Here, with the 3rd season, we see this in full play: energy, entertaining plot twists and suspense.
Story & Characters: 7/10
I'm grouping these together because they're similar. If you were to describe the plot, it's essentially a shonen with cooking. The characters are those you'd find in any standard anime of this genre: always supportive, optimistic, good always triumphs etc etc. But that's something we learn in season 1.
No, we've stuck around til season 3 because it's not about the end result, but the journey - and this is usually what makes and breaks your standard shounen as well. The have added depth and cliff hanger after cliff hanger, that just throws you deeper into a world you didn't think had the potential for depth.
Characters who were "tsundere" get their backstories, new characters come into play and shake up the old, bringing in some new. And of course, it's always interesting seeing how the old and familiar characters deal in their separate ways with said 'new'. You really see how imaginative the creator is, and how they truly know how write, to keep us hooked on a plot purely about cooking.
Art: 10/10
This is the shining star of the show. The brilliant and broad color palette elevates the show to another level. The finished dishes produced are so incredibly appealing, so mouth-watering, and so beautifully animated that we can show these dishes to people who have never seen anime. Even they will be able to appreciate just how well animated it is - and showing outsiders anime is not something one can easily do ;)
Enjoyment: 10/10
Shokugeki no Souma truly encaptures everything an anime is: unrealistically colorful, full of too much energy and keeps you hooked through the entire thing. It does what every good show should do: have you clicking on 'Next Episode'.
It's fast paced, and full of feel good moments, that even though corny at times, doesn't stop you from feeling helplessly satisfied.
This is a show I'll greatly miss, and I have no doubt I'll be seeing a sequel soon enough.
