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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 object of cosmic or psychological horror. Skip synopsis @ 4:25

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096: Death Note vol. 9 ⁓ Contact

Chapters 71 and 79 'Contact' and 'Lies'

Story by Tsugumi Ohba

Artwork by Takeshi Obata

Translation by Alexis Kirsch

Lettering by Gia Cam Luc

Light repeats his tactic of controlling one of Mello's gangs in order to gain information on Mello's hideout. This time, he sends Ryuk with a spare Death Note and tells him to work with the Japanese task force in order to help them find and kill Mello as well as return Mello's Death Note to Sidoh, the original owner and death god.

During this point onward Light decides to hide Misa's Death Note on his person and banks on Matsuda making the Shinigami eye deal, instead Soichiro makes the deal, with Light himself prepared to kill Soichiro so to support the belief in the fake 13-day rule that he fabricated so to maintain his innocence.

After a conflict with Mello and his men, Soichiro learns of Melo's real name and recovers a Death Note but soon dies of his injuries. Light returns the Death Note to Sidoh and sends him away. Soon the U.S. Government pardons Kira and officially disbands Near's team, the SPK. Mello, having survived the conflict with Soichiro, holds SPK agent Hal as a hostage and intrudes on Near's Headquarters. Near gives Mello his photo and in return Mello gives Near clues by telling him of the existence of Shinigami and saying that there is a fake Death Note rule.

Near works with Light (who he knows as the new L) over Kira- and Mello-related matters while suspecting Light is Kira. Near determines the 13-day rule written in the Death Note is fake and suspects Kira is the new L. Then Mello contacts the Japanese task force agent Mogi, managing to get Mogi under Near's interrogation but also leaking Near's headquarters to Light. Afterwards, Light spreads the information to Kira worshippers so to orchestrate an attack on Near.

Topics:

• Because of how Syndar was manipulated by Light in the previous volume we are seeing Light use the same tactic again. Clearly the Death Note has the power to change fate but it seems like it can also inflict insanity on the target, as we have seen with Kal Snydar and Naomi. The powers of the Death Note along with the Shinigami are Lovecraftian in nature. Meaning Ohba leaves it to our imagination where ever we want to rationalise their actions or take the Death Note on face value. Also, if you are to go by James' analysis that the mind itself is a box not unlike that of the Schrodinger's Cat experiment then the Death Note has the power to either change minds or be a catalyst for a pre-destined fate. In strange ways memories can often rewrite reality and as of the year 2022 CE we cannot prove what goes on inside someone's head metaphysically, and we cannot prove, certainly not to the layman, if you can hold multiple thoughts at one time. It is important to note that James only states theories as to what Naomi and Syndar was thinking whilst under the Death Note's influence.
• Mello has been vocal on how stupid he thinks the Japanese police are and as of volume 9 Near suspects that Kira is working under the Japanese police as L. The events after Death Note arguably take a turn for the implausible since Light suspiciously leads the Kira case as a part of the NPA, even after being suspected of being Kira. Ergo he should remain a suspect in terms of real-world logic. Additionally, Soichiro Yagami and Light lose the Death Note to Mello in order to protect Sayu Yagami. A demonstration of their biases due to having a personal involvement in the Kira case. It is most certainly a bad idea to have Light on the Death Note case, however for reasons that are actually known in the manga Light becomes the new L despite these fallacies.
• Major differences between the manga and the Netflix live action movie.
• Light Yagami is named Light Turner, an interesting translation since it keeps to a pun, in the manga Light spells his English sounding name "Raito" with the Kanji for Moon, this creates a dual meaning of his name being "Moonlight" but Moon can be read as "Tsuki". With his surname being Yagami and when you spell out the individual Kanji it sounds very much like Yorukami Tsuki, or "Loving Night God" or "Loving Dark God" But the implication is that Light's name refers to moonlight or night.
• The Kira killings are outlandish and gory spectacles disguised as accidents, a la 2000's Final Destination. How anyone deduces that Kira is a person from this is not explained, where as the manga clearly outlines the Kira Modus Operandi as a heart attack, meaning Kira wants to be recognised for his killings and is successful in doing so.
• Misa Amane, is named Mia and is played by Margaret Qualley. Mia is a cheerleader who attends the same school as Light and has a love for horror movies. Both Mia and Light establish their relationship after Light gets the Death Note but before news of Kira becomes viral. Meaning both Mia and Light are culpable in the creation of Kira. Where as the manga clearly had a one-sided relationship where Light was the more manipulative one out of the two, and was a lot more secretive of the Death Note in the manga.
• Ryuk says how his name is pronounced, it is not "Raiuk" or "Rook" he is the only Shinigami who makes an appearance and there is no Rem.
• The Shinigami eyes are mentioned but no such deal is made throughout the movie.
• Light himself creates the term Kira and spreads that name using the internet and such forums (obviously this makes him suspicious but that matter is not addressed by L).
• L discovers Light as a suspect by deliberately leaking information of criminals. (This is flawed logically because if L is responsible for the leaks he cannot stop the proliferation of such information, meaning any supporter of Kira or amateur sleuth would be a suspect by this logic)

