Thomas Storai 
“Fermat’s Cuisine explores in depth the complexities of the culinary world and the desire to strive for perfection. It is a captivating and salivating series with endearing characters who have to face their own struggles.”
Fermat’s Cuisine ( フェルマーの料理 Fermat No Ryori) is Japanese series based on the manga of the same name by Yūgo Kobayashi. The series aired on TBS in Japan from October to December. For audiences outside of Asia, the first 5 episodes were released on Netflix in December while the final 5 episodes were released in January.
PREMISE
Fermat’s Cuisine follows Gaku Kitada (Fumiya Takahashi), a young man gifted in mathematics who gives up on his dream of becoming a mathematician and follows a genius chef named Kai Asakura (Jun Shison) into the culinary world. Kai has his own two Michelin star restaurant K, he works with a team of talented chefs from all around the world. There, Gaku develops his own recipes using his mathematical mind.
THE BURDEN OF GENIUSES
Gaku is an autistic-coded character who thinks differently and sees the world differently. He often has troubles expressing his thought process to people around him. But, he is a genius in mathematics and cooking, combining the best of both worlds. This is so interesting to have this character as the lead with Kai to complete him. They both strive for the same goal – to change the culinary world. However, they both struggle in their own way. Gaku’s story is about the rise and fall of a chef while Kai’s story is about a chef who looses himself. As geniuses, they feel the burden of having no equal. Obviously, this brings its own share of suffering. The two share a bond that they can’t put a name on it.
Kai is at the top so he starts isolating himself while Gaku starts from the bottom so he needs his colleagues to learn from them. This paints to different pictures, two different ways of being a genius. But, this is just as difficult for Gaku to strive for perfection. Because he lets himself surrounded by his colleagues, he creates friendships especially with Magoroku Inui (Rihito Itagaki). So, it makes it even harder to see his fall.
FLASHFORWARDS
In fact, in several episodes at the beginning, we get flashforwards of Gaku. These scenes show him loosing who he is because he withdraws into himself as he tries to reach beyond perfection. I think it is a clever way of announcing the things to come and drawing parallel between him and Kai. Gaku and Kai are not so different from one another. Plus, it is intriguing, you pick up the clues and try to piece things together. In the episodes, we see Gaku being happy and learning while in these scenes, he clearly is not happy with himself and others. These flashforwards are his fall that comes at the end of the series. What we see first is his rise.
THE FALL
Gaku’s fall is a heartbreaking one. He is reaching the top but he looses everything – his colleagues, his clients and the restaurant. All of that because of his behaviour. As a genius, he has a path to choose and instead of staying on the path he was on, he takes Kai’s path. And this destroys him. That choice can be explained by Kai’s absence. Kai who is sick prefers leaving his burden to Gaku. This is where Kai fails. Indeed, isolating oneself isn’t the answer. The answer is being together, working together to strive for the best version of oneself. Both end up learning that lesson. This is where lies the message of this series.
These characters, they are vulnerable, they make mistakes like everyone and they end up learning from their mistakes. It makes them relatable. Fortunately, the story doesn’t end with Gaku’s fall. It is a Japanese series from TBS so you need that happy ending. So when you reach the bottom, all you can do is get back up and start again. This is what Gaku does with Kai. I think this is a touching story that is also so inspiring.
THE PERFECT ENDING
It’s not easy to find the perfect ending but the series has it. The final episode is the culmination of everything that has happened in the previous 9 episodes. It is about making amends and finding oneself again. Undoubtedly, this episode is a rollercoaster of emotions. Firstly, Gaku apologizes for his wrong doings. Secondly, we see the team getting back together one last time to go beyond perfection, not alone but together this time. I can tell you this episode made me cry so much. Happy tears but also sad tears, it’s a mix of everything.
Each character from the K restaurant go on their own path, seeing them saying goodbye is bittersweet. But this also illustrates how good the storytelling is. In only 10 episodes, you care for the characters and their relationships. You really get attached. The series ending with Gaku and Kai having their own little restaurant together, cooking the things they love, just being in harmony with each other is what I call perfection. It goes full circle with Gaku making a Napolitan for his friends. It’s the meal that made Kai wanting to bring Gaku with him. All of that as the theme song plays.
This is what I call character development. Gaku and Kai are at a very different place at the end of the series than they were at the beginning. By the end of the series, they have made peace with themselves and found harmony. They are out of the high culinary world with expensive meals and benefactors. They just cook together in their own little restaurant without pressure, without suffering, without struggling.
