Gundham Tanaka

Gundham Tanaka (田中 眼蛇夢), is a student of Hope's Peak Academy's Class 77-B, and a participant of the Killing School Trip featured in Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair and its upcoming remake, Danganronpa 2x2.[14] His title is the Ultimate Breeder (超高校級の「飼育委員」 lit. Super High School Level Animal Breeding Committee Member).

He also appears in Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak High School, which explores his school life leading up to the Killing School Trip and The Tragedy.

Appearance:

Gundham wears a long, black jacket that stops below his knees and is always left open, with dark red coloring on the inside; which is part of his former school uniform. He also pins a dog breeder badge on the left side of his jacket. The left sleeve is rolled up to the elbow and fastened to the jacket with silver pins. Gundham is also known for his long purple scarf, which wraps around his neck and covers his chin. Vertical symbols are emblazoned on the back of his jacket and the ends of his scarf. Underneath his jacket, Gundham wears a white button-up layered over a slightly darker shirt with a purple cross design on the chest. His black pants are tucked into black boots riddled with straps. He wears an undercut, and the top section of his hair is slicked back into a single curl. His hair looks more wild and jagged when he's enraged. His hair color is black with light grey streaks through it.

Gundham has a noticeably pale and grey skin tone and has no eyebrows. He has grey eyes but he wears a red contact lens in his right eye. The grey scar that runs through his left eye onto his right cheek appears to be a tattoo. He is always seen with his hamsters, the Four Dark Devas of Destruction. The Devas often camp out inside the scarf that Gundham always wraps around his neck, but they frequently appear during conversations or at his command. Due to their territorial nature, Gundham bandaged up his left arm with a single red bead hanging from the bandage knot, which he refers to as his "cursed arm," up to the elbow to protect his skin. Gundham's Hell Hound Earring hangs from his right ear, and he wears silver rings on the index and middle fingers of his right hand.

Finishing Gundham's Free Time Events yields the item 'Gundham's Undergarments' which are invisible to those who have too low of an "astral level". This hints that Gundham possibly doesn't wear them.

While attending Hope's Peak Academy, Gundham wears the school's standard male uniform. He accessorized the uniform with the same scarf, shirt, belt, and boots he wore during the Killing School Trip. Instead of just the Hell Hound Earring, he wears an earring in each ear. He still wears an undercut, but the longest pieces of the top section frame his forehead.

As a member of Ultimate Despair, Gundham appears to wear a type of straitjacket underneath a large jacket with a fluffy white collar. His face has more tattoos, including a scar-like tattoo on his right cheek and an obscure symbol on his forehead. Using his talents as the Ultimate Breeder, Gundham controls armies of beasts. He seems to always keep his eyes closed. Instead of carrying the Devas, a large, dark snake wraps around his body.

His swimsuit in Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp consists of a pair of black swim trunks with a black drawstring waistband and a purple cross-shaped design on the right side, the same cross that appeared on his shirt shown during the Killing School Trip. He is shirtless but retains his signature purple scarf and his left hand remains wrapped in bandages. He still carries the Four Dark Devas of Destruction with him.

Four Dark Devas of Destruction:

San-D is an average-sized hamster with white and orange fur, dark-tipped ears, and pink hands, feet, and nose. She also has small black eyes and rosy cheeks. Jum-P is also an average-sized hamster with white and brown fur and pink feet, nose, and cheeks. Jump-P is usually seen with his eyes closed, a snot bubble, and Z marks flowing from it, indicating he's sleeping. Maga-Z is a fairly average-sized hamster with white and brown fur and a chipped ear. He has black eyes, rosy cheeks, pink feet, and a pink nose. Cham-P is a large Golden hamster with orange fur, chubby cheeks and pink hands, feet, and nose. He has small black eyes, rosy cheeks and a pink rosy mouth.

