“’Cats don’t drink cocktails,’ I said.
‘Cats don’t shoot lasers from their eyes, either, but here we are, Carl. Mama needs a night off.’”
Forget about Carl’s doomsday scenario, the way that this series has completely taken over my life is MY doomsday scenario… and yet I am not even mad about it.
Now, as much as I enjoyed the first book, I have to admit that I was nervous to see how or if Dinniman would be able to keep this series from descending into a chaotic repetitive trainwreck, but I should never have worried. Carl and Princess Donut have miraculously survived the first two training levels of the dungeon, which has landed them in Over City; a metropolis turned dangerous wasteland where they are faced with an undead circus, prostitutes dropping out of the air, and malicious ancient spells, just to name a few things. So now, let the games begin: it’s time to grind, babyyyy!
Somehow, Carl’s Doomsday Scenario feels even more like a set-up book than book 1 in the series, while also having more exciting progression and expansion of the story than I could ever have imagined in my wildest dreams. And it’s absolute insanity, because I should not give a single flying fuck about diving deeper into the LitRPG elements with all the classes, skill upgrades, and stats, nor should my inner action sequence grump enjoy the absolutely unhinged boss fights so much… and yet I EAT IT ALL UP.
You see, I truly don’t care what Carl and Princess Donut (and Mongo the dinosaur of course!!) are up to, because I just love every single minute I get to spend time with them. The character development and the progression of all the weirdly heartwarming interpersonal relationships is simply phenomenal, and the fact that I am already so pathetically emotionally invested in all of them probably doesn’t bode well for my emotional well being down the road. Send help!
Now, would I enjoy this series as much if I wasn’t listening to the masterfully produced audiobooks? Possibly, but there’s simply no denying that Jeff Hays captures the heart & spirit of this world and these characters perfectly, and he just brings it all to life in a way that my boring mind never could. And you know, I am totally not ashamed to admit that I cackled and snort-laughed my entire way through Carl’s Doomsday Scenario; the absurdity truly drips off the page and the humour is beyond silly and cringe at some points, but that is exactly what makes DCC so irresistibly and weirdly charming to me.
I never, ever thought I would enjoy this fast-paced, zany adventure so much, but I have totally caught the DCC fever and now I just can’t stop. Dinniman just nails that addictive ‘just one more chapter’ vibe, and after the diabolical and explosive ending of Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, I have no other choice but to jump into book 3 immediately… GODDAMMIT!
