Matt

Matt (マット, Matto), whose real name is Mail Jeevas (マイル・ジーヴァス, Mairu Jīvasu), is a consort of Mello's. A character in the manga and anime versions, Matt was also a former resident of Wammy's orphanage; Ohba described him as the "third most talented member" of the house. Matt is Mello's helper as Matt performs espionage work and acts as an accomplice in Takada's kidnapping, which results in his death when he is shot by Takada's bodyguards. He is voiced by Tomohiro Nishimura in the Japanese anime and by Drew Nelson in English dub.
According to How to Read, Matt enjoys video games and is not outgoing. He also seems to be a chain smoker. He uses his last breath to smoke his cigarette. He is also behind Near and Mello in succeeding L.
Ohba said that he created Matt because when Mello started to act alone Ohba believed that he would find difficulty in advancing the story unless Mello had a character to interact with. Ohba said that to a reader Matt may appear to play video games and have no other actions, but he said that Matt's existence was "important" in the story. In response to a question inquiring about which characters the creators had the most difficulty creating, Ohba cited Matt and said "I didn't even know what kind of person he was!"
Obata said that he did not receive advance notice regarding Matt, who had the character concept of "a young man who loves gaming and doesn't really care much about the world." Obata said that he remembered seeing the thumbnails and asking his editor "Who's this character?!" The thumbnails gave Matt a bowl haircut and goggles; Obata instead drew "what I liked." Obata added that he could "create Matt naturally" as he had a "he probably won't do much" mentality regarding characters introduced in the Near and Mello arc. His birthday is February 1, 1990.

Beyond Birthday

Debut Death Note: Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Case


Birthday Unknown

Deathdate January 21, 2004 (2007 in the anime)

Also known as B, BB, Rue Ryuzaki

Sign Unknown

Age ?

Status at debut Serial killer, former Wammy's House resident

Relations L, Watari

Seiyū N/A

Voice actor N/A

Beyond Birthday (also known as Rue Ryuzaki/B, BB) was the 2nd child taken in at Wammy's House, in an attempt to create a successor for L, and was the serial killer behind the Los Angeles BB Murder Case.


Beyond Birthday has never appeared in the manga, anime, or film series to date, but the BB Case was briefly alluded to in both manga and anime. He was born with Shinigami Eyes, which allowed him to see and know when exactly people around him would die, as well as knowing their full names. He uses this ability to pick his victims and kill them when they would have been destined to die. It is unknown how he could have possibly been born with the eyes, though Mello wonders if a Shinigami dropped its eyeballs to Earth (instead of a Death Note). Some have claimed that Beyond Birthday is a cannibal, but this is only a rumor. The novel did not say anything about him eating his victims' remains. Though this could be true, further information has yet to be revealed. During the investigation of the Los Angeles BB Murder Cases with Naomi Misora, B is described to have jars filled with strawberry jam in the victim's fridge. Some people also speculate that similar to L and Mello's craving for sweets, Beyond Birthday craves strawberry jam. However, he was only said to have eaten an entire jar one time in Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Murder Cases and Naomi Misora never witnessed him doing so again, though she herself wondered about the same thing. It is possible that his love of sweets during the entire time with Naomi Misora was a charade as well. Although mentioned only once in the book, it is also implied that Beyond Birthday practices laughing quite often. Also, it is interesting to note that his laughter is referred to by Mello as a "Shinigami's laugh."

Note: Beyond Birthday exists as a character in the novel "Another Note." The events from this canon Death Note novel occur before the storylines of both the manga and anime.

HistoryLittle is known about B, though he and A (real name unknown) were the first two children in line to succeed L. The pressure of Wammy's House proved to be too great for A,which caused A to commit suicide, while B wound up running away at some point.

His whereabouts remained unknown from May 2002 to the beginning of the story, L having tracked cases around the world to search for him. Beyond Birthday came up with a plan to surpass L, as the "World's Greatest Criminal", giving L a case that B hoped he would be unable to solve.

VictimsBelieve BridesmaidBeyond Birthday's first known victim was the freelance writer Believe Bridesmaid, whom he killed July 31st, 2002, after drugging him and then choking him with a rope. Four Wara Ningyo (straw dolls) were left at the crime scene, and in post-mortem mutilation, Bridesmaid's chest was slashed several times; the killer also took the time to re-dress him. When looking at the autopsy photos, Naomi Misora found that the wounds were made to resemble letters (in actuality, a Roman numeral code spelling out the name of the next victim).

Quarter QueenThe second murder happened four days later, on August 4th. The victim, Quarter Queen (a 13-year-old girl), was also drugged before her death, the cause of which was blunt force trauma to her skull. Her eyes were also crushed in further post-mortem mutilation. Three Wara Ningyo were left at the scene of the crime.

Backyard BottomslashThe third killing happened nine days after Quarter Queen's murder. Backyard Bottomslash was a 28-year-old bank worker who had also been drugged before her death, though her age fell in-between those of the previous two victims (44 and 13). This happened when Beyond Birthday wanted to find out if a human can die of an internal hemorrhage without rupturing any organs. Beyond Birthday conducted this experiment by drugging and then beating Backyard Bottomslash's left arm without breaking the skin. When this did not work, her death was caused by loss of blood, with her right leg and left arm cut off. The right leg was discovered in the bathtub later. The left arm was taken by Beyond Birthday. Two Wara Ningyo were found nailed to the walls in a similar manner to the other two cases.

Beyond Birthday next to L.FateOn August 22nd, Naomi arrives at the location where the next BB murder will be committed, and comes to realize that Rue Ryuzaki, the mysterious private investigator she has been working with, isn't what he seems. After figuring out several clues, she finds that Ryuzaki is in fact Beyond Birthday, and that the final murder is actually his attempted suicide. She manages to stop B from burning himself to death, and arrests him.

