You Really Should Kneel.

[rionaleonhart]

On an odd whim, I started rewatching Death Note. I'd forgotten how engaging it is! I remember the details pretty well - I've seen the anime before and read (half of) the manga a couple of times - so none of it actually takes me by surprise, but it's still a great story.

Or half of it is, at least. I'll probably just watch up to the point where I usually lose interest and then skip ahead to the last couple of episodes.

There are so many stories I love where people discover new aspects of themselves through being thrown into bizarre, extreme situations. Death Note is another of those, now that I think about it. It's just that the aspect of Light that's exposed by his situation, rather than 'unexpected leadership skills' or 'hidden depths of loyalty and bravery' or 'surprisingly good at detective work when everyone's lives depend on it', is 'cunning and dedicated murderer'.

I disagree completely with Light's actions, goals and philosophy. He's the worst! But he is still easily (and perhaps predictably) my favourite character in Death Note, and I still ship him passionately and exclusively with himself. Nobody else could ever meet his standards.

Light's pride is his defining quality. He's a smart kid, he does extremely well in exams, and he knows it. He underestimates L in their first showdown because of his contempt for other people; he always thinks he's the smartest person in the room. This is why he's the only one qualified to reshape the world and become its god. It's not just his desire for power at play, but his genuine belief that he's the best person around. Obviously he's entitled to set the rules people live by; who's more intelligent and qualified than him?

What a dick. He's great.

One of my favourite early points is Light asking Ryuk, 'Why did you give me the Death Note?' He's obviously hoping to hear that Ryuk has been watching him and decided that of course Light Yagami, with his impeccable morals and unparalleled intelligence, is the one to be entrusted with power over life and death. And Ryuk just goes 'lol, I didn't choose you; I just dropped it. I had no idea who'd pick it up. Why would I write the instructions in English if I'd been planning to give it to a specific Japanese kid?' Get wrecked, Light.

Why must I be cursed to love such terrible characters? I don't care; I'm enjoying myself.

Comments

[rionaleonhart]

It's very dark, but I think a kid who likes Dangan Ronpa might well enjoy Death Note! Netflix rates it a 12, although, to be honest, I'd have expected a 15. You could try her out with the first volume of the manga, which is a bit less graphic than the anime; it looks like you can get used copies for under three pounds on Amazon. (I don't know if she's experienced with manga already; if she's not, she might need to be told that it's read from right to left.)

The concept, if that helps: a teenage boy, Light, obtains a notebook that can kill anyone whose name is written in it. He starts using it to kill huge numbers of criminals, with the goal of creating a 'perfect' world without crime. The story deals with Light's efforts to avoid being caught by the police while they try to track down this mysterious supernatural murderer.

Most of the deaths are bloodless heart attacks, but there are occasionally more graphic deaths. This early scene where a lorry hits a motorbike is on the upper end; pages/panels/text bubbles read from right to left. There's also at least one forced suicide, which doesn't take place on-screen/on-page; we see a woman walk away and we know that she'll die by suicide, because that's the instruction that Light wrote in the Death Note. (The anime shows a symbolic shot of her walking onto a gallows, but it doesn't show her death; the manga just shows her walking away down the street.)

The lorry crash scene takes place in the first episode of the anime, and also includes an attempted sexual assault that is not in the manga, which is part of the reason I think the manga might be better for a twelve-year-old. (The anime version of the scene is here, if you're curious; as stated, it contains attempted sexual assault. In the manga, the motorcyclists surround the woman to ask her out, and she's obviously uncomfortable, but they don't touch or attack her.) This is probably the most 'mature' the anime gets; if she's okay with the first episode, she'll probably be okay with the rest of it.

I hope all this is helpful! My first response was 'oh, yeah, a Dangan Ronpa fan, she'll like Death Note!', but I didn't want that instinct to override responsibility, so I thought I'd better give a detailed response and let you use your own judgement. Both Dangan Ronpa and Death Note involve a lot of murder, but the violence in Death Note is less cartoony and the tone is more serious.

[trepkos]

It sounds a bit more ... socially responsible than DR? Which basically seems like a story of sadism and depression, with no prospect of a happy ending.

[rionaleonhart]

This is an interesting question! I'd actually say Dangan Ronpa has more prospect of a happy ending, because it's clearer what sort of ending would count as 'happy'. The kids in Dangan Ronpa are victims, and it's a happy ending if they manage to band together, defeat their imprisoner and escape, although some of them may be lost along the way. Light is a mass-murderer with delusions of righteousness, but he's also the protagonist, so the possible endings are 'the character we've been following all this time is defeated', which may be the best outcome but doesn't necessarily feel happy, and 'Light succeeds in creating a new world where he dictates who lives and who dies'.

It's true that Dangan Ronpa has more outright sadism, though, whereas Death Note is about a clash of sides that both believe themselves to be in the right.

[trepkos]

I didn't realise there was any prospect of defeating the horrible bears in DR.

[rionaleonhart]

There is! The games have a handful of survivors, and there are general themes of continuing to fight and to hold on to faith in people even when the situation seems hopeless. It's pretty dark, but it's not unbearably cynical.