L Lawliet (Death Note) - MyAnimeList.net

Information

L Lawliet (エル・ローライト, Eru Rōraito), commonly referred to by his alias "L", is a fictional character in the manga and anime series Death Note. He is considered the world's greatest detective, and is the deuteragonist, of the first arc, in which he takes on Kira.

Design and conception

Tsugumi Ohba, story writer of the series, created L as a "force of justice" and a "super detective" who stands between Light and Light's goals and advances the story. Ohba believed that the story would not hold much interest if L was significantly older than Light, so Ohba created L as a young adult. Ohba said that for L's name he wanted to use a single letter with a lot of significance; according to Ohba he considered "I" and "J" but decided that they did not "feel as good" as "L" and chose "L" "after careful consideration."

Ohba said that he gave L the alias "Ryuzaki" because L is pronounced like R in Japanese.

Takeshi Obata, artist of the series, described the thumbnails of L created by Tsugumi Ohba, the writer of the series, as having no "bags" under his eyes and a "plain face with no expression." Obata said that the thumbnail design was "great, and I wish I could have used it as is." Obata drew L as an "attractive young man" until Chapter 11, when the character appeared in person. After Chapter 11 Obata decided to contrast his appearance with Light's appearance; Obata said that he and Ohba held this idea.

Ohba said that he left "everything" about L's character design to Obata. Obata asked Ohba if L could be "unattractive." Afterwards Ohba included ideas in his thumbnails, including L's manner of sitting, "he's English," and "he's listless." Ohba said that he added details regarding L's mannerisms and his "sweet tooth." Ohba credits Obata for the character designs.

Obata said that, during the development of the early manga chapters, he feared that L would appear to be "so suspicious that Light would know instantly it was L if they ever met." When Obata's editor told him that he wanted L to have a face "looking cool based on the angle," Obata added black "bags" under L's eyes. Obata cited Devilman's Akira Fudou when stating that he believed that black bags "looked cool." In addition, Obata thought of a "dead eyes" concept involving L having "mostly no eyebrows" and "all-black eyes." Obata believes that having black eyes usually makes a character "goofier," but the bags "sharpen the character's gaze." Obata believes that the design evokes "a feeling of mystery" and that the reader cannot determine L's true thoughts. In addition Obata said that the bags under L's eyes attracts speculation about L's lifestyle and past. He described the bags as "useful." Obata designed L with a "simple" white, long-sleeved shirt and jeans outfit to convey the idea that L does not put thought into choosing his clothing. In Death Note: How to Read 13, Ohba presented an initial rough draft of L and said that, with a "cool expression" and without the "bags" under his eyes the rough draft L looks like "a totally different person."

Obata stated that he believes that traits exhibited by L are best revealed "gradually." Obata added that he believes that if he drew L eating "mountains of sweets" prior to revealing L's face, L would not have "much credibility as a super detective" and people would question if L was "crazy."

Obata said that he was often told that L's fighting style is "similar" to capoeira; Obata said that he did not consider this when he drew L's fights. Obata said that he was thinking of the most effective method to kick a person while handcuffed. Obata added that if the style resembles capoeira, then this "adds another element to it" and "that makes me happy."

When designing color book covers Obata assigned colors to characters to "get the atmosphere right", Obata assigned gold to L.

Design and conception in the film versionShūsuke Kaneko, director of the films, said that L's role was the most difficult to cast; as the shooting was near and many of the "big name" actors had other projects. Kaneko cast Ken'ichi Matsuyama, "very much a newcomer." Kaneko added is that when Matsuyama told him that the actor would "live as L," Matsuyama had "clinched it."

Matsuyama felt difficulty while portraying L and worried about his performance. Matsuyama portrayed L as if he does not "quite understand other people on an emotional level" since the actor reasoned that L rarely interacted with others. Matsuyama, describing himself as "not very flexible physically," encountered difficulty in emulating L's postures. Matsuyama also ate sweets that L would eat and considered the details of L's signature gestures.

Matsuyama said that he and Fujiwara became "so immersed" in their character portrayals that they did not talk to one another while on the set; when filming ceased they conversed and "went out for a drink or two."

Character

L in the Films

As there is no time delay between the first and second films, the second film begins soon before L supposedly dies. L retains many of the same characteristics seen in the original series. At the end of the first film, L eats potato chips in front of Light; Light had used a potato chip sack to hide a mini LCD television from security cameras while L filmed his room.

Unlike the manga and anime, in the second film, his original "death", caused by Rem writing his name in her Death Note, does not take effect, as L had written his own name in Misa's Death Note earlier. It is his self-sacrifice that allows himself stay alive for a longer duration (as he supposed Kira would kill him on that day), and allows the investigation team to apprehend Light. After Ryuk kills Light, Ryuk offers L the Death Note. L refuses, and Ryuk, while saying that L is boring, leaves.

Twenty-three days after writing his name in the Death Note, and after burning all the remaining Death Notes and having a conversation with Soichiro, L dies peacefully while eating a chocolate bar, with a picture of Watari lying right beside him. He is portrayed by Ken'ichi Matsuyama, who also voices Gelus in the anime.

L was also similar in the film L: Change the WorLd which takes place in the 23 days that L has left before he dies. In it, L decides to solve one last case. He is in charge of stopping a deadly virus from spreading across the world. Ryuk comes to his aid on behalf of Kira's last wishes. Hideo Nakata, the director, told The Daily Yomiuri that he wanted to exhibit L's "human side" that was not exhibited in the Death Note series.

Matsuyama said that L and Light are "extremely" alike in that they have "very strong sense of justice."

L in Death Note: Another NoteIn the novel Death Note: Another Note the reader is led to believe L under the alias Rue Ryuzaki is helping Naomi Misora solve a murder case. She was recruited for the case by L because she was on leave from the FBI. This Rue acts very much like L and shared many characteristics like crouching to sit and consuming sweets. In the end of the book the reader learns that Beyond Birthday detective name B, who was an another candidate to replace L along with Near and Mello, was not only the killer but also Rue Ryuzaki in disguise under heavy makeup. He was trying to make a case L could not solve to prove his superiority to L. In the book the only certified reference to L was the phone conversations Naomi had with him to discuss the case. In the very end of the book as Naomi was going back to work she sees a man similar to Rue, who the reader is led to believe is L (and probably is, considering that Mello earlier stated that this case was the first time that L had shown himself in public under the alias 'Ryuzaki'). This man attempts to give Naomi a hug which she counters in self-defense and sends him tumbling down a flight of stairs. She then catches up to him and asks him his name, to which he replies, "Ryuzaki."

YonkomaDeath Note: How to Read 13 describes L in the Death Note yonkoma as the "holder of the world's greatest mind" and having the "powerful ability to act like a fool." How to Read 13 adds that in the yonkoma "it's like" L was "born to be mocked."