Shokugeki no Souma: San no Sara - Kyokuseiryou no Erina

When the 6th week of current season hit, many series decided to take a week long hiatus and air some filler, recapturing the former 4-5 episodes. FranXX did the-making-of video with live interviews. What about Shokugeki no Souma? J.C. Staff gave us a fanservice special and used more money animating it than they have used to animate season 3.1 thus far. Some decisions are just better than others.

The episode can be split in two. First half centers around Erina, and keeps creating comedic situations where she struggles to use devices which are self-explatory to common folks. These include stuff like washing machines and vacuum cleaners. ... The comedy is rather impressive. I found myself laughing at it most of the time. I also nearly died when Soma started pressing dem buttons. The second half is about girls going to bath house and slowly undressing themselves. There really isn't much food present but who could complain when Erina herself looks so tasty, le lenny face.

The worst part is the fact that this is an OAD release. Meaning the native resolution is only 480p which really does not serve modern anime. If this was in HD, it would obviously be 2good2breal. I shouldn't have to explain what type of masterpiece this would be if it was uncencored, so I won't. As a whole this is pretty much the funniest special I can think of.

This was a very cute special. I love seeing rich ojou-sama types have to try and blend in with plebeian society and being inept as basic things like household chores and such. Erina was once depicted as the big bad of the show, despite only ranking 10th among the elite students. Now the last season did a lot to humanize her and this special is just a continuation of those themes. Her haughtiness is almost been completely done away with and supplanted with her more tsundere personality. I predict even more romantic tension with Souma going forward, and plenty more opportunity for her to humble ... herself in her new lifestyle.

8/10

[THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS]
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(Housework, Bathhouse, and Swimsuits)

This OVA details the events of what happened to Erina during her time at the Polar Star Dormitory. This OVA is broken up into two events:

First Event: Erina had ran away from home with the aide of her assistant and cousin, and taken into care by all members of the Polar Star Dormitory. Upon, entering the Dormitory, she realizes how little she knows about using everyday appliances, in this case doing laundry and using the washing machine, and using the vacuum cleaner.

Second Event: After, Shouji Satou and Daigo Aoki accidentally destroyed the Polar Star’s bathroom, everyone decides ... to head to the public bathhouse. Then, Rindou Kobayashi comes in, and promises to not tell Erina’s father where she is, if Erina can defeat her in seeing who can stay longer in the ‘Famous Inferno Pool’.

After Credits: Erina Nakiri, Megumi Tadokoro, and Hisako Arato are all shown in swimsuits for a mere 15 seconds, and it’s lovely. However, Gin Doujima shows them that the powers of muscles and manliness are even more sexy and awesome.

How manly. How lovely indeed!

Overall, if we ignore the same opening and ending song used in the first cour Shokugeki no Souma season 3, the same voice actors and actresses reprising their roles, and the same decent art and animations, then this OVA is basically a fanservice episode that lacks any cooking scenes, and focuses more on the comedy aspect (i.e. Erina acting clueless and less of a princess, random wild animals, a silly competition, etc) with a special narrator.

In short, this OVA was fine, and contained lots of fanservice in the form of Erina acting different from usual, several bathhouse scenes, and images of the main girls in swimsuits. But, of course, Gin Doujima is best because of those lovely muscles.