Battle Royale takes place in an alternate timeline; according to the book's prologue, Japan is a police state, known as the Republic of Greater East Asia (大東亜共和国 Dai Tōa Kyōwakoku). From time to time, fifty randomly selected classes of secondary school students are forced to take arms against one another until only one student in each class remains. The program was created, supposedly, as a form of military research, though the outcome of each battle is publicized on local television. A character discovers that the program is not an experiment at all, but a means of terrorizing the population. In theory, after seeing such atrocities, the people will become paranoid and divided, preventing an organized rebellion.

Under the guise of a 'study trip', a group of students from Shiroiwa Junior High School (城岩中学校 Shiroiwa Chūgakkō), a junior high school operated by the fictional town of Shiroiwa (in Kagawa Prefecture), are corralled onto a bus and gassed, only to awaken in a school on an isolated, evacuated island, wearing metal collars around their necks. After being briefed about the program, the students are issued survival packs (along with a random weapon or a tool) and sent out the island one by one. While most of the students receive guns and knives, some students acquire useless items like boomerangs, some common dartboard darts, or a fork. In some cases, instead of a weapon, the student receives a tool; Hiroki Sugimura finds a radar that tracks nearby students, and Toshinori Oda receives a bulletproof vest.

To make sure the students obey the rules and kill each other, the metal collars around their necks track their positions, and will explode if they linger in a 'Forbidden Zone' or attempt to remove the collars. The Forbidden Zones are randomly chosen areas of the map that increase in number as time goes on, re-sculpting and shrinking the battlefield and forcing the students to move around. The collars secretly transmit sound back to the organizers of the game, allowing them to hear the students' conversations, root out escape plans, and log their activities.

The students are also given a time limit. If twenty-four hours pass without someone being killed, then all of the collars will be detonated simultaneously and there will be no winner. It is mentioned that only 0.5% of Programs end in this fashion. (In the film version, this occurs after a total of 3 days have passed since the start of the Battle Royale, regardless of the timing with which people die; this was a change made for the film version.)

In the end, only four students remain: Shuya Nanahara, Noriko Nakagawa, Shogo Kawada, and antagonist Kazuo Kiriyama. There is a car chase and shootout between the three main characters and Kazuo. Kiriyama is killed. Heeding Kawada's advice to "show no mercy," Shuya and Noriko board a nearby ship and kill the soldiers on board. Kawada succumbs to his wounds and dies, and Shuya and Noriko escape to the mainland, where they become fugitives.

Masao Hayashida (林田昌朗 Hayashida Masao) - The teacher of Class 3-B at Shiroiwa Junior High School. He is executed when he pleads for the lives of the 3-B students. He is nicknamed "Dragonfly" because of his glasses.

Keiko Onuki (大貫慶子 Ōnuki Keiko) (Keiko Inoue in the English-language manga) - Shogo Kawada's girlfriend from his previous school in Kobe; Keiko was in Shogo's class when the two were in a Battle Royale. His relationship with Keiko and the outcome of the previous Battle Royale hardens Shogo Kawada.

Ryoko Anno (安野良子 An'no Ryōko) - The superintendent of the Charity House, a Roman Catholic orphanage. In the novel and manga, she is raped when she protests the conscription of Shuya and Yoshitoki in the program. Ms. Anno never makes an actual appearance in the novel and manga, while Ms. Anno is never mentioned in the film.

Novel

Kinpatsu Sakamochi - The teacher in the novel version. He enjoys watching the students die and bets on Kazuo winning. His name is a takeoff on Kinpachi Sakamoto, the protagonist of Kinpachi Sensei.

Private Tokihiko Tahara (田原俊彦 Tahara Tokihiko), Nomura (野村), and Kondo (近藤 Kondō) - The soldiers in the novel version. Tahara, described as "the frivolous one," shoots Noriko in the leg. The soldiers are killed by Shuya and Shogo in the end. They are named after characters in Kinpachi Sensei.

Kitano is the instructor in the film versionKitano - The teacher in the film version. Unlike Sakamochi and Yonemi, Kitano is not overly sadistic. He has an unhealthy obsession with Noriko.

