(L) Shokugeki no Soma [Manga]

[Dysprosium]

Originally Posted by DragonOsman

Mind you, though, I'm actually fine with the endgame pairing being Souma x Erina or Souma x Megumi. [Or the author could troll us with Souma x Ikumi - but I really hope not.]

Megumi's gonna end up with Takumi - mark my words.

I've noticed the author already subtly inserting Takumi into the picture, whenever Megumi is concerned.

You don't have to worry about Nikumi, since she'd most likely end up with that pompadour fella.

[Estzero1]

Originally Posted by DragonOsman

Mind you, though, I'm actually fine with the endgame pairing being Souma x Erina or Souma x Megumi. [Or the author could troll us with Souma x Ikumi - but I really hope not.]

Speaking of Trolls, you have forgotten the Souma x Mayumi possibility or in combo with Nikumi .

Originally Posted by noobita

There won't be Erina X Soma ship now. Azami will sink it.

Erina: Father, I think I like Soma, and I want him to be my boyfriend?
Azami: Say it again?
Erina: I said I want Soma to be my-*got slapped by Azami*
Azami: Sorry, but Soma is belong to me. Well, I mean, soon.
Erina: But you are male-*got slapped by Azami*
Azami: Little girl, you are too young for that.
Azami: Soma and Saiba, I will make both of you MINE!!!!! Hahahahahahaha.
Erina: No, father..no!!!

Mhm, intruiging but highly disgusting .

[DragonOsman]

Originally Posted by Fairy Water

I actually want her back to ice queen mode so whatever, if she can, she should dere for now, before papa turns she back into ice queen.

I kind of want to stop shipping Souma and Erina after this chapter
I would rather have Erina x Hisako, at least Hisako really cares for her. I was so disappointed how the author brought Erina to PSD and didn't even try to develop the relationship between Erina and Souma I think I lost all the hope and interest in this stupid ship ~ so be gone ~~~~

I will try some crack ships like EishiErina

I'd hate it if Erina just went back into Ice Queen mode after all the Polar Star Dorm residents did for her. That and Senzaemon talking to Souma about saving her.

The author probably had his reasons for why he didn't start creating developments between Souma and Erina yet. I'm still thinking that developments for this ship are possible.

@PSY: On the point of the pairings, I certainly hope you're right. We'll see, though.

[Diluc]

Originally Posted by DragonOsman

I'd hate it if Erina just went back into Ice Queen mode after all the Polar Star Dorm residents did for her. That and Senzaemon talking to Souma about saving her.

The author probably had his reasons for why he didn't start creating developments between Souma and Erina yet. I'm still thinking that developments for this ship are possible.

@PSY: On the point of the pairings, I certainly hope you're right. We'll see, though.

Erina back as Ice Queen is not entirely bad things.
she could show her warmth to the Polar Star Dorm residents like she did to Hisako.
Ice Queen type just cold to public but they show their Gentle side to the people they care.

[Dysprosium]

Originally Posted by DragonOsman

@PSY: On the point of the pairings, I certainly hope you're right. We'll see, though.

Dragon, you can use this as a reference:

Spoiler:

Pretty certain 90% of those parings will be the end-game (the last one isn't an exception ).

[Fairy Water]

Originally Posted by DragonOsman

I'd hate it if Erina just went back into Ice Queen mode after all the Polar Star Dorm residents did for her. That and Senzaemon talking to Souma about saving her.

The author probably had his reasons for why he didn't start creating developments between Souma and Erina yet. I'm still thinking that developments for this ship are possible.

@PSY: On the point of the pairings, I certainly hope you're right. We'll see, though.

The first thing a shipper want when they see their couple together is a new development. I could see Erina is slowly become more interested in Souma thanks to Hisako but I also want the otherwise.

The way his cocky face asked Azami if Erina is really at the PSD and didn't even bother to stop him from entering or thinking any things, all he thought was "Oh hey, Azami entered the dining room!" "Oh Nakamura-sempai doesn't care for the PSD?"
And I was like :v " Hey Souma, Erina is shivering there, can you care a bit? "

Souma is starting to become a type of character that is hard to read for a shonen, cooking series.

@PSY: the certain percentage should drop down to 50% cause some of them are so unreal :/

[Kafriel]

OTP reference missed out on Shinomiya x Hinako, preposterous!

As for the next chapter, I'm expecting a full-scale "what can YOU do?" attack against Souma and his disgraceful 490 losses.

[DragonOsman]

I'm pretty sure Akira only has eyes for Shiomi. She's even the sole reason he wants to be a chef to begin with.

As for Souma, I just think he currently has no interest in anything besides cooking. He probably couldn't care less even if he saw that there's a girl who is in love with him. I hope it'll change eventually.

Edit: One post late.
@Kafriel: Souma only has those near 500 losses to his father. He himself is a great cook in his own right.

[Dysprosium]

Originally Posted by Kafriel

OTP reference missed out on Shinomiya x Hinako, preposterous!

Students only.

You're free to do up your list of the potential alumni pairings.

