This article is part of a directory: Fall 2024 Anime Season: Previews, Episode Reviews, & Lore Discussions

Summary

Okarun and Ayase start their hunt for the former's missing family jewels, with help from Turbo Granny.
Aira Shiratori, a lovable idiot brand new to the cast, disrupts the main pair's search and brings about unforeseen complications.
Turbo Granny surprises as an ally, which makes her partnership with the main two in the coming weeks very exciting.

Title	Dandadan
Director	Fuga Yamashiro
Studio	Science Saru
Episode Air Date	11/7/2024

Warning: The following contains minor spoilers for Dandadan, Episode 6, "A Dangerous Woman Arrives", now streaming on Crunchyroll.

When you've watched enough TV or film, you start to notice the patterns, formulas, and archetypes thoroughly ingrained into our understanding of storytelling, which are often derided as cliché. But there's a comfort to formulas as well; one can look at the puzzle being formed and infer how exciting the finished picture will look once all the pieces are put together. And Dandadan's latest episode paints a very exciting portrait of what this cast will do together.

Last week was practically a fresh start after the (presumed) resolution of the Turbo Granny incident, as Okarun and Ayase returned to school ready to continue their lives as normal. But when Okarun's balls go missing, he and Ayase learn that Turbo Granny is still alive, and even after trapping her inside a Maneki-Neko figure, they have no idea where the balls have gone.

Dandadan: 8 Strongest Spirits In The Manga, Ranked

Dandadan features some ruthless spirits, but these eight leave the most lasting impression.

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By Mirza Aaqib Beg

Okarun and Ayase Settle Into Their New "Normal"

The above opinion about formulas is chiefly meant to praise just how firmly everyone is settling into their roles in this series, which isn't to suggest any of those roles are rigid by any means. It's just compelling to see characters like Turbo Granny not only return but be established as a part of the main cast, as a begrudging collaborator. Barely two episodes ago, she was the big bad, but now she's been humbled by a significant debuff and has to get along with her former prey.

That's a recipe from which only good times can be had, and Okarun got the best out of that deal. With Turbo Granny gone but her spiritual power remaining inside him, he can transform at will, which turns a once-uncontrollable curse into a true extension of his character. When unflattering rumors about Ayase start to spread, Okarun's other self springs to life, angry, but keeping a cool head as he's one to do, nonetheless scaring his classmates into dropping the subject.

Perhaps he doesn't fully have a grasp on it yet, but Okarun's power is all his own now, and that makes every use of it more meaningful and satisfying. More than that, it's sweet to see him come to Ayase's defense, something she's surprised and flattered to hear secondhand. This love story knows no "slow burn" but it's not rushing to the finish line either; it's earning every dramatic beat.

Aira Shiratori, God's Chosen Idiot

When she was introduced last week, Aira Shiratori didn't make the best first impression, and by design, at that. Even in this episode, as she narrates the thesis of her character, she comes across as mean and arrogant, but it's all cushioned by the revelation that "oh, she's just an idiot." The humor derived from her character is such a unique breed of "lovable" stupidity and Ayane Sakura plays her with such an earnest, well-intentioned, yet at times insufferable arrogance.

She's pretty, and she knows it, so she acts nice to people who fawn over her, but internally, she finds them to be pathetic and only interacts with them out of a misguided sense of self-importance. "By believing that a pretty girl likes them, they can live another day," she says, conflating her beauty with some holy mandate to save people and mistaking vanity for kindness. And of all the people to have one of Okarun's balls, it just had to be her.

The Fight Against Acrobatic Silky Begins

Shiratori is one of those characters that is just perceptive enough to get involved in something important, but so woefully incorrect about everything to mess up any other character's plan. Having found the first golden ball, she can see spirits like Okarun and Ayase, but without someone like Seiko to explain the rules, she concludes that Ayase must be a demon of some sort. Hence, while the main pair are searching for a dangerous spirit, Shiratori tricks Ayase and binds her hands.

Enter, Acrobatic Silky, a spirit that shows up at the worst possible moment, calling herself Shiratori's "mommy", not that Aira recognizes her at all. There's hardly anything human about her visage to begin with, from the black void where her eyes should be to the wide, toothy grin stretched across the width of her face. It's another solid design, made that much more effective by the long black hair which spreads out and ensnares her prey.

Turbo Granny Saves the Day

The biggest surprise this week was Turbo Granny. As previously mentioned, she is now an ally in the search for Okarun's balls, and - reluctant or not - this episode shows that she's not as powerless as she might have seemed. After all, it wasn't just any doll that her consciousness was inserted into. She is a Maneki-Neko, or "Beckoning Cat", an item believed to bring good luck to its owner. That means she's a living good luck charm for the sake of Okarun and Ayase.

I'm not sure what it is about author Yukinobu Tatsu and older women, but the two grannies who he has written into this story both have a comical amount of swagger. Seiko's is derived from how confusingly young and vivacious she appears despite her supposed age, but Turbo Granny's swag is a bit more campy. Trapped within the Maneki-Neko as she may be, her personality explodes like never before.

A once-foe becomes an ally and Dandadan's main cast becomes more well-rounded, dynamic, and compelling because of it. This was another great episode and hopefully the start of some more spectacular teamwork between Okarun, Ayase, and Turbo Granny, in the weeks to come. It will be very exciting to see where this story takes Granny, in particular.