| February 12, 2020 | Michael Foster-Sanders | feature editor |
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In the world of “Death Note,” the old saying of “Sticks and stones may hurt my bones, but words could never hurt me” doesn’t apply. Because if a name is written in the Death Note ledger, they’re going to die.
“Death Note” started as a Japanese manga in 2003 and was translated for American audiences in 2005. The manga ended in 2006.
An anime, three Japanese live-action movies, and a horrible Netflix-produced American remake of the tale have been produced also.
This new Death Note manga One Shot special appeared out of the blue for free reading online after being teased for months.
This new tale starts in the Shinigami world, where the death god Ryuk grows bored since his last adventure in the human world, which changed the course of history by purposely dropping his death note ledger into the earth realm to be found by a human named Light.
Light decided to use the book to become judge and jury to those who he deemed morally wrong and killed those by writing names in the ledger, bringing the wrath of multiple countries trying to stop him from playing god.
This time, Ryuk takes a more direct approach and drops the note on a middle schooler’s head named Minoru. Ryuk chooses Minoru because he thinks the boy is in the same mold as Light, who just needed an extra push to condemn those to death as he sought fit.
But Ryuk is surprised that Minoru is nothing like Light. So Ryuk asked Minoru to return it in two years, on May 19, 2019 while he thinks of a plan that is going to change world history again.
What makes the Death Note mythos great is every character who possesses the death note ledger book has their motives.
It keeps the mythos exciting and refreshing to come back for the experience, the havoc that Ryku’s boredom causes, and his addiction to human apples, and the humor which is second to none.
Writer Tusigmi Ohba brings the lore into modern times with the use of Twitter, auction sites, streaming and a cameo by the current commander-in-chief of the U.S. Donald Trump, which is almost spooky if the death note existed in real life because of his track record of reacting when threats arise.
It’s recommended that newcomers to the Death-Note universe read the first manga or watch the anime series to be familiar with some of the characters who pop up and a deeper understanding of the world. But it isn’t necessary due to quick summaries that are given for some of the back stories through dialogue.
The art style of Takishi Obata is refreshing to see as he makes Ryuk humanoid appearance creepier and beautifully disgusting than before to pull a person into the world of the shinigami and then the contrast of that with Minoru.
Here’s to hopefully not having to wait another 14 years for a new tale in the universe. Go and read this manga expeditiously.
