Delicious In Dungeon Season 1 Review – A wonderful fantasy anime with a neat labyrinth setting!

Season 1

Episode Guide

Episode 1: Hot Pot/Tart -| Review Score – 4/5
Episode 2: Roast Basilisk/Omelet/Kakiage -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 3: Living Armor -|Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 4: Stewed Cabbages/Orcs -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 5: Snacks/Sorbet -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 6: Court Cuisine/Boiled in Salt Water -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 7: Kelpie/Porridge/Broiled With Sauce -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 8: Raspberries/Grilled Meat -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 9: Tentacles/Stew -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 10: Giant Frogs/Aboveground -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 11: Red Dragon I. -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 12: Red Dragon II. -|Review Score – 4.5/5
Episode 13: Red Dragon III/Good Medicine -| Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 14: Sea Serpent -|Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 15: Dryad/Cockatrice -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 16: Cleaners/Dried With Sweet Sake -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 17: Harpy/Chimera -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 18: Shapeshifter -|Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 19: Hag/Nightmare –|Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 20: Ice Golem/Barometz -|Review Score – 3.5/5
Episode 21: Egg/The Golden Country -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 22: Griffin/Familiars -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 23: Griffin Soup/Dumplings -|Review Score – 4/5
Episode 24: Dumplings -2-/Bacon and Eggs -|Review Score – 4/5

 

There seems to be an elves craze going on in the anime industry since late 2023. Although anime of the past like Record of Lodoss War, Re: Zero, and others featured great elven lead characters, one can argue that Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End repopularized the trend for this decade’s anime fanbase. Funnily enough, Delicious In Dungeon aired around the same time as Frieren’s anime. 

Due to the latter’s rise to stardom, most of its fanbase gravitated toward Delicious In Dungeon’s adaptation, due to its kultzy, heartfelt female lead Marcille. Once Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End “ended” its run, many begged Delicious In Dungeon to carry the mantle Frieren, Fern, and Stark left behind. While Delicious In Dungeon has faults, this anime offers enough creativity, passion, and heart to win any anime enthusiast over. 

Delicious In Dungeon is a 24-episode fantasy anime created by Ryoko Kui and animated by the beloved Trigger Studios, responsible for hit anime like Little Witch Academia, Kill La Killand others. Our tale follows Laios and his team exploring a complex dungeon after surviving a dreadful encounter with a Red Dragon. Unfortunately, Laios loses his sister, Falin, in the process. 

Alongside his allies Chilchuk, Marcille, and Senshi, Laios is determined to rescue Falin, defeat the Red Dragon, and live a peaceful and adventurous existence with his comrades. If only it were that easy. Delicious In Dungeon Season 1’s storyline is captivating from beginning to end. As our heroes encounter new mental and physical hurdles, they’ll learn more about themselves and the labyrinth they’re traversing. 

Much like Made In Abyss, another fantasy anime with a gripping setting, Laios and his team’s dungeon expeditions are fascinating and unpredictable. For example, Laios can be hopping through paintings like Mario in Super Mario 64 in one instance. Then, a future episode has him partake in an Among Us-like game regarding the series’s Shapeshifter creatures. It’s refreshing occurrences like these that’ll keep folks locked in with this anime’s tale.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg regarding this anime’s exceptional world. The tale shares minor details about areas beyond the dungeon like The Golden Country that’ll leave fans absorbed and curious. Next to the world-building, Delicious In Dungeon offers great comedy and action. The comedy ranges from witty banter to exaggerated facial expressions, deadpan humor, and the characters’ distinct quirks. 

Considering this tale was animated by a studio known for its over-the-top stories, one can expect the same captivating monster brawls and chase sequences to occur in Delicious In Dungeon too. This anime tackles great themes like discrimination, friendship, trauma, and others to great effect. Some notable examples include the Orc leader’s prejudice toward mankind and the ways our heroes grow to admire each other’s contributions while eating Senshi’s dishes. 

