If you've read this series at all, volume four is the continuation of the same seriously messed-up, seriously gripping story. Forty-two kids, an entire class, are kidnapped and forced to hunt each other on an island for a "reality show." This volume continues the story as one of our heroes takes ill -- but the book is good about giving each and every member of this huge cast a real backstory and real life... even if they often only get that depth in the seconds before their brutal deaths. If you want a really twisted story, grab it from volume one and prepare for one of the most chilling Manga series you'll ever read.

Well, this volume was good compared to the last one. There are crazy chicks, rapists, killing, and rock ass background stories. This was my favorite from the series so far.

As Sugimura desperately tries to locate her, Takako has her hands full trying to fight off the lunatic Kuzushi Niida, a boy whose aim is "blood and boo-tay!". Will he be in time? Shuuya and Kawada also have a problem when Noriko passes out from fever, and the two must decide whether they can get her to an abandoned infirmary. There's also another nut named Minami wandering the island, off her rocker and talking to her favorite pop idol. After an abortive attempt to hack into the Program computer systems, Mimura moves on to Plan B.

The body count and brutality of Volume 4 is a little less than previous entries. I guess they had to get rid of all the bit players and establish the shock value before. Now, it seems like Battle Royale is settling down to telling the stories of the survivors. Over half the class is now dead. So as the characters dwindle, I assume the stories will get more and more personal...and painful. There is a real sense of danger, especially in what I would call the "live or die" panels. It seems like every character has a moment where they have a realization about their life, or their future, or some truth is revealed and that moment is drawn frozen in time, and on the next page they either die or they don't. So it creates a lot of suspense...or cheap manipulation of the reader. While the art is generally well done, when chracters are shown in childhood flashbacks, they seem to have oversized adult heads on child bodies, creating a hobbit image. But I really don't have any complaints about this series. The only thing that bugs me is that isn't this being televised as it's happening? So, shouldn't any "secret plans" the group have be doomed to failure? The kids seem to act surprised when they find out they're bugged but haven't they all seen the Program on TV the past couple of seasons?

I am a devoted Battle Royale fan and sought out the manga after both reading the novel (which is now my favorite book of all time) and seeing the movie (which was plain awesome). I have all books so far as of July 20, 2004 and of all the books that have been released, Book 4 remains my favorite, barely above my second favorite, Book 6. After being thoroughly disgusted and turned off by the excessive and unnecessary pornography of Book 3, I began to lose faith in the manga series and ranked the manga as the worst of the three renditions of the BR story. However, with the sensitivity, beauty, and romance of Book 4 combined with the graceful (and graphic, obviously) violence, Battle Royale Volume 4 remains my favorite in the series and lifted the manga to the top of my BR list.

The volume chronicles the climax of the battle between the lovely Takako Chigusa and the dastardly and perverted Kasushi Niida, the tearing apart and the reunion of Shuuya, Noriko, and Kawada, as well as some backstory with both Mimura and Kawada. Book 4, for me, defines and brings out the best in the relationships between the central characters, especially that belong to the kind and devoted Noriko, the bleeding heart Shuuya, and the "badass with the heart of gold" Kawada. If you're the romantic otaku who loves a little violence and drama along with a love story, Volume 4 will surely please you. If not, move on to Book 6 where the action is much more pulse-pounding and emotional. But then again, love can blossom even on a battle field, even if your love affair is with a graphic novel.

I've enjoyed the first three graphic novels of the series immensely, but I found Volume 4 to be a little less enjoyable than the previous volumes.

I guess my main objection is that it didn't seem like that much happened in this book. Sure, a few more students died (I won't reveal any spoilers here about specifically who did what), but after I was done reading the book, I was left with the feeling that not much had happened. That's probably not uncommon for middle volumes in long series like this one; I'd expect that the pace will pick up in the next volume.

The art is as good as ever, and there are some truly creepy close-ups of at least one character who's gone mad. There is a decent amount of violence, including a very nice surprise in one of the scenes, and the graphic sex that was present previously in the series is absent from this volume (so if that turned you off the series before, you won't have to worry about that with this one).

Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed Volume 4, and will definitely pick up Volume 5, but I do hope that the rest of the books are stronger than this one. Obviously, if you're new to Battle Royale, I'd advise you to start with Volume 1, you won't regret it!