|
Only just noticed this thread. This last chapter really shows that Tosh and Yuuto make for an actually competent writing team. They have an impeccable sense of pacing, so the tension is always rising, falling, then rising even higher. Just try reading through this chapter alone to see what I mean. Or this giant block of spoilers as I dissect this chapter like a frog during high school science. First page, it starts cold, raises the tension by noting the pause, second page, we see Megumi is nervous but only needs a gentle push forward to get over it, lowering the tension a little, third page she's presenting her dish, back to raising the tension, fourth page it's revealed what it actually is, a quick jab from the rival keeps the tension rising, page five we can almost count the seconds the judges take to cut and eat the food, during which on the sixth page, Megumi is flashing back to a previous exam, where she failed to make tea to the standards of the examiner and you can hear all the whispers of the faceless crowd from back then tormenting her now, so by the seventh page we're basically holding our breath to see what the judges decide. That means it's not till the eighth page that the tension breaks and we feel a sense of relief that turns to excitement as we try to follow along with the judges food chat, which is, by magic I can't articulate, exhilarating and exciting to read, the passion and metaphors combining together to spur their imaginations. Pages 14 and 15 is Megumi and Souma expressing their relief and satisfaction, first with words, then with a smile. The really great part in all of this is the art. You almost don't need the writing at all to understand exactly what's going on at any given moment, because the characters expressions and the panel layout and the mood and everything is conveyed almost effortlessly through the art. Go back and really look at the faces, every emotion is as clear as if it was subtitled. Note that there's basically no pointless panels. That step forward needed both the raised foot and the actual step to show how difficult it was to make that single step. That panel with the brave face is beside the panel with her standing before the judges, small and alone, to show just how hard it actually is to stand where she's standing. Every panel on page seven is set to the ticking of the clock, building anticipation with every second. And again, page 15 is just the both of them smiling at each other, and it says everything without saying a drat thing, which is something I wish a lot more manga would do a lot more often. And that's not even touching on the last four pages, which bring back the tension softly, we've already seen Megumi win this battle of self-confidence on page 15, that was her first big step forward for her character arc, all she needs to do is win the cooking contest and celebrate a hard won battle with herself. And she doesn't. And that's why you're gonna read next week's chapter. Because this is some seriously good manga Tosh and Yuuto are cooking up here, made with the kind of care and attention to detail that requires somebody who's not rambling aimlessly at four in the loving morning god I need to go to bed. SatansBestBuddy fucked around with this message at 12:04 on Jun 1, 2013 |
#
¿
Jun 1, 2013 11:58
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 2, 2024 04:44 |
|
|
Heh, I figured they'd wait a little longer before they cut and paste the ending from Ratatouille.  Whatever, it's a bit early in the manga's lifespan to start ditching characters already, particularly when their character arcs are shaping up to be far more interesting than the main protagonist. Still, would've been cool if she was cut then and there. That would require some massive, massive balls.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 10, 2013 06:17
|
|
|
Okay, now I may actually have a small interest in Soma's character arc. He takes this pretty hard for what's supposed to be a victory. I mean, he wasn't the head chef, so it's not "his" loss, since it wasn't his dish that went up against Shinomiya's. He's got a hell of a poker face though, wasn't till he (thought he) was alone that he even let any of his frustration out, but that also goes towards the audience. Typically a shonen lead would be thinking about all the mistakes he made, all the things he should have done better, what he should have done differently. Instead it's "I lost" and that's it. Hard to see if he's taken any lessons from this or not. Also, the arrow pointing out the hand a panel before he's slapped just tickles my funny bone. 
|
|
#
¿
Jun 15, 2013 21:45
|
|
|
Soylentbits posted:Well he'll probably just partner with the main girl to take care of his presentation problem since she cares so much about what the customer thinks. They have to make her somewhat relevant. Except she completely hates his guts and sees his flunking out as a good thing so why would she bother? And they're in the middle of their exam right now anyway, so even if somebody wanted to help him it's too late already.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 7, 2013 05:11
|
|
|
Chapter 31 - loving soufflés
|
|
#
¿
Jul 13, 2013 02:12
|
|
|
Saiha Jouichirou? Wait, isn't that backwards? I thought it was the bride who takes the grooms family name...
