save his clothes, gets out with only a few bruises, and he's perfectly able and ready to dive back into the food fight that following night.
* MaleGaze: When talking with Ume, Yo never pays any attention to her face. The camera shows him looking at her [[ZettaiRyouiki legs]] instead.
** And it does NOT stop there. Even Sen and the faceless brunette are targets of his MaleGaze.
** Brunette is TheFaceless entirely ''because'' of male gaze - even the camera can't stop staring at [[GagBoobs her chest.]]
*** Episode 11 has a conversation with Yo and Brunette on stairs ending with a shot from the side with Yo while clearly looking at her chest after talking in a HotBlooded-encouraging manner.
--> '''Brunette''': "You really have no manners."
** Happens on Kyo (long hair) in episode 9, as she frustratedly goes up and down striking a table while bending over - naturally, the camera isn't seeing this from her front.
* MasterApprenticeChain: (sort of) The Wizard -> The Ice Witch -> Satou and Oshiroi
* MeaningfulName:
** The Monarch refers to a wolf who wants to [[spoiler:take on the mantle of the previous best eastern wolf--the Monarch Butterfly]].
** The only Wolf confirmed to have beaten Orthros is called Heracles' Club. In Greek myth, Heracles killed a herding hound named Orthros as part of his Ten Labors.
* MotorMouth: Oshiroi, whenever Satou inspires her yaoi fantasies.
* MultipleEndings: The last volume of the light novel has different endings, each one with Yō ending up with a different girl.
* MundaneMadeAwesome: The entire premise is daily battle royales over half-priced pre-packaged bento.
** Whenever someone's stomach rumbles. Especially in episode 6 where [[spoiler:the Monarch's stomach rumbling causes the whole store to shake.]]
** Only to be outdone by Sato in episode 12 when his stomach growls and in turns causes a chain reaction of stomach growling causing [[spoiler:Club of Heracles' gambit to fall apart.]]
* MuseAbuse: Oshiroi is writing a yaoi novel that is mostly Satou, er "Saito", getting raped by men.
* NakedPeopleAreFunny: Satou's lot in life.
* NaughtyNurseOutfit: The Sawagi twins infiltrate Satou's hospital in tight pink nurse outfits. Of course, the actual nurses working there are older and dress much more modestly.
* NiceJobFixingItVillain: Shaga, while far from a villain, is still an opponent. In episode 7, one of her many attempts to induce DefeatByModesty [[spoiler: [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments backfires hilariously]] when Satou is able to weaponize the resultant RagingStiffie and use it with a torn costume's arm as a rudder.]]
* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: [[spoiler:Monarch beats the living shit out of Satou.]]
** And later, [[spoiler: Orthros]] beats the living shit out of [[spoiler: EVERYONE.]]
* NoSenseOfPersonalSpace: Ayame. The preview shows her waking up on Satou's bed, wanting to play more video games with him.
%%* NotSoAboveItAll: Nikaido has these moments throughout the BeachEpisode.
** Sen really doesn't like losing (episode 8).
* OffscreenMomentOfAwesome:
** Episode 12 cuts away from [[spoiler:the final battle between Satou, Nikaido, and Shaga vs. Kyo & Kyo, only stating afterwards that the trio won.]]
** The final brawl [[spoiler: when Orthros suffers their first true loss in the series]] only shows the very start.
* OnceDoneNeverForgotten:
** Nikaido flat out refuses to accept any kind of explanation after he sees Satou DraggedIntoDrag. [[spoiler: So much so that the incident serves as the origin of his Nom De Guerre: "The Pervert".]]
** [[spoiler: Sen's and Ayame's]] are also the result of this. [[spoiler: Sen once attempted to buy a ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chu-hi Chu-Hi Ice]]'' (a type of Vodka mixer) with her bento, while Ayame fell asleep in Lake Park after eating her first Honor Seal Bento.]]
** Orthros is the only example that averts this trope, as their name derives from a genuinely fearsome two headed dog from Greek myth.
* OneHitKill: Surprisingly enough, none of the characters in the anime really have a signature, instant kill move. The closest we get is in ''Zero'', where Uzu's special move is the ability to completely paralyze a person with a single blow.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Satou (and, by the extension, fans) never learns Monk's, Goatee's, and Brunette's real name.
* ProductPlacement: This anime is sponsored by [[Creator/{{Sega}} SE-GA!]]
* {{Pun}}: A special bento named "Tent of Food" ends up being the only thing shielding Satou's member from view when his trunks fall off in the BeachEpisode.
* PunBasedTitle: ''Bentō'' rhymes with ''sentō'' ("battle").
* PutOnABus: Episode 6 ends with the Wizard leaving to study abroad.
