Thoughtless rushed poorlywritten farewell to a beloved series that deserved better. For five years now many of us have followed Yukihira Somas journey through his culinary education both inside and outside the walls of Totsuki Culinary Academy. Along the way weve gotten to know his friends a superb cast of supporting characters that not only buttress Soma as a character but the series as a whole. Its a wonderfully fun and clever series that ticks nearly all the boxes. Engaging and likeable protagonist? Check. Beautifully animated food scenes? Check. Fullyrealized supporting cast? Check. Quirky comedy that is unbelievable yet somehow fits the setting? Check. Each season Soma and his friends at the Polar Star Dormitory have been faced with a challenge where the stakes were high: in season one he faced expulsion in season two passing his stagiaire meant his continued studies at Totsuki and in season three we had the Moon Festival arc and the beginning of the Central arc. All three of these seasons made us root for Soma Erina Megumi Takumi Isami Alice Ryo Hayama Subaru the list goes on and on. All of these characters had something to lose and the road to success was never easy which made their victories that much sweeter. In Season 4 we were treated to Soma and his friends facing off against the Elite Ten in a bid to overthrow Central. All of these seasons have had high stakes we feared failure alongside Soma and his friends. Watching them overcome these challenges and then finally ascend to replace the graduating seniors of the Elite Ten felt immensely satisfying. An overriding theme through the entire series been that no man is an island. Soma is never truly alone. Whether hes learning from Shinomiya during his stagiare or was motivated to improve after losing to Tsukasa Eishi Somas grounding force has always been the people around him. This is a theme that I loved watching run like a current throughout the series. When Megumi would falter the people around her would cheer her on every single person in the Polar Star Dormitory found strength in the others around them. Most of Somas rivals became his friends and whether they liked it or not through their friendships and Somas unconventional view of the world they became better chefs. Watching this fifth and final series was an odd experience. I kept waiting for something bigger to happen. The stakes didnt feel very high. What would happen to Soma if he didnt win BLUE? Nothing absolutely nothing. He had no skin in the game other than to further his own personal achievement. I could understand his own personal motivation had we known who either NOIR or the Bookmaster was prior to this season but we didnt. Out of nowhere several antagonists appeared one of which had a backstory that was just not believable. The entire time weve gotten to know and love Soma weve seen numerous flashbacks to his childhood. At no point did we see Saiba Asahi prior to Season 5. How are we supposed to believe that somehow Soma or Joichiro for that matter just never mentioned this orphan child that Joichiro took in and taught how to cook? Furthermore his organization NOIR had never been mentioned. There was nothing to fear and their character intros felt like characters written for Jojos Bizarre Adventure that didnt make the cut. And the Bookmaster? We knew next to nothing about Erinas mother. The fact that she was the Bookmaster felt REALLY predictable but it was difficult to conjure up empathy for Erina when weve gotten such little insight into her relationship or lack thereof with her mother. What upset me the most was how horrible the last episode was it was as if they wanted to cram a lot of information in but werent sure how to do it. In the middle of the episode we watch a montage of all the Totsuki students past and present who werent competing in BLUE do their part by attempting to hinder NOIR. This would have been great had it been spread through the entire season and given more time to flesh out. If this montage had instead been made into Bstories that were interspersed throughout the season not only would it have made more sense but some of our favorite characters would have gotten more screen time. Somas dish impresses the Bookmaster but we dont see how Erina fared except a throwaway line about Soma being upset at losing. Then we have a ten second exposition to explain that Soma took time off from school to study abroad that too felt like a throwaway. Then we find out that Saiba Asahi is Nakiri Azamis son he was reckless in his youth and had a son he didnt know about. Wow with Asahis color scheme I would have never known he was Azamis son QUELLE SURPRISE And somehow Nakiri Mana Erinas mother forgives him and welcomes Asahi to the Nakiri family with a short scene depicting them all having a picnic together. BLUE felt like the most pointless arc. We had a paltry 13 episodes to wrap up the previous four years weve spent with these people. The antagonists felt halfhearted and there were literally zero consequences should Soma or Erina fail. The entire season was a major disservice to the characters and the fans. The only silver lining is that the writers didnt suddenly have Soma and Erina hook up. While there was definitely inner monologuing on Erinas behalf where she reveals feelings about Soma they arent acted on which was a small relief. My only hope is that were given an OVA that serves as an apology to fans gives these beloved characters the ending they deserve. HINT TO THE WRITERS: itd be real nice if we got the Chapter 3: Future arc from the manga