With the show now available to stream on Netflix, I decided to see what all the fuss was about regarding the incredibly popular Food Wars! (Shokugeki no Soma). I love any Japanese series that's anchored in real-life, whether it's training in How Heavy are the Dumbbells You Lift or the geeky down-to-earth club atmosphere of Genshiken, so the idea of a food show really appealed. Well, I'm not sure what I expected exactly, but I'm pretty sure this wasn't it.
Yuki Morisaki works with his father in their popular restaurant, competing with his Dad to make the best dish in the area. The food is so good it causes patrons to almost explode in sexual ecstasy as they partake in the duo's frequent cook-offs. Yes, really.
The immediate problem facing the family is the attention of a greedy corporation and their buxom representative, who want to buy the restaurant so that they can raze it to the ground and build posh condos on it. After Yuki makes a brash statement about closing the doors for good if he couldn't satisfy a customer, she has his stocks spoiled and then demands he feed her a "delicious meaty dish". Can Yuki rise to the challenge?
Putting the story to one side, just for a moment, let's talk about the insane sexual gratification caused by the food at this restaurant. We're not just talking shaky legs and quivering bosoms (though we get those too) but at one stage clothes are flying off and colourful rainbows of pleasure are erupting from the nether regions of the diners! It's so comically over the top I had to double-check I wasn't watching porn. I know Interspecies Reviewers has its detractors, but this has to be on the same level for shameless sexual content, and it's not even the crux of the story! How was this missed by the censors? I'm just glad my fiance didn't walk in on me watching it, as I'd have had difficulty in explaining it to her!
Once we're done with the cool posing, ingenious cooking methods and multiple orgasms, the episode sets out its real stall - Yuki's father closes the restaurant to pursue other interests (after all that work saving it!) and Yuki is shipped off to culinary school, a fantasy campus containing building styles from across the globe - super-modern sky rises, Japanese temples and European cathedrals abounds in what I can only describe as culinary-Hogwarts.
There's nothing new in the setup really, once you scrape away the silliness - this is a high-school anime with a focus on culinary battles as opposed to magic, (Negima, Harry Potter, Academia) Martial Arts (Naruto, Ranma) or science (A Certain Scientific Railgun) and so on.
The focus is food, the battlefield is culinary school and the Food War is on. Of course we only meet our hero in this first episode, doubtless we have his skilled classmate rivals to go through, many learning experiences and extreme emotional challenges to overcome - so far, so formulaic.
I think what sets the show apart in episode one is the sheer energy of it. It's as if the director was so embarrassed by the focus of the story, he decided to go all out in making it the most dramatically over-the-top show since Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, and I think he's kinda nailed it. Yuki is a decent protagonist, a bit bratty, a bit arrogant, but full of spirit, and from the creative visuals alone I can't wait to see what's going to happen next.
So "First Thoughts", does it entice further viewing? I think so - yes, I can probably guess the lead character's progress, but so long as the visuals are this entertaining and they draw back on the silly sexual elements (once is funny, I can see it growing old fast) but the after-credits sting gives me hope that they'll keep it fresh - after all, there's not many shows where a woman showering under a waterfall is hit in the head with a jukebox.
Silly, purile and vulgar it may be, but it has potential to be hugely creative and entertaining, so I'll be sticking around for another course.
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