Death Note

[David75]

Mikami being the one responsible for Light's defeat is lame.
They insisted so much on how Mikami was strict and predictable... it's just too lame, easy, and stupid...

For the DN being the worst weapon in history, well that's over exageration again...

This end is one of many possible, but it only shows how ridiculous was light motivation. It's a pre-teen one, not the one of a very bright guy he has been sold to us.

Now remains the nothingness were light goes... Logics can't solve to problem: how is something supposed to go to nothingness....

c u

[Yukimura]

Part 1: The execution of the plot.
I've believed a lot of strange stuff in this show, but it's pretty tough for me to believe that Giovanni or whoever could break into a safety deposit box, remove the Note, copy it exactly and then break back into the safety deposit box to put it back all in one day. I understand that Light had to lose and Near had to have some kind of clever plan. But I would have much rather it was something lamer but believable. I could have believed a Death Note switch based on Mikami leading the guy to the Note buried in some obscure place, but a bank safety deposit box...come on.
The rest of Near's plan was believable enough though not all that interesting, with Mikami being the predictable and foolish guy that he is. Light didn't have much of a plan at all, let alone a grand scheming awesome plan like his memory trick, which disappointed me greatly.


Part 2: Philosophy
I personally side with Light's philosophy, because his way at least showed results. Yes it tried to force things on people, and yes Light was human and thus flawed, but on the other hand was the world he wanted to make not safer? I don't believe that people in general will ever stop doing 'bad' things while they have the opportunity. The Kira mentality makes it so that people have a concrete reason not to act up (or at least not get caught). As long as people have a choice some of them will choose the wrong path, and then what do you do with them?

If you can tie 'the wrong path' with death you can at least curtail the effects of the wrong path. Many who choose would choose 'the wrong path' do fear death and those who don't are not going to be doing much good for anyone anyway. Without divine level insight and judgment however this strategy can't make a 'perfect' world but it could at least make a world with much less crime and violence and negativity than the one we live in.

As to Near's little speech, what masa posted makes more sense and is less bs than what he said in the anime. But what is Justice? What is evil? It is different for everyone and no amount of consensus can change that fact. In the show Near tries to tear down Lights aspirations and call him nothing but an evil murderer, but from my perspective Near and his crew are eavesdropping, privacy invading, stalking, thieves. Would Near submit if someone had tried to arrest him for the crimes he committed in his pursuit of Light?
I would have preferred if Near or even L had just once admitted that they were breaking laws in the pursuit of their beliefs just like Light was. Why is Light's flaunting of the rules evil if Near's isn't. Is it because he was killing people and thus 'evil'? If murder is so 'evil' and thus more important than other laws why bother with legal rights and trials in the case of murderers? Why not just immediately punish anyone you're reasonably sure committed a murder? Hmm this is starting to sound familiar.

[pandacon]

Light's biggest mistake was how much he relied on for Mikami to kill Near, Light should of just had everyone die a little after one o'clock sans Deathnote, and then shot Near, would of made things a lot more reliable, Near would of been nearly defenseless with everyone else dead, and guns don't need faces or names. Light should of known better than to trust Mikami with this moment.

[BananaFob]

Light's biggest mistake was how much he relied on for Mikami to kill Near, Light should of just had everyone die a little after one o'clock sans Deathnote, and then shot Near, would of made things a lot more reliable, Near would of been nearly defenseless with everyone else dead, and guns don't need faces or names. Light should of known better than to trust Mikami with this moment.

How would he have done it if he was under the surveillance of his small police group, and if Mikami had a fake Death Note? I believe Light only had the small piece of the Note in his watch and none other besides Misa's Death Note (I forgot, I only read the manga). Light also didn't know the names and faces of N's group as well, so how could he kill them?

For the DN being the worst weapon in history, well that's over exageration again...

It's the best. You can kill anybody you want without touching them, or even being contact with them as long as you know their name and face. When you can kill them, I can control their actions. How about the situation when Light (or was it Mello?) threatened to kill the US President and control him to fire nukes? The Death Note itself as evidence, can easily be erased by giving up ownership or burning it.

[Lucifus]

Simple review:
Uh...Hated Lights guts, Great effing ending. L, Mello and Near are the shyt.

Lots of blood and insane people....just the way I likes it.

