I can’t remember clearly if Hunter had mentioned Battle Royale to me a while back, but it certainly sounds like something i’d be interested in. Either that, or it’s something i’d like for reality TV to turn into.

The capsule from TokyoPop’s Battle Royale page reads:

In the future, random Jr. High School classes are chosen to compete in a game called Battle Royale. The rules: only one student can survive after 3 days on an island or else they all perish. Weapons are handed out and each student is sent out into the field alone and unprepared for the horror that awaits them. The classmates turn upon themselves in a battle for survival, treaties are made and broken, and former friends become foes as the relentless countdown continues. Amid the betrayals and rising body count, two classmates confess their love for each other and swear to survive this deadly game together.

Based on the live-action feature film that became a cause celebre and polarized much of Japan.

Yeah, did you read that? It was actually a movie before it was manga. It starred none other than Takeshi Kitano (ne’ Beat Takeshi). And never fear — in true Asian cinema fashion — they’ve made a sequel.

update: Wild and Woolly video has it in stock.