A young man with a warped view of crime and punishment stumbles upon a notebook that gives him the power of Death itself. That’s the premise of Death Note, a highly addictive manga that’s sure to give your brain a workout.

The story revolves around Light Yagami, a brilliant Japanese high school student with a bright future ahead of him. His father is a high-ranking detective in the Japanese police, and Light has even helped him solve a few crimes. Light has a strong sense of “justice”. Like most teens, he feels that something is wrong with the world, and if he were in charge…things would be different.

One day, Light stumbles upon a strange notebook. The notebook has a strange, simple title: Death Note. When Light takes the Death Note home, a Shinigami (God of Death) reveals himself to him. The Shinigami tells Light that he is now the official owner of the Death Note, which will grant him the ability to kill whomever he likes by simply writing down their name. Light, being the justice-crazed youth he is, soon tests the notebook’s abilities out on criminals from afar. To his surprise and delight, the Death Note actually works.

Now Light has the power to mold the world in his image.

When Light starts to execute high-profile criminals with the mysterious and very alarming power of the Death Note, the world begins to take notice. Rumors spread on the Internet that a powerful being known as “Kira” is responsible. The leaders of the world become concerned about what may happen if this vigilante remains unchecked, so they hire the best detective available to find the killer. He is known only as L, and his brilliance matches that of Light’s.

That’s where we start off with Death Note, a thrilling and oftentimes intellectual manga that’s full of plot twists and wonderfully developed characters.

The art in the manga is well done. Takeshi Obata and Tsugumi Ohba do a brilliant job with character design, especially in portraying the sinister Shinigami named Ryuk. The real beauty of this manga lies in the plot though.

The rivalry between L and Light is really what drives this series. Light’s identity as Kira is still unknown to the world at large, but L uses his powers of deduction to narrow down the suspects until he’s right in Light’s home turf. The two engage in a masterful battle of wits. L uses trickery and logic to get more clues, and Light uses the same tools to continue to throw him off the trail.

After reading the first volume of Death Note I was addicted, I just had to read more. I couldn’t stop until I had read all there was to read. The author has mastered the art of the cliffhanger, and at the end of every chapter you just have to know what happens next.

I’ll admit that I’ve cheated a bit and read some of the Japanese volumes that have yet to be released here. There is a point late in the series where things take a big change: you may like it, you may hate it. But without a doubt, the volumes available in the US right now (volumes 1-2) are pure gold.

Tags for this posts: Anime, Manga, Death Note, Light Yagami, Takeshi Obata, shinigami

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