THE CULINARY WORLD
As someone who loves cooking and who is great at it, I was looking forward to watch this series. And honestly, it didn’t disappoint me. It explores the culinary world in depth and with great care for authenticity. It shows how complex this world is. I was captivated from the beginning to the end. Watching all the episodes one after the other in almost one go really transported me into the universe of this series. I can’t imagine how hard it must have been for Japanese fans to wait every week for a new episode. You instantly get hooked on the story and its characters. Even though it tells a story about chefs, the messages contained within the story are universal. Everyone can learn from these characters.
Because this series is about the culinary world, it doesn’t stick with just Japanese cuisine but it also explores the cuisines from countries around the world. There is French food, Spanish food … and characters who come from different countries. The diversity of cuisine displayed there is impressive. And yes, you get plenty of shots of these delicious meals prepared by the characters. Japanese series love showing the food the characters eat and since this one is about cooking, there is an even greater focus on this. It makes you salivating with each episode.
It wouldn’t be a culinary series without mentioning the country known for its cuisine – France. The story even goes there. You see a wide shot of Paris but then, you see a little restaurant in the countryside while it is Paris. This is when I realized they didn’t film in Paris. And it shows, this is an idealized version of Paris unlike in Rohan at the Louvres. The interior of the restaurant feels like it is from the middle ages, it is quite ridiculous. This would actually be my only complain of the series – its depiction of Paris. But this can be forgiven as the story only spends a short time there and the main topic of the series is mastered.
CAST
Moreover, Fumiya Takahashi once again proves he is worthy of being a lead actor. He is an extremely talented actor. Gaku is a complex character and Fumiya nails this role. He delivers a heartfelt and layered performance. His performance is like an orange you peel off and discover more about it with each episode. He is able to play the joyful version of Gaku and then switch to the angry, mean and isolated version of the character. Fumiya made me cheer, fear and cry for his character. I love this actor!
Jun Shison is just as excellent as the co-lead. He is mesmerizing as Kai. He brings his sex appeal to the character while also playing with the mischievousness and mysterious side of Kai. On top of that, through his performance you can feel the humanity of his character too. Like Gaku, there are many layers to Kai and Jun Shison captures them skilfully.
Furthermore, I want to mention Rihito Itagaki, Fuka Koshiba (she plays Ranna Akamatsu) and Yoshihiko Hosoda (he plays Katsuya Hotei) too. After the leads, these three are the main secondary characters with their own storylines. Rihito, Fuka and Yoshihiko deliver earnest performances that highlight the struggles of their characters. I think of the confrontation scene between Rihito and Fumiya is top notch acting. They way they deliver their lines, the way they look at each other, the way they use the shared past of their characters to bring weight to that scene, their facial expressions, everything is just right.
SOUNDTRACK
Finally, Hideakira Kimura delivers a fitting score for this series. He takes inspiration from classical music that you think of when you think of the sophisticated culinary world. Then, he adds his own touch to it with a dash of pop music. This series also features an opening theme. It really sets the mood with all these fancy meals and the lively and intense theme.
The theme song is Re方程式 (Re Houteishiki) by 10-FEET. It is a dynamic rock song. If you pay attention to the lyrics, it is like they are describing the thought process of Gaku. It couldn’t be anymore fitting. This is a perfect theme song for this series!
VERDICT
Fermat’s Cuisine explores in depth the complexities of the culinary world and the desire to strive for perfection. It is a captivating and salivating series with endearing characters who have to face their own struggles. Fumiya Takahashi delivers a heartfelt and layered performance. Jun Shison is mesmerizing in his role. They are supported by a secondary talented cast.
Fermat’s Cuisine is now streaming on Netflix.
Collectables Editor at Future Of The Force.
Star Wars and Marvel specialist, anime expert
I loved the series and watched it twice over the 2024 new year. Not sure Gaku has autism or savant tendencies, but he is definitely brilliant. I particularly enjoyed the culinary conversations and even learned a few new tips. Jun Shison definitely oozes sex appeal … and appealing arrogance. Some viewers may be unaware Takahashi is a trained cook and Shison has recently directed a couple of short films. They are both absolutely outstanding actors on an ensemble of amazing talent in front of and behind camera. Would be wonderful to see a Season 2. But please, Director … lose the awful Gaku bowl cut wig! It’s seriously hiding the most handsome man in Japan!