..is that, after watching it and enjoying such perfection, any other anime feels just "Not as good" or "empty" or "meh". My gosh, it's like watching the Ultimate chess game.
If you haven't watched it and you're wondering if you should.. DON'T! Go and watch plenty of other animes first, because after this one.. there is nothing else.
lol this was my first anime and i didn't think it was THAT good. it was okay though
shareAgreed OP. Everything just feels poorly executed or written to me now. Death Note was perfection.
shareOnly anime on the level of Death Note is Attack on Titan
shareYeah. I really enjoyed Attack on Titan.
shareIn terms of writing quality, you're having a laugh if you think that overrated monotony compares to Death Note in a positive manner. Death Note isn't flawless either, not after L's death, but it's still far superior in every conceivable manner.
"All these squares make a circle."
Personally I believe the impact of L's death on the quality of the show is severely overrated, since there are very clear story reasons why his death gives the show a gravity it didn't have before.
How one interperets the quality of writing in Death Note depends on genre. It might be the best written suspense/thriller story of all time. Bar none. While it is a supernatural thriller, it attempts to remain otherwise grounded. With that in mind, "grounded" and "suspense" are not typical descriptors associated with anime by westerners, I don't think. So while the plot might be better than most anime to the average viewer, to a lot of anime lovers, that kind of storytelling, might not be what they're looking for.
It may be overrated, but it certainly had a negative impact. If Near and Mello were given some development before his death, I would have accepted the change with greater humility.
I guess genre-based interpretation applies to all media forms, including manga and anime. As a supernatural thriller it's certainly unique, and as a story of criminality versus police work... well, it'll never compare to the likes of The Wire, but as manga/anime I certainly think it stands out in front alone. At the very least, it lays into typical shōnen-based manga for jumbled-up plot threads (I'm thinking of Attack on Titan again here with its monomythic approach as one example).
"All these squares make a circle."
This is exactly what I mean. The Wire is well written because it feels real, no matter the avenues they pursue. But Death Note focuses almost all of its attention on being clever and suspensful, and the result shows. In that way I think Death Note involves more creativity. The Wire is based on reality, and research, and it has things to say. Death Note has things to say, but it's more interested in saying it skillfully, and asking broader questions. I don't want to say it's flash over substance. It's allegory over reality. Misdirection vs. subtlety.
While I have yet to finish "The Wire" if someone asked me which was better plotted I think it'd be safe to say "Death Note." But the people who made "The Wire" weren't trying to weave the greatest plot of all time.
What you've said is a good way to put it, because while I think The Wire is more than just a look at the procedures of cops and criminals, that is certainly one aspect in which Death Note cannot compete, because it really isn't the same thing, is it? Death Note is not really a crime show, and it's not really a cop show. It has some of the same elements but it's more hypothetical than analytical.
True, I can understand that, and whilst I would say Death Note does carry plenty of flash, there is substance there too. I'll always prefer The Wire because of the ensemble cast and spontaneity in just about every plot-based aspect, but you're certainly right in saying Death Note has questions to ask. I think it's primarily a case of exploring how absolute power corrupts, and how different senses of morality can lead different mindsets to different means while trying to achieve the same ends - in this case, ridding the world of evil. I'd say the allegory in particular suggests that free will to be evil is more important than having good forced upon you.
Come to think of it, that reminds me of A Clockwork Orange - "Is it better for a man to have chosen evil than to have good imposed upon him?" While it might not be the exact primary question Death Note is asking, I believe it's one of the main issues for sure. The Wire isn't quite so deep-meaning; it takes more of a gander at how good and bad can coexist and how characters react to that environment, rather than delving into their morals like we see in Death Note.
To be honest, I think:
The Wire = both sides of the law can be good and evil/both coexist so people can survive in a corrupt society/characters develop according to how they play 'the game'.
Death Note = morality and free will/absolute good versus greyed evil/how 'the game' directly affects the morality and deep thoughts of the people who take part.
But that's just my opinion, of course.
"All these squares make a circle."
After few years you will forget it
sharea few years?
I had forgotten it before getting to the end of your sentence!!!
Uh, no. I watched Death Note over 5 years ago and have watched it through three more times since my first viewing. I have never forgotten about this show and anytime I hear the Kira theme I lose my mind. This show won't be easily forgotten.
shareI LOVED Death Note, but not as much as Robotech, Cowboy Bebop or Evangelion.
The quality decays a bit after episode 26, when he kills the original L, once Mello and Near are introduced, it seems redundant. I would have preferred it if the dad and the other detectives figured out who Kira was based on the info that L left behind.
The GREATEST ally and BEST friend of christianity throughout history is Satan
^ Totally agree with this. Everything after L's death just felt like filler to keep the show going a bit longer.
shareSure, it's very good, but it hasn't become the anime which I compare all other anime to. There are plenty of amazing shows and films I've enjoyed, before and after watching this.
--
'Save me, Barry!'
I was and am still a fan of death note but I watched code geass after this and certainly found it to be better than death note... Every episode was a cliffhanger, especially the second season.
shareA lot of people seem to be disagreeing with you, OP, but I agree wholeheartedly. I was never really into anime. I'd watched and enjoyed Akira and all the Miyazaki movies, and was a huge DBZ fanboy as a kid, but I had never really tried anything else except Gundam Wing and Fullmetal Alchemist, both of which I enjoyed but never finished.
Then, I decided to try Attack on Titan after hearing so much about it. It's a great show and it made me think: have I been missing out on this great genre for all this time?
The next anime I tried was Death Note. I was hooked immediately. I watched the whole series in 2-3 days. After that, I've been searching for other shows like it but nothing else compares. Not Code Geass, not Monster, not Serial Experiments Lain, nothing. All great shows but it's like Led Zeppelin opening for a talented but no-name local rock band. I couldn't finish any of those other shows, my mind just kept going back to Light and L.
I've given up on ever finding anything better. I will keep trying other anime shows, but I realize now that finding something near the same level as Death Note is just a pipe dream.
Perfection. Wow. The expository dialogue is awful. Everyone over-explains everything. It's also incredibly sexist. All of the females are stupid and the one girl is a clingy lovesick moron. It's also too long. I was liking it fairly well despite it's flaws but I'm almost halfway through and I'm starting to get bored.
shareAll of the females are stupid and the one girl is a clingy lovesick moron.What are you talking about. Penbar's fiancee was pretty damn smart.
You're quite right, it is really very hyped. And the sexism is blatant. Penbary's fiance is smart, but she's around for what, 3 episodes? Bah
share