Death Note

Trying to write a coherent review about Death Note, I honestly feel a little overwhelmed. I'll just begin by saying how surprised I was that no one has listed this title yet, seeing as it has become very popular over the last two years and it has some major yaoi potential. Not only is the 12-volume manga finished since 2006, it has been made to two cinematic movies (yes, with "real actors and the whole shebang") and it has recently gained a great anime.

First of all, for those of you who've never heard of Death Note, let's start with the plot. The protagonist, high school senior Light Yagami, has it all: his IQ is shooting through the roof, he's the first-ranked student in his school, he's good-looking, a tennis champion, you name it. He's the typical perfect person, the son of Police Chief Inspector Yagami, and his life expectations are very high: he's a prospective student of Todai (Tokyo university, the Ivy league of Japan), etc.

But Light has a problem. As he puts it, he's "bored" of life and the world in general. Seems he finds no challenges in every day life. But things change: suddenly, he finds a black notebook lying on the pavement. He picks it up and all hell breaks loose.

When he picks up the notebook, a monstrous shinigami (god of death) appears in front of him and tells him that the notebook is actually a "Death Note". Death Notes are shinigamisÕ tools for killing: a shinigami carries around his Death Note, and when he finds a human he wants to kill, he writes the human's name on the notebook, and the human dies. Now that Light Yagami - a human - picked up the Death Note, he has been made the owner of the note, and as thus can kill people by writing their names. He can also command the shinigami of the note.

Light is spooked at first and is reluctant to believe that the "death note" is real. Experimentally, he writes the names of a few criminals (criminals = unworthy individuals who should die anyway), and realizes that the people whose names he's written died. It doesn't take long for the arrogant and self-absorbed Light to take it upon himself to "make the world just" by killing every single criminal on the planet. Soon, people start to take notice of the mass murders and name the mass-murderer "Kira" (killer). Light becomes committed to making the world a better place as Kira, by vanquishing evil.

The viewer watches Light's talented personality and radiant traits turn into distorted mockeries, as he channels all his energy into being a God-like mass murderer. He goes as far as to baptize himself the "God of the New World," the "new World" being a world without crime. Light seems to have an ideal criminal/ evil-free world he wants to create by killing off criminals... or is this his excuse for making his life "interesting" and alleviating his "boredom"? In any case, gradually, "Light Yagami's" original rather pleasant personality is completely replaced by the power-hungry, bloodthirsty "Kira" persona.

The plot takes the basic turn when Light's (Kira's) great rival appears. A mysterious great detective, who goes by the name of "L", takes it upon himself to uncover and arrest Kira. No one has ever seen or talked to L in person, even though he's considered the greatest detective on the planet.

And this is where things get interesting for all yaoi fans.

With L's appearance, Death Note switches from horror/supernatural to detective/mystery. Sure, it's still angsty and creepy, but the whole seriesÕ main theme is the giant power struggle between Kira (the attractive, suave, incredibly selfish Light) and L (who is later revealed to be a quirky, rather awkward, strangely good-looking, strangely sensual, incredibly selfish detective).

The two are like alter egos of each other. They share the same superior intelligence, the same heartlessness and composed demeanor when it comes to human sacrifice (albeit L is more experienced and manipulative than Light), the same passion for winning. L and Light often seem to the viewer like two chess-masters, moving around and leading human pawns to their deaths, heedless of the costs, eager to win the game.

This pairing is typically not canon, but the artist - as it has become a trend these days - has dropped hints to probe L/Light yaoi fandom. (For example, L and Light are handcuffed together for many episodes, there is some humorous talk of homosexuality, some cool fighting scenes, a dramatic scene under the rain... not to mention the friggin' foot massage scene!) If you watch the anime from episodes 1-26, there is some real eye-candy for you. Unfortunately there are no more scenes like this after episode 26, but to tell you why would spoil the plot for you.

Overall, why is this pairing so easy and exciting to imagine? L and Light are really wrong for each other, each being too much like the other. However, in a sense, there is no other character around who can work as a better pairing for either. They are both bad and good for each other. They are obviously and indisputably obsessed with each other, and each seems driven by the other's actions. It's almost as though Light's (Kira's) existence gives L's life meaning (true mental and physical stimulus) and vice versa. Both of their obvious disinterest in females (and sex with females in general) is at times disorienting. The only thing they seem to care or think about is each other. Through subtle changes in the (great) voice acting, the yaoi dreamer gets as much ammunition for angsty fantasizing as ever.

Don't be fooled. This anime is not for the weak hearted. And the L/Light slash is by no means fluffy or pink coloured. It's a relationship terrifying in its sheer, exhilarating power. It's horrible, but extremely visually tantalizing at the same time. The haunting look of the anime and the superb new-gen animation amplify the dark atmosphere of the plot.

Now don't get me wrong. The type of angst in Death Note is not like the one in Mirage of Blaze. MOB is pure BL, and is clear heart-wrenching yaoi agony which makes you writhe in your seat. Death Note is much subtler, much darker... it gets to you without you noticing it. When you see it at first you might say, "Pfft! That was complete bull! There's no yaoi in here!" My advice to you is this: wait and see. Pay attention to the plot, because its impact somehow amplifies the drama and yaoi-possibilities. Remember that this anime is plot-driven, not character-driven, and as such must be first appreciated for its plot and brilliant characters and secondly for the measure of eye candy it can offer us. Sure, Sensitive Pornograph is cool at times... but wouldn't you like to fantasize on a yaoi situation that can also stimulate your brain? Watch at least until episode 26 and then write me a response to this review, telling me how you liked it!

If you're looking for an anime that will make you think and at the same time provide a healthy dose of torturously tantalizing, but painfully unfulfilled, yaoi psychology (psychology, not physiology), this is the right choice for you.

I won't be pretentious and say I know all about seiyuu carriers or amateur/veteran seiyuu and stuff. So I can't really help you there, cause I don't follow seiyuu in general. But I speak some Japanese and found every voice actor (Japanese, not dubbed) very capable at their job. I'm just writing the impressions I received from the anime as an average yaoi viewer. I can separate good animation and good voice acting from bad one, however, and this anime ranks great in both!