don't talk to me about dandadan unless u understand that the controversial first episode is inseparable from (spoilers up to episode 4) its themes of mixed gender solidarity under patriarchy: ep1 okarun and momo argue over the occult while championing their traditionally 'gendered' interests in it: okarun likes sci fi nerdy shit like UFOs and aliens, and momo believes in ghosts. but by the end of episode 1 they have bonded over their mutual experiences of facing the threat of the unwanted intervention by those 'gendered' phenomenon upon their reproductive organs, and they come to understand and respect one another because of it.
yes haha funny anime steals male protagonist's dick and ballsâand it IS a comedy as well, which i have immense respect for, but that doesn't mean it doesn't also have strong character writing moments and narrative depth.
if you make it to episode 4 you may notice that Turbo Granny is a ghost who mourns the deaths of women and girls who are victims of (presumptively) gendered violence. and while her motivations are wrapped up in the reactive, twisted, and vengeful psyche of a ghost with a grudge, it's not a huge leap to imagine her motivation for stealing men's cocks is precisely to prevent the kind of gendered violence she abhors. sexual violence as revenge is not justifiable, of course, least of all to okarun, who is innocent of that particular crime (though not of disturbing a ghost's territory), and that's why momo and okarun teaming up to defeat her, while nevertheless showing compassion after that defeat, is so significant.
in episode 1, momo is pressured by her boyfriend at the school entrance gates to "put out", and when she tries to roundhouse kick him for being a pushy asshole, he retaliates in kind, kicking her in the stomach and sending her to the ground.
in episode 1, turbo granny (the representation of a 'female' occult force) possesses okarun (arguably creating a bigender entity) and fights off the all-male race of aliens (the representation of a 'male' occult force) that have abducted and cheerfully threatened to sterilize momo by taking her uterus. momo then awakens to her psychic powersâand in a repeat performance of her confrontation with her ex-boyfriend (a similarity explicitly drawn attention to with the shot's framing and a split-second frame of her kicking her boyfriend as her foot makes contact with the alien's hand) she emerges victorious, triumphant in the face of that violence, and uses her powers to suppress the part of okarun that threatens to devour him (postponing turbo granny's sublimation of okarun so he isn't devoured by that 'gendered' force, which he was cursed for disrespecting).
yes, the infamous scene in episode 1 is erotic. some people call this "fanservice". maybe it is that. i prefer to call it "unflinching".
i feel like a lot of people are either 1) so scandalized by this scene that they lose their faith in the narrative, and maybe even stop watchingâwhich is fine, if course. you don't have to watch it if it makes you uncomfortable, and you don't even have to acknowledge the merit of a story that fails to capture your interest.
or 2) people are willing to ignore what they see as the tasteless, flagrant fanservice in episode 1 because the love story or the fight scenes or animation are so good. dandadan is an experience they feel they can enjoy in spite of its scenes of sexual assault, because it has other 'redeeming' qualities (as if it needs to redeem itself for having the temerity to confront such a difficult topic). to be completely frank, i feel like the themes of sexual violence are inextricable from the wholeâand i think that makes dandadan a thousand times more compelling than stories which thoughtlessly incorporate misogyny or cross-gender hostility as a matter of course, and thereby entrench those patriarchally imposed gender dynamics as something 'natural'.
Maybe im English Majoring too close to the sun here but...
Turbo Granny grew vicious when she watched over the spirits of murdered young girls -> as a lucky cat her good luck protects momo ayase
Acro Silky was lost in the afterlife searching for her taken child -> through aria shiratori she lovingly dotes on Chiquitita
Evil Eye was sacrificed, watched family after family die to satisfy the hunger of a false god and failed to protect any subsequent sacrifice -> because of Jiji, he has a family that protects him and fights for him to have a normal childhood
Like the found family of it all is so beautiful, and it makes me so emotional. Like they all are violently and fiercely defensive to a love that slowly opens them to a peace they never thought possible. IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL.
