DAN DA DAN Episode 5 Review — Absolutely Touching

This week’s episode of DAN DA DAN delivers what last week did in action with emotion and heartfelt scenes. In some ways it was transitional; our main characters just took down Turbo Granny in an exciting fight across multiple cities and it makes sense to not have multiple episodes that action-packed back to back.

Last week, we were treated to what I believe was/is the best episode of the season thus far, with Momo and Okarun traveling to confront Turbo Granny, ultimately coming into conflict with her, a location-bound spirit, and the weaponized souls of deceased humans from a graveyard. They came out on top though, and this week’s episode showcases the semi-immediate aftermath from the day after that fight, and the day after Momo and Okarun nervously pondered the status of their relationship.

Spoilers ahead for DAN DA DAN episode 5

An Awkward Hello

The first scenes of this week’s episode present us with a microcosm of adolescent social anxiety and the emotion of it was communicated incredibly well. I found myself constantly pausing at moments of awkwardness and hoping they’d get resolved, as if I myself were the one trouncing around a school searching for a newfound friend and ending up with hilarious misunderstandings.

DAN DA DAN from the very beginning of the series has been a show that blended genres like action, sci-fi, and comedy, but this is probably the most direct segment of the series thus far that’s been dedicated to this proto-romantic slice of lifestyle.

Because this isn’t an episode about some grandiose fight or anything close to the chaos we got in last week’s episode, what makes it shine isn’t something like animation quality. What makes episode 5 strongest, in my opinion, is the voice acting; both Momo and Okarun’s voice actors (across both the original Japanese and the English dub) have consistently done an incredible job switching vocal styles at the same tempo as the show, going from being completely comical and exchanging heated jabs to having a heartfelt emotional conversation.

Considering this week is rooted in a variety of social mishaps, that skill was incredibly important in communicating the web of complex emotions both of our main characters are feeling. In particular, the contrast between the external world and the thoughts both characters were having was notable to me. In combination with a steady background track that accentuated the nerves and worry of the scene, this made for a very strong opening half to the episode. It’s not surprise that even those around them can tell that they get along; the budding romance here is practically screaming to be noticed. Things got so slice-of-life that when Aira got hit by a washtub I briefly had forgotten Momo had psychic powers in the first place.

Granny’s Back

The back half of the episode moves largely back into some good ol’ standard fare DAN DA DAN comedy, admittedly with some references that seem to be more relevant to a Japanese watcher than an American one though. Speaking to the actual plot progression of this part of the episode, I like the idea of Okarun maintaining his ability to transform thanks to only Turbo Granny’s consciousness being expelled from his body and not her spiritual power.

I’d been wondering how the series would approach this; defeating Turbo Granny completely would’ve created some degree of agency imbalance since Momo would still have psychic abilities and Okarun would have nothing. Would’ve made him far too dependent on her during any confrontations with ghosts and spirits in my opinion.

Overall, I enjoyed this episode and its pace quite a bit. It’s so much different from last week in its goals and execution, but DAN DA DAN is a show versatile enough to accommodate that and still present something strong even when rapidly switching up styles.

This newest trial for our main characters is a bit of a silly one, but I can tell this is going to serve as setup and fodder for additional plot points going forward, especially now that we’re starting to meet some more characters (like Aira) beyond the four the series has focused on thus far. The preview for next week looks to have some more ghostly visits and events around the school, so I’m looking forward to more slice-of-life bits combined with the already-established tempo of scenes involving the supernatural.

Last week, DAN DA DAN made it to the top of our ranking for Week 4, a first for the anime this season. You can try to get a streak going by voting for it again in our weekly poll.

© Yukinobu Tatsu/SHUEISHA/DANDADAN Production Committee