February 12, 2025 12:49 pm
This title is definitely not going to make you laugh.
That director Koichiro Hatsumi is brilliant at creating brutal stories about dehumanization through power and violence can be judged by his Dororo and Tokyo Revengers.
However, when it comes to discussions about courage and at least a semblance of morality, there is no trace of it in the adaptation of the manga by Jinsei Kataoka and Kazuma Kondou called Deadman Wonderland.
And, more importantly, there is no hope. All the characters of the first and only season fight for his ghostly outline, but in reality, justice cannot prevail.
What Is Deadman Wonderland About?
A mysterious cataclysm strikes Japan: many cities are destroyed, Tokyo is practically wiped off the face of the earth. Ten years later, the country has almost recovered from this shocking event, and life goes on.
A prison for the most dangerous criminals has opened where Tokyo used to be – an amusement park where law-abiding residents can watch the survival games of the convicts.
Wonderland is a huge machine for the destruction of people. But not everything is smooth here: inside there is an underground organization that wants to open the eyes of the world to what is happening, and among the prisoners there are people with supernatural abilities.
One of them becomes a guide through the world of Deadman Wonderland. The protagonist Ganta witnesses a bloody massacre of his classmates and later gains the power he did not ask for.
A false accusation of murdering leads him to an unusual prison, where the young man's main goal is revenge. He sincerely tries not to lose his kindness, but it is difficult when there is only anger, betrayal and cruelty around.
Deadman Wonderland Is a Depressing and Hopeless Title
Prisoners are brought to Wonderland for various reasons: some out of anger, some out of fear, and some out of the merciless mockery of fate. It is impossible to believe that they will ever be able to live without cruelty, murder and torture.
Everything in this world is arranged in such a way that a person subjected to physical and emotional violence cannot even think of a different fate. The established order is guarded by the cruel henchmen of the regime.
Deadman Wonderland Is Similar to Many Cult Horrors & Thrillers
Not surprisingly, there is a reference to the most famous scene in Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange, where a similar system is grotesquely deduced.
In general, there are a lot of analogies to be found for this oppressive and disheartening series. In terms of cruelty it is reminiscent of Another, and in terms of grief and melancholy it is similar to Elfen Lied.
This title is definitely not going to make you laugh.
That director Koichiro Hatsumi is brilliant at creating brutal stories about dehumanization through power and violence can be judged by his Dororo and Tokyo Revengers.
However, when it comes to discussions about courage and at least a semblance of morality, there is no trace of it in the adaptation of the manga by Jinsei Kataoka and Kazuma Kondou called Deadman Wonderland.
And, more importantly, there is no hope. All the characters of the first and only season fight for his ghostly outline, but in reality, justice cannot prevail.
What Is Deadman Wonderland About?
A mysterious cataclysm strikes Japan: many cities are destroyed, Tokyo is practically wiped off the face of the earth. Ten years later, the country has almost recovered from this shocking event, and life goes on.
A prison for the most dangerous criminals has opened where Tokyo used to be – an amusement park where law-abiding residents can watch the survival games of the convicts.
Wonderland is a huge machine for the destruction of people. But not everything is smooth here: inside there is an underground organization that wants to open the eyes of the world to what is happening, and among the prisoners there are people with supernatural abilities.
One of them becomes a guide through the world of Deadman Wonderland. The protagonist Ganta witnesses a bloody massacre of his classmates and later gains the power he did not ask for.
A false accusation of murdering leads him to an unusual prison, where the young man's main goal is revenge. He sincerely tries not to lose his kindness, but it is difficult when there is only anger, betrayal and cruelty around.
Deadman Wonderland Is a Depressing and Hopeless Title
Prisoners are brought to Wonderland for various reasons: some out of anger, some out of fear, and some out of the merciless mockery of fate. It is impossible to believe that they will ever be able to live without cruelty, murder and torture.
Everything in this world is arranged in such a way that a person subjected to physical and emotional violence cannot even think of a different fate. The established order is guarded by the cruel henchmen of the regime.
Deadman Wonderland Is Similar to Many Cult Horrors & Thrillers
Not surprisingly, there is a reference to the most famous scene in Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange, where a similar system is grotesquely deduced.
In general, there are a lot of analogies to be found for this oppressive and disheartening series. In terms of cruelty it is reminiscent of Another, and in terms of grief and melancholy it is similar to Elfen Lied.
