DAN DA DAN is back with another week of fantastic blends of action, fantasy, comedy, and romance. Last week’s episode was a standout amongst the premieres this season, delivering a stellar performance that left you glued to the screen for every second of runtime. It introduced a fire theme song, two compelling main characters, and did a fairly substantial amount of work to give substance and context to the series while also fitting in plenty of jokes and lighthearted moments. This episode is a fitting follow-up to that, examining the aftermath of episode 1 while introducing new problems, doing a bit of worldbuilding, and showing off beautiful art and animation. It was a strong episode and certainly one worth talking about.
Spoilers ahead for DAN DA DAN episode 2
To the Ayase House
The first portion of the episode follows up immediately after the end of the last as Okarun and Momo head to the latter’s home after the encounter with the aliens (and Turbo Granny). This section, like some of the earliest sections of the first episode, stood out to me because of its incredible and consistent voice acting. Natsuki Hanae and AJ Beckles (Okarun) have spectacular range, easily oscillating between the more pathetic-ish, conciliatory sides of Okarun and the more loud, indignant sides that pop out during comedic moments. Shion Wakayama and Abby Trott (Momo) similarly are able to switch from being cool-headed and sarcastic to sounding genuinely concerned for her new comrade’s safety and wellbeing. In both cases these talents are pretty essential to this early characterization we get from both characters; Okarun is reserved and respectful but has a casual side that slips out and Momo is a lot more of a caring person than her usual persona would let on. This is also where Okarun reveals a bit more about why he acted the way he did in episode 1, something that voice acting and gentle piano made into a quiet touching scene. If you didn’t pay much attention to the first 10 minutes or so it’s worth a rewatch if only for how careful and well done the overall scene composition and direction are.
This early section, or at least the fact that Okarun caught fire when trying to pass by a gate protected by Momo’s grandmother’s talisman, also confirms that her grandmother is a real deal spirit medium. Momo having powers and ghosts existing already confirmed that to some degree, but it was a nice final nail into the matter.
Another Occult Confrontation
The second half of the episode was a drastic shift in more ways than one. All color goes to greyscale, the music switches to a fast-paced combination of synthetic instruments, and the Flatwoods Monster movies with expertly executed CGI. before Okarun even reveals the monster’s true origins, all of that points to it being an alien, something I’m really glad that DAN DA DAN does. Immediately, all of the comedic atmosphere vanished and the sense of a perilous fight to come replaced it. It’s a kind of scene switch you’d expect to feel jarring, but this episode pulled it off quite well, with the jarring feeling getting utilized as an intentional aspect of the episode.
The standout of the episode’s second half though without question is Okarun’s transformation and use of Turbo Granny’s powers. We’ve already known that it was possible to use these abilities after he travelled through a cell phone and attacked the aliens that abducted Momo, but this is the first time the pair have collaborated to bring the powers into a truly controlled state. The design of it is amazing, with the bright red hues contrasting strongly against the otherwise grey surroundings. It’s yet again a testament to the design choices of DAN DA DAN, giving warm colors to ghosts and the living while giving cooler colors to aliens. Though the form didn’t last long it was cool to see it in action and see that Okarun doesn’t have to be completely useless next to Momo’s psychic powers in battle.
The resolution to the fight was quite clever as well and not something I think the average viewer would readily have thought of. It seems that Momo’s powers also give her some defensive capabilities given that she didn’t just get immediately one-shot and die.
Closing Thoughts
Overall, this episode was another banger, just like episode 1. I know it’s only been two episodes, but it’s not uncommon for series with standout premieres to experience remarkable drops in quality in their second episode. This episode proves DAN DA DAN isn’t likely to fall into that category of falloff series.
For next time, we’ve already got a ready little cliffhanger and a soon-to-be-rampaging possessed Okarun to deal with. I’m looking forward to seeing exactly what the solution is and hoping our two protagonists can catch a little bit of a break after nearly 24 hours of constant ghost and alien troubles.
© Yukinobu Tatsu/SHUEISHA/DANDADAN Production Committee
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