The Fall 2024 anime Dandadan has had a stellar run for its first season, quickly becoming one of 2024’s most acclaimed shows after being heavily anticipated since its announcement in 2023. One of the aspects that adds to the greatness of the Dandadan anime experience is the opening and ending sequences, which feature brilliant pieces of music and visuals that seem to lend themselves to the core themes of the series.
So, how do the opening and ending sequences of Dandadan connect to the story?
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Dandadan’s Opening Theme Is Riddled with Occult References
Dandadan’s opening theme “Otonoke” isn’t just a bop, it’s also filled with references to supernatural Japanese beings and horror icons.
Analyzing the Opening Sequence
Dancing Aliens, a Rihanna Reference and Various Art Forms
The refrain in the beginning is just the repetition of the series title, Dandadan, with the visuals showing closeups of the main characters of the series as they look into the “camera” and strike some kind of pose. The sequence cycles through various brightly colored silhouettes of some of the paranormal foes faced over the course of the first season while the rap goes, “These guys won’t easily give up, you won’t be able to compete with them even if you gang up.
Kuwabara, kuwabara, kuwabara, while I pray for safety, they move at a blinding speed. They’re immortal, never silent, won’t back down, pushing us with selfish greed”, as if to describe the banana-crazed determination of the aliens that Momo and Okarun face.
The “kuwabara” part is a prayer or lucky phrase used to ward off lightning. In this case, it is meant to ward off the supernatural threats that are alluded to in the first verse and, while it is being said, the image of multiple Serpo aliens in their true form appears, the multiplicity of the “kuwabara” prayer being to keep them at bay. “Get out of my way, you’re in my way. I’m the other you indeed. Packed with ghosts like Sada-chan and Kaya-chan, this land of the dead is a wonderland. Sorry to interrupt your prayers, but when 4:44 rolls around, let’s go. Four shaku, four sun, four pun coming at you, bang around. If you hear a voice calling, you’re haunted all around.“
The opening is filled with various references to urban legends, supernatural and/or esoteric concepts and stories, including The Ring and The Grudge (“Sara-chan, Kaya-chan), the description of Yomi, the Underworld in Shinto mythology as a “wonderland” where packed with entities like the aforementioned, the 4:44 reference being the invocation of 4 as an unlucky number, and the use of Japanese units of distance (1 shaku being 30.3cm, 1 sun being 1/10 of a shaku, and 1 bu 1/10 of a shaku) to describe an entity’s physical proportions. Judging from the brilliance of the lyrics on the duo’s work on both the opening to 2021’s Call of the Night and the second season of Mashle: Magic and Muscles, they have a penchant for creating extremely catchy music that overtly seeks to capture the basic premise and feel of the anime in which they feature.
Saying Goodbye to Despair
Dandadan Opening Captures the Supernatural and the Emotional Simultaneously
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Kokoro karada atama Minagitte yuku nandaka Senaka ni ima hane ga haeta naraba Kurayami kara osaraba, ay Tobitatte yuku kanata, ay Kokoro karada atama Natsukashii atataka sa Ashimoto ni ima hana ga saita naraba Kurayami kara osaraba, ay Tobitatte yuku kanata, woah! |
Heart, body, and mind Overflowing somehow If there were wings on our backs, now I’d say goodbye to darkness anyhow, ay Far away, we’ll fly away, ay Heart, body, and mind And the nostalgic warmth If flowers bloomed at our feet now I’d say goodbye to darkness anyhow, ay Far away, we’ll fly away, woah! |
– Dandadan Opening Otonoke chorus
The catchiest part of the song begins with the pre-chorus, which repeats the phrase “I’m inside” as a reference to the Yamanoke story in which a ghost possesses a little girl and repeats the phrase it has taken over her body. The story has its origins on 2chan, which is interesting and connects to the earlier use of Japanese units of distance measurement, because it contrasts the contemporary with the archaic, which is what tends to happen when the main cast encounters the supernatural.
For example, Turbo Granny had initially fused with the Location-Bound Spirit from the tunnel Okarun entered in episode one, combining a rather dated entity with a contemporary one, while the series’ juxtaposition of both the supernatural and the paranormal–ghosts and aliens–is one that also brings together the legends of old with more contemporary urban myths and legends. The chorus describes Momo’s spiritual awakening and the first appearance of her psychic powers, using the image of wings erupting from their backs as the vehicle through which they escape from despair.