in an age of smartphones, okarun uses a flip phone and doesn't own a computer
the first line that really struck a chord with him from momo is "'cause my parents are gone"
okarun speaks in an oldtimey fashion (uses "jibun" instead of "watashi", which is also polite, but oldfashioned and slightly more masculine than "watashi"), and has multiple times used phrasing similar to ken takakura, the famous actor, without seeming to realize it
okarun shares a name with momo's crush, the famous actor ken takakura
okarun shares many of the personality traits ascribed to ken takakura the actor
ken takakura the actor lived from 1931 to 2014
ken takakura the actor was 8-14 years old at the time of ww2
okarun is in his second year of high school, which means he's 16 or 17
famous ancient people and phenomena (the sumerians, the pyramids&kofun) have been linked to alien activity
okarun explicitly acknowledges that he may have been experimented on by aliens and had his memory wiped
theory 1: okarun is literally ken takakura the actor from the pastâspecifically from right around ww2, when alien activity was the most likely narratively speakingâtemporally displaced, memory wiped, and intentionally or unintentionally prevented from seeing the results of ww2 (or finds the internet too crazy as a modern invention and avoids it for reasons unknown to him)
theory 2: okarun is an average weirdo with neglectful parents who imprinted on the actor who shares his name, probably watching all his movies on vhs or something, and is allergic to the internet from nothing more than a personality quirk
underrated DanDaDan moment is when Aira is introduced and they kinda set it up so you think its gonna be this basic love triangle bullshit, but then Okarun and Momo just talk it out and even tho Aira still wants to jump Okarun's bones its clear from then on its utterly one-sided
and THEN they introduce Jiji and they kinda ser it up so you think THAT is gonna be the basic love triangle bullshit, but then Okarun realizes "Oh this guy kinda rules, and i want to be his friend" and while Jiji still is an insatiable flirt its still clear that him and Momo are just friends
So you get a DOUBLE LOVE TRIANGLE FAKEOUT and the manga-ka makes it clear that jealousy is stupid and this awkward nerd-gyaru couple are absolute endgame, there's absolutely nothing that can tear them apart, and ultimately you should befriend your rivals
Ways I can think of that âDanDaDanâ differs from other shonen series:
* Female MC is as important as male MC
* Canon romance gets consistent development through the series. I think thatâs part of the reason why the MC ships with the rivals (Aira, Jiji) arenât as popular with the fandom for once. The main ship is actually getting good development, so the fanbase doesnât have to make up headcanons to fill in the space.
* Flips the found family trope on its head by having the main group despise new people whenever they show up and they even actively try to kick them out. The new people only end up staying because they keep lingering around to the point that the main group just gives up and lets them stay.
* The rivals arenât emo or angst-ridden. Aira is a delusional tryhard popular girl while Jiji is a himbo drama queen. Iâd even go as far to say that the MCs are the ones who are emo and angst-ridden.
* Supporting cast is more than just important, they become integral to the story. Iâd say that the further you read into DanDaDan, the more it becomes an ensemble cast where everyone is a protagonist in their own right.
* World-building is all over the place, but in a good way. Most other shonen are pretty consistent with what kind of world their characters live in. MHA is superhero-based, Naruto is ninjas and magic, Bleach is spirits, and so on. DanDaDan feels like the author just throws whatever cool shit they can think of into the story. Thatâs actually the reason why I wrote in a different post that DanDaDan reminds me more of Marvel/DC than any other shonen series, it manages to capture the catch-all insanity of those comics.
* Doesnât rely on hidden power-ups. The main characters either have to outsmart the villains or they have to train to get better with the powers they already have.
* The pervert comic relief guy is actually endearing for once. Not because of his pervert tendencies, but because heâs so oblivious to how socially inept he is that itâs kind of funny. This is gonna sound strange, but he sorta reminds me of Thor in Thor Ragnarok. Full of himself and oblivious to how dumb he can be. Heâs Thor without the good looks lol.
* Flips the ânerdy outcast loser somehow gets a haremâ trope. Instead of making Okarun cooler than how he actually is, the story emphasizes that the women who fall for Okarun are as weird as him. Momo is a weird outcast, Aira has main character syndrome, Vamola doesnât understand how to human because sheâs literally not one, Rin thought Okarun was a vampire (and wanted him to be).
