Okay. That was just insane. This was by far the best episode of Deadman Wonderland yet.
You know how usually series blow their biggest budget on the first episode of a series? This episode showed that Deadman Wonderland was not one of those series. The animation was by far the best and most consistent of the series so far. Of course it’s still nowhere near Manglobe’s usual characters, but for once there were no distorted faces getting in the way, the action scenes all looked gorgeous and most importantly: the inbetween animation at times really brought in this extra bit of life out of the characters.
Usually the characters like Ganta are really annoying: the ones who don’t do anything. But heck, in this context the creators actually made his character work. He actually does try enough things, and yet every time he does he only gets pummeled down again by this series, which always manages to find some way to become even harsher than it already has. I mean, this episode was absolutely brutal, both for Ganta and the Crow Character. I really have to praise this show: gore alone gets boring really easily; the characters here are the ones who give it its impact and keep this entire series together. Of course they lack depth compared to other series, but they’re all great to watch, and especially diverse. The creators did an excellent job of getting us to sympathize with this fourteen year-old kid, the type of character who usually is really unlikable.
Now, the big flaw here still is the way in which the creators keep shooting themselves into the foot: yeah, the series is brutal, so it’s going to be really hard to keep Ganta alive. Still, this episode was nowhere as bad as episode 2, and instead was very shounen-ish. In other words, cliched, and we can thank the animators and writers for doing a really good job on it to generate enough suspense of disbelief to actually give it impact, rather making it tedious.
Rating: ** (Excellent)
I agree with the article in that Ganta was indeed very lucky to be alive at this point in the anime. Heck, in all honesty, if the producers of this anime wanted to be super-realistic, they would have killed Ganta off in the first few episodes because really, it’s hard to believe that a fourteen year old boy can stand up to battle-hardened prisoners.
But I digress, it’s a good show, and just like you said, the creators have made it so that the characters and their actions give the right amount of impact. I feel that the penalty game, especially, gave the whole series gravitas. It isn’t like Crow could have gotten beaten and joined Ganta all willy-nilly. No, he might join Ganta in the future, but he would be severely scarred already for losing to him.
In that sense, it really sets itself apart from other shonen series, and the conciseness of the fight scenes definitely helps it as well. And if you liked this article and Deadman Wonderland, I think that my take on the anime will be interesting. I would appreciate any comments and criticism.
http://aniphiles.wordpress.com/2011/05/15/deadman-wonderland-quick-overview/
It’s a good show, and just like you said, the creators have made it so that the characters and their actions give the right amount of impact. I feel that the penalty game, especially, gave the whole series gravitas. It isn’t like Crow could have gotten beaten and joined Ganta all willy-nilly. No, he might join Ganta in the future, but he would be severely scarred already for losing to him. In that sense, it really sets itself apart from other shonen series, and the conciseness of the fight scenes definitely helps it as well.
And if you liked this article and Deadman Wonderland, I think that My Take on Deadman Wonderland will be interesting. I would appreciate any comments and criticism.
actually things do get better for ganta.. the creators dont (and really cant) put him through hell for the whole series…well they kidna do but at least it gets better…somewhat…=.=
but things do start looking up at least for a while.
that sounds reassuring lol. dang, i HATE gore without purpose. but this show does it really well. if i wasn’t watching the censored versions i think i’d be puking like Ganta too. the intro and music makes me feel the MADNESS of deadman wonderland.
I had a 70% feeling that Shiro-chan might be the Red Man. Relating to Eps 3, both have same pale face and same smirking (but arguable). And most notably, Shiro is not around when Red Man attacked. I could be wrong too….
If they do it right, you’ll really enjoy the next episode in terms of the characters. I’m really looking forward to it for those reasons as well, though am bracing since some things will have to be changed since the Earthquake = Red Hole now.