I just finished this dumb show. Started off great. I loved how dark it was and exploring the idea of killing criminals to make the world a better place. I binge watched it on Hulu. After the last episode, I'm a little upset that now i can't get back the time I lost watching the show.
Without getting into the argument of good vs evil, and right vs wrong...
Light is a cold and calculating character, making very few mistakes. Not to mention, he is a control freak and he leaves nothing to chance (that is why he killed the FBI agent). The way he lost and got killed just seems very forced and unnatural. Even if we can make the argument that yes he should have been defeated because "good triumphs over evil," it just did not feel right.
Up until the end, the show did such a good job being dark. It wasn't afraid of letting "bad" win. That's really what sets it apart from most other shows out there (anime or otherwise). And whether you think killing criminals is good or evil is irrelevant.. the darkness that killing criminals makes the world better set the tone for the show. The ending basically put a smudge on that painting, like drawing a picture of the forest and as a finishing touch you turn the birds into boats. Nonsensical. It doesn't fit.
For me, what kept me watching is that Light would always find some dark and twisted, yet pretty clever, way of gettting himself out of tight situations. I think the worst thing about the ending is that it left us with no closure at all, or even something to think about. Light dies, so now what? Since there's no clever "looks like i win after all" moment, why not end on some dark twisted note? Why not end with something like Near himself wanting to use the notebook as his own toy, or SOMETHING?
Let's go back to good vs evil. Say that killing criminals is truly evil, and even god (whoever you think that is) sends us all a sign right now and says that it is. Fine. Like I said, does that really matter? What if, because of all the evil that was being committed, demons start rising up from hell and start devouring everyone for supporting Kira? Fine, end it like that. Why? Because it would keep the tone! Or even if Light went absolutely insane and realized that the only way for the world to be better is if it is completely cleansed, and uses deathnote to controls those in charge to launch all their nuclear weapons at each other. Much better than forcing characters to go out of character, and for what??
tldr it could have ended better.. much better. It's almost as if the last episode was some sort of fan fiction. Why end it so weak? |