A Surprising Anime Made The Perfect Reference To Back To The Future

When it comes to references and homages to "Back to the Future," the most common ones are about the latter half of the film — the Enchantment Under the Sea dance, the "Johnny B. Goode" performance, the lightning striking the clock tower, or simply the DeLorean time machine. Even something as obscure as the nod to Doc Brown's (Christopher Lloyd) crude models in "Loki" is still alluding to a moment that takes place after Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) goes back in time. Indeed, we rarely get tributes to the opening of the movie, itself a perfect scene with memorable visuals and a hilarious gag that sets up the tone of the rest of the film.

Leave it to an anime to correct that mistake and give us a fantastic callback to that sequence.

The anime, of course, is "Dan Da Dan," which is the rare anime that can be described as being basically for anyone. Produced by Science Saru ("Scott Pilgrim Takes Off") and based on the manga of the same name by Yukinobu Tatsu (who is a former assistant to "Chainsaw Man" author Tatsuki Fujimoto, the series centers on a pair of teenagers: Ken Takakura, aka Okarun, who believes in aliens, and Momo Ayase, who believes in ghosts. Determined to prove the other one wrong, the two soon find themselves being inadvertently thrust into a world of fantastical powers and dangerous beings.

"Dan Da Dan" itself is arguably the weirdest show currently airing. If you can think of a strange idea or even just a genre, "Dan Da Dan" has you covered. It's a sci-fi, horror, comedy, slice-of-life, and romance story that features — among other things — Okarun getting his testicles stolen by a demon, an anatomical model falling in love with a mannequin, action sequences set to the "William Tell Overture" finale, an alien kappa who sings ABBA's "Chiquitita" all the time, and so much more. Truly, the only explanation for the bizarreness of "Dan Da Dan" is that it feels like it was born out of the silly conversations one has after many drinks. This is also what led to Okarun getting his balls snatched, as it were. (Check out the Sakuga Blog for more on that.)

Now, "Dan Da Dan" has paid its respects to "Back to the Future" with one of its most gonzo and visually stunning sequences yet.

In the latest episode of "Dan Da Dan," the main characters gather for an exorcism to try and save their friend Jiji from the Evil Eye demon that's possessed him. This exorcism is not just a spiritual ceremony; it's also an audiovisual one, with the elderly spirit medium Seiko Ayase wielding the power of Hayashi, a rock band that can't really see spirits but whose music is so passionate it resonates with and can literally wake up any nearby spirits of the dead by getting them to enjoy the music.

As the band arrives and begins setting up, guitarist Hideji starts by turning on switches and cranking various knobs and dials to power the band's many amplifiers, which, in turn, gets their speakers buzzing. To ensure that those watching get the reference, there's a shot showing the "Overdrive" label on the knobs, along with a glimpse of the primary power meter going all the way up right before an aux cord is plugged into a guitar. It's a brief but clear homage to the opening scene of Robert Zemeckis' classic time-travel adventure (not to mention, a moment that isn't in the show's manga source material at all). It's also a testament to just how brilliant an adaptation "Dan Da Dan" is, as it goes for maximalism at every turn, hyping up the band's performance with a rather cool allusion.

The thing that makes this more than just a fun nod is how it builds up to the musical performance. As mentioned, "Dan Da Dan" started out as a sci-fi/horror comedy, so it was at no point hinted that the series would also deliver the most badass power metal performance of the year. Yet, that's exactly what happens the moment Hayashi starts playing and Toshiro begins singing. That the English dub even tapped Mark Hudson, the vocalist of real power metal band Dragon Force, to perform the song is just the icing on the cake. (It's a genuinely great tune to boot.)

But it's more than just a fantastic musical number. You also have the incredible visuals by Science Saru, the comedy of the characters suddenly getting extremely into the music, the horror of Jiji contorting as the battle to expel the demon possessing him rages on, and the emotion of Jiji realizing he promised the Evil Eye he would play with him (having spent eons as a kid hoping to just play with someone), all of which combine to make for an incredible sequence. It's the way "Dan Da Dan" manages to blend so many different genres and tones without being overwhelming or sacrificing one element for another that makes it one of the best anime shows in recent years.

Case in point: This episode not only features a hardcore musical performance, but it also includes a quiet and touching slice-of-life story about Okarun being set up by Ayase's friends (who know they are both into each other and very much want to set them up) into following them to a maid café where Ayase is now working. "Dan Da Dan" is similarly a show that will spend an entire episode focusing on a heartbreaking flashback for a ghost before following it up with some hilarious gag related to Okarun's missing balls. There is no other series quite like "Dan Da Dan," and it's just getting started.

"Dan Da Dan" is available to stream on Crunchyroll.