Death Note #6

Light's memory along with Misa's have been wiped clean of the Death Note. The two possess absolutely no knowledge of ever using the killer notebook or its powers. In fact, they have completely forgotten how "Kira" kills. L still isn't convinced of their innocence, and he's keeping both of them under 24 hour surveillance with Light handcuffed to him, despite Light wanting to work the "Kira" case with him anyway. L and Light have come to believe there is in fact a third "Kira". The trail leads them to a business company called Yotsuba Corporation. -summary

Death Note clearly understands what it wants to be, and that's a suspense filled thriller jam packed with twist and turns, which grips the reader from start to finish. Although this volume contains some of the weakest segments in the series up to this point, that mainly involves one annoying character. It still does its job in delivering an entertaining story.

At some point in the beginning of the series. It was mentioned what could possibly happen should an individual with greedy intentions ever gained the power of "Kira". That point was merely a foreshadow on the sinister events soon to come, because this chapter in the story deals with such a person. The Yotsuba Corporation deals with a group of eight men, with the possibility of "Kira" being one of them, or maybe "Kira" is running the circle from the shadows. The eight men are using the power of "Kira" to kill off business rivals, with intentions on propelling the growth of their company.

I'm sure it's no secret that I like this series very much. But, I have to admit that the possibility of someone using the power of the notebook to kill criminals, with the intention on making the world a safer place seems too far fetched, and the drive seems completely imaginary, in contrast, to someone using the power only to get rich. This storyline seems very close to reality, because I can't really see a power like this used for anything else besides greed or revenge. The interactions between the corporate members are grisly, when they're discussing how to literally kill off their competition. This portion of the story is by far the most realistic and terrifying to me.

There is also a bit more good to be found in this volume. L once again proves that he's a very important part of the story. I find it simply impossible not to love his character. L up to this point still believes, with absolutely no doubt that Light Yagami is "Kira". Light has lost all memory of "Kira", and it appears that L has Light's plan completely figured out. Unfortunately, he lacks the evidence to finally close the lid on the case.

There are many very good interactions in this volume. However, I feel the story takes quite a bit of damage with the use of Misa Amane. Her character is important to the overall plot I know. But, I still find many of her segments annoying and quite frankly boring. It's still hard to skip her portion of the story though, because you know it's going to be imperative to the main plot in some way. I have to commend Tsugumi Ohba for handling this character. It takes talent to find so much use for a character that appears to be so useless.

The first half or so can be somewhat slow. However, the events leading up to the end, and the ending of this volume itself proves to be worth the wait. The artwork is still very good but some panels are overly darker than others. From where I see it, there appears to be no good reason, and there are also some writing issues, such as words being misplaced or added at the wrong time. Perhaps it has something to do with the translation. In any case, it's still very readable and doesn't hurt the overall experience.

Each of the volumes ends on a cliffhanger. Therefore, it's no point to list it as a con anymore. So, of course, the next volume is mandatory. This volume contains 215 pages over chapters 44 - 52.

Pros:Last few chapters are worth the wait, suspense is still high

Cons: Too much Misa Amane, and her parts are too long