Death Note
I have to natter on about this series now that I've finished watching it.
I have to say that this is one of the most intelligent anime I've seen in a very long time. All of the Machiavellian mind fuckery! *__* It was amazing! It was such a tongue-in-cheek metaphor for our "end times", and its use of metaphor within itself was just magnificent. Wheels within wheels. L with his sweets, Near with his toys, Mello's chocolate. I also really enjoyed how each character became isolated in his or her aura color when they were thinking really hard about something. Aizawa being green, Matsuda yellow, L blue, Light as red. Each color was so very fitting.
I have to say that Ryuuku, L, Aizawa, Matsuda, and Mogi were my favorite characters. (That's how good this anime was. Even the secondary and tertiary characters were brilliantly executed and full of personality.) Everyone and everything in this series had a purpose and a function and the only "error" that I could pick out in all of it was when Light suddenly started calling "N" Near and Near answered without hesitation. For all of the secrecy and cloak and dagger up to that point, it was just a glaring error. Not that it made much difference to anything at all, it just didn't fit.
Yagami Light - Pride goeth before the fall homes, but I have to hand it to this guy, he really was one of the Big Boys and not just some stupid kid playing at power games. He had an ideal and he stuck to it. He was blindingly intelligent and underneath it all, he was a good kid. However, absolute power corrupts absolutely. That was so clearly illustrated when he first gave up the notebook during his confinement. The change was startling and I don't blame L one bit for being as confused as he was. He was also the first "villain" that I truly detested. Why? Because he was just like every other megalomaniacal and delusional tyrant that tried to take over the world. He took away the one true gift that any of us really have: free will. You can't control people. They will always fight it. All you can do is educate them as much as possible and hope for the best. Light however, wanted to be god and wanted to be recognized as god. He wanted people to conform to what his ideal of a "perfect world" was. The world is the messy jigsaw that it is simply because it IS so full of people and no two have the same idea of anything. He was completely delusional, arrogant...he was Lucifer rather than God. So full of light and passion and heady idealism that he became blinded by it. Everything he did, he did knowingly, and I laughed and laughed and laughed when his perfect little world started to crumble around him. The sheer number of times he had to pass off the notebook to avoid getting caught should have been a glaring clue that maybe, just maybe, he was a little bit in the wrong.
Amane Misa - I'm getting her out of the way now because I fucking hated her. All she was was a bad Harley Quinn knock off. She was just too stupid, but her bubbleheadedness and pretty face made her the perfect beard for Light.
L - I don't think I've ever seen anyone so lonely in my life. This guy was stupidly brilliant and adorable. He was such a neurotic little mess! All I wanted to do was give him a hug and feed him more sweets, and to watch him work. He was damn genius, but as usual, those smarts put him so far out in left field that he just couldn't function normally with other people. Also, he was like freaking Batman. He had more money than god and a doting old "butler" who just happened to be an ex-soldier/sniper. Their dynamic made me giggle so very much. L knew he was right about Light and Misa the entire time, but that soft heart of his always made him doubt just a little bit. I think he genuinely liked Light as he was an actual match for him. Their mental fencing must have made him so giddy and fizzy inside. And Misa. She's a pretty girl. He's a young guy. He had SUCH a crush on her. I felt so bad for him because she would never notice because he wasn't conventionally handsome(he totally had that quirky kind of cute that you either love or hate) as Light was. (Not that Misa would have been any good for him but sometimes you just want a pretty person to smile at you and only you. >_>) I was SO pissed off when he died. I was about ready to call it quits with this show then and there.
Near and Mello - And that brings me to these two. I was so very pleased when Near admitted that he wasn't as good as L, that the only way he could ever match or surpass L was because of Mello as well. That was my initial impression and why I was left so dissatisfied with L's replacements. However, they managed to do a decent job of it and get the rat bastard to confess himself. I don't think I'll ever understand fandom's ruckus over Mello. He was nothing special and certainly not attractive in the least. Near was "near"ly a carbon copy of L which only made me want to kick him. In the end though, they both proved useful, but I was still left unhappy and unimpressed with them. (as it took BOTH of them to replace L.)
Ryuuku - OMFG! This guy has to be the biggest troublemaker in the entire freaking universe! Intelligent as hell and bored out of his mind; a very bad combination. He was sweet, funny, energetic, and just ridiculously adorable. He was in it all for the lulz, which I totally respect as people are hilarious. He and L had the purest drives in this series. Except for Rem, who was just too serious for her own good and who's good heart got the better of her for Misa's sake. (the wretched little bitch SO did not deserve that sacrifice!) When I die, if I get to see a Shinigami, I really hope that it's like Ryuuku. Then I could be sure that all of this wasn't in vain because at least SOMEONE was getting some entertainment out of it all. Also, apple addiction. I totally identify!