A year and a half later, on January 21st 2004, Beyond Birthday dies of a heart attack in prison, presumably one of the many criminals killed by Kira. (If the events of this novel are canon to the anime as well, he would have died in 2007).

Look-alikesThroughout the novel, the reader is initially unaware that Rue Ryuzaki, whom Misora thought of as just some suspicious young man, is Beyond Birthday. Readers are led to believe that he is L in person. This is because of his mannerisms and description (black hair, dark bags beneath the eyes, bad posture, love for sweets, and sitting position). It is in fact BB pretending to be L, using his acting skills to pass as a copy of the L he possibly knew or heard about. He had obviously never seen L totally in person, given the fact that he did not know L's lifespan or real name. The undisguised Beyond Birthday is mentioned at points in the novel.

Due to his resemblance to L, it is unknown if the artwork featured in DN:Another Note is Beyond Birthday or L. Some fans believe it to be L, especially since he does not have red eyes, which the fans have begun to connect with Shinigami Eyes. However, it was mentioned in the manga that it is impossible for a human to see if another human has "The Eyes" or not, making Shinigami Eyes appear normal.

Others have pointed out that it is unlikely that there would be two protagonists in the artwork, as opposed to the protagonist as well as the antagonist. In addition to that, there is a distinguishable "B" in between the two characters, implying that the character may very well in fact be Beyond Birthday. However, there is no way of knowing until it is either confirmed or denied by Tsugumi Ohba or Takeshi Obata. His natural eye color is unknown, though the general assumption is that he wears grey contacts to further disguise himself as L.

Creator

Tsugami Ohba: The Writer
Ohba is a writer no one really knows about. Most say he/she is an anonymous pen name writer. So here, I'll just post some random things that are mentioned in the Panels. Ohba was born in Tokyo, has a hobby collecting Teacups, and develops manga plots day and night while holding knees on a chair (like L :P).
From recent sources, one of which is a friend of an assistant of a JUMP comic, we strongly believe that the author of DEATH NOTE is actually Hiroshi Gamou, who was the author of the JUMP series Tottemo! Luckyman. The reason why Gamou chose to hide his identity is strongly due (as was related by sources) to the fact that the series is very different from his past work (VERY TRUE!). Gamou was born on August 17, 1962 in Tokyo Japan and has the blood type B. Some of Gamou’s previous assistants included Murata Yuichiro (Eyeshield 21) & Nishi Yoshiyuki (Muhyo & Rosie). (I will collect more info on this person later).

Panel Commentaries
The various commentaries (author notes), as translated by Viz in the English manga releases of DN.

Volume 9: I wonder what that was? Whenever I have a strange question in my head, I always blame the old man for it. For example, I am certain that I filled the bathtub, but I find the tub empty. That is because Mr. Pull-the-bath-plug dropped by my house. I wonder what that was…?
Volume 11: To be truthful, I don’t know a lot about difficult subjects, but now that I’ve been given the opportunity to write something here, I struggled to create a great quote or saying that would live on through the centuries. I really tried hard, and it’s not supposed to be a joke or anything. What do you think of this:
“There are no Nudists in Cold Areas.”

Takeshi Obata: The Artist

Takeshi Obata was born on February 11, 1969. He is 174 cm tall, 53kg (at the time of Hikaru No Go), blood type AB. In general, Takeshi is famous for his art, as he collaborates with writers. Some of his works include Hikaru No Go (with Yumi Hotta from 1998 to 2003/04), Ayatsuri Sakon (with Sharakumaro), and Arabian Majin Bokentan Lamp Lamp (with Susumu Sendo). He was sensei to Nobuhiro Watsuki ( Rurouni Kenshin ) and stated in an interview, that he has about 5-6 assistants at a time. For coloring, Obata uses Copic (alcohol based) markers, from the lightest to darkest shades. After the completion of Hikaru No Go, Takeshi paired up with Ohba, and worked on Death Note. His brilliant artwork is known almost to everyone, and sadly, not much is known about him… He likes riding his bicycle ^^.

Panel Commentaries
The various commentaries (author notes), as translated by Viz in the English manga releases of DN.

Volume 1: I hear that the comic version of “Death Note” will first hit Japanese bookstores on April 2, 2004.
Snow Melt flows into streams
And below the dancing petals of cherry blossoms
Stirred by the spring wind
First graders, brightly colored with their shiny leather
backpacks
Hold hands and step out toward hope on the green
Volume 2: Is it okay to draw shinigami? Will I be cursed for doing this? I draw the manga with fear and trembling.
Volume 3: Walking along a street in a small town, I come to a T-intersection and turn right. At the next T-intersection, I turn left. I keep repeating this pattern, wondering how far I’ll get. Finally, I end up on a large road, where I’m not going to come to any T-intersections for a long time, so I turn around and head back. But on the return journey, all the T-intersections I’d turned at have been transformed into plain old side streets. “This is a mystery, this is a trick!” I think, as I ask passers-by for help going home. Just one memory from a foolish childhood dream.
Volume 4: I really loved the old T.V. show Ogon Bat (click here for more info). The main character was a gold skeleton with a creepy laugh, but he was a good guy! Am I the only one who’d like to see a modern remake using CGI?
Volume 5: I figured I’d at least try hard to not be so wordy here. I’m fine and I’m working hard.
Volume 6: The other day I got an x-ray and saw my own bones. It was a pretty shocking image to me. Am I always talking about bones here because of all those shinigami drawing?
Volume 7: I recently moved and couldn’t locate any of my art supplies. Though for some reason I had origami paper, so that’s where I got the red for the apple in this picture.
Volume 8: A while ago we could often find this type of keychain in souvenir stores at a tourist spot. But why is it that they always have jeweled eyes?
Volume 12: While working on this series, I’ve been living in fear of shinigami. And even now that my work is complete, I still can’t be sure I’m safe. So I intend to be wary of them from now on.