• In the movie there is no Lind L. Tailor, which is a notable plot point in the manga because L needs to determine if Kira wants him dead before he can deduce wherever or not Kira can kill him. However, L does address Kira through a live broadcast and public press event. Unlike the manga he makes his statement L is in public wearing a mask, and does not hide behind a monitor. But like the manga L uses this event to determine that Kira can not kill without knowing the targets name and face. But again, L's logic in the movie is flawed. Although it is a correct hypothesis that Kira does indeed need a name and face to kill, L, has not determined a motive or a reason for Kira to choose him as a target. L is flawed because he does not factor in wherever Kira wants him dead or not, this is because Kira has not killed law enforcement at this point. L is merely guessing that Kira wants him dead because he antagonised Kira and lived. Whereas the manga has Lind L. Tailor antagonising Kira, as L, only to die in doing so. This is how L proves that Kira is not only willing to kill law enforcement but would kill L if he could do so.
• L does not show his reasoning on how he is able to deduce that Light is Kira, we are never privy to L's thought process as an audience. And there is no voice over.

• Light threatens Ryuk with the Death Note. And Ryuk entertains the thought. Saying "there are four letters in my name, most anyone ever gotten were two" this is not possible to do in the manga. It is also unusual because a message in Light's Death Note clearly reads "Don't trust Ryuk". Perhaps it was a misspelling? Or maybe Ryuk is bluffing?
• Light writes Watari's name in the Death Note, manipulating him to acquire L's real. This means that Watari is the real name of L's representative, instead of it being Quillish Wammy like the manga.
• A new rule exclusive to the Netflix movie is that you can burn a page of the Death Note effectively making any name written down in the destroyed page null and void to the effects of the Death Note.
• Another Netflix movie only rule is you can write someone's name in the Death Note and only have them die once the target's actions meet a set of pre-conceived requirements. E.g. "Mia dies upon touching the Death Note". This obviously disregards the first rule "whoever's name is written in this note shall die" because so long as you do not meet the requirements, you can still live a long life without any passive effect of the Death Note.

• By breaking and entering L finds a Death Note, or at least usable scraps of it. The implication is that L has evidence on Light, although how L can deduct that the note is the murder weapon is never explored.

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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 songs. As well as giving their impression and thoughts on volume 8 of the Shonen masterpiece. This episode also marks the reveal of one lucky manga winner. So come and appreciate manga with us! Skip synopsis @ 3:43

095: Death Note vol. 8 ⁓ Target

Chapters 62 and 70 'Decision' and 'Tremble'

Story by Tsugumi Ohba

Artwork by Takeshi Obata

Translation by Alexis Kirsch

Lettering by Gia Cam Luc

Light's goal of world domination as Kira is threatened by the existence of L's heirs, Near and Mello. Mello makes the first move and abducts Light's sister, Sayu Yagami, demanding her life in exchange for the Death Note that the Japanese task force own. With the help of Light and the task force, Soichiro Yagami tries to rescue his daughter without involving the police. Matsuda claims to be the new L, to shield Light's identity.

Mello acquires a Death Note and soon afterwards Mello threatens the life of the US President, demanding amnesty, resources, and info on Near's team in order to detain Kira himself. In return he promises to give Kira's Death Note to the president once Kira is defeated.

