Prior to the official release on October 4, 2024, six episodes of Dandadan were leaked on various sites.
Key Takeaways
- The first episode of the new Dandadan anime was released on October 4, 2024.
- However, prior to the original release, the first two episodes were leaked to the public via sites such as 4chan and piracy torrent sites. Four more episodes were revealed, making the total leaked episode count 6.
- Netflix attributed the leak to a compromised post-production partner and stated they were taking aggressive action to address the situation.
Dandadan is a Japanese manga series by Yukinobu Tatsu, serialized in Shueisha’s Shonen Jump+ since April 2021.
Furthermore, an anime adaptation produced by Science Saru has begun to premiere in October 2024.
The series follows Momo Ayase and Ken Takakura(nicknamed Okarun), high schoolers with opposing beliefs — Momo in ghosts and Okarun in aliens.
After a bet, Momo is abducted by aliens, which unlocks psychic abilities.
On the other hand, Okarun is possessed by a spirit.
Together, they defeat the aliens and later team up with others to fight supernatural forces.
A key plot revolves around retrieving Okarun’s lost testicles and the growing romance between the main duo of the series.
Dandadan Episodes And Its Opening Theme Were Leaked Before The Official Release
The first episode of the Dandadan anime was officially released on October 4, 2024.
However, prior to this, the first two episodes were leaked on sites like 4chan, Twitter, and various piracy torrent sites.
The opening theme of the then-upcoming anime series was also leaked.
Furthermore, four more episodes were revealed, marking 6 episodes leaked of Dandadan.
However, at the time of writing, the Twitter posts seem to have been deleted.
People can still find these leaks, however, on various piracy sites.
Dandadan Leaked Episodes Could Be Traced Back To A Compromised Post-Production Partner
The leak of Dandadan episodes and the opening theme were attributed to a compromised post-production partner.
Netflix confirmed the breach and stated that they were “aggressively” addressing the situation.
Multiple companies involved in the post-production condemned the leak.
Lyuno, a global entertainment technology and localization company, acknowledged a security breach that allowed unauthorized access to confidential content.
They emphasized their commitment to protecting client confidentiality and are actively investigating to identify the responsible parties.
Moreover, The Wrap reported that Crunchyroll confirmed awareness of content leaks affecting one of their series premiering in the fall.
Likewise, Crunchyroll has also stated that they have launched an investigation to identify the source of the Dandadan leaked episodes.
Despite episodes of Dandadan being leaked, they were of extremely low quality.
They acted almost like another trailer, generating excitement and anticipation for the actual official release of the show.
Some fans on social media have reacted to the leaks with optimism for the actual release.
A fan took to Reddit to ask whether the leaks would affect the viewership of the official release.
Most people answered that the leaks would not affect the viewership.
A fan stated that the leak “would not matter in the long run”.
I think the people who watch the leaks represent a small portion of the potential total viewership. I really don’t think the leaks will matter in the long run. If the show is solid that will do more to affect its success than any leaks
Via Reddit
Another fan stated that the poor quality of the leaks alone would drive people to watch the actual release of the show.
I’ve seen the leaks. The poor quality alone could be enough to push the same pool of viewers to remain in the larger viewership totals.
Via Reddit
Furthermore, they stated that the leaks only made them “more hype for the show and the manga”.
Personally, it’s just made me more hype for the show and the manga.
Via Reddit
So, all in all, these grainy, low-quality leaked episodes of Dandadan may have inadvertently worked as promotional material to turn a negative situation into a positive one.
In Case You Didn’t Know:
- As of writing, there are 168 chapters of the Dandadan manga with 17 volumes.
- Before the release of the anime series, Dan Da Dan: First Encounter, a movie, was released which chronicled the events of the first three episodes of the series.
- The second anime is set to release on October 11, 2024.
- Along with Dandadan, episodes of other series were also leaked. These include series like Ranma 1/2, Re: ZERO- Starting Life in Another World, and Gekijōban Mononoke: Karakas.