Ryuk

Basic Data
Name: Ryuk
Also Known As: Shinigami
Height: 6’0’‘
Weight: ??
Shinigami Rank: 6
Sex: male
Likes: apples, games
Dislikes: boredom
Death Note: yes
Mostly Haunting: Light
Anime Seiyuu: Nakamura Shido
Movie Seiyuu: Shidou Nakamura

The Character
Ryuk is pretty sadistical and the best way to describe him would be to say “You live life only once”. This of course, doesn’t really hold true for Ryuk since he is a shinigami and he can generally live forever. Ryuk however, is not at all like the other shinigami around him, he hates boredom and lives for excitement. Only for this reason does he take extreme steps like stealing another shinigami’s death note only to drop it in the human world to test what will happen. Ryuk is pretty scary looking, but in general is harmless, as we can see since he stays out of Light’s way and just observes. His favorite food seems to be apples (especially the ones found in the human world). Apples are actually so important that Ryuk undergoes withdrawal symptoms if he does not eat them.

History
Ryuk is first seen in chapter one along with Light Yagami. He comes from the shinigami world and drops a notebook on the floor, to wait to see if some human will pick it up. Ryuk, of course, doesn’t drop it “accidently” but more on the notion that something exciting might come out of it if a human does pick it up (which it does). Throughout the rest of Death Note, Ryuk is more of an observer and goes around with what Light Yagami says on the promise that something interesting might come out of it. Light is actually very good to Ryuk in general, and Ryuk is probably his closest friend. Ryuk in general, doesn’t do too much in the story, except just listen and go along with the plans that are concoted, that is, until the end…

Interesting Commentary : Friend or Foe? ( & Chapter 107)
What is Ryuk? Just a friend, or is he a foe? Ryuk himself states that he isn’t on anyone’s side, but I really think that Ryuk is not at all as bland as he puts himself off to be. Sure, Ryuk doesn’t help out Light from the beginning too much, but if he really didn’t give a damn, I doubt he would really listen to Light— entertaining or not. Although Ryuk’s primary purpose is to be entertained, I doube he doesn’t have any sort of feeling for Light. The only thing is, he might have a distorted notion… He doesn’t LOVE Light by any means, like Rem loved Misa, but he certainly respects Light and gets to know him well enough. In this case, he really will do things for Light if it means not totally getting involved.

We see that in chapter 107, when Light finally loses to Near, how he behaves. Ryuk himself does not bother to help Light in any way, but does this really mean that he doesn’t care? I really doubt it. It’s important to note that Ryuk says things like “Take a good look at yourself, this isn’t like you at all.” This means that Ryuk did expect something out of Light, and after he wrote Light’s name in the notebook he stated the following: “I was expecting to see how you could make your way out of all of this, but you leaned on me, and you are finished.” But by “finished” did he mean Light’s death literally or just mental death? Obviously, from the chapters before Ryuk even observed how Light potentially went nuts. His mind was broken, finally after such an intense cat and mouse game, always considering himself a God, Light himself has to face death. So hence, Ryuk finally endowed Light with the very death that he himself had given to the rest of the world. This was something that Ryuk had told Light in the beginning, and Light didn’t seem to care back then, but now it meant so much for him.

In actuality, Light’s pleading really meant that Light could no longer face up to the hardships of what he was, he lost his confidence, and really was acting out rashly, the same thing that had gotten Mello killed. Did Ryuk notice this? I believe he did. I believe Ryuk knew that after this move of turning to Ryuk for help, Light would constantly depend on other people instead of himself. I mean, he had already put too much trust into Mikami did he not? Even in the beginning, Light was careful to watch Misa closely, but Light was so confident that he no longer was the cool reserved person he was before. He transformed himself into a God, making himself believe that he was undestructible. This was what Ryuk detected, especially after this last pleading move to Ryuk. He knew that Light was done, that he had finally reached that point which only brought “Misery” to the user of the Death Note. Ryuk was Light’s friend I believe, to kill him at the point. He saved him from Near’s imprisonment, and even later we realize when Mikami went through the prison he killed himself (in either case). So who is not to say that Light would not do the same? Plus, Light was even worse since he himself was Kira, the beginner of it all, not just an partner like Mikami had been. Had Light been allowed to live, would he really be okay: NO! He had already gone crazy by the time 107 had come around, it was such a blow that I doubt he could recover. Even L had said that Kira was childlike and the thing he hates the most is losing. Ryuk knew this, and no matter how horrifying he just gave Light death like this.

If you think about, if Ryuk really wanted to kill him, he would have done so even sooner, back a couple chapters before when it was evident that Light had lost. However, he didn’t do so, he waited and watched until he finally saw the final desperate point that made him do what he did. Ryuk was a friend to Light, and he saw Light’s destruction. Sure, he didn’t want to be bored, but I really believe that he did it as a friend to kill him when he did. He did it to save Light before it went any further to the point of total destruction of this innocent boy that Ryuk’s boredom had turned into a ruthless killer. Light no longer had a resolve of any sort either, so it would only make sense this way. So at the end of it all, Ryuk did something for his friend, just like Rem had done, but this time he did it by killing him, not by allowing him to live any longer.

Light Yagami

Personal Data
Real Name: Yagami Light (Raito)
Also Known As: Kira
Birthdate: Feb. 28, 1986?? (Age 17, 23)
Deathdate: Jan. 28, 2010?? (Age 23)
Height: 179cm (5’9’‘)
Weight: 54kg (119 pounds)
Blood Type: A
Likes: Justice
Dislikes: Evil??
Lifespan: 9 3 31 2 6 3 9
Occupation: Student, Police Force
Death Note: Yes
Anime Seiyuu: Miyano Mamoru
Movie Actor: Fujiwara Tatsuya

HTR13 Description (VIZ)

Basic Data The Haughty Murderer Who Tries to Become God A young man who tries to make the world a better place by using the Death Note. Combining his innate intelligence with the power of a Shinigami, he secretly tries to take over the world as Kira, the god of the new World.

