A major complaint was the "trash" treatment of Megumi. After seasons of development, her pivotal 1v1 match was almost entirely skipped, and her defeat by Asahi felt like a forced plot device to hype a villain many found "creepy" and unearned.
In a highly controversial turn, Megumi Tadokoro—after a brief, off-screen victory against the Noir chef Huang Zuiwang—is pitted against Asahi Saiba. Predictably, she is defeated rapidly, which many fans felt did her character growth a massive disservice. Shokugeki no Souma: Gou no Sara Episode 9
The episode reveals that Erina has been forced to face a relentless gauntlet of "revenge matches" against Noir chefs. This is later revealed to be a scheme by her mother, Mana Nakiri , the WGO Bookmaster, who is searching for a "new taste" to cure the curse of the God Tongue. A major complaint was the "trash" treatment of Megumi