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Novel & Pilot
Beyond Birthday
The villain in the prequel novel Death Note: Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Murder Case.
- Alliterative Name: Beyond Birthday.
- Ambiguously Human: Beyond was born with the Shinigami eyes and is noted by Mello to have a "Shinigami's laugh," despite supposedly just being a particularly vicious human outside of these troubling details.
- Always Second Best: To both L and A.
- Ax-Crazy: BB easily stands out as the most vicious and depraved criminal that L has ever faced. Indeed, BB is what you would expect from a sadistic Serial Killer who enjoys committing heinous and brutal crimes.
- Badass Bookworm: He is from Wammy's House, after all.
- Batman Gambit: He's counting on L reacting in a certain way.
- Because Destiny Says So: He kills people he sees are at the end of their lifespans.
- A bit of Fridge Logic here. If you consider that only people with the Death Note are supposed to be able to change a person's destiny based on seeing their lifespan, those people would probably have died from Beyond himself, not from something else like he said to justify his actions. To be fair though, he couldn't have known that. Even more Fridge Logic when you think about the fact that if he hadn't had the Shinigami Eyes, he wouldn've have seen their lifespans, and wouldn't have decided to kill them, and their lifespans would have lasted longer. Their lifespans were shorter simply because he could see them.
- Big Bad: Of Another Note.
- Butt-Monkey: He's Always Second Best and there's the instance where he's stepped on by Naomi Misora. Also there's the whole failing to achieve his goal of "calling out L" with his Evil Plan thing-the poor guy couldn't even kill himself properly. And later while he's serving time in prison he's killed by Kira.
- Calling Card: The wara ningyo.
- Canon Foreigner: Does not actually appear in the series proper, but was absorbed into the canon of Death Note.
- Can't Catch Up: As hard as he worked to be the next L, L never saw him as an an equal, just a Backup.
- Carry a Big Stick: Clubbed to death, knifed to death, beaten to death- he's not too picky as long as he carries out his objective of making his target dead.
- Cast of Snowflakes: Played straight in the book. BB is only supposed to bear a vague resemblance to L.
- Caught with Your Pants Down: Is caught rifling through Quarter Queen's underwear drawer, for reasons unknown. It was probably to keep up the "unprivate detective" act, though Naomi thinks he's just being a pervert. (Partly because of a Cross Cultural Kerfuffle involving the fetishization of women's underwear, and partly because she doesn't like Beyond in the first place.) That, or he was intentionally trying to provoke a reaction from her.
- Cloudcuckoolander: Just like L, B has odd quirks and mannerisms.
- Create Your Own Villain: Is angry with L, because he feels that L didn't care about the kids being groomed as his successors.
- Creepy Souvenir: Takes Backyard Bottomslash's left arm away from the crime scene, probably to make said crime scene more confusing for L and/or whoever else might have been investigating. It's not known what he did with it. note
- Criminal Mind Games: Among other games and codes BB sends a Crossword Puzzle indicating who he's going to kill next to the police.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: For his victims if the state of the corpses is anything to go by.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: As Mello points out, "how humiliating for him"...
- Cute and Psycho: Well he's a psycho and he looks like L. [1]
- Dark Is Not Evil: Subverted. He comes off as very creepy from his first appearance but due to Mistaken Identity the audience is made to think he's a good guy. Turns out he's really Dark Is Evil all along.
- Death Seeker: B had planned it so he would be the final victim.
- Deceptive Disciple: No student at Wammy's House ever put so much effort into BEING L...
- Defiant to the End: "I have never once been submissive even to a traffic light."
- Detective Mole: Naomi Misora is very impressed by Ryuuzaki's uncanny ability to decipher BB's codes.
- Depraved Homosexual: Or possibly Depraved Bisexual (we don't get to see enough of him to know for sure.)
- The Determinator: Because of his Eyes, B knows that everything dies, everything falls apart but he presses on anyway. He also already knows that his death alone won't be enough to make L notice but creating a puzzle he can't solve will.
