I have given fair warning that the majority of content this month would be about Dandadan. I can’t not admire so much of what this series is all about. While this is not my first Dandadan “One Great Panel,” (see here), it deals with the same general takeaways as that original One Great Panel.
And yes, I am aware that this “one” great is technically two panels, but we’ll just have to get over that, won’t we? (Also, there’s a specific reason I included the second panel, which I will get to shortly.)
This is from Chapter 170, page 19.
Context: The gang is back at school, but strange things are afoot. Momo is tiny, and she’s in trouble in the library. The gang is mobilizing to get to her to help. They are interrupted by Count Saint-Germaine, who is only vaguely threatening when he catches them running in the halls. Instead of running, each character “plays it cool” in a way that is completely authentic to them.
This may be the first One Great Panel that is 100% about character design and personality. What’s remarkable about the detail Yukinobu Tatsu puts into his characters is, even without context, you could look at these five characters (I’m not counting Saint-Germaine, this isn’t about him) and get a very good read on what they’re all about.
In front, Aira thinks of herself as a leader. She thinks highly of herself. She doesn’t want to depend on anyone else and trusts that her crew is with her, because she’s too cool for them not to be. But she also needs them to be, because she needs to be the center of attention.
Behind her, Okarun is still in his slightly awkward state, even though he’s really growing in a cool dude. Still, when tasked with “acting natural,” he is in no way equipped to do this without being a tad stiff and uncomfortable. Because while he has fought all manner of paranormal foes and been in his element, having to pretend like he’s up to nothing may be even more difficult than vanquishing aliens.
Behind him, Vamola is a spacey but kind. Given all that she has lost, it makes complete sense that she would have her hands on her nearest friend, because she doesn’t have much else besides them, and she doesn’t want to lose anyone else important to her.
Behind her, my man Jiji. A full-fledged goofball, but the difference between his level of goofball and, say, Okarun or Sakata (behind Jiji) is that Jiji has complete confidence in himself to be this ridiculous person. It’s his entire personality. No hesitation, just wholesale goober. More on that next week.
And behind him, my other man Sakata. He wants to be cool. He really thinks he’s cool. But for all intents and purposes, he is not cool. That doesn’t mean he isn’t going to keep trying though. And that’s the main reason I included two panels instead of one, because while everyone else has completely conveyed their personality core in that first panel, Sakata is deceptively “cool” in it, and it’s not until the second panel that we see him shed his cool and run. Sakata’s complexities can’t be captured in one panel, plain and simple.
I’d be very interested to hear what someone who hasn’t read Dandadan reads in each of their personalities just from these two panels. Because while I do stand by the fact that you can get to the core of their personality just from this, I am unable to separate what I already know about them.
Regardless!
Tatsu-sensei’s character work is tremendous. These aren’t characters in a book, they are real people.
Previously on MangaCraft!
Dandadan: Writing Romantic Undercurrents
Whether you enjoy romance or not, Dandadan has romance for even the smallest appetite.
YOU’RE a goofball! :D