Fearing Mello's powers, the President of the United States seeks help from the new L, Light Yagami. The president grants him a special force unit so to attack Mello's hideout. Light was able to find Mello's hideout by finding one of Mello's mafia goons and the current owner of the Death Note, Kal Snydar, having access to FBI records, Misa can use her Shinigami eyes to see that Snydar's lifespan is not visible, a clue which means he holds a Death Note. With Misa's help Light uses his own Death Note to control Snydar and has him give away his position to Misa before he dies.

Mello meets the original Shinigami owner of his Death Note, Sidoh, who has now entered the realm of humans in order to retrieve their Death Note and extend their own lifespan. Snydar, makes the eye trade, giving Sidoh half his lifespan for the ability to know names by looking at the adjoining person's face. When attacked, Sidoh assists Mello's gang, resulting in the death of the Special force unit and the US president.

Similarities between the 2015 Japanese stage musical and other Death Note media:

• Takeshi Kaga reprises his role of Soichiro Yagami, previously having starred in the 2006 Japanese movies.
• Light gets Naomi Misora's name in a similar manner to the 2006 movie.
• L reveals himself to Light and the two have a tennis match before L makes it clear that he suspects L.

Major differences between the 2015 Japanese stage musical and manga:

• Misa herself is already established as a pop idol and supporter of Kira before Lind L.Tailor appears. Both Sayu and Light attend one of Misa's concerts.
• Sayu is clearly anti-kira. Thus, adding tension towards the sibling relationship between her and Light.
• The bus jacking scene is omitted, Light Yagami manages to obtain the FBI agents' names through hacking their computer systems.
• That one "potato chip" scene is omitted but otherwise it is implied through dialog that L has bugged the Yagami home.
• Soichiro Yagami is much more forward when expressing his disapproval of L's methods.
• In some scenes L is wearing a coat when walking outside. A sort of green waterproof parker.
• Mogi dies as a result of spying on Misa and Light, meaning that Misa avoids letting the task force suspect that she has Shinigami eyes, at least until Mogi's death.
• Rem who is played by Megumi Hamada, wears an eyepatch only for promotional images, otherwise an eyepatch is missing from her costume in the live show.
• The Yotsuba arc is entirely omitted and Light never gives up the Death Note nor his memories of it and is instead confident that Rem will not harm him and shirks responsibility for Misa's wellbeing on to Rem. This results in Rem successfully killing L without the Yotsuba arc being triggered.

Max Von Sydow is an actor best known for his roles in 'Game of Thrones' (2016 ), 'Dune' (1984), 'The Exorcist' (1973), 'Flash Gordon' (1980) and arguably his most iconic role in 'The Seventh Seal' (1957), in the Seventh Seal his character plays a game of Chess with Death, hoping he can bide enough time to find meaning in his life. One has to wonder if Sidoh's name was inpired by the actor.

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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 problem that all long running Shonen authors tend to face. Beware, we got plenty of spoilers in this one! Skip plot synopsis @ 3:15

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094: Death Note vol. 7 ⁓ Zero

Story by Tsugumi Ohba

Artwork by Takeshi Obata

Translation by Alexis Kirsch

Lettering by Gia Cam Luc

Upon his arrest, Kyosuke Higuchi tells the investigation team about the Death Note. When they touch the Death Note, they can see the death god Rem at the scene. Light regains his Death Note-related memories by touching the notebook and kills Higuchi by using a piece of Death Note he hid inside his watch. L and the Kira investigation task force study the Death Note and question Rem. Misled by the false rules written in the cover, they remove Light's handcuffs and set Misa free. Misa tries to recall L's real name while continuing Kira's work at Light's instruction. To protect Misa, Rem kills Watari and L, and forfeits her own life by doing so. Five years pass as Light is employed under the NPA whilst working with the task force as the next L. The FBI and CIA form a new team, the Special Provision for Kira (SPK), in order to hunt for Kira, who begins to gain moral support from parts of the world.