* RagingStiffie: Satou in Episode 5 after [[spoiler: he gets knocked out by the Monarch and wakes up with the store's young, female God of Discounts standing over him.]] And again in [[BeachEpisode episode 7]], when Brunette's top rips open and Shaga rubs her breasts against his back. [[spoiler: It ends up working to his advantage, however, as he can use it on a costume's arm as a rudder to help steer him to the Bento.]]
* RageQuit: In Episode 8, Sen throws Satou's Sega Saturn out the window after losing consecutive matches to Ayame, Asebi, and Satou without being able to land a single hit on any of them.
* RedBaron[=/=]NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast[=/=]NomDeGuerre: Wolves tend to earn such titles if their actions become {{n|everLiveItDown}}otorious enough. To name a few: Sen Yarizui is the Ice Witch, Ayame Shaga is the Beauty by the Lake, Yu Kaneshiro is the Wizard, Tadaaki Endo is the Monarch.
** Satou later earns the nickname [[spoiler:Pervert, even though he doesn't want it]].
*** He also gets the nickname [[spoiler:Two Dogs with Ren]].
** Orthros is pretty much the only title earned through outright fear and respect.
*** In relation to the above, the wolf who took down Orthros three years ago is called the Club of Heracles as part of a reference to Greek mythology.
%%* RetailRiot: This is pretty much the premise of the whole series.
%%* RetiredBadass: [[spoiler:Matsuba aka the Monarch Butterfly]]
%%* {{Revenge}}: [[spoiler:The reason behind the East vs West War.]]
%%* TheRival: Ayame and Sen seem to be developing a relationship of this sort.
** Sen and [[spoiler: The Monarch]] also have one due to the latter's feelings about their respective predecessors.
%%* RuleOfCool: The show pretty much runs entirely on this.
* RunningGag: Satou being stripped down to his boxer (or worse), his clothes malfunctions and Oshiroi being a YaoiFangirl and a CovertPervert at his expense.
* SchoolUniformsAreTheNewBlack: Satou, Sen, Brunette, Oshiroi are rarely seen without their school uniform.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: This is the reaction many Dogs and weaker Wolves make when a vastly more powerful Wolf enters the store.
* SeriousBusiness: Half-priced bentos. It's pretty much the entire plot of the show.
** Goes into depth, in Episode 2. There's even a Code of Honor for bentos.
** Hell, every episode just shows the lengths that people go just to get the half priced bentos.
* SexOPhone: A running gag in Episode 4 whenever Ayame comes on to Satou.
* ShamingTheMob: [[spoiler: Satou does this in the finale. And it is ''[[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome awesome]]''.]]
** That's also arguably {{Inverted}} - [[spoiler: how many times have we ever seen the hero trying to shame the mob ''into'' fighting instead of out of it?]]
* ShoutOut: Yō has a Franchise/{{Sonic|TheHedgehog}} wallpaper for his cellphone.
** Hell, his entire family are Creator/{{SEGA}} fans, giving him a UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn to play since his infancy.
* ShowerScene: Sen gets one in the first chapter of the prequel manga.
** The Sawagis also get a rather [[IncestSubtext loaded]] one in Episode 10.
* SomethingElseAlsoRises: The bento that Satou covers himself with after his swimming trunks fall off is noticeably taller than it is wide.
** Satou and an oral thermometer in episode 8.
* SoundtrackDissonance: Peppy music plays during the calm right before a battle. Justified since the battles take place in either a convenience store or supermarket.
* SpoilerOpening: The second opening blatantly gives away the fact that [[spoiler:despite being introduced as villains, the Kyo twins will join the main cast.]]
* SpotlightStealingSquad: Invoked. The Shaga-centric episode is opened with her image song rather than the usual opening theme.
* StrollingThroughTheChaos: Oshiroi manages to win bentos by avoiding everybody's attention. Kaneshiro mentions in ''Zero'' that this is a perfectly legitimate way to win.
* StudentCouncilPresident: Ume of Satou's School and The elder long-haired Kyo Sawagi of Ayame's school.
* TheTease: Sen in getting Satou and Oshiroi into joining her club.
%%** Ayame is also one.
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: When Satou runs from a guard unwilling to let him see Shaga in her dormitory who strips him down to his underwear and [[AssShove seeks to shove a D Battery in his ass]] for the attempt, other guards eventually join in on the chase, ''wearing military-grade armour and carrying assault rifles''. Footage of the chase in episode 9 reveals ''they fired on him, threw a grenade at him, and used FastRoping to get to him''. ''After a boy in his underwear''.
* ThresholdGuardians: Sen is this to Satou. In turn, Uzu is this to Sen in the prequel manga.
%%* TookALevelInBadass: Yo in Episode 2.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: All ''discount gods'' put an ''honor seal'' onto their favorite bento. It is naturally the main target of the wolves and boars.
* TrainingFromHell: By a villain, no less! The Monarch deliberately starves himself for three days before a big fight.