- Deuteragonist: To Naomi.
- Dissonant Serenity: Does this a lot.
- Drives Like Crazy: "I have never even been submissive to a traffic signal!"
- Embarrassing Nickname: Backup.
- Evil Counterpart: To L. Indeed B goes out of his way to be this. Also to Mello (L shares B's story with Mello perhaps because he is afraid that that Mello would turn out like his predecessor) and Light (though Kira kills far more people; B is more sadistic and his brand of villainy is more immediately terrifying and has a much more personal touch.)
- Evil Is Petty: The entire thing is basically a "Notice me, Senpai!" gambit.
- Evil Laugh: If Shinigami could breed you'd think he was related to Ryuk - he has his laugh.
- Evil Sounds Deep: Presumably, given L's voice from the series proper. We are never told what BB's voice actually sounds like, however.
- Evil Twin: To L, though he might not be (indeed, probably is not) a literal twin.
- Fame Through Infamy: His entire goal is to surpass L... not by becoming the world's greatest detective, but by becoming the world's greatest criminal.
- Fan Boy: he's an Otaku as well as being L's deranged fanboy.
- The Fatalist: It comes with knowing when everyone is going to die
- Faux Affably Evil: The friendly way in which he interacts with Naomi, and even when he's alone he's pretty chipper, for the most part. Also, the fact that he was (From a Certain Point of View) "kind" enough to anesthetize his victims somehow, before killing and dismembering them in the grisly manners that he did. He also arranges for Blackberry Brown and Bluesharp Babysplit to be evacuated to a 5-star hotel (when a cheap motel would have been the norm). Finally, Mello points out that he never actually cut any of his victims' lives short, since his Shinigami eyes allowed him to pick out people who were going to die soon anyway, and he chose to kill them all on their death day, meaning that none of them actually missed out on anything life had to offer on B's account.
- Freudian Excuse: He was an orphan boy who witnessed his parents die, was born with the Shinigami eyes and apparently knows how to read the lifespan numbers so he has seen death all around him all his life. Furthermore, B was never seen as an individual with his own merits-just L's Backup.
- Full-Body Disguise: Used when "testing" Naomi Misora.
- A Glass of Chianti: Or rather A Jar Of Strawberry Jam used to the same effect (is it jam or is it blood?) with the added bonus that some fans find it cute.
- Good Scars, Evil Scars: * Is left with horrific burns after the "suicide" part of his Murder-Suicide plot doesn't go according to plan.
- The Hyena: He practices his Evil Laugh.
- Identical Stranger: Looks like L (though to what degree is debatable, given his status as a Master of Disguise). They may or may not be related to one another or know each other personally.
- I Just Want to Be You: Copies L, to the point where it's not clear which are B's own personality traits and which he's doing to imitate L.
- Insane Equals Violent
- Irritation Is the Sincerest Form of Flattery
- Kick Them While They Are Down: Drugged all of his victims first.
- The Killer Becomes the Killed: He died in prison of a sudden heart attack, suggesting it was actually the result of a Death Note.
- Knight of Cerebus: While Death Note is far from being family-friendly, BB is by far the darkest and most vicious villain in the series. His unusually unpleasant and gruesome crimes take the storyline to a level of Bloodier and Gorier never before seen in the franchise, not even with Light Yagami as the Big Bad in the main series. The story's tone with BB even borders on Genre Shift territory.
- Master of Disguise: As part of his creepy obsession with L.
- Mysterious Past
- Namedar: He was born with the Shinigami eyes.
- Named Like My Name: "Ryuuzaki" copied the copycat when choosing an alias.
- Neat Freak: Justified, as he needs to meticulously clean his victims' houses to avoid leaving any trace evidence behind.
- Ninja: Although not actually described as being one, his way of doing things certainly evokes the image of a ninja.
- Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: L's evil doppelganger/Wammy's Kid/Serial Killer/born with Shinigami eyes. He's not a typical DN OC, but a very scary Big Bad.