Topics:

• "L" as a character, Mello and Near.
• Hirohiko Araki's thoughts on "returning to zero" is something that is mentioned in his book 'Manga in Theory and Practice: The Craft of Creating Manga' ISBN-13 978-1-4215-9407-1
• L's real name is unveiled in the official encyclopaedia book, 'Death Note: How to Read' ISBN- 13 978-1-4215-1888-6, which is the 13th volume of Death Note, not to be confused with the serialised story that ends at the 12th Instead, the 13th volume is more akin to an "omake" and companion book branded under the 'SJ Profiles' label.

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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 manga. skip plot synopsis @ 3: 00

093: Death Note vol. 6 ⁓ Give-and-Take

Story by Tsugumi Ohba

Artwork by Takeshi Obata

Translation by Alexis Kirsch

Lettering by Gia Cam Luc

With evidence gathered by Aiber and Wedy, the Kira investigation team learn that one of the seven Yotsuba members is the new Kira. L asks the team not to arrest them until their powers are known. Desperate for more evidence, L sends Misa to investigate. Rem tells Misa about her and Light's previous identities as Kira and helps her produce a confession from Yotsuba's Kyosuke Higuchi. Allied with the other Yotsuba members, Light devises a plan to make Higuchi watch a TV program, during which Matsuda is supposed to reveal Kira's identity. When Higuchi tries to kill Matsuda, the investigation team ambushes and arrests him.

Topics:

• Shinigami's cannot have sex.
• The way Death Note handles, twists, tension, and suspense through the minds of the characters alone. E.g. Higuchi Ambush
• Misa Amane
• L's Suspicion of Light

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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 on the art and pacing of the story. Beware of spoilers! Skip synopsis @ 3:10

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092: Death Note vol. 5 ⁓ Whiteout

Chapters 35 to 43 "Whiteout" and "Black"

Story by Tsugumi Ohba

Art by Takeshi Obata

Translation by Alexis Kirsch

Lettering by Gia Cam Luc

After a week in prison, Light Yagami forfeits the Death Note and his memories associated with it. Light and Misa's life are seemingly threatened in order to get a confession from them but the bluff leaves L at an impasse. L then decides to set up a new base of operation, putting Misa under surveillance and having Light always be handcuffed to him as they both seek out the truth around Kira.

Light finds a new lead on the case whereupon the new suspects are the Yotsuba Corporation, Light also deduces that Kira can kill in ways other than a heart attack. The Shinigami Rem has given her Death Note to one of the members so to remove suspicion from Light and Misa. However, this new Kira is killing white collar criminals involved in corporate demeanours as well as making bribes to the Japanese government. The police refuse to chase Kira further, forcing task force members to resign as police and work under L. All except one detective Aizawa, who despises L's methods, he instead chooses to be closer to his family investigate Kira on his own terms.

L hires a conman and burglar, Aiber and Wedy to infiltrate the Yotsuba corporation. But the detective Matsuda acts alone as Misa's manager and is soon caught eavesdropping on their meetings. L devises a plan to fake Matsuda's death and soon afterwards they bug the Yotsuba meeting room.

Topics:

Ever wondered why the English names in Death Note sound so weird?

• The potential of Eraldo Coil, having been a new character to rival L has us wondering.
• We must take a moment and praise Takeshi Obata's illustration work. Considering how "wordy" the manga can be. Obata's use of expressions and the way he capitalizes on L's quirks for visual appeal demonstrates a mangaka who is a master at his craft!
• The dudes speculate on which of the Yotsuba members have a Death Note, isn't it strange how one of them looks uncannily like Light Yagami?
• The 90's TV shows James mentions, 'X–Files' and 'Twin Peaks' are thematically like Death Note in that they involve an open-minded detective trying to catch a supernatural killer, but unlike the detectives in Death Note the characters are FBI agents instead.

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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 topic. Skip synopsis @ 3:13

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091: Death Note vol. 4 - Love

Story by Tsugumi Ohba

Art by Takeshi Obata

Translation by Alexis Kirsch

Lettering by Gia Cam Luc

The detective L has Light Yagami join him on the investigation of the fake Kira. Light, realising he is suspected as the real Kira, cannot afford to say anything but tell L that he thinks there are two Kiras. Light soon figures out the hidden meaning behind the second Kira's message to the real Kira and heads to Aoyama in hopes of more information but is unexpectedly discovered by the second Kira, a young woman by the name of Misa Amane. After gathering enough information on Light, Misa watches a broadcast from the police, addressing the second Kira and begging for her own safety not to contact the real Kira. Upon seeing this Misa walks out of her house and goes to visit Light. She reveals her death God, Rem, to him and the fact that she has the sight of a death God (a.k.a. Shinigami eyes). Which means she can see anyone's name by looking at their face except for other Death Note users. Misa declares her love for Light and soon both Light and Misa make a truce in order to kill L.

