CosmoK13: Konichiwa, my fellow Otaku's! I'm Cosmok13 here and welcome to an exciting interview with the characters from the most popular anime, Death Note! In this series, I'll be interviewing each of the Death Note characters one on one to ask them questions about themselves as well as the show and the fandom. Now before we begin, I want to make a quick shoutout to Shiranai Atsune, the one that this interview is dedicated towards. I certainly hope you like it. If you the fans have any questions you want to ask the characters let me know in the comments and I will make sure they get them. Without further ado, let's start the interview! Our first guest tonight is the young man who is considered Japan's top student and the Anti-Hero of the show, Light Yagami!
Light Yagami: *Enters onto stage, not really amused and takes a seat next to Cosmo.* I can't believe I have to do this.
CosmoK13: Come on Light, this is a request by one of my fans and it would be a great opportunity to know you better since I am creating a sequel for your show. All I ask is for you to answer some questions and give your opinions, okay?
Light Yagami: Fine, the sooner we get this done the sooner I can go home.
CosmoK13: Well then, let's get to it. Let's start with questions involving the franchise. So Light, how do you feel knowing that you are considered an Anti-Hero by many of the fans?
Light Yagami: Anti-Hero?! I'll have you all know that I was trying to make the world a better place for those with kind hearts by demolishing all the bad people!
CosmoK13: Yes, I'm sure we're all familiar with that. But you did kill a number of innocents as well.
Light Yagami: Only a few!
CosmoK13: *Glares and raises eyebrow* Light, you killed twelve FBI agents, a veteran FBI woman who was grieving over the loss of her fiance, the director of the NPA, L himself which didn't really float well with a lot of fangirls.
Light Yagami: Learned that the way hard.
CosmoK13: Not to mention you also killed off two newscasters who didn't believe in you as well as a few officers at the Sakura TV incident.
Light Yagami: Hey, that was Misa! You can't pin those on me!
CosmoK13: Actually, she killed those people for you in your name, which means they count as your innocent kills. And while you did brush up on the fact that she shouldn't kill aimlessly, you just disregarded the fact that about two people died from disbelieving in you. Speaking of which, the count goes on. You also killed Weddy and Aiber after you killed off L.
Light Yagami: In my defense, they were technically criminals!
CosmoK13: Yes, but Aiber did have a family and his own son saw him die before his eyes.
Light Yagami: …..Okay, I didn't know that!
CosmoK13: And you also killed off all the remaining members of the Yotsuba group, why?
Light Yagami: Because they aligned with the third Kira and they also killed off innocent people as well, so who's the monster now?
CosmoK13: Actually, Higuchi threatened to kill them if they didn't cooperate with Kira's plans. They had no say in the matter and if they tried to get out, well, I'm sure you all saw what happened to Hatori. They were just as much the victims here and they didn't even know about the Death Note so killing them off was pointless seeing as how they wouldn't have even supplied the police with any information anyways. They were even trying to start over and rebuild themselves. What kind of message was that? Are you saying that a criminal is still a criminal whether they want to change or not?
Light Yagami: Alright fine, maybe they didn't deserve to die by Kira, but it was extra precaution. Besides, I do have some limits with killing criminals if you saw in Episode 20.
CosmoK13: You're right, you DID have some restrictions, but let's take a look at the Relight Movie, in the second one, did your follower Mikami not kill off a bunch of Anti-Kira people when they had a live broadcast in the beginning of the movie?
Light Yagami: …. Yes…
CosmoK13: And did you not inwardly smile at their deaths, saying that you were one step closer to achieving your end goal?
Light Yagami: ...yes…
CosmoK13: So, in other words, you would allow the death of those that hated Kira, even when they weren't going after him, because you believe you were a God. Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk.
Light Yagami: Did I come here just to ask questions or be insulted by a fan!
CosmoK13: You're the smart one, you should have known what doing this interview would mean. *Smiles cheekily*
Light Yagami: You're lucky I don't have the Death Note on me and I don't know your real name!
CosmoK13: Alright, alright, we'll get back to the interview. So Light, here's another question for you, were you ever attracted to any of the girls in the series? Like Misa, Takada, Sayu, or Naomi?
Light Yagami: Okay, first of all, Sayu is my little sister! And Naomi is way older than me, not to mention she was engaged! Why would anyone pair me up with them? Especially towards my family no less!
CosmoK13: *Shurgs* Every fandom has that dark side my friend. There are some sick fans out there. Not even the Death Note can purge all of them.
Light Yagami: Believe me, I tried.
CosmoK13: Oh, I believe it. Anyways, what about Misa or Takada?