Momo’s supernatural powers are vital for keeping Turbo Granny’s curse in check at the beginning of Dandadan, but even in the early days, Momo has been the difference in each battle with the supernatural they have had, using her powers even in their nerfed state to creatively dispatch the foe. The chorus goes on to say “if flowers bloomed at our feet right now, I’d say goodbye to darkness”, which describes a kind of trope described on TV Tropes.com as a messianic character who embodies goodness and positivity to the point of quite literally manifesting natural beauty as a byproduct of their good character.
This is a reference to the blossoming friendship between Momo and Okarun, who develop a natural friendship and overcome extremely dangerous circumstances, but also have the possibility of romance beneath the surface. Momo’s friendship and presence are things that Okarun greatly cherishes because he has been unable to make friends his whole life, let alone friends who are interested in talking about the paranormal like he is.
Speeding Away With the Ending Sequence
The First Major Antagonist Is Seen in a Mundane Light
The ending theme is very different from the opening, with ZUTOMAYO’s TAIDADA (“I’M BORED”) serving as Dandadan’s ending theme. The song’s title interestingly fits in with the perspective of the main subject of the visuals, which is Turbo Granny in her Beckoning Cat form, after her defeat at the hands of Momo Ayase. With her speed taken away, all that is left is a spirit that longs to return to its former greatness and reach the speeds it once used to reach. With the young girls who made up the Location-Bound Spirit in the tunnel having passed on peacefully after her defeat, she is without the constant companionship she once had.
In the ending sequence, we see Turbo Granny make use of various appliances like a hairdryer and even play with a baseball in an attempt to have it ricochet off the wall at high speed. One fan’s astute observation of Turbo Granny’s activities over the course of the ending sequence is that Turbo Granny is bored without her powers and longs to be able to “go fast” like she once did. However, at some point in the ending theme, she adopts a stray kitten and eventually dances together with it as explosions go off in the background, later doing more mundane things like trying to cook an omelet, as if to show her acceptance of her new circumstances. The lyrics also fit in with Turbo Granny’s perspective, with the first verse featuring likes like “Like a protective charm, I grasped at scraps of the slightest common ground”, which describes her relationship with the Location-Bound Spirit and possibly her later relationship with the main characters, and the chorus which goes:
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Jinrui nandashi jiyuu jizai no hazu ga Orikou na soburi de aji ga shinai Shinpai senyou douki ga kasoku suru Ruuru wa owari wo tsugeru mono desho [Chorus] Zenshin enji kitte yo zenkai de sono teido? Bukiyou de yasashii dakede wa koerannai desu Mie hatten janai? Chanto sei what’s your pain? Kanjousen wo kimi to nette ikitain da yo |
We’re human, we should be free But in acting good, I feel empty In hеart and lungs, palpitations quicken Rules spell out thе end [Chorus] Act with your whole self, is that all you’ve got? You won’t get through just being clumsy and kind Are you trying to look cool? Get it together, what’s your pain? I want to work out emotional war with you |
Turbo Granny’s Painful Mission
The Ending Theme’s Lyrics Speak to Turbo Granny’s Unique Perspective
“You won’t get through just being clumsy and kind” might be a warning towards Momo and Okarun and is related to their entry into the world of the paranormal, which is far more dangerous than it could have been with her. Turbo Granny’s character is rather complex because, while she is an “evil” spirit, her actions have been largely selfless attempts to console the souls of young women and girls who died irrational deaths, and protect future girls who are in danger of meeting the same fate.
While the act of consoling the dead is a “good” thing, the idea that Turbo Granny heard countless stories similar to those that befell the young girls who became the Location-Bound Spirit in the tunnel is definitely something that has fundamentally changed how she engages with the living as a yokai, hence the line “But in acting good, I feel empty” and “I want to work out emotional war with you. Both the opening and ending sequences of Dandadan are very well thought out and storyboarded, but their interaction with the music intended to accompany those visuals just strengthens their connection to the main story in both overt and subtle ways.
Dandadan is available to watch on Crunchyroll and Netflix.
Based on Yukinobu Tatsu’s popular manga that debuted in 2021 on Shonen Jump+, Dandadan blends action, comedy, romance, and supernatural thrills to create a unique and satisfying adventure. Momo Ayase and Ken Takakura believe in the extraordinary, although the former believes in ghosts and the latter believes in aliens. Determined to confirm their side’s existence, they set out to find their proof.