- Obfuscating Stupidity
- Onryo: He has this look.
- Otaku: He leaves a clue in an Akazukin Cha Cha manga collection.
- Parental Abandonment: Like everyone else from Wammy's, he's an orphan.
- Primal Stance: See "Running on all fours."
- Real Men Wear Pink: Wears makeup, and eats sweets. Also gushes over a manga geared towards young girls.
- Also, he nails wara ningyo dolls into a wall, much in the way they would be traditionally nailed to a tree in a Shinto shrine. That activity, however, was traditionally performed by a woman.
- Returning to the Scene: More like Never Left The Scene... but it's all part of the plan.
- Running on All Fours: He frequently crawls around in a freaky way.
- Sadist: He likes to kill his victims in rather painful ways.
- Seme: Self-described as "an aggressive top".
- Serial Killer: It's hinted that the 3 from the novel are just his known victims. Keep in mind, too, that the time between his leaving of Wammy's House and the events of the novel only span about 3 months.
- Shout-Out: Spends an entire paragraph gushing over Akazukin Cha Cha!
- The Sociopath: He goes on a killing spree throughout Los Angeles. He kills a young teenage girl in the process and never shows any regret for it.
- Suspect Existence Failure: That was the plan, anyway.
- Superpowerful Genetics: Somehow he was born with the Shinigami eyes.
- Sweet Tooth: B must surpass L at everything, even sugar consumption. "It's sweet dirt."
- These Are Things Man Was Not Meant to Know: Can see everyone's real names and lifespans (except his own, which is part of why his suicide attempt failed) due to being born with the Shinigami eyes, and has spent most of his life "surrounded by death" as a result. Combine that with the stresses of the L program, and it's no wonder he's so maladjusted.
- Things That Go "Bump" in the Night: When he's introduced he comes crawling out from under a bed.
- Trademark Favorite Food: Strawberry jam.
- Tyke Bomb: Was being trained as this back at Wammy's.
- The Unfettered: He will do whatever it takes to get L's attention.
- Vile Villain, Saccharine Show: BB stands out as an unusually horrific, disturbing and dark villain, even by Death Note standards. Make no mistake, Death Note is by no means a family-friendly story, but much of its dark and sinister tone is balanced by its continued Shōnen elements, with Light Yagami's entertainingly hammy speeches, and occasional humorous or lighthearted moments. Any trace of lightness or levity disappears whenever BB is involved in the plot of Another Note, however. If anything, this is exactly what you would expect from an Ax-Crazy Serial Killer and sociopath who carries out a series of elaborate and brutal murders, adding a new element of darkness to the already somber tone of the franchise and pushing the series into Bloodier and Gorier territory never before seen in the main series, almost bordering on a Genre Shift.
- Villainous Crush: B both loves and loathes his senpai, L.
- Voodoo Doll: Or rather wara ningyo left at every crime scene.
- "Well Done, Son" Guy: He just wants L to notice him!
- White-Collar Crime: Purchased a storefront and warehouse to live in, by pretending to be affiliated with a business that was no longer in business. Also made use of stolen identities and credit cards.
- Worthy Opponent: Judges Naomi to be this after he tests her by attacking her on the street.
- Would Hit a Girl: Two of his victims are women (actually, one is a teenage girl), and he assaults Naomi as a test.
- Would Hurt a Child: One of B's victims was 14 year old Quarter Queen.
A
A student at Wammy's House in the prequel novel Death Note: Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Murder Case.
- Morality Chain: Possibly for B.
- Morality Pet: Possibly for B.
- The Rival: Of B and L since they were are all competing for the title.
Taro Kagami
The 13-year-old protagonist of the Death Note Pilot chapter (which takes place in a different continuity than that of the main series). Technically, this makes him the first of the Kiras.
Mikami's appearance, but not his personality, was based on Taro's.
- Accidental Murder: He can't read the English on the notebook very well, so he uses it as a diary and in which he writes the names of the kids who bullied him. He doesn't make the connection until after the second set of bullies dies.