The Character
Raito is a very serious character. Like his foes, Raito has a very high I.Q. and an amazing ability to think things through. He never acts rashly, and in general he has a knack for seeing through people. The thing is, Raito barely shows his emotions to anyone and masks himself very well. As for friends, he doesn’t really have any, and whenever he is close to someone it is in order to use them. Perhaps he does really belong with Ryuuk as Raito seems very bored with the world, and as Kira he attempts to rule it. He is a very ambitious guy!

History
Raito finds the Death Note outside on the floor of his school. Finding it, he takes it home and reads it, not believing a word. One day, when he’s bored he tries it out for fun, and amazingly enough it works! From that day on, Raito sought to cleanse the world of evil, and rule over an almost perfect world, or at least a world where Kira, he himself was God.

Some Interesting Commentary : The Makings of a Murderer
Raito is an ultimate character of human psyche. Many articles or journals on killers state that after the first murder, the second or third come easily for a killer. In Raito’s case this is also true; looking back on Death Note chapter one, a scared Raito ducks under his bed, trying to make a decision on what to do. But after he makes the decision, that is, to cleanse the world, he quickly transforms into another person, killing over 390 people in chapter one alone. This transformation in Raito probably sets him apart from all characters in all of Death Note, making him one of the most in-depth characters.

Killers who never get caught almost always hide themselves within society and think ahead of the game, as Raito does. Ohba himself, I strongly believe, tries to show a real killer’s transformation through Raito’s use of the Death Note first from an innocent boy, then to one who kills only the “bad people” (the murderers, rapists etc.), and finally into a mass-murderer who is willing to KILL anyone who gets in his way (including his family, and those who did not commit a crime at all- like L). Numerous studies on serial murderers state that the usual objective of a killer is one of two things: 1) Power 2) Sex. Obviously, #2 is not the case of Raito, but he is incredibly power-hungry. Perhaps his sense of justice made sense in the beginning, but as the series progresses and Raito kills off the innocent as well as the bad, one sees that what Raito does is not purely for his sense of Justice- it is for himself. So many times, he states that he will rule over a world where crime will not exist. Looking more closely into this statement, we notice the most important word of all “he will rule”. Raito wants sole supremacy—everyone around him is just a mere pawn in his game, and if he desires justice so dearly, why does he kill off those trying to seek justice as well?

Along with Raito’s personal transformations, his appearance even undergoes a change. Raito, once good-willed and smiling, slowly changes his old character to mask what he truly is. In many cultures, there are sayings that a person can hide herself to a certain extent, and this is especially true with Raito. The boy he used to be is a mere mask to hide his true self. His “love” for Misa is a mere tool to accomplish his needs, and his pretend “friendship” with his foes clearly shows the success of his mask. However, just looking at the art we see a definite change. As an Indian saying goes, what a person is will always show on his face. A person’s face is always the first thing society looks at as well, the thing which truly distinguishes one human from another. Raito’s face is calm, reserved half the time, but looking into his eyes, one can sense something that gets stronger as the chapters go on. What it is, no one can really say, but it IS there. It was all the more evident when Raito forfeits the Death Note later on, and his face is as innocent looking as the first chapter. The fire in his eyes gives away his true intentions, or makes us question what he is thinking in that mind.

One other very interesting thing about Raito is how he always wants to get close to his foes, make them trust him, and then kill them. Digging through Criminal Justice records on various sites and texts, I found a prevalent pattern among mass murderers and serial killers—they almost always want to be invited into their victim’s house. They want that PLEASURE of power over their victims. Raito’s power hunger shows itself once again.

Ryuuk says a couple times, that the holder of the Death Note always meets a dreadful end. Raito is clearly heading towards this. Raito has lost his soul; he is so engrossed in his perfect world that he doesn’t see how he himself is dragging it down. He can’t notice that the very murderers that he is killing are what he himself has become. In truth, Ryuuk watches Raito with interest, but Ryuuk himself isn’t Raito’s friend. Raito is alone in the world, alone with only one ambition. One should only hope to wonder what would happen if that ambition was crushed, or he realized his wrongs — something that is the breakdown of every human being.

What we truly are looking at with Raito is the makings of a true and heartless murderer.

Lawliet

Personal Data
Real Name: L Lawliet
Also Known As: L, Ryuuzaki, Erald Coil, Danuve.
Birthdate: October 31, 1979 (Age 24)
Deathdate: November 5, 2004 (Age 25)
Height: 179 cm (5’9’‘)
Weight: 50 kg (110 pounds)
Blood type: unknown
Likes: sweet things
Dislikes: socks
Lifespan: 75231362 (according to ep. 15)
Occupation: Private Detective
Death Note: No
Anime Seiyuu: Yamaguchi Kappei
Movie Actor: Matsuyama Ken’ichi

The Character
L is a “weird” character. He is a genius of course, who knows how to do a variety of things. His personality is supposed to counter Light Yagami, the “genius, pretty boy”, as he is a “genius, freak”. L likes to play around a lot, and is very blunt. He loves sweets (especially cakes), and insists that if he does not sit the way he does, his reasoning will drop by 40%. L seems to be sort of a loner, and trusts no one (except Watari of course). L is also a very animated character, his expressions are clearly visible unless he decides not to show them and doesn’t hide his true self behind a mask, like Light does (well at least personality wise). He is very courageous, as he even shows his face and steps outside to confront Kira in danger of his own life. L himself is probably a type of character you will never meet. If you want to read about how to be like L, refer to the L guide, which highlights his physical habits, and take a look at his Stomach as related from HTR13.

