Light was always bad from the get-go. He was not a 'fallen angel' type of character. His socopathy was self-evident from the beginning, it reduces sympathy to his megalomaniac goals.
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PDBPO LEADER
I disagree. The character of Light does develop quite a bit. He starts off as someone that seems reasonable and that could be believed to be doing the right thing, but he steadily degenerates and becomes more diabolical and insane. The rest of the characters are pretty static though.
shareThere's absolutely nothing that makes him reasonable. In the first or second episode, he grandiosely speaks about building a 'new world' like some young tyrant. He was already sociopathic enough to disregard the rule of law and kill criminals in his own warped sense of justice - which was obviously fallacious for obvious reasons.
I mean in episode 2 of the show, he decides to kill a *beep*ing POLICE DETECTIVE. And before you say, 'But Lind L. Tailor was a prisoner!'. LIGHT doesn't know that yet! So it's technically murdering a police detective in his eyes of Malice aforethought.
Even that twisted, villainous laugh...what a creep. What gradual degeneration?
Sociopath from the get-go. There is no 'fall from grace'. He was already crazy. The Death Note just triggered his craziness to the 10th power.
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PDBPO LEADER
There was definitely character development. It's just that the story doesn't dwell on characters wondering if they're being morally correct. They know exactly who they are and what they're going to do.
shareSo what character development? Light was as crazy was he was in the first episode as he was in the end. There is no catharsis, no plateau or characterized angle of momentum. No connectivity with other characters that helps him grow or change as a human being. Light's personality was just a constant McGuffin to make convenience for the plot. Everything he does, says, and strategizes is predicated solely on the whims of advancing the conflict. Including his 'relationships'. .
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PDBPO LEADER
I think character development was done backwards in this anime, which is kind of Neat. Light was a sociopath from the moment he used the notebook (as was everyone who used the Death Note). Once he releases the Death Note we see Light as he was before he found the Death Note: a genius trying that wants to uphold justice in the world with strong moral grounding. Recall he didnt want to use women to advance the investigation with L - he strongly refused multiple times. Contrast that with his utter disregard for women by the end and we can infer that the notebook absolutely corrupted Light's character.
shareInteresting take. The only flaw is that he was willing to kill a police detective the second episode in when he's had the Death Note for like what? A few days? Not even?
That's my only issue post-amnesiac Light. He acts like he's the second coming of Christ, all goody two shoes who despises Kira. WTF? Light was never like that even BEFORE he got the Death Note?
See what I mean by his personality being a MacGuffin?
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PDBPO LEADER