Boy, I’m glad I was able to find this at the library and spared myself from feeling the need to buy the copy I found at Target. As a lover of Death Note, this felt like a no brainer. Everything to come out of Japan has been at least decent, including the live-action movies. It’s only been America that has managed to ruin Death Note, what with that live-action Netflix adaptation. Oh, and they’re coming back for seconds, trying it all over again as if they didn’t learn their lesson the first time. But, like I said, Japan seems to know how to handle the property they originated. Or so I thought. This short story collection shows promise, except that’s as positive as I can be. The proper stories in this begin with interesting ideas, such as a “Kira” who is basically giving those who want it euthanasia, or one where they try to sell the Death Note as opposed to using it, but then the endings are a bunch of rushed poppycock that fail to just undo any of the interesting ideas that were put forward prior.
And the other material, such as the four-panel comics, feel like the worst filler imaginable. Had the collection started with them, I might be a tad more forgiving, but they were one of the last things I read and they left the worst taste in my mouth. So all this book has going for it is two interesting setups without a proper payoff… oh, and a little bit of an extra look into L’s replacement that was actually one of the best parts of the entire book. Do yourself a favor and stick to the original manga, anime, and maybe the Japanese live-action movies. This isn’t worth your time.
