Dandadan opens with an argument. Momo Ayase believes in ghosts but thinks aliens are nonsense. Ken Takakura, the classmate she nicknames Okarun, believes in aliens but thinks ghosts are made up. They agree to a test: each will visit a place famous for the other's kind of weirdness. By the end of the night Momo has been abducted by aliens, Okarun has been cursed by a yokai, and both of them have powers they didn't ask for.
From there the series runs at full speed between horror, romantic comedy and giant battles, often in the same chapter. The cast keeps growing as Momo and Okarun pick up friends who were attacked, possessed or cursed by the same strange things. This guide covers the main cast, the yokai and spirits, and the aliens, with the voice cast and a list of names at the end.
- Creator
- Yukinobu Tatsu
- Manga
- Shonen Jump+, from 2021
- Anime studio
- Science SARU
- Anime seasons
- Season one, autumn 2024; season two, summer 2025
- Genre
- Supernatural action, sci-fi and romantic comedy
Momo, Okarun and the main cast
The core group forms almost by accident: every new member arrives because something supernatural has gone wrong in their life, and Momo and Okarun are the only people who can help. By the second season they have become a loud, close-knit group who spend their downtime eating at Seiko's house.
Momo Ayase
Protagonist · Psychokinesis
Momo is a blunt, confident high-schooler with a gyaru look and a fierce sense of justice. She steps in when anyone is being bullied, which is how she meets Okarun. Her run-in with aliens awakens her family's latent psychic power, and she learns to use psychokinesis that shows up as giant spectral hands. She's quick to anger and quick to cry, and her slow realisation that she likes Okarun drives the romantic side of the story.
- Voice
- Shion Wakayama (JP), Abby Trott (EN)
Ken Takakura (Okarun)
Protagonist · Turbo Granny's power
Okarun is a shy, friendless occult fan with thick glasses and no confidence. Momo is the first person in a long time to be kind to him, and he falls for her instantly. Turbo Granny curses him and steals something very personal, and getting it back sets off the main quest. Borrowing Granny's power lets him transform into a fast, masked fighter, and the series follows him slowly becoming as brave as his transformed self.
- Voice
- Natsuki Hanae (JP), AJ Beckles (EN)
Seiko Ayase
Momo's grandmother · Spirit medium
Seiko is a powerful medium who runs a small business exorcising spirits from home and has no patience for nonsense. She's loud, crude and charges for everything, but she's also the adult who knows the most about how the supernatural works. She treats the growing group of kids like grandchildren and puts them to work.
- Voice
- Nana Mizuki (JP)
Turbo Granny
Yokai · Live-in grump
Turbo Granny is a yokai who haunts a tunnel and runs down anyone she catches. After the first arc she's sealed inside a maneki-neko lucky-cat figure and moves in with the Ayase family. She bickers with Seiko, demands snacks and lends Okarun her speed when it suits her. She's the show's funniest supporting character, and occasionally its wisest.
- Voice
- Mayumi Tanaka (JP), Barbara Goodson (EN)
Aira Shiratori
Classmate · Acrobatic Silky's power
Aira is a classmate who is convinced she's the prettiest girl in school and that she's been chosen for some special destiny. She gets pulled into the story when the yokai Acrobatic Silky targets her, and she ends up with that yokai's abilities. She develops an intense, one-sided attachment to Okarun, to Momo's great annoyance, and over time becomes a real friend.
- Voice
- Kaede Hondo (JP)
Jin Enjoji (Jiji)
Momo's childhood friend
Jiji is a tall, easygoing boy Momo grew up with, and the first person she ever had a crush on. He comes back asking for help because his family's new home is haunted. That leads to a village with a dark secret and to the Evil Eye. His laid-back charm hides real loyalty, and his friendly rivalry with Okarun is one of the funniest relationships in the series.
- Voice
- Kaito Ishikawa (JP)
Kinta Sakata
Classmate · Mecha fan
Kinta is a loud classmate obsessed with giant robots, who insists he must be secretly special and tries to look the part. His fantasy of piloting a robot comes true in a typically ridiculous way when he gets his hands on one he calls Great Kinta. He's comic relief with a good heart.
Vamola
Alien warrior
Vamola is a young alien from a world that has been destroyed. She first clashes with the heroes and later becomes an ally. She's physically very strong, has little understanding of human life and is very fond of food. Her story adds a quieter note of grief to the alien side of the series.
Yokai and spirits
Dandadan's ghosts and yokai come from Japanese urban legends and folklore, and most of them are terrifying at first. The series has a habit of then showing why a spirit became what it is, and those backstories are where it hits hardest.
Acrobatic Silky
Yokai · Urban legend
Acrobatic Silky is a tall, red-clad spirit who moves with impossible, jerking speed and targets young women. When the heroes face her, the story steps back to show the human life behind her: a mother who lost her daughter. Her episode in the first season is one of the most praised in recent anime, and what she leaves behind changes Aira's story.
Turbo Granny
Tunnel yokai
Before she becomes a household nuisance, Turbo Granny is a real threat: a fast, grinning hag who curses anyone who wanders into her territory. Her first fight with Momo and Okarun, a chase through a tunnel and across a city, sets the series' breakneck tone.
The Evil Eye
Vengeful spirit
The Evil Eye is a powerful curse tied to the village where Jiji's family moves. Its origin is a child who was sacrificed by the villagers, and his anger has turned into something hungry and destructive. When it latches on to Jiji, the group has to find a way to fight the curse without losing their friend.