Lieutenant Anjo - A soldier in the film version.

There have been a number of adaptations into other media which themselves have spun off sequels. These include:

Battle Royale, the film adaptation
Battle Royale II: Requiem, the film sequel

Battle Royale, the manga adaptation
Battle Royale II: Blitz Royale. the manga sequel

Dani California by Red Hot Chili Peppers
Manatsu no Yoru no Yume by Suga Shikao
Snow ((Hey Oh)) by Red Hot Chili Peppers

Light Yagami is a brilliant, but bored, high school student who resents the crime and corruption in the world. His life undergoes a drastic change when he discovers a mysterious notebook, known as the "Death Note", lying on the ground in the year 2003. The Death Note's instructions claim that, if a human's name is written within it, that person shall die. Light is initially skeptical of the Death Note's authenticity, believing it is just a prank. However, after experimenting with it and killing two criminals, Light is forced to admit the Death Note is real. After meeting with the true owner of the Death Note, a shinigami named Ryuk, Light seeks to become the "God of new world" by passing his judgment on criminals.

Soon, the number of inexplicable deaths of reported criminals catches the attention of the International Police Organization and a mysterious detective known only as "L". L quickly learns that the serial killer, dubbed by the public as "Kira"(derived from the Japanese pronouncation of the English word "Killer"), is located in Japan. L also concludes that Kira can kill people just by knowing their face and name. Light realizes that L will be his greatest nemesis, and a race to prove mental superiority between the two begins.

Main article: Rules of the Death Note

Written rules

Before the series began, Ryuk wrote some of them in English inside his Death Note, because he believed that English is the most widely used language in the world. The rules written by Ryuk are the following:

The human whose name is written in this note shall die.
This note will not take effect unless the writer has the subject's face in their mind when writing his/her name. Therefore, people sharing the same name will not be affected.
If the cause of death is written within 40 seconds of writing the subject's name, it will happen.
If the cause of death is not specified, the subject will simply die of a heart attack.
After writing the cause of death, the details of the death should be written in the next 6 minutes and 40 seconds.
Also, each volume of the manga has a page containing new rules or possible uses for the Death Note. In the anime series, each eyecatch contains a different rule written in English and Japanese on it, similar to how they were revealed in the Japanese manga.

False rules

In addition to these original rules, Light persuaded Ryuk to add a set of fake rules to mislead L and company.

If the owner of the Death Note does not kill within 13 days of the last entry, he or she will die.
If the Death Note is burnt, dstroyed, or otherwise damaged in any way, all those who have touched that Death Note will die.

Light Yagami: Tatsuya Fujiwara
Soichiro Yagami: Takeshi Kaga
Sayu Yagami: Hikari Mitsushima
Sachiko Yagami: Michiko Godai
L: Ken'ichi Matsuyama
Watari: Shunji Fujiwara
Naomi: Asaka Seto
Raye: Shigeki Hosokawa
Matsuda: Souta Aoyama
Aizawa: Shin Shimizu
Ukita: Tatsuhito Okuda
Mogi: Ikuji Nakamura
Ryuk (voice): Shido Nakamura
Rem (voice): Peter (actor)
Misa: Erika Toda
Shiori (original character): Yuu Kashii

Light YagamiLight Yagami (Kira) (夜神月, Yagami Raito?, Seiyū - Mamoru Miyano)

The protagonist of Death Note, Light is a brilliant but bored student. When he finds the Death Note dropped in the human world by Ryuk, a Shinigami, he decides to use it to kill all criminals, his ultimate goal being to cleanse the world of evil，to create a utopia and to be the God of this new world. As Kira, he is L's archnemesis, but as Light Yagami, he is L's first friend. Light is eventually able to kill L by creating a situation in which the Shinigami Rem is compelled to write L's name in her Death Note. By doing so, Rem herself dies. As both Kira and the new L, and able to manipulate and kill both humans and Shinigami, Light continues down the path to becoming a god.
Light possesses some traits of an antisocial personality disorder, lacking empathy for the humans whom he kills using the Death Note. When L is killed, the Investigation Team elects Light to become L's successor. Light successfully leads the team in circles for years, allowing him the freedom to do whatever he wishes. He is eventually stopped when the combined efforts of Near and Mello surpass both his and L's.

