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「タマはどこじゃんよ」 (Tama wa Doko jan yo)
“Like, Where Are Your Balls?”
This episode was low key compared to the all out wildness of the past few ones. The primary focus this week is on Momo and Okarun’s relationship, and I for one, certainly did not mind that one bit. It started out like a typical school romcom- pining over alien conversations each other, searching high and low only to miss the other, then ending in an accidental kiss. The pacing and soundtrack of this scene was spot on and all in all, was highly entertaining. I know the trademark of this series is the crazy ass supernatural stuff, but Momo and Okarun really are adorable together, so it’s nice to have a calm(er) episode to pull that into focus more. I honestly couldn’t get enough of them being bashful and awkward together, it was cute as hell.
Things start to head into bumpy waters as far as their friendship goes, when the pair get caught by Momo’s friends, and spurred on by their teasing, Momo turns hostile on Okarun. Unfortunately for Okarun, the timing couldn’t be worse because he’s just discovered that his balls are still missing. Momo continues acting like a jerk to him, not helped in the least by the huge audience she’s gathered around her. It definitely wasn’t kind of her to act that way towards him, but I imagine having a gaggle of girls around her makes it harder to eat a slice of humble pie and apologize to a friend. Though I don’t think anyone (other than poor Okarun) is fooled by the show she puts on- if anything, it just cinches the deal.
There’s nothing like some good old-fashioned jealousy to set your priorities straight. A cute, nice nasty schoolmate, Airi temporarily sets her sights on Okarun because she gets her kicks out of leading on innocent young lads and crushing their hearts. Momo starts seeing green and gets pissed. She hilariously drops a pan on Airi’s head using her spirit powers, then starts acting real cozy with Okarun again, making it clear that he’s hers to torture, and nobody else’s. I was impressed (and relieved) that she apologized to Okarun after treating him so rudely in front of her friends like that. He doesn’t deserve to be treated that way, and with his low confidence takes it to heart far more than someone of Momo’s ilk.
Okarun’s humiliations don’t end there. His confession of his recent discovery in the men’s room leaves Momo rolling on the floor in laughter. Not that I can blame her- he really has to be in space cadet mode to take that long to realize he has some missing pieces down there.
It turns out last week was not the end of Turbo Granny- much to my relief, as I was sad to see her go. Granny Ayase smacks and insults (what’s with her fixation on calling people rotten tangerines LOL) the living daylights out of Okarun to drive the evil spirit out of him and into a lucky cat doll. After a bit of a chase, Momo manages to corner the cat/spirit. Apparently, consciousness and spiritual power can be separated, like an egg white from the yolk. Which works in Okarun’s favor, as that means he can still use Granny’s powers when triggered. That will probably come in handy sooner rather than later. Momo’s learned her lesson from last time about disrespecting spirits and their turf, and shows newfound respect for Granny as the protector of the girls.
Unfortunately, things don’t get much better for Okarun. It turns out Turbo Granny really dropped the ball on this one, and I do mean literally. His family jewels aren’t just stolen, Granny lost them in the scuffle, which is probably worse because it makes it a whole lot more difficult now to get them back, if they even can (though from the preview, it looks as if that is more than a strong possibility).
Preview
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If it weren’t for Airi getting owned by Momo I would have forgotten Dandadan isn’t a ROMCOM. And if Dandadan began as a ROMCOM I would have continued to consume the show weekly. I was like “OKARUN, DUDE! ASK MOMO OUT OR YOUR G**!”
What I love about Dandadan is how well the show switches gears. Often when I watch shows with constant high-octane scenes in previous episodes, then a change of pace in the next episode takes me half the episode to adjust to the timing of every scene. Not Dandadan, Why do I get the sense the director wanted the romance scenario between Okarun and Ayase to be fully articulated story-wise? Like the action-packed scenes from the previous episode, the romance at school between Okarun and Ayase feels emotional.
My opinion about Airi and her terrible personality as seen interacting with Okarun. Airi is a kid. Kids don’t often know they have awful personalities. As such, Airi may or may not learn from her mistake when she becomes an adult out in the real world needing to build healthy private, professional, and social relationships. Every day is a learning opportunity for adults and children too.
I’m also glad that they kept the Turbo Granny, she was a good character. Although I didn’t expect her to be turned into the cat, I guess that now we know why then Ending was fixiated in the cat and a golden ball.