Basic Data—Chasing after Kira, the most famous detective of the world
He is one of the top detectives of the world, but because he has never appeared in public, for years and years, his real identity has been shrouded in mystery. With the Kira case, for the first time in history, he steps onto the stage, but the result of that is…

“I’m suspicous as to whether or not you are Kira.”
“But even with that said, if there’s something you wish to tell me, I will listen no matter what.”
^ He takes initiative with his words that hold undertones of a lie. He put pressure on Light by rushing/pushing him.

“Ryuuzaki!”
“Oi, Ryuuzaki!”
^ If you only look at the results, L lost against Kira. However, he had discovered the truth behind the case after his long struggle.

Personality—a child-like personality in his hate of losing
Even L himself knows about his almost child-like trait of hating to lose in even the most trivial cases. He is extremely suspicious (of things), and in order to ascertain the truth for himself, he uses various means to uncover the truth. Because of this, there are many times in which other people misunderstand him.

“Once is once.”
^ For some reason, he has the South American martial arts Capoeira mastered. He has also shown us these serious fights many times.

Ability—A genius-like intelligence and a bold ability to take action

It’s obvious that L is a famous detective worldwide because of his intelligence, but it is also because of his ability to take action. From the boring activity of looking at a monitor day after day, to the fast arrangements of securing the culprit, he can do everything by himself.

-He stole Misa’s cellphone in the mist of the crowd. It was a great steal, but it is only in criminal cases that he will not hesitate to do so.

Tastes/Preferences—a considerably picky eater
Even during the investigation, there was no record of L, with his sweet tooth, having ever eaten a decent (real) meal. Normally, he is seen eating sweet things like candy. It seems like he needs to replenish his sugar level in order for his mind to work. For him to be able to remain in good shape even after eating so many sweets is one of his abilities. Even Misa was envious of him.

-Even in the middle of a meeting, there was no lack of snacks. This may seem like a flippant attitude, but it’s just his style.

L’s famous lines
“Saa! Try and kill me!” (JC volume 1, page 75)
For L, who is catious, this is a very bold statement, but he is confident that ‘he cannot kill me.’

“Justice will ,without fail, prevail.” (JC volume 2, page 87)

A line that is too immature. Being able to say this without feeling embarrassed shows the strength of his resolution, or does it show…?

“It’s because you are my very first friend.” (JC volume 4, page 132)

In the battle against his enemy, L acts out his friendship with Light and Misa. Their cooperative investigation against Yotsuba was a great combination.

“I’ll end up liking you, you know?” (JC volume 6, page 49)

Words towards Misa. From his expression, his real intention is hard to read, but it’s most likely false. It seems that he isn’t immune to woman.

History
L is a well-reknown detective who takes cases only if they interest him. In Death Note, there are three main detectives: Coil, Danuve, and L. L later admits that he is all three of the characters, and Watari of course handles all these identities. Interesting enough, under Coil he charges a lot, and under L he is stubborn in taking interesting cases. In either case, after seeing all the killings, L puts himself on the case even before Interpol calls him about it. Interpol calls for his service, and L continues to be on the case. L has a lot of manpower and money behind him, and from with almost no evidence he cleverly narrows down the suspects.

Some Interesting Commentary : A Character Like No Other
No matter where you look, or what you see, I’m almost sure you will not find another character like L. He is one of a kind, and throughout all of Death Note the perfect reference point against Kira. L is the type of person who isn’t afraid to show what he is, though he does not show WHO he is. He constantly speaks his mind, and many times I believe that L is L inside and out. He is blunt, never to decorate his words, unless for some good reason (testing people etc.). He is what many people should be, a total mirror image of his inside. He doesn’t seem to mind his weird tendencies, and although he does have emotions, he never lets his emotions get away with him. L does like Light Yagami, he says this himself, since Light has the same reasoning abilities like himself, but in no way does L let this get in the way of his work. For this reason, he is simply amazing, because he has very little pride, and he does not have that emotional tendency to cloud up his judgement, while Light Yagami, although using his brain, uses his emotions and pride to get away with himself.

Perhaps one thing to note about L is that his isn’t exactly a protagonist and shouldn’t be confused with one. Sure, he is trying to bring Kira to light, but at the same time he is carrying out his own type of Justice. Even when the group gets their hands on the DEATH NOTE from Higuchi, he says they will try it out on criminals to see if it actually works. Hence, L has no limit, and even went to the lengths of torturing Misa to get information out of her. He is still one to do his job, and like mentioned, he does have emotions but he always does what he needs to do. L is also quite dangerous because he is not afraid to die at all, while Light values his life quite a lot, as we see even in Volume 1 as Light says he will not do the shinigami eye exchange. L really is the mirror opposite of Light— though his reasoning capacity is high, it is not that similar. Light and L come to the answers, but in different ways, and also in different scenarios. All in all, L is a character that is lovable till death.

Mikami Teru

Personal Data

Real Name: Mikami Teru
Also Known As: X Kira **Birthdate:**June 7, 1982 (Age 21, 27)
Deathdate: February 17, 2010 (Age 27)
Height: 185cm 6’0’‘
Weight: 56kg (123 pounds)
Blood Type: A

Likes: order
Dislikes: chaos
Lifespan:
Occupation: Lawyer
Death Note: Yes

The Character
Mikami is a very interesting character in a very weird way. He is smart enough to understand Light’s thinking, but he doesn’t really contemplate with possible consequences of his actions as we see in the latest chapters. Furthermore, it might even believed that Mikami is a more crazy Light-follower than even Misa is. He blindly obeys whatever Kira says and truely believes he is a God, going to any lengths to prove his loyalty to Kira. This guy also has a very interesting way to carry himself, and he has some social skills at least, which allowed him to have connections with Takada. In boldness, Mikami is a very bold person who did directly talk to Kira on television and make himself known. When he puts his mind on something, Mikami goes all the way, which could be a good thing, or a bad thing (as we see at the end of the Death Note series). In either case, a bit weird.

