Deathnote Delectables: "Candy" Dish and Manga Fin
Woohoo! Great weekend for Deathnote stuff.
:: Deathnote at the Candy ::
On a whim I sent an e-mail asking Pop Candy's Whitney if she had heard any news about Deathnote coming to America, since she has much better contacts than I do. so imagine my surprise when my question makes her Mailbag! And she seems happy to answer it!
Here is the massage I posted and her response:
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I don't know if you read manga as much as you do comics and graphic novels, but here's hoping you can help me on this one. I read that the live-action movie of the manga Death Note -- a modern supernatural detective thriller that I adore -- was No. 1 at the Japanese box office this week. Since it's doing well over there and is partly distributed by Warner Bros., is there any chance we will get to see it on the big screen in this country? -- Liz L.
I'm glad you asked this question, and thanks for being patient with my scattered updates. (Just took some time out to interview a comedian -- you'll be reading that soon.) Anyway, since you're such a big fan, you've probably already seen the trailer, but here it is, just in case. Death Note is actually a two-part movie, a la Kill Bill. I have a call out to Warner Bros. about a possible release date, but I think a DVD release is much more likely than something in U.S. theaters. Here's a good roundup of the latest Death Note news, and you mention Warner Japan, which you can learn more about here. I'll let you know if the company provides any new info.
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Cool, huh? And the links she gave are pretty good, so I'm glad I got the courage to ask. And maybe I'm the first to ask a manga or Deathnote related question! I haven't been reading very long so am not sure, but would be cool if it was true. To read my actual post at the Candy, click here.
:: Death Note Fin ::
Elicia and I downloaded the remaining chapters of Deathnote this weekend, so we have now read the entire series! But since we were reading it together, and I read manga slower so as to savor the whole page, she kept getting annoyed with me. It reminded me of the feverish days we spent when in our naivete, we only bought one copy of Harry Potter 5 and were reading it at the same time. Not an experience I ever want to repeat. (We learned out lesson when HP6 came out, and each bought out own copies. Great except Elicia again got to read it faster than I did, and so kept dropping hints about how good it was and how I'd better hurry up. What we will be like when book 7 comes out I do not know.)
Anyways, I'm so going to talk about Deathnote, but only in the comments section of this post so that I don't spoil it for anyone. I just have to get my feelings out! Man, what a good series. Sad it's finished, but we always have the movies and discovering the author's real identity to look forward to.
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Happy hols tomorrow everyone! We get the day off from work, so I am so not posting anything. I'm seeing our local fireworks tonight with fam. Tomorrow I'm going to a scouts breakfast in the morning, helping my mom get the rest of her flowers planted, setting off sparklers and mini fireworks, and maybe going to a friend's house. Oh, and hopefully drawing, napping, and working on the diathesis for our first story. That should keep me busy, huh?
To celebrate the occasion, since I love learning bout history, I watched a play about Jefferson and Adam's correspondences and read Time's new article on Teddy Roosevelt; all are men I greatly esteem, so great stuff. Is it wierd to like US History so much? Maybe it's because modern politics depress me so much, it's nice to see things that remind me that politics, even with brilliant men at the helm, are always screwed up. Seriously, the more things change the more they really do stay the same. Yay for history.
posted by Lizzabell @ 1:32 PM
1 comments
1 Comments:
Okay, here are my thoughts on the ending of Death Note:
First off, incredible ending. I could tell by the recurring themes in the manga that Light would have to fail, but that was still an amazing way to do it. And the way Ryuuk acted—killing Light only when he stooped so low in needing a death god and not his own wits to save him—made perfect sense because of the characterization of Ryuuk that had already been set up.
Elicia and I had some good talks after reading Deathnote. I also went to some forums, and was upset that people didn't like the ending and were disappointed that Light didn't win in the end. I'll admit that Near isn't as dynamic as L, so his and Mello's success isn't as satisfying as it would have been with L getting proof and Light’s confession, but nevertheless there is no way they could have written Light winning and stayed true to the story.
First off, the theme of Deathnote is NOT that good conquers evil, as was presented in the forums, but instead that man should not play god. Light’s initial goal for a crime-less world is in some ways noble, but the power needed to accomplish that goal, in the hands of a mortal, cannot be wielded without corruption. Because of that, our anti-protagonist can NOT succeed at the end. The note and Ryuuk are not evil in and of themselves. It is only in the hands of a human, in how they are used, that the note’ dizzying power poisons and even curses its owner. I really liked Light in the beginning. While gifted and exceptionally talented, he was a representation of the best of humanity, of all of us. But once he possessed the Deathnote its power corrupted him slowly and irrevocably. The thing that let me know it was the power of note doing this to him was when he revoked ownership and lost his memories. He returned to that brilliant but principled individual, the Light I had first grown to like. But once the note was back in his grasp, it once again gave his a twisted platform on which to wield his brand of justice and so came to ruin him. He became someone willing to sacrifice everything good and noble—morals, family, love, the trust of his supporters—to achieve his warped goals. In short, he became like the murderers and psychopaths that he was trying so hard to eradicate from the earth. And if he, the best and brightest of us, can be so corrupted, than no mortal is safe from the same fate no matter good their initial intentions. So Light’s fate for getting drunk on power and playing god can be nothing less than dying, ironically, by the very thing letting him play god, the note, and the very person who gave him that power, Ryuuk. That, and not good triumphing over evil, is what I got from Deathnote, anyway.
