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SNCA:Death Note
Death Note is an A24-inspired slow burn, heart pounding, bone chilling, genre-redefining psychological thriller manga and anime. The manga was serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump from December 2003 to May 2006, and the anime ran from October 2006 to June 2007. It follows Light Yagami, a gifted but bored high school senior who finds a notebook that can kill people whose names are written in it, and decides to reshape the world into his vision by killing all of the criminals. Opposing him is a task force led by the equally intelligent detective L.
The anime is widely considered a keyed gemerald. It is in that sweet spot for anime where normies won't call you a pedophile for watching it but basement-dwelling weebs won't call you a "hoodweeb tourist."
Plot[edit | edit source]
WARNING: WORDSWORDSWORDS This page is a wall of text!(You) VVILL add images and make the text less dense.
In the Shinigami Realm, a bored shinigami named Ryuk decides to drop a Death Note into the human world to create some entertainment for himself. It is found by a high schooler named Light Yagami, who initially doubts its powers but decides to test it out on a guy who's holding an elementary school hostage. He freaks out when it ends up working, but decides he can find some good use out of it. Ryuk appears and tells Light that now that the notebook has touched the ground in the human world, it belongs to the human world, and Light can use it however he pleases. Light explains to Ryuk that he plans to use the Death Note to carry out his sense of justice and become the god of the new world.
Around the world, everyone starts noticing that a large number of criminals are mysteriously dying of heart attacks. The person behind these deaths is given the name "Kira." Interpol requests the assistance of L, the greatest detective in the world, to investigate Kira's true identity. L explains that he has already taken interest in the case and believes that Kira is based in Japan. He requests the assistance of the Japanese National Police Agency, including Light's father Soichiro. L then tricks Light into killing a death row inmate on a localized broadcast which he claimed to be international, narrowing Kira down to the Kanto region of Japan. The FBI sends some agents to Japan, including one named Raye Penber, who is assigned to monitor Light, who has become a suspect. Light concocts a plan to get the FBI off his tail by tricking Penber into giving him his name, coercing Penber into writing the names of his colleagues in a piece of paper from the Death Note, and then writing Penber's name in the notebook. However, after Penber's death, his wife begins to suspect that Kira can kill in ways other than heart attacks. Light then comes up with another plan in order to get her name (Naomi Misora), and then uses the notebook to make her commit suicide. Members of the Kira Task Force begin to grow suspicious of L and demand to see his face. He agrees to meet them in person. He tells Soichiro that he strongly suspects Light is Kira, which Soichiro strongly denies. He then has hidden cameras installed in Light's room, which he has Ryuk find. To get closer to Light, L enrolls at the same university as him and recruits him as a member of the task force.
Meanwhile, a shinigami named Gelus falls in love with an aspiring model named Misa Amane. On the day Misa Amane is fated to die, Gelus uses his Death Note to kill her killer. Since shinigami are not supposed to extend the lives of humans, Gelus dies, and his remaining lifespan is added to Misa's. Another shinigami named Rem then gives Misa Gelus's Death Note and tells her to do whatever she wants with it. Misa is an avid Kira-worshipper because Kira killed the robber who killed her parents, so she makes a deal with Rem to get shinigami eyes (which allow her to see anyone's name and lifespan) in exchange for half of her remaining lifespan. She then goes on a killing spree in the name of Kira. L begins to suspect that there is a second Kira, and has Light track her down. Light then decides to use her love for him to his advantage. He creates a situation in which she is able to see L's face and obtain his name, but L intercepts her cell phone before Light can call her and ask for L's name. Misa is then arrested on suspicion of being the second Kira. Rem has grown to care for Misa and convinces her to give up the Death Note and lose her memories of it.