[Darknodin]

for me... This Ending Sucks!.. Light shoulda won... or Mello or better yet... Ryuk in some weird way. Near was just too arrogant for me.

Light has been lame since the time skip tho

[RoCk]

Seeing light fall down like that and be in such a state really pissed me off

light was an idol, this episode made him go from michael jackson king of pop to michael jackson the child molestor.

but its okay, in my mind, michael jackson the king of pop died a long time ago. Light will be like that too and I will fail to acknowledge episode 37 :P

[masamuneehs]

the entire end is supposed to be Light's fall from grace, which is why I didn't like how they gave him such a peaceful death. In the manga, he's begging Ryuk to side with him (and for one hot second, you really think Ryuk might just kill Near and all of them). But Mikami forsakes him (doesn't commity suicide until years later) and Ryuk laughs at him, telling him the final rules.

All humans eventually die.
All humans, upon death, go to the void.

and Light cries and begs for his life and it's very moving, one of the few times I almost felt compassion for him.

Ryuk DOES win! He was entertained, and that was what it was all about for him.

Possibly the only loose end is how does Giovanni get into Mikami's safe deposit box? The American govt, the Japanese govt, and many others had officially declared they'd not go against Kira at this point, and they never specify how he gets and manages to perfectly copy the Death Note.

Light may have been an idol. But, like Michael Jackson, he was only human. And all humans die. And all humans fail, at some point. I thought it was a fitting ending, because otherwise it would send the message that 'you can do whatever you want and live life according to your personal judgments, killing others at your discretion, as long as you don't get caught / manage to maintain your power'

[Sandldan]

I really liked this part a whole lot better in the manga, mainly for the reasons masamuneehs stated. I also miss the aftertalk between Matsuda and Aizawa around one year after the incident.
All in all was pretty annoyed with the series when finishing it at first. In the first part i was vouching on L then he dies, after that part i took a break in my reading. After that i started to vouch for Light... but then he died.

Also found this altered manga page pretty fun, got no idea what they say though. Been saving this picture until the series ended, some might like this alternate ending better ;o

[Pure2500]

I liked the manga ending better, the anime ending was too soft on Light, probably because there is a lot of Light's fans out there.

Part 2: Philosophy
I personally side with Light's philosophy, because his way at least showed results. Yes it tried to force things on people, and yes Light was human and thus flawed, but on the other hand was the world he wanted to make not safer? I don't believe that people in general will ever stop doing 'bad' things while they have the opportunity. The Kira mentality makes it so that people have a concrete reason not to act up (or at least not get caught). As long as people have a choice some of them will choose the wrong path, and then what do you do with them?

If you can tie 'the wrong path' with death you can at least curtail the effects of the wrong path. Many who choose would choose 'the wrong path' do fear death and those who don't are not going to be doing much good for anyone anyway. Without divine level insight and judgment however this strategy can't make a 'perfect' world but it could at least make a world with much less crime and violence and negativity than the one we live in.

As to Near's little speech, what masa posted makes more sense and is less bs than what he said in the anime. But what is Justice? What is evil? It is different for everyone and no amount of consensus can change that fact. In the show Near tries to tear down Lights aspirations and call him nothing but an evil murderer, but from my perspective Near and his crew are eavesdropping, privacy invading, stalking, thieves. Would Near submit if someone had tried to arrest him for the crimes he committed in his pursuit of Light?
I would have preferred if Near or even L had just once admitted that they were breaking laws in the pursuit of their beliefs just like Light was. Why is Light's flaunting of the rules evil if Near's isn't. Is it because he was killing people and thus 'evil'? If murder is so 'evil' and thus more important than other laws why bother with legal rights and trials in the case of murderers? Why not just immediately punish anyone you're reasonably sure committed a murder? Hmm this is starting to sound familiar.

What is justice and what is evil, everyone have their point of view. Light have no right to judge who's evil and who's not, he is just a God wannabe.It has been mentioned before in the anime, what Light created is a peaceful world created by fear.
Like you mentioned, if killing people is evil why bother with legal rights and trials in case of murderers. Have you ever wondered that through all the killing done by Light there is people that have been wrongly accused or framed ?