* Flips the âelderly figure in charge of the teenagersâ trope. I donât really get motherly figure vibes from Seiko Ayase, I get more âcool wine aunt who is stuck with her nieceâ vibes. In fact, there was the arc where Okarun showed up to her in spirit mode to get her help with fighting off the alien invasion and Seikoâs response was, âWell, Iâm not in the area and I have other shit to do, so you kids figure it out.â
* The series takes the piss out of the trope of mystical/magical items that the group acquired to get their powers. I meanâŠthe main mystical MacGuffin in the series are Okarunâs balls.
* Okarun was about to go into an âIâm weak / I wish I was stronger / I want to get stronger for my friendsâ breakdown, but Turbo Granny told him to shut up and keep fighting.
* Not afraid to put the âcool girlâ in as many funny situations as possible. Off the top of my head, the series built up Momo as this cool, tough girl who doesnât take shit from anyoneâŠthen several chapters later, Okarun found out she got a job at a maid cafe.
âŠ Ë : · EVERYTHING FEELS GREAT WITH A BEER · : ËâŠ
pairing â jason todd & fem!reader (platonic)
word count â 1.1K
summary â you and jason catch up together
warnings â no warnings cause it's spoiler. innacurate shit but idgaf
a/n â like i said before, i don't write romantic stuff with jason todd, but angsty sibling stuff? DAMN RIGHT I AM
main masterlist | letterboxd
Every night, after midnight, he's always there. Sharp, using the spare key you gave him for emergencies and being loud with his worn out boots.
You're already half-asleep on the couch, some b-serie horror movie playing in the background, when the sound of your little brother arriving makes you stir. There's no fear, no rush of panic, just a quiet, lazy sense of recognition as you lift your head and glance toward the hallway.
âDonât you have your own apartment to haunt?â you mutter without looking.
Jason, grinning, smug, dressed like he didnât bother changing out of whatever vigilante mess heâd thrown on last is already kicking off his boots, like he owns the place. He always does this. Shows up at 2 a.m. smelling like blood and gunpowder and city rain, and you always let him.
âYouâve got better snacks,â he replies, tossing his leather jacket over the back of a chair like he didnât just drag half of Crime Alley in with him.
You snort and push yourself up. âYou eat one bag of chips, and suddenly you think you're welcome to the whole pantry.â
He shrugs, already making his way to your kitchen, humming some low tune that feels nostalgic. Familiar. Something about him tonight seems... softer. His shoulders less tense. His smile looser.
You crack open a beer for him and toss it across the room. He catches it one-handed, as always.
âStill got it,â you say.
âNever lost it.â
He eyes your small living room, not judging, but analyzing trying to find signals of your well-being. There are clothes around the couch, empty beers and empty take out packagings in the table. He sees some light bulbs broken, remembering to change them for you after you fall asleep.
The banter is easy. It always is with Jason. You sit cross-legged on the couch while he leans against the counter, drinking and listening while you talk about everything and nothing. Your part-time job, whatever shit Bruce have told you this week, the assholes youâve punched recently, the stupid date that ghosted you.
He groans. âYou gotta stop dating civilians. They canât handle the night shift.â
You laugh so hard you nearly spill your drink. âSays the guy who dated an Arkham escapee. Twice.â
âThat was character growth,â he says, deadpan. âI grew. Away. From her. Eventually.â
âLike a fungus,â you tease, lifting your beer slightly.
He grins, wide and bright, the kind of grin you hadnât seen in a long time. He looks happy tonight. Or at least lighter. He always did around you. No masks. No Red Hood. Just Jason. Just your idiot, insomniac sibling who never knocks and always leaves crumbs on your counters.
At some point, youâre both on the floor, back against the couch, an open bottle of something expensive Bruce gifted you after your 21st birthday between you. You talk about the old days, before everything broke. Before blood and bat symbols got in the way. You remember stupid pranks, horrible takeout, the time you both got blackout drunk and convinced Bruce to sing karaoke with you.
