Deadman Wonderland

Deadman Wonderland

A massive earthquake ravaged Japan's mainland and destroyed most of Tokyo, sinking three-quarters of the city into the ocean. Ten years later, the story shifts to Ganta Igarashi, a seemingly ordinary student attending Nagano Prefecture's middle school. As an escapee, a survivor of the great earthquake, Ganta has no memories of the tragedy and has lived a normal life. This all changes when a strange person covered in blood and crimson armor floats through his classroom windows. Grinning madly, the 'Red Man' massacres Ganta's entire class but instead of killing him, embeds a red crystal shard in Ganta's chest. Within days of the massacre, Ganta is declared the sole suspect. Following a quick unfair trial, Ganta is sentenced to death and is incarcerated in Deadman Wonderland, a massive theme park-like prison.

Arriving at the prison, Ganta is fitted with a special collar which monitors his location and life signs. Due to the heinous nature of Ganta's "crime," he has to live out his imprisonment under Deadman Wonderland's 'Death Sentence'. A lethal poison is constantly injected into his bloodstream through the collar, but it can be neutralized by consuming a peculiar candy-like medicine every three days, which can be acquired through various activities in the prison, i.e. performing for audiences, working backstage, purchasing with cast points, etc. In order to gather Cast Points (the prison's currency), an inmate has to perform in the facility's lethal games and survive. Fortunately for Ganta, he is aided by a mysterious girl named Shiro, who apparently knows Ganta, and is known by other prisoners as well.

While trying to survive as an inmate on death row, Ganta becomes increasingly obsessed with the 'Red Man' and tries to find him so he could clear his name. In a bizarre twist, Ganta begins to develop the ability to manipulate his own blood, to the point of turning it into a weapon. Unbeknownst to him, Ganta has become one of the prison's "Deadmen," a segregated group of prisoners possessing the Branches of Sin which makes them capable of controlling their blood. After his ability is discovered, Ganta is forced to participate in brutal gladiatorial death matches known as Carnival Corpse, whose anonymous spectators pay large amounts of money to watch. In his struggle he manages to befriend some of those he fought off in the arena and with their help, Ganta continues his quest to uncover the identity of the 'Red Man', why he turned into a Deadman, and the dark secrets the prison authorities are hiding.

About Deadman Wonderland

Deadman Wonderland is Japan's only privately operated prison, built after the Great Tokyo Earthquake on ground zero. It gathers prisoners from all over Japan and raises money for the revival of the destroyed metropolis. To the public and the tourists that visit daily, Deadman Wonderland is a massive theme park-like facility run by the prison population. Unbeknownst to the general population, most of the prison's attractions involve cruel games of survival where many inmates lose their lives or are maimed for the entertainment of an oblivious public.

To keep prisoners at bay in case of a riot, they are fitted with special collars which act as life monitors, locators, and stunners. Those on death row however are constantly administered poison through their collars: should an inmate not consume a special candy-like antidote every three days, provided to them at the cost of a large sum of Cast Points, he/she would die immediately. The prison's guard staff is also granted autonomy over how to punish the prisoners, which often results in bloodshed.

While the threat of violence is constant at the prison, most prisoners enjoy a great deal of liberty inside Deadman Wonderland. Utilizing Cast Points, the prison's unique form of currency, prisoners can purchase a wide variety of items from ordinary lunches, to luxurious furniture for their rooms, and even years off of their sentences (though Cast Points can't be used to buy one's freedom from Deadman Wonderland). Those on death row also use Cast Points to purchase their life-saving candies.

Despite its identity as a prison and theme park, Deadman Wonderland houses a much darker secret. Hidden away from the eyes of tourists and the general prison population is a massive underground facility known as "G Block". This is where the prison keeps their Deadmen secluded and where the Carnival Corpse arena is located. G Block also houses numerous laboratories and rooms where experiments on humans are performed and where scientists are attempting to harness the powers of the Deadmen for monetary and political gain.

Corpse Carnival

Deadman Wonderland also runs a secret gladiator-like game called the Carnival Corpse (also referred to as the Corpse Carnival or the Carnival of Corpses), where wealthy anonymous donors pay to watch death-matches between the prison's Deadmen. The viewers of the Carnival Corpse also place their bets on who would win. Deadmen who are defeated yet survive the game have a part of their anatomy surgically removed for scientific research. In a cruel twist, the loser spins a macabre slot-machine to determine which part of their body will be removed (with the show being broadcast live to the other prisoners) for research with the parts ranging from the right eye (which was removed from Senji), vocal cords (which was removed from Nagi), and the hair, kidney, and part of the stomach (which were removed from Minatsuki). The winner is awarded a large amount of Cast Points, life-saving candies, and other prizes.

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