Yagami Souichirou - This man has my complete and utter admiration, and also my compassion. He was a truly good man. He did everything he could to see justice done all the while playing by the book himself. If he made any mistakes at all it was being blinded by his own hope. Light did not deserve this man as a father and he deserved a much better son than Light.
Matsuda - He was just freaking adorable. He was definitely the comic relief of the crew (except for Aizawa's unintentional hilarity). He was cute as hell and utterly genuine in all of his actions. I can't believe that I suspected him of treachery early on, but then everyone was a suspect at that point.
Aizawa - Dude, his wife and daughter are the luckiest women on the face of that animated planet. He was such a stalwart badass but all of his motivation was from that soft gooey heart of his. He was so funny every time he yelled at everyone to be more serious, but then he goes and cries when he gets his hair cut to disguise himself! You don't get cuter than that!
Mogi - Always doubted himself so much, but he always passed with flying colors. Especially, as serious and quiet as he is, he had to play super energetic and supportive as Misa's manager. I think the playacting rubbed off on him a little bit because he was certainly more open after that. Just watching him with that huge smile on his face, both hands in the air, and cheering her on at the top of his lungs was utterly precious. Then he goes and sits on the couch all "that was totally unbelievable. I can't do this." xD I just wanted to squish him!
I think that's everybody. ^^; I just really enjoyed this series. Watching Light's rise and consequent fall was an experience. And slash moment: When L was drying off Light's feet after they came in from the rain! I so don't like the idea of an actual pairing between the two because Light is just an asshole, it's amazing on an intellectual level. As superficially distasteful as it is, Light really is the only decent match for L. They could compete with and match each other in everything, and they enjoyed it. L deserves that at least, someone who can actually challenge him. I loved the way they beat the shit out of each other too. Their interaction just made me happy in a really stupid, fangirl kinda way. x3 (but it was all intellectual! I swear!! >_>)
What Death Note Character Are You?
The Jung Type Death Note Test
I have to say that this is one of the most intelligent anime I've seen in a very long time. All of the Machiavellian mind fuckery! *__* It was amazing! It was such a tongue-in-cheek metaphor for our "end times", and its use of metaphor within itself was just magnificent. Wheels within wheels. L with his sweets, Near with his toys, Mello's chocolate. I also really enjoyed how each character became isolated in his or her aura color when they were thinking really hard about something. Aizawa being green, Matsuda yellow, L blue, Light as red. Each color was so very fitting.
I have to say that Ryuuku, L, Aizawa, Matsuda, and Mogi were my favorite characters. (That's how good this anime was. Even the secondary and tertiary characters were brilliantly executed and full of personality.) Everyone and everything in this series had a purpose and a function and the only "error" that I could pick out in all of it was when Light suddenly started calling "N" Near and Near answered without hesitation. For all of the secrecy and cloak and dagger up to that point, it was just a glaring error. Not that it made much difference to anything at all, it just didn't fit.
Yagami Light - Pride goeth before the fall homes, but I have to hand it to this guy, he really was one of the Big Boys and not just some stupid kid playing at power games. He had an ideal and he stuck to it. He was blindingly intelligent and underneath it all, he was a good kid. However, absolute power corrupts absolutely. That was so clearly illustrated when he first gave up the notebook during his confinement. The change was startling and I don't blame L one bit for being as confused as he was. He was also the first "villain" that I truly detested. Why? Because he was just like every other megalomaniacal and delusional tyrant that tried to take over the world. He took away the one true gift that any of us really have: free will. You can't control people. They will always fight it. All you can do is educate them as much as possible and hope for the best. Light however, wanted to be god and wanted to be recognized as god. He wanted people to conform to what his ideal of a "perfect world" was. The world is the messy jigsaw that it is simply because it IS so full of people and no two have the same idea of anything. He was completely delusional, arrogant...he was Lucifer rather than God. So full of light and passion and heady idealism that he became blinded by it. Everything he did, he did knowingly, and I laughed and laughed and laughed when his perfect little world started to crumble around him. The sheer number of times he had to pass off the notebook to avoid getting caught should have been a glaring clue that maybe, just maybe, he was a little bit in the wrong.
