Please, Dan Da Dan Season 3: Don’t Start with Graphic Violence

Credit: Image: Crunchyroll/Science Saru

Shortly after the season 2 finale aired in Japan, the anime adaptation of Dan Da Dan was officially confirmed for a third season. Production details and a release window have not been announced, but the narrative is expected to resume where season 2 concluded. If Science Saru continues to follow Yukinobu Tatsu’s manga closely, season 3 will likely tackle the expansive Space Globalists arc — a storyline that spans six volumes and eclipses the combined five volumes that powered the “Cursed House” and “Evil Eye” arcs in the show’s first two seasons.

I have one clear hope for season 3: the series should stop opening episodes with scenes of Momo being assaulted.

Both season 1 and season 2 begin with jarring, humiliating incidents involving Momo. Season 1 opens with her being physically mistreated by an older boyfriend and later subjected to an alien abduction that leaves her in an exposed state until Okarun intervenes. Season 2 similarly starts with an unsettling encounter at a bathhouse. Those beats are handled in ways that feel unsettling rather than narratively necessary.

Those moments are off-putting, and they were a real deterrent for me in returning to season 2 once clips began circulating online. More importantly, the adaptation has yet to show any meaningful, long-term consequences from those incidents for Momo’s arc. I haven’t read the manga, but as a viewer I’d welcome an adaptation choice that either reframes or omits those openings.

When asked what Dan Da Dan is fundamentally about, AJ Beckles — the English voice of Okarun — said, “There’s a lot of really deep stuff about agency and what it means in society, but at its heart, it’s just about kids.” That emphasis on agency is exactly what I want the anime to foreground for Momo.

She already demonstrates strength early on: when she decisively rebuffs her first boyfriend, it signals she won’t tolerate that kind of treatment, especially after meeting Okarun. Going forward, I’d prefer her confrontations with predatory characters to underscore that resolve — sequences that let her assert control, handle threats on her own terms, and grow from those experiences instead of being repeatedly victimized, rescued, or played for laughs.

Read more: Dan Da Dan season 2 coverage · Adaptation interview · AJ Beckles interview

DAN DA DAN Season 3 is CONFIRMED! Thank you to all the fans for your support, and we hope you look forward to what’s in store. Stay tuned for #DANDADAN Season 3! pic.twitter.com/waCLb6e3C2

— DAN DA DAN Anime EN (@animeDANDADANen) September 18, 2025