Your Twisted Academic Career Begins

When I came to Japan in 2020, a new smartphone game was taking the country by storm called Twisted-Wonderland. It's a Disney property developed in Japan and created by Toboso Yana who'd previously made the Black Butler series. Twisted-Wonderland ties not only into Alice in Wonderland but several of Disney's more famous movies (though some of them, like Hercules, are not at all well-known in Japan). The concept seems much closer to Harry Potter, though, as it follows students at a boys' magical university called Night Raven College. Five years after the game was released, the anime adaptation premiered on Disney+ a couple nights ago.

The main character is Yuu (I guess in the game this means you are Yuu). He's captain of a high school kendo club, getting ready for a tournament when he's suddenly teleported to the entrance ceremony at Night Raven College. The room, which looks like a massive gothic cathedral, is filled with students. Since the game primarily focuses on collecting and nurturing magical college students, quite a few of the students depicted in this scene, which takes up the bulk of the episode, are familiar to fans and each likely has its own devoted fanbase of girls who have nurtured their own version of the character through an academic career. This results in a scene where the makers of the show feel obligated to give reaction shots to each and every one of the characters after something dramatic happens, and each one of them gives a little, "Ah!" "Eh!" "Hmm!" "Huh!" etc.

Very little happens in the first episode as a result. The character designs are pretty cool, especially Headmaster Crowley, who wears a creepy mask. The students are all the handsome boys you'd expect from a game aimed at girls. I find myself wondering if a female character will ever show up. It'll be a challenge for the writers to come up with a satisfying story while not short-changing any of the many characters. There was one line I thought was funny when one character refers to another as "Juice" and that character indignantly reminds the other that his name is "Deuce!" I also like the aesthetic of the Alice in Wonderland area shown in the trailer.

Twisted-Wonderland is available on Disney+.