The Kito family
Village cult
The Kito family are the village's keepers of a grim tradition, and they're perfectly willing to use outsiders to keep it going. They're among the most unsettling human villains in the series because they believe they're doing their duty.
Aliens
The other half of the series is science fiction. Dandadan's aliens borrow from UFO lore and tabloid sightings, and like its yokai they range from grotesque to oddly sympathetic.
The Serpoians
The first aliens
The Serpoians are the aliens who abduct Momo on the night of the bet. They have an unpleasant interest in human reproduction and treat Momo as a specimen. Escaping them is what awakens her psychic power. They set the comic, disgusting tone of the alien plotlines.
Vamola
Alien from a lost world
Vamola starts on the wrong side of a fight with the heroes and ends up on theirs. She's one of the clearest examples of Dandadan's habit of turning an enemy into a friend once you understand them.
Other visitors
Monsters of the week
The series introduces a steady stream of extraterrestrials and space monsters, many based on real-world UFO sightings and cryptid stories. Most turn up for a single arc, and spotting the folklore behind each one is half the fun.
Dandadan voice cast
Science SARU's adaptation is known for its music and wildly kinetic action, and the voice cast carries a lot of the comedy. English dub credits are listed only where we're confident of them. See our voice actors guide for more on the actors.
| Character | Japanese | English |
|---|---|---|
| Momo Ayase | Shion Wakayama | Abby Trott |
| Ken Takakura (Okarun) | Natsuki Hanae | AJ Beckles |
| Seiko Ayase | Nana Mizuki | — |
| Turbo Granny | Mayumi Tanaka | Barbara Goodson |
| Aira Shiratori | Kaede Hondo | — |
| Jin Enjoji (Jiji) | Kaito Ishikawa | — |
Natsuki Hanae also voices Tanjiro in Demon Slayer, which makes Okarun's nervous squeaks all the more of a surprise.
Where to start and watch order
- Season 1 (autumn 2024) The bet, Turbo Granny, Acrobatic Silky and Aira, ending on Jiji's arrival.
- Season 2 (summer 2025) Picks up straight from that cliffhanger with Jiji's haunted house and the Evil Eye.
- Manga The story continues weekly on Shonen Jump+, well past where the anime has reached.
Start with episode one of the anime or chapter one of the manga; there's no prologue to skip, and season two follows on directly. The anime is very faithful but adds a lot through music and animation, so it's worth seeing even if you've read the manga. Our manga vs anime guide covers the trade-offs, and the watch order guide explains how to catch up on an ongoing series.
What the characters are about
Dandadan is loud, crude and fast, but under that it's a story about lonely people finding each other.
- Outsiders find a group. Okarun had no friends, Momo had a reputation she didn't deserve, Aira was lonelier than her confidence suggested and Jiji was cut off by a curse. The supernatural is what brings them together, and the group that forms is a classic found family.
- Monsters with history. Turbo Granny, Acrobatic Silky and the Evil Eye are each frightening first and tragic second. The series keeps asking what turns a person into a monster.
- Belief. The whole plot starts with two people refusing to believe each other. Both are right, and learning to trust each other's experience is the start of their relationship.
If you like Dandadan's mix of horror and comedy, Chainsaw Man shares its energy, and Jujutsu Kaisen also builds its monsters out of human fear. For something lighter with a similar found-family core, try Spy x Family.
All Dandadan character names A–Z
A
- Acrobatic Silky — Yokai
- Aira Shiratori — Main cast
E–J
- Evil Eye — Spirit
- Jiji (Jin Enjoji) — Main cast
K
- Ken Takakura (Okarun) — Protagonist
- Kinta Sakata — Main cast
- Kito family — Village cult
M–O
- Momo Ayase — Protagonist
- Okarun — see Ken Takakura
S–T
- Seiko Ayase — Medium
- Serpoians — Aliens
- Turbo Granny — Yokai
V
- Vamola — Alien
Frequently asked questions
Who are the main characters in Dandadan?
Momo Ayase, a high-school girl from a family of spirit mediums who believes in ghosts, and Ken Takakura, nicknamed Okarun, an occult-obsessed classmate who believes in aliens. Around them are Momo's grandmother Seiko, the yokai Turbo Granny, their classmate Aira Shiratori, Momo's childhood friend Jiji and the mecha fan Kinta Sakata.
Why is Ken Takakura called Okarun?
Momo gives him the nickname because he loves the occult (okaruto in Japanese). The real reason she won't use his name is that Ken Takakura is also the name of the veteran film actor she has a crush on, and she refuses to call this skinny nerd by her idol's name.
Who is Turbo Granny?
Turbo Granny is a yokai based on an urban legend about an old woman who chases cars at high speed. She haunts a tunnel, curses Okarun, and after her defeat ends up living inside a lucky-cat figurine at Momo's house, where she lends Okarun her speed and complains constantly.
Who is Jiji in Dandadan?
Jiji, real name Jin Enjoji, is Momo's childhood friend and first crush. He comes back into her life asking for help with his family's haunted new house, which leads to the Evil Eye arc. His easy charm makes Okarun jealous, but he becomes a close ally.
Is Dandadan connected to Chainsaw Man?
Not in story terms. The link is the creator: Yukinobu Tatsu worked as an assistant to Tatsuki Fujimoto on Chainsaw Man and Fire Punch before launching Dandadan, and fans see a similar mix of chaotic action, crude humour and sudden emotion.
Who voices Momo and Okarun?
In Japanese, Momo is voiced by Shion Wakayama and Okarun by Natsuki Hanae. In the English dub, Momo is voiced by Abby Trott and Okarun by AJ Beckles.