Deadman Wonderland begins with a bang, as Ganta’s entire class is murdered by a man in a red cloak and he is framed for the crime. He is sentenced to death and sent to Deadman Wonderland, a privately owned prison where prisoners compete in deadly games for the amusement of the crowds. He meets a mysterious girl, Shiro, who knows him somehow. His fellow prisoners and people associated with the man in the red cloak are all trying to kill him.

This was a good start for the show— there is a good sense of fear and anger at the people who did this to the main character. I think there are two ways this show could go though: it could either examine the conspiracy surrounding how he came to the prison, or it could become an action show focusing on the “games”. I imagine it will try to do both, but with more of a focus on the games, which would be a shame. The first episode was more focused on developing the mystery though, so you never know.

I am looking forward to seeing the interactions between Ganta, Shiro, their fellow prisoners and the guards. There is a lot of potential here especially since Ganta has been introduced with such a huge misunderstanding. The show has a promising setting; let’s see if they can put it to good use.