On December 19, the first season of the anime 'Dandadan' ended. The title became a real hit of autumn and instantly won the hearts of viewers. About what the series can hook you with and why it will easily find its audience even among those not inter...
The premiere of 'Dandadan' took place on October 4, but in August Netflix, which holds the distribution license, was hacked, and half of the season leaked online (we were lucky, because for the anime and 'Ranma 1/2' all episodes were leaked). Then impatient viewers could see the first six episodes of one of the most anticipated titles of autumn in poor quality with watermarks. But thanks to the leak, it became clear that it is definitely worth waiting for and the final result will be something to praise. Actually, that's why we're here.
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Open materialBefore we begin, we would like to urge you to subscribe to our Telegram channel 'After the Credits' (here's the link). There we post posters, trailers, and various interesting and funny news from the world of cinema.
What's the plot?
High school student Momo Ayase is suffering and angry due to a breakup with an arrogant guy. To distract herself, she wanders the school corridors and notices a group of boys bullying a bespectacled nerd in one of the classrooms. The girl suddenly decides to stand up for the weak, but as soon as the bullies back off, she loses interest. However, the shy boy interprets this act as a sign from above and, gathering all his courage, decides to seize the chance to make a friend and starts a conversation... About aliens!
Momo laughs at the boy. What aliens? It's all nonsense and fiction. Ghosts are another matter. They definitely exist. At this, the nerd can't hold back and declares that there are no evil spirits, and they were invented to scare children. The two get into a heated argument, and eventually make a bet: one goes at night to a dark tunnel where, according to urban legend, you can meet ghosts, and the other goes to an abandoned house where, according to rumors, contact with aliens is very likely. Surprisingly, both are right!
But now a new problem looms on the horizon: both turn out to be extremely obsessed and evil beings. The aliens abduct Ayase for their reproductive purposes and experiments (quite nasty ones), and the nerd encounters a ghost that targets his male parts (such a curse).
Battle of the Psychics
'Dandadan' is an adaptation of the eponymous manga by Yukinobu Tatsu, which is published on the digital service Shonen Jump+ (the same place where, for example, 'Chainsaw Man', 'Hell's Paradise' and 'Kaiju No. 8' are published). The physical edition of the work currently comprises 17 volumes, with a circulation that recently reached 8 million copies (although just a few weeks ago it was only 5 million). The manga is still ongoing, but as the numbers show, the anime has perfectly fueled well-deserved interest in it.
The project is handled by studio Science SARU, responsible for the animation of last year's adaptation. And the style, it must be admitted, is indeed very similar: both projects look high-quality, and there's no faulting the visuals. Speaking of 'Dandadan', it's extremely pleasant to watch, no matter what's happening on screen: a dynamic battle with ghosts or a chill episode with a victory dinner and everyday school activities.
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Open materialMoreover, the anime perfectly balances between comedy with borderline humor and a vibrant, spectacular shonen, making it incredibly interesting and appealing. The madness begins in the very first episode: a ghost named Turbo Granny possesses the main character, stealing his genitals (and they say people only have one thing on their minds), and infiltrates a spaceship through a mobile phone.
However, the below-the-belt jokes don't end there; they only begin, because the main goal of the guys for the season will be to return Okarun's balls (that's what Momo calls the nerd, because his real name Ken Takakura belongs to her crush actor), which Turbo Granny lost during the battle. They look like golden balls, by the way, and the creators clearly borrowed this device from the legendary and cult film 'Our Russia: The Eggs of Fate' (well, you gotta know the classics).
Later in the plot, other cool characters appear, such as Momo's grandmother (who looks like an aunt), a strong psychic (the letter 'n' easily changes to 'k') with a baseball bat, an alien boxer, a cat figurine with a ghost inside, and a couple more heroes. Each character is vivid and memorable in their own way. Literally all characters have individuality that can hook you, so you'll have to thoroughly choose your favorite. It's no wonder why 'Dandadan' turned into a hit at the snap of a finger, winning universal love. A strong source material and high-quality implementation work wonders.
Inexplicable but True
A huge part of the series' success, of course, lies in its sparkling and quite daring humor, which, although it goes below the belt, does not cross the line. The satire on urban legends about ghosts and aliens turned out to be very witty. The Loch Ness monster and the cliché of cow abduction are played out, I dare say, brilliantly. The series is somewhat reminiscent of 'Chainsaw Man' and , where comedy is just as closely intertwined with fantasy shonen. However, there is something that distinguishes 'Dandadan' from these titles. It is romance, which stands on par with other genres.
The winter anime season gave fans a continuation of the anime 'Mashle: Magic and Muscles' about a non-magic boy named Mash, fighting for the right to live (and quietly eat profiteroles) in a world of mages. The seco
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It looks so appropriate and is so skillfully woven into the plot that sometimes fights with ghosts and aliens take a backseat, because you just want to observe the development of the characters' relationships. Of course, both in Fujimoto's adaptation and in the story about the muscle-bound non-mage, there are love lines, but there they are completely different. In the first case, the line is built on the hero's motivation to have sex with the object of his adoration (such a great dream), and in the second, love for the character is essentially one-sided. And Yukinobu Tatsu masterfully works with all the inputs, skillfully balancing between genres and not letting fans get bored. In 'Dandadan', everything is in its place, and you just don't want to nitpick the details.
Another similar feature with 'Chainsaw Man' and 'Mashle: Magic and Muscles' is the explosive and hit opening (in the case of the second title, even the performer is the same — the duo Creepy Nuts). The composition 'Otonoke' undoubtedly claims to be the opening of the year (although in my opinion, Mash Burnedead won't give up this award) and is among the top three along with 'Bling-Bang-Bang-Born' and 'LEveL' from . Today, thanks to memorable opening credits that have spread across reels, shorts, and TikToks, an anime can attract no less attention than an interesting plot. Thus, thanks to the song, the second season of 'Mashle' received the deserved attention that the first twelve episodes lacked in 2023.
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Open materialImmediately after the final episode, 'Dandadan' received an announcement for a second season, scheduled for July 2025. We will be able to see the continuation in just six months (as if it's not even a full season, but a second part of the first, like, for example, with ), which can only make us happy. Moreover, the series ended on a cliffhanger, showing that new material was planned even before the wild popularity. Cutting off the project on such a note would have been a real crime. It's good that nothing like that happened. And summer is not as far away as it seems.
Yesterday, the last episode of the first part of the second season of the anime 'Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation' was released. In this regard, we believe that now is the time
Open materialWhat's the Verdict?
Looking back at the anime year, we can confidently say that 'Dandadan' is one of the best and most interesting titles of 2024 (personally for me, perhaps even the best), capable of appealing to completely different audiences. If you miss 'Supernatural' and 'The X-Files' and have long wanted to dive into the world of anime, you couldn't find a better option. And how can you ignore a series where ghosts and aliens are obsessed creatures? Such a concept should not remain without viewer attention.
P.S. The anime 'Dandadan' has a post-credits scene in the third episode, so don't rush to turn it off.
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