L (エル, Eru?, Seiyū - Kappei Yamaguchi)

L is the world's top-rated detective, tasked with tracking down and arresting Kira. His disheveled appearance masks his great powers of deduction and insight. He has many quirks, such as sitting in an odd manner and snacking on sweets in the middle of meetings. His intelligence matches or exceeds Light Yagami's. Despite being confident that Light is Kira, L lacks sufficient evidence to bring Light to justice. He has dedicated his life to catching Kira. He often takes drastic strategies to confuse and force his opponents. On several occasions he has willingly disclosed several of his weaknesses to Kira at the risk of his own life in the hopes that he would lure Kira into a trap and catch him. His true name is revealed in "Volume 13: How To Read Death Note" to be L Lawliet.

Misa Amane (弥海砂, Amane Misa?, Seiyū - Aya Hirano)

A teenage girl who has an immense crush on Kira. She is a famous model, and tends to wear Gothic Lolita (moreso the Punk Lolita subcategory of Gothic Lolita) clothings. She is immature and has a tendency to refer to herself in the third person (calling herself "Misa-Misa") in an attempt to be cute.
Misa's parents were killed in the street. The murderers' trial was delayed multiple times - due to the lack of evidence - much to Misa's dismay. When it appeared that the murderers would be released, Kira killed them. Due to this incident, Misa feels indebted to Kira and is therefore compelled to join him on his crusade against criminals. She became known to the Investigation Team as "the second Kira". Misa is totally devoted to Light, and she once said that she loved him "at first sight". Light, however, only views her as an asset to his plans because of her Death Note and her "Shinigami Eyes" (that she obtained at the cost of half of her remaining life span). These "Shinigami Eyes" give Misa the ability to know people's names by looking at their faces, thereby giving Kira an edge in his battle against L. Misa is so devoted to Light that she claims that she doesn't care if he kills her when he's done with her; she only wishes to help Kira in any way she can.
It was speculated by fans that Misa is the cloaked woman who appears at the end of the final chapter, but in Death Note How To Read 13, "The Truth", it is stated that she committed suicide after Light's death (on Valentine's Day, 2011). According to volume 13, author Tsugumi Ohba had simply written that a "cloaked woman" would appear at the end in the script, so it was Takeshi Obata, the artist, who happened to make her a character who resembled Misa.

Mello (メロ, Mero?)

Mello was an orphan who grew up with Near in Watari's shelter for gifted children. He was also a primary candidate to become L's successor. Similar to L's fondness for sweets, he is often seen eating chocolate. When he receives news of L's death, he swears to avenge L by capturing Kira. To this end, he joins forces with a criminal organization and proceeds to kidnap the NPA director, using the Death Note the NPA possessed at the time as a ransom. The director, however, commits suicide (although it is implied that Light, as Kira, kills the director using the Death Note), and Mello subsequently kidnaps Light's sister, Sayu Yagami, instead.
The NPA agrees to Mello's demands, and they surrender their Death Note to Mello. Mello loses possession of the Death Note shortly after, however, when the NPA counterattacks and invades the criminal organization's base. Mello destroys and escapes from the base, although he obtains a scar over one eye from the subsequent explosion. As noted by Near, Mello, although quite intelligent, often lets his emotions get the better of him. He seemingly sacrifices himself so that Near may discover the final piece of the puzzle, thereby bringing Kira to justice.

Near (ニア, Nia?)

Like Mello, Near was one of the candidates to become L's successor. He too shares a similarity to L: much like L played with things such as sugar cubes and forks, Near is seen playing with toys throughout the series. When Near learned of L's death, he offered to join forces with Mello to fight Kira. When Mello turned down his offer, he gained the support of the US government and formed the Secret Provision for Kira (SPK).
NearNear quickly came to believe that the new L was also Kira. As the series progresses, he became more and more sure of his suspicions and continued to read Light's movements. At last, with the help of members of the SPK, Light's own team for pursuing Kira, and Mello, who dies in the process, Near manages to prove that Light was indeed Kira, and that Misa Amane and Mikami were his accomplices, during a fateful encounter at a warehouse. A year after the events in the warehouse, it is shown that Near became the next L. Near is also shown eating a chocolate bar as he plays with his toys in this scene as a remembrance to Mello.

