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A review by onlyongracexm
Battle Royale: Remastered by Koushun Takami
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Honestly, this book is probably better in its original language.
I read this book in English and while I do think that it’s a fairly decent read, it’s also incredibly long and info-dumpy. Took me a month to finish.
Okay, good part first. What I like about the story is that they gave each classmate an individual, varying personality. Like a mini-Game of Thrones (before they get killed off). We get a glimpse into each classmate’s life, who they were, and what led them to make their present decisions. As a result, my two favorite characters are Mitsuko Souma and Hiroki Sugimura because they had a good number of POV chapters that showed me what kind of person they were to the choices and actions they’ve made. Another thing I liked was that I understand why this was such a controversial cult classic during its time. It gets gruesome and suspenseful during some bits that you don’t want to stop reading until it’s resolved. There were other parts that the movie didn’t have that I believe should’ve been included, like the part where Takako Chigusa didn’t just kill that fuckboy, but gouged his eyes out. And that part where Mitsuko Souma met the nice boy who spared her life and we get to see, for that one, single moment, that she was really human. Those parts were the best.
Now, the bad parts. This book got way too info-dumpy and boring between scenes. They explain, in excruciating detail, what the plan was for each character. For example, when Shinji was trying to hack into the government, it doesn’t matter if you never had one computer science class, you’re going to sit through the entire explanation on how he’s planning to do it. Down to every part. It’s very boring.
All in all, if you have some time on your hands and you like Japanese culture, give this book a go. (And be prepared.)
I read this book in English and while I do think that it’s a fairly decent read, it’s also incredibly long and info-dumpy. Took me a month to finish.
Okay, good part first. What I like about the story is that they gave each classmate an individual, varying personality. Like a mini-Game of Thrones (before they get killed off). We get a glimpse into each classmate’s life, who they were, and what led them to make their present decisions. As a result, my two favorite characters are Mitsuko Souma and Hiroki Sugimura because they had a good number of POV chapters that showed me what kind of person they were to the choices and actions they’ve made. Another thing I liked was that I understand why this was such a controversial cult classic during its time. It gets gruesome and suspenseful during some bits that you don’t want to stop reading until it’s resolved. There were other parts that the movie didn’t have that I believe should’ve been included, like the part where Takako Chigusa didn’t just kill that fuckboy, but gouged his eyes out. And that part where Mitsuko Souma met the nice boy who spared her life and we get to see, for that one, single moment, that she was really human. Those parts were the best.
Now, the bad parts. This book got way too info-dumpy and boring between scenes. They explain, in excruciating detail, what the plan was for each character. For example, when Shinji was trying to hack into the government, it doesn’t matter if you never had one computer science class, you’re going to sit through the entire explanation on how he’s planning to do it. Down to every part. It’s very boring.
All in all, if you have some time on your hands and you like Japanese culture, give this book a go. (And be prepared.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Sexual assault