Personality:

Gundham is an eccentric and larger-than-life character, having delusions of grandeur caused by his chūnibyō syndrome. As "the offspring of an angel and evil," he proclaims himself as evil personified, one who has claimed dominion over evil, and thus a being that transcends humanity. To further embellish his villainous persona, he adopts grandiose titles such as the Supreme Overlord of Ice and Tanaka the Forbidden One. He also refers to his pets as his loyal subordinates under the dominion of the Tanaka Empire and gets offended when others call his Four Dark Devas of Destruction "hamsters." Gundhams talks in an exaggerated, theatrical style reminiscent of a cartoon supervillain, using pompous, old-fashioned, esoteric vocabulary, allowing him to inflate mundane interactions. His speeches, dripping with poetic, cryptic, and metaphorical language and terms, often irritate and confuse others, especially those who are not used to interacting with him, ultimately causing Gundham to push them away from him. He perceives "normal people" as inferior beings incapable of comprehending the full extent of "his power," calling them "mere humans," "fools," and "fiends," among other dismissive terms.

In conjunction with being the "great and powerful Gundham Tanaka," he acts self-centered and aloof—alienating himself from others to focus on caring for himself and the Four Dark Devas. Though Gundham appears prideful and shuns spending time with mere mortals, he appears to be lonely. This is exemplified by how he attends the morning meetings at the restaurant without fail and accepts the Imposter's invitation to the all-night party.[21] He also hints to Hajime that he wants to be included in Sonia's beach party. He claims that he only desires silence and solitude, though his lonely expression later on suggests otherwise. Hajime can tell Gundham wants to be invited but never directly asks, instead retreating into his usual aloof persona.

This loneliness and his inability to express his true wants and needs without resorting to his overly dramatic "evil lord" jargon, may stem from Gundham's extreme social awkwardness. It starts with his belief that his existence is "cursed" and that "poisons" run through his blood due to enduring his mother's terrible cooking. He uses this to justify his strictness about avoiding physical contact with others since childhood, disguising his fear of intimacy. He goes so far as to fake illnesses to avoid folk dances and playing with other children. The only person he is willing to become vulnerable to and capable of touching is a "singularity" he describes as "a being who can make the impossible possible by overcoming various limitations." In simpler terms, this could refer to someone like Hajime, someone who continues to bond with him despite his "defenses" and genuinely considers Gundham a friend he wants to survive the killing game with.

His social awkwardness can make him come across as inconsiderate. This is particularly apparent during the investigation of the Imposter's murder, where he stubbornly prioritizing recovering his Hell Hound Earring over actively participating in the investigation, though his discoveries helped solve the murder.[39] Gundham also has a habit of pretending to know more than he actually does. When he can't provide the knowledge to others, he will immediately distract them by throwing unrelated speeches in his signature evil overlord style.

Attitude Toward Animals:

Though he may be awkward around other people, Gundham deeply cares about animals he often refers to as "magical beasts" and pets as "familiars". He claims that anything that can talk "will eventually betray you," hinting at the possibility that he has been hurt by others before. This idea is supported in his Final Free Time Events, where he accuses Hajime of being a "Kotodama user" a label he seemingly attaches to people who try to manipulate him with "false words" and "cheap tricks", believing Hajime is one and doubts his sincerity when calling him a friend. As a result, Gundham prefers to trust animals for their loyalty and sincerity.

Talent and Abilities:

Ultimate Breeder

Gundham's official talent in English localization is the "Ultimate Breeder". However, in the original Japanese release, the more literal and accurate translation to it is "Super High School Level Animal Breeding Committee Member", or in the Funimation subs, "Animal Raising Committee Member". It is a common after-school club in many Japanese schools dedicated to caring for animals (usually small birds, reptiles, and rodents) kept within the school grounds.

Gundham did splendidly as a club member due to his proficiency in training and caring for any animal and his success in proliferating endangered species. He revealed that his secret technique to taming animals is by starting with the basics, chanting "Good girl, good girl," and ensuring they understand that he has no ill will. To achieve this, one must appear innocent and recognize which animals enjoy being touched and which do not. He then spends a long time with them until he begins to hear their words. Hajime comments that this must be something only the Ultimate Breeder can experience.