DanDaDan is an anime series that has a rough start. If someone were to drop it after the first episode, I’d completely understand. As the series goes on it tells a story with a tremendous mix of action, humor, and charm, but I’d also say that some of those rougher risque elements never quite go away.
DanDaDan follows Momo Ayasae, a popular gal (in the Gyaru sense) at her town’s high school and who is being raised by her spirit medium grandmother, and Ken Takakura, a shy and introverted guy at the same high school who is really into UFOs. One day the two end up in a conversation and start to hit it off, until Ken reveals that he believes in UFOs, and Momo reveals that she believes in ghosts – which leads to a bit of conflict because Ken doesn’t believe in ghosts, and Momo doesn’t believe in UFOs. So, each sends the other to a hot spot of the thing they’re skeptical about (Momo is sent to a UFO abduction site, Ken is sent to a super haunted place). Each ends up learning that the thing they’re skeptical about is very real, and each ends up getting some form of supernatural power – Ken ends up borrowing the power of a Yokai called “Turbo Granny”, and Momo’s own psychic powers are awakened.
However, for Ken this comes at kind of a cost – Turbo Granny takes his genitals, so he has to get them back. Momo agrees to help, both because she feels responsible, and because she’s starting to develop a crush on him – not helped by the fact that she also has a crush on ’70s tough-guy actor Ken Takakura – to enough of a degree that she makes our main character Ken take on the nickname Okarun, because she kind of swoons whenever classmate-Ken unintentionally says actor-Ken’s catchphrase or Ken’s full name is said.
The animation for the series by Science Saru is fantastic – going off-model whenever it makes sense to, and giving all the monsters and aliens a tremendous amount of character, and making the various moments of pathos tremendous tear-jerkers. Also, when the show gets risque (which it does about 3 times), it never feels leering. There are a couple of moments where the threat of sexual violence comes up, and instead of playing it for titillation, it instead provokes a sense of dread, and often these have some moment of empowerment connected to them when the threat is overcome, like with the awakening of Momo’s powers. The exception is at the conclusion of the season, where it’s specifically set up to be a cliffhanger – with season 2 already greenlit. That said, in that context, it’s frustrating. Depending on the viewer this could drive you to the manga in the interim, though it may also frustrate you enough to drop the show.
In all, I did enjoy this season, and I will be continuing with season 2 (particularly since I’m also reading the manga). However, the rough elements of the show, like the threats of sexual violence at various points means that this is a qualified recommendation for me. Nobody gets raped, and the threat is always taken seriously and used for drama, but it can certainly be a bridge too far for some.
DanDaDan is currently available for streaming on Crunchyroll or Netflix. The manga is available for purchase from Amazon, the Crunchyroll Store, or from independent booksellers through Bookshop.org – buying anything through those links helps to support the site.
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