Delicious in Dungeon vol. 11

In the previous volume, EVERYONE IN THE PARTY WAS DEAD… except for Laios.  Which means that we’re going to get some real “‘Die Hard’ In a Foodie-Centric Dungeon-Crawling Manga Action,” right?  Well, this is still Laios that we’re talking about, but the end results are as entertaining as they are true to his character.  Even if he is able to overcome the threat Sissel represents, our protagonists soon find themselves up against an even bigger one.  That’s right, the Canaries (and Kabru) have finally caught up with them.  The good news is that they’re not about to wipe out everyone on a hunch.  They want to be sure that these adventurers are set on becoming the new dungeon master before any extreme measures are taken.  Which means that all Laios, Senshi, Chilchuck, Izutsumi, and Marcille have to do is lie convincingly to these elves.  That shouldn’t be a problem, especially for someone as straightforward and guileless as Laios has shown himself to be up to this point.  Right?

Vol. 11 of “Delicious in Dungeon” represents a change in direction for the series as it begins preparations for its endgame.  The series has used dungeon cuisine as a vector for delivering worldbuilding and character development as a means to get you to care about the story that Ryoko Kui has been telling.  I bring this up because while there is some cooking going on, including an absolutely terrible Acqua Pazza Laios whips up, this volume is mostly about paying off on all that development.  Which it does quite well as a character we’ve come to know quite well breaks bad in pursuit of their dream for reasons which are perfectly understandable.

If you’ve been reading the series up to this point solely to see what kind of imaginative dungeon-based dishes Kui has been conjuring up, I can see how this change in direction may come off as a little disappointing for you.  For everyone who has been invested in the characters and their quest, as well as what they’ve been eating this volume offers plenty that is going to satisfy.  It may seem a little familiar at times, but the level of detail that Kui has put into everything up to this point means that you’ll still be fully invested in the story now that we’ve reached the beginning of its end.