REVIEW: ‘DanDaDan’ Season 2 Episode 12 — “Clash! Space Kaiju vs. Giant Robot!”

Just as they did in the Season 1 finale, Science Saru leaves us with a tremendous cliffhanger in DanDaDan Season 2 Episode 12. However, this time, the effect is doubled due to some balls-to-the-walls animation that continues to showcase a studio’s capacity in upping the ante. The entirety of Season 2 has demonstrated high-octane, creative means of telling visual stories. The finale, “Clash! Space Kaiju vs. Giant Robot!” continues that effort and manages to surprise us along the way. 

The surprise isn’t so much that it’s good. At this rate, it would be more shocking to watch a bad episode of DanDaDan. No, it’s a surprise because of how the animation is utilized and how it pairs with the direction, which gives it an epic scale and scope. Due to the series’ strengths, there comes a moment where we begin to believe we can predict how a certain sequence will be animated and why, but DanDaDan refuses to play it safe—even with its own parameters and rules. 

Any anime fan—any mecha or Gundam fan—will see the giant Buddha our lovely group of misfits mentally manifest into something tangible and assume the fight that follows will be momentous and heavy-footed. Especially when said mecha is facing down a rapidly growing kaiju. DanDaDan Season 2 Episode 12 flips the script, delivering an energized, kinetic flow that owes more to the characters piloting the mecha than the robot itself. 

Science Saru puts an emphasis on movement to create an epic-scale fight. 

There’s a definite emphasis on how the characters move throughout the finale, both while inside the mecha and, later, at the newly reassembled Ayase home, as Momo (Shion Wakayama) and Aira (Ayane Sakura) both race around to find a place to be sick. These creative decisions help maintain momentum, even in tight shots that don’t capture the grandiosity of the battle between two titans. 

The animation also enhances the silly, Muppet-style energy of the characters as they all scramble to figure out how on earth they’re both meant to control the robot while also determining how best to use their combined powers to fight the kaiju. Kinta (Daichi Fujiwara), unsurprisingly, tries to run the show. 

In a wonderful, oddly sweet moment, we get a brief look at his life beyond meeting the core four and the relentless teasing he’s faced over being an otaku. He’s called childish for his interests, and there is a degree of childishness to his actions, such as riding roller coasters as a means to “train” for whenever he’d have to man a robot. But it’s nothing worth teasing him over, merely a reminder that they’re all just kids. 

A clear message emerges: loving things is fun. 

It’s no different than Okarun looking up to the sky, waiting for some being extraterrestrial being to beam him up and keep him company. And even Momo’s obsession with her favorite actor lends itself to this level of nerdom. It’s what gives them character.

And, in an impassioned moment, Kinta defies the loner stereotype by declaring that he doesn’t care what others think because he loves robots and loving them makes him happy. Add this to the My Dress Up Darling rulebook of characters refusing to be cowed by others due to their interests. 

That said, DanDaDan Season 2 Episode 12 makes sure that they don’t win without extreme effort. Following Momo’s first command, where they all push a button at random, Okarun (Natsuki Hanae) is launched from the robot immediately.

And, talk about a scene where the kinetic animation isn’t necessary but much appreciated. The pains of sinewy movement and aerial freefall are captured in his flight. We follow his descent from the air to his well-executed, tumbling landing from his perspective, giving it a dizzying, yet transportive effect. 

Momo and Aira are the clear power fighters in DanDaDan Season 2 Episode 12. 

The Evil Eye (Kaito Ishikawa) follows suit, offering color to contrast with the green that fills the frame. It also gives the episode a necessary punch of comedy due to his and Okarun’s dynamic, with the latter immediately talking him down from engaging in a fight. More than anything, Okarun has become the Evil Eye’s babysitter, which pays off in a later, added sequence that doesn’t exist in the manga. 

As always, it comes down to Momo and Aira to save the day. Once they’re able to steady the robot and subdue Kinta’s attacks, the two work together to execute a power throw, which effectively knocks out the kaiju. The two working together, like in Episode 11, once again showcase how much they get along despite their constant bickering. 

The two are the definite bruisers of their ragtag group, and it shows in their throwdown. Aira’s Acrobatic Silky powers, combined with Momo’s psychic abilities, form a formidable set of skills. However, this also means they’re rid of the Empty Space they’ve been fighting in, allowing ordinary civilians to see them fight for once. Or, at least, the aftermath of said fight as they hurriedly try to get rid of the evidence. 

Even beyond the battle, there are unmissable sparks of artistic life. 

What’s impressive about DanDaDan Season 2 Episode 12 is how it finds these sparks of life and tremendously electric animation outside of battle. The camera movements that follow Momo as she rushes to find a place to be ill are innovative and clever because they help showcase the new, oddly formed shape of their house as Aira runs in the opposite direction, Momo running towards the camera. 

There’s a similar moment with the added scene of Okarun trying to wrangle a defiant Evil Eye to help him carry the seemingly deflated kaiju home. So much is done with perspective as Okarun hops in the crowd to find Jiji, before looking up at him climbing a building to try and entice him down with hot buns. A successful trick that changes him back to his human form. 

While it was likely added to fill the runtime and create an even break to end the season on a necessary cliffhanger, it adds a lot and is ridiculously charming. While not as hostile, the relationship between Okarun and Jiji is similar to Momo and Aira’s in that so much of it happens in understated moments.

The personality-driven moments give the finale an abundance of charisma. 

This sequence, along with the two lying exhausted on the ground, where Jiji mindlessly claps his feet together, adds a lot of personality to characters already overflowing with it. We know these characters so well, and it’s because of small interactions like this: gestures and shared moments of relief post-battle.  

Of course, the big reveal comes at the end, and it’s twofold. First, the kaiju isn’t a kaiju, but an alien seemingly manning the suit. The second? That Momo walks out to find said alien kissing a shocked Okarun. What a fantastic ending point, providing yet another moment where Momo’s world is turned on its head by something Okarun-related. Crushes are serious business. 

DanDaDan Season 2 Episode 12 is a superb finale that offers livewire and energetic artistry with subdued yet integral character moments. For a finale where a kaiju and a mecha fight, the strengths are in the details. That attention to detail and the understanding that it’s what makes the series such a visual feast and gives it a necessary weight. Because each moment matters, not just the battles. 

DanDaDan Season 2 Episode 12 is available now on Crunchyroll and Netflix. 

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