(I agree Shinomiya will eventually end up with Hinako, rather than with Mizuhara)

Originally Posted by DragonOsman

I'm pretty sure Akira only has eyes for Shiomi. She's even the sole reason he wants to be a chef to begin with.

As for Souma, I just think he currently has no interest in anything besides cooking. He probably couldn't care less even if he saw that there's a girl who is in love with him. I hope it'll change eventually.

Yeah, but dat (huge) age gap, though..

I think a mother-son relationship would best suit both parties. Besides, by the process of elimination, the Curry/Hisako pairing would make sense, IMO.

That will change, definitely, if he somehow finds out about his dad's advice later on.

(We can be sure there will be a romantic end, from the author's comments a while back, during Jump Festa)

[DOmus]

Originally Posted by PSY.Gangnam

No, it wasn't.

I personally thought it was already said he was a member of the PSD , for me it was shocking that it was revealed now(though it kinda make sense since they did not know about it) and not before.

[DragonOsman]

Originally Posted by PSY.Gangnam

Students only.

You're free to do up your list of the potential alumni pairings.

(I agree Shinomiya will eventually end up with Hinako, rather than with Mizuhara)



Yeah, but dat (huge) age gap, though..

I think a mother-son relationship would best suit both parties. Besides, by the process of elimination, the Curry/Hisako pairing would make sense, IMO.

That will change, definitely, if he somehow finds out about his dad's advice later on.

(We can be sure there will be a romantic end, from the author's comments a while back, during Jump Festa)

If Akira likes older women, then that would pretty much cement him having a romantic relationship with Shiomi. That and unless the guy and/or the girl is/are underage, I don't think age should matter that much as far as romance is concerned.

And I hope you're right about Souma's opinion of love changing so that the series can have romance-focused ending. I'm not sure if I'd be okay with it only being because of finding out about his father's advice, though. Love shouldn't have ulterior motives.

[Dysprosium]

Originally Posted by DOmus

I personally thought it was already said he was a member of the PSD , for me it was shocking that it was revealed now(though it kinda make sense since they did not know about it) and not before.

And which chapter might that be? Do jog my memory there.

Originally Posted by DragonOsman

If Akira likes older women, then that would pretty much cements him having a romantic relationship with Shiomi. That and unless the guy and/or the girl is/are underage, I don't think age should matter that much as far as romance is concerned.

And I hope you're right about Souma's opinion of love changing so that the series can have romance-focused ending. I'm not sure if I'd be okay with it only being because of finding out about his father's advice, though. Love shouldn't have ulterior motives.

Well, I do hope she "mother-zones" him, then, since there're plenty more fish in the sea.

I don't think his dad will ever tell him (knowing Jou, he will probably totally forget about it ), and Souma would probably "accidentally" stumble across that secret method to becoming a good chef.

[DOmus]

When the picture of him next to Jou and Jin was shown, I thought it was from the Polar students members of that year.

[Dysprosium]

Originally Posted by DOmus

When the picture of him next to Jou and Jin was shown, I thought it was from the Polar students members of that year.

Err.. I don't think so?

It's obviously a group shot of the E10 during that year (you can clearly see the kanji 十傑 behind them).

[DOmus]

Originally Posted by PSY.Gangnam

Err.. I don't think so?

It's obviously a group shot of the E10 during that year (you can clearly see the kanji 十傑 behind them).

That is why I said I thought it was another thing. But whatever, it has already been revealed.

[DragonOsman]

Originally Posted by PSY.Gangnam

And which chapter might that be? Do jog my memory there.



Well, I do hope she "mother-zones" him, then, since there're plenty more fish in the sea.

I don't think his dad will ever tell him (knowing Jou, he will probably totally forget about it ), and Souma would probably "accidentally" stumble across that secret method to becoming a good chef.

Well, I don't want her to "mother-zone" him, though, especially if he's serious about her. It's only if he's mistaken about his feelings or something and finds another girl to fall in love with that I think she should "mother-zone" him.

I really hope Jouichirou doesn't completely forget about it, though, since it's supposed to be the main reason why he's such a good chef. He'll probably just forget that he wanted to tell Souma (if he even did).

[I edited my previous post to take out the s from cement because I noticed that the word would makes it so that cement makes more sense there than cements.]

[Hakai]

Jou was a monster even before meeting Mama Yukihira(assuming he met her after leaving Totsuki)

[Sixth]

Originally Posted by Fairy Water

oh u mean when he just came right in to the dining room?

it's obviously a hint but I don't think it matters anymore since it was revealed in the same chapter anyway

@Noobita: I seriously scare to think if Souma's mom is still alive, would Azami get in his yandere mode?

Azami will probably send assassins to kill her or cut her down with his katana; The Edge.

Soma just triggered a real death flag in this chapter.

[DragonOsman]

Originally Posted by Cake-Carrot

Jou was a monster even before meeting Mama Yukihira(assuming he met her after leaving Totsuki)

Yeah, but falling in love did change him and his cooking. Before, he was called "Asura" and he probably cooked only for himself, but after he fell in love with Souma's mom, he seems to have started to include love into his food. Fumio also said that his cooking had changed since she last tasted it, remember?

