'Culinary Class Wars 2', Unpredictable Developments... More Spicy in Flavor and Fun

The cooking ingredients and opponents are unpredictable. A team member who was together just 10 minutes ago suddenly becomes a competitor.

The Netflix variety show 〈Culinary Class Wars〉 is captivating viewers with even more intense tension in its second season.

According to Netflix on the 2nd, 〈Culinary Class Wars 2〉, which premiered on the 16th of last month, has maintained its popularity by ranking first in the Netflix non-English show category for two consecutive weeks since its release, matching the buzz of season 1.

In episodes 8 to 10, released on the 30th of last month, a variety of competitive structures unfolded, including the results of the third round black-and-white team battle, the loser revival battle, and the fourth round '2-person 1-team black-and-white alliance battle' leading to the '1:1 survival battle'.

The most notable aspect of this season is the differentiated competition format and the heightened tension in the production.

Unlike season 1, which received criticism for being boring due to two team battles, season 2 has reduced the team battles to one. Instead, one team of either black or white spoons introduced the shocking rule of 'all eliminated'.

Participants and viewers reacted fresh, saying, "Isn't it becoming 'black-black chef' or 'white-white chef' instead of 'Culinary Class Wars'?" The moment when the two teams decided the outcome by a narrow score after fierce competition is being recalled as a gripping scene that made viewers sweat.

The fourth round, which determined the top 7, was a series of twists. In the 'black-and-white alliance battle', where teams were freely formed in pairs regardless of black or white spoons to complete one dish, the judges focused on the harmony of the two chefs.

Judge Baek Jong-won, who tasted the tofu kimbap and abalone kimbap made by Seon-jae and Chef Kim Hee-eun, pointed out the dish's disharmony, saying, "It feels like it was made by different people." Regarding the lobster dish by French specialist Chef Park Hyo-nam and Chinese-based Chef Choi Yu-gang, Chef Ahn Seong-jae evaluated that "the balance is skewed due to the small proportion of Chinese cuisine."

However, immediately after the alliance battle ended, the production team declared a '1:1 survival battle' where chefs who were just on the same team would face off against each other. Moreover, the cooking ingredients were limited to those used in the alliance battle.

As the cooking stations, which were lined up in the same direction, began to rotate to face each other, the participants could not hide their embarrassment, saying, "This is creepy."

Viewers also reacted hotly to the intense developments of this season, saying, "Is yesterday's colleague today's enemy?" and "The production team is too much," while also expressing that "dopamine is exploding."

Cultural critic Hwang Jin-mi analyzed, "Viewers have already been sufficiently exposed to cooking survival shows. Simply being 'good at cooking' is not enough to attract interest," adding, "'Culinary Class Wars' is characterized by diversifying the game operation method to maximize tension and fun like a webtoon."

Amid fierce competition, the various cooking methods, plating techniques, and dishes with special stories presented by the participants captured viewers' attention every episode.

The dish 'Land and Sea' created by Chefs Choi Gang-rok and Kim Seong-woon, combining seafood like flower crabs and abalone with vegetables like potatoes and asparagus, received praise from Chef Ahn Seong-jae, who said, "I want to eat the next dish again" for its artistic visual reminiscent of a work of art on the plate and its unique cooking method that fuses Japanese and Italian styles.

The scene where Choi Gang-rok reinterpreted the Italian potato gnocchi into Japanese-style potato manju in the '1:1 survival battle' clearly showed the differences between the two countries' cuisines.

In addition, Chef Ahn Seong-jae praised Chef Heo Deok-juk's 'Racho Noodles' as "the most delicious among the foods eaten in the '1:1 survival battle'" while viewers were swept up in a frenzy to visit the chefs' restaurants or analyze recipes after the feast of mouthwatering dishes like 'Soo Brewing Yoon Joo-mo' and Chef Lim Seong-geun's 'Pork Ribs with Radish Salad' that won first place in the black-and-white alliance battle.

However, a disappointing mistake occurred in this week's broadcast. During episode 9, a scene where the black spoon 'Culinary Monster' was being interviewed captured a name tag with the real name instead of the nickname, leading to a spoiler controversy regarding the finalists. In season 1, black spoon chefs participated under nicknames, and only the finalists revealed their real names.

In particular, episode 10 ended just before the announcement of the 1:1 battle result between Chef Son Jong-won and the Culinary Monster, raising speculation that the scene hinted at Chef Son's elimination as a major spoiler.

Netflix has not released a separate statement regarding this. The claims of spoiler allegations regarding the finalists raised by some during the press conference attended by the eight chefs on the 17th of last month were proven wrong by the elimination of black spoon 'French Papa' and 'Baby Beast'.

So far, a total of 6 have advanced to the top 7, and attention is focused on who will be the final top 7 between the Culinary Monster and Chef Son Jong-won in the episode to be released next week.