Science Saru’s Dandadan turns a schoolyard argument into a war. Momo Ayase believes in ghosts. Ken “Okarun” Takakura believes in aliens. They make a bet, visit a hotspot for each, and learn both are real. Momo awakens psychokinetic powers. Okarun gets cursed by the Turbo Granny, gaining supernatural speed and transformation abilities. Now they fight entities to win back Okarun’s “spiritual essentials.”
That is the engine, and it never stalls.
Trailer, via Netflix Anime.
Momo Ayase and Okarun
The series is directed by Fūga Yamashiro and written by Hiroshi Seko. Science Saru produces it from Yukinobu Tatsu’s manga. Naoyuki Onda handles character designs. Yoshimichi Kameda designs the aliens and supernatural entities. Kensuke Ushio composes the music.
Shion Wakayama voices Momo. Natsuki Hanae voices Okarun. Mayumi Tanaka voices Turbo Granny. Nana Mizuki voices Seiko. The cast carries the show’s two modes at once: broad comedy and genuine dread.
Ghosts, Aliens, and a Bet
The premise sounds like a gag. It plays like one for about ten minutes, then the threats arrive and the show means them. Momo’s powers and Okarun’s curse give the pair a shared problem, and the romance builds out of that problem rather than sitting beside it.
The genres are Animation, Action & Adventure, Comedy, and Sci-Fi & Fantasy. All four earn their place. The action is legible. The comedy lands. The fantasy has rules.
One Season, 24 Episodes
The source lists Dandadan as 1 season, 24 episodes. Season 1 ran from October 4 to December 20, 2024. Season 2 ran from July 4 to September 19, 2025. The series was broadcast in the Super Animeism Turbo timeslot on MBS, TBS, and their affiliates.
Netflix and Crunchyroll licensed it for worldwide streaming. In the United States, an English dub airs on Adult Swim’s Toonami block. A third season was announced in December 2025 during Jump Festa 2026 and is set to premiere in 2027.
What Holds Up
The praise for the animation, characters, visuals, storytelling, musical score, and voice acting is earned. In this writer’s view, Kameda’s entity designs are the standout — the aliens and ghosts look like they came from different imaginations, which is the point of the bet.
The pacing is this writer’s complaint, not the source’s. Twenty-four episodes carry a lot of fighting, and the middle stretch leans on the same structure: threat appears, powers escalate, essentials get closer. It works, but it repeats.
What makes Dandadan worth the time is that it never picks a lane. It is a comedy that takes its monsters seriously and a romance that takes its teenagers seriously. Momo and Okarun are written as kids first, which is why the bet matters more than the powers.
The Numbers
- Score: 8.5 out of 10, the audience score on TMDB from 945 votes
- Episodes: 24 across 1 season
- First aired: October 4, 2024
- Last aired: September 19, 2025
- Studio: Science Saru
- Director: Fūga Yamashiro
- Streaming: Netflix, Crunchyroll
Broadcast Schedule
| Season | Run |
|---|---|
| Season 1 | October 4 – December 20, 2024 |
| Season 2 | July 4 – September 19, 2025 |
| Season 3 | 2027 |
Dandadan is the rare adaptation that trusts its source and its audience. It gives you ghosts, aliens, a curse, and two kids who cannot admit they like each other, and it plays all of it straight enough to hurt. The third season is set for 2027. 8.5 out of 10.
Get the Notebook.
The day's best stories and every fresh verdict, in plain English, in your inbox by seven. One email a day, no more.