Is it a Cooking Show.... or Something More? 🍳 Not gonna lie, I didn’t expect to get this into it, but here we are… I’ve been a little too excited about this lately so I figured I’d just talk about it here 🤭.
I have been watching Culinary Class Wars and to be honest, I did not expect to get that invested into it 😅. At first, I thought it was just another cooking competition with those intense challenges along with the dramatic judging and some talented contestants who are trying to prove themselves. Pretty standard huh? But nooooo😭, after a few episodes, it started to feel like something more. It is not simply just about the food but it is about the people involved, their background, their struggles and how they can deal with the pressure.
The show features around 100 chefs with "underdog" chefs against top-tier chefs in a competitive culinary battle. This difference by itself does make it more intense but it's also more personal to watch. More Than Just Food 🍽️ The interesting fact about Culinary Class Wars is the combination of cooking and storytelling. The contestants are not only judged based on technical skills, but also on the basis of creativity, resilience and even how they present themselves under pressure.
Somehow there is always that one contestant you naturally end up rooting for - usually the underdog 🥹 Then there's maybe one who somehow frustrates you for no clear reason 😭. Before you even realise it, you begin to form some opinions, picking sides and get emotionally attached to their journey. The funny thing is… this is not random.
Reality TV tends to be organised in a manner that gives emphasis on personal stories to create a stronger emotional attachment with the audience (Murray & Ouellette 2023). As a matter of fact, one of the show's greatest strengths is the juxtaposition of various culinary identities ranging from street food to Michelin-star quality as it makes the competition feel like more than just cooking (Baek Byung-yeul, 2024). And that is what keeps people watching. From Watching to Participating 📱💬 What I find even more interesting is that the experience is not terminated when the episode finishes. After watching it, I can awkwardly find myself scrolling through TikTok to see what other people are thinking and clearly, I am not the only one doing this 😭😭😭😭 .
People would analyse the judge decisions while supporting their favourite contestant and even make some edits, meme or reaction videos 🎬. There are some viewers who also make predictions or even comment on the fairness of the competition. So.... at this point, the audience is no longer simply watching the show but they are actively participating in discussions and popularity around it. This is what Henry Jenkins refers to as participatory culture where the audience actively engages with the media rather than passively consuming it (Jenkins and Jie, 2024). In Culinary Class Wars, the show continues through online discussion where the viewers extending the story beyond the screen 🌐.
Sometimes, the online reactions can be more intense than the actual show 🔥. Social media platforms quickly increase the emotional reactions that can turn entertainment into fandom wars, online conflict or even targeted criticism towards contestants. Why Do We Care So Much? 🤔 One of the things that I continue to observe is that people have become so emotionally attached to contestants so fast. Although we are aware that reality TV is staged, it does not come across as fake. Reality television is meant to push the boundaries between what is considered real and what is created, forming a sense of closeness between the audience and participants 📺 (Eichelberger, 2024). Due to this, viewers also react in an emotional way, either by supporting, criticising and even defending the contestants as if they know them personally.
But at the same time, it is important to recognise that what we observe is well-developed. The editing, storytelling and production options have an impact on the way every contestant is portrayed. A "villain" or "favourite" is not necessarily natural - there are cases when it is created on purpose to entertain. And yet.....we still fall for it every single time.
A Digital Community in Action 🌍 What makes this even more meaningful is that a virtual community forms around the show. To be clear, people online may not know each other personally but they are connected through the same interest. There are people supporting the same contestants, arguing over judging decisions and reacting dramatically to every single moment of the show 🎉. It may be disorganised and sometimes even chaotic, but honestly, that is exactly what makes the community alive and interesting.
At the same time, participatory culture is not always positive. Online discussion could create community and engagement but also lead to toxic actions towards contestants. Since people can easily get emotionally attached to the show, it is possible that the criticism online may be personal instead of constructive. This is related to the concept of networked publics, in which online platforms enable people to interact and create communities based on common interests (Boyd, 2023). These shared viewing experiences can be popular, as Culinary Class Wars did, even reaching the top of the Netflix charts worldwide and attracting millions of views (Baek Byung-yeul, 2024).
References Baek Byung-yeul. (2024, October 9). “Culinary Class Wars” fuels global K-content craze. The Korea Times. https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/shows-dramas/20241009/culinary-class-wars-fuels-global-k-content-craze?utm_source=legacy_url&utm_medium=redirect&utm_campaign=news_manager_id Boyd, D. (2010). Social Network Sites as Networked Publics: Affordances, Dynamics, and Implications by danah boyd (2010) - NowComment. https://nowcomment.com/documents/boydNetworkedPublics/combined?embedded=true Eichelberger, S. (2024). Opinion | From real life to reel life: The manipulation of reality TV. The Crimson White. https://thecrimsonwhite.com/116851/opinion/opinion-from-real-life-to-reel-life-the-manipulation-of-reality-tv/ Jenkins, H., & Jie, Y. (2024). The path from participatory culture to participatory politics: A critical investigation—An interview with Henry Jenkins. Communication and the Public, 9(1). https://www.researchgate.net/publication/380149339_The_path_from_participatory_culture_to_participatory_politics_A_critical_investigation-An_interview_with_Henry_Jenkins
