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{{quote|''"[[Arc Words|Bide your time, and hold out hope]]."''}}
The year is 5053. A young French nobleman, Viscount Albert de Morcerf and his friend Baron Franz d'Epinay are partying hard on the moon colony of Luna, when a dark, ominous, blue-skinned stranger suddenly steps into their lives. Said stranger is the self-made ''Count of Monte Cristo,'' a man with incredible riches, unusual powers, and an unnatural interest in our hero, Albert. (The Count also appears to have some sort of mysterious connection to Albert's parents--as if he had somehow known them in the past, although neither of them can ever remember seeing the Count before.)
As time passes, the Count insinuates himself further and further into Albert's life and into the lives of the people he knows. But what is the Count's true reason for doing so? Is he, as he claims, a harmless wannabe nobleman who just wants to be introduced into High Society, or does he have a much darker purpose in mind?
''[[Gankutsuou]]'' is a 24-episode paraphrase of [[Alexandre Dumas]]' famous novel, ''[[The Count of Monte Cristo (novel)|The Count of Monte Cristo]]'', set far into the future and viewed through an anime-and-LSD filter. Because it's based on a work of Western Literature, it has an unusual pace and plot for an anime, choosing to ignore many of the most common tropes that one tends to find in that medium. It also has a weird visual style with fantastically rendered CG backgrounds and characters with elaborate clothing patterns that [[Unmoving
One of the better offerings of Studio [[GONZO]] in recent years, this show has everything you'd expect to find in a really good story -- suspense, romance, revenge, violence, tragedy, duels to the death, pot-boiling plot twists and one of the coolest anti-heroes to ever appear in this or any other medium.
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* [[Break the Cutie]]: Edmond, Albert, to a certain extent Mercedes and Franz.
* [[Bring Out Your Gay Dead]]: {{spoiler|Franz d'Epinay}} (Although to be fair, the show is far from being homophobic, what with all that [[Ho Yay]].)
* [[Brother-Sister Incest]]: It's non-consensual, which makes it even ''more'' [[Squick|squicky]].
* [[Byronic Hero]]: The Count is a fine example. He's even strongly associated with Tchaikowski's "Manfred Symphony," which is itself based on [[Lord Byron]]'s "Manfred." The creator, Mahiro Maeda, has even said in an interview that he was influenced by Byron when creating the Count's character. Of course, this is also a reference to the original Count, who is compared to Manfred by several characters in the book.
* [[Chekhov's Gun]]: A number of them: {{spoiler|the watch the Count gives to Albert that later turns out to be a bugging device; the blue roses seen in Valentine's room; the two mecha in the hall of Albert's home that both end up being used, one by Franz and one by Fernand;}} and an actual gun: {{spoiler|in episode 10 we see a gun hidden in Fernand's drawer. In the penultimate episode he'll use this to shoot Mercedes and Albert, then commit suicide.}} And lastly, {{spoiler|in episode 18, Franz's broken sword shard that is lodged in the Count's heart, which hands [[Karmic Death]] to the Count in the penultimate episode.}}
* [[Chekhov's Gunman]]: {{spoiler|At first Haydée seems like only a loyal and docile follower of the Count. However, she later brings about Fernand's fall by exposing his sins}}; also {{spoiler|Peppo, whose role seems to be over in episode two - until it turns out that she tagged along because she was a spy for the Count.}}
** Interview with the creators reveal that {{spoiler|Peppo's role ''was'' supposed to be over in episode two, but the writers decided he was too good to waste on only two episodes.}}
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* [[Death by Adaptation]] / [[Spared by the Adaptation]]: The poisoner is revealed to be {{spoiler|Héloïse}} much earlier than in the book, far too early for the resultant deaths of {{spoiler|Héloïse}} and {{spoiler|Edouard}} and the Count's [[My God, What Have I Done?]], so those two wind up surviving to the end. On the flipside, in the original their deaths caused the Count to change his M.O. to a less bloody one, whereas in this version he actually kills {{spoiler|Danglars}}. {{spoiler|Caderousse}} also makes it out alive in this version, and {{spoiler|Franz}} doesn't.