* TruthInTelevision: a lot of the "bentou-hunting techniques and etiquette" shown in the series can be witnessed daily in Japanese supermarkets and department stores. (Albeit with less bloodshed.)
* TwelveEpisodeAnime
* VictoryIsBoring: Satou's reaction to the hounds' methods to gaining bentos.
** [[spoiler: The Club of Heracles engineered this reaction for Orthros, but the result was less boring and more traumatic.]]
* WeaksauceWeakness: Sen figures out how to block Uzu's [[OneHitKill signature "poison" move]] by using something that would prevent Uzu's hand from making contact with her skin, like [[spoiler:chopsticks]].
* WeirdnessCensor: For the most part, the regular grocery store shoppers don't seem to notice or care about the fact that their supermarkets turn into literal warzones every night.
** [[spoiler:While the blood-splatter from Sen being attacked attracts a crowd and gossip spreading word of it, no one seems to have cared enough to alert the police about a gang in black attacking a high-school student.]]
* WhamEpisode: Episode 10. [[spoiler:The Kyo twins curbstomp the ''entire cast'' (except [[PutOnABus the Wizard]]), including Sen herself, over the course of the episode.]]
* WholesomeCrossdresser: Satou in episode 5, [[ButtMonkey not that he has any say in the matter, though...]]
* TheWorfEffect: [[spoiler: Monarch]] gets beaten up by Orthros so badly that it's implied he'll give up on half priced food hunting all together. He doesn't though.
** Also, many of the recurring Wolves like Brunette, Monk, and Beardy have suffered this fate as well.
** To heck with all those characters, the real one who gets Worfed is [[spoiler: The Ice Witch, who gets beaten up rather easily by Orthros, see WorfHadTheFlu.]]
** [[spoiler:Orthros themselves suffer this multiple times, such as when get beaten by the Wizard later on.]]
* WorfHadTheFlu: [[spoiler: The episode after her defeat by Orthos, Sen would later reveal she had a small cold that night and would stay home in bed trying to recover the next day, only to sabotage herself and make it worst.]]
* WorthyOpponent: Pretty much everyone ends up as this to each other, with [[TheUnfettered boars,]] [[LargeAndInCharge the Monarch,]] and [[spoiler: [[ManipulativeBastard the Club of Heracles]]]] as the exceptions.
* WouldHitAGirl: A necessity, as so many Wolves are female.
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[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/main_bent.png]]
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''Ben-To'' (ベン・トー) is a comedic Japanese light novel series written by Asaura with illustrations by Kaito Shibano, which was published by the Super Dash Bunko imprint from 2008 to 2014 for 15 volumes. The story was spun off into a manga prequel (''Ben-To Zero: Road to Witch'') in 2011 and an anime adaptation that premiered in the Fall 2011 season. Creator/FUNimation picked up the US streaming rights in February 2014 and released the dub Summer 2014.
A freshman high school student named Yō Satou sees some half-priced (translate: 4-hour old) pre-packaged bento (think: lunchboxes) in a nearby grocery store, and goes to grab one, only to end up unconscious on the floor of the store a brief moment later. He soon discovers that the half-priced bento are SeriousBusiness in this neighborhood. A group of young punks referred to as "Wolves" fight each other in a series of ultra-violent brawls just to get one of the discounted packages, and Satou is warned to stay away from them if he values his life.
However, he continues to ignore the warnings of both his classmates and the stockboy at the store until one day, when the "Ice Witch" offers to train him in the ways of the Wolves. [[MundaneMadeAwesome With her help, he just might survive long enough to buy a half-priced bento box at the grocery store]].
----
!! Ben-To provides examples of:
* ActionDressRip: Played with. During her first fight, Shaga's wearing a dress she was forced into, and uses a pair of chopsticks to hike it up to her hip.
%%* AffectionateParody: Of {{Shonen|Demographic}} FightingSeries.
* AlternateCharacterReading:
** Some of the [[RedBaron second names]] (e.g. the Wizard, the Monarch) are written in Japanese but read in English.
** Kyo and Kyo Sawagi's names are pronounced the same but written with different characters.
* AlwaysInClassOne: Sen's class is 2-1 when Sato goes to find her.
* AnimalMotifs:
** Wolves: Fighters that compete solo (although mentor/mentee relationships abound off the battlefield) for the food that they want.
** Dogs: Novice Wolves, too inexperienced to know the rules of battle or how to fight.
** Pig/Boars: Fighters that blatantly break the unspoken rules of the Half-Price battles, such as harassing the staff or taking more than one bento.
** Hounds/Gundogs: Above dogs, but below wolves; they fight in packs to get what they want.
%%* ArtShift: The manga, frequently.
* AssShove: The guard threatens to shove a ''D Battery'' upside Satou's ass.
-->'''[[ScaryBlackMan Guard]]''': ({{re|fugeInAudacity}}peatedly) "[[BlackComedyRape I'll screw it into you!]]"
