I definitely agree that the series’ successes eclipse the flaws, anyway, and it’s nice to see someone else who can appreciate the final arc. I think one of the reasons I like it is that the author didn’t attempt to recreate the feel of the Light/L cat-and-mouse game, and opted for a different dynamic, allowing the last arc to be its own animal rather than a cheap copy of the L stuff. I also loved the whole id/superego thing Near and Mello had going on.

I’m ashamed to say that I don’t really have the awareness to have noticed the sexism, but you’re quite right that the series’ treatment of women is pretty appalling. It’s a shame that people are so quick to brush the issue aside for such silly reasons (seriously, how hard would it be to have just made L or some other prominent character female?)

Anyway, excellent review! : D

oh and Misa-Misa

I LOVE YOU!!!

FIRST OF ALL!!!

NOBODY disses the Note!

NO
BODY

if you’re going to be a pessimist about all the mangas and animes you review, do it somewhere else!

I think Naomi’s abrupt death had its own intresting aspects, in that it added more suspense by saying “anyone can die.” However, I think the movie, while a bit shoddily made, handled her character in a more creative and climactic way.

Anyhow, I thought that overall, it was a fantastic series. I’ve only seen the anime–not the manga–so I don’t know what the manga may have done better. I’ll try to avoid spoilers, but a person shouldn’t be reading this conversation without having read/seen Death Note.

The second “half” (last 11 episodes of the anime), as you said, is justified in its existence. It makes sense that more people would eventually get in on the attempts to catch Kira. The second half is distinguished by how Light’s victory is nearly complete–almost the whole world loves him. There are multiple investigation teams, and they all have a lot more information about Kira than in the early episodes. Light is forced to take some drastic measures that I found interesting. The first 4-5 episodes still had creativity. However, there are aspects that I dislike, which seem to indicate the writer was running out of ideas.
One part of Takada’s role was very redundant, and adds to the sexism criticism. She and Mikami were introduced too abruptly, and should have been better established earlier. Some of the more interesting still-living characters have severely reduced roles. Mello becomes a minor character for a while. The last few episodes mainly felt like buildup to the climax. The climax itself involved too many dull technicalities, and didn’t have the creativity of the earlier episodes. Great dramatic presentation, though. Some very exciting scenes.

The early episodes were wonderful. They were onstantly creative, with lots of fun Xanatos gambits by Light and L trying to outsmart each other. A great detective story, and an interesting morality story. Nearly every episode of the first arc explored new and interesting possibilities. I thought Light was alarmingly charismatic, and L was very amusing. The Yotsuba arc was rather over-long, but that was part of what made it interesting. I didn’t expect it to last long. The story changing its own premise a few times was part of what made it interesting. It really went to interesting places with the very simple plot device of the notebook.