Before L retreats he spends time with Light at his university. To Light's surprise, Misa makes an appearance and Light introduces Misa to L as Hideki Ryuga. Once separate from them, Light uses a private cellphone to call Misa and acquire L's real name to put in his Death Note with the intention of killing him. However, the person who answers the phone is none other than L, having pick-pocketed Misa before she left.

Misa is arrested and detained on suspicion as the second Kira. Whilst restrained Misa, relinquishes her ownership of her Death Note to Rem and in turn her memories of anything related to the Death Note are taken from her. Rem visits Light, informing him of the situation and demanding that he save Misa from suspicion. (And when a god death starts making demands; that is when you should really listen)

In response Light hands himself in to be detained and put under surveillance. Telling L that he may be unconsciously acting as Kira. suspects that this is all an act from Light and some sort of ploy in order to prove that his innocence. Yet L obliges, deeming it as the best course of action despite it being Light's wish.

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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 and how it convinced them to buy the manga, panels that appeared in volume 3. Skip synopsis @ 7:19

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Death Note vol. 3 ­- Hard Run

Chapters 17 to 25 'Trash' and 'Fool'

Story by Tsugumi Ohba

Art by Takeshi Obata

Translation by Pookie Rolf

Lettering by Gia Cam Luc

The genius detective "L" plants sixty-four microphone and camera bugs in Light Yagami's bedroom. All in the hopes of catching him in the act of murder and solving the Kira case. For L the move is a failure as Light hides a pen, Death-Note and portable TV within a bag of snacks, and thus is able to kill criminals, however with the compromise that these be killed for minor crimes, all whilst studying for exams. Mindful of this, Light allows himself to be seen watching the news so that he can memorize the name of minor criminals that can be killed later.

It's not long after this that L ups the ante, and after removing the bugs he decides to not only enrol at the same university as Light but he also outright tells him that he is L. Further putting pressure on Light, the two speak about the Kira case. L speaks to him as if he knows the details behind the deaths of twelve FBI agents, but Light does not fall for it. Light does however fall for one trick; L deliberately withholds a fake piece of evidence, only presenting it once Light refuses to infer that L has more evidence or acknowledge that L does not need to show him all the evidence.

The mind games are quickly put on hold when Light attends a family emergency. And in a twist of fate, a second death-note user makes themselves known by holding live TV stations hostage. They demand that the director-general of the NPA or L make a televised appearance. And the most threatening fact about this second Kira, is that they only need to see someone's face to kill them.

Topics:

• At this point in the manga L knows that Light is intelligent and that Light maybe a sociopath with a god complex. (Page 36) Although Light has not been caught, he is now even more suspicious since he killed a purse snatcher, and a suspect, possibly of embezzlement. L also knows that there is a second Kira, that does not need a name to kill, only their face.

How Death Note changed the game?

• The manga is an early example of what would be called "Non-Battle Battle Manga", Light and L would battle only with their minds, causing the other to give away information that would be decisive in their own victory and never with forceful subjugation or powerful displays of physical violence. It barely passes as Shueisha style Shonen manga because of its "Good vs Evil" plot, but even then, both characters are morally dubious. What makes it passable as Shonen manga is that the rivalry on both sides demonstrate equal amounts of intelligence, courage, tenacity, will and determination. These are traits which are virtues to a Shonen audience and is shared by the Shonen heroes of past works.
• Ohba has stated that they were not thinking of a theme when writing the story. And really the thought process was about putting Light in increasingly antagonistic circumstances for the sake of entertainment. However, there is a theme, and that is "Ideological Conflict".
• It's a non-didactic manga, in comparison to other Shonen works, and is not interested in telling readers what is morally right or wrong.
• It came out the same time Bleach and Naruto was running. Since then, it has codified and formulated a genre of manga where rivals compete to the best of their abilities and test out who has the most indominable will. And the competition can be over anything. In Bakuman, its over who has the most well received manga, in the Drops of God its about who is the best wine taster, and Food Wars about chefs. Death Note is also a response to manga such as YuGiOh and Hikaru No Go, in that they are both manga that does not use physical battles but with the exception that Death Note demonstrates a darker tone in comparison. Albeit YuGiOh could be very dark at times!