Shinigami (The Death Gods)

Shinigami, or their formal name Death Gods, are demon-like characters whom live in the Shinigami Realm. To increase their life-span, the Shinigami write the names of humans in their Death Notes. However, because of the fact that the Shinigami realm is incredibly dull, this act is usually laughed at, and thus done in privacy. Shinigami cannot be killed by conventional means, such as shooting or stabbing.

Ryuk (リューク, Ryūku?, Seiyū - Shidou Nakamura)

The original Shinigami who dropped the Death Note in the human world, which Light would pick up. Acting out of pure boredom, Ryuk begins the story of Death Note on a whim. In the fourth volume of the manga, the story explains that Ryuk obtained his second Death Note by tricking the King of Death. Perhaps neutral by nature, Ryuk often refuses to aid Light and instead enjoys watching him struggle for his goal. Ryuk's only weakness appears to be a fondness for apples, which Light uses to coerce Ryuk into helping him. According to Ryuk, apples are to Shinigami as what cigarettes and alcohol are to humans; if he goes too long without one he exhibits withdrawal symptoms in the form of standing on his head and twisting his body into a pretzel-like shape. This is seen in volumes 3, 4 and 5. The most important facet of Ryuk's character is that he is not Light's friend. He acts for his own interests and entertainment and often fails to tell Light key details about the Death Note.

Rem (レム, Remu?)

The female Shinigami who first gives Misa her Death Note and "eyes." She appears mainly during the "L" arc of the series and dies shortly before its conclusion. Similar to Ryuk, Rem possesses two Death Notes; however, she purposely gives a Death Note to Misa Amane. Rem inherited her second Death Note from Jealous and thought it only right to pass it on to Misa. Oddly enough, Rem inherits Jealous' love for Misa as well and defends Misa even at the cost of her life by writing the true names of L and Watari in her Death Note.

Jealous (ジェラス, Jerasu?)

Jealous only appears in a flashback during volume 4 when Rem explains a method to kill a Shinigami. In the flashback, Rem recalls Jealous watching over a younger Misa Amane in the human world. Surprised by his concern, Rem eventually looks over his shoulder and witnesses what should have been Misa Amane's last moments on Earth. Apparently infatuated with Misa, Jealous used his Death note to kill Misa's destined murderer. Moments later, Jealous himself turns to a pile of sand and rust as punishment for extending a human life.
Jealous' name is commonly misspelled as "Gelus," which is what Jealous' name was romanized to until Death Note: How to Read 13 revealed the official spelling as Jealous.

Shidoh

Shidoh is a Shinigami that came to the human world to retrieve the Death Note that Ryuk stole from him. After discovering his Death Note was in the hands of Mello, he reveals himself to Mello and informs him of its secrets. Known amongst the Shinigamis for his utter stupidity, Shidoh proves himself true to his reputation. In a feat of idiocy, he agrees to aid for Mello in exchange for the Death Note upon Mello's death. Rather than simply killing Mello immediately, he works until Ryuk convinces him to step aside during Light's second raid on Mello. Afterwards, Shidoh reclaims his Death Note and returns to the Shinigami world.

Justin the Jewel Skeleton

Though only appearing for a breif segment in Volume 8, Justin provides Shidoh with several scrolls describing the various rules that Shinigami have for interacting with humans. He also informs Shidoh that his Death Note was indeed stolen by the Shinigami Ryuk. Shidoh uses the information to guide his interactions with Mello in the human world.

Investigation team

A group of Japanese police officers, led by Soichiro Yagami, tracking down Kira alongside L.

