Thread:Godzillafan93/@comment-6052796-20140913230734/@comment-397235-20150312001035

Well, in Battle Royale the class's teacher refuses to help the government purge his class, so the main antagonist kills him and then displays his mutilated body for the students.

The crux of the difference between Hunger Games and Battle Royale (HG and BR) is why the games are going on. In HG, it's because the other cities lost a bloody war of rebellion and so the Capital reminds them of their helplessness every year by forcing their children to kill each other and then broadcasting it on national television.

In BR, it's because the novel takes place in an alternate universe where Japan either was never defeated by America in World War II or otherwise staged a bloody revolution of their own after the end of the occupation and installed what one character refers to as "working fascism." The games in BR are held every year to, essentially, keep people from uniting against the government. If you learn at a young age anyone can kill you and everyone might be out to get you, you'll trust no one, and the government will remain in power.

I make no comment on parallels with my own country's politics.