Besides, if people wanted Light to win because his cute looks made him look like a typical good protagonist, or because the way in which he was introduced set him up at the hero, then that has more to do with the skill of the author and artist than anything else. The fact that they fooled us into sympathizing with Light at first proves their real talent. The story could have been written so that we eventually learn over time that the surprisingly young but brilliant Light is the evil Kira, and met L or the police first. That they did not do this and force us to reevaluate our initial assumptions of Light as the series progresses is sheer brilliance.
Another piece of irony: Light never accepted the shinigami eyes because he wanted to live as long as possible. But in the end he died prematurely anyway, when having the eyes might have helped him survive. Hah, poor Light. He should have never picked up the death note, and instead led a regular, albeit brilliant, life. Talk about being in the wrong place at the wring time.
Despite knowing Light couldn’t possibly get away with it, I held my breath as X-Kira wrote down Near’s name. I honestly didn’t know if he would die or not; he could have after all and the storyline still would’ve worked. But I so didn’t want him to die. That instant helped me realize that while Near would never have the same place in my heart that L does, that I honestly like him in his own right and wanted him to escape the death sentence the note brings. So yay for Light’s missteps helping me to realize those emotions within me. I know some people thought it was impossible, but I thought Near’s switching the notebooks made sense. I like that X-Kira’s routines did him in, and that at the end Mello helped Near in beating Light.
People on the forums thought that Light and X-Kira were completely out of character at the end, so the writing was stupid. Not so on both counts. Light has proven in the past that he can succumb to fits of rage or triumph when things do or do not go his way. In spite of his brilliance, he can be as emotionally immature as Misa at times. And he honestly thought he had won, and that he had figured out Near’s whole plan; why wouldn’t he prematurely proclaim his success, throw that in his enemy Near’s face before Near died? He, after all, is not perfect, even if he believes he is. And I think his misstep in rejoicing too soon shows he is all-too human, not god a after all, further cementing a theme of the story.
Someone in the forums also commented that they disliked Near for announcing that he had surpassed L. I think this is actually a misunderstanding of what Near said. Near throughout the entire story arc obviously idolized L, viewed him almost as a God (as he rightly should, hee!) So at the end, he is not saying that he himself is better than L, because he believes he is not with every fiber of his being. What he is actually saying is that only when he and Mello combined forces, did they have the reasoning skills to match L. And they surpassed L, not because they are better than him but because they accomplished what he could not: throught their efforts they got actual proof that Light was Kira, got his confession, and witnessed his death. (Well, Mello died before witnessing this, but no way could Near have done it without him) And as much as I adore L, he did indeed fail in getting those things. But in spite of Near’s success and his succession as L—and especially since his ally Mello is dead—I’m sure Near will still be chasing the shadow of L, the idea of L, for the rest of his life.
Elicia had heard a rumor that L reappears at the end. And while we didn’t see him again, I still think it’s possible, even just 1%, that he is alive. After all, we saw Watari again, who had supposedly died of a heart attack. There are enough ways to cancel out someone writing your name down, that we cannot rule out that he survived. I think either way it works with the plot and themes of the story. His death shows the ruthlessness of Light, and the very final, very terrible power of the note. L living would show that he is in fact greater than Light, that he in the end was able to beat him. So fans can think either way and not ruin the themes of the story. I honestly thought, the first time Gandalf dies in LOTR, that he was indeed dead, and his return was one of the most thrilling literary experiences of my life. So I kept hoping for the same thing, especially since it would redeem the slow, sad vacuum left by L’s absence and bring the story to a satisfying conclusion. I also hoped Rem might have made it somehow as well. Does anyone know if the author has ever said that L is indeed dead? Because until they say so I will not believe it.
I want to talk about the artwork too. The end of Deathnote was amazing; Obata should win an award or something. The pacing of the panels and layouts was perfect—the way he directed the reader’s eyes to see the words and illustrations in a certain order and and for a certain amount of time—truly was a piece of art. And the expressions of the characters, the moods created, the textures, were all masterful. Apparently he is releasing an artbook of Hikaru No Go and Deathnote illustrations; I personally cannot wait to get my hands on that.
The last chapter threw me. I kept hoping to see L again, but we wound up on a hilltop with Kira supporters instead. Is the girl at the end significant, or is she just a nameless girl? The hope in her eyes is heartbreaking. Sorry sweetie, but Light is too human to be the perfect savior of the word that you desperately want. And what happened to Misa, has she died yet? Elicia said she kept thinking that Misa would drop dead at a critical moment in the story, but it never happened. Unless a shinigami sparing your life gives you blessings, she can’t have much longer to live.
Again, I’m so sad it’s over forever, but so happy that it even got made in the first place. If any other thoughts strike me, I’ll add them later. Please post your own thoughts or comments about Deathnote or respond to my opinions! I probably should go find a forum to post in, but I don’t know where to begin. I finished the series at a weird time, I think. Fans who download the scanlations have already read the ending and have moved on posting about it, but since it’s not out in bookstores yet tons of fans a year or so from now, whenever it finally does get published here, will be posting about the ending. Ah well. Bad timing as always.
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