Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma - The Fourth Plate Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma - The Fourth Plate Blu-ray Movie Review

Chapter 4.

Food Wars: The Fourth Plate brings more enticing food to chomp down on – and audiences will enjoy the visuals. Food Wars: The Fourth Plate features impressive animation produced by J.C. Staff (Aria the Scarlet Ammo, A Certain Magical Index). The series is produced by the ensemble team of Terushige Yoshie (Non Non Biyori Nonstop), Reiko Oyama (Seraph of the End: Vampire Reign), Noriko Dohi (Little Busters! Refrain), and Sôji Miyagi (Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?) and there is plenty for anime fans to appreciate in season 4. The fourth season outing brings even more culinary delight. Time to chow down! Created by Shun Saeki (art) and Yūto Tsukuda (story), Food Wars: The Fourth Plate provides fans with a tasty confection.

The journey to being a master chef is never an easy one for Sōma Yukihira (Yoshitsugu Matsuoka). A new stage of his career has arrived. Soma must now participate in the Regimental Food War with the competition being fierce against Azami and the prestigious Totsuki Ten. The future of the entire food industry in Japan is at risk – with Azami determined to take control over the entire food industry and restaurants to make all food appeal to his own appetite! If Azami wins, it’s his taste buds or the highway. The epic journey continues for Soma, Erina Nakiri (Hisako Kanemoto), and Megumi Tadokoro (Minami Takahashi). Who will emerge the chef king?

The characters remain as one of the central components of the production and the series longstanding success. The central protagonist is compelling and audiences will be able to relate to Soma and his journey towards culinary perfection. Anyone who has ever had a dream – who wanted to find the success desired in their respective field of work – will find the saga of Soma to be compelling and noteworthy. The desire to excel is at the core of Food Wars and one of the reasons the series has established fans.

The animation is top-notch, too. The series has exceptional animation ushered in by art director Kōichirō Bizen (The Pet Girl of Sakurasou, Date A Live III). The art style is one of the most impressive elements of the series and the manner in which is portrays the cast of characters on their culinary missions. This is compelling in the context of the food competition. The food showcased on the series looks tasty and appetizing – and may even make viewers want some gourmet food to eat all their own. A solid effort from the animators.

Food time!

The cinematography by Yutaka Kurosawa (Dream Eater Merry, Minami Kamakura High School Girls Cycling Club) continues to excel and showcase the world of the food world in a unique style. The production certainly shines with some compelling visual elements – the cinematographer brings everything forward. The results here are worthwhile.

The character designs by Tomoyuki Shitaya (Sagrada Reset, Hatsukoi Limited) are one of the best components of the animation. Each of the central leads has a unique character design which fits everything in the story framework nicely. The character designs sing out and shine with unique components which enhance the DNA of the production. The results are top-notch.

The original score composed by Tatsuya Katō (Love Live! Sunshine!!, Celestial Method) finds more charming delights in the saga of these chefs. The score highlights the journey of these chefs and everything each chef has worked towards in the battle to be the best of the best in the culinary landscape. The score focuses on the character dynamics and the journey. A good job by Kato.

Written by Shogo Yasukawa (Alderamin on the Sky, Hyperdimension Neptunia), Food Wars: The Fourth Plate continues to provide fans more of the comedic hijinks and culinary battles which made the hit series so successful in the first place. Fans of the franchise will want to continue to experience the strange and quirky misadventures of these chefs. Yasukawa has fun with the concept and brings something compelling to the table once more.

Yoshitomo Yonetani (Ghastly Prince Enma Burning Up, Vatican Miracle Examiner) directs. Director Yonetani finds the right balance between charm and energy – delivering the necessary directing ingredients to keep audiences engaged with the filmmaking. The end results shine and there is something exceptional in the manner in which Yonetani delves in to the culinary world. Fans of comedic anime series with a unique “food-centric” spin will want to explore the season.

Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma - The Fourth Plate Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Sentai Filmworks, Food Wars: The Fourth Plate is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. Distributor Sentai Filmworks continues to showcase a wonderful production aesthetic: colors are vibrant, charming, and engaging. The original animation looks splendid and stands out nicely with the release. The art style is stunning and dynamic. There is a sense of cohesion to the art style and how it is presented with these encodes by Sentai. The release has good video quality and fans will be pleased to explore.

Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma - The Fourth Plate Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The fourth season includes two lossless audio options: Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo (with English subtitles) and an English dub in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo. The high resolution audio is provided in 24 bit depth. The high quality audio encoding enhances the experience and makes the production all the more engaging. Fans of the program will be pleased with the exceptionally high quality. Sentai Filmworks has done a stellar job with the release.

Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma - The Fourth Plate Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Clean Opening Animations (HD, 6:10)

Clean Closing Animations (HD, 16:53)

The release also includes a selection of trailers promoting other releases available from distributor Sentai Filmworks: Made in Abyss – Dawn of the Deep Soul (HD, 1:12), Venus Wars (HD, 1:11), Ascendance of a Bookworm (HD, 1:33), and Kandagawa Jet Girls (HD, 1:34).

Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma - The Fourth Plate Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Food Wars: The Fourth Plate delivers food to your table – not literally, of course – yet it delivers what fans want. The stakes are raised and the journey unfolds with new experiences for the whole team of culinary junkies to explore. Who will emerge victorious? Is it possible to be a master chef? The fourth season is provided a nice high-definition presentation and a small selection of extras. Fans of the series should be pleased. Recommended.