History
Mikami was the type of kid who got bullied by other children in school. He saw the disaster around him and how humans treat each other like savages. Thus, he concluded the world was basically chaotic until Kira came in and really brought order and terminated the people who didn’t deserve to live. Because of this, Mikami went to every show or gathering that supported Kira, and eventually got noticed by Light. Light, knowing that Near was hot on his tail, sent Mikami a Death Note so that he would continue to carry out judgements while Light could take the suspicion off of him. And so, this is the tie that brings him into the story.

Near

Personal Data
Real Name: Nate River
Also Known As: Near, N
Birthdate: August 24, 1991 (Age 13, 19)
Deathdate: N/A
Height: 155cm (5’0’‘)
Weight: 40kg (88 pounds)
Blood type: B
Likes: Toys, puzzles
Dislikes: Kira??
Lifespan: 43406
Occupation: SPK
Death Note: No
Seiyuu: Noriko Hidaka

The Character
Near is probably one of the closest characters to L. Like L, he is quite weird and also very unemotional. He looks at things in one point of view, but is still limited by experience to succeed as L did, but is still able to piece things together pretty well. Near himself is a pretty laid back guy, and loves to keep himself preoccupied with things while working (aka toys). Although Near is directly to the point like L, he is also a bit sadistic since he loves to mock Light and play with him as he would his toys. Near also loves sitting on the floor, and has a similar pose like L, but with one leg. You can see Near’s design concept here.

Basic Data—The genius who inherits L’s name
A boy prodigy who’s considered the closest to L. He is the center person of the organization against Kira, “SPK” and has had control over the FBI. He challenges Kira head-on and starts chasing him.

“Get real! There’s no excuse for approving of Kira.”
^ Near’s exasperation with dealing with the American government. His feelings of not approving of Kira are even stronger than that of L’s.

“Yagami Light. You are Kira.”
^ Having thrown out decisive evidence, this is the last battle with Light.

Personality —His calmness in situations is even above that of L’s!?
Nicely put, he’s entirely on his own pace. Not nicely put, he’s even worse at cooperation than L is. He is even willing to use forceful tactics that are barely within the law. Generally speaking, his personality is dry and he values results above all else.

“Hnnn, I saw.”
^ With a tone that rubs against his opponent’s feelings, he controls his negotiations. He has even tried to lead Light by the nose.

Ability—Even though his intelligence is that of a genius…
If you only consider his deductive powers and his insight, he even rivals L. But because he can’t earn a living and lacks social knowledge, he is only able to release his true powers when he has the support of his members.

“Near, come outside and play for once-”
“Just leave him alone, Linda.”
“I’m fine.”
^ He almost never goes out. His interactions with other people is minimal, only when required. It seems that for those at the Wammy house, there is no one they’d call a friend.

Interests—A love for blank puzzles and toys
With extremely child-like likes, his surroundings always have toys strewn about. Even though he is only playing, piecing together an unpatterned puzzle starting out of nowhere and the like easily shows a sample of his abilities.

Normally, his fixation with toys is light, but he does seem to have things that he particularly likes, since he has taken these with him when he had to escape.

Near’s famous lines
“If I can’t solve the puzzle, I will be a mere loser.” (JC volume 7, page 193)
These words are entirely something that Near, who heavily values results, would say. If the battle is lost, no matter how good the process was, there would be no meaning to it.

“If you’re wrong, a simple ‘sorry’ will do.” (JC volume 9, page 97)
These are his words towards the members who hesitated in the investigation. They are extremely reckless words, but he shares L’s way of thinking.

“If there’s two of us, we will surpass L.” (JC volume 12, page 121)
If Near is able to persuade Mello to work with him, a detective that is even stronger than L might be born…

“You are merely a killer.” (JC volume 12 page 140)
His unsympathic, only line towards Light, who speaks feverishly as Kira. He will never approve of a killer no matter what ideals there are.

History
We first see Near at the end of Volume 7, after L’s death. Near is one of the rightful “successors” to L, as he shows the potential. He lived in Wammy’s House, which is an orphanage, where the children were brought up to test if they are rightful heirs to the name of L. After L’s death we see Near’s analytical character as he states that L lost because he failed to play the game correctly. A couple years later, Near establishes the SPK which he uses to hunt down Kira. The SPK is funded by the US government but even after they stop funding, he continues his hunt. He quickly gets in contact with Light…

Some Interesting Commentary : Is Near better than L?
After the end of Death Note, many people had opinions about L and Near, making comparisons between them. Some stated that Near was better because he had won, and many others said that he sucked because although he won, he had all the information already in front of him and Mello helped. I personally don’t like comparing the two, they are two different people and have different methods of doing things. Near is more playful and mocking, he has a childish characteristic to him that L lacks. However, Near also took more precautions than L did, which basically saved his life. L, however, was so bold to approach Light right away and to put himself forth in a position as such (though it is definetly hard to tell how far he would have gotten in catching Kira if he had not done so). Near never underestimated his enemy, which is what L also did. He took everything into account similar to L as well.

For me, I was not suprised that Near was the one who won at the end, he had two things going for him: one was Mello, and the other was Light. Mello and Near combined, I strongly believe, did beat L. L lacked the emotions that Mello had. Light is not a rash person, neither is Near or L, which lets them calmly handle the situations they are put in— however this can be a bad thing as well. If everyone is calm and preserved there are only limited ways to take the upper hand above the other. However, when Mello took the rash move that he did, it enabled Near to have the advantage and caught Light off guard with everything coming around. This is what really worked against him. But, like it was seen, although this tactic paid off, Mello lost his life for it. So obviously, it doesn’t work as good, but I believe if either Near or L had more rash characteristics, taking steps without waiting for “evidence” as such, then they would have really won.

