Warning: SPOILERS for Dandadan chapter 76The things that originally made Shonen Jump+'s Dandadan so special are now turning the manga into a difficult read. Despite initial promise, recent chapters of the manga focussed more of nonsensical parody rather than enriching its characters.
Ever since the first chapter, Jump+'s Dandadan has ventured into the random and absurd while presenting a string of unrelated yet intriguing events that helped the reader feel that the new world they were delving into was massive and chaotic. But after 76 chapters, both the lack of one main threat or big bad along with its interminable descent into more ridiculousness just for the sake of being ridiculous are beginning to take a major toll on the overall feel of the once-promising series.
Dandadan's chapter 76 actually exemplifies the series' need for a big bad. After defeating a giant kaiju which turned out to be a suit with a beautiful alien girl named Vamola inside, Momo Ayase takes Vamola to school via a shortcut and randomly get attacked by a yokai based on the Slit-Mouthed Woman from Japanese folklore. Then just as quickly as she appeared, the Slit-Mouthed Woman disappears, allowing Momo and Vamola to resume getting to school. Meanwhile, Dandadan's aforementioned kaiju battle incorporated a mecha that functions like the Megazord from Power Rangers with the help of an unsightly pervert who unfortunately appears to be part of the main hero party now.
How Dandadan Can Still Reedm Itself
The irony is that Dandadan has provided a glimpse of what the series' main threat could be, but by failing to actually follow through and deliver, the gesture feels empty. The series' big bad could be a member of an alien race known as the Serpo who arrive at random to try and steal a certain appendage from the series' heroes Okarun and Momo. But there isn't a specific figure among them who stands out as a force readers should fear, preventing the series from effectively positioning the Serpo as the big bad.
Even more ironically, Dandadan once hinted at the purpose of the aliens' obsession with Okarun and Momo, which could explain Dandadan's combining of aliens with yokai possessions while hinting at a larger motive that could become something truly innovative and profound. But without anything concrete and only a random theory, the effect loses its potency the further the manga progresses without any answer. That said, a new menacing figure that first appeared in chapter 72 by attacking the Serpo could possibly serve as the true big bad. With so many other things happening simultaneously though, it feels more like white noise amongst the chaos, one that needed to come earlier to bring everything together.
With a true big bad, the randomness of Dandadan could be meaningful. The series' formula of introducing one ridiculous threat after the other had its own charm. The fact that each transitional chapter from one arc to the next resumed the Dandadan's blossoming romance between Okarun and Momo helped give some much-needed focus as well, keeping the reader invested. Randomness serves as a way to build a brand-new world, but that world has gotten too big. It's time to either identify the mysterious creature attacking the Serpo, confirm the theory about the connection between yokai and aliens, and let one of its arcs last for more than just a few chapters. Dandadan might be a disappointing Shonen Jump series now, but it's not too late to turn things around.
Read Dandadan's latest chapter now through Viz Media!