Jasonâs head falls back with laughter at the memory. âGod, I miss this,â he says.
You blink. âYou say that like you left.â
He doesnât answer.
Silence stretches between you. Not uncomfortable. Just full. Dense.
You study him. The curve of his jaw, the scar near his temple. The way he hasnât aged a day. You realize, distantly, that he still wears that same battered hoodie every time he visits you, the one he got blood on the night everything went to hell. You swore he had other clothes in his wardrobe but you can't really remember any other outfit of your brother.
Your stomach tightens. A hollow opens somewhere in your chest.
âI havenât seen you inââ you start, then stop. You canât finish the sentence. It hangs there like ash.
Jason smiles again, but itâs gentler now. Sadder. Like he knows something you donât. His eyes flicker with an unusual light.
âYouâre doing good,â he says softly. âYouâre okay. I like that.â
Your hand trembles as your gaze flicks around the room, slow, searching. Your drink is finished. The second beerâhis beerâis unopened. The boots by the door are gone. The jacket on the chair. The fridge light isnât on. The bottle between you is sealed. The lights are dimmer now, like the whole room has taken a step back.
And thenâ
âHey,â he says gently. His voice is soft. Right beside you. âDonât do that.â
âDo what?â you ask, though itâs barely a whisper.
âThat thing where you remember.â
It slices through you. Not a warning, just a kindness. Just Jason trying to make it easier.
You swallow thickly and look at him. Not with confusion now. Just⊠with everything else. With the love that never left. The ache that lives where a bond used to be tethered to a living body.
âI donât want this to be over,â you say, barely holding it in.
âItâs not,â he murmurs. âNot really.â
And for a few more seconds, heâs still there. Sitting beside you on the floor. The only person who ever truly knew how to find you in the quiet. The only one who never needed a reason.
You lean your head against the couch, eyes closed, holding on just a little longer.
When you open them again, youâre alone.
The room is still. Empty. But warm. At least you tell yourself it is.
Somewhere beneath the silence, you swear you can still hear him laughing. Your little brother.
The Nazis won WWII here? Yes. That's the craziest thing I've heard since I found out Cheeri-ohs has an H on the end.
PEACEMAKER 2.07, "Like a Keith in the Night"
âThere's a freeze frame and we hear a bunch of bullets, that doesn't mean they died. Yes it does. I don't think so, I think they jumped over those bullets right after that freeze frame. Well that's an exceedingly optimistic interpretation. Both things are equally possible.
I think people seem to forget that Adrian Chase is actually fucking terrifying. Like yes he's a goofball who likes giving fun facts that aren't even remotely true, but James Gunn also described him as 'Rain man but with murder' (which admittedly has its own problems)
Like in season 1 episode 5 yes he's pretty easily manipulated by Adebayo to kill Peacemakers dad, but he turns around and manipulates the shit out of those rednecks. He doesn't antagonize them for fun, it's like Auggie points out, he's making the Nazi's throw the first punch so he's not at 'fault' if anyone checks the footage.
Not only that, but he also decimated every single one of them in less than a minute while having a severed toe and recently being stabbed and electrocuted in the balls (potential healing factor aside).
He's also got a very specific moral compass that's somewhat based in law (eg., Marijuana 'three years ago, I would have killed you for that') and somewhat based on values (eg., racism) where every infraction is punishable by death. Not only that, but he loves to do it. He finds so much pleasure in having that control over someone's life.
He's got a whole kit for dismembering bodies, which pretty heavily implies he's used to hiding the evidence of his murders. The cops seem to know he's Vigilante, but he hasn't been arrested.
I'm not calling him crazy because he's not. He's unstable, yes, but that's not the same thing. He's actually very smart and dangerous as shit. I think it's important to remember that and not stick him into this little box of 'baby boy who needs protection' or 'idiot'.
This is all to say that I don't want to kick Chris' ass I want Adrian to do it and make everyone remember he's not just a stupid loser following them around like a sad puppy. I also want someone to make an actual effort to help him grow instead of just assuming that he's beyond help or won't understand (shout out James Gunn for that crying scene being character development!)
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