Payton Klaer

Imagine this; one day you’re running from assassins while you try to escape an industrial complex with files which could save the world. The next day, you’re in a strange town with a murderer on the loose and it’s up to you to find out who did it. Next, you’re trekking through the woods, trying to find a good place to make camp with your friends for the night. And all at once, you realize you’re just looking at words on a page. These events aren’t actually happening to you — they just feel like they are. An aspect of life that never grows old is forgetting fiction is exactly that. It’s being so engrossed in the story and the characters that you’re right there with them. 

The most recent version of this I’ve experienced was watching Delicious in Dungeon. I’ve never been an anime person (despite trying) but I was determined to try with this series. It’s a Netflix original that essentially follows a Dungeons and Dragons-esque group as they attempt to get to the fifth floor of a dungeon to save their friend, all while finding ways to cook up the monsters they come across. A few months ago, I came across one of those days were I thought: ‘I’ve got some time, I’ll sit down and watch an episode or two’ which, inevitably, turned into me finishing season one and getting three episodes into season two (a total of six episodes). 

I fell into the rabbit hole of being so immersed in the story I was audibly gasping, setting my dinner down so I could concentrate on the show, and staring into the void when the credits rolled on season one. And I think that is beautiful. The fact that media has progressed so far to make its audience feel one with the characters is amazing. Remember when Spider-man: No Way Home came out and audiences were shouting during that one scene (if you know, you know)? Remember when you read The Song of Achilles for the first time and the ending felt like you were hollow? Here’s a throwback: remember when Gravity Falls ended and child-you couldn’t believe what had happened? This is what I think is beyond amazing. People don’t exaggerate when they say media is a form of escapism — when you’re impacted enough to feel the way you do after reading or watching something — that’s magic.