| Just want to know if yall think Light is really smarter than L. For me, it was hard to decide even tho L died because of Light. |
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| yes- cause L's intellect is dependent on glucose intake :] |
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cat-craze said: yes- cause L's intellect is dependent on glucose intake :] ^ This haha. :) |
| thats a tricky one, but light DID have the advantage of the death note, so if he got L's name its pretty much all over. |
| For L, who did not have a clue about anything, not how the Death Note works, not about the shinigami rulers and etc, he did much greater work than Light, who had all the information possible. L is much more deductive than Light and is much more experienced. Light just had an advantage in this case. |
| I found that Light relied much more on luck than L.. won't spell out specific instances to avoid spoilers but it seemed to me whenever a dead end was achieved L simply waited and walked around it rationally while Light, not always but still, simply relied on an outside factors not really under his control... be it peoples reactions towards specific events or others stupidity. Light is indeed really good at evening his odds when relying on such factors, but when he uses these for over a dozen times and always it pans out specifically the way he intends the odds don't match up anymore. I also don't think saying that the Death Note was the only edge in play is fair. While it is obviously the bigger advantage someone can have, specially considering L didn't even know about it's existence, L also had unlimited human resources. It's not an even match (it could be if it wasn't for the constant, random shinigami interference... really, those were stupid beyond belief) and the creators obviously pulled some tricks to keep Light in the game on more than one instance, but L is not completely on it's own either. With all that in mind, I still think L is the smartest, but as long as he keeps fighting with his standards and Light stays without scrupulous it will always be an uphill battle and L will always loose in the end (specially considering what I just said about the "miracles" the writers pull for Light). |
| "There is no stupid questions, only stupid people." |
711 said: I found that Light relied much more on luck than L.. won't spell out specific instances to avoid spoilers but it seemed to me whenever a dead end was achieved L simply waited and walked around it rationally while Light, not always but still, simply relied on an outside factors not really under his control... be it peoples reactions towards specific events or others stupidity. Light is indeed really good at evening his odds when relying on such factors, but when he uses these for over a dozen times and always it pans out specifically the way he intends the odds don't match up anymore. I also don't think saying that the Death Note was the only edge in play is fair. While it is obviously the bigger advantage someone can have, specially considering L didn't even know about it's existence, L also had unlimited human resources. It's not an even match (it could be if it wasn't for the constant, random shinigami interference... really, those were stupid beyond belief) and the creators obviously pulled some tricks to keep Light in the game on more than one instance, but L is not completely on it's own either. With all that in mind, I still think L is the smartest, but as long as he keeps fighting with his standards and Light stays without scrupulous it will always be an uphill battle and L will always loose in the end (specially considering what I just said about the "miracles" the writers pull for Light). Examples please. And put them under spoiler tags since you're afraid of spoiling for others. Which really isnt necessary since anyone who sees the first post is going to know L vs Light battle, and the poster already stated the outcome. L also had advantages, especially at the start when L's existence was unknown to Light. |
| Doubt Doubt. |
| I'm not gonna stick around forever and discuss it, just inputting my opinion: L was smarter. He could play Light and did so multiple times, while nearly all of Light's actions were trying to avoid L's plans. L found out that Kira was in Japan and played Light for a fool with very little info, and very early on secured it so that he couldn't be killed by Kira or Light would be revealed. Light never actually got the better of L, iirc, and L figured out that Light was Kira pretty early in the series. L even had both Kiras locked up and likely wouldn't have released them had other people not stopped him. And in reality, Light never actually got L. He coerced a freakin God of Death to do it since he was unable to find L's name himself. Not that he wasn't clever in his own right, I'll admit he was genius being able to evade capture (bar the time he killed L's stand-in in episode 3 or w/e, which was his dumbest mistake imo and rather out of character) but he didn't and couldn't outwit L. |
