DAN DA DAN

Episode 6

Every writer develops their own grab bag of cliches that are easy to fall back on, and one I know that I am guilty of is referring to my favorite characters as “loveable idiots,” or some variation thereof. Granted, I often find myself covering shows that feature a cast of folks who are both extremely likable and extremely prone to making ridiculously stupid decisions. The point is that I am fully aware that I return to the “loveable idiots” well perhaps a bit too often. When it comes to DAN DA DAN, Momo and Okarun might be loveable as all get out, but they aren't idiots. They're kids. They will naturally be bad at dealing with and expressing their complicated, lovey-dovey emotions, but that just comes with the territory. It's not like I was any better than a romance when I was their age. In every other respect, though, these two little heroes have proven incredibly smart, capable, crafty, and headstrong in all the right ways.

That said, Aira Shiratori is one-hundred percent a bona fide loveable idiot, all the way down to the day glo pink core of her stupid, stupid soul. The Mean Girls™ brand of cruel kindness that we saw on display with her flirtatious bullying of Okarun was probably enough to clue you in on the “idiot” part of her personality, but “A Dangerous Woman Arrives” goes a long way towards establishing her lovable side. It's a good thing, too, since she's bound to stick around as a main player of the DAN DA DAN cast, what with her being in the opening and all.

A trope I always enjoy seeing is when the big climactic battle of a storyline is presented again through a layperson's POV. It's a great way to reinforce the stakes of a conflict and setting, and it also serves as a handy means of introducing a “normal” character like Aira into the wacky world of yokai, aliens, psychic powers, and missing nutsacks. Those scare quotes are there because, as we see throughout Aira's extended introduction this week, the girl is a few kernels short of a full bag of popcorn. Anyone who spends their life believing that their beauty and social grace is a literal gift from God to be bestowed upon mankind is already kooky enough to be a supporting character in a freakshow like DAN DA DAN, but then the show rubs it in even more by having the girl spend practically the entire episode fervently stroking and cradling Okarun's lone gold-plated gobstopper, thinking it is a sign from the heavens that she is destined to fight evil as some sort of vigilante exorcist.

To Aira's credit, Turbo Granny helpfully tags along to school and explains that anyone that catches hold of Okarun's beanbag bullions will have their latent psychic abilities spring to life, so it's not like the girl is completely off her rocker. If I was assaulted by the ghostly hands of a glaring gyaru, I might be inclined to start hunting down my paranatural enemies myself. That's really what makes this whole episode work so perfectly, too: even though we all know that Aira has no idea what the hell she is doing and that nothing good will come from her messing about with Okarun's gilded globe and the spooky Lady in Red who is roaming the campus, we can't help but root for the little dumbass anyways. She's so damned earnest in her misguided crusade against Momo, and it's adorable how devoted her poor lackeys are to supporting Aira's pursuits.

Plus, it's hard to be mad at Aira when her meddling leads to another kickass fight against a bizarre spirit. The Lady in Red, a.k.a. “The Acrobatic Silky,” is a great choice for a second antagonist, because her shrill and hysterical demeanor is a far cry from Turbo Granny's style of arrogant belligerence. Her gangly limbs and Ringu-esque hair tendrils also give the battle a unique flavor. It is incredibly animated as is the entire episode that precedes the fight. My wife even commented about how lovely and dynamic the animation has been, week after week. The best part is that this comment came about because of the funny sight gag where Okarun dive-rolls out of his classroom to hide Turbo Granny from his classmates.

I could easily spend another five paragraphs just raving about individual cuts of animation and funny jokes that made this episode so brilliant, but we've all got the point by now, I wager. The show continues to bat a perfect score and leaves the rest of its seasonal competition in dust. At this point, I will be shocked when an episode doesn't leave me desperately waiting for the next hit of that sweet, sweet DAN DA DAN goodness.

Rating:

DAN DA DAN is currently streaming on Crunchyroll and Netflix.

James is a writer with many thoughts and feelings about anime and other pop-culture, which can also be found on Twitter, his blog, and his podcast.