A film as an appetizer, an animated feature film, too, to make a shocking comeback before the launch of season 2: this is the strategy chosen by Science SARU for the first film dedicated to the anime Dan Da Dan. The release is scheduled in theaters in France on June 7 and 8, in the CGR cinemas partnering with the event, but also at the Grand Rex (on June 7, editor's note) for a special evening. It's not surprising when you know that Dan Da Dan is one of the flagship anime of 2024 and that the manga is also attracting many attention. A welcome detour to the big screen? This is now commonplace in the industry, and recent examples like Solo Leveling at the end of last year or Demon Slayer in recent years won't prove otherwise.
A rather unusual recap of season 1 (especially for those who don't follow Dan Da Dan)
It remained to be seen what Evil Eye offers in its 1 hour 33-minute screening. As expected, these are the first three episodes of the next season... no more, no less. It's due for release on July 3rd on Crunchyroll, ADN, and Netflix. The film, in its construction, stands out a little from the rest of the competition with an introduction and conclusion animated by the directors who worked on season 2, Fuga Yamashiro and Abel Gongora. The latter notably directed the opening of the first season and is co-directing the new episode series with Yamashiro. What's next? An ultra-fast and dynamic summary of season 1. So fast, in fact, that it's aimed more at anime fans than at the curious, motivated by the idea of discovering the world of Dan Da Dan.
When you see what has been done before in the field, with recaps taking up a good third, even half of the film (ultimately offering little real space for new content), we can't deny that this summary is rather appreciable and doesn't skip over the important elements. But for the sake of understanding for everyone, it might have been wiser to do it with a voiceover narration, rather than compiling moments and excerpts of dialogue.
But hey, after all, the film announces highlights and not a real summary, so no false advertising at that level. On the other hand, no comma between the end of the recap and the beginning of the film. We'll have to make do with a fade to black. Here again, those who aren't up to date will have a little latency to understand that they've switched to the new content.
The Cursed House arc at the center of the debate
So what about the latter? Obviously, as its name suggests, we're going to focus on the Evil Eye, a powerful entity that can possess spirits and cause them to commit suicide. The film picks up exactly where season 1 of Dan Da Dan ended. We find Momo, Okarun, and Jiji, all three of them on a mission to the house of the latter's parents. Their goal is to exorcise the building, after something forced Jiji's parents to attempt suicide. Momo stumbles upon a group of perverts in a mixed bath (when she thought it was reserved for women only), Okarun and Jiji, after an argument concerning Momo, discover the presence of a new room in the house. DNA
The first three episodes reveal a number of truths, such as the curse that weighs on Jiji's parents' house, the presence of a giant monster (a worm) as well as the nature of the Evil Eye, its origin story and the way in which the latter will come into contact with Jiji.For an hour, we find the main ingredients of Dan Da Dan's success: a permanent situational comedy, fights as inventive as they are well animated and a top-notch production. Once again, the anime puts on the path of our trio, sorry quartet – we shouldn't forget Mémé Turbo, whose spirit is now sealed in a Maneki-neko doll (in the shape of a cat, editor's note) – new characters, each one more eccentric than the last.
See you in July for the sequel... with some liberties with the manga?
If the giant worm is one of the main attractions of the film, the Evil Eye is a first-rate antagonist and its development is all the more promising. Very present in season 1, the relationship between Momo and Okarun - and their budding feelings for each other - is relegated to the background in favor of the action and the character of Jiji. The latter, between flashbacks, acts of bravery and transformation, is not left out and presents himself as the most developed member of the trio in these three episodes. The fight scenes are still as remarkable as ever, with Science SARU's attention to pace and attention to detail perfectly mastered.
So much so that we can't wait to see the Evil Eye at work again... Yes, because Evil Eye isn't a real film in the strict sense of the word, which it reminds us at the end of its runtime, with a little cliffhanger as a conclusion. The Cursed House arc does not conclude in this film and will continue in July with the broadcast of season 2 of Dan Da Dan.
In the meantime, this film fulfills its mission: to put us back in the anime and set the main challenges for the sequel. A sequel, which should take some liberties in terms of pace and narrative structure compared to the manga, if we understand the words delivered by Fuga Yamashiro at the end of the film. “The atmosphere is perhaps different from season 1,” he explains. “We’re not doing anything that could betray the manga. But our approach to season 2 can sometimes be different. In season 1, we filled in the gaps to connect one panel to another. We faithfully took the panels one by one, then we imagined that we could connect them. But in season 2, we can go back and forth between the pages. Always staying within what Mr. Tatsu could have done. “Hey, there could also be such and such a scene.” Or not… But it never alters the story (…) We use what has already been done, not to redo the same thing, but as a support for a new approach.” So we will judge all that in July. In the meantime, the film Dan Da Dan: Evil Eye is in theaters June 7 and 8.
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