While most lifestyle and fashion magazines are full of photos of slender male and female models photoshopped to perfection that create an unrealistic image of the human body, a fresh Japanese men’s magazine is taking a different approach. Mr. Babe is targeted towards chubby men, a body type that is rarely represented in the mainstream fashion industry.
在各类生活时尚类杂志上，最常见的就是各种身材纤瘦的俊男靓女，这些经过ps的模特照片向读者展示几近失真的完美身体曲线，不过最近日本一本新男性杂志《Mr.Babe》另辟蹊径，开始将镜头推向胖子们，即那些在主流时尚界很少出现的身型。
Launched early this month, Mr. Babe describes itself as Japan’s first “fashion and lifestyle magazine of chubby men, by chubby men and for chubby men”. It’s main goal is to boost the confidence of its readers and convince them that they can lead happy successful lives regardless of the few extra pounds, by offering fashion tips, health and personal grooming advice and articles on romance and marriage. “Our magazine is in no way encouraging men to gain weight and become chubby,” editor-in-chief Norihito Kurashina said in a recent interview. “Our message is that chubby men can be attractive by making use of what they have now while being mindful of their health so as not to become obese.”
这本名叫《Mr.Babe》的男士杂志于本月初创刊，自称是日本第一本“专门为胖子打造的”生活时尚类杂志。杂志创办的主要目标是为了提高读者们的自信， 通过给出着装、健康和个人修饰方面的建议，以及刊登恋爱、婚姻相关的文章，帮助胖子读者们相信，即使是在“身负重肉”的情况下，也可以幸福快乐地成为人生 赢家。不过杂志主编Norihito Kurashina在最近的一次采访中表示：“我们的杂志可不是为了鼓励男士都去增重，变得胖乎乎的，我们希望传达的理念是：在注重避免成为肥胖症的前提 下，微胖型男士可以发挥现有身材的优势，成为有魅力的人”。
Kurashina was in charge of Men’s Knuckle, a magazine aimed at young slender Japanese men working as hosts, for over 10 years before shifting completely and launching Mr. Babe. The 52-year-old describes himself as a “debu (fatso) for 25 years” so that might explain the change, but he also claims that the new magazine could become a big business, as overweight men are no longer a minority in Japanese society.
在决定发行《Mr.Babe》之前，Kurashina曾为另一本名叫《Men’s Knuckle》的杂志担任过十多年的主编，那是一本专门为年轻纤瘦的日本男主播打造的时尚杂志。Kurashina已经52岁了，自称已经“微胖了25 年”，这也是他事业转型的原因之一。不过他还声称这本全新出版的杂志一定会大获成功，因为日本社会里的胖子数量已经相当多了，他们有非常广泛的读者群。
According to the health ministry’s National Health and Nutrition Survey, roughly one in three Japanese men nowadays is overweight. The percentage of overweight men in Japan has been growing gradually over the last decade, while the number of over overweight women has decreased. Kurashina attributes the growing number pf plump men to long working hours. They go drinking after work to relax and have no time, energy and money to go to the gym and keep in shape. “Naturally, their bellies grow,” he said.
根据日本健康部的健康营养调查，大约三分之一的日本男性现正处于超重状态。而且在过去的十年里，这一比例正在逐年上升，而肥胖女性的数量却在下降。 Kurashina认为男性的超重是由于他们超长的工作时间，而在下班后，他们又会去喝酒放松，因此很难有时间、精力还有金钱去光顾健身房来保持体型，长 此以往，“男人们的啤酒肚自然而然地就出来了”。
The Poccharimen (literally “chubby men”) portrayed in Mr. Babe magazine are not much different than the Ikemen (a Japanese term used to describe handsome and sexy men) that show up in most mainstream magazines. They are charming, well-dressed and handsome. They just pack a few extra pounds, as well.
《Mr.Babe》上的微胖男士和主流杂志上的型男并没有很大的差距，除了多出来几磅肉外，他们同样英俊帅气有魅力，而且也很懂得时装搭配。
As for how successful Mr. Babe will be as a magazine, Norihito Kurashina says he is already “feeling a good response” from the target audience. Some 50,000 copies have been printed of the first issue, which has film star Jack Black on the cover, and the editor in chief said he would be pretty happy if half of them sold.
在谈及《Mr.Babe》能收获多大的成功时，Kursahina自信地笑道：“我已经感受到读者们的热情了。”目前已有大约五万本《Mr.Babe》的首版杂志印刷完毕，封面就是电影明星Jack Black，主编先生表示：“首发可以卖出一半，我就满足了。”