This week's episode of DAN DA DAN features the second episode of the new season following the defeat of Turbo Granny and a celebratory crab dinner. Last week's episode was probably my favorite of the season from a life and emotional perspective; it combines the common emotions of teenage angst and longing with two people's efforts to connect both emotionally and geographically. The music, voice acting, and direction were so impressive that I (and many others) almost begged Momo and Okarun to find each other and resolve the episode's awkwardness, a testament to how well it conveyed emotions. how it seeks to convey to the viewer.
This week's episode is a little different and features a new mix of settings and events for DAN DA DAN. Now that we're past the initial conflicts against the stubborn aliens and Turbo Granny, the story takes place more in its original location: the school. Personally, I love school as a setting for imagination; the contrast between normal things like classes and unrelated characters contrasts perfectly with things like special powers or in this case, the paranormal. At the same time, like last week, the story elements lack any fantasy parts that would shine in a familiar place.
That being said, Episode 6 also has some action. The various combinations of settings are a combination of these with a school setting, the (more appropriate) introduction of a new character, and the beginning of a more episodic pace within one entry broader goal: finding Okarun's ball.
Spoilers for DAN DA DAN episode 6h>
Beauty and the Beast
After an initial attempt at finding Okarun's ball by him, Momo, and Turbo Granny (who provided some interesting context as to why humans or yokai were able to pick them up), they I move to the school and get to see one of my favorite parts of the episode: Okarun (1) realizing that he's attracted to Momo and (2) confronting some other students while showing off Turbo Granny's power. The first part of it is precious. I'm glad the anime gave us a small glimpse into his conflicting thoughts and feelings as he simultaneously thinks about whether he finds her cute or not and instinctively wants to prioritize and protect a new friendship or not. The second part, I was extremely impressed with the voice acting. Both the sub dub and the English dub (if you haven't seen the dub, give it a try, the voice actors in both versions give incredible performances) the actors for Okarun did a great job the transition from Okarun's normal voice to his ghostly voice, Turbo-Granny's influenced voice simultaneously mixed with both frustration and anger. His transformations are always great, and this is the second time we've seen this power manifest from feelings of anger, but the emotions right before it make things wonderfully more personal. . The little scene of him walking away after meeting Momo in the hallway after this confrontation alone is the best scene in the episode.
Right before and right after the opening, we are introduced to Aira Shiratori, the fake personality of a resident pretty girl of DAN DA DAN. I always appreciate these types of characters for the sole reason that their over-applied facade is always easy for viewers to see through but not so easy for the characters in the series. It's almost like we're in a situation that isn't so.-well kept a secret. Like the early stages of series such as YuYu Hakusho and BLEACH, Aira's introduction also reveals that people other than the original core characters can and will be awakened to spiritual powers, expanding the cast. actors and adds some character traits to the quirky mix. Her presentation of the main character's syndrome is hilarious, especially given the foreknowledge that what she thought was some golden ball was actually just a… well, human.
The phase 1 fight is quick
The second half of the episode follows Aira's attempts to perform a half-hearted exorcism on Momo and the subsequent fight against a new spirit, which targets Aira and ultimately the main duo. ours when they interfere with it. While there are action scenes and some fun scenes featuring the powers of both Momo and Okarun in this half of the episode, the star of it all is actually Turbo Granny. I wasn't sure how I would feel about her presence in this cat form in DAN DA DAN, but she proved to be a fun addition to the cast and captured the scenes. she talks or just moves around in the beckoning cat doll. body. body.
As for the fight, it's very well choreographed with the most acrobatic character we've seen on screen to date. Like Turbo Granny, this youkai uses warm colors, this time bright red instead of the dark red we are used to. What this fight made clear to me the most is that, despite having much better control of their respective powers than before, Momo and Okarun are still relatively weak even when compared to a yokai we already know. is relatively low in rank compared to Turbo Granny. It makes me wonder how much their victory over her was tied to luck, her penchant for provocation, and the opportunity to use seals and powers through Seiko. This fight wasn't as great as what we saw in Episode 4, but it was a solid start to a match that I'm sure we'll see more of next week.
Overall, this was an excellent episode. Episode 4 had a lot of action with little focus on slice of life and romantic elements while episode 5 was the exact opposite. This episode combines elements of both to achieve a balance that I hope we continue to develop. Furthermore, now that we've moved on from the first story of the series, I'm looking forward to smaller-scale, more widespread confrontations like this so we can continue to learn more about the outsiders planets and ghosts of DAN DA DAN and expand our cast of characters even more.
© Yukinobu Tatsu/SHUEISHA/DANDADAN Production Committee
