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7 Mad Re-Imaginings of Alice in Wonderland

by Lynzee Loveridge,

There might be no other example of Western literature whose themes, plot line, and characters appear in more anime than Lewis Carroll's The Adventures of Alice in Wonderland. Quin Rose's PC game is one example that has inspired an ever growing series of manga based around Alice surrounded by a bevy of attractive Alice in Wonderland characters. The book, and Disney's animated film, also contributed to American drug culture of the time. Just go ask Alice...

7. Miyuki-chan in Wonderland CLAMP's early 90s video anime stars a classic school-girl running late with toast in her mouth named Miyuki. Unfortunately, Miyuki doesn't make it to school but instead ends up falling down a rabbit hole with a skateboarding White Rabbit. When she reaches the bottom she's in a gender-swapped Wonderland where the female characters wear little clothing and are more interested in showing their love for Miyuki. The OAV is full of panty shots and Playboy Bunny-esque one pieces but Miyuki retains a lot of the original Alice's frustrations from the books. It's just she's dealing with constantly aroused women instead weirdos speaking in riddles.




6. Are You Alice? In Ai Ninomiya and Ikumi Katagiri's manga, "Alice" is a title and in this case it currently belongs to a guy with amnesia. The series stars the staple characters from the original book but in recast roles with Marianne, The Lizard's previous maid, playing a more prominent role. In the story, Alice is participating in a game where he must prove he's the "real" Alice by "killing" the White Rabbit for the Queen of Hearts (who is also male). The series is predominately a dark mystery where violence is always on the table.




5. Kagihime Monogatari - Eikyuu Alice Rondo Aruto Kirihara loves everything Alice and is even penning his own Alice story when he hears that Lewis Carroll may have written a third novel besides The Adventures of Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There. The story then takes a magical girl turn when Aruto meets Arisu (Alice) Arisugawa, a girl straight out of his Alice fanfiction. The pages of Carroll's third book exist in the hearts of each Alice, who battle to obtain all of the pages and have their wish granted. Aruto's own sister and his friends get pulled into the late-night battles, too.




4. Alice in Murderland Kaori Yuki is no stranger to crafting stories from well-known works. Angel Sanctuary, her Count Cain series, and Ludwig Kakumei all borrowed themes from popular fairy tales, The Bible and related apocrypha. Alice in Murderland stars Stella, a girl who after having a mental breakdown suddenly resembles Alice. The event is spurred on by a family meeting where Stella and her other nine siblings are told if they want to inherit the family fortune, they have to kill one another.




3. I Am Alice: Body Swap in Wonderland Body Swap in Wonderland is a pseudo-yaoi take on the Alice setting. I say pseudo because the main character Makoto is initially male, but if you can tell from the title, he gets gender-swapped after landing in Wonderland and is now a girl. Meanwhile, the personality of the original Alice is in Makoto's body. Now Makoto-Alice and Alice-Makoto want to reverse the Freaky Friday situation they've landed in and go back home but find this difficult as war is raging in Wonderland. Naturally, they find themselves shacking up with uber-handsome renditions of the characters.




2. Pandora Hearts What if I told you that when Lewis Carroll originally published Alice in Wonderland, she wasn't blonde? Pandora Hearts' Alice, at least in human form, is closer to the original as far as hair color is concerned. The similarities stop there. Also known as B-Rabbit, or the Blood-Stained Black Rabbit, Alice can transform into an intimidating black rabbit wielding a large scythe. She eschews the "proper lady" stylings of her literary counterpart, having both a voracious appetite and a temper.




1. Serial Experiments Lain Alice Mizuki is a well-meaning classmate of Lain's, and one of the few people who show genuine concern for her anti-social behavior and later her descent in The Wired. The cyber world starts to invade Alice's life when an alternate version of Lain begins spreading rumors about Alice and her affections for her teacher. Alice's own descent into The Wired and its effects on her life are nearly catastrophic.






Assuming you don't get seasick, if you could be the captain of a One Piece ship, which would you choose?

The old poll: Last week we asked what your favorite shōjo/josei manga is. We're going to have a big write-up very soon with the results, so please look forward to them in the ANN main feed!


When she isn't compiling lists of tropes, topics, and characters, Lynzee works as the Interest Editor for Anime News Network and posts pictures of her son on Twitter @ANN_Lynzee.

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