| No, I don't think he's smarter. I think they're both equally as smart. Light's done some pretty smart things but so has L, lest we forget. L was pretty damn hasty in figuring out that Kira = Light. Although no one believed him at the time, he knew what was what. Telling Light right off the bat that he was L was a smart choice, but his first smart move was only broadcasting the tv program in one region, thus making Kira a citizen there. Although Light has done some big power moves like forfeit the ownership of the death note, his intelligence is knocked down a few pegs because of his power hungry ways. Man this guy was a fucking loony. And also at the end, fucking idiot says, "Near, I won." or something along those lines. R U STOOPID?! He took a complete chance and practically owned up to being Kira before he knew whether they were going to die. Stupid move. Besides those, though, I truly do believe they are equally smart. I think Light only actually beat Ryuzaki because he had the advantage. He had the notebook and knew about the Shinigami eyes etc. Technically it wasn't a fair fight, but L still held his own. |
 "It's just...a bad dream! Wake up, wake up...!" |
| id have to say lawlet would be the smarter of the two because he was left in the dark about alot of information like one of the people above be stated. but there was a similar character poll like this a while back comparing light a leloch |
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| Don't forget L actually managed to narrow down Light because he was able to manipulate FBI. Without it, it would've been a different plot althogether. They both used their tools and Light won. I maintain my stance that it was a fair fight. |
| Doubt Doubt. |
| Not at all. Light IS smart, I won't denounce that but I don't believe that he's smartER in no way. He deduced a plan that would get L killed but that was by supernatural means, not because he was smarter. If Light didn't have the DN this wouldn't even be a discussion. He's not on the same level as L. Not just intulectually. |
| [Catchy, cool, insightful quote] |
| i think we could simplify the question. first i think L is smarter then Kira in anyway, but the only advantage that kira had, was knowledge, that is the huge difference, no matter how exeptional your logical reasoning is, without knowledge, it's useless. so if with this knowledge kira couldn't kill L, i think L is better than him. |
LiarK said: For L, who did not have a clue about anything, not how the Death Note works, not about the shinigami rulers and etc, he did much greater work than Light, who had all the information possible. L is much more deductive than Light and is much more experienced. Light just had an advantage in this case. Exactly how the hell was he supposed to know about the death note?!! plus he knew all along he was going to die. He talked about all the time!!! T_T L's a hero!!! I haven't finished the anime but I hope LIGHT DIES A SLOW AND PAINFULLY AGONIZING DEATH!!! |
| I am apart from everything and a part of everything. Frozen Fire, Tim Bowler |
| I think Reinhard von Lohengramm is smarter than both of them. |
| Even when I was in crowd, I was always alone |
| No, he is not. |
| Both are indeed smart, but having the upper hand by having knowledge that your opponent doesn't have (which Light did) because the facts contradict common sense can't be seen as being "smarter". That, and Light is a complete coward. |
| In terms of Assets, I think it was about equal. Light had a supernatural aid and L had money, influence and better accessibly to information. So while you could make the argument that one 'had an advantage' that would be another debatable topic that may or may not be related. In terms of being smarter (intellectually and logical reasoning) I honestly do not think either was 'proven' to be smarter in the end. L and Light's bluffs and actions were constantly overtaking each others but what makes this most ambiguous is their conclusion. Basically I don't see this as an 'intellectual victory' as it is not like achieving checkmate, but rather making an illegal move as it isn't something L could have prepared for or reacted to. Therefore I don't conclude Light to be smarter because of this. This in essence is why I say neither is 'proven' smarter, so I choose "no" |
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| I don't really think so. L is smarter than Light. The fact is that Light has the advantage of the Death Note and shinigami. Without the Death Note, Light is a really smart boy but not as much as L. |
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| I believe Light is smarter than L. It's something like this: Light > L >>> N(Fuck you Near). |
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| Light is smarter than L. I did remember L saying that Light can surpass him. It's not about advantage or disadvantage, it's a battle of wits. Indeed L did a great job by pinpointing the Kira but I think Light beat him in all those strategies and advance planning, take Raye Penber case for an example. It was awesome and most best plan for Light was to proving him innocent to L and retrieving his memories and Death Note. |