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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 matter upsetting. Discretion is advised.

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089: Death Note vol. 2

By Takeshi Obata and Tsugumi Ohba

Translation by Pookie Rolf

Lettering and Touch-Up by Gia Cam Luc

The criminal Kira, a.k.a. Light Yagami, possessor of the titular Death Note, manages to kill off the few FBI agents tasked to spy on him. By simply holding the agent Rey Penber hostage he exploits the rules of the Death Note which include the facts that you can influence the victim's behaviour in their last moments by what is written, you can also have someone use sheets from the Death Note without knowledge of its power and you can pre-emptively write the cause and details of a death before putting any name to it.

Meanwhile the detective L, teams up with the last remaining members of a Japanese task force formed to capture Kira, this includes Light's father Soichiro Yagami. L bravely exposes his face as a show of trust but chastises the force for giving him their real names. As L has already established. A name and a face are all Kira needs to kill. L interrogates each of the members before deducing they are not Kira and so L vows to the team that they will show Kira that "the good guys always win".

Unbeknownst to Light, Rey's Widow Naomi Misora has a lead on Kira and goes to contact L and the task force. But since the task force are too busy meeting L it results in no one being in the office. Through happenstance Light meets Naomi at the reception desk of the task force HQ, seeing her as a threat, he manages to convince her that he is a member of the task force. Naomi buys into Light's lies, since Naomi has worked on a case with L in the past, she finds that Light reminds her of L. Light asks for her I.D. and manages to write her name in a spare piece of the Death Note, her cause of death being suicide, After the note takes effect Light reveals to Naomi that he is Kira and so Naomi walks away never to be seen again.

Four days later, news of Naomi's disappearance reaches L. In response L narrows his investigation to the last people Raye was probing before Kira started experimenting with his victims. L begins to bug the homes of the deputy Kitamura and Detective Superintendant Soichiro Yagami.

And now L can monitor Light within his own home. What L does not know is that Ryuk, the Death God that accompanies Light, cannot be seen by humans without a Death Note.

Topics:

• The earliest signs of controversy around Death Note occurred in China before reaching the U.S.
• Curse tablets existed between 500BCE and 300BCE in Greece.
• The Los Angeles BB murder case is referenced again in a light novel spin off by Nishio Ishin. With a character called Mello being the narrator, it tells the story of Naomi Misora and L trying to catch a serial killer with "Shinigami eyes."
• Ryuk, the Death God.
• What does L know?

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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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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 Tomorrow' a.k.a. 'Live, Die, Repeat'. Both measuring the pros and cons of the differing plot points. Skip synopsis @ 5:00

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087: All You Need is Kill vol .2

Original Story by Hiroshi Sakurazaka

Art by Takeshi Obata

With Storyboards by Ryosuke Takeuchi

And additional illustrations by Yoshitoshi Abe

Translation by Tetsuichiro Miyaki

Lettering and touch up art by Evan Walldinger

Rita Vratsky joins the war against the alien invaders, the mimics, so to avenge the deaths of her parents. In one battle she is helped out by first lieutenant Arthur Hendricks, she kills a mimic that has an antenna. By killing it she is thrown into a loop that resets time before the battle starts.

Through a conversation with Shasta, Rita discovers her data is separate from the main sever and is specifically backed up for the war effort. It's here Rita develops the epiphany that the antenna mimic she kills is not enough to prevent the time loop, she must factor in the whole network and kill them in a specific sequence. A mimic with an antenna is able to send signals to the mimics in the past, this one strategy is why the mimics are so incredibly threatening. Yet it is through some glitch of sorts that a human mind can be caught in the radius of their signals.

On her 211 try she succeeds in winning the battle and breaks through the loop. Hendricks however did not survive the battle.

