Butareba: The Story of a Man Turned into a Pig
Butareba: The Story of a Man Turned into a Pig, also known as Heat the Pig Liver, is a Japanese light novel series written by Takuma Sakai and illustrated by Asagi Tōsaka. ASCII Media Works published nine volumes under their Dengeki Bunko imprint from March 2020 to March 2024. A manga adaptation with art by Minami has been serialized in ASCII Media Works' manga magazine Dengeki Maoh since August 2020. An anime television series adaptation produced by Project No.9 aired from October 2023 to February 2024.
Plot
After finding himself unconscious after eating pig liver, a Japanese man finds himself in another world called Mesteria, having been reincarnated as a pig. There, he encounters Jess, a kind-hearted girl who is a member of the Yethma, a group that is forced to live wearing collars. Jess aims to head to Mesteria's capital, but after learning about the pig's past life, she lets him accompany her. The two go on a journey to the capital, with the two hoping that their trip there could help him become a human again.Characters
;Pig;Jess
;Ceres
;Nott
;Brace
Media
Light novel
In September 2023, J-Novel Club announced that they had licensed the novels for English publication.Manga
A manga adaptation with art by Minami has been serialized in ASCII Media Works' manga magazine Dengeki Maoh since August 2020. Its chapters have been collected in eight volumes as of November 2025.During their Anime NYC 2023 panel, J-Novel Club announced that they also licensed the manga for English publication.
Anime
On December 11, 2021, during the "Dengeki Bunko Winter Festival 2021" livestream event, an anime television series adaptation was announced. It is produced by Project No.9 and directed by Masayuki Takahashi, with scripts written by Deko Akao, character designs handled by Susumu Watanabe, and music composed by Kenichiro Suehiro and Mayuko. The series aired from October 8, 2023, to February 6, 2024, on Tokyo MX and other networks. The anime series mainly covers the first volume of the novel series. The opening theme song is "Watashi ga Warau Riyū wa" by Asca, while the ending theme song is "Hitori Janai yo" by Myuk. In December 2023, it was announced that the 12th and final episode would be delayed, which was eventually broadcast on February 6, 2024.In North America, the series is licensed by Aniplex of America, and streamed by Crunchyroll outside of Asia. Muse Communication licensed the series in Southeast Asia.
Reception
The light novel series won the gold prize in the 26th Dengeki Novel Prize in 2019.Game Rant stated that the anime adaptation "is not a very good anime by any stretch of the imagination", though they noted its uniqueness in having a pig as a protagonist.