Hi, I Think?

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Death Note (Anime & Manga) Rating: General Audiences Relationships: Near | Nate River/Original Character(s), Near | Nate River/Original Female Character(s), Near | Nate River/Reader Characters: Near | Nate River, Stephen Gevanni | Stephen Loud, Original Characters, Original Female Character(s), Corrin (OC) Additional Tags: Slow Burn, Jealousy, Possessive Near, Friends to Lovers, Wammy's House (Death Note), F in the chat for Gevanni, He's not dead, Just going through it this chapter, Lowkey idiots in love, Childhood Memories, Chess, Light Angst, Hurt/Comfort Series: Part 3 of Deep Inquisitions (Near x OC) Summary:

Death Note follows the classic "Rise and Fall" tragedy. The first part is Kira's rise to power, the second is his fall from grace caused by hamartia. Which in Light's case is literally hubris - the most deadly and dramatic of them all.

If Death Note had ended with L's death, it would have been like:

If Macbeth ends when Macbeth becomes King of Scotland, and not when Macduff kills him

If the myth of Icarus ends when Icarus soars high above the clouds and not when he falls into the ocean

If The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars ends with Starman and not Rock 'n' Roll Su*cide

I say all that to say that Death Note must not, in any case, end unless Light/Kira has been sufficiently brought down.

Most adaptations try to reconcile with this while neglecting the second half. Like the first series of Japanese live action which gives L the victory a few minutes after he feigns death. Or the Netflix live action (forgive me for evoking its name) where Light ends up confessing all his crimes to his father on a hospital bed.

But this is not a "Rise and Fall" or at least not a good one. It lacks the dramatic impact of watching a man climb to power then slowly lose control of himself and everything he works for. The reason Death Note's second part is so satisfying is because of Light's gradual descent while still clawing desperately to hold onto his peak. Like if Icarus while falling still tries to flap his broken wings to get closer to the Sun once more.

There is no catharsis in a quick fix. Live action Light is simply outplayed for a moment, he is not brought down, not defeated the way manga/anime Light is.

Which is why despite all its MASSIVE flaws, I have to commend the 2015 drama series because at least they TRIED to be faithful to the structure of the original story. It's not that it's the only non-anime adaptation that features Near and Mello (debatable), but it's the only one that gives Light time to fall. I'll take it.

Matoba jumpscare

Shinobu jumpscare (technically Ban)

Natori jumpscare

Guys, if Johan ever runs loose in the Death Note universe, we all know that the perfect guy to send after him would be

MELLO

Mello who, as a teenager, tracked down a criminal unbeknownst to the world, Kira and law enforcement, then offed him and presented his head to a rival mob boss.

Mello who charmed his way to leading his own damn mafia and them literally doing EVERYTHING he says no matter how ludicrous. Talk about being the only one with social skills in the whole cast.

Mello whose HANDS ON approach may include (but not limited to) kidnapping, stalking, arson, etc. He's no stranger to Johan's shenanigans. Heck he's got his own resumé too. AND ONE THING IS FOR SURE HE'S NOT LETTING UP AND HE'S WILLING TO DO IT ALL

Mello who brings chaos to a game of pattern recognition and throws everyone off their groove. Sure he may not be the most calculating but as long as the target is human, he'll walk the earth, follow any minuscule trace of gunpowder and pin them down (or at the very least, make life very difficult for them).

Mello who would definitely yell "IT'S ON SIGHT BITCH" the moment he catches up because to him, that's as good as solved 🔫🔫🔫