There is one series that regularly tops people’s favourite
lists and is widely regarded as one of the most influential animé to have ever been
released, spanning just 37 episodes but spawning five Japanese live-action
films, an American movie adaption, and even a musical, I am of course talking
about the phenomenon that is Death Note.
Originally released as a serialized manga in 2003, the story
follows genius high school student, Light Yagami, who finds in his possession a
“Death Note”, a notebook able to kill anyone whose name is written in it belonging
to a god of death named Ryuk, Light decides he is going to use the Death Note
to punish all evil and create a new world free from criminals, likening himself
to a god under the pseudonym “Kira”, however this gets the attention of
Interpol and they enlist famous detective “L” to bring this unknown killer to
justice.
What proceeds is an epic tale of cat and mouse as both Light
and L try to outsmart each other into giving away their identities, with Light
not afraid to kill whoever he needs to in order to put L off the scent, and L
using his immense intelligence and resources to trick and trap Light at every
turn, eventually meeting and working together as L still suspects Light and
Light keeps up the pretence that he is still just the police chief’s innocent
son wanting to aid in the investigation.
Each Death Note comes with a set of rules written within its
pages and under Ryuk’s consultation, Light uses these rules to his advantage, specifying
the date, time and method of death allows Light to start controlling his
victims, leaving subtle clues to put L off the scent and eventually using his
secret status as Kira to manipulate a television news station and goad the
police into giving him L’s identity, though along the way a second Death Note
comes into play, being used by famous model Misa Amane and Shinigami “Rem”,
which in turn throws a spanner into Light’s machinations.
Misa is in love with Light/Kira and believes she is helping him,
but he soon learns to use that infatuation for his own ends, utilising the ability
she gained from Rem to identify anyone she looks at and then kill whoever gets
in their way regardless of being given a fake name or not, they plan to use
this to remove L from the picture, however being in such close proximity to him
and still under his suspicion means they’re unable to kill him, and cementing
the illusion of their innocence becomes paramount in order to destroy their
accuser.
If you’ve not seen the show I shall stop here with any more
story details, but needless to say this is just the tip of the iceberg of what
happens throughout the 37 episodes, it’s a non-stop rollercoaster of a series,
moments of slow exposition, character building and establishment of roles
within the many relationships and dynamics we’re introduced to, right up to an
unexpected twist, a sudden death, or a tense standoff as someone puts together
some pieces to the puzzle and treads unknowingly close to the truth.
The story isn’t the only thing that makes Death Note so
compelling, each and every character has so much depth, even the minor players never
find themselves lost among the big-hitters, Light’s sister Sayu, L’s handler Watari,
even task force member Matsuda, all receive just the right amount of
screen-time to establish a connection with the viewer and give much more weight
to any events that befall them, some characters not even appearing for more
than two or three episodes but still leaving a lasting effect and considerable
fallout in the plot.
The main cast are obviously though the best recognised,
Light, the genius and wunderkind, athletic, well-liked among his peers,
initially intrigued by the Death Note, and then determined to use it for good,
or at least what he determines as good, and L, the world-renowned detective
with a passion for sweet treats, and second-guessing people and situations,
both as meticulous and analytical as each other, though two very different
sides of a coin that you’d ever likely meet.
The internal monologues from each of our protagonists
unravelling situations and countering accordingly, freeze-frames in time as
plans are hatched and thwarted, an early tennis match between the two providing
an obvious metaphor and precursor for the intellectual back and forth that is
set to follow, Light and L seeming equally matched, each attempting to gain the
upper hand, reading the other’s every move, believing themselves to be right
and determined to prove it through any means necessary.
I’d say it was an age-old tale of good versus evil but it’s
not as clean-cut as that, given these abilities yourself would you seriously
not decide to punish those that had done wrong? Or at least as a start, punish
those who had wronged you? Who wouldn’t want a world free from crime? But who
are we to judge on our own merits? It may have a whole-host of other-worldly
elements to it, but at its core Death Note raises some very real questions.