|
|
#
¿
Aug 2, 2013 02:11
|
|
|
... okay, time for me to go figure out how to make karaage. Stuff sounds like it's delicious. Anyone have a preferred recipe on hand?
|
|
#
¿
Aug 23, 2013 01:53
|
|
|
sunburnedcrow posted:Okay, uh, the first half of the chapter happened. Whatever floats the writer's boat I guess. I get the distinct impression that was all on the artist. And I sincerely hope for more.  Shokugeki no Soma is a cooking manga, but it doesn't have to be for every chapter.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 12, 2013 08:02
|
|
|
Chapter 47 BEGIN... COOKING!
|
|
#
¿
Nov 11, 2013 00:36
|
|
|
Xelkelvos posted:"Kitchen Combat" should've been the used instead. That way the area they compete in could be called Kitchen Colosseum. Holy poo poo this is so much better than the real official name I'm now actually mad over this rather than just kinda annoyed. "Food Wars" is both ridiculous as a name and doesn't feel at all like what the actual manga reads as. "Food Wars" reads as a wacky comedy where people fight each other with food as their weapons. "Kitchen Combat" reads as a more serious but still somewhat silly manga wherein chefs compete against each other.
|
|
#
¿
Nov 11, 2013 11:02
|
|
|
Chapter 48 Souma sleeping on the job. Also that colour spread is awesome.
|
|
#
¿
Nov 19, 2013 17:18
|
|
|
Wait... doesn't smell have a huge impact on taste, to the point where you can flavour some foods just by having the right fragrance nearby? How can something that smells so bad it would even reach the audience and make them choke taste good when eaten? This is particularly weird cause they had that one guy who could smell real good just a couple chapters ago make a big deal out of smells and spices.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 10, 2013 05:46
|
|
|
Compendium posted:Chapter 52 is out. That was quick! That was awesome. "Nao the White" holy poo poo that was easily the best foodgasm yet.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 13, 2013 02:52
|
|
|
Chapter 52.5 So much free time.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 28, 2013 01:25
|
|
|
Neo_Crimson posted:On the other hand, Souma's repeatedly shown that he's at his best when he has to think on his feet. I think whatever he has planned is going to blow up in his face and he has to salvage it quickly. How? Once he hands over his dish, they aren't gonna let him cook a side or whatever. Whatever he hands over is gonna be all they're gonna take from him.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 2, 2014 02:37
|
|
|
Chapter 54 I have completely forgotten who the last guy is. Was he introduced with the rest?
|
|
#
¿
Jan 20, 2014 05:25
|
|
|
I wonder what Souma's awesome nickname is gonna be? King of Curry? Curry Curator?
|
|
#
¿
Feb 4, 2014 02:55
|
|
|
Chapter 58 Things get explosive.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 15, 2014 19:02
|
|
|
SatansBestBuddy posted:I wonder what Souma's awesome nickname is gonna be? King of Curry? Curry Curator? The Ultimate Sore Loser And the streak continues, too!
