Battle Royale II: Blitz Royale

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Let's get the basics out of the way first; Battle Royale II is as much of a sequel to Battle Royale as Predator 2 is to Predator. Meaning it takes place in the same world and have a similar theme, but that's about it. You won't be seeing any of the characters from the first part, and the story doesn't revolve around the program this time around. Instead, it's a different type of survival game, centered around teams.

Battle Royale II: Blitz Royale is not as horrible as some will lead you to believe.
In fact, it's a fairly good story, and every bit a spiritual successor ... of the original BR manga. They were both written by Koushun Takami, but with a different artist for BRII. Now the art of BRII is severely different from the one found in the first manga, and this apparently ruins the enjoyment for some people.
Most of the people who dislike the art are the typical "Naruto generation" that want their manga to have a certain sterile look and can't read anything that deviates from that formula. Others dislike the art because it's too different from the original manga. That's why you shouldn't go in expecting to read a straight up sequel, because you might find yourself turned-off when you find the art to be hugely different from the original manga. For those of you who aren't bothered by alternative looking manga, this is worth checking out.

Story:

The story of BRII may seem shallow at first glance, since the manga is rather short, but it does not disappoint. It's quite similar to BR but at the same time it's nothing like it. The psychological aspects and themes are there, and fans of the original story will most likely notice the similarities and find them well played out.

Art:

Now the art is what will break or make this manga for many. It's rather cartoony, and this will turn some people off, especially the aforementioned ones. The art might seem terrible at first, but is in fact rather effective as a sharp contrast to the violence and adult themes featured in the story.
If you've read any of Mohiro Kitoh's works, you won't have a problem though (other than the same problem found in Mohiro Kitoh's titles; character designs)

Characters:

Personally, I found the characters to be portrayed much better than the ones found in BR. It's centered around a select few rather then the whole class, for obvious reasons. You won't get to know them on a level as deep as the one in BR. However, the characters are realistic and believable, as compared to the sometimes hilariously unbelievable characters found in the original. As such, not exploring the backgrounds and mental disorders of the entire cast in BRII can be seen as a blessing in disguise, and makes the whole story feel more realistic. To voice some critizism towards the character designs, as previously mentioned, is that they are rather generic, and the only way to tell the characters apart is pretty much by looking at their hair.

Enjoyment:

As far as enjoyment goes, I found this manga to deliver.
There are few chapters, so it benefits from reading in one sitting, and since it's being short it never really loses it's momentum, and you will find yourself wondering what will happen next as the story progresses. It's short but handled well.

Overall:

A good read, albeit a little bit too short.
I for one wouldn't mind it to have been a little bit longer and the main characters could benefit from being explored a little deeper.
Still, it's a good short read that isn't for everybody, but nevertheless worth checking out.

So we have a Sequel based on a follow up movie (That I haven't seen), rather than a continuation of the first manga... This is not the same as Battle Royale, but going from a 100 chapter manga to 19 should have been a clue.

Battle Royale 2 is pretty much divorced from the original Battle Royale. It feels like a fan created doujinshi at times, and yet also doesn't, as there's clearly a connection to the original works, even if it's not a direct sequel.

But everything here changed, and the biggest change is the art. I personally don't think the art ... in Blitz Royale is that bad, however it's a style that relies more on clue as almost every character's face is drawn similarly. The problem is that the clues of hair or outfits get lost in the manga because eventually everyone wears battle fatigues and helmets. The art is a stylistic choice, but it's not one that works well in the manga's favor.

However the bigger change is the story, and it's a change that feels necessary. As I said this isn't Battle Royale 2. This doesn't continue with the same characters, but also isn't just a second Battle Royale/Program. Instead we have a new "different" Program, run by the Navy. However it's not entirely clear what's different, or how this isn't the same as the original manga's "Program".

The reason I still recommend Battle Royale is the story. Unlike the original manga, where almost every main character seems ready to fight in the Battle Royale, Blitz Royale spends much of it's time outside of the actual fighting and focuses more on the aftermath of battle, preparation, and how the students would realistically deal with the situation they find themselves, knowing almost no one will survive. In fact, I feel that's something that was lacking in the original manga, as if the entire class just accepted they'd fight, or try to run with out having to deal with the fact that is happening.

The ending of Blitz Royale is weaker though, however while some of it feels like it may have been cut short, but overall the manga has interesting changes from the original to the point that if someone wanted a more realistic look at the world of Battle Royale, Blitz Royale might be it. If reader want "another Battle Royale" Blitz Royale fails, and if readers are hoping for excellent art, this is probably something to skip.

This is a sequel to a good manga. This is not a good manga. As a matter of fact, I rank Battle Royale 2 among the worst manga that I have ever read. I had always heard bad things about it, but I assumed they must have been exaggerated or superficial. All of my expectations were shattered. This is the exact opposite of what a sequel should be. Everything that the first Battle Royale did right, this manga does entirely wrong. It takes all of the first's strengths and turns them completely on their head. Battle Royale featured a cast of very flawed teenagers and ... made us feel sympathetic towards them. This sequel features a group of idealized and unrealistically innocent teenagers only because it lacks the finesse to make us feel for a flawed character. It tries to make the characters more sympathetic with their over-the-top innocence, but it achieves the opposite effect due to how unrealistically they are portrayed. The characters would all describable in one word, that is if they would be if they showed any sort of consistency. The cast of characters was reduced from the original in quantity as it was in quality, the scope and ambition of the work decreasing proportionally.

The art suffers from the same fatal flaw as the characterization. The gritty and detailed art of the original Battle Royale is cast aside for a poorly sketched cartoonish abomination; comically huge ears and noses are the norm. The characters' faces aren't even drawn with a consistent amount of shittyness, the proportions changing constantly. It's not "different" or "creative," it's simply atrocious and it makes absolutely no aesthetic or symbolic sense. It was done because it was easy to draw. After it tries and fails to make a sweet and innocent atmosphere to contrast with the plot, it only serves to detract from the quality of the manga.

Despite this abominable gimmick of an art style, Battle Royale 2 paradoxically takes itself more seriously than its predecessor, and all of the comic relief and satire from the first is absent. As are the quality action and tactics, but that somehow becomes a minor concern compared to all of this manga's other unforgivable and blatant flaws.

The plot starts off somewhat similarly to its predecessor, but it quickly veers off into sheer nonsensicality and a complete lack all of logic. Characters' actions make absolutely no sense at all, nothing is explained, and some important plot events were simply physically impossible. It lacks continuity and it seems to not even take place in the same universe as the first, nor does the royale itself occur in a remotely similar way. Also, rather than portraying a slow degradation into madness, important parts of the plot and the character development are skipped over entirely. The conclusion could not be called a conclusion by any stretch of the imagination; it just kind of tapers off without much of a climax, and with the reader having absolutely no idea what the fuck they just read.

I have no clue who could have possibly thought that this sequel was a good idea, but they are clearly in possession of an extraordinary lack of intelligence or good taste. Or they are just very lazy. Or this manga was simply a cash-in on the popularity of Battle Royale. Or, my personal favorite, all of the above. I can think of no other reason than greed for this to have been labelled a sequel of Battle Royale. Any similarities between the two are fleeting and conceptually superficial at best.