[David75]

Light may have been an idol. But, like Michael Jackson, he was only human. And all humans die. And all humans fail, at some point. I thought it was a fitting ending, because otherwise it would send the message that 'you can do whatever you want and live life according to your personal judgments, killing others at your discretion, as long as you don't get caught / manage to maintain your power'

IRL some very dirty bad ass bastard died at a very old age from a very peaceful death...
They were not living in their mother country or region, but the replacement was fine...

I think of some mass murders of the past...

The thing is, of course Light had to die, had to loose.

But the way they did this isn't up to the level of the begining of the show.
They just tricked us like in a bad Z movie... that"s why I'm angry, just because
the scenarist "lied" in order to finish the series. It's understandable for a Z movie,
not for DN...
I think they had so many possibilities they didn't exploit... And the way they
draw light and mikami when they become sicos... the total change in their behaviour.
Tss, give me a break.


c u

[Raven]

I would have preferred if Near or even L had just once admitted that they were breaking laws in the pursuit of their beliefs just like Light was. Why is Light's flaunting of the rules evil if Near's isn't. Is it because he was killing people and thus 'evil'? If murder is so 'evil' and thus more important than other laws why bother with legal rights and trials in the case of murderers? Why not just immediately punish anyone you're reasonably sure committed a murder? Hmm this is starting to sound familiar.

Well said, I agree. Talk about double standards.

And the way they
draw light and mikami when they become sicos... the total change in their behaviour.
Tss, give me a break.

It's a sad fact that people will act extremely different when desperate or threatened, even the most calm, controlled and rational ones. Not to mention that Mikami's world was pretty much falling apart as he watched the ultimate loss and failure of his God.

I liked this ending. Not because I was against Light (I was rooting for him the whole way), but because I knew it had to turn out this way eventually, and the way they did it felt satisfying to me.

I have to say, without starting any arguments, that I agreed with a lot of what Light believed in. There have been many times when I've seen the actions of a truly terrible person and thought "gee, the world sure would be better off without him/her". The only difference with Light was that he was given the power to act on these feelings. Now, I'm not saying I have it within me to kill someone, but hypothetically if I was the one who found the notebook I'd have to think long and hard about what I'd do, rather than just throw it away immediately. I mean, think of how different the world would be if someone wrote down Osama Bin Laden's name, for example. But does anyone really have the right to choose whose name is written? I'd say no, they don't. That wouldn't stop me thinking about it however.

Light was corrupt, it's true. He basically was prepared to kill anyone, including his own family, to reach his goals. The series couldn't end with him winning, not after the way he's been portrayed throughout. But like Yukimura said, it's not like the opposing side was perfect in their morality, etc. I would have liked Near or Light to admit their wrongdoings rather than proclaim themselves the enlightened saviours. The series kind of showed them to be too perfectly righteous, imo. That's only a niggling little side thing for me though.

By the way, do we know how Mikami actually killed himself? He had a knife on him the whole time? Also, I would have liked to see the aftermath where people realized Kira was gone, and especially the reactions of Light's family when they found out the truth.

Additionally, I can't quite remember Ryuk saying he would be the one to write Light's name in his notebook, like he mentioned in the final episode. Does anyone recall when he said this originally?

[Sandldan]

Additionally, I can't quite remember Ryuk saying he would be the one to write Light's name in his notebook, like he mentioned in the final episode. Does anyone recall when he said this originally?

He mentions it in the first episode

And when you die i'll be the one writing your name in my notebook

[masamuneehs]

double standards?

Light's killing people based on reputation, internet reports, and potentially flawed information doesn't hold a candle of 'standards' in it compared to L/Near who risk their own lives in order to concretely find who Kira is...

Why not just immediately punish anyone you're reasonably sure committed a murder?

cuz if you get it wrong, you're the fucking murderer! You'd be pissed if you or someone you know got arrested for a crime and punished immediately just because the cops were fairly sure (read: too lazy to investigate further) that that person was the perpetrator.
The only remotely "just" way to hand out punishments is to first confirm that you've got the actual person who committed the crimes. And that can take time and a lot of hassle.. (now does this sound familair?)

I think people are upset because the mangaka couldn't come up with a truly mind-blowing way for Near to trump Light. Yes, there are holes and conveniences in the plot that favor Near. There are also conveniences that favored Light (her name is Amane Misa).