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| Absolutely not. In fact, Light did a lot of stupid things and was helped too much. -gets caught in kanto in the second chapter and that because, the top student in japan, doesn't know the existence of the best detective in the world and the fact that he never appears on screen. -all his genius plans are just simple proper use of his death note (getting the name of the FBI agent by creating a whole death then killing the FBI agents) -naomi misora"manipulation" was a plothole, admitted by the authors who wanted to kill her fast because she'd be able to catch Kira. Why is it incoherent? Because she was cautious and didn't give him his name, and then, after he came back to her a third time and said he, a 17 yrs old boy, was working with the greatest detective on the hardest case of all times only beause he helped some policemen on little cases before, she gave it -those incompetent policemen accompanying L, completely useless and blind didn't suspect Light after L was killed just after talking about the 13 days rule, which'd have increase the suspicions of Light if it indeed was a fake rule. Yep. -Amane Misa. How can you be more helped by the plot than with her? A dumb girl completely loyal and keen of Light, and obviously the shinigami also is keen of her. L's death using those two was just forced to show Raito's "manipulative mind" whereas using them was a child play. That's why I wouldn't put Light in a top 20 smartest characters, let alone along with L, who according to me is on a whole other level than him. |
WhayleOct 28, 2015 4:01 PM
| I wouldn't be surprised if Light had a higher IQ than L, but IQ doesn't equate to intelligence (some may argue that it does though). L has a wide variety of knowledge and is proficient in everything he is knowledgeable about. Light is better at master manipulation, but some confuse being manipulative with being hghly intelligent. So, Light is not smarter than L. And don't say Light outsmarted L in the end, that was a freaking shinigami L was up against! If L had a shinigami on his side than Light would have been done with a LONG LONG time ago. |
KonaKoffeeDec 14, 2015 2:53 PM
 Banner credit to @turnip |
| Here is my brief analysis for which of the 2 is technically more intelligent than the other… ---Age & Background -‘Light’ is 17 years old in the beginning of the anime. He is always top of his class in everything he does and is held up as a prodigy child. -‘L’ is 24 years old in the beginning of the anime. He was brought up in an orphanage founded for gifted children, from which, he was at the top and became the world’s best detective. ---Raw Experience -‘Light’ while in his teens, has helped solve some very difficult cases at his father’s police department that had other, experienced detectives, mind boggled. He has also been able to hack into his father’s work computer at home (for an unknown amount of time) without triggering any suspicion from the police. -‘L’ has had years of experience cracking down on the most unsolvable cases worldwide, enough so, for him to hold the spots of the top 3 detectives in the world. Meanwhile being able to keep his identity secret from the world. ---Initial Disadvantages Of ‘Light’ -‘Light’ being significantly younger than ‘L’ puts him at an immediate disadvantage. The most obvious would be that ‘L’ has years of experience solving the most difficult of cases around the world, large scale problems which probably couldn’t be compared to the cases which ‘Light’ helped the police solve in the past. -The least obvious advantage that ‘L’ has over ‘Light’ would be that since ‘L’ is much older, his brain is much more fully developed than ‘Light’s’. This is something that most others probably wouldn’t think of but is very crucial. The Frontal Lobe of the brain, which would be under developed in the case of ‘Light’, is responsible for carrying out our higher mental processes. The more relevant processes include: thinking, decision making, and planning. These are all used in predicting the outcomes of the actions performed to get to one’s goal. -With the above in mind, ‘Light’ made some incredibly stupid choices in the beginning of the anime which led ‘L’ directly to his country. This displays his immature mind set and is also proven by ‘L’ who constantly referred to ‘Kira (Light)’ as acting immature. ---Initial Disadvantages Of ‘L’ -‘L’ had to start off from pure scratch to find out who ‘Kira’ was. Because he had been killing worldwide, there was an entire world of choices to make. He had to concentrate on a process of elimination and date of deaths which directed his attention to Japan. -The weapon that ‘Kira’ was using was something unheard of and kept ‘L’ in constant confusion as he had to battle with his realistic thinking process which would go against the existence of ‘Kira’s’ killing method using a notebook. This made it look like either a powerful organization was killing people around the world OR something that completely defies logic and explanation was happening. ---Initial Advantages Of ‘Light’ -Access to his father’s police files. -He had a killing method which was unknown to the rest of the world. ---Initial Advantages Of ‘L’ -Brought up in an orphanage which molded him to become the greatest problem solver. -Cooperation of the ICPO (International Criminal Police Organization). -Nearly unlimited supplies enabling him to start building an HQ in Japan. -Years of experience cracking down on the most unsolvable cases. -No one knew of his identity. ---All In All -Yes, ‘Light’ had a means to kill people that kept everyone in confusion, but that was really the only main advantage in his situation. For about 75% of the anime he was on the defensive, we watched him constantly struggling as pretty much everyone was out to get him. ‘L’ simply had far more experience, supplies, and man power than ‘Light’ did. -Now if we go by age, as in 17 year old ‘Light’ vs 17 year old ‘L’, ‘Light’ would definitely be the intellectually superior of the 2. However if you compare them AS IS in the anime ‘Light, 17 vs ‘L’ 24, there is no question that ‘L’ surpasses ‘Light’. Though ‘Light’ wasn’t fully mature yet, even ‘L’ himself believed that ‘Light’ could be his successor if anything were to happen to him. I’ve only watched the anime once and haven’t read the manga at the time of this posting, yet I feel as if I understand things better than the majority. Feel free to message me for any questions as I left out a TON of info because I tried my best to simplify things here. |
