Wandance - Episode 12 discussion

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*[They said the thing.](https://i.imgur.com/td8syQY.jpeg)*

[*This looks like a different guy.*](https://i.imgur.com/rIGJFfX.jpeg)

[I'm glad Kabo didn't win.](https://i.imgur.com/hcoss06.jpeg) That's a high he can't get too early. And we can't give him an official battle against Iori this season can we? That would make the [sequel bait](https://i.imgur.com/2r7uqMy.jpeg) ever so worse.

This anime had a rough start, but I knew the investment would be worth it, and I was right. *Oh hey, apparently it's getting a live action movie, I wonder how that will go.*

Can't wait to see the live action movie
whenever it comes out

Was this the last episode of the season? Are they really leaving the dance battle unfinished? Oh well....

Still, this remains my second-most-favorite show of the season, (well) behind Maangaka and just ahead of Yano and Awkward Senpai. Ironically those latter two shows are more my sort of thing -- but the distinctiveness of Wandance set it a bit apart -- and I appreciated that.

~~Kabe~~ Kabo and Wanda are a great team -- and I suspect their synergy will make them even more top-tier in the future. It is great to see them as inspirations to each other.

This show cuts a lot of the dances we want to see lol. Kabe has a more choreographed style, and his b-boy style the 2 judges favour as well.

This show is rated lower than I thought, but that's likely due to the earlier episodes. The 3D got a lot better as the show went on, I loved this episode's dancing.

Kabe v Kabo sure was something. Kabo took his damn teeth out and ripped his sleeve! You know shit was about to get real lol.

This was pretty interesting all in all. The dancing was neat and I liked all the Kabo and Wanda moments. They were pretty cute. I wouldn’t mind another season of Sung Jin Kabo dancing his way to the top, especially with that cliffhanger.

While this was just the semis, it felt like a final boss fight with the mad moves from both Kabo & Kabe. Hard to believe Kabo’s still a newbie.

Loved how Kabo managed to recall Iori and Hikari’s words and (almost) turned things around. In most shows he would’ve succeeded but in here he still failed, albeit barely. Still put up one hell of a fight and made Kabe anxious. Assay spotted it, which was a decisive factor in him voting for Kabo.

The showrunners pulled a cruel stunt by ending things right before the final started. Should’ve had one more episode to properly wrap things up.

Easily my anime of the season. I really hope it continues and we get another season.

It's the semi-finals and it's amazing that Kabo's made it this far! And it's even nicer that Wanda still believes in him so much! Even if he can't fully convey his feelings in words, she understands and supports him.

We think of Wanda as this cute and quirky superhuman alien dancer...but she's still a normal girl who wears a hat in solidatiry with the guy in her life.

It's finally time for Kabo vs Kabe! Complete with starting off with Kabe dissing Kabo before engaging in some BLINDFOLDED BREAKDANCING as if Kabo isn't worth even looking at while he busts some moves...but don't underestimate Kabo. When it comes time to bring it, he BRINGS IT and gets right up in you face about it!

Then comes the next round and Kabe is really bringing it. Even with tears in his clothes and heat radiating from his body, he keeps pushing himself. And you know it's really serious when he takes out his two fake teeth, the sign of all he's sacrificed to master breaking.

The final round gets off to a bad start for Kabo when he gets roped into Kabe's uprock....but this is Kabo, he can truly feel and embody the music and dance with the true spirit of hip-hop. He dances so well, just for the sake of the dance, that even Kabe can't help but respect him in frustration! In a way, he did lose this match to Kabo!

But...Kabo still doesn't win. But class act that he is, he's the first one that claps for Kabe! Even if he ends up crying next. He had fun, but it always hurts to lose.

Kabe has been so caught up in the mind games of breaking, that he really couldn't see that Kabo actually respected him. But when Kabo's words can't convey them, Wanda will, and at least Kabe acknowledged Kabo in the end.

Did Assay really think Iori would bring out a cig? I mean, it's that kind of place...

Kabo always expected he'd struggle in life with his stutter, but meeting Wanda opened up a new opportunity for him to express himself and be the person he wants to be, together with her. And as we close out, Iori is planning to avenge him against Kabe!

I understand there's a battle culture but I thought Kabe was so lame for blindfolding himself lol. It makes even funnier because he ended up being curious by the end, I thought he'd end up watching it on his phone but we didn't see that happening.

It's sad that Kabo lost but he was definitely on a groove, I really how he got up and close to Kabe even if it wasn't his intention to feel threatening. I just like that it was like his passion was overflowing so much it was looming physically over Kabe lol. The change up on the final round was great too, the guy was having so much fun and seeing Kabe frustrated made it even better.