- Back from the Dead: He dies at some point, then comes back to life, but not with his mind entirely intact, some believe. Ryuk asking him what he thought of the Land of the Dead brings out a rather shaky and suspicious smile.
- Death is Cheap: The Death Eraser can undo the deaths of anyone whose name is written in the notebook.
- Defeat Means Friendship: Taro and the main antagonist part on good terms, with the antagonist thanking Taro for stopping him and then apologizing for almost killing him.
- Face Death with Dignity: Kind of. He allows himself to be killed with the death note to prove that he's telling the truth to the police officers. He even jokes a little when giving instructions on what to write for cause of death. Of course, he's quickly revived with the Death Eraser
- From Bad to Worse: Even after he revives his victims with the Death Eraser.
- From Nobody to Nightmare: Seemingly insignificant and unpopular kid who eventually has the entire student body scared out of their wits.
- Halfway Plot Switch: At first, Taro is something of a Villain Protagonist who is trying to avoid being found out. Then, once he revives everyone he kills, he spends the rest of the pilot acting as a Kid Detective, trying to find the killer who has taken his place.
- When you compare it to the main series, it feels like a condensed version of everything Light went through from the first chapter all the way to the end of the Yotsuba arc.
- Happy Ending: The ONLY Kira who gets one of these, folks.
- I Wrote Our Story: Cue Epileptic Trees.
- Kids Are Cruel: Taro is a favorite target for the school bullies.
- Lighter and Softer: When compared to Light. However, since he actually came first, you could say that Light is a Darker and Edgier replacement for him.
- Long Haired Prettyboy: After the Time Skip.
- Mirror Character: It turns out that the pilot's real villain is basically another kid who, like Taro, was constantly picked on and initially killed people by accident.
- My God, What Have I Done?: He has nightmares about the boys he killed until he undoes their deaths.
- Past Experience Nightmare: His victims haunt him in his dreams. Had he been the protagonist of the main series, it's doubtful that he could have gone as far as Light did.
- Person of Mass Destruction: Potentially, though he isn't shown using the notebook this way.
- 13 Is Unlucky: Our 13-year-old Woobie Protagonist.
Characters only in movies
Shiori Akino
Played by: Yuu Kashii
Light's girlfriend in the live-action movie.
- Always Save the Girl: Subverted.
- The B Grade: She's annoyed that Light keeps effortlessly outdoing her in school.
- Composite Character: She's the smart girl on campus like Takada (though Takada does appear later in Higuchi's role) and also fulfills the same role as Yuri, aka the Girl from the Bus. Also she has a strong sense of justice, is studying to be a prosecutor, and is very protective of Light—like another of Light's allies who never got any screentime in the live-action movies—a Gender Flipped prenote!Teru Mikami?
- Foil: To Light, especially when he's in gloating Kira-mode.
- Hello, Attorney!: She's studying to become a prosecutor.
- Horrible Judge of Character: "One day Shiori is going to understand..." (that KIRA IS JUSTICE!!!) Sure, buddy. This is the same girl that gets ticked off at you for making bets on sporting events and you think she's going to be cool with mass homicide?
- I Let Gwen Stacy Die: With a really nasty twist.
- Selective Obliviousness: She seemingly refuses to see what (in the film) is blindingly obvious.Light: IF I were Kira I'd probably do the exact same thing...Shiori: No you wouldn't - that's not like you at all!
- What the Hell, Hero?: Even if she’s not aware of Light’s double-life, she’s the one to call him on it.
K
Played by: Youki Kudoh
The Big Bad of L: change the WorLd also known as Dr. Kimiko Kujo.- Bad Is Good and Good Is Bad: She and her henchmen feel very complimented when one of their victims calls them "no better than Kira."
- Big Bad: Of L: change the WorLd.
- The Chessmaster: Well, she wants to be.
- Create Your Own Villain: Another graduate of Wammy's goes batshit.
- Eviler than Thou: At least Light cares about the human race.
