Trump's Criticism and Contemporary Society: The Death Note One Shot (Topic)

It came as a surprise to anime and manga lovers that, 17 years after the end of the original manga and almost 13 years after the end of the anime, a one-shot Death Note was announced unexpectedly. And surprisingly, this short 87-page story is quite entertaining, does not repeat the original manga, and also has an attractive protagonist. We decided to share our impressions of reading the Death Note one-shot. And yes, there will be spoilers here as we will briefly retell its plot.

New time

Light was a mad genius with a god complex. He wanted to cleanse the world of criminals by taking their lives and confronted the equally brilliant L, and later N, who had been pursuing him for a long time. However, with all his plans and manipulations, he could not escape death. We see him for the last time, when he falls to the ground injured, and Ryuk writes his name in the death note. Thus, the almighty killer Cyrus was defeated.

One-shot story takes place 12 years after the events of the original story. The world has changed after a series of massacres and knows that there are Gods of Death and Death Note. Kira is even mentioned in school textbooks as the person who, although he was able to stop wars and reduce the crime rate, was a great evil, terrorist and murderer. Ethical discussions are still underway about its role in the history of mankind.

Intelligent but not insane genius

Ryuk missed apples again and decided to make another adventure. He descends to Earth and touches the head of schoolboy Minoru Tanaka, our new protagonist, with a notebook

Minoru himself is a pretty smart guy, although not as genius as Light. He can pass an IQ test for a high score, but he does poorly at school. Plus, he's not as arrogant and impulsive as Light; Ryuk's hopes of the former fun are a little dashed. What's really intriguing about this meeting is that Ryuk tells Minoru that the death note he is giving him belonged to the real Kira. The guy's eyes lit up. He says he is giving up ownership of the notebook, but wants Ryuk to return to him in two years.

And now we are transported to 2019. When the heroes reunite, Minoru says he is going to sell the Death Note. With Ryuk's invisibility, he gives a message on TV that he is ready to sell Kira's power.

Anyone interested in buying should leave a message on Twitter with the hashtag #POWEROFKIRA. And as for me, using current trends is a good idea. The original manga and anime were off the grid, only indirectly affecting it, and only focused on TV. However, things were different in Minoru's time.

Compared to Light, Minoru is a nicer character when it comes to morality. In the original series, it all came down to you choosing sides, L or Kira, but Minoru doesn't have the signs of a god complex like Light does. But even though he's not as cold-blooded as the past protagonist, Minoru is still pretty smart; his plan to put the notebook up for auction is deep and elaborate with the understanding that his online activities are easy to trace.

As the plot develops, bidding for the notebook starts at millions, and eventually reaches quadrillion. The guy realizes that he cannot receive the money without being caught.

There is also Nia in the story, who, like many of the characters we know, is present in the manga. However, he realizes that the new Kira is not a psychopathic killer, so he is more busy trying to figure out who will be the buyer of the Death Note. Unfortunately, in 87 pages it is difficult to convey the depth of the characters, so almost all the characters we know are not revealed in a new way and are less interesting than in the original story.

However, it is fascinating in and of itself, especially when you consider the modern approach. As trading intensifies, it also becomes more national. The richest countries are betting, China and America are starting to mention crazy numbers. Ultimately, America becomes a buying country. And Minoru asks Ryuk to hand over the death note to the American president.

Before that, he also gives a TV message that the money should be sent to every Japanese [from 18 to 60] who has an equal amount in the national bank [one billion yen per person]. So Near can not track who the seller was.

And here's what I think is the most interesting in the manga - Minoru sells a notebook to Donald Trump. Seriously, even though we are not told this directly, this is really Donald Trump. And one gets the feeling that the manga criticizes him, posing as an egoist. And taking into account modern realities, this is a rather witty move.

Before handing over the notebook to the buyer, another god of death descends to Ryuk, who is unhappy that Ryuk has agreed to sell the notebook. As a result, Ryuk supplements the notebook with several rules.

He informs the US president that he has added a new rule - anyone who sells or buys a notebook will die. This will happen when the person who bought the notebook picks it up, and the one who sold it will receive money for it. Because of this detail, the president hesitates to take it. Ryuk says that if he chooses not to accept the notebook, he will not die; but if he takes it, then even after death it will belong to his nation. The president says that he will not buy the notebook, to which the death god answers sarcastically: “I understand. You value your life more than your own country. ”

Then the president says that although he will not buy - he will pay the full amount, but will tell the public that he bought it, but is never going to use it. And then he will become a holy man for everyone on the planet. Ryuk replies, "Very shrewd, Mr. President." The exchange between them is as ridiculous as Trump's own moral compass.

And in fact, the one-shot does an excellent job of showing how a notebook can seduce entire countries. Once a powerful mystical artifact, they are beginning to perceive it as another weapon of mass destruction that they want to control.

As for the end of Minoru, his fate, alas, is deplorable. After asking Ryuk to never show up again after the deal, Ryuk decides not to tell him about the new rule. And when Minoru goes to take his part of the money, he dies, in addition, Ryuk himself writes his name in his notebook. The manga ends with Ryuk sitting on the rooftop noting how short the adventure was and wondering if he can find another person like Light to fight his boredom.

It is not yet known whether the universe will continue to expand with a couple of similar stories. I really can't imagine how this is possible. But in any case, this one-shot is aimed at Death Note fans and is worthy of attention. In addition, many note that Minoru himself is quite an interesting character that is pleasant to follow. The manga is now available for free on the VIZ media website

The Topic of Article: Trump's Criticism and Contemporary Society: The Death Note One Shot.
Author: Jake Pinkman