Soichiro Yagami (夜神総一郎, Yagami Sōichirō?, Seiyū - Naoya Uchida)

Light's father and leader of the investigation team, dedicated and determined to arrest Kira at any cost. He cares a lot for his family. It was mentioned in the Death Note volume 13 that Soichiro was the only character who truly represented justice.

Tota Matsuda (松田桃太, Matsuda Tōta?, Seiyū - Ryo Naito)

The most outspoken member in the investigation team. Although most of the Investigation Team are adamant that what Kira is doing is wrong, Matsuda wavers on the fence, often speaking his mind without thinking - questioning if what Kira is doing is in fact right. He's also the most easily fooled by Light, who he trusts with absolute certainty. Despite his excitable and naive personality, Matsuda has managed to survive quite a few dangerous situations. Furthermore, when he discovers who Kira is, he becomes engulfed in his personal feelings. Though in the final chapter it is revealed that he still liked Light, despite his furious attack on Light upon the revelation of his identity.

Kanzo Mogi (模木完造, Mogi Kanzō?, Seiyū - Kazuya Nakai)

Mogi is one of the most dedicated members of the investigation team. He remains mostly silent. This silence was marked when he refused to answer Near's questions about the Japanese Investigative Team, even when he was clearly affected by the theories that Near was presenting to him. He collects data quickly and efficiently for the team. Later on, he is one of the first members who begins to warm up to Near's theory that Light is Kira. He is also shown to be an excellent actor, showing an excitement and cheeriness completely opposite of his usual demeanor.

Shuichi Aizawa (相沢周市, Aizawa Shūichi?, Seiyū - Keiji Fujiwara)

Aizawa chose to leave the investigation team and remain in the police force, when L offered the investigation team members the choice of quitting and returning to the life of a normal police officer. He continued assisting the investigation team as a member of the Japanese police force after he left. He is the first member of the team to truly suspect Light of being Kira, being very suspicious even without much prodding from Near.

Watari (ワタリ, Watari?, ; Seiyū - Kiyoshi Kobayashi)

L's assistant. He acts as logistics to the investigation team. He founded an orphan shelter for gifted young children such as L, Mello, and Near. Also, as evidenced during the police chase at the end of volume six, he is an experienced sniper. He is eventually killed by Rem, who is forced to kill him after falling into a trap set by Light.

Sachiko Yagami (夜神幸子, Yagami Sachiko?, Seiyū - Ai Satou)

Light's mother and Soichiro's wife. She plays a minor role in the storyline, unaware of Light's possession of the Death Note.

Sayu Yagami (夜神粧裕, Yagami Sayu?, Seiyū - Haruka Kudo)

Light's younger sister. She plays a minor role in the main storyline, unaware of Light's possession of the Death Note. She is captured at one point by Mello, who uses her as leverage to get possession of the Death Note.

Raye Penber (レイ・ペンバー, Rei Penbā?, Seiyū - Hideo Ishikawa)

A member of an FBI team sent to Japan to investigate the Kira killings, but was killed by Kira. One of Penber's missions was to follow Light in order to find out if he was Kira or not. Light finds out his real name using a dangerous situation on a bus ride, and uses Penber to kill the other investigation members, by writing in the situations of death on a page from the Death Note, then covering them up and having Raye write the names in between spaces cut out on a sheet of paper on top of the Death Note page so that Raye did not know what the page was.

Naomi Misora (南空ナオミ, Misora Naomi?, Seiyū - Naoko Matsui)

A former FBI agent. Engaged to Raye Penber. She was the first character to realize that one can kill in other ways than a heart attack with Death Note. Upon the death of her fiance she sets off on an investigation of her own to discover the identity of Kira. Light fooled Misora into revealing her name from her driver's license, and in the manga he arranged to have her commit suicide on the first day of 2004 with the Death Note. In the movie, her death was manipulated by Light into killing Shiori (Light's girlfriend) and then committing suicide by firing a shot into her head when the police arrived.

Kyosuke Higuchi (Higuchi Kyosuke, Kyosuke Higuchi?)