Near himself is actually my favorite character, and I really do respect him for what he did. He gave a near edge to L, and was able to deal with people much better than L as well. L had a hard time dealing with people, but Near was able to put himself into any situation and talk to them, along with Mello who made friends and could gain command over such a strong mafia organization. In either case, I don’t think Near is better than L or such, but he certainly has some characteristics that set him apart from him, and these just happen to be the characteristics that made him the “winner” as such in the end (along with the information he gathered ^_). Remember, Near gathered and deduced EVERYTHING without EVER seeing Light, while L had to put himself in his presence to get as close as he did.

Mello

Personal Data
Real Name: Mihael Keehl
Also Known As: Mello, M
Birthdate: December 13, 1989 (Age 14, 20)
Deathdate: January 1, 2010 (Age 21)
Height: 171cm (5’6’‘)
Weight: 52kg (114 pounds)
Blood type: A
Likes: Chocolate
Dislikes: people who are better than him
Lifespan: 502209
Occupation: Mafia
Death Note: No
Seiyuu: Nozomu Sasaki

The Character
Mello can, in many ways, be described at the exact opposite of Near and L. He is a very emotional and rash person, acting upon his whim a lot of times without thinking things through. This makes him not only dangerous and unpredictable to all those around him, but he uses it to gain enterance in the world of the mafia and ultimately outsmart Light by getting hold of the Death Note. In this, Mello makes various connections and friends along the way, which really help him in his goals (aka. Ridner and Matt). Mello is not at all reserved, and he speaks out whenever he can, though he does take precautions, when he puts his mind to some things he might forget these precautions and go through his plans. As for hobbies, he is known to love chocolate, and did I mention he has a really cool motorbike? You can see Mello’s design concept here.

Basic Data—#2 candidate for the next generation L
He was raised as a candidate for suceeding L. After L’s death, he went out on his own to catch Kira. In order to chase Kira, he cannot choose his tactics, even joining the Mafia.

“You just want the notebook, right?”
“And, before the entire world finds out about its existence, that is…”
^ Kidnapping the American president, he’s asking for notebook.

“This woman is the link to Kira…”
“This is the only action I can take…”
^ Unable to go back on his actions, Mello starts his path towards destruction.

Personality—Strong desire to prove himself and an inferiority complex…
He possesses a superior intelligence, but at times he lets his emotions take precedence and makes mistakes. Also, his complex towards over-enlarging Near has distorted Mello’s own personality growth. Based on just his qualities, Mello knows himself that he cannot become the top. In the end, he has even fallen to the point of becoming a criminal.

-In the battle against Near, Mello has taken extreme measures. With these actions that lack descretion, before long even his life will be lost.

Ability—Without having to choose his tactics, his ability to act is fast
Mello’s strength is his ability to think beyond the fetters of the law with his concepts and his actions. Even though it is said that he falls behind Near, as one who possesses great intelligence, Mello’s actions in which he doesn’t stop to choose are indeed threatening towards Light.

“Next we’ll kidnap Yagami Souichirou’s daughter Yagami Sayu.”
^ Having a “hostage” is a quick and easy means for bargaining. Though there is a certain risk, Mello’s plans really got to Light and Near.

Ambition—by eliminating those in his way, he aims for the top
Since long ago, Mello has thought of becoming number 1 as winning against Near. He wishes to catch Kira with his own power in order to show Near and to win the title of being number 1.

“Kira’s head…”
“And not just Kira, all those who are in my way I’ll eliminate. And then I’ll become number 1.”
^ Mello always aims for the top. His final goal is to gain possession of the notebook, to put an end to Kira, and to stand at the top of the world.

Mello’s famous lines

“Whatever means I take, I will capture him before Near does…” (JC volume 7, page 183)
In order for his jealousy against Near to disappear, he needed to solve the case that even L could not solve.

“I’ll kill those in my way and become number one.” (JC volume 7, page 198)
His thoughts that “even if he has to kill those in his way, he will,” means that he believes he can become even greater than L.

“I’m not a tool to help you solve your puzzle.” (JC volume 9, page 136).
Mello is angry at having been used by Near in his actions. For Mello, this is the greatest insult ever.

“I’ve let Matt be killed…sorry…” (JC volume 12, page 15)
Mello’s words regarding Matt’s death. He also did not have the intention to kill Souichirou. Mello is not pure evil.

History
Mello is seen, along with Near, after L’s death. Mello is the other “successor” to L, though it was not decided who should be it; Near or Mello. Mello, however, decides that it is his time to leave Wammy’s House and work on his own terms since he deems that it is practically impossible to work with Near. Thus, the next time we see Mello is when he kidnaps Light’s sister and demands to get hold of the Death Note. Amazingly enough, without any support, Mello worked his way up to the ranks in the mafia only to challenge Light in a suprising way.

Kiyomi Takada

Personal Data
Real Name: Kiyomi Takada
Also Known As: Miss Todai (Tohou University) **Birthdate:**July 12, 1985 (Age 18, 24)
Deathdate: February 17, 2010 (Age 25)
Height: 166cm 5’4’‘
Weight: 44kg (97 pounds)
Blood Type: AB
Likes: smart men
Dislikes: stupid women
Lifespan:
Occupation: Newsperson
Death Note: No
Seiyuu: Masumi Okamura

The Character
Takada is your everyday business-woman who is serious and practical. She was obviously smart and talented to begin with, since she was graduated from Tohou University, but is also beautiful (Miss Todai). With all these wonderful qualities, Takada holds a lot of pride and obviously wants to be around people who are just as accomplished as her (aka. Light). Takada though, has her weaknesses, and even though she plays hard to get, Light is able to manipulate her by seducing her. She doesn’t catch on too quickly and doesn’t really dig too deeply into things, like how it is strange that Light says he loves Takada but is technically is MISA’s boyfriend. In either case, Takada is a well-set woman, but at the end I don’t think this really made a difference.