Handled by animation studio Madhouse, the visuals lend
themselves to the story seamlessly, bringing to life the pages of the manga by Tsugumi
Ohba and Takeshi Obata delicately and faithfully, backgrounds are detailed but
subtle, locations like Light’s family-home and the Task Force Headquarters each
having their own distinct look and feel, outdoor environments bustling with
life, right down to scenes at the Metro station and glimpses of life, or should
that be death in the Shinigami Realm, the depth in what is seen compliments the
depth in the storytelling perfectly.
Characters are well-realised too, between the smart and
well-groomed appearance of Light, to the pale and almost waiflike L, his
dishevelled outward form hiding the bare genius and logic that dwells within, coloured
auras surrounding our duo during their moments of thought, simultaneously changing
their hair and eye colour, Light represented by red, symbolising his ferocity
and evil intent, L characterised with a blue hue, generally associated with
being “good”, but also L’s wisdom and tranquillity.
This theme carries through the soundtrack too, a dark and
solemn guitar-lead track echoes Light’s scheming and descent from fresh-faced
student to serial-murderer, whilst the opening of L’s Theme samples Mike
Oldfield's “Tubular Bells” from the 1973 film “The Exorcist”, until more
instruments kick in and give the track its own identity, giving an eerie
ambience but making way for an uplifting and almost hopeful-sounding bridge
before introducing the piano again but this time with the same riff being played
by an electric guitar alongside it.
Similar tracks frequent the series, mournful and dramatic
melodies featuring the same piano and guitar combinations as the events unfold
on-screen, instrumental songs akin to that of lighter works from Metallica and Aphex
Twin help to set a tense atmosphere, and the brilliantly dramatic orchestral
theme we hear each time the Death Note is being used, complete with full
operatic chorus, usually in some murder-montage or in the final moments of an
episode as a new cliff-hanger is thrown at us.
Now I’m very much a sub purist, growing up watching animé in
the 90’s, English animé dubs were often terrible and some still are to this
day, Death Note however has been very well taken care of in that department, I
was all prepared to change the audio language at a moment’s notice, but had no
need and was able to breeze through the whole season with the same enjoyment as
I did when I first watched with the original Japanese soundtrack.
The audio featured on the Blu-ray release is probably the
collection’s best selling point, the clarity with which we hear each aural
element is great, nothing is lost even during moments of intense drama,
dialogue is crisp, music sits in the background giving sufficient gravitas to
the events unfolding, whilst any effects are few at times but incredibly subtle
and effective.
Given that it had been nearly ten years since I last watched
Death Note, my expectations for the Blu-ray image were maybe a little bit high,
having been spoilt by watching such visual spectacles as Gurren Lagann, Attack
on Titan, and One Punch Man, I won’t lie when I say I was a tad disappointed, it’s
a good upscale from what would’ve been originally released on DVD, but
certainly not anything worthy of a purchase if you already owned the previous
releases.
Secondly in the disappointment-queue is the lack of extras
in the set, previous releases featured director’s commentaries, and behind the
scenes footage, interviews, and production art, this collection only includes
the two so-called Death Note films, these being the Relight OVAs, basically an
abridged version of the Death Note saga featuring a smidge of new footage as if
being told from the point of view of Ryuk, interesting but only for the few
extra scenes that clear up a couple of plot-holes and whatnot.
For anyone out there who is still yet to see
Death Note, I cannot recommend it enough, it’s not just an exemplary animé, it
is one of the most truly unique and entertaining thrillers you’ll see, it’s Stalin
vs. Trotsky, it’s Holmes vs. Moriarty, and it’s even Batman vs. Joker, it truly
is an experience that lives up to all expectations, I’ve been watching animé for over twenty years and Death Note still stands out among the countless films
and series I’ve seen, it’s clever, intriguing and genuinely what binge watching
was invented for.
Death Note: The Complete Series And Ova Collection is out now on Blu-ray