What They Say:
Shokugeki no Soma centers on Yukihira Soma, a middle school student who is determined to surpass his father’s culinary skills. One day, his father decides to close down their family restaurant and hone his skills in Europe. Before leaving he enrolls Soma in an elite culinary school that is extremely difficult to enter with a graduation rate of only 10 percent. Will Soma be able to improve his skills, or will the kitchen prove to be too hot?
The Review:
The first thing you need to know about this episode is that after about two seasons worth of teasing, this episode finally, finally reveals what Rindo-sempai’s cooking style is, and it’s a doozy. Frankly, the rest of this episode could have featured nothing more than Soma and Megumi sitting back and playing dominoes and I would have been pretty happy. I need to get myself a T-shirt with Rindo’s face on it.
More importantly (to some people, anyway), the Hokkaido cooking competition that will decide the fate of the culinary world continues. Soma sits this one out while Megishima (former third seat, Elite ten) battles Rindo (second seat) in Bout Cayenne Pepper and Kuga (former eighth seat) battles Tsukasa (first seat) in Bout Green Tea. There’s also a third match going on where someone…battles…someone? Tuna is involved?
Look, I don’t mean to be a lazy reviewer, but there are about a billion chefs in Food Wars! at this point and it’s nearly impossible to keep track of all of them and all of their specialties. I really do appreciate the fact that every chef encountered either becomes a trusted ally or an important enemy, but the show really does have too many characters at this point and I’m not going to be held responsible for that. Besides, Rindo is busy butchering alligators over here, you really expect me to pay attention to what the third-string chefs are doing?
I find the premise of this Rebels vs. Central arc to be a bit tedious in all honesty; even for this show, the bad guy’s plan to reshape the culinary landscape of Japan is a bit grandiose. But as long as the cooking battles remain interesting, the show can just about get away with its thoroughly ridiculous premise. How is Tsukasa going to deal with Green Tea as the featured ingredient, when his specialty is French delicacies? I don’t even like Tsukasa and I’m still really curious to find out.
What does bother me at times is a lack of internal consistency. This episode features a long flashback where we learn how Soma recruited Megishima to fight for the rebels, and it seems to ignore something important that we were told previously. One of Director Azami’s Evil Plans is to turn Japan (and possibly the world) into a fine-dining only zone; little mom-and-pop run restaurants would be not only discouraged but illegal. Yet Soma has to work really hard to convince Megishima to join his rebellion by demonstrating his passion for ramen. Why doesn’t Soma just say “If Azami gets his way, all your beloved small ramen restaurants are going to be shut down?” Of course, cooking himself into a frenzy to prove his sincerity is much more on-brand for Soma, but it feels like the show forgot about that choice little detail of the enemy’s plan.
I have quibbles, but the show remains lots of fun, and that’s all Food Wars! was ever really about: having a good time, pushing the power of friendship, and adding urgency to your decision about what to have for dinner. If this really is the last season of the show, I’m glad it’s starting off on solid note, if not a perfect one.
In Summary:
The cooking battle formula may be getting a little stale, but Food Wars! still has enough tricks up its sleeve to keep viewers excited for one more trip to the kitchen stadium.
Episode Grade: B+
Streamed by: Crunchyroll