It was nice to find out Assay was taking into account the dancers' reactions, you can't let that kind of nonconfidence show.

It sucks we don't get to see the finals, I wanted to see Iori get revenge for his team. Hopefully this gets another season. I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would when I started this, I'm glad the story didn't disappoint.

Such a great episode. Loved all the complex emotional undercurrents beneath the actual dancing and the overall theme of showing and recognizing respect.

Ummm excuse me?! Where is my episode 13?! Or season 2?! I demand a recount!!

There's just something funny about watching someone as earnest as Kabo BM someone, out of "respect" or otherwise.

Man, ending things in the middle of the final rounds is downright criminal. I'd want a Season 2 anyway but now we *have to* get one to see the battle reach its conclusion (and hopefully with better CG)

This show really surprised me, wish we got to see a bit more of Kabo and Wanda developing their relationship. They were a great leading duo, supporting and understanding each other.

This show was an very enjoyable watch for me. Even if I don't know much of the lingo like uprock and toprock. I'm guessing that house is a music genre.

The dynamic between Wanda and Kabo is sweet. I've gotten used to the dancing animation. It's better when they don't show the dancers next to regularly animated characters like in some of the clubroom scenes. I would like it if I had fingertip contrails when I danced :-)

We need a second season so we can see the end of dance battle contest dammit!

Lol Kabo is so pure. Kabe was simply bitter but Kabo saw that as him being kind and allowing him to give his all.

Also, can’t help but feel like I gotta protecc Kabo when he cried. He was a lot more invested in it than he thought and losing hurt more than expected.

Is that how we’re ending it ? Is there a S2 ? Such a bummer to end there. Anyway, this was certainly one of the more different shows this season that I’m watching. I like that I’m learning a bit more about dancing, the CG had to get used to, the little bits of story and drama was ok too. But biggest draw for me was both Kabo and Wanda and them together.

Noo you can't end it here. I need to see more. A lot more! Especially of hair slicked back Kabo. That was my favourite part of the OP. And we finally got to see him do it in the show.


What a crazy good battle that was. The animation too. This episode was just grand in every way. 


Season 2 when?!

Loved this one

I thought this was pretty fascinating to watch, all the interesting details about dancing.

Reminds me of years ago when I got drafted a few times to go see one of the nieces in some junior high/high school aged dance recitals. The niece didn't last in the hobby for too long, but the older kids who were experienced were just so interesting to watch. A very alien world to me as someone who's never had anything to do with the subject, which is fitting since adorable alien Wanda here was interesting to watch too along with all of the others.

Kabo and Wanda were a very cute couple, too.

This was a perfect ending. Kabo was too new at this to win so early. He still needs to grow more. And while I'd love to see the finals, we didn't need to. It ended right where it should have. This was one of my favorite anime this season. I always jumped on it as soon as it came out. 8/10

Personally I wasn't a fan of Assay's admittance that he gave it to Kabo because Kabe's loss of confidence towards the end. It's kind of the underlying truth though when it comes to judging in dance battles when the skill level between two dancers is close.

Judging something as creative as dance in a sport like setting/competition is so hard. A lot of judges look for an easy way out and that usually comes in the form of voting for the person who "wants it" more. The moment you enter a battle and announce you're just in it to have fun, you're putting yourself at a massive disadvantage. The same can be said if you go into a battle stating your opponent is better.

You just end up giving the judges an easy way out of a really hard job.

At the end of the day though, it's a good message to drive home to readers and viewers. Put your whole heart into the thing you do is something everyone wants to agree with.

It was silly, it was goofy and the CGI ranged from passable to "What the Hell was that?" and I enjoyed it. I'm going to miss Wandance Wednesdays. I really am.

And so into the finale.

So, time for him to shine.

Lol Kabo Vs Kabe.

Seems he's good.

What's going on with that guy?

Right. Back to him.

Oh, is he dancing out of turn?

Guess he's allowed to do that.

Right. Now it's _actually_ his turn.

Damn look at him go.

After all that, Kabe still won?

Unsurprisingly, he's not taking that loss well.

What's up with Kabe?

So, it's down to Iori.

Or not, I guess we won't see how that ends.

Overall, a well-choreographed show with an overall good story let down by atrocious CGI. 6/10.

I skipped to the last episode just to see if the CGI improved. It did not.

**Ep 12 reaction from a former professional dancer, choreographer, and teacher.**

First off, happy holidays everyone. I’m not going round-for-round since we didn’t get full, clear rounds (Kabo’s first was skipped entirely), so these are just highlights from the episode.

