Review of Deadman Wonderland

REVIEW OF DEADMAN WONDERLAND


References:
1. Gurren Lagann: 27 episode-long mecha anime TV series that ran in 2007 animated by Gainax and co-produced by Aniplex and Konami

2. Eureka 7 (Seven): 50-episode long mecha anime that ran back in 2005, regarded by many as one of the greatest "growing-up" stories



People seem to have this misconception to what shounen series are. Honestly, that's forgiveable seeing how works like OP, Bleach, Naruto and DB come into mind at the mention of the word. However, the real definition of a shounen is this:

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Definition:

Shounen: Marketed to a male audience roughly between the ages of 10 to 18 (Wikipedia)

The misunderstanding here is caused by the better known series aiming for that 10 to 16 age group while darker series cater to the last 17-18 age group, while still retaining its status as a shounen. One such series is Deadman Wonderland, written by Jinsei Kataoka, a beautifully crafted work that is at the same time terrifying and exhilarating.

STORY: Weighed at 25% at 4.4/5

Sometimes I wonder how exactly this series made it through selection for shounen. The story starts with a regular kid named Ganta who gets involved in an incident where everyone in his class but him gets slaughtered. Because of corruption and poor investigation, the blame for this case falls upon the young boy who is sent to the prison/circus known as Deadman Wonderland. 


If there are such things as delicacies in shounen, this would  be it. The tone is so dark, so horrid, so... beautiful. Unlike other shounen where there is usually a or multiple villains to beat, Ganta would have to rediscover everything that he had lost. The setting is one of the most original I have seen in a while and the details that goes into fleshing out this hellhole is wonderful. 

The plot is very serious and it gives off a vibe of "no-one-is-safe-from-dying", granted the more a character is popular, the more probable they are to surviving yet plot twists will happen and most of them will not be of the pleasant kind.

It's hard to explain how amazingly raw and pure this series's story is without spoiling it, so please, just trust me. This is no run-of-the-mill story.

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CHARACTERS: Weighed at 25% at 4.2/5

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Like any prison system should be, there are many strange and interesting people in it. The corrupt society however made it so that only the most screwed up of those are sent to the Deadman Wonderland. This is perfect though, this makes the creepy world even more creepy and in many ways, you would think this is anime's Arkham Asylum. 

The main character, Ganta, is a delight to watch grow. He starts off as an unsure, unreliable, snotty brat, which is understandable seeing what he had gone through, but unlike other characters, he actually grows confident and eventually becomes a man. Some similarities can be made with both Gurren Lagann's Simon (Shimon) and Eureka Seven's Renton. The former is the most obvious one because the illustrator for the manga was the person who wrote and illustrated Eureka Seven. 

I won't go as far as to say that the story is about the journey from boy to man because of the type of series this is, but whether or not it was intentional, any sort of progress is welcome.

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However, the surprise factor for the series is not Ganta but the main female character Shiro. 

Shiro is an amazing character, from the design to the personality to the role she plays in the story. The albino design choice is incredibly beautiful, with it, if we try to analyze it further, representing something pure in the dark world of Deadman Wonderland. At the same time, her (what I suppose is, they might have mentioned if it is something else but it's been a while) white body suit with red lines, neck cast and gloves are such simple things but highlight all the key beauties of Shiro.

In the cruel and strange world of Deadman Wonderland, Shiro first served as the mental and psychological support for Ganta but would eventually grow to be much more. While Shiro seems to lead Ganta by the hand through his journey, she also feels like a leash that keep Ganta from running off. 

The relationship will grow to the point of interdependance and this feeling is transmitted to the reader that will inevitably love this pair. In a similar yet different way to how people loved Renton X Eureka, people will come to accept this strangely wonderful couple.

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Apart from these two, the supporting and secondary characters play an above average role of filling out the roster. With specific highlights being Crow and Azami, the Deadman Wonderland prison will give you more than one reason to love its detainees.

MANGA: Weight of 25% at 4.4/5

The manga was illustrated by Kazuma Kondou, the same man who brought us the wonderful Eureka Seven series and similarities in the art can be found. Does that mean it's bad? No, of course not, the art is pretty to gawk at and does not fluctuate too much in terms of quality. 

Another important thing to note is the length of the manga. Although the manga did take 6 years to complete (2007 to 2013), it only took up 13 volumes or about 60 chapters give or take. This is something that should be praised. The story is to the point and does not try to extend itself uselessly while giving enough content for readers to enjoy. Jinsei Kataoka manages to tell a story that most others wouldn't be able to tell in double that size and he does so in a beautiful manner, with the help of Kazuma Kondou.

Though more is something that is easy to ask, I rather keep what we have in hopes of preserving its existing state.

ANIME: Weight of 25% at 3.6/5

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As an anime, the Deadman Wonderland anime is fine. However, as an adaptation to the manga, the anime is somewhat underwhelming. 

The main issue here is that the anime producers were too hasty in wanting to get this done and could not or did not wait for the series to finish. What this made was a product that was similar but not there just yet.

What I would actually do is watch the first few episodes, maybe about half of the 12 episodes just to get enough and to read the rest.

But, there is some advantages to watching the anime. The single most important reason to watch the anime would be for the color. Now, color has never been such a major problem for me, but in this creepy yet colorful world of Deadman Wonderland, color truly brings out the worse of it. Red blood, colorful circus tops, all these things shape up this world better than the manga will ever be able to.

Other than that, the music was alright though not anything that I will remember for too long.

FINAL VERDICT: Overall score of 83%

Deadman Wonderland was and will remain a highly enjoyable series. With my personal recommendation being to read the manga, the series gives you a quick yet engrossing story of two people. And although it isn't the most romantic of romances, the scariest of horrors, the most tragic of tragedy or the most action-packed of action, Ganta and Shiro give us a wonderful package of pure enjoyment. It's creepy, it's bloody, it's Deadman Wonderland.