Project-Nerd discussed what was actually Delicious in (the) Dungeon.
PN’s Sarah Marie Spectrum got to sit down with the Japanese seiyuu and English VA’s for Laios Touden Kentaro Kumagai (JP) & Damien Haas (EN) and Chilchuck Tims Asuna Tomari (JP) & Casey Mongillo (EN) of the hit Netflix show Delicious in Dungeon (Dungeon Meshi) at Anime Impulse Seattle for a special press conference.
During this press conference hosted by KADOKAWA, Sarah was able to ask the cast a few questions. A translator was on site for the Japanese guests.
Sarah Marie Spectrum: Thank you for coming today, I appreciate it. My first question is: Out of all the dungeon dishes in the show what do you think would be your favorite in real life?
Kentaro Kumagai: I like most of the cuisines that Laios says that he likes in the show, but the one that stands out was the Kabayaki of the parasites like when they were making sort of like almost like an eel. I have a hard time choosing between them.
Asuna Tomari: I thought the Dryad soup, the one where you use the head as like a container, looked very delicious so I would like to try it.
Damien Haas: I think, strangely enough, the Kelpie because every part is used individually and they get to see the different flavors of each part and experience them together as a very communal BBQ style meal.
Casey Mongillo: And I think I have to go with the Basilisk because it’s supposed to taste kind of like chicken meat. So play it safe with that one.
Sarah Marie Spectrum: That was actually my favorite. Yeah, it looks good. My second question I had was: What was your favorite line to the record for your character?
Kentaro Kumagai: Rather than a single line from the character that I like, I like the nuances of the character more in the sense that I like the moments where, for example, if one of the characters, especially Marcille, is feeling down or in trouble, the the sort of kindness and warmth that comes out of this character to sort of assure her going like: You know, it’s okay, or everything’s gonna be alright. You know, that kind of feeling is what I enjoy most about Laios.
Asuna Tomari: Chilchuck, as a character, is not one that expresses their deepest feelings very often. They tend to try to hide behind the facade. So the very first time that sort of breaks is a certain lightness, I remember. When he goes: I don’t want to lose you guys, and that particular line reverberated a lot within me.
Damien Haas: While I get to have a lot of fun and say a lot of lines in some very almost unhinged ways, what sticks with me the most is a conversation which Laios expresses his frustrations with Shuro. When reading the manga and getting to that scene, I was very emotional, because that is something I’ve struggled with in my own life. I feel like I’ve had that conversation a dozen times before, or I wished that I had the bravery to say those things. So when I finally got to say it in the booth, it felt almost healing in a way. I think it’s important to separate a character from yourself as an actor. But sometimes we find those parts where it’s really just us speaking. And I felt like not only myself as Laios, but myself as me. I got to say those words.
Casey Mongillo: And a similar response to what she [Asuna Tomari] had said, was how Chilchuck doesn’t normally wear his emotions on his sleeve, and kind of, keeps a lot of how he feels to himself. And when we did the scene, where Chilchuck is trying to convince the others to go back up to the surface, because they’re going to die down there, and he was afraid of actually losing them and doing that whole scene was a very different shade of acting for Chilchuck that we haven’t really explored yet. So that was the first time you really see Chilchuck become sort of emotional in that sort of way. So that’s one of my most memorable scenes that I can recall.
PN would like to extend a special thank you to KADOKAWA and Delicious in Dungeon partners for organizing this press conference and for the opportunity.