Although there’s much to admire with this fantasy anime’s storyline, it’s far from flawless. Firstly, some anime fans won’t admire the sluggish, exposition-heavy, or goofy-centric chapters. Fortunately, the story doesn’t include many episodes of that variety. Yet, many people will walk away from this anime wishing Trigger Studios found alternate ways to deliver critical intel about Delicious In Dungeon’s world, its problems, and its characters. 

Additionally, some chapters included recap portions that weren’t necessary in the grand scheme of things. One example includes Chilchuk’s rambling segment with Zon’s daughter in episode 13. While the recap offers slight merit since it dabbles into how Chilchuk feels in that chapter, some would’ve preferred if the recap bits were cut. Lastly, the story snippets that occur during the anime’s midway point will leave fans mixed.

On one hand, it leads to an entertaining battle scene and a future traumatic dream scene with Marcille. On the other hand, fans will be disappointed that the anime didn’t save that inevitable reunion segment for later in favor of exploring our heroes’ grief more. Besides those issues, Delicious In Dungeon delivers a storyline every anime fan should indulge in, even if fantasy isn’t their preferred genre. 

Delicious In Dungeon’s storyline isn’t the only aspect that’ll please audiences. The characters are just as interesting to follow, with a few exceptions. Laios serves as an admirably, strong knight character. His deep love for monsters will excite anyone. Moreover, his lack of human understanding as shown through his later discussions with Shuro’s character will satisfy people too. Then, you have the mage of the group, Marcille. 

She’s a skillful mage whose spells help Laios and his friends get out of difficult situations. Much like Laios, she has her own set of flaws and receives minuscule development throughout the series to make her feel rounded. Senshi, Chilchuk, and Laios’s later ally, Izutsumi (formally Asebi) round out our main party. Senshi’s the most intriguing one of the three. 

He’s a wonderful chef, provides Laios with muscular assistance in battle, and has exceptional knowledge of creatures and the dungeon. Although Senshi feels like a “man of mystery” at first, the story’s latter half fleshes his character more, giving fans a deeper look at his past. Unfortunately, Chilchuk and Izutsumi aren’t explored as much as Senshi. Arguably, fans will receive a better deep dive into Izutsumi’s character than Chilchuk. 

Nonetheless, our main party is full of life and has distinguishable features that’ll appeal to anyone. As for the side cast and antagonists, they’re fine additions to the story. Folks will adore the tidbits we receive about Falin, Thistle, Namari, and others. While some supporting characters receive more screen time than others, Delicious In Dungeon gives them just enough to help fans remember and develop an interest in them.

Animation-wise, what’s there to say but “wow!” Trigger Studios fans knew from the get-go this anime would produce impressive, cinematic-level visuals. Fortunately, Trigger Studios hasn’t gone through its “fall from grace” arc like Gainax Studios, a studio with close ties to the former’s history. Nevertheless, everything looked spot-on in Delicious In Dungeon from its character designs to the bombastic fights our characters endured. 

Even the relaxing and funny segments where our characters are cooking meals and chatting looked astonishing. Kudos to Studio Trigger’s staff for delivering another beautiful anime for fans to watch on a week-by-week basis. Musically, the anime has incredible background music that screams “fantasy” and “excitement.” The battle tracks especially will get anyone off their feet, wishing they can join our heroes in the fight. 

Additionally, the voice acting was stellar. Much like Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End’s adaptation, fans will be happy with the English and Japanese actors and actresses’ performances in this one. All in all, Trigger Studios’s animation and sound team deserve incredible praise for their achievements with this Delicious In Dungeon anime adaptation. 

To reiterate, Delicious In Dungeon delivers a tale brimming with life, mystery, and imagination. From its glorious world-building to its relatable notions, many fans may mark this as one of, if not, their favorite fantasy anime. Unfortunately, Delicious In Dungeon’s writing has minuscule slip-ups that prevent it from receiving this level of praise from every fan today. Nevertheless, if you’re hungry for an anime that’ll move and intrigue you, give this series a shot!


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  • Verdict - 8/10
    8/10
8/10

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