- Heel–Face Turn: At the end.
- Karma Houdini: It's made clearer in the light novel that she's arrested for her crimes, but she's made a Heel–Face Turn by that point and faces her arrest with dignity.
- Knight Templar: Little Miss Captain Planet wants to Kill All Humans to save the earth.
- Meaningful Name: A vicious Bitch in Sheep's Clothing Animal Wrongs Group Leader that wants to infect everybody with a deadly virus named Kujo. Coincidence?
- Misanthrope Supreme: Humans Are Bastards that are destroying the planet so the Perfect Solution is to release The Plague Depopulation Bomb, killing them all!
- A Pupil of Mine Until He Turned to Evil: "Watari had such high hopes for you."
- Theme Naming: K is an associate of L's who wants to kill a bunch of people in order to build a new perfect utopia. Sound familiar? Well prepare to be disappointed because it's not K as in Kira.
- Utopia Justifies the Means
- The War on Straw: No, this is not the argument of the Green movement... Nor is this why anyone supported Kira. The Author Tract is exaggerated in the Novelization.
- Well-Intentioned Extremist
- Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds: In the novel, Matoba killed her father when she was a child. As a result, she injected the virus in all of the Blue Ship members, including Matoba, in revenge.
- You Killed My Father: To Matoba in the light novel.
Daisuke Matoba
Played by: Masanobu Takashima
The Dragon to K in L: change the WorLd- Asshole Victim: K points out his true colors right before he dies.
- The Dragon: To K.
- Eviler than Thou: Proves to be even worse than K, as all he cared about was making money.
- Good Scars, Evil Scars: Making Bond villains everywhere proud.
- Karmic Death: In the novel.
- Obviously Evil: Even moreso than K.
- Red Right Hand: He's got a scar of some variety or other.
- Spared by the Adaptation: In the film.
Hideaki Suruga
Played by: Kiyotaka Nanbara
The FBI Agent in L: change the WorLd.- The Ace: "Hideaki Suruga F.B.I.! Here to protect you!"
- Becoming the Mask: He was sent to spy on L and obtain the Death Note but he stayed with him even after it became apparent L had already destroyed the Death Note because he genuinely wanted to help.
- But Not Too Foreign: Lampshaded when no one will believe he's an F.B.I. agent because he's Japanese.
- Butt-Monkey: "Why do I always have to be the decoy?!"
- The Mole: He's here because his superiors want the Death Note.
Sanami
Played by: Miyuki Komatsu
A token female member of the Kira Taskforce added in the live-action movies.- Gender Flip: She's basically the movie-verse's version of Ide.
- What the Hell, Hero?: She calls L out on the cruel and unusual treatment of the Kira suspects.
F
Played by: Kazuki Namioka
Another graduate of Wammy’s house that shows up in L: change the WorLd.- Atrocious Alias: Seriously. His alias at the school for genii is F. Maybe that was part of the reason he was reassigned to Thailand.
- West Coast Team: One of L and Watari's agents working a case in a remote jungle village in Thailand when the virus hits.
Dr. Nikaido
Played by: Shingo Tsurumi
An immunologist and the father of Maki Nikaido in L: change the WorLd.- Bat Deduction: The Da Vinci Code type clues he left require astounding leaps of "logic".
- Good Doc, Bad Doc: The good doctor.
- My God, What Have I Done?: He created the virus that K intends to use to Kill All Humans.
- Take Care of the Kids: In the novelization, just before his death, he sent an e-mail to L's computer which said to take care of his daughter.
- Too Dumb to Live: There's a part in the novelization when his security system detects an intruder, but instead of being alarmed he just brushes it off. This act of carelessness also leads to his demise.
Maki Nikaido
Played by: Mayuko Fukuda
Daughter of Dr. Nikakido. She's also one of the kids that L has to protect in L: change the WorLd.- Children Raise You: Tells both L and Near off for their eating habits .
