Dandadan: The Dover Demon, Explained

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home January 18, 2025 4 Views 10 Min Read
Dandadan: The Dover Demon, Explained



Summary

  • Dover Demon, Mr. Mantis Shrimp, works for Serpoians due to financial desperation and his son’s illness.
  • Initial enemy of Momo and Okarun, Dover Demon becomes an ally, moves to Earth, and works alongside them.
  • After forming an alliance with Momo’s team, Dover Demon becomes a part of the family, helps them, and rebuilds Seiko’s home.

While Dandadan features many different enemies, from terrifying Yokai ghosts to foes who are a part of the Serpoian race, a lot of these enemies have their battle with Momo and Okarun, and eventually move on after defeat. However, over the course of the anime and manga, there have been a few enemies who have turned out to be allies with the group after learning about their background and human-like tendencies.

One of these enemies in Dandadan is the Dover Demon, also known as Mr. Mantis Shrimp by Momo and Okarun. His initial introduction to the group is his attempt to destroy them in battle, though his failure in doing so makes it easy for them to approach him without a threat and get to know his story and where he comes from.

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Who and What Is the Dover Demon in Dandadan?

Mr. Mantis Shrimp’s Introduction

Image of the Dover Demon in battle against Aira and Momo in Dandadan
  • Works for Serpoian Aliens
  • Has a wife and son
  • Is considered weak on his home planet

The Dover Demon, also known as Mr. Mantis Shrimp, is an alien creature that works for the Serpo aliens, and has a yellow human-like body with a disk-shaped head similar to a crab. While working for the Serpo, he is often dressed in a Speedo, boxing gloves, and a tie. On his home planet, he was known as Peeny-Weeny and was married with a son, named Chiquitita. Though he is not a Serpoian alien himself, he works with them as a way to earn money, since he is considered weak in his own race.

In his first battle against Momo, Okarun, and Aira, he lacks the ability to defeat the skillful teens, and often apologizes to his Serpoian bosses for his weak performance. They often refer to him during this battle as the “Gig Worker”, implying that they have a strong disconnect from him and consider him significantly inferior. While the Dover Demon initially defends his Serpoian bosses since they are the ones giving him a paycheck, he soon realizes they have no care for him or his situation, and will quickly reduce his pay if he fails in his mission. After he completely loses in a battle against Momo, Okarun, and Aira, the group takes him in to Seiko’s home and fixes him up, and they learn more about his past and his reasons for joining the Serpoian aliens.

The Dover Demon’s True Intentions

Why Is He Working For the Serpoians?

  • Needs to make money for his family
  • Chiquitita has a rare congenital illness
  • Works with Serpoians out of desperation

While the Dover Demon’s initial battle with the group has them believe that he is on the side of Serpoians, and therefore an enemy, they soon realize after the battle that this is not the case. The main reason Mr. Mantis Shrimp joined the Serpoians was due to the fact that he was considered weak in his own society, making it difficult for him to find work at home. Therefore, he needed to join the Serpoians to receive any kind of money from the work he completed, even though he often failed and made them upset.

The reason Mr. Mantis Shrimp needed to earn a decent sum of money was because his son, Chiquitita, had come down with a congenital illness that required him to receive regular blood transfusions that were proving to be quite costly. This illness was passed down by his mother, Mr. Mantis Shrimp’s wife, who had passed away a while ago from the same illness. So, although he was fighting alongside the Serpoians at first and was attempting to destroy Momo, Okarun, and Aira, the only reason he had gone to those lengths was to ensure he could save his son’s life. He even notes later on that he considers himself a pacifist and prefers not to engage in violence, but only does so when his patience is tested, or is required to defend a worthy cause.

While Mr. Mantis Shrimp might be considered weak by his own kind, he is incredibly powerful when up against the teens, even though he loses in the end. He shows the ability to utilize psychic powers, alongside powerful punches. He is even enhanced by the Serpoians, and eventually fuses with Nessie in the battle to attempt to defeat the group. Soon after he is defeated by Okarun, however, the group take him home and form a bond with him.

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The Dover Demon’s Relationship with Momo and Okarun

A Part of the Family

Image of Mr. Mantis Shrimp in Dandadan
  • Forms an alliance with Momo’s team
  • Moves to Earth with his son
  • Becomes a farmer

After the Dover Demon’s final attempt to defeat the group, he is taken to Momo’s home where her grandmother lives. After he wakes up from being unconscious, he is surprised to realize that he is bandaged up and has been taken care of, and he notices they have made him some curry and left it beside him for when he wakes up. Having never experienced such care and kindness in his life, he promises to never attack the group again and even ends up building a relationship with them. The group offer to help him with his son and eventually realize that the blood that his son needs is the same as the milk that humans drink, prompting Seiko to contact a dairy farmer she knows to provide him with a cow to give his son regular transfusions.

However, after returning to his home planet and realizing the cow was not producing milk, he moves to Earth with his son to regularly receive transfusions. After this, he works alongside the group consistently, even providing his spaceship to save Okarun when he is stuck in the Tsuchinoko pit. He also rebuilds Seiko’s home, helps the group translate an alien language, and frequently comes to visit the group to have dinner with them. Alongside the Yokai Turbo Granny, he is one of the few former enemies to build a strong relationship with the group, becoming essentially a part of the family. His relationship with them proves not every enemy is explicitly evil and against them, but is instead just like humans that have their own struggles and are looking for a way to protect their family.

Dandadan is available to stream on Crunchyroll, Netflix, and Hulu.

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