As new movies, books, and comics get regularly compared to the infamous Japanese novel, Battle Royale, it’s about time that the North American publisher of the title came out with a big new printing. Battle Royale has been brought up in many modern comparisons to novels like the Hunger Game series, films like The Condemned, and even comics like the upcoming Avengers Arena, which blatantly ripped off Battle Royale’s movie poster. Yet despite the strong love fans had for this novel, as well as its film and manga adaptions, Viz seemed rather silent about pushing the novel back into the spotlight, with their most recent attempt being actually done through competitor, Tokyopop, with the hardcover Battle Royale manga Ultimate Editions that came out back in 2007. But now, as Tokyopop no longer releases manga in the United States, the North American license for the series lays dormant and the volumes all out of print.

So how is Viz attempting to bring back Battle Royale to the USA? Through their new Haikasoru imprint, which focuses on English translations of popular Japanese fiction. Alongside Simon and Schuster publishing, who will aid in brand new digital and audio releases, Viz has made a new website to promote the novel and its recent second printing. There you can also download the 4th chapter of the series or a sample of the audio version. Haikasoru has already released a new 2nd edition of the Battle Royale novel in print, featuring a brand new cover. The new cover, as you see to the right, isn’t as visually stunning as the original, but does give readers a better idea of what might unfold inside its pages. The new edition of Battle Royale has been out for sometime, with an MSRP of $16.99, but as always can be found cheaper on certain other websites. If you’ve never read the absolutely brilliant dystopian novel of Japanese school children killing one another to survive, now is your chance and I cannot recommend it highly enough.