Why Dan Da Dan Worked in the US Where Yo-Kai Watch Didn't

Hey everyone- I have been contemplating how to do this for a while now; and now I have it all figured out. It's interesting how much difference 10 years time can make for fiction, especially with how one franchise a decade ago utterly flopped in its attempts to Americanize itself; and a more recent one instead leaned into its exotic foreign aspects to great success. Here is a look at why Dan Da Dan worked in the US where Yo-Kai Watch didn't.

1. Appreciation over Homogenization

One of my and others' biggest issues with the EN localization of YKW was the attempt to take a concept as intrinsically Japanese as youkai and make it palatable to Westerners; which went about as well as you'd expect. Turning the Japanese New Sakura Town into the flyover country, USA setting of Springdale, Idaho in particular aged less like a fine sake and more like a small fry order stuck between the seats of an '88 Chevrolet Celebrity.

That was a mistake that I'm grateful the people dubbing Dan Da Dan didn't repeat. Not only does it fully commit to its very Japanese take on the paranormal; the setting is indeed intrinsic to the story, visuals, characterization and humor. We'll touch on that last one again in a bit, but two early fights are dependent on the position of the characters near a shrine's "torii gate" as well as the provinces of a Japanese township. It won't be the only time that Dan Da Dan proved to be the anime I wanted YKW to be either.

2. A Much Clearer Target Demographic

As part of a whole slew of hit series to come out of the "dark era" of Shonen Jump; the desire for new stories combined with the typical fan skewing older than past years worked tremendously to the benefit of Dan Da Dan. With this, the debut of the anime from Science Saru was certainly primed to do well. The breakout success the anime got wasn't forced either- it was instead carefully cultivated all around the pacific. Best of all, the age of the audience was firmly established with the 17-plus crowd: let's just say the anime earns its TV-MA rating.

By contrast, YKW never really did nail down whether they wanted to appeal to kids, fans of Japanese culture or even a more general audience. The attempts from Level-5 to appeal to all of them ended up appealing to none of them. No matter what a potential video game adaptation of Dan Da Dan ends up being, it's safe to say it will be M-rated as can be.

3. Humor that embraces the bizarre instead of sanitizing it

Another benefit that Dan Da Dan had in its armory that helped it succeed was fully committing to the offbeat humor that's baked into the concept. Though I certainly am willing to admit YKW wasn't without its weird aspects; I also admit trying to sanitize them was a mistake. A large amount of dated pop culture references in the dub didn't help either. Fortunately, that was not an issue faced by Dan Da Dan at all. On top of a major plot point involving the theft of Okarun's "naughty bits," lots of humor is mined from both the designs and behavior of the various creatures our heroes encounter. Plus, I just find the idea that Momo's grandmother looks and acts like a Japanese delinquent teenager hilarious on its lonesome. 

4. Cultivating an audience over forcing the affair

While the enthusiasm Level-5 had was admirable on a surface level, the attempts to force YKW into being the next big thing ended up having the opposite effect. There was even a plan to bring over the fourth game, but the pandemic and the closure of Level-5 Abby functionally scrapped it. Holy Horror Mansion could work as a spiritual successor, but I would appreciate if they and other devs cooled it with their AI obsession. Maybe Deca Police will work, maybe it won't (I do like games with detective aspects lately). The new Inazuma Eleven seems to finally be keeping to its release date, though given the competition (Hyrule Warriors Age of Imprisonment, Kirby Air Riders and the same week as Black Ops VII); it's got an uphill battle after nine years in the works.

That didn't happen with Dan Da Dan. Instead, the manga and anime took the approach I prefer- releasing and letting people make their own judgment. As word of mouth spread, so did the show's popularity. Even with someone who admits to approaching most works with a mixture of skepticism and cautious optimism, my curiosity was rewarded. Whenever a work makes me feel a multitude of emotions and provokes nigh-endless thoughts, it's done something right no matter the quality.

5. How all the elements are presented

All of the.previous points,  and others I did not mention are all connected to the contrast between how one IP became a huge hit and the other became a pop culture footnote a decade on- how all the elements are presented to audiences.

While Yo-Kai Watch was continually hyped as the next big thing, that has a habit of not always panning out. It certainly didn't for YKW, which even in Japan has functionally been "on hiatus" for a while now. If there's anything I've learned in the last few years, no brand is bulletproof- even Super Sentai is airing its final season after 50 years (I'll wait till Universe Heroes debuts to judge it). Maybe Holy Horror Mansion will work, maybe it won't. I will say this- this "next big thing" malarkey needs to go. 

In contrast, Dan Da Dan grew far more naturally as it went from subculture to pop culture. I myself came up on it by chance one night, and it's become a standout anime in a year full of them. It's more than the second season of Shadowside I never got- it's what I wanted YKW to do when it debuted a decade ago. That is all for now, and I will see you again soon.