Amane Misa - I'm getting her out of the way now because I fucking hated her. All she was was a bad Harley Quinn knock off. She was just too stupid, but her bubbleheadedness and pretty face made her the perfect beard for Light.
L - I don't think I've ever seen anyone so lonely in my life. This guy was stupidly brilliant and adorable. He was such a neurotic little mess! All I wanted to do was give him a hug and feed him more sweets, and to watch him work. He was damn genius, but as usual, those smarts put him so far out in left field that he just couldn't function normally with other people. Also, he was like freaking Batman. He had more money than god and a doting old "butler" who just happened to be an ex-soldier/sniper. Their dynamic made me giggle so very much. L knew he was right about Light and Misa the entire time, but that soft heart of his always made him doubt just a little bit. I think he genuinely liked Light as he was an actual match for him. Their mental fencing must have made him so giddy and fizzy inside. And Misa. She's a pretty girl. He's a young guy. He had SUCH a crush on her. I felt so bad for him because she would never notice because he wasn't conventionally handsome(he totally had that quirky kind of cute that you either love or hate) as Light was. (Not that Misa would have been any good for him but sometimes you just want a pretty person to smile at you and only you. >_>) I was SO pissed off when he died. I was about ready to call it quits with this show then and there.
Near and Mello - And that brings me to these two. I was so very pleased when Near admitted that he wasn't as good as L, that the only way he could ever match or surpass L was because of Mello as well. That was my initial impression and why I was left so dissatisfied with L's replacements. However, they managed to do a decent job of it and get the rat bastard to confess himself. I don't think I'll ever understand fandom's ruckus over Mello. He was nothing special and certainly not attractive in the least. Near was "near"ly a carbon copy of L which only made me want to kick him. In the end though, they both proved useful, but I was still left unhappy and unimpressed with them. (as it took BOTH of them to replace L.)
Ryuuku - OMFG! This guy has to be the biggest troublemaker in the entire freaking universe! Intelligent as hell and bored out of his mind; a very bad combination. He was sweet, funny, energetic, and just ridiculously adorable. He was in it all for the lulz, which I totally respect as people are hilarious. He and L had the purest drives in this series. Except for Rem, who was just too serious for her own good and who's good heart got the better of her for Misa's sake. (the wretched little bitch SO did not deserve that sacrifice!) When I die, if I get to see a Shinigami, I really hope that it's like Ryuuku. Then I could be sure that all of this wasn't in vain because at least SOMEONE was getting some entertainment out of it all. Also, apple addiction. I totally identify!
Yagami Souichirou - This man has my complete and utter admiration, and also my compassion. He was a truly good man. He did everything he could to see justice done all the while playing by the book himself. If he made any mistakes at all it was being blinded by his own hope. Light did not deserve this man as a father and he deserved a much better son than Light.
Matsuda - He was just freaking adorable. He was definitely the comic relief of the crew (except for Aizawa's unintentional hilarity). He was cute as hell and utterly genuine in all of his actions. I can't believe that I suspected him of treachery early on, but then everyone was a suspect at that point.
Aizawa - Dude, his wife and daughter are the luckiest women on the face of that animated planet. He was such a stalwart badass but all of his motivation was from that soft gooey heart of his. He was so funny every time he yelled at everyone to be more serious, but then he goes and cries when he gets his hair cut to disguise himself! You don't get cuter than that!
Mogi - Always doubted himself so much, but he always passed with flying colors. Especially, as serious and quiet as he is, he had to play super energetic and supportive as Misa's manager. I think the playacting rubbed off on him a little bit because he was certainly more open after that. Just watching him with that huge smile on his face, both hands in the air, and cheering her on at the top of his lungs was utterly precious. Then he goes and sits on the couch all "that was totally unbelievable. I can't do this." xD I just wanted to squish him!
I think that's everybody. ^^; I just really enjoyed this series. Watching Light's rise and consequent fall was an experience. And slash moment: When L was drying off Light's feet after they came in from the rain! I so don't like the idea of an actual pairing between the two because Light is just an asshole, it's amazing on an intellectual level. As superficially distasteful as it is, Light really is the only decent match for L. They could compete with and match each other in everything, and they enjoyed it. L deserves that at least, someone who can actually challenge him. I loved the way they beat the shit out of each other too. Their interaction just made me happy in a really stupid, fangirl kinda way. x3 (but it was all intellectual! I swear!! >_>)
What Death Note Character Are You?
The Jung Type Death Note Test