©Ryoko Kui,KADOKAWA/Delicious in Dungeon PARTNERS
Episode 18 of Delicious in Dungeon is a great return to the weekly adventures of our beloved goofballs.
I was happy to see the show return to regular episodes this week. After weeks of major plot developments, sudden appearances by new cast members, and major lore drops or status quo upsets, it's nice to get back to what the series started with—the four idiots. Go deep into the dungeon in search of gold and delicious food.
A big part of the reason this episode is so successful is because of the characters' stories told in it. As I mentioned last week, I have difficulty taking the show seriously when the emotional beats are built on a foundation of death having meaningful consequences. This week involves equally silly magical shenanigans—monstrous shape-shifting creatures that can instantly imitate you, not at all ridiculous compared to resurrection magic—but the impact is much different. . The absurdity of resurrection magic weakens the character's fears and reactions to a known quantity, while the absurdity of the shapeshifter is an opportunity to reveal the character's thoughts and feelings in novel ways.
The setup is a perfect excuse to let the characters express their thoughts and feelings about each other in creative ways. Of course, the shape-shifting was a setup, a made-up challenge, and couldn't stand up to literal scrutiny, but who cares? It's a way for you to realize what the characters think about each other and themselves. For example, the fact that everyone's mental image of Laios is so radically different from the norm that it can be easy to remove the jerks from reality is a fun detail. In contrast, with other versions, some are closer to reality. Similarly, this is reversed when Laios finally has to pay attention to the details to figure out who the Senshi, Chilchuck and Marcille really are, but the focus is not on physical details but on personality traits . All of this is funny, entertaining and an absolute joy throughout its running time, while also reminding us of some basic truths and making us ponder perception and mental imagery. My spirit about everyone in life.
I also appreciate this as a moderator of many tabletop games. I've created many similar scenarios, creating character-based puzzles that are both uniquely immersive and impactful as well as silly excuses to crack a few jokes with friends. Overall, this was a great episode.
Rating:
Grant is a host on the Blade Licking Thieves podcast and the Super Senpai Podcast.
Delicious in Dungeon is now streaming on Netflix.
Disclosure: Kadokawa World Entertainment (KWE), a wholly owned subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation, is the majority owner of Anime News Network, LLC. One or more companies mentioned in this article are members of the Kadokawa Group.