With Misa imprisoned, Light creates a plan to clear his and Misa's names. He swaps some notebooks around so that Rem is in possession of the first Death Note and he is in possession of the second one. He then has Rem give the Death Note to Kyosuke Higuchi, a power-hungry businessman. Light then volunteers to be imprisoned and then relinquishes ownership of the Death Note, causing him to lose his memories of being Kira. Now working on the side of the task force, Light vows to catch Kira. The Task Force determines that Kira must be an executive of the Yotsuba Group because many recent killings are benefiting them. Misa is able to trick Higuchi into confessing by pretending she wants to marry him. After a car chase, Higuchi is apprehended. Light then regains ownership of the Death Note and his memories are restored. He has won, exactly as planned. He then uses a hidden scrap of the notebook to kill Higuchi. Since the members of the Task Force all touched the Death Note, they can all see Rem. They also read the rules of the notebook, including a fake one saying that if someone uses it, they must use it again within thirteen days or they will die. This conveniently clears Light and Misa, since they were imprisoned for fifty days. L interrogates Rem about the Death Note's capabilities, but she isn't too cooperative because she wants to protect Misa. Light instructs Misa to dig up the hidden second Death Note and begin killing again. L begins to suspect that the thirteen-day rule is fake, but before he has the opportunity to test it, he is killed by Rem, who realized that if he found out the rule was fake he'd have Misa dead to rights. Rem then dies due to saving Misa. With all of his obstacles out of the way, Light declares himself the god of the new world. Elsewhere, a dead man's switch sends the message that L is dead to a man who tells two gifted boys, Near and Mello.
Five years later, Kira has become a quasi-religious figure, with entire world governments having bent the knee. Near has been chosen as L's true successor, while Mello has joined the mafia in his own hunt for Kira. Light works for the NPA and has begun doing detective work, claiming to be L. Mello kidnaps Light's sister and asks for a Death Note as ransom. Mello then uses the Death Note to kill almost all of Near's team. A shinigami named Sidoh, who the first Death Note originally belonged to, goes to Mello's hideout to try and get it back, but finds Mello so intimidating that he ends up helping him. The Task Force raids Mello's hideout, with Soichiro getting shinigami eyes to get the names of Mello's henchmen. Soichiro is killed in the raid. Near and Mello then exchange information about Kira, and Near becomes almost certain that Light Yagami is Kira. Aizawa, another member of the task force, also begins to suspect Light. Light then has Misa relinquish her Death Note, which is then given to Kira worshiper Teru Mikami, who becomes the new Kira. Light also appoints newscaster Kiyomi Takada as Kira's spokeswoman. Near begins to trail Mikami and discovers that he adheres to a strict routine. Meanwhile, Mello kidnaps Takada. Takada is able to kill Mello with a scrap of the Death Note, but Light then kills Takada with his own Death Note scrap.
Near agrees to have a meeting with the Task Force on January 28. Light has planned to have Mikami kill everyone there, but gloats just a bit too early. Near reveals that he had replaced Mikami's Death Note with a decoy after finding the real Death Note in his bank vault, which he suspected was there because he broke out of his routine to write Takada's name in it, not knowing that Light already had. Near demonstrates that Light's name is the only one not written, proving beyond any reasonable doubt that Light Yagami is, in fact, Kira. Light tries to deny this at first, but then confesses. He justifies his actions by saying that wars have stopped and crime has fallen 70%, and Kira has become justice. Near refutes this by telling Light that he's no more than a serial killer, and the Death Note is the deadliest weapon in human history. Light makes a last-ditch attempt to write Near's name on a scrap of the notebook, but he is shot by Matsuda, another member of the Task Force.
Ryuk then uses his Death Note to kill Light, but the specifics differ between the manga and anime. In the manga, Light begs Ryuk to kill everyone else instead before dying while soaked in his own blood. In the anime, Light runs off to another building and accepts his death.
Characters[edit | edit source]
- Light Yagami: A high schooler who finds a Death Note and attempts to become the god of the new world under the name Kira.
- L: A genius detective who leads a task force to track down Kira. He has a massive sweet tooth. Gets ACKed about 2/3 of the way through.
- Misa Amane: An aspiring model who worships Kira and falls in love with Light, though he does not love her back.
- Ryuk: A bored shinigami who sets the plot in motion by dropping a Death Note into the human world. He's also addicted to apples.
- Rem: A female Shinigami who gives a Death Note to Misa. Sacrifices herself to save Misa.
- Soichiro Yagami: Light's father and a Japanese glowie who tries to track down Kira.
- Touta Matsuda: The gegbull of the Task Force, though he does shoot Light in the end.
- Suichi Aizawa: A member of the Task Force who doesn't get along with L and grows suspicious enough of Light for Near to bring him down.
- Watari: L's adoptive father. Caters to his every need.
- Near: L's successor. Very childish and looks way younger than he is. Is often seen playing with toys while working on the case. He's ultimately the one to bring Light down, though L is far more iconic.
- Mello: The runner-up to be L's successor. Gets involved with the Mafia as part of his own Kira investigation.
- Teru Mikami: A highly fanatical Kira worshiper who Light gives the Death Note to, but he fucks everything up in the end.
- Kiyomi Takada: A newscaster who becomes Kira's spokeswoman.