History
We actually see Takada for the first time in Chapter 31. She has a small conversation with Light, and he actually goes out with her later on. Putting things simply, she was the popular one in the school (Miss Todai) and even though she denied it, she really liked her title and was proud of it. When Mikami gains the notebook, Light needs to find a way to communicate with Mikami, and the way he does this is through Takada. Takada becomes the the spokesperson for Sakura T.V., replacing Damegawa. Light gets in touch with her, and through her, he is able to get in contact with Mikami. Light meets with Takada all the time in order to send messages to Mikami and hits it off with her as well.

Misa Amane

Personal Data
Real Name: Amane Misa
Also Known As: 2nd Kira
Birthdate: Dec. 25, 1984 (Kyoto) (Age 19, 25)
Deathdate: February 14, 2011
Height: 152cm 4’9’‘ (Bust: 76cm, Waist: 51cm, hips: 75cm)
Weight: 36kg (79.2 pounds)
Blood Type: AB
Likes: Yagami Light
Dislikes: Light’s enemies
Lifespan: ??
Occupation: Model
Death Note: Yes
Anime Seiyuu: Hirano Aya
Movie Actor: Toda Erika

The Character
Misa Amane is not a your average ditz. Sure, she is pretty shallow compared to the rest of the characters, and can’t read ahead like everyone else, but she is pretty smart even then by human standards. After all, she was able to pretend to be Kira, got Light to come to Aoyama, and made sure to wear a disguise, and erase evidence. Misa is a playful type, who doesn’t like to do much work, and worries about things like her looks, and pleasing Light Yagami. She has a goal to become a model and actress, but not even that big as becoming Light’s girlfriend. Misa herself isn’t very selfish, and never does anything to benefit herself (except when pretaining to Light of course, but then again everything about Misa pretains to Light), which makes her more close to L in this case, but at the same time she is sorta stupider…

History
Misa appears during the end of volume 4. Misa actually is the only character in Death Note who ends up getting her life span extended extremely. She was supposed to die by a stalker, but Gelus, a shinigami, had fallen for her, and gave up his life to save hers. Misa thus gains the notebook from Rem, who took it from Gelus’s ashese to give to her, and Rem becomes her shinigami. By the time Misa gains ownership of the notebook, Kira had already appeared in the human world. Misa’s own parents were murdered, and Kira avenged these murders, making her workship him, and using her own DEATH NOTE she tries to get in touch with him by pretending to be Kira. This catches Light’s attentions and sets her on the path to being constantly used by Light as a tool.

Some Interesting Commentary : An extreme character & Ch 108
Like Light and L, Misa is another extreme character. The interesting thing about her is that she acts with her emotions, but is actually probably as dangerous as Light. Light is a total psychopath since he knows what he is doing, and Misa is not much of a psychopath since she is so blind to her emotions she just simply doesn’t see it as wrong. She doesn’t believe her judging to be justice or does it for such a reason, but simply because Light tells her to (or in the beginning, when she wants to meet Kira). Judging by her quickness to give up the Death Note, Misa simply wants a life with Kira (Light Yagami), and acts upon this. We see from her utter stupidity many times, that he brain level or reasoning doesn’t match that of Light or L, though this doesn’t make her dumb, since she is smart enough in the beginning, to cover her tracks, and knows when not to speak. However, she is just a workshipper of Light, and would die for him. All in all, Misa is a very tragic character since she doesn’t really have a big goal in life, and her only goal is one she cannot hang onto: Light Yagami. Misa also is not a protagonist, since her being so brutely attached to Light really makes her a unpredictable character, and she is probably as obsessed with Light as much as Light is obsessed with Justice; hence, she is also deluded by her goal so much, that she, like Light, justifies her murders.

I for one, strongly had THOUGHT Misa would be the girl appearing in the last chapter of Death Note. Simply because she is one avid follower, and doesn’t hide it, with our without the DEATH NOTE ownership. Misa simply cannot comprehend a world without Kira, and even as she forfeit her notebook, it would be no suprise for her to lead such a procession. Furthermore, she workshipped Light like a god, and her doing it quite literally is not a suprise. Misa also has the popularity and personality to endorse such a movement, so this would make her a perfect candidate, and everything she gave up for Light, she did it because he was Kira, and would probably give up her religion or give her beliefs to him once again, towards eternity. However, with the release of How to Read 13, it was obviously not the case. Misa supposedly killed herself at the end, but even this I suppose made quite a lot of sense. She just couldn’t live without her only ambition in life (Light) being gone. Even Rem had said this, and it happened to come true. Such a sad ending.

Introductions

New to Death Note? You’ve come to the right place. This is a simple, spoil free introduction to the brilliant series by Tsugumi Ohba & Takeshi Obata.

Light Yagami is a 17-year old top class student, bored with his every day rustic lifestyle. One day his eyes fall over a notebook laying on the ground outside of his school. Reading the English cover, “Death Note,” and noticing that the writing inside is also in English, Light decides to take it home to read it. Within the next 5 days, Light has killed hundreds of people by just by watching and recording names of criminals from the news. The Death Note enables him to kill anyone whose face and real name is known. To know more about the rules of the notebook read the terms of the Death Note. Picking up the notebook once more, a monstrous creature appears and speaks to Light, introducing himself as a Shinigami (God of Death) named Ryuk. Ryuk tells Light that only the owner of the Death Note can see him and that he, Light, is now the owner of it and may use it as he chooses. If Light does not want to keep the notebook, he may give it to someone else and Ryuk will erase all related memories from his mind. The notebook binds both Light and Ryuk, but any mental pain will be delivered to Light alone. Light decides that no matter what it takes, no matter who gets involved, he will cleanse the world of evil criminals. Although Light is doing a pretty good job gathering up bad guys, he is interrupted by a top detective by the label “L” who swears to bring him to Justice.

Who is L? Which side is right? Will the world really conform to Light’s ideals?