Ever since the finale of Season 1 and the discovery of a mysterious room full of talismans in Jiji’s home,DanDaDanhas been building up to an inevitable clash between the bespectacled occult fanatic Okarun and the demonic Evil Eye. All theteasers for Season 2 and theEvil Eyecompilation moviehave been setting the stage for the battle ahead, showing offJiji’s transformation to accommodate the yōkaiand its immense power. It represents one of the series' greatest and most anticipated threats from the original manga yet, which will push Okarun, Momo, and Turbo Granny to their limits in their fight against the supernatural. Yet there’s also a deeper, more personal layer connected to Jiji and Okarun’s relationship and who these characters are that Okarun’s English dub voice actorA.J. Becklesbelieves elevates the epic moment to another level.
Ahead of the release ofDanDaDan: Evil Eye, which combines the first three episodes of Season 2into an action-packed cinematic event, Collider’sLaura Adamssat down with stars Beckles,Abby Trott, andAleks Leto discuss the upcoming episodes and their respective characters. Beckles, specifically, was asked about thezany sci-fi series’sfights and how they come from a different place than other action anime. The big difference is that Okarun is generally a good-hearted individual who approaches subduing the supernatural with empathy. He’s inspired above all else to help others, and nowhere is that shown more than during the Cursed House and Evil Eye arcs when Jiji gets possessed.
“Oh, absolutely,” Beckles said when asked if the show’s emotional tendency towards empathy influenced how he approached those fight scenes. “And as a manga reader, when I’m reading these moments, I thinkYukinobu Tatsudoes a great job of setting the reader up to make these preconceived notions, right?” He sees Okarun’s battle with the Evil Eye-possessed Jijias a prime example of howDanDaDansubverts expectations with how Okarun treats his enemy. Although he feels a lot of jealousy towards Jiji because of his feelings towards Momo, he doesn’t let any negativity cloud his judgment when trying to subdue the Avatar of Hatred. For Beckles, that understanding and concern for what Jiji is experiencing is part of what makes the sci-fi anime, and Okarun himself,so different from other action series:
“I remember reading the bit where Okarun is about to face off with Evil Eye and thinking, like, ‘Okarun is going through this whole thing, so he’s angry at Jiji.’ And then it’s kind of revealed that it’s not Jiji that he’s angry at. He’s able to kind of separate Jiji from Evil Eye. And he also himself has this incredible ability to empathize with things. His only goal isn’t to hurt Jiji or to hurt Evil Eye, it’s just to stop him and restrain him. I think there’s a moment where he’s just like, ‘Your mistake was making my friend do something that he would never do.’ It was never about, like, ‘I’m so jealous of Jiji, and he’s hurting Momo.’ It was like, yes, Momo’s being hurt,but it was more so like, ‘You are influencing my friend and the people around him, and you’re hurting the person you have control over.‘And that effect it’s had on Jiji has been really tough on him, too. So yeah, I think it definitely does shape the way we read our lines. And as long as you have that under,it’s not hatred, it’s this underlying empathy to save a friend. It’s very different.”
‘DanDaDan’ Season 2 Will Introduce Even More Supernatural Threats
While Evil Eye is the big focus ofDanDaDanSeason 2 and the film, Okarun and Momo will have a lot more on their plate as they continue to battle the supernatural. Also featured inthe recent English dub traileris the Great Serpent Legend, portending the arrival of a giant death worm and a volcanic eruption that will threaten all life in the surrounding village. There are also glimpses of spirits with the appearance of classical musicians and more aliens beaming down to add to the chaos. After debuting last year with a perfect 100%Rotten Tomatoesscore,Science SARU’s hit anime appears to be raising the stakes in a big way that will test the physical and emotional limits of its teenage protagonists.
DanDaDan: Evil Eyeis now in theaters, with Season 2 just under a month away from arriving on Netflix and Crunchyroll on July 3. Stay tuned here at Collider for more on the series until then. You can check out the rest of Adams’ interview with the cast below.
“It’s Kicking It off Pretty Dark”: ‘DanDaDan’ Voice Actors on What Fans Can Expect from Season 2’s Evil Eye Arc
“There’s definitely…a lot of unsettling feelings and a kind of despair with the whole Evil Eye situation.”
