THE FOLLOWING REVIEW IS ONE OF AN ADULT
NATURE. PARENTAL DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
PREFACE
In a
dystopian Japan of the near future where a military dictatorship
rules and rock music is illegal for its subversive effects, a game
called The Program is played. Each year, a ninth grade class is
randomly selected and forced to participate in a televised,
government sponsored blood sport where the prize is the life of a
single victor. The rest die.
Abducted during a bus trip and abandoned on an evacuated island,
forty-two students of Shiro Iwa Junior High School, Class B are
given weapons and instructions to kill off their classmates every
twenty-four hours, over a three day period, if they want to live.
Some choose to hunt actively determined to win. Others ensconce in
hiding places too terrified to play, in this fierce action story
that pits morality against survival.
MANGA VISION TEST
ARTWORK:
The drawings are heavily detailed. The effect of weaponry on the
human body is shown explicitly, so be prepared. Facial features of
some characters look more or less realistic and are distinguishable
from one another. Many faces however, retain the large eyes commonly
found in anime and manga, though almost never have unnaturally
pointed chins. There are some pose shots to ogle over including
martial arts stances and skirts lifted high enough to reveal laced
panties. (Worn by a girl). The poses convey the salient qualities of
those characters.
SOUND EFFECTS: Loud
action scenes are often punctuated with kakimoji floating across the
page. Some other tones like the strumming of a guitar, and the
ringing of a cell phone are expressed in English.
EDITS:
Nothing has been blacked out for the weak-hearted. Japanese names of
people and places are all intact, though recognizably American slang
and colloquialisms have been inserted throughout the dialogue. There
was a minor editing oversight on page 123, wherein a male student
was referred to by the number five, instead of three, which was his
designated number. Also, girl number four had her name changed from
Sakura Ogawa, as featured in the novel this manga is based on, to
Sakura Ogawai, for no reason.
EXTRAS: At the beginning of the book, there is a two-page spread of the
two main characters, as well as five noteworthy others. A student roster
of the entire class is featured later on, along with the picture and
number assigned to each character, so you can cross off who dies. At the
end of the book, there is a map of the island, with landmarks, routes
different characters have taken, and important scenes marked off, next
to a miniaturized recapitulation of those events. There is also a
synopsis of the next novel along with the cover art.
BOOK REPORT
STORY:
This is reality television drama without restraints in comic book
form. Present-day entertainment mingles with ancient as the game is
reminiscent of gladiatorial-style battles of the past. Koushun
Takami brings an accurate understanding of human nature into the
story without oversimplifying characters into all-good or all-bad
categories.
TRANSLATION:
It is apparent from the Americanized dialogue that this is not a
literal translation of the text. The translator, Keith Giffen,
stated in an interview with Newsarama.com that he took some
liberties with the story to make it more suitable for American
audiences. It is an adaptation of the original work without being
too radical a departure from the material.
CHARACTERS: Male
Student Number Fifteen - Shuuya Nanahara - He is a budding rock
musician where it is most dangerous to be so, and opposes The
Program with all of his being. Trusting, optimistic in spite of the
circumstances, and protective of his friends, he tries to gather as
many classmates together after the game starts to help find a way
off the island.
Female Student Number Fifteen - Noriko Nakagawa -
She is attracted to Shuuya and he to her. Wounded early in the game
while trying to save the life of a friend, she remains calm and
level-headed. She admits not everyone is good all the time and that
it is hard to trust those who are even her close friends. She says she
trusts Shuuya though, because as he was applying a bandage to her
wound, he did not peek at her panties!
FAN SERVICE: A Gameboy is played by one of the students in several
scenes. Also, male student number fourteen, Sho Tsukioka, bears a vague
resemblance to Elvis. As I have mentioned before, there are also
some panty shots to keep you interested.
FOOTNOTES:
Battle Royale
caused a great controversy in Japan and the reasons are obvious.
This story does an excellent job of exploring the role environment
plays in violent behavior. Certain characters would probably
never have become murderers if it had not been for the game. The
essences of some are revealed in brief background scenarios, so you
get a good idea of who they are before they play. Put simply, The
Program is, among other things, a brutal initiation into adulthood,
so the story is a coming of age tale in one sense. It is also about
honesty. Characters are forced to see people as they are because
their lives depend on it. This is an important work because of its
treatment of bold subject matter and the questions it will leave you
asking. Is killing purely for the sake of survival exculpatory?
Should you remain moral in a society that has largely abandoned
morality? Do you value your life over the life of a friend? Is there
really such a thing as winning in this game?
Battle Royale is a manga everyone should read at some point in
life. It is an incredibly powerful story that will stay with you
forever. It is meant for adults, and comes with a parental advisory
sticker. The worst thing about this manga is the translation,
which is not always faithful to the original, and which contains
poor dialogue revisions. This will alienate some older readers, the
audience this manga is meant for, though a holistic appreciation of
the plot can still be had.
OTHER OFFICIAL STORY ADAPTATIONS
The manga is based on a novel by Koushun Takami. There is no anime
for Battle Royale, but a live action movie was made starring Chiaki
Kuriyama, who played Go Go Yubari in Kill Bill Volume 1.
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