As soon as Kabe put his hand out, I knew what he was trying to pull lol. It’s one of the oldest battle culture mind-game troll gestures—still used to this day. A cute little diss. After the battle, when Kabe and Wanda talked, I found it funny how Kabe interpreted everything Kabo did as a response to his intimidation tactics, when Kabo was really just reacting naturally, not trying to diss or get in his head.

In battle culture, it’s common for b-boys to do random things to assert confidence and provoke their opponent. We see Kabe give Kabo the “biter” gesture when Kabo starts his round by walking. “Biting” means calling someone out for copying movement, whether it’s a signature or something done mid-round. Not necessary, but people who love shit talking during battles do it purely to irritate opponents lol.

When Kabo got in Kabe’s grill, Kabe read it as pressure, but Kabo was just vibing. Kabe seemed self-conscious about his size and leaned into dissing that. Personally, when I was breaking, I never liked that stuff—I preferred letting my round speak for itself. I always found things like covering your eyes mid-battle cringey, especially if you lose lol. Maybe you saw some cringey ideas playing out during breakin' Olympics recently haha. Luckily for Kabe, he won, but his reaction to the results & comments about the judges hinted at bias, with two judges leaning b-boy—hence Assay being the only one favoring Kabo.

Kabo’s final round, using ideas from Wanda & Iori, was the biggest takeaway. Earlier, Wanda talked about emphasizing obvious sounds instead of going full-out to “save energy,” which I mentioned also creates intention and dynamics. All season, Kabo didn’t really grasp this—his freestyle often felt chaotic. But here, he finally slowed down, stopped rushing, and looked unrestricted. That alone showed real confidence and active thinking, and you could tell it was refreshing for Assay.

Those changes didn’t necessarily win or lose the battle, but they showed real growth. On and Iori already understand this concept—we see it when Kabo dances next to them. With Wanda, it’s more intuitive; she’s framed as a natural talent, so her choices just “feel right” even if she can’t articulate them yet.

Kabe’s rounds had strong power, but nothing new—windmills, airflares, flares, halos, swipes, plus a headspin and elbow freeze. Honestly, that applies to most dancers in the show: sticking to their default style/autopilot movement. Not bad, but I would’ve liked more effort with variation.

Did Kabe truly win? Hard to say, since so much wasn’t shown. Judge bias and dance politics are always factors—it’s part of the game. The dancers’ inner dialogue with how to approach rounds was realistic.

Overall, the story is cute, characters are likable, and the dance does a solid job showcasing battles, street styles, choreography, and freestyle. It’s rare to see a dance anime this deep into the specific culture. Dance-wise, I wanted more—not flashier, but more stylistic distinction beyond genre labels. I assume that comes later, maybe in a season 2.

Not my favorite show of the season, but I can’t complain experiencing something rooted in my own journey, from junior high to adulthood as a former traveling professional dancer. This show scratches the surface, and there’s so much more that could be explored. These days resources are everywhere—back when I started, we had forums and ultra-niche YouTube searches before 480p lol.

Thanks to anyone who read my rambles this season. It woke up my rusty dance brain and brought back a lot of memories. Hope you enjoyed the show, and if there’s a season 2, I’ll be watching. Take care, y’all, and happy holidays again!

It was absolutely amazing. My best anime of this season. And the songs were amazing too.

I unironically love the CGI in this. Hope we can get a season 2. Btw Afternoon - the manga Wandance runs in comes out on the 25th each month. So the latest chapter should be out today.

Well now I really want a season 2, even if the CGI remains the same. Manga readers say it still doesn't compare to the manga and I mean I'm sure the manga is fantastic (and I do intend to read it) but I think something will always feel missing if I can't see the dancing in video and hear the music. Kinda like a _Rock Lady_ situation. Translations finally been reaching the middle and last portions of the anime and of course it's awesome but it just ain't the same compared to the energy of the performance scenes.

Anyway I'm really glad I stuck with the show past the initial bad impression of the CGI, although I always maintained it was an issue of the models and not the animation itself. What a hidden gem.

everyone here for the dance, but not me. Dance 2nd adorable goofball named Wanda 1st.

i am sure going to miss her random actions and almost clueless adorable nature.

sure hope there is a second (or more) season so we can get more development in the group dynamics and see how far each dancers dreams progress

The 3DCG has improved so much since the first episode and the final episode got to be the best out of all.

Kabo's and Kabeya's moves were so perfect. Kabo really killed it. Unlike Kabeya who only dances the sets that he practiced, Kabo's improving and improvising at an enormous rate upon Iori's advice and he's gonna surpass them all someday. Since they ended the season with Iori vs Kabeya as a cliffhanger, there's one hundred percent the possibility of Season 2.. so glad about that.