[novalysis]

TLDR: So, where do we go from Chapter 150, and the very likely reveal, with Erina's character?

Well, one option is that the author goes full Nisekoi on us, and Erina only hears the last few words in the conversation. I'd be very disappointed if this happens.

Spoiler for Second Possibilty:

The second, more likely possibility given Erina's face at the end of the chapter, is that Erina has to come to terms with the fact that Soma is the son (and from her viewpoint, likely protege) of her idol, Jouchiro. But how would she come to terms with this?

Now, one school of thought suggest that Erina would go full dere, soften her attitude to Soma, and ends up liking Soma via relation to Joichiro. I find this unlikely.

I theorize that instead, Erina would reconcile her image of Soma, with her idolization of Jouchiro, by rationalizing that while Soma has shown flashes of his father, and extraordinary growth, he is nowhere near the caliber of Saiba. At this stage. Soma is still a shadow of his father. It is then, that Erina reasons to herself, that it is up to her to push Soma up to the level of his father.

From that point on, Erina takes a much more active interest in Soma's development, and in promoting it. And she does it the only way she knows how: by being as critical as she can be, to Soma's food.

She will eat Soma's food frequently from here on out, and proclaim them to be terrible and flawed every time, but give a critique to a level of detail she offers to very few individuals. In other words, her antagonistic tone towards Soma still remains, but no longer is this an Antagonism out to undermine Soma. Rather, in her mind,her caustic engagements with Soma, is meant to bring Soma up to the Chef inherent in his blood.

From Soma's viewpoint, nothing much changes visibly- Erina is still caustic as ever. Except that Nakiri has become more active at sniping at Soma's cooking, and decided to start sampling Soma's cooking on a regular basis, and has become constructive.

However,this change seems natural to Soma - it isn't as if Erina has become nicer all of a sudden, nor has she yet given the concession- "it's delicious", that Soma is seeking for. She will never give the concession until close to the end of the manga, when Soma finally defeats Sochiro. Soma accepts some of this advice, that Erina provides (in the usual condescending manner of hers) in good spirit, and works on it - usually, in matters of technique that are relatively neutral to cooking philosophies.

However, some of Erina's advice, the ones that reflect the poisonous hold of Azami on Erina's psyche, is completely incompatible with Soma's philosophy of cooking. And this is usually what leads to extensive arguments about the merits of different cooking philosophies, which evolves into intense and deep conversations about themselves and how they see the world. It is these philosophical conflicts, that gradually erodes Azami's stranglehold over Erina's psyche, and forces her to fully question, and even consider discarding some deep seated beliefs that Azami instilled in his daughter.

In this manner, in Soma's quest to force Erina to finally acknowledge his food is delicious, Soma also fulfils Sazaemon's request that Soma frees Erina from her father's chains. In doing so, both Soma and Erina's ideals of what cooking means, are reconstructed, as both of them begin asserting independent conceptions of cooking, that are distinct from their parents, under each other's subtle influence. And everyone in Pole Star Dorm can see it. Except for both of them.

This is not done in a polite manner. This is done in a very combative manner - both of them have massive, colliding egos. There are even times where either Erina or Soma snaps, and says very nasty things to one another, and Hisako or Megumi or even Isshiki have to play peacemaker. But gradually, especially with each reconciliation, a concrete bond beyond antagonism forms between the two.

This dynamic would not be concentrated in a single chapter. It would span multiple arcs from here on out, and it is guaranteed that almost every single arc, would have a point of philosophical collision, between Erina and Soma. The dynamic would be taken right into the Elite 10, and would become extremely infamous among underclassmen when Erina and Soma enters their second year.

For Soma, with Erina advising him using extreme, perfectionist standards, and filling up the deficiencies inherent in lacking a formal education in cooking, this relationship would result in Soma improving even faster than before. For Erina, Soma and the Polar Star dormitory would be fundamental in informing the meaning of good innovation, and widening her concept of cooking, and her ability to innovate, and in forming a cooking philosophy that is truly her own.

For example, it would produce a gradual shift in Erina's philosophy - from failure is unacceptable, to the acknowledgement of the necessity of failure. However, this ideal evolves into a philosophy that to fail to learn from failures is unacceptable - a more productive standard, but every bit as exacting and demanding as the old standard. Indeed, we are seeing the start of the change, in this arc - and it's happening in the background.

These are just some speculations about the long term effects of the Chapter 150 reveal. I do think, if this is not a fakeout, that the Mangaka deliberately choose a round number like Chapter 150 to pull of the reveal. The reveal is the true beginning of Erina's character development, and marks the end of the beginning of the manga. Everything before 150 is a prelude, a prologue that sets up the main story-line. This reveal is the point where Soma and Erina become each other grindstones, to push each other to genuine greatness.

This reveal terminates Erina's role as an Antagonist permanently (which arguably ended in Chapter 131, and the next 19 chapters is a transition, that reveals Erina at her weakest and most vulnerable - turning her from the Alpha Bitch, to the frightened, abused child she is inside), and begins Erina's role as a co-protagonist for the rest of the manga. The pieces have been laid on the board. The first move has been made. The game has begun.