|
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2014 00:07
|
|
|
This is the chapter that flicked the Shoujo switch and yet doesn't annoy the poo poo out of me. Amazing. I don't ever think I've seen a Shoujo switch that didn't annoy the poo poo out of me.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 1, 2014 20:17
|
|
|
 Shokugeki no Soma is a cooking manga.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 17, 2014 00:09
|
|
|
Xelkelvos posted:That's the caliber of work you can get from someone who moved up from hentai doujinshi. Uh, not really? Or at least I fail to see how drawing hentai specifically makes you a better artist compared to, say, drawing food. He does have a real good eye for characters, though. A lot of other manga artists fall into the trap of having everyone look the same except for their hair, but even after passing three dozen characters they're still all very easy to tell apart simply by looking at their faces, they all have unique shapes and features to keep everyone distinct, even when exaggerated like they so often are.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 22, 2014 23:28
|
|
|
Xelkelvos posted:He was publishing ero-manga at a monthly pace for a decent stretch of time too which meant that he was good enough at art to get at that level and was able to meet schedules solo. Huh. I didn't know they scheduled ero-manga at all, I figured it was all done on the convention circuit with occasional selling to some magazines. Your argument is valid.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 25, 2014 16:21
|
|
|
At the start, I'm sure, Erina was planned to be more involved, but she's been written to be a loner and placed on such a high pedestal that Souma barely interacts with her at all. They've mostly been just randomly bumping into each other, compared to everybody in the Polar Star dorms hanging out all the time, it's no wonder Tadokoro gets more development. Erina will get more time when something happens that directly involves her, say, deciding to elect a new member of the Elite 10 or however they pick new members.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 30, 2014 00:15
|
|
|
I'd like to think the manga is doing a better job than that, at least so far it's been very entertaining and the romance stuff has all been sidelined in favour of more cook-offs. I mean, sure, it could totally fall into the same old clichés that dozens of other series have already beaten us over the head with, but I guess I'm just being optimistic with my wild guessing of where the series is headed for the next hundred chapters when I say it doesn't feel like we're going with either direction.
|
|
#
¿
Apr 9, 2014 01:57
|
|
|
Zenzirouj posted:Subversion of tropes is the main thing I like about this manga. It's most evident when the Italian guy tries to do something dramatically shonen and Souma ruins the atmosphere, but we're also getting it with this new big guy who just looks big and strong but is actually a scheme-y, data-driven, manipulator type. Who wears an apron and takes like twenty minutes to lock up his bike. You know a weird thing I noticed? His introduction had him crashing the tournament the exact same way Megumi did, ie they both were the last to go, both came after a climatic showdown that would have closed the block on a high note, and both took 4th place against all expectations. I think they had the same score, too.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 27, 2014 04:41
|
|
|
Xelkelvos posted:I'm probably thinking about it as hard as the writer. True, but that's not really the goal here, it's more to make cooking an entertaining spectacle. Flimsy definitions of "hamburgers" not withstanding, are you not entertained?
|
|
#
¿
Jun 27, 2014 20:17
|
|
|
Sonata Mused posted:Looks like he'll be able to pull off the comeback. I dunno, it looks like it could go either way. The story is building up to him losing, and a last minute change could get him the win, but it is a last minute change, against a guy who's much better prepared. In a straight up fighting manga, I'd bet on Takumi, but a cooking manga where it comes down to the judges deciding on who made the best dish? I have a feeling we're not gonna see a repeat of the pattern we've seen in the last two rounds, where the dish served first loses.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 15, 2014 09:47
|
|
|
Furious Lobster posted:Sure but it's reaching Joker levels of prediction: I know what'll you do after you do X --> Y --> Z to the point of stretching even my manga/film limits of disbelief. Not really. All he did was guess that Takumi was gonna use his extra ingredients to do something with lemons, he didn't know what Takumi was gonna do, just the ingredients he'd have left to do it with... so he prepared his dish with a dash of lemon everywhere, just in case. He also took the time to balance the lemon flavour with the natural sweetness of the cake, which led to a better tasting dish. I've seen much crazier "just as planned" scenarios than what we have here, this one is downright believable. Also, that last image... H. R. Giger much 
|
|
#
¿
Jul 21, 2014 05:46
|
|
|
AVeryLargeRadish posted:Ahahaha, always fun to see Yukihira pull stuff like this. Giant loving balls there. After reading the chapter, I really don't have anything to add to this. Giant loving Balls, indeed.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 29, 2014 21:58
|
|
|
Chapter 81
|
|
#
¿
Aug 5, 2014 17:01
|
|
|
vibratingsheep posted:Bro, or just wanting to mess with her cousin some more? Both, obviously.