* [[Death by Materialism]]: {{spoiler|Danglars}}
* [[Demoted to Extra]]: Maximilien, who had a lot more to do with {{spoiler|the Count's redemption}} in the novel.
* [[Devil in Plain Sight]] / [[Unusually Uninteresting Sight]]: The count is ''blue'' and has ''fangs'' but almost no one seems to notice/comment on it. One of the only times it's acknowledged is in a [[From the Mouths of Babes]] moment from [[Spoiled Brat|Edouard Villefort]].
** In fairness, some of the aliens in the background in this show are pink and have ''heart-shaped'' heads. In fact the weird thing about the Count is really just that he's blue and ''human''.
** The Count looks like he belongs to the same species as Haydée with his blue skin and pointy ears - just his fangs set him apart. Of course their similar appearance is just a coincidence, since the Count is human and Haydée is not, but your average observer probably couldn't tell the difference.
* [[Damsel in Distress]]: Valentine's poisoning. Also Eugénie's rush to the altar.
* [[Driven by Envy]]: Danglars.
* [[Dropped a Bridget On Him]]: Happens to Albert. Then {{spoiler|Peppo (the 'lady')}} uses it to wind him up for the rest of the series.
** It is possible that this is a case of [[Ambiguous Gender]] since {{spoiler|Peppo may not actually be a guy but the count told Albert that she/he was so that Albert would not fall for Peppo, which Albert most likely would have.}}
** It's implied that {{spoiler|Peppo is indeed a man since in the epilogue, Baptistin sees Peppo has become a model and is weirded out by it (if Peppo is a girl, that would not be too surprising).}}
** Peppo may be a transsexual - in her final appearance in the commercial she says: "You too can be reborn", which seems to imply that that's what she's done.
** Peppo was confirmed to be male by the manga adaptation, as well as originally being a boy crossdressing as a girl to seduce Albert in the novel.
* [[Easily Forgiven]]: {{spoiler|You'd think Albert would resent the Count at least a little after he tries to kill him in front of his dad, and this after manipulating him, killing his best friend, and causing the fall of his family.}}
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** Don't forget the sky. An UNDERGROUND SKY.
* [[Mr. Fanservice]]: By ''God'', the Count during {{spoiler|the last minutes of his life.}} You can hear the fangirls [[Squee|howling]] from here.
* [[Even Evil Has Standards]]: {{spoiler|Invoked in the end by the Count's two servants Baptistin and Bertuccio of all people as they both refuse to kill Albert, who at this point is willing to forgive and even save the Count despite all the crap the Count put him through, under the Count's order. All the more notable since Bertuccio previously swore to walk down the path of Hell with the Count, which shows just how depraved and monstrous the Count has become in his pursuit for vengeance}}.
* [[Even the Guys Want Him]]: The Count might be a good case.
** Also, Albert.
* [[Everything's Better with Sparkles]]: Haydée attends an opera in one episode wearing what can only be described as the sparkliest dress ever.
* [[Evil Counterpart]]: The Count is Albert's evil counterpart, while Fernand is Franz's. They even hang a lampshade on it with a flashback of Edmond and Fernand at the beach that is a mirror image of an earlier (or is it later?) flashback of Albert and Franz there.
* [[Evil Laugh]]: Fairly late in the series the Count breaks down sobbing, as his next move involves destroying his friendship with Albert - and then the sobs turn to chuckles and soon he's howling with mad laughter.
* [[Eye Scream]]
* [[Facial Markings]]: The "eyes" on the Count's forehead are a manifestation of his power, and are only visible when he's using it.
** These facial (later full body) markings are a [[Homage]] to Alfred Bester's ''[[The Stars My Destination]]'' (aka ''Tiger! Tiger!''), one main source of inspiration for the writer.
* [[Fan Disservice]]: {{spoiler|Héloïse's}} masturbation scene and {{spoiler|Andrea's sex scene with Victoria, his mother}}.