** The same guard is seen again in episode 11. Except he now has ''four batteries''.
%%* BadassMindsThinkAlike: Yo and Nikaido in Episode 4.
* BalanceOfPower: [[spoiler: The Club of Heracles ostensibly ejected Orthros from the brawls in order to preserve this. In fact, it was just so he could win.]]
* BarbieDollAnatomy: Shiraume gets out of the bath in episode 9, lacking nipples.
%%* BeachEpisode: Episode 7
%%* BedmateReveal: Ayame to Yō in TheStinger to episode 3.
* BigDamnHeroes: Ayame and Satou in episode 6, coming to Yarizui's aid after she was ambushed, beaten up, and then surrounded by a group of Wolves determined to do more of the same.
%%* BladeRun: Ayame does this on a ''shopping cart''.
%%* BlandNameProduct: "Picky" and "Bretz", among others.
* BlindIdiotTranslation: "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhUlggWo3XU I gotta turn it on]]" (the main battle theme) is this played straight. It's in ''grammatically'' correct English and surprisingly catchy, but it has [[ConfusingMultipleNegatives double negatives]], strange word placement (e.g., "the" before "all" when it should be "all of the") and odd word choice. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Q5t-P6xe_E This doesn't mean it doesn't work]] [[VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends in a completely unrelated setting]].
* BoobsOfSteel: Zig-zagged. Ayame is the bustiest character (so far) but is below a less-endowed Yarizui in terms of fighting capability, but Matsy used to be the "Monarch Butterfly", the strongest Wolf in the east, and she's bustier (even back then) than Yarizui is.
%%** And then there's [[GagBoobs Brunette]]...
%%* BrickJoke: [[spoiler: every Nom de Guerre]]
** [[spoiler:The thrill of winning compared to an easy victory.]]
* ButNotTooForeign: Ayame's half Italian.
* CatGirl: Asebi, constantly wearing a hat of a cutesy cat's head.
* CatchPhrase: Ume's "May I <insert threat>."
* CerebusSyndrome: Quite possibly started by the appearance of the Monarch. [[spoiler:Subverted, since Sen, You and Ayame get to stop his plans]].
** And then restarted when Orthros shows up.
* ChekhovsGun: [[spoiler:[[FridgeLogic You may have thought it'd be weird for an employee to rip off the arm of his costume and leave it on the ground so he can apply pricing stickers instead of taking off the costume entirely]], and you'd probably be right... but then Satou wouldn't have been able to use the arm as a rudder. [[GagPenis Over his erection]].]]
%%* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Oshiroi. Sen is also shaping up to be one in a way.
** Asebi isn't even aware of the bad luck that she causes.
** Kazura in the prequel manga
** And also the twins primarily the elder.
* ColorCodedForYourConvenience: The students are color coded according to year.
%%* ComedicSociopathy: This is basically what Satou does in between brawls. As in, acted upon him.
%%* CryForTheDevil: Episode 9 may or may not have had this effect for Ume.
* CurbStompBattle: [[spoiler: Satou vs. Monarch]]. More humorously, Shaga vs. Satou in VideoGame/VirtuaFighter 2.
** Even more humorously Ayame/Asebi/Satou vs Sen in VideoGame/VirtuaFighter. Nine matches, nine losses. Sen should just stick to actual fighting.
-->'''Announcer''': EXCELLENT!!!
** On a more serious note, Episode 10: [[spoiler: When Orthros (the Sawagi twins) beats the hell out of Satou, Nikaido, Shaga, ''and Sen,'' '''ALL AT THE SAME TIME.''']]
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Orthros, since [[spoiler: the Club of Heracles essentially ejected them from the only thing they'd wanted to do since they were toddlers. They were traumatized to the point where they retired from hunting for three years, moved to another city, and still have nightmares over the incident]].
* ADayInTheLimelight: Episode 9, for [[TheScrappy Shiraume]]. It went pretty much [[AttemptedRape the]] [[{{Yandere}} way]] [[DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale you'd]] [[UnprovokedPervertPayback expect]].
* DefeatByModesty: SubvertedTrope for [[SlipperySwimsuit Brunette]] in [[BeachEpisode episode 7]] - she's shown later in the fight drop-kicking someone while placing her hands over her breasts.
* {{Determinator}}: Pretty much a necessary quality for all of the Wolves.
** Satou shows this fairly early on, as he keeps going back for half-priced bento, despite a near concussion and the warnings of several people.
** Yarizui also deserves mention. She is ambushed on her way to a store, but still manages to stumble into the market, determined to fight a larger, and demonstrably powerful fighter to claim her half-priced bento. And with a BigDamnHeroes moment by Shaga and Satou, she delivers the coup-De-grace and wins.
%%* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: The Omelettits ([[GagBoobs Matsuba's]] winning recipe) in episode 7.