|
|
#
¿
Aug 24, 2014 06:12
|
|
|
I'm still getting cracked up when people are acting shocked by the most basic things. "And now he's... oh god... he's finely cutting the vegetables.  "
|
|
#
¿
Sep 11, 2014 00:57
|
|
|
Hey guys. Here're chapters 95, 96, 97, 98 in full colour. They were originally released in black and white, but scanners went back and got the colour versions and they look loving sweet. Also chapter 100 
|
|
#
¿
Dec 30, 2014 21:16
|
|
|
You know, I kinda don't get where the "Souma represents the everyman" thing came from? I mean, I get that he's from a pretty typical line-chef background without a fancy upbringing or anything, but he's also competing with the top dogs of the school. He's constantly scored highly in both classes and competition. He makes Gundam's out of carrots and celery. So he's pretty clearly a very talented chef. I guess I kinda don't get where this chapter is coming from at all? It's weird and doesn't have meat roller coasters and I've already seen this manga do serious time better than this. Filler at it's most filler-esque.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 23, 2015 07:55
|
|
|
paragon1 posted:The point the author is getting at is "The students have been pissy at Souma because he forces them to confront the fact that they've never even really tried to be the best. They gave up before they'd even begun." I think this is where my problem is coming from; Souma isn't confronting people with that. He's too busy trying to outcook some of the best chefs in his year, which is where the story should be focusing right now. I guess this is an interesting tangent they can explore after the competition, but having it be dumped in the middle of judging feels.... distracting. Like they really needed to end on a cliffhanger this chapter after already ending on a cliffhanger last chapter. I should say, I'm not calling this a bad storyline to follow through, I'd just be far more interested if it's something Souma actually did rather than something other people speculate he's doing while he's busy doing something else entirely.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 23, 2015 19:59
|
|
|
FutureCop posted:I hope they do explore more about it, and I love how goons have explored other psychological syndromes in stuff like Hero Academia when it popped up for Bakugou's backstory. However, I wish that this manga was a bit more 'show' and less 'tell' about how Soma is doing this. I almost wonder if they were intentionally so on-the-nose about it because some people don't buy Soma as an underdog: I've seen plenty of posts where people are almost bored with his constant win-streak. A real lack of tension, so to speak, so they are trying to forcefully inject some. Anyway, hopefully it goes alright, though when stuff like this happens where it's the poor vs the rich, I'm always afraid it's going to spiral out-of-control like Air Gear's ending... I'm kinda hoping that, once he gets into the Elite Ten, it'll be less about the cooking and more about every other aspect of running a restaurant. Like, there's more to be a successful chef than just being a good cook, you also have to know how to deal with running a business, managing multiple other chefs, attracting people to your cookhouse over the other guys across the street. They touched on this a little bit earlier when Souma visited his hometown and helped out, and I hope they go after that further down the line because it's a really interesting angle. After all, his father is one of the greatest cooks ever, but he's also the owner of some middle of nowhere grillhouse with only his son around to help out, and while it's strongly hinted at that he's there mostly by choice, it could also be that his father isn't all that great at inspiring or leading other people, and so running a successful restaurant any larger than himself and one other person he really trusts is beyond him. So having his kid become not only a better cook than he is, but also a better businessman and leader, would be pretty cool I think. Right now, Souma doesn't have that kind of ambition, he really just wants to keep cooking at home with his dad, but I see a lot of potential there. Or at least to make it so the cooking is still the focus but not the end-all-be-all of every situation.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 24, 2015 00:41
|
|
|
ZepiaEltnamOberon posted:Specialty is love. Or something. To be completely fair, the idea of "fill your cooking with feelings for someone special" is something that's been hinted at since the first chapter, so it's not out of nowhere.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 26, 2015 10:20
|
|
|
The weird thing is that Kurokiba also had a rough life that he escaped from because of a girl whom he now has feelings for. But he didn't win because????
|
|
#
¿
Jan 26, 2015 12:54
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 2, 2024 04:44 |
|
|
My only problem with this chapter is that it should've been last chapter. Did we really need that stopgap with the "seconds"? Did we really need to see the school warming up to Souma? Did we really need those musings on how much "effort" people aren't making? Particularly since it all built up to Souma losing anyway? Whatever. But really at this point most of my problems are annoyances at best. Still a great manga, happy to read it ever week.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 28, 2015 00:37
|
|