Death Note Review
By mechanical-angel
Death Note Review
Takeshi Obata
Review Statistics
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- 2,957
- Comments
- 18
- Reviews
- Manga
Plot Synopsis
Story by Ooba Tsugumi; art by Obata Takeshi (The mangaka of Hikaru no Go)
The human world is rotting. The gods of death are bored.
Death Note begins when the shinigami, Ryuuku, 'accidentally' drops his death note in the human world. It is discovered by 17-year-old academic genius Yagami Raito, who decides that he wishes to create a world free of evil. To what extremes will he go, only needing a name and a face to kill? Or rather...how will he be stopped?
Story & Characters
I've got only one sentence to say.
Death Note is awesome. ^^
The story is fantastic, i was drawn to it by the end of the 1st chapter.
Characters are realistic, story is fresh and exciting and the concept of being
able to kill a person just by having a death note and knowing his face and name
is rather interesting.
A very thought-provoking manga, especially when you think of it as who is
"right" and who is "wrong". The story is full of twists, and
just when you thought something is going to happen, something else happens
instead.
This story has not much humour [even if it has, i think it's up to the reader to
decide if its funny or not], but is has action and is thrilling and the
knowledge that anyone can just die next in the story makes you
"hooked", making you want to read more after you have finished one
book.
Character wise, this manga does a great job. ^^
L is a very unique individual, with the way he sits, the way he picks up things,
the way he reads etc. Light is also portrayed very well, as a genius high school
student who picked up the death note and started using it because he was bored.
Also, even the gods of death are given different personalities, as clearly seen
from the difference in manner Ryuk, Rem and Shindou [is it spelt correctly?] act
towards humans and to different situations.
Overall, i think the plot is fantastic, but when i read the ending, somehow i felt that it was rather rushed and that the author ended it a bit too early. But i think that Tsugumi Ooba has really done a fantastic job with the plot, it really gripped me to the last page.
- Rating
- 10 (excellent)
Art
Interesting character designs.
Characters are rather life-like and very original.
The gods of death were not exactly anything close to beautiful but at the same
time, i wouldn't call them ugly. Actually, i find Ryuk rather cute. -.-"
I find the way Light and L were depicted rather interesting. Instead of having
things like the standard "hero" good looks etc, their looks were
rather unique and different, with L's dressing style and "messy"
hair.
Also, the characters looks also fit their personality, like Misa, who is a pop
idol, fits the bill with her cute looks, 2 pig tails [is it called that?] and
her blonde hair.
The style used fits the genre well, the way the world of the gods of deaths were
depicted was rather refreshing. I like the way the scenes are drawn, they are
very detailed, unlike some manga i have read.
- Rating
- 9 (very good)
Sound
No sound of course - it's a manga ^^
Dialogue is very well written, what the characters say are pretty much similar
to what we would say in everyday speech. No "catch phrases" [is it
called that? i'm thinking of something like a sentence which a particular
character says everytime he/she appears] and as a reader i can pretty much
relate to what they are saying. However as the dialogue is rather lengthy, [and
i was reading chinese..] a reader may "fall asleep" or just give up
reading it entirely. -.-"
But for the english version i dare not say the same, for i have not read it. ^^
- Rating
- 8 (good)
Presentation
Presentation is wonderful. ^^
The only thing i don't like about it is that it gets frustrating to read
sometimes as it is in chinese, and the explanations are lengthy and quite a few
"difficult" words are used. It's not that its the author's fault or
anything, but yes, sometimes lengthy dialogue/explanations makes one annoyed.
I nearly "died" reading the 2nd book.
Highly enjoyable if you're looking for a thriller and something to think about. ^^
- Rating
- 9 (very good)
Final Verdict
9.17 (very good)
Reviewed by mechanical-angel, 1y 37wk ago
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Yes, death note is one of the best manga ever written-- however i'd give the plot a nine-- once you've seen the huge twists and how intelligent the characters are, some deaths and some plot twists seem a bit too convenient for the author, some things seem a bit too easy-going... However i do agree with you in the rest-- it's definitely an awesome manga!
I read the manga some time ago but never got the chance to know the ending. I like the art and the story... well, I think it's a little bit 'twisted.' So sometime you have to recall back previous chapter to connect the story.
Nicely done review. Can't wait the live-action movie.
yeah? i read parts of the manga and watched the first episode, i am downloading the rest...but it is cool and i can't wait to watch it all...as well as watch the movie which looks awesome..
thanks for the review...enjoyed reading it..!
:)
I agree with you on many parts
story wise, i say that its 9, because sometimes things get quite repeitive
although certain parts were better. character wise, yes, light and l are both
potrayed extremely well 
both
have their side of personalities like l and his food and light with his plan.
the ending...yes, it was rushed, certain characters were neglected due to the
rush. art was pretty for certain parts *__* yup, i agree with you on everything,
for english, the presentation is much better, words aren't that long, but still
quite long, afterall, its quite a mysterious detective book.
Hmmm i found Light a little off the "main character" theme. Didnt like it after he became like...evil? Yea and there's alot of coincidences...i wont say that the art is awfully good. but it definitely suits Deathnote's type of story. if u really want life-like art, go look at lchigo 100%. better than deathnote's at any rate
I really liked L in the movie
of
course I haven't seen it yet but his image is just stuck in my mind! 
I'm gonna check out both anime/manga/movie
damn cant you get it in english it would be easier to read stupid!just go to kinokuniya in the city they hav everythin except if its sold out. now the story i fell in love with light damn misa misa she can go to hell. yagami is MINE!
Death Note is a very unique series. One of the most notable things about it is that despite being the protagonist, the main character could easily be considered the villian of the series. Watching Raito (Light)'s descent from a bored genius with visions of utopia to a diabolical mastermind whose primary goal became not being caught is one of the most fascinating examples of character development to be found in manga. Thank you for a lovely review!
xD nice
Why did it end the way it did!? :'(
Damnit now I'm going to be depressed for the next few days. I really hope they make it a bit less depressing in the anime.
Yep! I love it too but i find the way Light was drawn abit funny since i watched the movie first.
ohh is teh best manga in the last years... you'll write about the anime.. but.. wherever... about the manga of DN every chapter is more increible than last... and your finish is unique........ L rlz !
haha~i prefer the actor of L then the manga's L~lols~
this anime is so awesome. i read the manga and watched it.. but i'm not yet finished with it.
i'd
rather watch this in japanese with english subs cuz it's better that way =x but
yeah, L is coolz.
DN's op song -The World- is nice lol
I haven't watched this anime yet, but your review is excellent. I sort'a got curious to watch it. It must have a very unique plot as you described. ThanX
I didn't think that the story was that great....
I mean it was awesome until volume 5 or something then after L dies, the story is rather boring.
Yeah the artwork was great ^^
very good review!
Nice revew. Oh almost forgot Light gets creeeeeeeepy and werid
when he thinks about L almost supecting him