* DoItYourselfThemeTune: The ending theme, "Egao no Housoku" is sung by Creator/MariyaIse (Sen).
* DoubleStandardAbuseFemaleOnMale: Largely averted. Ume's chronic assaults on Satou are shown to be ''not OK'', and occasionally get PlayedForDrama.
* DoubleStandardRapeFemaleOnFemale: Not here. Ume forces her way into Oshiroi's room to sexually harass her. The scene is quite creepy and Oshiroi is in visible distress throughout. The sad thing is that Ume is more than likely very sincere about her affections for Oshiroi.
** Played straight in episode 4. Shaga physically wraps her arm around Oshiroi's back and attempts to remove her bra twice, as Oshiroi struggles to get away. Both times it was played for laughs, and the closest Shaga ever got to being called out was for Sato to calmly tell her to stop. Yet, Sato often gets called a pervert often for doing far less.
* DoubleStandardRapeMaleOnMale: Oshiroi ain't just [[MuseAbuse writing yaoi of Satou as "Saito"]], she's writing yaoi of "Saito" being raped.
%%* DraggedIntoDrag: Satou in episodes 4 and 5
* EarlyBirdCameo: Ayame in episode two was seen [[CurbStompBattle curb-stomping]] Satou in VideoGame/VirtuaFighter 2.
* {{Ecchi}}: More so in the second half of the series.
* EmbarrassingNickname: [[spoiler: Nikaido brands Satou as "Pervert". This also applies to just about every nom de Guerre, despite most sounding cool on the surface]].
* EnemyMine: It is not uncommon for rival Wolves to team up against common threats, like Boars and invading Wolves.
* EvolvingCredits: The opening credits for Episodes 10 & 11 are updated to include the Sawagi twins. In addition, the opening theme uses the second verse and chorus instead of the first.
* EyeCatch: One having a hand pull off the cover of a bento with the show's logo upon it, with "Ben-to!" being said along with revealing the contents which included a female character relevant to the episode lying in it in a fairly {{Fanservice}}-y way. Episode 9 had the hand try and fail to pull the cover off and stopped saying "Ben-to!" half-way through the "o" sound. [[spoiler: In the Bluray release, this episode's eyecatch had the hand reveal the entire female cast naked, instead of failing to pull the cover off.]]
%%* FatBastard: Boars
* FirstEpisodeResurrection and PosthumousNarration: Both are briefly parodied at the beginning of the first episode before revealing that the main character is just being melodramatic.
** Second episode as well.
* {{Flanderization}}: Oshiroi goes from straight up {{Cloudcuckoolander}} to CovertPervert, and whether she still fulfills the "lovable" part of LovableSexManiac later on depends on whom you ask, [[DoubleStandardRapeMaleOnMale probably due to her unashamed male-rape fetish]].
* FoodPorn: The bento boxes are made to look mouth-wateringly delicious.
* {{Foreshadowing}}:
** Among Oshiroi's [[YaoiFangirl brainstormings]] is the idea that "Saito" will be attacked by two opponents, alluding to the Orthros fight later in the episode.
** While reading up on the Greek myth of Orthros, Satou finds out that the titular dog was killed by Heracles, and then remarks that Orthros' death was a tragic one.
* FriendlyEnemies: Most of the wolves have this kind of relationship with each other.
* FromBadToWorse: Did you think Orthros were obscenely powerful? Well, it turns out that [[spoiler:they're running away from an even more powerful Wolf]].
* FunnyBackgroundEvent: Ume randomly abducting Oshiroi.
* FuroScene: As a CoolAndUnusualPunishment for Ayame, inflicted by Ume.
* GagPenis: In the BeachEpisode, Ayame thinks Yo has one which he could use as a rudder. [[spoiler:It turned out to be the arm from the discount god's costume... worn on his penis to be used as a rudder.]]
* GodivaHair: Done for both while Ume tries to bathe with Ayame
** Two examples in the BeachEpisode: Brunette, when her top bursts; and Nikaido's fantasy of Matsuba.
* GroinAttack: Seems like Ume's been listening to [[WesternAnimation/TheBoondocks Thugnificent's]] Single "Stomp 'em in the Nuts".
%%* GrowlingGut: And it's AWESOME!!!
%%* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: Matsuba.
* HimeCut: Because she is an Ojou and Class Representative, Shiraume Umehas has the picture perfect style of the even bangs, long hair in back and sidetails.
%%** Elder Sawagi Kyo
* HomoeroticSubtext:
** Ume is a [[{{Yandere}} bit]] [[ClingyJealousGirl too protective]] of Hana. She also does borderline rape to Ayame later on.
%%** The elder Kyo for Sen.
* {{Hypocrite}}: Ume, accusing Satou of "harassing" Oshiroi while her every appearance alongside Satou consists her beating him up as UnprovokedPervertPayback.
