Studio Trigger's anime adaptation of Delicious in Dungeon that especially caught the eye of fans was the series' unique approach to fan service, wherein Senshi is often the object of it instead of any of the female cast, and the reason why is just as bizarre as fans would expect.

In an interview at Anime Expo 2024, Delicious in Dungeon's creator Ryoko Kui revealed that the fan service involving Senshi was not intentional. Rather, Senshi was actually inspired by an old man Kui knew as a child who would nonchalantly hang around in his underwear. As such, though fans often point out Senshi's sex appeal, his character was never inherently sexual, with the panty shots being just another innocent aspect of his character rather than fan service.

Senshi Was Not Intended to Provide Fan Service (Despite How Handsome He May Be)

Ryoko Kui Explains The Weird Reason For Senshi's Panty Shots

Though all of Delicious in Dungeon's main cast are equally endearing and have just as amazing chemistry with each other, Senshi is arguably the break-out character of the series, competing even with Laios, the supposed protagonist, in of popularity. Senshi's adorable mannerisms and his infectious ion for cooking and food make him a quick favorite and by the time Senshi's backstory comes around, it is difficult not to adore his character.

That said, many fans also ire Senshi for his physical appeal. Though he may not have the standard "ikemen" appearance, Senshi's dependable traits make him easy to idealize. In fact, fans of Senshi often ire him for his stocky yet muscular build. As such, the inordinate amount of shots of Senshi's underwear is often misconstrued as fan service, especially since Delicious in Dungeon notably lacks typical female fan service.

The term "ikemen" is used to describe a handsome man in Japanese culture who usually has a slender build and is cool or stylishly dressed. For example, Gojo Satoru from Jujutsu Kaisen is a classic example of an ikemen.

The series' author, Ryoko Kui, clarifies as much in the interview at Anime Expo 2024 where she stated that though she has seen fans talking about Senshi's sex appeal, she does not think that the panty shots of Senshi can be called fan service, nor were they intended for this purpose.

In both the anime and manga adaptations, most of the series' "fan service" comes from peeks at Senshi's underwear. In the spirit of this, could you describe Senshi's sex appeal?

Kui: So the term "fan service" feels a little off to me, but I have seen people talking about Senshi's sex appeal. The reason I came up with this idea [of showing Senshi in his underwear] is that when I was little, I used to live in this city where there was an old man hanging his laundry while just wearing his underwear.

In the interview, Kui goes on to explain that seeing the old man in his underwear who inspired Senshi often made her feel awkward or uncomfortable, but from the perspective of the old man, he did not seem to care much about what others thought. Kui found this nonchalance quite interesting, which is why she decided to incorporate it into Senshi's character in the form of his hilarious panty shots.

It was awkward for me, and I really didn't want to look at him. But from his perspective, he really didn't care. He didn't care what other people thought. I found that vibe interesting. So, Senshi is a similar type of person who really doesn't care what other people think about him. Laios is probably more like me [and feels] a little bit awkward looking at other people in just their underwear. But I thought this vibe was really funny and interesting. That's why I drew Senshi that way.

Considering the rest of Senshi's character traits, the idea that he would also be nonchalant about people seeing his underwear makes complete sense. Senshi has never quite cared what others think of him for living in the dungeon and cooking up monsters, so it is reasonable to think that he doesn't quite care about others momentarily seeing his underwear either.

Delicious in Dungeon Demonstrates How Fan Perception Can Warp A Work's Intended Meaning

Senshi Stans Aren't Completely Wrong

Overall, Delicious in Dungeon is an excellent example of the gap between a creator and their audience and how a work may not always be perceived the way the author intended it to be. Fans' perceptions of a character or even the work as a whole will always vary and can even warp the author's intended meaning. In the case of Delicious in Dungeon, Ryoko Kui has simply crafted such well-rounded characters that it is easy to read into them and form diverse impressions of them.

As such, fans are not wrong to idealize Senshi or even to think he is attractive. Kui's vision for Senshi was certainly as unique as it gets and though fans may have adored him for different reasons so far, the bizarre inspiration behind his character provides a fresh new perspective on his character that is worth considering. Regardless of whether Senshi's panty shots are fan service or not, there are a hundred other reasons to love Senshi and Delicious in Dungeon.

Delicious in Dungeon is available on Netflix.

Source: Anime News Network