** Also, the Count's [[Shirtless Scene]] after {{spoiler|he gets shot by Villefort}}. Turns out {{spoiler|his ''whole body'' is [[Fan Disservice]]}}.
* [[Fantasy Counterpart Culture]]: Nearly all references to foreign countries and customs from the book are replaced with "Eastern Space." Rome is replaced with Luna, a city on the moon that resembles a cross between old world Italy and modern day New Orleans. Haydee, who was an ethnic Turk in the book, is shown as a [[Our Elves Are Different|pale faced, pointy eared alien]] from a civilization that is a cross between Middle Eastern and Chinese influences.
* [[Fat Bastard]]: Baron Danglars. Although flashbacks show that, while he wasn't always fat, he was always a bastard.
* [[Fate Worse Than Death]]: Let's just say that convicts unlucky enough to end up "incarcerated" in the prison/space fortress, Chateau d'If won't mind execution after being [[Powered by a Forsaken Child|literally plugged into its control system]].
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* [[Foreign Language Theme]]: Both the opening and the ending songs are in English.
** And the narrator is French.
* [[Freudian Excuse]]: Andrea.
* [[Gainaxing]]: Haydée in her opera outfit, combined with [[Conspicuous CG]]. A rather odd case, especially in how exaggerated it is, considering that Haydée is relatively modestly endowed, and not intended as a sex symbol.
* [[Glamour Failure]]: The Count appears blurry and out-of-focus in photographs, and his voice doesn't register on audio recordings.
* [[Glowing Eyes of Doom]]
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** [[Joji Nakata]] as the Count
** [[Jun Fukuyama]] as Albert (the role that propelled him to stardom)
** [[Daisuke Hirakawa]] as Franz
** [[Jurota Kosugi]] as Fernand
** [[Kikuko Inoue]] as Mercedes
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** [[Kumiko Watanabe]] as Héloïse
** In English, Albert and Franz have the same voice actors as [[Code Geass|Lelouch and Mao]], respectively.
*** Also [[Tony Oliver]] as Maximilian. You can really hear the [[
*** Additionally, [[Michelle Ruff]] as Eugénie, [[Yuri Lowenthal]] as Chateau-Renaud, Beau Billingslea as Bertuccio, and [[Wendee Lee]] in a small bit as the young Albert.
*** [[Beau Billingslea]] as Bertuccio in the English dub. He doesn't even bother pretending to be voicing anyone other than [[Cowboy Bebop|Jet Black]].
* [[Hidden Eyes]]: Albert, at certain key moments.
* [[Hide Your Gays]]: Strangely for an anime with so much [[Ho Yay]] in it, it drops the suggestion from the novel that Eugénie is a lesbian.
** Debatable, since it adds a large dose of [[Ho Yay]] between Albert and the Count, and Franz and Albert. Even Eugénie was originally designed to be a lesbian (the trailer even has her leaning in to kiss her piano teacher), but that was changed when she was retooled into Albert's love interest.
** There's also the whole business with Andrea and his parents - the episode he's introduced in is chock-full of foreboding and creepy visuals, ranging from allusions to the Minotaur and its labyrinth to sculptures of babies and cherubs made horribly creepy by the context.
** [[Lampshade Hanging|Captured]] by the Count's conclusion to one of his {{spoiler|inner dialogues with Gankutsuou}} in the manga:
{{quote|[[Large Ham|AND EVERYTHING WILL BECOME A NIGHTMARE!]]}}
* [[Horrible Judge of Character]]: Albert.
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* [[Idiot Hero]]: If only Albert had listened to Franz at, oh, really any point along the way. He eventually wises up...a bit too late.
