you know dandadan is a shounen bc the fans have started powerscaling tragic backstories
idiotsonlyevent reblogged
I have so many disconnected thoughts about dandadan and gender- it’s just so chock full of brilliant allegory. Haven’t read the manga and don’t want spoilers but the anime has been so good
Aliens and ghosts as the ways that patriarchy hurts men and women respectively. Once Okarun and Momo experience this first hand, they understand eachother better.
Okarun essentially being emasculated by the representation of rage stemming from older women who want to protect women who are victims of assault. Through understanding this rage, he finds a power that he uses to protect Momo. Through all of this emasculation he finds stronger connections and a sturdier sense of self.
His want for masculinity isn’t inherently in opposition to understanding the women around him, but he must first work closely with women to find it.
The way Momo is made to feel ashamed of her grandmother’s supernatural practices. The complicated feelings of being embarrassed but also pissed that people were insulting her grandmother. Something something the way that society encourages women of different age groups to be alienated from one another.
The way that Momo finds her power in accepting and understanding her grandmother. The way she chooses to use it so protect and uplift herself and those around her.
The fact that Momo and her friends are all Gyaru. So unapologetically confident, loud and themselves, despite the way that it can cause issues for them socially.
Idk I just have a lot of feelings rn
#this is it. this is the post that articulates how early dandadan does gender and why i think it's Thematically Relevant#and explains why i think its Trying/Intending to be progressive about gender#better than i have been able to 🙏 ty op#excited to hear if you have more thoughts as the show continues#dandadan#discussdadan#< sorry ik this is meant to be for my own posts but i need this post in there for reference
it's interesting that episode 3 shows turbo granny is kind of a hypocrite? she says she hates cheaters, but immediately cheats (by human standards) in the game of tag. it's speculated that she consoled the spirits of assaulted and murdered girls, but she herself assaults okarun and calls seiko and momo "hag," "bitch," and "skank" constantly. i think it's really indicative(?) that one of the last things she says before she fuses with the bound spirit is this:
but ultimately, momo is able to outsmart her using a combination of her grandmother's - also an elder - wisdom and modern technology.
still working on how to interpret this and fit it into what dandadan is saying. the easiest/most obvious would be something like 'you don't have to respect your elders if they disrespect you,' which is a sentiment that is applicable to future arcs as well i feel, but i do think there's more to it than that.
#L.txt#dandadan#discussdadan#another half-baked post from your truly. in the mines. again#what does it mean what does it all mean#BRIEF DISCUSSION OF SPOILERS (up to space globalists i think?) >>>> i do find it really... interesting the people are understandably#extremely wary of rokuro as an ally but seemingly have no complaints about or issues with turbo granny as an ally#is it bc of rokuro's politics? people internalizing(?) the framing/minimization of okarun's assault? idk. much to think about#ALSO thinking about how this relates to banga's request for vamola to marry a strong man and have kids - bc i personally did not feel like#that was some sort of endorsement to increase the birthrate but i've been seeing that interpretation a LOT recently#so ive been thinking abt it
if you hate them you will die and go to hell
it is completely understandable to be uncomfortable with the sexual assault in dandadan. it's important to discuss how it's framed, whether it's handled poorly, or if it could be been portrayed better. but the number of people - even fans - stating that it is only fanservice, irrelevant, or could be removed is frankly bizarre to for SO many reasons, starting with the fact that this parallel exists.
the anime made it even more obvious by interpolating cuts from the first scene into the second one.
i thought this scene showed that momo gaining her powers by believing in her relationship with her grandmother gives her the strength to fight back against what is basically a horrific, much more aggressive and abstract (maybe even absurd?) representation of her shitty gross ex - who was demanding she 'put out' and pay for the love hotel in very first scene.
while the escalation from one scene to the next is surprising, it's not something that comes out of nowhere. this first scene is meant to be a set-up to what will happen later. it sets the tone, though significantly more lighthearted at this point. it tells you that sex, sexuality, etc. is something dandadan will touch on - though you don't know what the scope and depth will be until later in the chapter.
i cannot recommend this video enough, as it discusses some interesting interpretations of what the serpoians and turbo granny represent in their respective assault scenes, as well as how right now the treatment of both scenes is unfortunately uneven.
more notes about plot and thematic relevance below the cut. spoilers for anime-onlies (up to chapter 8, will probably be covered in episodes 4/5).
#dandadan#L.txt#long post#dandadan analysis#< i guess? 😭#discussdadan#sorry for this kinda sloppy post but i need it out bc i feel like im losing my mind#this is not even ''''''''''a defense''''''''''' of the s/a i think it's really important to discuss framing/handling/etc etc#but some of the discourse arising from the first episode is maddening and is thoroughly not helped by ppl being weird/assholes abt it#you dont ''''''have to like it'''''' (< what does that even mean??) or keep reading it or literally anything#this is just a basic 'please engage w the text'
the first episode/chapter of dandadan has sexual assault scenes, and while nothing past that point is as intense as that first scene, sexual assault does NOT go away. on top of that, there is non-sexual nudity of teenagers, there are jokes about okarun's balls throughout the whole manga, there broadly seem to be themes/discussion of violating bodily autonomy - if those things make you uncomfortable, i suggest either bracing yourself or checking something else out
#sorry but it drives me nuts when some ppl say nothing happens past the first chapter - its is NOT true!#like even if it is thematically relevant (which i believe it is) ik it's still a huge turnoff for a lot of ppl#i totally get being uncomfortable w topics like that so please be mindful about if you want to engage with dandadan#i will work on filling out the doesthedogdie pages later today for a more complete list of cw/tws that will hopefully be helpful#L.txt#dandadan#discussdadan#< my ddd rambling tag
im not gonna say okarun is transgender, but there's definitely something to be said about the fact that he's a "less traditionally masculine" guy who's possesed by a woman spirit that makes him depressed and literally takes his "manhood" away, which causes him significant distresss, and the driving force of most of the narrative so far has been about getting it back 🤔 really makes you think
#L.txt#dandadan#discussdadan#HAPPY PREMIERE DAY this hit like maybe halfway through for me lmao#i think THIS is the point i was trying to make in the sa discussion post where ddd is showing a myriad of ways bodily autonomy is violated#and how that interfaces with gender#> i also want to discuss how in the cursed house arc its the old women beating up jiji and okarun#but i need to reread those chapters before actually making a post on it#anyways congrats to okarun for being the first cis trans man
idiotsonlyevent reblogged
EXTREMELY scattered thoughts about dandadan's portrayal of sexuality and sexual assault under the cut
like why does the prevailing opinion seem to be that it would be better that the sexual assualt gets dropped after the first chapter - therefore proving that it was only ever included for shock value - rather than it being revisited, especially with other characters, to show that it may have actual thematic relevance to the story? what is going on
EXTREMELY scattered thoughts about dandadan's portrayal of sexuality and sexual assault under the cut