Rita takes this news to heart, not only because she can't loop back now, but since in every loop she experienced Hendricks was never killed. Rita determines his sacrifice as a sombre inevitability of war. On arriving at the Boso peninsula Rita makes the effort to prepare seemingly arbitrary questions, a tactic so to deduce if someone is going through a loop as she did. If someone answered her question before she asked it, then that's how she would know they were looping through time.

She finds him, Kiriya Keiji, who pre-emptively answers two of her questions, one being the number of times he has looped. The conversation is enough to move Rita to tears and the two spend the entire day together.

Now the stage is set for the final battle, both Rita and Keiji understand the rules of the time loop. As with a network they must prevent the mimic recording the battle, and destroy the back-ups before they kill the main server. Making the mimics unable to telegraph to the past. And the mimics themselves are getting desperate seeing Rita and Keiji as anomalies in their battle.

Yet there is one final twist in the tale, defeating the mimics is easy now that Keiji is with Rita, but what about that unaccounted for feedback loop?

Trivia:

The nicknames and titles that Rita has in all forms of English translated media are as follows:

The Full Metal Bitch,

The Valkyrie,

The Angel of Verdun,

Mad Margherita

About Tachyon Signals:

Tachyon signals are a big part of the story. But what is a Tachyon signal? First one must understand that time and space travel are scientifically synonymous. If you draw a graph, you can divide space and time along an X and Y line but the two can't exist without the other. You need space to measure time. The Speed of light is a Z line that runs on a 45 degree angle through time and space.

When you look at the stars in the night sky you are already seeing into the past of that star's life. By the time the light travels to earth and you see it twinkle that star may already be dying or be dead. Stars are massive balls of energy but when we see them, we may as well call them ghosts or after-images. Consider that the observable universe is expanding it indeed takes a very, very long time for light to travel to us. And anything that has mass, can't travel faster than light, which essentially means nothing is faster than light.

Now when scientists talk about the theory of time travel, they are not talking hypothetically but more of suppositions. Now suppose there are particles that can travel faster than the speed of light. If you could travel faster than light then you could travel to the ends of the universe, land on some distant planet that may be a match for earth, get your telescope out and look in the same direction of earth and what you would see is the dinosaurs living and breathing. You need space to "time travel", the more space means more you can see through time. Specifically seeing the past.

Keiji and Rita do not actually travel through time, they get visions from a tachyon signal to their brains, which are traveling from space. Now I explained how you can see visions of the past, but how do these people see visions of the future?

This is where we get timey whimey loopy doopy, and leads to the paradox. One is Rita and Keiji did die, and what we are seeing is ghosts. They are ghosts, they are already dead and they just don't know it. They either exist on another dimension, the universe is broken and so we got the glitch that is this story. That's what happens when aliens use cheat codes lie time travel signals. You break the universe, but if you believe in the holographic universe theory then you know it's not a stretch. If such a thing was to happen it would create the concept of anti-time, as with something like anti-matter. The Christopher Nolan movie 'Tenet' illustrates this well by having the universe contain a reverse entropy, with the values of time running through the negatives.

Realistically Keiji and Rita would never know where the signal is coming from, and that's scary. Because the mimics are on earth, they themselves are too close to the action to send a clear signal. It would be some other being that is sending the signal, which supports the theory that somewhere, out there in space, they are being watched by mysterious aliens who the mimics themselves are agents of. What they succeed in doing is cutting off their antennas so that they never receive the signal (experience the loop again). But Rita figures out she's emitting tachyon signals, which is the most implausible part of the story. Not only because she's human but because there would only be a short distance to emit the signal. After all it's only one day before the battle, that's a full rotation of the earth. Regardless it's enough space for the signal to travel and we never find out how many tachyon signals are being sent, it's not impossible if an unseen force is using signals faster than the ones Rita and Keiji receive.

One thing to keep in mind, as of the upload date there is no proof of tachyons or such particles to have existed or ever exist.

