Synopsis: When high schooler Momo, from a family of spirit mediums, first meets her classmate Okarun, an occult geek, they argue—Momo believes in ghosts but denies aliens, and Okarun believes in aliens but denies ghosts. When it turns out both phenomena are real, Momo awakens a hidden power and Okarun gains the power of a curse. Together, they must challenge the paranormal forces threatening their world.
My first viewing of DAN DA DAN’s first episode took place in a secluded space at a local convention, with my plastic chair dragged away from the back row so that I could comfortably view the screen without keeping my neck at a 45-degree angle. Unlike the online screener Crunchyroll kindly provided for this review, that initial screening experience came with no opening or ending animation sequence, so it caught me off-guard when it jumped right into a close-up of female protagonist Momo Ayase (Shion Wakayama, putting on a satisfying tough girl voice), in the midst of being dumped by her lousy boyfriend.
It’s a sudden start that had me blinking in surprise, and there are no brakes till the end. The episode races from the fierce but kind gal defending awkward and isolated Okarun (Natsuki Hanae, sliding into the role smoothly enough to ease my initial “Oh right, it’s another Hanae role” reaction) from bullies to their first encounter with dangerous and bizarre-looking aliens and yokai, and from the awakening of Momo’s psychic powers to the reveal of Okarun’s real name as Ken Takakura. The last bit is relevant because it’s also the name of the real-life actor-singer whom Momo admires, and the explosion that occurs in the background after this punchline sums up Momo’s inner turmoil.
Turbo Granny, the gnarly, genital-stealing, old-lady-looking yokai who curses Okarun in the premiere, may be wickedly fast, but the episode would’ve given her a run for her money. This isn’t criticism — the blistering pace allows the anime to deliver a punchy first impression, especially when the pacing is accompanied by effective storyboards, strongly animated bursts of supernatural action, and the general color approach decided upon by DAN DA DAN director Fuga Yamashiro, who storyboarded and directed the premiere with episode direction assistance from five others. That approach involves assigning a color to a particular alien/yokai — Yamashiro says that co-color director Satoshi Hashimoto picked the colors — and, usually, covering the entire screen in that hue when they’re present. Combined with Sophie Li’s color scripts, it allows for moments like Turbo Granny’s red theme invading the cold blue space of the Serpoian aliens’ spaceship.
The union of all these factors — plus striking shots like the one introducing the Serpoians, where the light beams streaming into the scene’s corridor through its windows get shut off one by one like spotlights — results in the good kind of “What was that?” It’s almost, but not quite, enough to distract from the uncomfortable scene of a stripped Momo on the verge of being sexually assaulted by the Serpoian aliens, the only blemish on this premiere.
Episode 2 continues to build up Momo and Okarun’s prickly yet genuine relationship. The two seem to have no shortage of reasons to yell at each other, but Momo remains willing to be Okarun’s friend, and that has a gradual but positive effect on his confidence and resolve. These interactions, which continue in the third episode, form a welcome component that ensures that the anime isn’t just about diving into crazy, action-heavy encounters with the otherworldly.
This episode (still storyboarded by Yamashiro, but directed by Rushio Moriyama) is also where DAN DA DAN calms down and adopts a much more standard and comfortable pace (or maybe the first episode has addled my brain so much I can’t tell what’s fast and what’s slow anymore). It was a bit disorienting at first, but I quickly found myself distracted by the depiction of Momo and Okarun’s trek to the former’s house. During this sequence, several wide shots are revealed gradually in sections, typically with a panel-style presentation. A couple of times, almost everything is darkened out again so that the viewer’s focus is directed to a small square with the characters’ diminutive figures, with this limited view generating anticipation for the following shot. One still shot is unveiled in thirds until the last section reveals the bright glare of the sun, a neat way of showing the passage of time.
