Warning: Contains spoilers for episode 8 of Dandadan.As much as Dandadan attracted people with its action and animation, an equally big attraction for the series was the romance arc between Momo and Okarun. Romance in shōnen anime tends to be hit or miss, usually a flop but Dandadan makes it work thanks to both parties receiving equal focus on the relationship, while still having character arcs not directly related to the relationship.
The romance between Momo and Okarun is one of the best parts of Dandadanwhich may make episode 8 surprising for some. After weeks of keeping things between Momo and Okarun pretty simple, Dandadan episode #8 complicates Momo and Okarun’s romance with one of the most controversial romance tropes in anime and fiction, as a wholeand its use has already attracted some criticism from fans. That said, the trope is already set to be much less egregious than usual, and overall it’s more likely to be beneficial to the story than anything else.
Dandadan officially has a love triangle between its main trio
Dandadan’s love triangle explained
In Dandadan episode #8, after Acrobatic Silky’s defeat, Aira, touched by Okarun’s seriousness in how he saved her just because it was the right thing to do, fell in love with Okarun and even tried to kiss him on their next date. Momo even approached the two and misunderstood the situation as Okarun tried to kiss Aira, and this misunderstanding wasn’t cleared up until the end of the episode, so Dandadan episode 8 makes it clear that there will be a love triangle between Momo, Okarun and Aira.
Both in and out of anime, love triangles are controversial because of how much they take away from the main romance by wasting time teasing something that is unlikely to happen, often even causing unnecessary fights and drama for the main couple in the process, too. . All of this can already be seen in episode 8, with how upset Momo was when she thought something was going on between Okarun and Aira, so DandadanThe love triangle of, on the surface, already has all the problems associated with love triangleswhich is why it has already been met with so much controversy.
Dandadan’s second heroine is too ridiculous to be a true love interest
Why Okarun and Aira will never be a couple
As disappointing as DandadanAs the love triangle may be, it’s nowhere near the problem people make it out to be, thanks to the way DandadanAira Shiratori is written. Episode 8 solidifies Aira as a comedic relief character, with Aira reinforcing her belief that she is a chosen one, thinking that Okarun is a demon and Aira using porn to learn about romance, but somehow thinking that a kiss is all that you do to start a relationship. Everything Aira does is for laughs and that’s why Aira is too silly a character to be a serious love interest for Okarun in Dandadan.
Aira’s personality also influences how Okarun reacts to her. Okarun rejects Aira’s advances the second she starts making them, and while this is common in love triangles, there’s never anything to suggest that Okarun is rejecting Aira for any reason other than finding her uncomfortable, so Aira should also not be seen as a true love interest for Dandadan because of how disinterested Okarun is in her. With all of this taken into consideration, there’s no reason to believe that Aira will ever be introduced as a serious love interest, so the creation of a love triangle shouldn’t be seen as a problem.
Dandadan puts a lot of work into its main couple to break them up
Why Momo and Okarun are Dandadan’s final couple
Another reason why DandadanMomo’s love triangle isn’t a problem because of the work that has already been done on Momo and Okarun’s relationship. Not only was the romance between Momo and Okarun established from the beginning of the series, but each episode to follow made a great effort to further develop their relationship through heartfelt interactions and showing how much they inspire each other to grow as individuals. Dandadan made the chemistry between Momo and Okarun undeniable after just eight episodesand this will only become more palpable as the series continues.
All the work put into Momo and Okarun’s relationship creates a stark contrast between how little goes on in Aira and Okarun’s relationship. Although everything about Momo and Okarun’s relationship has been deliberately methodical, Aira chooses to rush into a romance with Okarun, completely at odds with how the story has been written up to that point. The pacing of Aira and Okarun’s relationship is antithetical to Dandadanis writing to Momo and Okarunand overall, it only serves to further emphasize that Momo and Okarun are the only true couple, at this point.
Dandadan’s love triangle could make its story even better
How Dandadan’s Love Triangle Can Improve Your Storytelling
DandadanThe love triangle shouldn’t be as much of a problem as other love triangles in anime; in fact, it can be used to make the story even better. Even though Aira isn’t a serious love interest, her presence will inevitably cause problems in Momo and Okarun’s relationship, and getting over them will only reinforce how much they mean to each other. DandadanThe love triangle is good for the story because it can show that Momo and Okarun’s relationship is strong enough to overcome petty and meaningless complications.and watching this will be great to see.
As for Aira herself, the love triangle could also do a lot for her character. Aira’s attempts to win over Okarun will ironically only bring him and Momo closer, and even someone like her would eventually realize what’s going on and go through some kind of self-reflection and change because of it. Briefly, DandadanAira’s love triangle can be used to develop Aira’s character, as she is forced to reckon with the fact that Okarun doesn’t have feelings for herand with how great the character writing has been so far, whatever is done with Aira is sure to be equally great.
Overall, as controversial as love triangles tend to be in and out of anime, between how transparent Dandadan is about its main couple and how it can be used to further develop all the characters involved, DandadanThe love triangle is far from the problem people think it is and will only serve to make the story better. DandadanThe love triangle is another perfect opportunity for the series to show how clever its writing can be, and it continues to show why the series has been so good since the beginning.
Dandadan releases new episodes on Thursdays on Crunchyroll.