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| Statement from the creator of Death Note: When asked which character he thought was the smartest, Ohba replied, "L. Because the plot requires it. [laughs]" Even the creator thinks L is smarter. HA! |
| Banner credit to @turnip |
| @KonaKoffee4 - Your statement lacks thought... I said that there was NO question that 'L' surpasses 'Light' in the 4th to last sentence of my analysis. You also need to stop hiding behind something that had been said by someone else. Use your own brain, as that can be the most credible if used properly. Here’s some real life information regarding my own experiences… When I was 14 years old and my brother was 18, he could beat me at pretty much anything, cards, board games, video games, math, science, you name it. He was indeed more intelligent than me… However, once I turned 18, I quickly realized that my intellect, when compared to my brothers at the same age, superseded his. My grades in school (in every subject) were higher than his, and the way I strategized while playing games were more in depth and required more thinking than his own; it’s just that since I was a lot younger than him, his mind could simply take in and process more information than my own at the time. When looking at us as we are now, me being almost 21 and him being 24, every aspect of his cognitive functions are dwarfed in comparison to my own. Our brains are much more mature than they used to be, and that maturing process slows down significantly (as it’s nearing completion) as you get older. This is a strong reason why if ‘L’ was the same age as ‘Light’ during the anime, ‘Light’ wouldn’t have had as much trouble dealing with him, even with ‘L’ having all the power that he had. It’s just that ‘L’ is more than 6 and a half years older than ‘Light’, creating a significant gap for a 17 year old guy. Not to mention all of his years of experience and being raised to be the best problem solver. So like I said before, if you take the 2 characters AS IS (which obviously is what the creator is referring to in his remarks) then there should be no question that ‘L’ surpasses ‘Light’ in intellect. However, if they were the same age ‘Light’ would definitely supersede ‘L’. |
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| Dude, it's not that serious... Nobody was even pointing you out specifically. I don't care about who is smarter or who isn't. Regardless I'll always like L better. Lol |
| Banner credit to @turnip |
| I simply broke things down to be easily understood, no seriousness from me, just literalism. After watching for the first time, I like 'L' over 'Light' as a character as well, just that there were too many simple statements being made. People were missing the Big picture, to which I hopefully made more clear. |
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| Pre-timeskip Light>Post-timeskip Light Your argument about age being a factor is invalid, you're just overthinking crap the author hasn't given a single thought to. |
| I have to give it to L, in the end Light didn't win because of his own abilities. |
| Mello+Near combo >/= L > Light > Near > Mello > Matt |
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| I would have to say L had a slight edge in raw deductive ability and intelligence. To me, there are two reasons Light managed to defeat L in the long-run: 1. Light's extensive knowledge of the Death Note and Shinigami and 2. Light's manipulative abilities. From the very onset, L had to put the pieces of the puzzle together to figure out how Kira was killing and who he may have been, while Light virtually knew everything about the Death Note. He simply had to use it effectively to keep L guessing. Also, Light was able to manipulate several people along the way to keep the edge he needed. For example, if he hadn't managed to fool Naomi Misora from the very beginning, L would have been able to trace the murders of Ray Penber and the FBI agents back to Light. Then, of course his manipulation of the lovestruck Misa and Rem ultimately led to L's death. Had Light failed to manipulate Rem, L would have proven the 13 days rule false and defeated Kira. |
| Signature removed. Please follow the signature rules, as defined in the Site & Forum Guidelines. |
| Remember Light won because he got other shikigami right? If Light didnt luckily/plot conveniently met Naomi, and Naomi has the chance to meet L, Death note would've been done with just 10 episodes. |
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| L's better. But Light can counter L's plans. If I rate their intelligence... L - 100 Light - 99.90 |
.............. |
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