“Your logic is jumping too far! Are you an idiot!?”

Dandadan is a very aggressive show in terms of weirdness. Having finished the first episode, I’ve been comparing it to other popular media, both in the medium of anime and outside of it. The description I came up with is, “It’s like what would happen if Twin Peaks, Rick and Morty, and FLCL got together and had the baby from Eraserhead.” It isn’t a description that makes much sense, but somehow that makes it all the more apt. Perhaps most impressively, when one takes a step back from the first episode, the narrative actually holds together rather neatly. Actually viewing it is another matter entirely. It is one of those, “can’t see the forest for all the trees that are secretly aliens and are out to eat your genitals,” situations.

Speaking of taking a step back, I should stop trying to sum up the show concisely. It doesn’t lend itself to that, and my jokey metaphors are getting away from me. I find it a little difficult to evaluate this show, as many of its components seem specifically structured not to appeal to me. However, regardless of that handicap, it still succeeded in winning me over. Dandadan is poised to be one of the blockbuster hits of the season, and given its experimental and avant garde approach, I believe it is one of those series that everyone should take the opportunity to at least sample.

I knew the broad strokes of the premise going in. Momo and Ken are two high school students who encounter each other through an unhinged interaction at school. Momo is a firm believer in spiritual phenomena, while Ken is an alien and UFO nut. They soon become ensconced in an argument, with both viewing the other’s beliefs as silly. The solution they come up with is that Momo will visit a building reported to be the site of alien abductions, while Ken visits a haunted tunnel. While both characters are initially incredulous, they soon discover that both rumors are true.

I’m struggling to avoid providing too many details, partially to prevent spoilers, but also to prevent this review from going off the rails. As I mentioned earlier, the more you examine this show, the less sane it becomes. From an analytical standpoint, I don’t think this show should work for me. It focuses on conspiracy theorists and their conspiracies, topics I have limited patience for. Both the aliens and the ghost get unnervingly sexual in the third act, which is highly off-putting. Finally, the brash and expressive animation and cast seem poised to escalate any annoyances. If there was ever a show poised to be popular, but thoroughly not for me, it was… probably Jojo, but Dandadan is right on its heels. Unlike Jojo, I actually seem to get the appeal here. The blend of frenetic action, bombastic aesthetics, and madcap comedy results in a brazen starting gun of a first episode that wildly exceeds the sum of its parts.

Science Saru is helming the production for this, and while I hadn’t noticed that detail during the opening credits, it’s arguably the least surprising thing about the show. Science Saru is nothing if not experimental, and much like Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!, they are a perfect match for this material. It’s nice to have them back on a promising project, since the last work of theirs I reviewed was Yurei Deco, which never lived up to its potential (I did watch and love Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, but didn’t review it). This is the first time Fuga Yamashiro has taken the lead as director on a series, but he’s accompanied by accomplished veterans, and it’s hard to argue with the results. The OP and ED are bound to be counted among the standouts of the season.

I continue to be baffled by the directions Shonen Jump has gone in the last 20 years. Back when the US was still getting physical copies of the magazine, it was a lot of things, but bold and experimental didn’t seem like appropriate terms. It was the epitome of shonen, and as a result, it often felt like the stale industry titan that wasn’t prone to change. That’s a bit of an overstatement, since there were plenty of great titles coming out of the magazine during that era. Some were experimental, but they’re nothing compared to what we’ve been seeing from Shonen Jump and its offshoots in this current age of digital distribution. I’m truly delighted to see such insane titles coming from what is effectively the industry establishment.

Before I wrap up, a few Notes and Nitpicks:

• The episode starts off with what might be the least accessible gag for a western viewer, as Momo has just broken up with her first boyfriend, whom she was only dating because he looked like the actor Ken Takakura. The best point of comparison I can think of for western viewers is that this is not unlike someone having a celebrity crush on Robert De Niro… or maybe Harvey Keitel. He was a stoic strongman, and actually portrayed Golgo 13. No, I did not know any of this before the review.
• I haven’t watched the dub, but the trailer for it sounded like it was on point. It’s difficult to make an assessment solely on that, but the two leads sounded consistent with their characterization in the Japanese. 
• I wasn’t aware, but the first three episodes were shown in theaters under the title Dan Da Dan: First Encounter, resulting in the first three episodes having a 100% on RottenTomatoes (based on 6 reviews).

Dandadan may not seem like it’s the show for you, but you owe it to yourself to give it a shot. Aside from my affection for its production studio, I feel like this show is entirely not made for me, and I’m still giving it a solid 4 out of 5. I feel I might be low balling it, but I can’t deny that some of its narrative elements still rub me the wrong way, so that’s what it is getting. However, I can’t deny being excited to see where it ventures next.

Score: 4/5