Category Archives: Deadman Wonderland

Deadman Wonderland

Deadman Wonderland

Leave a comment

 

  • Characters: 2
  • Story: 2
  • Enjoyment: 2
  • Art: 0
  • Animation: .5

Overall Score: 6.5/10

Deadman Wonderland in one work: Crazy.

Deadman Wonderland is about a young boy by the name of Ganta Igarashi who is accused of murdering his entire class after an enigmatic person known as the “Red Man” massacres Ganta’s fellow classmates. He’s sentenced to imprisonment at Deadman Wonderland, a privately owned prison/ (get this) amusement park! After realizing the Red Man has given Ganta some crazy blood powers, he’s forced to live in G Block, a secret area held off only for “Deadmen”; people who have the power to manipulate their blood. There he’s forced to participate in the Carnival Corpse and fight other Deadmen for the sake of experiments.

There aren’t many characters in this show that you wouldn’t find in your average shonen anime. The weak protagonist who won’t stay down, muscle bound characters who would rather fight than talk, ecstatic, bubbly characters, and crazy people.

Yet Deadman Wonderland is able to put their own twist on all these character tropes in either character designs, traits, or both. Most, if not all of the characters who are suppose to be likable ARE likable. Aaaannnnddd…I’ll admit it. One of the main reasons I continued to stay interested in DW was thanks to Senji Kiyomasa.

 (I know it’s a shallow reason, but look at him for goodness sake)

The story is what really had me hooked on DW. With brutal action scenes, I just couldn’t stay away. I’m a sucker for series with a darker twist. That being said, you do need to suspend your disbelief to a certain point when watching this to enjoy it. Of course, if you’re in it for the action more than anything else (like I was) that won’t really be a problem.

Also, the series ends with a cliffhanger, so if you’re not interested in reading the manga, you won’t feel satisfied.

The art was pretty solid, though it seemed to be somewhat lacking at times. Such as the fight between Minatsuki and Ganta. And the animation really seemed to only shine when characters activated their powers.

 

So to sum it up:

Pros: The characters are all around enjoyable and at least have a small twist on their tropes. The action is brutal and there’s plenty. The story is interesting and gritty.

Cons: The art and animation is rather lacking and you have to turn a blind eye to certain aspects in order to enjoy it to the fullest. The ending is empty and leaves you hanging. Also, there’s a fairly large chunk of fanservice.

Worth watching? Probably. It depends on if it’s your type of anime. If you like action with a touch of horror and a darker tone, then this is definitely for you. If you can handle blood and scenes that make your stomach turn, check it out. There are few series like DW that I can think of.

Just throwing in my two cents, but the anime is a sad adaptation compared to the magnitude of the manga. The manga has excellent art, Ganta the crybaby actually develops into a strong character, and the drama implemented is fitting. Oh, and the ending just makes it one of the most satisfying reads. Thumbs down to the anime, two thumbs up for the manga.