People also seem to somehow think that spying on suspected criminals and invasion of privacy are comparable to murder. Sure, in a perfect world, Near wouldn't need to have done such things. But, his alternatives would be to summarily haul in and punish someone without confirming their guilt (Light's method) or let Kira continue to kill. And honestly, when it's the biggest serial killer in history (that's what Light is), you just can't let that person go.

[el_boss]

It was a good ending but Near's plan sucked cock.

[Uberbaka]

Rooting for light the entire way through, bummed that he lost. But what bothered me the most was the lack of aftermath/afterthought.

I was atleast hoping for a dialogue _between_ Light and Ryuk.. Maybe in the other world or something. Or Light becoming a death god or something amusing like that which would have meant he didn't suffer total defeat.

Oh well.

Fantastic series anyway.

[masamuneehs]

edit - Ruberia Fansub Group has released Version 2 of Death Note Episode 37- Ruberia

I was atleast hoping for a dialogue _between_ Light and Ryuk..

You should read the last two chapters of the manga then. Actually, just about everything Ryuk said in the anime while up on that tower, he actually says to Light's face, inside of the Yellow Box in the manga. And Light is quite pathetic... The majority of the conversation is a flashback, back in Light's house during one of his first conversations with Ryuk about the Note. The flashback is followed immediately by Light's death, which concludes the story (then the next chapter is sorta an epilogue with Matsuda and Ide talking)

Ryuk: "Death Note users shouldn't think about going to Heaven or Hell. You'll enjoy it after you die.

Light: "Won't go to Heaven or Hell... that's enough for me to understand, Ryuk.

Ryuk: "Hn? About what?"

Light: "There's neither Heaven nor Hell, is there?"

Ryuk: ! ... ... *smiling* "You really surprised me. I thought every human believed in Heaven and Hell. Ah, just as you said, Heaven and Hell don't exist.

Shinigami are ANCIENT, old as who knows what. This is hinted at early on, since most of the Shinigami are bored to tears in their world, even bored with the human world. The relative boredom among Shinigami seems to suggest that the they've been at their task for a very long time. So no new Shinigami, at least not from mankind...

[BananaFob]

Could someone please translate this image? I would really like to know what they're saying and what is happening.

[Bucket]

I suppose this is as good as I can expect out of a series. I mean, I wasn't expecting Light to win (though it would've been a great spin if he did). What I did expect was something less contrived than the book being "fake real real fake real fake fake". I also have more questions:

- If Light was truly cornered, why didn't he play his trump card and ask for shinigami eyes? It's not like he had anything to lose-- and if he did that, he could buy plenty of time.
- Weren't there 3 books? One for Light, one for the girl and the third from the dead shinigami. I know there's one book unaccounted for; why didn't Light include it in a contingency plan?
- Speaking of contingencies, why didn't he even HAVE one? He should've had one, even if he thought his victory was assured. It seems very uncharacteristic of Light to hinge his entire plan on one crazy-ass follower of his. The guy might have been smart and predictable, but still out of his mind and prone to make mistakes.
- There are a bunch of actions related to characters that I can't swallow: Light just plain giving up, Mello agreeing to be a sacrificial lamb...

Oh well. 36 great episodes out of 37 is a good run.

[David75]

I suppose this is as good as I can expect out of a series. I mean, I wasn't expecting Light to win (though it would've been a great spin if he did). What I did expect was something less contrived than the book being "fake real real fake real fake fake". I also have more questions:

- If Light was truly cornered, why didn't he play his trump card and ask for shinigami eyes? It's not like he had anything to lose-- and if he did that, he could buy plenty of time.
- Weren't there 3 books? One for Light, one for the girl and the third from the dead shinigami. I know there's one book unaccounted for; why didn't Light include it in a contingency plan?
- Speaking of contingencies, why didn't he even HAVE one? He should've had one, even if he thought his victory was assured. It seems very uncharacteristic of Light to hinge his entire plan on one crazy-ass follower of his. The guy might have been smart and predictable, but still out of his mind and prone to make mistakes.
- There are a bunch of actions related to characters that I can't swallow: Light just plain giving up, Mello agreeing to be a sacrificial lamb...

Oh well. 36 great episodes out of 37 is a good run.

Mikami got 2 DNs
The Police had one too they brought in ep 35.

c u