Light Yagami: Eh, I only dated them for furthering my goals. Honestly, I didn't like them in that way to begin with. They weren't really my type.
CosmoK13: Oh? And what is your type?
Light Yagami: Well, I do appreciate a woman who is very well educated and she has a will of her own. It's no fun if I'm always getting what I want from them. I like those that aren't easily swayed by my looks and like me for my brains and skills instead. I guess they can be pretty or average, doesn't really matter to me.
CosmoK13: Seems fair, I do give you some pity for having to deal with Misa though.
Light Yagami: She's not that bad when she' off the screen. Actually, she's really nice and pretty smart herself. It's just the characters we play.
CosmoK13: Speaking of character's, how about you tell us a bit about the development you went through throughout the series?
Light Yagami: Well, I was amazed with how much happened in just the first episode alone. Especially the character development on my part. I went through a lot in a relatively short script. Whenever there is a series, one of the main things the directors have to deal with is the development between the characters and how they change as the story progresses. A lot of time, they will have the characters change bit by bit by episode to episode. So for a 37 episode anime, they were feeling rushed so they had to get this change in as fast as they could. And they did a really good job expressing it in just the first episode alone. I mean, I went from a high school teenager who found this Death Note having to realize what it can do, then taking the guilt of having to kill to the next step to make a better world.
CosmoK13: Well, character development is one of the most important aspects any writer needs to understand if they want to keep the story interesting.
Light Yagami: Yeah, and I think that's why Death Note has such a very interesting series. The episodes are short but there are a lot of emotions and actions that go on in each episode that goes hand in hand together. And I think that's why Death Note is still popular to this day.
CosmoK13: Well, that's another topic I'd like to discuss with you. As you are aware, Netflix is planning to release a Death Note movie pretty soon here. In fact, there have been multiple spinoffs and redesigns of the show after the original anime was released. How do you feel about most of them?
Light Yagami: Well, I will say that the reboots of Death Note are pretty creative for what it's worth. I have seen most of them. I've read the Death Note Manga and even saw the Relight version. I also ended up reading that Death Note light novel, the Los Angeles BB murder case, with Naomi Misora. After episode 7,I wanted to know more about that woman. I was actually pretty impress with her character and how much information I got from L and the other Wammy Kids. Especially B, I never saw him in any of the Death Note franchise, which is ashamed because he seemed like an interesting character. I'm surprised they haven't made a movie or a short film of that light novel yet.
CosmoK13: You spoke for all the LABB murder case fans, Light.
Light Yagami: Then there are the live action movies. I did like the acting they portrayed as us characters and the deeper development between all of us. Especially Naomi and my father. Surprisingly, the actor that played L did a very profound job at fitting in with the role, especially when it came to the habits L had in the original version. I guess my actor was okay, I just wish they did a bit more work on my makeup and my clothes. The second part of the movie trilogy really got me, especially the twist at the end. I really like how they made my death in that one closer to the manga version and how it kind of ended on a more sadder note this time around. As for the third one, L change the world… well, I will say there are a lot of good aspects from it, but really it seemed like it was put together at the last minute.
CosmoK13: Is it because you don't like the fact that L got his own spinoff movie and you didn't?
Light Yagami: No, it's because of the fact that he was put into a crappy spinoff movie of his own. I mean, I get that it was supposed to be based off of the novel of L Change the World, by the way why does L have so many novels? T-the point being, there was a lot wrong with the movie, especially the bad guys! They were bioterrorist that were trying to spread some half ass message to keep the earth pure. Give me credit, at least I had an understandable and semi-relatable motivation. Those guys just come across as half ass as the environmental messages. If I wanted to see any of those, I would watch a marathon of Captain Planet and the Planeteers. In fact, the movie wasn't even close to the novel! The only good thing I liked about it was the relationship L was trying to form with the kids. That was the only good thing that came out of the movie. And I'd like to point out that one of those kids was actually Near, the same albino kid that beat me at the end of Death Note. Why the hell would they put him in the movie? You don't even know it's him until the very end when L takes him to the orphanage. I mean seriously, he doesn't even look like Near from the anime or manga! You could have just had him be a random kid and it would have literally changed nothing.
CosmoK13: So, I'm gonna assume you didn't like the movie because of the problems.
Light Yagami: Nice deduction, Sherlock. And don't get me started on the Death Note Drama! Seriously don't.
CosmoK13: O...kay… moving right along. I have a few comments and questions from two very close friends of mine. Let's start with MakeyD. He asked you if he could borrow your Death Note… oh dear.