* HypocriticalHumor:
** In the BeachEpisode, Nikaido tells Satou that he's been spreading around "Pervert" as the latter's nom de guerre. Sato protests, but totally drops the issue to eavesdrop on the four girls discussing their underwear and bodies in the neighboring locker room.
*** Nikaido promptly chews him out for this, but as soon as Matsuba joins in, he starts listening alongside Satou.
** Ayame becomes uncomfortable when Ume gets handsy with her, despite her molesting Hana just before.
* IHaveBoobsYouMustObey: Sen uses it on You and Hana to get them to join the Half-Pricers Club.
* IHaveYourWife: In ''Zero'', [[spoiler:Sen is kidnapped by a Wolf and used as a hostage to force Kaneshiro to lose a bento fight]].
* IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: They're all given the name of a lunchbox along with a calorie count.
* ImagineSpot: Satō gets one, of the Ice Witch blushing and covering herself while nude, as he wonders what the Ice Witch said to him beyond the store window and thinks it was a love confession before collapsing from his trauma.
%%
* ImprobableWeaponUser:
** Shaga uses chopsticks to parry and redirect her foes' attacks.
** And in keeping with the supermarket motif, Monarch uses a shopping cart to bludgeon his opponents.
** Orthros use a pair of shopping baskets, one to immobilize their foe, and the other to blind them before sending them head over heels with their [[SignatureMove signature attack.]]
* InSeriesNickname:
** [[spoiler:[[SubvertedTrope Subverted.]] Club of Heracles defeated Othros by letting them take what they wanted without a fight, and is later destroyed by every other named character when he tries it again.]]
%%* TheJuggernaut: Boars
* TheJinx: Asebi. Not even charms will work around her.
* KickingAssInAllHerFinery: Shaga's first fight in the series has her in a frilly white dress. All she needs is an impromptu ActionDressRip and she's fighting with no problem.
%%* KissingCousins: Played with by Ayame and Yo.
%%* KnownOnlyByTheirNickname: Brunette, Monk, and Beardy.
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: The identity of Orthros is initially a mystery because their victims always end up beaten so badly that they somehow remember facing Orthros, but not seeing them.
* LongTitle: Episode 10 of the anime is titled "It tasted warm and kind, just as my grandmother used to cook. Japanese food, kind to the heart and the body. Fried chicken with plums, dried sardines and seasonal vegetables. 480 kcal."
%%* MacGuffin: The bentos with the Honor Seals.
* MagicSkirt: Females involved in the brawls fear not flashing their goods.
* MadeOfIron: In episode 3, You dives into a lit incinerator to try and save his clothes, gets out with only a few bruises, and he's perfectly able and ready to dive back into the food fight that following night.
* MaleGaze: When talking with Ume, Yo never pays any attention to her face. The camera shows him looking at her [[ZettaiRyouiki legs]] instead.
** And it does NOT stop there. Even Sen and the faceless brunette are targets of his MaleGaze.
** Brunette is TheFaceless entirely ''because'' of male gaze - even the camera can't stop staring at [[GagBoobs her chest.]]
*** Episode 11 has a conversation with Yo and Brunette on stairs ending with a shot from the side with Yo while clearly looking at her chest after talking in a HotBlooded-encouraging manner.
--> '''Brunette''': "You really have no manners."
** Happens on Kyo (long hair) in episode 9, as she frustratedly goes up and down striking a table while bending over - naturally, the camera isn't seeing this from her front.
* MasterApprenticeChain: (sort of) The Wizard -> The Ice Witch -> Satou and Oshiroi
* MeaningfulName:
** The Monarch refers to a wolf who wants to [[spoiler:take on the mantle of the previous best eastern wolf--the Monarch Butterfly]].
** The only Wolf confirmed to have beaten Orthros is called Heracles' Club. In Greek myth, Heracles killed a herding hound named Orthros as part of his Ten Labors.
* MotorMouth: Oshiroi, whenever Satou inspires her yaoi fantasies.
* MultipleEndings: The last volume of the light novel has different endings, each one with Yō ending up with a different girl.
* MundaneMadeAwesome: The entire premise is daily battle royales over half-priced pre-packaged bento.
** Whenever someone's stomach rumbles. Especially in episode 6 where [[spoiler:the Monarch's stomach rumbling causes the whole store to shake.]]
** Only to be outdone by Sato in episode 12 when his stomach growls and in turns causes a chain reaction of stomach growling causing [[spoiler:Club of Heracles' gambit to fall apart.]]
* MuseAbuse: Oshiroi is writing a yaoi novel that is mostly Satou, er "Saito", getting raped by men.
* NakedPeopleAreFunny: Satou's lot in life.
* NaughtyNurseOutfit: The Sawagi twins infiltrate Satou's hospital in tight pink nurse outfits. Of course, the actual nurses working there are older and dress much more modestly.