I enjoyed these shots, so it was a bit of a shame when they disappeared after the opening. Here, Episode 2 switches to a slight focus on camera movements, similar in nature to certain portions of the first episode, but standing out more without the hectic pace. The best ones come from Momo and Okarun’s conversation before the midpoint. A cut depicted through Okarun’s perspective begins with his eyes peeking through his splayed fingers and ends with his initially titled head facing Momo upright. Afterwards, a pan down (or boom/pedestal down in non-anime terms) that occurs after Okarun dejectedly slides to the floor from a retort reveals that Momo is crouching beside him. The realization that he’s not alone in the shot anymore, paired with the context of the conversation and Momo’s following dialogue, does a good job of conveying that Okarun will no longer be by himself now that he has met the girl.
Yamashiro’s screen-covering color idea returns in full force when a giant sumo-like alien trespasses onto Momo’s home in the second half of the episode. In this case, the anime emphasizes the presence of the enemy by heavily desaturating the colors until they become grayscale. Although not as eye-catching as having vivid reds or blues everywhere, it’s still an effective way of conveying the alien’s oppressive presence, as well as making the creature’s already solid CGI less noticeable.
The sumo alien continues DAN DA DAN’s tradition of having outlandish yet dangerous-looking beings, but the less relentless nature of this battle meant that I found Momo and Okarun’s struggle against it to be a bit less compelling than the action in Episode 1. It does have its moments, though, like when flashes of red and old-timey, tokusatsu-like sound effects are used to signal a combatant’s arrival.
Episode 3 (storyboarded and directed by Daiki Yonemori), in addition to reinforcing Momo and Okarun’s relationship and setting up a confrontation for an existing issue, marks the entry of Momo’s grandmother, Seiko (Nana Mizuki). Seiko’s a strangely young-looking spirit medium who’s not dissimilar to Momo, as she also has a tough, albeit more impassive, exterior that belies her good heart. She’s also a formidable combatant who uses a bat. I’m more partial to Momo’s ability to fling things around, but I can’t deny that a bat-wielding spirit medium is pretty cool.
Aside from an upside-down shot involving a flying nail — an attack that results in the screen being relieved of the enemy’s dominating red aura — Episode 3’s execution doesn’t feel as memorable as the first two (although it’s by no means bad). However, it was the first DAN DA DAN episode to amuse me, thanks to desperate running-on-the-spot animation and a very unexpected mid-run pose selling the absurdity of a certain body function-related scene. Up till this point, the humor hadn’t managed to get anything out of me — even if I did like the loosely drawn comedic renditions of Momo and Okarun — but it was evidently too soon for me to assume that it never would.
DAN DA DAN is one of the few Fall 2024 anime I was interested in, and the first three episodes didn’t disappoint. If I had to nitpick, I’d say that I wish the show would turn up the volume for Kensuke Ushio’s synths and electronics just a little bit. Although it’s generally not as manic as the premise — aside from the methodical nature of the stylized color aspect, the animation, although good, isn’t perpetually unbridled — the show is nevertheless satisfying to watch, and the story makes sure that its human characters aren’t overshadowed by their strange encounters. I’m looking forward to seeing what other creatures DAN DA DAN has in store and how the yet-to-be-introduced Aira and Jiji will contribute to the group dynamics.
Series staff
• Director: Fuga Yamashiro (Keep Your Hands off Eizouken! co-assistant director)
• Series composer: Hiroshi Seko (Chainsaw Man)
• Character designer: Naoyuki Onda (MF Ghost and Inuyashiki)
• Alien and yokai designer: Yoshimichi Kameda (Mob Psycho character designer)
• Color designer: Satoshi Hashimoto (Spy x Family Season 1)
• Color designer: Makiho Kondo (“Tokyo Clone” music video)
• Background art director: Junichi Higashi (Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2)
• Compositing director: Kazuto Izumita (Great Pretender)
• Music composer: Kensuke Ushio (Tengoku Daimakyou, The Heike Story)
• Sound director: Eriko Kimura (Look Back)
• Animation production: Science SARU
Adaptation or original
• Based on the manga by Yukinobu Tatsu