Light Yagami: I'm not gonna give him my Death Notes. But if he really wants one, I could always convince Ryuk to go and see if a Shinigami would be willing to hang out in the human world for a while and give their Death Note to him.
CosmoK13: Would he really be okay with that?
Light Yagami: Ryuk? Yeah, I'll have to pay him in apples, but you'd be surprised what he does for them. This one time, I was able to convince him to eat some of L's desserts just for some laughs. Watari made some apple pie, so it was a win for me and him.
CosmoK13: I'm guessing L was very sadden by the fact his pie was gone.
Light Yagami: That only made it more funny. The only downside is that Ryuk won't eat plain apples anymore because of that pie. Unless it's a bundle of apples. Luckily Misa is a pretty good cook so I don't have to worry about running out of pies anytime soon. She's pretty useful when she knows what she's doing.
CosmoK13: Well, when you have a free Death Note on your hands, let me know.
Light Yagami: So you can give it to your friend?
CosmoK13: Hell no! Are you crazy?! MakeyD already has an unstable mind and he's not afraid to use any power he will be granted with willy nilly. I want that Notebook so I can burn it before he can get to it!
Light Yagami: Or I could just not let any of you have it and keep it for myself.
CosmoK13: And give you an extra Death Note? Bitch, I don't think so!
Light Yagami: Then why did you ask in the first place?!
CosmoK13: Because this is an interview and I had to ask that question since it is part of the interview.
Light Yagami: Alright, fair enough. So what did your other friend say?
CosmoK13: Well, Tetra said… oh, wow… uh, she said and I quote, "Hey there, Light! Screw you for eternity's darkness of Death Note hell!"
Light Yagami: Seriously? More Light hate? Didn't we already go through this earlier?! Why does your friend hate me anyways?
CosmoK13: Do you really want me to go over the list again? 'Cause I can add more.
Light Yagami: …. Let's just drop it. Any other questions or references you want to ask or say?
CosmoK13: Well, the one thing I would like to ask is if you had known what would have happened later down the road, what would you have done differently?
Light Yagami: Well, where do I begin. I mean, there are a lot of things I could have done. The main thing was not killing off L so soon. He was the rival of the series and though I took great joy in finally killing him off, had I had known that he had successors I would have waited a bit longer to find out how to kill so many birds with one stone. I mean, I killed off Rem as well, so that was one less thing I had to worry about. Another thing was probably up towards the end where I killed Takada. Firstly, I should have figured that Mello and Near might have somewhat worked together on that kidnapping or at least it would have been to Near's advantage. I also should have made sure to somehow get in contact with Mikami before the whole kidnapping and told him that no matter what, do not go to the real Death Note. Had I'd done that I would have been able to achieve my goals.
CosmoK13: What about the Shinigami eyes. I mean, originally, according to many, you had a good life ahead of you. You would have lived until you were 90 so if you made the trade, you probably would have lived to roughly about 45?
Light Yagami: To be honest, I did consider the eye deal time and again. Just in case something were to happen to Misa or Mikami. I always kept it in the back of my mind so if I was really in a situation, I would have done it. But what human doesn't want to live longer?
CosmoK13: Well, I can think of certain people, but I'd rather not because I do not want to offend anyone. Speaking of the other characters, what did you think of them on and off the screen?
Light Yagami: Well, first there's L. He was a pretty great rival towards Kira. He looks childish and you don't expect much from him at first. Then you see how intelligent he is and how physically active as well and you realize how much you misjudged him. There's also Misa, she at first seems like a bubbly girl but as you get to know her, she does have that scary side that even I got afraid of.
CosmoK13: Yeah, I think she was one of the first yanderes or at least started the trend.
Light Yagami: Then there's Mello and Near. Mello I respect on some levels because he is willing to do whatever it takes to be number one. And I gotta admit, he does have some good fashion choices, though in the beginning I did question it. Near on the other hand, I didn't really like too much. He was just a rebooted version of L and from what I've seen from the fandom, not too many people liked him in the series. They liked him as a character, just not as a successor. There's also the task force, which I thought was a very well balanced team. You have the senior detective, my father. There's also Matsuda the newbie who doesn't really show much potential, but he has a lot of enthusiasm and he does have his moments where he proves useful to the team. Aizawa is a level-headed character that shots first and ask questions later. Mogi is like the strength of the group although he doesn't really play any major roles until the Yotsuba arc. I think there was another guy, but he died not too long after the Task Force worked with L.
CosmoK13: That was Ukita, and to be fair I don't know too much about him. He didn't really do much as far as I'm aware. Poor guy.
Light Yagami: Well, someone on the Task Force had to die at some point. He was the first one and it was only a matter of time for the others to follow. Trust me on that one.
