088 - Death Note vol. 1

088 - Death Note vol. 1

Author: We Appreciate Manga™ October 23, 2022 Duration: 37:26

For the Halloween holidays all 3 dudes, James, Will and Steven talk about one of the most successful manga of all time, and that is Death Note! Wherein a bored schoolboy picks up the grim reaper's notebook. It reads "The Human whose name is written in this note shall die" Skip synopsis @ 7:07

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88:  Death Note vol. 1 ~ Boredom

Story by Tsugumi Ohba

Art by Takeshi Obata

Translation by Pookie Rolf

Lettering by Gia Cam Luc

"The Human whose name is written in this note shall die" is the first rule written in a mysterious notebook. One that the ace student Light Yagami finds. Light is popular with the ladies of his class and has great prospects yet he is bored. Five days later he is met with the original owner of the titular notebook, The Death-God, Ryuk who tells him more about its rules. Specifically, that the face of the name must be in the writer's mind when written, that the cause of death must be written in under 40 seconds or else it will default to a heart attack, and that details of the death can be written in under 6 minutes and 40 seconds, to name just a few. Also, only those who have touched the death­-note can witness the original owner that is the phantom like Ryuk.

Light shows Ryuk that he has been using the death­-note towards a campaign for his own brand of justice, believing he is making the world a better place, Light has been killing a vast multitude of criminals with the default heart attack adding to his Modus Operandi. Soon Light's action no longer resembles coincidence and people catch on and claim Light's actions as divine intervention, dubbing Light as the mysterious god "Kira" (the Japanese mispronunciation for Killer). Interpol finds the deaths suspicious and hire the mysterious sleuth known only as "L" to determine who is Kira and arrest him for murder if it is at all possible.

L confronts Kira/Light from a regional TV broadcast, a fake L and death-row inmate called Lind L.Taylor stands in as bait so to goad Light into committing another murder. Light kills Lind L.Taylor confirming to L that Kira is Japanese and is able to kill someone without direct contact.

A change in Light's killing patterns leads L to suspect that Kira has links to the NPA. Light is confident that this will only cause in-fighting between the NPA and L and hopes that he can use the NPA to uncover L's identity for him. Ryuk, who notices that Light is being spied upon tells him of a deal, if Light trades half of his lifespan he will be able to get "Shinigami eyes", eyes that show the name of any individual he sees as well as their lifespan. Light refuses the offer, claiming that the legacy of Kira must last as long as possible so to make an impact on the world.

Light then decides to bait the spy that is shadowing him, he does this by influencing the last moments of a wanted criminal's life. He makes himself a hostage for a bus hijacker by going on a date, he writes a note to his date saying he will confront the hijacker knowing that his shadow will see this. The shadow begs him not to do so, Light demands proof that the man is not an accomplice to the hijacker, so the man reveals himself as the FBI agent Raye Penber. The Hijacker dies, running off the bus and into a car after seeing a phantom as detailed in the death­-note. All Light did during this time was drop a scrap of the death­-note, which lead to the hijacker picking it up and seeing Ryuk. And everything goes according to plan for Light.

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There's a particular kind of magic that happens when a friend hands you a book they love, especially when that book is a manga. We Appreciate Manga captures that exact feeling, beginning each conversation with a personal recommendation before letting the discussion wander into deeper territory. Hosted by the team at We Appreciate Manga™, this series is less a formal review and more like eavesdropping on a thoughtful, sometimes rambling, chat between enthusiasts. You’ll hear them explore how specific stories resonate, why certain artistic choices matter, and the very real comfort these illustrated narratives can provide during difficult periods. It’s a celebration of the medium that goes beyond plot summaries to appreciate manga as a unique and powerful form of visual storytelling. Think of it as your audio companion to a vibrant, anime-adjacent book club where the panels come to life through conversation. New episodes of this podcast have been available since August 2022, offering a consistent space to connect with the art and heart of these stories.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 136

We Appreciate Manga
Podcast Episodes
096 - Death Note vol. 9 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:15
James tells Steven all about the Netflix Death Note movie whilst sharing opinions on volume 9 of the manga. And some talk around the effects of the Death Note and the how it functions as a magical almost Lovecraftian obj…
095 - Death Note vol. 8 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 29:43
Did you know there was a musical based on the Death Note manga? And that Demon Kaka (formerly Kogure) made a Death Note tribute song? James tests Steven by seeing if he can connect the characters to their respective song…
094 - Death Note vol. 7 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:04
A turning point in the manga's original run spurs conversation around what Hirohiko Araki (Author of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure) called "a return to zero", or as the boys like to call it, "the Dragonball problem", a proble…
093 - Death Note vol. 6 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:17
Steven and James share their thoughts on the Yotsuba arc of Death Note. Particularly showing appreciation on how character's thoughts can create plenty of twists and turns, in what is an undoubtedly seminal non-battle ma…
092 - Death Note vol. 5 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:52
Ever wondered why the English names in Death Note sound so odd? Well today's episode has Steven and James talk about why that is as well as the "Yotsuba arc" of Death Note, besides expressing their thoughts and opinions…
091 - Death Note vol. 4 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:23
Today the guys talk about the impressions they have from the characters Rem and Misa Amane, the latter arguably being the most iconic alternative emo / gothic chick to ever step off from the pages of manga and into a hot…
090 - Death Note vol. 3 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:23
The dudes talk about the Death Note's impact as a "non-battle" manga and their feelings to what can be best described as the "Dragonball problem" James and Will also describe the very first panels they saw of the manga a…
089 - Death Note vol. 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:15
Will, James and Steven talk about the controversy around Death Note at the time of its translation as well as the character Naomi Misora. Skip synopsis @ 7:47 Listeners and readers may also find the following subject mat…
087 - All You Need is Kill vol. 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:32
Steven and James return to talk about Takeshi Obata's vision of 'All You Need is Kill', and in turn compare the changes to the original light novel as well as the Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt movie adaptation, 'The Edge of…
086 - All You Need is Kill vol. 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:46
Takeshi Obata of Death Note fame does his take on 'All You Need is Kill', which spawned the Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt Hollywood movie 'The Edge of Tomorrow' a.k.a. 'Live, Die, Repeat'. On this episode James and Steve ta…