’Dandadan’ review: “To a Kinder World”

First seasons of anime tend to be the most hype-generating for the community. That isn’t to say follow up seasons aren’t as good — you only need to look at Jujutsu Kaisen to see that — but there’s a reason anime fans love first seasons, and Dandadan episode 7 proves that out. There is a wonder in seeing a series really figure itself out, and “To a Kinder World” depicts the moment Dandadan discovers a critical strength. For viewers, the result is a gut punch that hits even harder than the manga’s version; thanks to the Science Saru touch. 

Timing is everything

Something that is fun with Science Saru’s adaptation of Dandadan is the delay in the OP. Since “It’s a Granny vs. Granny Clash,” each episode is placing the OP at a different moment. It’s a clever way to help delineate a shift in the story in the moment, which is particularly apt for “To a Kinder World.” The first part of the episode resumes the fight with the Acrobatic Silky, and won’t play the opening until that fight concludes. 

Momo’s threatened counterattack from last week ends up being running away for now. The Silky is able to keep up with the kids easily enough though; and even Momo’s cleverness isn’t enough to win this time. It’s the first fight of the series where Momo turns to Okarun to do more than run around, catching him off guard. Up to this point, he’s not familiar with Turbo Granny’s power and she’s not exactly willing to teach. Once the Silky breaks free of Momo’s trap (using Silky’s own hair), it’s on Okarun to react to the danger. He does manage to do so with a headbutt powerful enough to down the Silky properly, though naturally no one wins in a headbutt. 

Visually, Dandadan episode 7 continues a color grade trick to symbolize the zone the kids are in from last week. Everything is awash in a scarlet light during the Silky fight until Okarun literally bursts through it as he pushes their opponent right through the warehouse wall. It’s similar to how the Turbo Granny showdown was also graded, but the color here is much more important, especially as it washes away to reveal that Aria has passed away during the fight. This is where the opening finally plays. 

World building through storytelling

The rest of “To a Kinder World” is doing a lot with a little as it delivers an emotional gut-punch while continuing to build Dandadan’s world. Turbo Granny explains that humans die from exposure when consumed by a yokai; confirming that Momo’s latent power and Okarun’s possession protect them respectively. In response, the Silky returns and explains that Momo can transfer the Silky’s aura into Aira to jumpstart her body — explaining more about aura without the conversation being purely exposition. And of course, that leads into one more big reveal. 

In Dandadan, some yokai were once humans. When Momo connects to Aria and the Silky, the flow of aura also shows them the memories of the Silky’s previous life. As a human, the woman was a struggling single mother. Despite working multiple jobs, she has to turn to sex work just to provide the basics for her daughter and dreaming of saving enough to buy her a scarlet dress. “To a Kinder World” uses little to no dialogue as it shows this small family’s life: the mother working hard while supporting her daughter’s desire to be a dancer, even if she feels shame in it. 

But the bright smiles do not last, for this is a tragic story. Men come, beat the woman and take what she has, including her daughter. We get a chilling first person view as she comes to and chases after the men, only to find nothing. Next we see her begin to dance over a river with glass in her feet, showcasing the talent that had inspired her daughter. Once again, Dandadan uses classical music to augment this beautiful scene as the woman expresses her grief through her performance. The grief gives way to more tragedy as her performance ends in the reveal that she is dancing herself off a building. 

Handing complex material

This material is heavy, to say the least. If you told someone who jumped off of Dandadan thanks to the first episode’s ecchi sequences about these events, they may not believe you. Yet, this is exactly what it is to see a series find its footing. As a serialized manga, Dandadan releases chapters regularly, often weekly. That means that even while having a plan, Yukinobu Tatsu is also still working out the details as they go. In watching Dandadan week to week, you can see the evolution from the crab spirit made up of attacked girls to this flashback. Tatsu is putting the pieces together in real time. 

While I’ll never fault someone for falling off of Dandadan thanks to that first episode, I believe its sequences like these that actually show more of the true heart of the series. The woman is not looked down upon for being a sex worker and that work is not actively depicted at all. There’s no lurid imagery, because this flashback respects its victims. Their faces are the only ones shown at all; the men ruining the lives of this woman and her daughter are monsters bursting through like a disaster. They’re symptoms of a system failing. 

In this way, Dandadan is doing something very similar to series like Demon Slayer or Jujutsu Kaisen, intentionally adding humanity to its monsters. However, where Demon Slayer adds its sympathy through very personal traumas, Dandadan is also highlighting the systemic issues that create them. We don’t see the faces of the men who are furthering the woman’s pain, because it doesn’t really matter who they are. It isn’t personal, it’s just business. She’s just trying to survive, and being exploited as a result. 

Dandadan episode 7 elevates the manga in every way

Episode directors Fûga Yamashiro and Kotaro Matsunaga wisely stick to Dandadan’s script for this sequence. Instead, they lead the staff in enhancing this sequence as is. Little dialogue is used, instead letting the music and animation carry things. We’re left to pick up on the details ourselves: the woman’s exhaustion and shame, the girl’s joy, the ill-fitting dancing shoes. The animation helps elevate the final heartbreaking dance, taken even further by another classical music drop. The dancing animation is fluid and spot-on, ensuring that all the pain it is expressing is felt — right as the colors swirl from the woman jumping. 

The episode’s final moments, in which a revived Aria gives the Silky a final chance at closure by filling the role of her lost daughter, is heartbreaking and beautiful in equal measure. Firmly, it is not a forgiveness of Silky’s actions, but a proper understanding that how she got here was not truly of her own will. It’s mercy, from a character who had previously not given any indication she was capable of it. Through this, we see the real Aria, the one who saw Silky before in her own young grief. Again, exposition without having to exposit. 

It’s hard not to spend so much time talking about what a fantastic episode “To a Kinder World” is thanks to this sequence. A couple of weeks ago I called an episode of Dandadan the best single episode of the year. Even knowing this storyline was coming, I didn’t think it could top itself. Yet, here we are. Another all time great. This anime was already going to be on a lot of folks’ best of the year list, but Dandadan episode 7 will surely guarantee it. 

Dandadan airs weekly on Crunchyroll and Netflix.

Featured image ©Yukinobu Tatsu/SHUEISHA, DANDADAN Production Committee