CosmoK13: Any other characters you want to talk about?
Light Yagami: Well… I did like Takada. She was more intelligent than Misa's character, but even more possessive. Mikami was also a loyal follower, but he can get out of hand at times. In fact his loyalty is what caused his downfall. Ironic really. Other than that, the other characters I don't have much of an opinion on. I think they did their role quite well. Especially Naomi, I wished we saw more of her.
CosmoK13: Well, she got a part in the live action movie and her own novel, so it all worked out for her. Speaking of, let's talk more about the fandom, especially the ships. We gotta know, what do you think of LxLight and LightxL.
Light Yagami: Of course you ask me that. Why not? Okay fangirls, let's get one thing straight. L and I are enemies! On screen, we hate each other. Off screen, we are just co workers. I don't understand where this ship came from or why you ship us together in the first place! Yes, out of all the women I've dated, I didn't partially love them. But I didn't like those women in general. Heck two of them were from my own family so they don't count. I am straight! Why do you all think I would be gay? With L no less?
CosmoK13: Well, have you ever tried spelling your last name backwards?
Light Yagami: My last name?
CosmoK13: Yeah, Yagami. Spell it backwards.
Light Yagami: What the hell is that supposed to prove?
CosmoK13: Just do it.
Light Yagami: Fine! Imaga- …
CosmoK13: Now do you see?
Light Yagami: …
CosmoK13: Uh… Light? You okay?
Light Yagami: I am so "talking" to Ohba after this interview.
CosmoK13: I'm surprised you didn't notice that sooner.
Light Yagami: And I feel like an idiot for it.
CosmoK13: Hey, you asked, I gave you an answer.
Light Yagami: Can we please be done with this interview?
CosmoK13: I just wanna ask a few more questions and then we can be finished.
Light Yagami: Alright, fine. Just get it over with.
CosmoK13: Okay, Light, what was your favorite moment in Death Note?
Light Yagami: Oh, my favorite moment? Well, it's hard to say, I had a lot of favorite moments from the series. If it came down to it, I had three favorite moments. My third favorite moment was when I was able to kill Naomi Misora in episode seven. It took a lot of convincing and probing but I was able to gain her trust and learn her name. I have to admit, she certainly was cautious and very smart, but I was able to win in the end. My second favorite part in the series was when I gained the Death Note back in episode 24. My whole plan came full circle and I was able to kill Higuchi without anyone noticing and clear me and Misa without any suspicion. My favorite moment of all was, of course, the death of L. Knowing I had defeated my greatest enemy and got rid of Rem in the process! I was able to take control of the Task Force and have my way! At least for five years until the successors came along.
CosmoK13: Well, it happened, so we have to move on. Speaking of moving on, what do you think of the fandom of Death Note?
Light Yagami: Well, other than the fanfictions and yaoi that the fangirls draw of me, I will say that the artwork isn't all that bad. I may not be as popular as L, but I do have some fans. Some draw better than others but it's the effort that counts. I also see a lot of fan-made characters because, you know, that's a must. As well as stories that have me crossed up in different worlds and characters. But I guess it could be worse. I mean, there are some really good-looking ones of me, so that's a plus. Though I don't like the whole "Ask Light" deal because of the impersonation. But hopefully those people can keep the sassy and powerful attitude.
CosmoK13: So, what do you like about the fandom and what don't you like about it?
Light Yagami: Okay, I will say I like that there are people out there that love our series so much, they take the time and their talent to try to show their love through artwork, stories, theories or AMV's. I don't really like that some people take it to a very mature level, but I can't stop all those fans. And it is their fantasies and ideals, no matter how sick they might be. I mean, if it wasn't for the fan base, we probably wouldn't be making so many reboots with reenactments of Death Note. That is a good and a bad thing. Especially with this Netflix Death Note coming out. I wouldn't have my expectation high.
CosmoK13: Trust me, I'm so much of a fan, I'm not gonna see the Netflix version, no matter how tempting it is.
Light Yagami: I appreciate that.
CosmoK13: Well, since we are on the topic of fanfictions and OC's, maybe we could move onto the topic of the Death Note story I'm working on, Life Note.
Light Yagami: Huh, you're actually making a fanfiction that isn't Yu-Gi-Oh! or Cosmo the Seedrian related? That's a first.
CosmoK13: I did say I was trying to expand on my fandoms. Anyways, I actually had a fairly good start on the story and uploaded it on Tetra's account since 2015. But now that I have my own fanfiction account, I'm going to be posting the chapters up here. Some will be different than the previous version because of major edits. But for the most part, the story will stay the same. So Light, what do you think about the Life Note story so far?