* [[If I Can't Have You]]: {{spoiler|Morcerf shoots his wife and son when he realizes he has lost everything.}}
** To be fair, {{spoiler|Mercedes ''did'' offer him a [[Last Second Chance]] to go away with her and leave everything behind; when he declares [[I've Come Too Far...]] and persists in his [[Villainous BSOD]], she tells him that she's leaving him then -- though she'll always be grateful for what's he's done for her and never forget what they shared together -- that's ''when'' he shoots her and then he shoots their son for trying to stop him/avenge his mother.}}
* [[Ill Girl]]: Valentine
* [[Impossibly Cool Clothes]]: It's ''the future''! Everybody wears these!
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** Albert's platonic (?) crush on the Count.
** Of course Albert doesn't ''know'' that Franz is in love with him (and Franz never planned to let him know) which puts things in a [[Oblivious Guilt Slinging|slightly different perspective]].
* [[Love Makes You Evil]]: Morcerf. {{spoiler|Fernand's [[Start of Darkness]] (''I was tired of living that loser life'') was being pushed over the edge due to his being on the losing end of the [[Love Triangle]] between him and his childhood best friends Mercedes and Edmond, which he attributed in large part to the fact that he was poor and struggling in his own profession while Dantes was rich and successful in his career.}}
* [[Manly Tears]]: The Count cries a few times ([[Ho Yay|mostly over Albert]]), but doesn't sacrifice his dignity by doing so.
* [[Mark of the Beast]]
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* [[Not So Different]]: In his pursuit of revenge, the Count has become just as cruel as if not more so than the people who ruined him. This is explicitly spelled out in the end {{spoiler|whereupon Fernand holds Haydée hostage, the Count orders Bertuccio to just kill Albert regardless of what happens to Haydée. Thankfully, it's also at this point that Baptistan and Bertuccio disobey the Count for the first time}}.
** This may also be because the Count is no longer [[Demonic Possession|quite human]]...
** Not really; {{spoiler|Gankutsuou is more than happy to just walk away once the Count's soul is completely in its possession. It was the Count who did all the plotting to destroy those one wronged him.}}
* [[Obfuscating Stupidity]]: The Count.
* [[Oblivious to Love]]: Albert was ''completely'' oblivious of Franz's feelings for him. It helped that Franz kept his feelings a secret from everyone.
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** There's also Andrea who takes this to the logical extreme: {{spoiler|although he doesn't kill his father "only" gives him a poison that destroys his mind, he has sex with his mother and tries to rape his half-sister.}}
* [[Our Vampires Are Different]]: The Count isn't technically a vampire, but the fact that he has several of their characteristics is [[Lampshade|Lampshaded]] several times and he doesn't have ''all'' of their characteristics.
** This is actually carried over from the novel, where the Count is compared to a vampire by the Countess G---. It's just dialed [[Up to Eleven]] by giving him a vampire's ''magical'' properties instead of just being a guy who fits the traditional suave vampire archetype.
* [[Out-of-Clothes Experience]]: In the manga.
* [[Parental Incest]]: {{spoiler|Benedetto and Madame Danglars.}}
* [[Perfectly Arranged Marriage]]: Albert and Eugénie. Although Albert initially isn't in love with her (though Eugénie ''was'' revealed to have always been in love with him).
* [[POV Sequel]]: ''[[The Count of Monte Cristo (novel)|The Count of Monte Cristo]]'' seen through Albert's eyes.
** According to [[Word of God]], one of the reasons Albert was chosen as the viewpoint character instead of the Count was to put the focus on the ''consequences'' of revenge rather than the satisfaction of it, as the creators worried about glorifying revenge.
* [[The Power of Love]]: [[Cosmic Horror|Gankutsuou]] is defeated {{spoiler|by hugs and kisses dished out by Albert. [[Epic Fail]] for some, [[Crowning Moment of Awesome]] for others.}}
** People who call it [[Epic Fail]] usually fail to realize that {{spoiler|it wasn't Albert who triggered the reversal the transformation, it was Edmond's own feelings (his soul, even) that he'd tried to get rid of all along (which was the entire point of his duel with Albert, however Franz stepped in and ruined his plans), awakened by Albert's hugs and kisses.}}
* [[Pragmatic Adaptation]]
* [[Promoted to Love Interest]]: Eugénie Danglars. In the original novel she detested Albert ([[Does Not Like Men|and all other men for that matter]]) and ran away to have a lesbian relationship with her piano instructor. In ''Gankutsuou'' the instructor has been cut out and Eugénie's been changed to something similar to a [[Tsundere]].
