In the chaotic world of Dandadan, where yokai and aliens roam freely, one strange and persistent question hangs in the air: why is Turbo Granny, a fierce yokai spirit, so fixated on taking Okarun’s family jewels? The bizarre obsession seems darkly humorous at first, but as we dig deeper, it turns out there’s much more to it.
Turbo Granny’s motives tie back to a twisted history and her own strange powers, painting her as both villain and protector. Here’s a closer look at the layered reasons why Okarun’s family jewels have become so important to this yokai.
The Tunnel’s Dark Past and Turbo Granny’s Revenge
Turbo Granny, with her wild white hair, ancient eyes, and unsettling laugh, guards a red-lit tunnel in Shono City. It’s a place haunted by a tragic past: young women were once assaulted and killed in the tunnel, and the lingering trauma left behind formed a giant crab yokai—a creature born from their combined grief. Ever since, Turbo Granny has hung around the tunnel as a kind of protector of the girls’ spirits, though her methods of “protecting” are…unique.
Every time a man dares enter her domain, Turbo Granny jumps out and, in her way of enforcing “justice,” steals his family jewels. By taking away any symbol of masculinity, she exacts revenge on behalf of the spirits of those girls. It’s her own twisted form of protection—keeping men from straying into the tunnel and potentially harming any lingering spirits. But this isn’t just a symbolic punishment.
When Turbo Granny takes a man’s family jewels, she gains the ability to possess him, using him as a vessel to carry out her yokai powers. This is exactly what happens to Okarun. As soon as she snatches his “golden orbs,” he becomes her conduit, able to tap into her yokai strength even though it leaves him cursed.
The “Golden Orbs” and Their Hidden Power
At first, everyone thinks Okarun’s family jewels might be magical in their own right. After all, they’re pursued by multiple yokai, spirits, and even aliens. But Turbo Granny clears this up in Chapter 12, explaining that it’s actually a “spiritual membrane” she’s placed over Okarun’s jewels that creates a powerful aura, drawing supernatural beings to him. So really, it’s her energy radiating off of him that’s causing all the supernatural attention.
These so-called “golden orbs” (a play on the Japanese slang “kintama,” which means both “golden balls” and “testicles”) become a kind of beacon for yokai. The energy within them is so powerful that anyone who encounters them, even if just by touching them, gains a kind of awakening to the supernatural.
It’s a strange twist: these family jewels end up carrying the power to revive spirits or boost yokai abilities, and humans who come into contact with them gain a bit of extra-sensory awareness. Suddenly, Okarun’s “golden orbs” are more than just a funny term—they’re a supernatural artifact that Turbo Granny can use to maintain power and even protect her haunted tunnel.
Okarun’s Journey to Reclaim His Family Jewels
The story doesn’t end with Turbo Granny simply taking Okarun’s family jewels and leaving. She sets a condition: he’ll need to become fast and strong enough to beat her in a race if he wants them back. With his friend and budding love interest, Momo Ayase, by his side, Okarun sets out on a journey to break the curse.
After a fierce struggle, they manage to exorcise Turbo Granny from Okarun’s body and trap her spirit in a maneki-neko, or lucky cat statue, which then hilariously becomes the series’ unofficial mascot. But getting his family jewels back isn’t so simple.
Turbo Granny has lost the “golden orbs” along the way, leaving Okarun with only partial recovery. This loss sets off a supernatural hunt, as the orbs—charged with spiritual energy—attract yokai from far and wide. Suddenly, Okarun’s mission to retrieve his own anatomy takes on a whole new layer of complexity, as he faces one strange encounter after another with yokai, all in pursuit of his “golden orbs.”
The Symbolism of Turbo Granny’s Obsession
Turbo Granny’s pursuit of Okarun’s family jewels is more than a joke or a simple plot point. It ties into a deeper symbolism within Dandadan, one that highlights the balance between justice and vengeance, supernatural power, and personal growth. By seizing Okarun’s “golden orbs,” she protects the spirits of the tunnel’s victims, enacts a twisted form of retribution, and ties Okarun’s fate directly to hers.
Through this strange, layered storyline, Turbo Granny becomes both a terrifying villain and a tragic figure, pushing Okarun into a journey where he must grapple with the supernatural while trying to regain a piece of himself.
In the end, Dandadan takes what could have been a comical side plot and turns it into something larger—a tale of loss, power, and strange connections that reminds us that even the most bizarre quests can have deeper meanings. And for Okarun, that means facing not just yokai, but a deeper understanding of himself, all while trying to reclaim the family jewels that started it all.
About Dandadan
‘Dandadan’ is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yukinobu Tatsu. It has been serialized in Shueisha’s Shōnen Jump+ service since April 2021. An anime television series adaptation produced by Science Saru is set to premiere in 2024.
Momo Ayase is a high school student who believes in ghosts, but her classmate Okarun believes in aliens instead. To determine who is correct, they make a bet and decide to visit locations associated with both the occult and the supernatural separately.
Ayase visits places related to ghosts, while Okarun visits sites about aliens. When they reach their respective areas, they discover they are only half-right. It turns out that both aliens and ghosts exist.
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