The head of technological development in the Yotsuba group, Higuchi is the third Kira to appear. Higuchi is given the death note by Rem after Rem is told to find corrupt power hungry man, the Yotsuba group held meetings to decide who should be killed by Kira, they did not know that Higuchi was Kira at this time. Higuchi was uncovered as the third Kira by Light, L, and Misa Amane, then Higuchi was provoked to attempt to kill Matsuda who was about to uncover Kira's identity on television. However Higuchi fails at doing so and attempts to kill himself after a chase by the police. This again, fails and he is captured and then killed by Light after regaining his memories. Higuchi is one of the few "true" evil characters in the series. According to the data found on him he is a graduate of Wasagi University political science department, and a 5 dan in kendo.

To be completely honest, this is a film that I had little to no interest in watching. However, because a couple of my Internet friends seemed quite interested in it, I decided to give it a shot. Now I am glad I did. I was concerned at first that the film was going to be nothing more than a kid makes friends with a robot film, but Hinokio does not fall into this overdone plot device. Instead this film delves into a number of the ills of modern society in a fresh and entertaining manner.

The film opens with Hinokio making its entrance into an otherwise mundane homeroom class consisting of such students as the nerdy Joichi, the hyperactive Kenta, and the teacher's pet Sumire. Also in the classroom is the moody Jun who, although a bit intrigued with the new "student", is not overly impressed by the new arrival. We soon learn that Iwamoto Satoru a young boy who is rehabilitating from a car accident controls Hinokio. The robot allows him to attend school and interact with other students while he recuperates at home. However, instead of being warmly embraced by his new classmates, Satoru, or Hinokio, is the victim of pranks. However, after he refuses to tattle on Jun, Kenta, and Joichi, the four soon become friends.

While Satoru's relationship with his friends, especially with Jun, is the primary story, Satoru's relationship with his father, who the boy blames for the death of his mother, is also central to the film. Because of his reluctance to interact with the outside world and muteness with his father, Satoru resembles a Hikikomori, or shut-in, a social ill that has spread in modern Japanese society.

At times humorous and at times quite moving, Hinokio is a good film to watch for those immersed in the violent films of Miike Takashi or the nostalgic oeuvre of Ozu Yasujiro. It reminds us that there are other films that while not overly artistic can really move an audience or just make one smile.

A young boy becomes an unlikely hero when he is chosen as the "Kirin Rider" and must lead Japan's ancient Yokai spirits in their war against the evil monsters. Remake of the 1968 film "Yokai Daisenso".

It's tough being ten year old Tadashi (Ryunosuke KAMIKI). His mom just got a divorce and moved him and his Grandfather from Tokyo to small town Japan, where all the kids at his new school pick on him. To make things worse, his Grandpa is starting to go a bit crazy and keeps running away and forgetting who Tadashi is!

One night, Tadashi wanders into a creepy local festival and is knocked on the head by a man in a dragon costume. Someone tells him this means he has been chosen "Kirin Rider," the defender of justice and peace. There is a legend that the Kirin Rider must climb a nearby mountain and claim a legendary sword, guarded by the Great Goblin.

Remembering the bullies at school calling him a crybaby, Tadashi is determined to climb the mountain, but he gets scared half-way and runs home. On the bus ride home, he meets Sunekosuri, a small cat-like sprite that only Tadashi can see. He realizes that Sunekosuri is a Yokai, a magical creature from Japanese folklore. All of a sudden, Tadashi can see more Yokai looking into the bus windows! The next evening, Tadashi hears his Grandpa calling for help from the Goblin Mountain. Forgetting his fears, Tadashi rushes to his Grandfather's aid and into the biggest adventure of his life...

Meanwhile, a great evil called Yomotsumono has been re-awakened, threatening to devour humanity and turn the good Yokai into evil mechanical monsters to do its bidding. Aiding this monster is the evil spirit Kato (Etsushi TOYOKAWA) and Agi (Chiaki KURIYAMA), a traitor Yokai whose love for the evil Kato compels her to turn against the good spirits. She catches them with her white whip and helps turn them into monsters that ransack Japan. Only Tadashi the Kirin Rider and his sword can save the world from this menace, with some help from his Yokai friends!