Light Yagami: Well, from what I've seen so far, I have to say that it is quite interesting. I've seen a lot of fanfictions and fanart from the fandom about Life Notes, but this is the first one that I've seen someone put a lot effort and thought into it. Not only is it like a new generation of the Death Note cast, but it's like a Death Note parallel universe. You can tell which character is supposed to be who and you can get an understanding of them. One of the things that the Death Note characters lacked was Character Development and your characters from Life Note seem to have that.
CosmoK13: Would you like to explain further, Light?
Light Yagami: Okay, this is actually a pretty common mistake that a lot of people make, especially writers. When people think of Character Development, they usually think of 'How a character changes throughout the story or series.' But that is actually the definition of Character Growth. Character Development is when the audience starts to learn more about the character such as their back story or even their personality or intentions to do something. Like say you meet a bad guy in a story or show, you don't know about them at first, but then you start to get to know their backstory like why they are doing what they are doing. That's an example of Character Development. So usually, when you see a character that is pretty one dimensional, they don't really have much of a reason to be doing what they are doing, then that means the character is poorly developed as many would say. The problem with the Death Note characters, some of them do show Character Growth in a bad or good way. But the Development part was kind of lacking in a lot of the characters. There weren't really any backstories, particular motives for doing what we were doing. I mean, some of the characters did have that. The motives like me and Ryuk and backstories with Misa and Rem. B-but that was it. We didn't really get to know much about the Wammy kids like L, Mello or Near. As far as I'm aware, Matsuda was the only one to really have a bit of Character Growth… I mean, don't get me wrong. A lot of people love these characters, I just feel they didn't go through as much growth or development.
CosmoK13: That is one thing we can agree on. I like a lot of the characters, don't get me wrong. And while some had bits and pieces of growth or development, they were mostly the ones that played more of a minor role. The main characters didn't really have that much, which is a shame because I really wanted to know what L's childhood was like.
Light Yagami: But the good thing about not knowing information and time lapse fillers is so the fangirls have an excuse to make up their own stories about what happened.
CosmoK13: True.
Light Yagami: Back to your characters though, I have to admit that so far a lot of the characters, especially the main ones, have their own development. Like Lamore Nosaka. You think that she is just a Mary Sue at first because of her pure heart and good looks, but you start to see her back story. How she lost her parents and how she was always weak when she was a child. You saw her growing from a very frail girl to a strong woman. Then there's Laura, you think of her as a cold person that you can't get close to. But you are learning more of her story every chapter. It's that kind of development that was lacking from a lot of the characters from our fandom. The fact that you already have their growths and backstories in mind prove that they will be memorable characters.
CosmoK13: So, does that mean you like some of the characters then?
Light Yagami: Well, the only main characters I've seen so far are Lamore, Laura, Matsu, Net and the orphan girls. There's also Lamore's friends, and each of them have their own stories. Lamore and Laura are very interesting because you can already sense the Light vs. L thing between them even before they officially met. Matsu and Net, though a bit more on the minor side, have their moments as well. And you can tell they will play bigger roles in the future. Even Lamore's friends, especially Aiko and Yuki, will have their own moments as well that could really progress the plot.
CosmoK13: So, have you met any of the characters in person yet?
Light Yagami: A few of them. Mostly Lamore and Laura. Lamore is pretty sweet on screen and off it. She usually comes in with some donuts and gives them to a lot of the crew members. Whenever someone messes up their lines, she assures them that it was a simple mistake and they can do better next time. She does have her days when she is a bit upset, but she does her best to hide it and keep going with life. Laura on the other hand…
CosmoK13: Yeah, she's really something isn't she?
Light Yagami: Oh yeah, but I think the something you're thinking of and the something I'm thinking of are two very different things. She always gives me the cold shoulder and a death glare. I know she hates my character in the Life Note story, but off set, you'd think she would be somewhat nice to me. I don't hate her, but we don't really get along either.
CosmoK13: ….. If that's the case, then I suppose this is a bad time to mention that you and Laura will be spending a lot of time together on screen here pretty soon.
Light Yagami: W-what?! What does that mean?!
CosmoK13: Oh, would you look at that, we're all out of time. Looks like we'll have to end the interview here.
Light Yagami: Hey, wait! You can't just-
CosmoK13: Alright everyone, that concludes today's interview with Light Yagami. Join us next time for us to interview L. If you have any questions for L or even any of the Death Note characters, make sure to leave your comments and we'll be sure to answer them.
Light Yagami: I demand an explina-
To be continued~