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* [[Shirtless Scene]]: Albert; the Count.
* [[Shower of Angst]]: Albert has one in episode 8.
* [[Sinister Shades]]: Bertuccio wears a pair. Notably, they're [[Opaque Lenses]] most of the time, but become translucent when he has moments of humanity. (And on one memorable occasion, when he's struggling with his conscience, one lens becomes translucent while the other remains opaque.)
** Baron Danglars wears these all the time, as well. In his case they signify his shifty character.
* [[Slasher Smile]]: The titular Count wears a rather terrifying example of this when everything is going according to plan (which usually involves a humiliating and/or painful death)
* [[Space Jews]]: Foreign characters like Ali, Haydée, etc. are aliens. The series uses the term "Eastern Space" for locations that were in Turkey/the Middle East in the novel.
* [[Spanner in the Works]]: Franz becomes this to the Count when {{spoiler|Franz decides to participate in the duel instead of Albert and gets killed. This not only derails the Count's plan to get rid of his Edmond Dantes part of soul completely but also hands him [[Karmic Death]] in the end}}.
* [[Split Personality Takeover]]:{{spoiler|Gankutsuou controls the Count more and more as their pact nears completion.}}
* [[Super Soldier]]: Maximilien is essentially one, but also a [[Gentle Giant]].
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* [[Theme Tune Cameo]]: The opening theme song appears in other forms several times during the action of the show.
* [[This Is Sparta]]: The Count, Andrea, and Fernand have some juicy moments, and the structure and intonations of spoken Japanese lend themselves to them very well. TAKE THE HAMMER STRIKE. '''OF REVENGE'''! Close-up on the Count's face, cue to some crazy [[Humongous Mecha]] fight.
* [[Took a Level
* [[Transformation Trauma]]: Boy, does {{spoiler|the Count's transformation into Gankutsuou}} in the anime look (and ''sound'') painful. In the manga, {{spoiler|his first transformation in prison}} is even worse, as it involves {{spoiler|violent hallucinations, mangling, [[Freud Was Right|rape metaphors]], and of ''course'' a demonic entity}}. His look of utter "What the hell was this!?" when he looks at his hands in the aftermath says it all, really.
* [[Trickster Archetype]]: The Count has several personae, tricks people and is occasionally himself tricked, displays a confusing moral ambiguity and a total disrespect for social conventions, is histrionic, and also lives beyond traditional boundaries such as {{spoiler|good and evil, victim and predator, alive and dead or undead, human and monster, earthling and alien}}.
** To a certain extent, he also has some characteristics of a [[Shape Shifter]] (see {{spoiler|his spectacular and painful transformations into Gankutsuou and the fact that when Fernand impales him with the sword of his [[Humongous Mecha]], he turns into a mist and reappears in his own mecha, vampire-style}}).
* [[Tsundere]]: Eugénie, sort of.
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* [[The Unfettered]]: The Count.
* [[Unlucky Childhood Friend]]: Franz. Eugénie seems like this in the beginning, {{spoiler|however she becomes [[Victorious Childhood Friend]] in the end.}}
* [[Unmoving
* [[Unusual Ears]]: The Count has pointed ears.
** As does Haydée.
** Bertuccio has a pair too, coupled with a matching pair of fangs - neither of which he had before joining the Count's team.
* [[Villain Protagonist]]
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* [[War for Fun and Profit]]: The motivation for {{spoiler|the assassination of the Prince}}.
* [[Weird Moon]]
* [[What Do You Mean It Wasn't Made on Drugs?]]: Not the script or premise, but ''the entire universe'' being made of [[Unmoving
* [[Wholesome Crossdresser]]: See [[Transsexualism]] above.
* [[Yandere]] / [[Cute and Psycho]]: Madame Villefort
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