Differences between the 2004 Light Novel and the manga:

For the most part the manga is an incredibly accurate adaptation of the novel, but the differences are listed here…

• Mimics appear as short and stout creatures that resemble barrels or the "bloated carcass of a dead frog" on a detailed biological level they are most like star fish. They shoot javelins from vents on their bodies. In the manga they appear as spherical shaped levitating beings with gaping mouths. This is most likely because Takeshi Obata would have found it easier to draw the creatures with such a design, especially from multiple angles.
• A scene omitted in the manga has Shasta show off the Gachapon toys she bought. Shasta is an avid collector of Gachapon and is keen to show Rita that a toy was made of her, The Rita toy does not actually resemble her but the actor who is playing her in a movie. A glamourous curly hair blonde, at least her suit is painted red.
• Rachel Kisaragi the cook dies where as in the manga there is no such scene.
• One wouldn't be able to tell from reading the manga but Shasta is a mix of native American lineage. (James does not know the details of her ancestry, and it is not an important subject in the story)
• In the manga most of Keiji's squad survives, Jin Yonabaru flees the base at one point and Ferrell survives too even if he does get killed once during one of Keiji's loops.

Differences between the 2014 American movie and the manga:

• Mimics appear as dark tentacled monsters with glowing faces. Very much reminiscent to the hunter killer machines in the 1999 movie, 'The Matrix'.
• During P.T. Keiji and his squad are doing isometric push-ups, the exercise more or less describes that of "planking", where you hold your position for a specific time. In the movie they do push-ups.
• The Japanese Kiriya Keji is named William Cage and played by Tom Cruise. Cage is an older and more cowardly American character, played like an anti-hero for comedic effect but goes towards a more redemptive arc.
• Jin Yonabaru makes no appearance, instead we get the J-Squad characters who fulfil that role.
• Rita is played by the British Emily Blunt. She's a much more stoic character than in the manga. She is never seen crying and never shown seeking any looper, of all the questions she could ask Cage, it's merely the "Have I got something on my face" line, at one point she even takes Cage's battery without asking him a single question. Rita is also very quick to kill Cage (in order to reset the time loop) if she deems his efforts a failure.
• Rita has blonde hair in the movie, in the manga and like the novel Rita has red hair.
• Rita has the distinct characteristic of carrying a sword to battle (similar to the buster sword of Cloud Strife in the Final Fantasy 7 games). In the manga she carries an axe, Keiji himself acquires a similar axe weapon. The explanation given is that they don't need ammo to fight. No explanation is given in the movie.
• Rita and Cage join forces before Cage has properly trained. Instead of being trained by Ferrell it is Rita who trains Cage.
• The character Arthur Hendricks is mentioned by name, but makes no appearance in the movie. Unlike the manga, Rita experiences Hendrik's death 300 times through all of her looping, both the manga and the movie are similar in that his death affects Rita.
• Rachel Kisaragi makes no appearance.
• Unlike the Manga, Cage has what appears to be visions of the future and is clued in on how to defeat the Mimics. Later in the movie this turns out to be a red herring. The mimics are sending Cage mixed and jumbled up messages so to throw him off the battle.
• The manga keeps it vague as to how the time loop is triggered, simply killing a mimic with an antenna is enough to experience a loop. The movie has it caused by blood contamination with a mimic.
• Rita and Cage exit the time loop through receiving a medical blood transfusion. This vastly changes the climax of the story, creating higher stakes but also gives the ending more of an upbeat note. The effects of the tachyon particles are not permanent.
• The word "Tachyon" is never mentioned in the movie.
• In one particularly tense scene, a mimic can tell the difference between someone who is looping and not looping through observing their blood. In the manga they rely on just experience to deduce Keiji and Rita's looping and have no strategy on how to prevent Rita and keiji's loops.
• The romantic aspects of the story are underplayed to say the least, but unlike the manga, Rita does passionately kiss Cage during the climax of the movie.
• Cage never earns the nickname Killer Cage, nor does he paint his suit sky blue.
• The movie ends with the mimics resetting the time loop further back and retreating from their invasion of earth. The record of the movie's events is shared only between Cage and the mimics. Cage is able to meet Rita after her loops, but relatively for Rita it is their first meeting.

Other references:

• "Kiri Oboeru" – "strike your enemy down and learn" Hagakure, samurai
• Shogi – Is the Japanese variant of chess,
• "Jitterbugging" -
• The Executioner's style book -
• Coffee –

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