* NiceJobFixingItVillain: Shaga, while far from a villain, is still an opponent. In episode 7, one of her many attempts to induce DefeatByModesty [[spoiler: [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments backfires hilariously]] when Satou is able to weaponize the resultant RagingStiffie and use it with a torn costume's arm as a rudder.]]
* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: [[spoiler:Monarch beats the living shit out of Satou.]]
** And later, [[spoiler: Orthros]] beats the living shit out of [[spoiler: EVERYONE.]]
* NoSenseOfPersonalSpace: Ayame. The preview shows her waking up on Satou's bed, wanting to play more video games with him.
%%* NotSoAboveItAll: Nikaido has these moments throughout the BeachEpisode.
** Sen really doesn't like losing (episode 8).
* OffscreenMomentOfAwesome:
** Episode 12 cuts away from [[spoiler:the final battle between Satou, Nikaido, and Shaga vs. Kyo & Kyo, only stating afterwards that the trio won.]]
** The final brawl [[spoiler: when Orthros suffers their first true loss in the series]] only shows the very start.
* OnceDoneNeverForgotten:
** Nikaido flat out refuses to accept any kind of explanation after he sees Satou DraggedIntoDrag. [[spoiler: So much so that the incident serves as the origin of his Nom De Guerre: "The Pervert".]]
** [[spoiler: Sen's and Ayame's]] are also the result of this. [[spoiler: Sen once attempted to buy a ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chu-hi Chu-Hi Ice]]'' (a type of Vodka mixer) with her bento, while Ayame fell asleep in Lake Park after eating her first Honor Seal Bento.]]
** Orthros is the only example that averts this trope, as their name derives from a genuinely fearsome two headed dog from Greek myth.
* OneHitKill: Surprisingly enough, none of the characters in the anime really have a signature, instant kill move. The closest we get is in ''Zero'', where Uzu's special move is the ability to completely paralyze a person with a single blow.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Satou (and, by the extension, fans) never learns Monk's, Goatee's, and Brunette's real name.
* ProductPlacement: This anime is sponsored by [[Creator/{{Sega}} SE-GA!]]
* {{Pun}}: A special bento named "Tent of Food" ends up being the only thing shielding Satou's member from view when his trunks fall off in the BeachEpisode.
* PunBasedTitle: ''Bentō'' rhymes with ''sentō'' ("battle").
* PutOnABus: Episode 6 ends with the Wizard leaving to study abroad.
* RagingStiffie: Satou in Episode 5 after [[spoiler: he gets knocked out by the Monarch and wakes up with the store's young, female God of Discounts standing over him.]] And again in [[BeachEpisode episode 7]], when Brunette's top rips open and Shaga rubs her breasts against his back. [[spoiler: It ends up working to his advantage, however, as he can use it on a costume's arm as a rudder to help steer him to the Bento.]]
* RageQuit: In Episode 8, Sen throws Satou's Sega Saturn out the window after losing consecutive matches to Ayame, Asebi, and Satou without being able to land a single hit on any of them.
* RedBaron[=/=]NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast[=/=]NomDeGuerre: Wolves tend to earn such titles if their actions become {{n|everLiveItDown}}otorious enough. To name a few: Sen Yarizui is the Ice Witch, Ayame Shaga is the Beauty by the Lake, Yu Kaneshiro is the Wizard, Tadaaki Endo is the Monarch.
** Satou later earns the nickname [[spoiler:Pervert, even though he doesn't want it]].
*** He also gets the nickname [[spoiler:Two Dogs with Ren]].
** Orthros is pretty much the only title earned through outright fear and respect.
*** In relation to the above, the wolf who took down Orthros three years ago is called the Club of Heracles as part of a reference to Greek mythology.
%%* RetailRiot: This is pretty much the premise of the whole series.
%%* RetiredBadass: [[spoiler:Matsuba aka the Monarch Butterfly]]
%%* {{Revenge}}: [[spoiler:The reason behind the East vs West War.]]
%%* TheRival: Ayame and Sen seem to be developing a relationship of this sort.
** Sen and [[spoiler: The Monarch]] also have one due to the latter's feelings about their respective predecessors.
%%* RuleOfCool: The show pretty much runs entirely on this.
* RunningGag: Satou being stripped down to his boxer (or worse), his clothes malfunctions and Oshiroi being a YaoiFangirl and a CovertPervert at his expense.
* SchoolUniformsAreTheNewBlack: Satou, Sen, Brunette, Oshiroi are rarely seen without their school uniform.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: This is the reaction many Dogs and weaker Wolves make when a vastly more powerful Wolf enters the store.
* SeriousBusiness: Half-priced bentos. It's pretty much the entire plot of the show.
** Goes into depth, in Episode 2. There's even a Code of Honor for bentos.
** Hell, every episode just shows the lengths that people go just to get the half priced bentos.
* SexOPhone: A running gag in Episode 4 whenever Ayame comes on to Satou.
