Battle Royale/YMMV: Difference between revisions

* [[Big Name Fan]]: [[Quentin Tarantino]] named this as one of his all-time favorite movies. He ''would.''

* [[Broken Base]]: Everyone generally likes the novel, and will typically also like either the film or the manga, but rarely both. Any of the three may be preferred though, and huge arguments are inevitable when trying to posit one version over the other. Especially on the most active forum for it, which is at IMDB. A [[Captain Obvious|film forum]].

** Also, Kazushi Niida, a bully who tried to rape one of his class mates and killed a class mate having a mental breakdown.

** In the manga, Mitsuko's stepfather also counts. While Mitsuko is arguably a [[Complete Monster]] herself, his abuse is what caused her to become one. Her mother isn't much better, allowing this to continue and even beating Mitsuko herself. This troper almost cheered when {{spoiler|Mitsuko convinced her older boyfriend to kill both of them.}}

* [[Contested Sequel]]

* [[Crosses the Line Twice]]: The film loves this trope.

** The most memorable example is Toshinori's death; in the original novel, Kazuo merely shoots him in the face, but in the movie, Kazuo chops his head off with a sword and then stuffs a grenade into his mouth, using the head as a bomb.

** Another occurs in the film version during {{spoiler|Mitsuko's death}}. {{spoiler|Kiriyama}} shoots her point blank in the chest: she gets back up. He shoots her again: she gets back up. [[Rule of Three|He shoots her again: she gets back up]]. She finally dies after the [[Four Is Death|fourth]] shot.

* [[Cult Classic]]: The film especially.

* [[Deus Angst Machina]]: Mitsuko's past, especially in the novel/movie.

* [[Die for Our Ship]]: Kakayo. Well, Takako Chigusa is one of, if not ''the'' coolest and most popular female character in the series. Granted, Kayoko {{spoiler|does die. [[Kill Them All|Not that it helps Chigusa]].}}

** There's also the [[Urban Legend]] that this movie was banned in the US. The reason why it never came to America is covered below in [[No Export for You]]. In reality, America has rarely, if ever, banned movies from being shown. This didn't stop rumors from spreading that it was so violent that the American government does not allow it to be shown. Once fans found bootlegs, torrents, or other means to see the film, they realized that it was no more or less gory than your average American slasher flick. This caused some [[Hype Backlash]] from people thinking it would be full of [[Squick]].

** Do ''not'' put fans of ''[[Battle Royale]]'' (novel, film or manga, it doesn't matter) in the same room as fans of ''[[The Hunger Games]]''. [[Fandom Rivalry|It never ends well.]]

* [[Fanon]]: Mitsuko is either a [[Depraved Bisexual]] or [[Psycho Lesbian]]. There is only one implication in the novel as evidence, as Mitsuko obviously prefers men to woman. It's batted about as commonly as "Shuya is the hero" (which is true) however, and fanfiction featuring Mitsuko that ''don't'' put her as one of those is all but non-existent. Seemingly even her expies in Original Battle Royales require it.

* [[Ho Yay]]: Shinji and Yutaka, Shuya and Shinji, Shuya and Shogo.

* [[I Am Not Shazam]]: The words "Battle Royale" are never uttered once in the original book; the "[[Alternate Universe]]" prologue makes it clear that the title is a reference to the ''kind'' of conflict the Program involves. In the manga, there's only one easy-to-miss [[All in The Manual]] reference to the "Greater Eastasia Combat Experiment 68, also known as the Battle Royale Act".

** Note that this does not apply to the other film version - there, the colloquial name for the Millenial Education Reform Act is "The Battle Royale Act". The logo also appears to be officially used by the government.

** And, then there's all the comparing/contrasting it with [[The Hunger Games]].

* [[Jerkass Woobie]]: Mitsuko is the epitome of this trope.

** Arguably, Noriko becomes one in the manga, but is far more well rounded and developed in the film and novel.

* [[Misaimed Fandom]]: While the story is about the terror of the violent, hopeless situation, a lot of young viewers see it as a cool action flick.

* [[Sequelitis]]: ''[[Battle Royale]] 2: Requiem'', up to and including the hamfisted attempt to tie in the 9/11 attacks. The extended version, Battle Royale 2: Revenge is considered better than Requiem, though not to redeem the worst flaws. May be due to the fact that there is only one novel, that doesn't go beyond the lore of the first movie.

* [[Squick]]: The manga does not believe in the [[Discretion Shot]]. The novel and film aren't immune from this either, with all three versions of Niida's death being very brutal, and in the film Kazuo finishing off Yumiko by putting the megaphone to her mouth so that her dying moans are audible before firing his Uzi down the length of her torso definitely qualifies.

* [[Too Cool to Live]]: {{spoiler|Shinji Mimura}}, who, in opinion of many, at least in the manga does better job as a protagonist (in {{spoiler|his}} subplot than the actual main character. Arguably near the end of the story {{spoiler|Kawada}} also qualifies, {{spoiler|because if he lived, he'd be overshadowing Shuuya in his victory over The Program}}.

* [[Uncanny Valley]]: Kazuo's expressionless, dead-eyed appearance in the manga.

** Yoshio

** Megumi was bullied by Hirono in school. Her first scene has her hiding under a table, crying and wanting to go home. The memory of the strawberry tart her mother made for her was especially sad.

* [[Worthy Opponent]]: YMMV, obviously. But, I think Kiriyama saw Sugimura as this in the manga. {{spoiler|Being the first person to significantly damage him. Even when Shuuya was throwing the knife, he was having a [[Call Back]] to Hiroki doing the same thing.}}

* [[Values Dissonance]]: Several instances where Japanese cultural ideas that would will be lost on unknowing Western audiences, such as Kitano nonsensically answering a phone call and eating the last cookie from the bag {{spoiler|''after'' he's been machine gunned and supposedly dropped dead on the couch}}. The entire classroom scene also qualifies as it parodies what is a very Japanese style of schooling.