I'm gonna miss the best girls Wanda and On. After all is said and done, I loved this adaptation with all my heart and the soundtrack was the core of this anime.

Fingers crossed for the announcement of season 2.

After the first episode you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who wanted a season 2 but now? GIMME SEASON TWO AND GIMME IT NOW DANGIT!

Really hoping for a second season!

I smell a season 2 in the works (maybe not in the super near future, though).

Overall a pretty nice show, I'm not really inclined to check the manga out so ig I'll wait for season 2 if it ever comes out.

Season 2 Please 🙏

Will watch the live action movie that’s in the making

Man this has to be one of the most blatant "go read the manga" ending I've ever seen.

I've always watched this anime like it's a sports shounen, so it was hilarious that this episode decided to complete the imagery by putting in actual basketballs in the visuals.

Apparently there's a live-action movie announced, I'm definitely looking forward to watching that. If anything, the dance moves are gonna be a LOT better than the CGI in this anime. The CGI has gone a long way from episode 1, but it's still far from IRL dance level.

if anyone wants to see more kabe just youtube bboy yuki from foundnation lol

I really liked this show. Once I got used to the CGI, there wasn’t much to criticize. The character development was strong, with realistic and unique characters who bounced off each other well. The series also managed to make dancing genuinely interesting, even though it’s not something I’m especially passionate about. On top of that, the CGI noticeably improved as the season went on. I’ll definitely be here for a season 2 if it gets announced.

Really hope this gets a follow-up season.

So it ended at the start of Gaku vs Iori.

I love the bait & switch w/ Iori eating the pretzel sticks a dip package in the smoking area when it looks like he's gonna join Assay in smoking.

It was nice for Iori to share his snacks w/ Kabo.

Gaku was threatened by Kabo that he would've fumbled if there was a 4th round.

Hikari's such a mind reader that she & Kabo are soulmates on the same wavelength.

So Gaku lost his 2 front teeth due to dancing.

Gaku literally cut & tore his clothes.

Kabo felt loss for the 1st time after losing to Gaku & now it was his turn to cry.

Wandance - 8/10, in spite of understandable budgetary limitations, the show lost 0% passion for the presentation at stake.

Damn Kabe was super cringe with all his little moves - pulling mask over eyes (unhygienic!), ripping shirt sleeve (like wtf, your shirt isn't ripped enough?!), pulling out his teeth (you don't realize how goofy that looks?!) - but yeah, his flashy dance moves are just the perfect match for battles, so I can't really fault the judges for giving the win to him. That said, I'm more with Iori philosophically. I think Kabe is just like Wanda where their dance styles are just more suitable for choreographed stage performances.

Kabo, on the other hand, wow! What a great level up! I could see Wanda's influences in his upper body movements and Iori's influence in his footwork. Fantastic! It's great that Kabo actually thought back to both their words about movements that conserve energy. I believe that's philosophically the same as the advice that Assay gave him in his first competition. Learning how to move in the most impactful but efficient manner is what gives dancers the longevity in the game. The basketballs imagery bolster the fact that all his experiences up to that point are what enables him to dance so beautifully.

This was a mesmerizing show where the animations are in service of the message. I think the old adage of "action speaks louder than words" applies. Need more!

Damn, they pulled yet another "we want show you a final battle" ending (seen this approach in so many shows).

Still,it was one of the better shows this season. I definetely enjoyed it and would not mind seeing more in the future.

Man I hope season 2 gets better cgi i love this show so much it’s rare to see such a good dance anime

That can't be the last episode right i need to see who wins although kabo whooped ass I think he should've won

Here's to hoping for S2. The emotional hype and investment in characters for every episode was unlike any anime I've watched. It just felt so unique and fresh, like when you're itching to take action or yell in a crowd lol.

I enjoy the story and characters but I really can’t tell if the dancing is any good with the weird cgi animation especially with the battle arc being dance heavy. I wonder if they have choreographers uploading their moves on social media (edit: ah the motion capture is on their IG)

Man what a great ride this show was. It was very simple in execution but so much small nuances everywhere I love that shit. Dance on y'all! Kabo and Wanda are cheering you on!

Started watching this late. But this was a better show that I expected it to be from the start. An enjoyable sports-like story but in the world of dance, which I know nothing about. I appreciate shows that dive into another hobby / culture. It opens up a whole new rabbit hole that I may or may not look into more. Respect to all of the staff who worked on this show.

Will there be a s2 plz let me know boys and girls