* ShamingTheMob: [[spoiler: Satou does this in the finale. And it is ''[[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome awesome]]''.]]
** That's also arguably {{Inverted}} - [[spoiler: how many times have we ever seen the hero trying to shame the mob ''into'' fighting instead of out of it?]]
* ShoutOut: Yō has a Franchise/{{Sonic|TheHedgehog}} wallpaper for his cellphone.
** Hell, his entire family are Creator/{{SEGA}} fans, giving him a UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn to play since his infancy.
* ShowerScene: Sen gets one in the first chapter of the prequel manga.
** The Sawagis also get a rather [[IncestSubtext loaded]] one in Episode 10.
* SomethingElseAlsoRises: The bento that Satou covers himself with after his swimming trunks fall off is noticeably taller than it is wide.
** Satou and an oral thermometer in episode 8.
* SoundtrackDissonance: Peppy music plays during the calm right before a battle. Justified since the battles take place in either a convenience store or supermarket.
* SpoilerOpening: The second opening blatantly gives away the fact that [[spoiler:despite being introduced as villains, the Kyo twins will join the main cast.]]
* SpotlightStealingSquad: Invoked. The Shaga-centric episode is opened with her image song rather than the usual opening theme.
* StrollingThroughTheChaos: Oshiroi manages to win bentos by avoiding everybody's attention. Kaneshiro mentions in ''Zero'' that this is a perfectly legitimate way to win.
* StudentCouncilPresident: Ume of Satou's School and The elder long-haired Kyo Sawagi of Ayame's school.
* TheTease: Sen in getting Satou and Oshiroi into joining her club.
%%** Ayame is also one.
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: When Satou runs from a guard unwilling to let him see Shaga in her dormitory who strips him down to his underwear and [[AssShove seeks to shove a D Battery in his ass]] for the attempt, other guards eventually join in on the chase, ''wearing military-grade armour and carrying assault rifles''. Footage of the chase in episode 9 reveals ''they fired on him, threw a grenade at him, and used FastRoping to get to him''. ''After a boy in his underwear''.
* ThresholdGuardians: Sen is this to Satou. In turn, Uzu is this to Sen in the prequel manga.
%%* TookALevelInBadass: Yo in Episode 2.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: All ''discount gods'' put an ''honor seal'' onto their favorite bento. It is naturally the main target of the wolves and boars.
* TrainingFromHell: By a villain, no less! The Monarch deliberately starves himself for three days before a big fight.
* TruthInTelevision: a lot of the "bentou-hunting techniques and etiquette" shown in the series can be witnessed daily in Japanese supermarkets and department stores. (Albeit with less bloodshed.)
* TwelveEpisodeAnime
* VictoryIsBoring: Satou's reaction to the hounds' methods to gaining bentos.
** [[spoiler: The Club of Heracles engineered this reaction for Orthros, but the result was less boring and more traumatic.]]
* WeaksauceWeakness: Sen figures out how to block Uzu's [[OneHitKill signature "poison" move]] by using something that would prevent Uzu's hand from making contact with her skin, like [[spoiler:chopsticks]].
* WeirdnessCensor: For the most part, the regular grocery store shoppers don't seem to notice or care about the fact that their supermarkets turn into literal warzones every night.
** [[spoiler:While the blood-splatter from Sen being attacked attracts a crowd and gossip spreading word of it, no one seems to have cared enough to alert the police about a gang in black attacking a high-school student.]]
* WhamEpisode: Episode 10. [[spoiler:The Kyo twins curbstomp the ''entire cast'' (except [[PutOnABus the Wizard]]), including Sen herself, over the course of the episode.]]
* WholesomeCrossdresser: Satou in episode 5, [[ButtMonkey not that he has any say in the matter, though...]]
* TheWorfEffect: [[spoiler: Monarch]] gets beaten up by Orthros so badly that it's implied he'll give up on half priced food hunting all together. He doesn't though.
** Also, many of the recurring Wolves like Brunette, Monk, and Beardy have suffered this fate as well.
** To heck with all those characters, the real one who gets Worfed is [[spoiler: The Ice Witch, who gets beaten up rather easily by Orthros, see WorfHadTheFlu.]]
** [[spoiler:Orthros themselves suffer this multiple times, such as when get beaten by the Wizard later on.]]
* WorfHadTheFlu: [[spoiler: The episode after her defeat by Orthos, Sen would later reveal she had a small cold that night and would stay home in bed trying to recover the next day, only to sabotage herself and make it worst.]]
* WorthyOpponent: Pretty much everyone ends up as this to each other, with [[TheUnfettered boars,]] [[LargeAndInCharge the Monarch,]] and [[spoiler: [[ManipulativeBastard the Club of Heracles]]]] as the exceptions.
* WouldHitAGirl: A necessity, as so many Wolves are female.
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