If hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, “Kill Bill: Vol. 2” is the film they’re showing on the seventh level.

Following up last year’s adrenaline-filled gorefest, Quentin Tarantino’s newest is one powerful revenge flick. But this time, its success has less to do with wonderfully unnecessary fight scenes and violence than it does well-developed dialogue and characters.

Consider this a warning — before stepping foot into the theater to see “Kill Bill: Vol. 2,” it’s important to realize that this is a movie completely removed from its predecessor. Whereas the first film built up the franchise’s momentum through frenetic filmmaking and deadpan parody, the second glides smoothly to an end solely on its character and plot development.

But that doesn’t mean this version is boring. It may be a little long and drawn-out, but the “Vol. 2” reaches depths that only enhance later viewings of the first.

Tarantino’s first chapter of the series was almost a parody of itself — basically, it was Tarantino making fun of Tarantino. This time around, however, there is very little self-deprecating satire. Although the film still survives on its heavy use of trademark Tarantino film tricks — including unique cinematography and one-of-a-kind dialogue — this version’s murderous blade isn’t honed quite as sharply.

Obviously, a few favorite characters — especially Lucy Liu’s O-Ren Ishii — didn’t survive the wrath of The Bride (Uma Thurman) in the last film, but the remaining kills on her revenge list are just as delectable. Finally, we’re given the chance to get to know Budd (Michael Madsen), who plays a man hard to imagine as a member of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. And, of course, Daryl Hannah returns as the ultra-creepy Elle Driver, who comes off even more cold-blooded in this go-’round.

And then there’s Bill, as only Tarantino and David Carradine could make him. Despite the fact that audiences have been trained to hate him for hours, the final result is so human, he’s hard to resist. But lovable or not, we all know he has to die.

If you’re wondering if Bill is killed or not, read the title again — you may have missed the whole point of the series. This is a revenge flick from beginning to end, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t an intriguing journey.

The beauty of the second film is the ebb and flow of its characters as they make their way toward an inevitable conclusion. While the blood and guts are mostly absent — minus an eye-popping final showdown between The Bride and Driver that’s pretty tough to stomach — “Vol. 2” sets itself up as the psychological conclusion to a film that already ended physically.

Followers of the first film may be saddened by its huge change of pace, but fans of the series as a whole will completely understand where this one was going.