Ganta used to live in Tokyo when he was a little boy. That was
until the Great Tokyo Earthquake, which submerged 70 percent of the
metropolis. People had to be evacuated, including Ganta.

Ten years pass, and he’s now a middle-schooler living a
normal life. He doesn’t even remember Tokyo. He talks about
sports with friends and will get upset at his father over
insignificant details.

Then his life is turned upside down. One day at school, a
robotic-looking being --- referred to as the Red Man --- appears at
the window. The Red Man goes into Ganta’s classroom and
slaughters everyone in sight. Ganta is blasted through the chest
yet somehow survives the massacre.

When he comes to in a hospital, the police are ready for him.
Ganta is arrested for the murder of his classmates. Sentenced to
death, he’s placed in a Tokyo prison known as Deadman
Wonderland. Here, a collar is placed on him that feeds him poison.
Unless he constantly finds the antidote, he’ll be dead in
three days, thus carrying out his execution.

Not only does Ganta have to struggle to stay alive, but he also
has to prove his innocence. However, his odds of being released
look bleak.

Deadman Wonderland opens with a few colored pages
before morphing into the black-and-white prints that will last the
rest of this volume. From the beginning, it’s creepy and
disturbing on purpose. Genre-wise, it mixes horror and science
fiction. By the end of the first volume, it’s not known
exactly what the Red Man is, but this being does return to plague
Ganta.

This series earns the rating Older Teen for its scattered scenes
of blood, gore and violence. While never getting over-the-top,
certain panels might bother more sensitive readers. Nevertheless,
the book tries to be scarier through psychological means. Somehow
showing the remains of the classroom isn’t as creepy as when
Ganta is accused of murder and sentenced for a crime he
didn’t commit. Who wouldn’t be scared of that
happening?

Because Deadman Wonderland uses both visual and
psychological horror, and because it conjures up a future full of
mysteries, it shouldn’t have a problem attracting readers.
Though some of its elements are similar to other manga (the
apocalyptic future is a common theme), it doesn’t feel trite.
It succeeds in feeling creepy, dark and cryptic. This is one of
those manga series that sets itself up in the first volume, letting
details and background get told later on. A reader can’t tell
yet what exactly will happen here, but Deadman Wonderland
has a strong opening.

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