I first heard of Battle Royale when I was looking up the WWE film "The Condemned" which uses a lot of plot from Battle Royale. I went to my local library and started reading it. I didn't finish so i went and bought it. Instantley I was drawn in. Unlike the film or novel the manga actually goes deeper into the backstorys. Such as Shuya watching "The Program" as a little boy. The thing I like about this volume is that it's more of a first impression volume with really no adventure yet. The characters are introduced and give you a little history such as Shinji being popular with girls or Kiriyama who appears as a quiet person but is soon revealed to be in on everything. The characters impression changes throughout the series but in this volume you get a first impression of the characters, what it's like in the world and a calm before the storm like tension. The characters in this volume change mentally later on which is also what makes this volume an interesting one. As for the series, it's probably one of the most suspensful ones i've read. There is a second series in Japan that was also turned into a film. I hope that series will be brought over to America. But judging by how this series ends I doubt that's happening.