Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma

Episode 8

Before I get into what actually happens in this episode of Food Wars!, a small warning for the very squeamish: two of the new(ly named) characters this week butcher a duck, which is moderately more graphic than the hanging slabs of meat last week. While it's hardly a bloodbath, we do get clear shots of the bird's innards, so when the scene comes up, those who don't like that sort of thing may want to focus really hard on the subtitles. If that doesn't gross you out, however, it's nice to note that everything looks recognizable rather than just being reddish chunks of stuff on the tray. It's the kind of detail that the show sometimes puts into the cooking scenes that really makes it work as a cooking story, lending it an authenticity that some of the other images might make you think it lacks.

This week the kids of POLARIS (along with the rest of the first years at Totsuki) head off on their special training camp, and as you might have guessed, this isn't a "test of courage" kind of place...at least not in the usual sense. The school has brought in lots of famous alums to teach and judge the students on their skills in a series of challenges, and to fail means something worse than immediate expulsion: it means being sent back to school in shame, then being expelled, adding a little psychological torture into the humiliation. Naturally almost everyone who isn't Soma is terrified – in fact, poor Tadokoro looks like she's going to give herself a heart attack if she doesn't calm down. Luckily for her, she's paired with Soma in their first challenge, presented by a famous chef of traditional Japanese dishes: forage in the area for ingredients, then go and prepare a traditional Japanese meal. The students are aghast and panicky; I meanwhile marveled at their ability to keep their uniforms pristine while gadding about in the great outdoors. More importantly, Soma faces his first like-minded challengers: the Aldini brothers, who, like Soma, worked in their family's trattoria previous to coming to Totsuki. This episode's dish is theirs, and the knife work in particular is really impressive. The duck with salsa verde is mouthwatering, and the foodgasm is one of the better ones in terms of imagery: the instructor being gently held in the arms of an opera singer dressed like a duck.

In a change of pace, most of the nudity we see this episode is male, with only one being in a sexual context, so it is safe to say that things are toning down. Faces, especially of background characters, are not looking great, but bodies have definitely evened out, with everything looking properly attached for a change. The only thing that struck me as odd was the coloring chosen for the chef of Ristorante F, who for some reason has dusty-teal hair and blood red eyes. This makes her stand out unnecessarily, to say nothing of looking a little bit creepy, although that could just be my perception. There are a fair amount of new characters introduced this week, which is a little overwhelming; we'll see how well they manage to keep everyone distinct as the weeks go on.

While it is a little too bad not to see Soma and Tadokoro prepare their dish, it does heighten our anticipation for next week, and that can only be a good thing. Food Wars! has pulled itself out of the distasteful place where it began, and while it still may not be to everyone's taste, it has evolved into a tense, at times frustrating, but overall more interesting show.

Rating: A-

Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Rebecca Silverman is ANN's senior manga critic.