Dandadan: The Monster of the Flatwoods, Explained

Key takeaways

• punishment
  Exploring the supernatural through two teenagers mixes horror, humor, and action.
• Episode 2's Flatwood Monster is inspired by a 1952 alien encounter in West Virginia.
• Flatwood Monster Inn
  punishment
  Demonstrates immense strength, toxic mist abilities, and loyalty to the Serpo Aliens.

Yukinobu Tatsusa's uncanny knack for blending the supernatural and supernatural to retell captivating stories truly shines through in his masterpieces, punishment. The series blends horror and humor while delivering action-packed and otherworldly stories of two teenage girls exploring the supernatural.

In episode 2, titled “That Space Alien, Isn't It?!” punishment Introduces the Flatwood Monster, an alien working under the orders of his superior, Serpo Aliens. At first, the towering creature may seem like a symbol of Yukinobu's rich and extravagant imagination. But it turns out that it takes inspiration from an infamous alien encounter that was reported back in the early 1950s. In this article, we dive deeper into the origins of the Flatwood Monster and explore how it influenced Yukinobu's work.

Origins of the Flatwood Monster Myth

A meteor or legitimate alien encounter?

On September 12, 1952, a bright object was seen in the sky over the town of Flatwoods, West Virginia. When witnesses went to investigate, they reported seeing a red light that caught their attention. Eager to get to the bottom of it, they decided to look closer to the mountain where the bright object had originally appeared. According to eyewitness reports, when they got closer, they found a 10-foot-tall man-like figure with a space-shaped head, a round blood-red face, and claw-like hands.

After the news spread, the local sheriff and a deputy investigated the area but found nothing out of the ordinary. However, this did not stop the story from becoming a national news piece as journalists flocked to the area to investigate and draw their own conclusions. But even after seven decades, no concrete evidence has been found to corroborate the eyewitness story. Although there are many theories regarding the event, the most widely accepted one is that proposed by Joe Nickell of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, who claims that witnesses probably saw a meteor. This was likely the case, as several meteor sightings were reported from various locations in the United States on September 12 that year.

Joe also had an explanation for the strange extraterrestrial encounter that the eyewitnesses had that day. According to him, the people at Ground Zero may have encountered a barn owl, which they mistook for a humanoid creature from another world. He claims that the shadows often made the birds appear larger than normal, an illusion, which was exacerbated by their high state of anxiety. Despite launching many investigations into the area, no evidence of extraterrestrial life has been found. However, the lack of evidence did not stop people from formulating their theories and the myth of the Flatwoods Monster continued to endure many decades after the incident.

Flatwood Monster Inn punishment

The series is heavily influenced by eyewitness accounts of the 1952 event

Yukinobu Tatsu's punishment Takes ideas from real-life alien and cryptid myths, including the Flatwood Monster. Like West Virginia's Extraterrestrial, the series' Flatwood Monster also stands 10 feet tall and was first seen in the town of Flatwoods in Braxton County. In the following years, there were reports of its sightings in Japan's Yamanashi Prefecture. The Flatwood Monster is very muscular and built like a sumo wrestler in the anime. Its mouth is rectangular and moves mechanically, while the head is surrounded by a mysterious hood. Because it is so tall and has a huge belly, the Flatwood Monster could potentially weigh several tons.

Interestingly, Flatwood is subordinate to the demon Serpos and is also an alien like them. Due to its massive size and sumo wrestler-like build, it can generate fearsome power using sumo-style foot stomps. These are extremely dangerous to anyone nearby as the force can kill even a normal person.

A flatwood monster's strength can dramatically turn to weakness as its body begins to deteriorate on contact with the ground, for some inexplicable reason. It's almost as if aliens can only fight in an upright sumo pose. However, if this happens, the flatwood monster's leg production ability allows it to quickly grow a new pair of legs to stabilize the rest of its body.

A real-life witness to a 1952 West Virginia incident claimed they felt nauseated and immediately smelled acrid smoke after seeing a 10-foot-tall man-like figure. Yukinobu seems to borrow the idea of ​​giving the Flatwood Monster in the anime the power to emit a poisonous black smoke that causes nosebleeds. The alien uses noxious smoke to attack Okarun and Momo, forcing them to hide.

Despite being incredibly strong, the Flatwood Monster is surprisingly obedient to the Serpo Aliens. It persists in its task of obtaining Okarun and Momo's banana limbs when they meet. The alien manages to single-handedly defeat the eccentric duo with supernatural powers. However, Momo's quick thinking allows the two friends to put the talisman in place after which it burns to ashes and dies.