- Cooldown Hug: is given one of these by L
- Damsel in Distress: gets kidnapped, but she does at least try to defend herself, and she is fully capable of turning herself into a human bomb trying to destroy the terrorists who killed her dad
- Morality Pet: strangely enough L acts as this for HER, keeping her from killing K
- Security Blanket: Maki's teddy bear.
- Taking You with Me: She attempts to do this.
- You Killed My Father
Characters in 2016 Live-Action Movie
Shien Yuki
The antagonist of the 2016 film, Death Note: Light Up the New World. A cyber-terrorist who idolizes Kira.
Portrayed by: Masaki Suda
- Affably Evil: Despite being a serial killer, he's very courteous to the people he executes.
- Light Is Not Good: Early promotional posters for the movie depict him dressed completely in white. And he's the villain. Quite fitting, as he's emulating his predecessor Light Yagami, who was a literal example of the trope.
- Multiple Gunshot Death: How he goes out, just like Matt in the manga and anime.
- Walking Spoiler: Promotional blurbs for the film states that he "inherited the DNA" of Light Yagami. However, while it's revealed that Light had a child, Shien isn't that child.
Ryuzaki II
L's counterpart for the new film. Named as "Ryuzaki" in promotional material.
- Anime Hair: A bushy moptop with blonde streaks.
- Dark Is Not Evil: Dedicated to stopping the rise of a new Kira and an early poster for the movie has him dressed all in black, contrasted with villain Shien Yuki who wears white.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's pretty rude at the best of times, but he always comes around for his allies.
- Malevolent Masked Men: A non-traditional example. He's not a particularly nice person, but not as amoral as his predecessor L and only uses the mask to protect his face.
- Reincarnation: Early promotional material states that he "inherited L's DNA." Make of that what you will.
Tsukuru Mishima
A police officer who finds himself caught in the conflict between Ryuzaki and Shien.—-
- Easily Forgiven: Ryuzaki forgives Mishima, even giving him the L legacy.
- Get It Over With: When Nanase tries to kill him, as his status as Neo Kira meant that he killed her brother, he positions himself so that her gun is aimed directly at his forehead. He then tells her to pull the trigger, as he is guilty of being a murderer, and she does. However, Arma wrote Nanase's name in her 'Death Note' as it happened, so Mishima is spared instead.
- Memory Gambit: It turns out he's the real Neo Kira, not Yuki Shien, and he pulled a memory loss trick a la Light Yagami, ten years earlier.
- Red Herring: Throughout the movie, we're led to think he's the new protagonist and Yuki Shien the villain. But in fact, he's Neo Kira. And his real name is Ryo Nakagami.
- Walking Spoiler: It's almost impossible to talk about him without revealing a major twist.
Arma
A newly introduced Shinigami for the 2016 film.
Voiced By: Miyuki Sawashiro
- Butter Face: Inverted. While she has the anatomy of a giant insect standing on its hind legs, her face is quite pretty.
- Expy: She's essentially a Gender Flipped version of Sidoh/Shidoh from the original series.
- Heroic Sacrifice: She saves Ryuzaki and Mishima from being killed by Nanase, going out the same way as Jealous and Rem: disintegrating into sand.
- Love Martyr: Her relationship with Ryzaki borders on romantic and he states that she may give up her life for him. She ultimately does.
- Nice Girl: She's very pleasant, not taking pleasure in other's suffering like Ryuk does.
- The Pollyanna: Never seen in a bad mood.
- Trademark Favorite Food: Grapes.
Sakura Aoi
A Death Note holder from the 2016 film, Death Note: Light Up the New World.
- Advertised Extra: She's killed off in her first scene.
- Ax-Crazy: Kills people completely at random.
- Big Bad Wannabe: Has delusions of surpassing Kira, but isn't intelligent enough.
- Sadist: She'll commit mass-murder with all the enthusiasm of a teenager playing Call of Duty.
Bepo
An original Shinigami for Death Note: Light Up the New World that accompanies Sakura Aoi.
- Advertised Extra: Appears for all of one scene and is never seen or referenced again.
- Ambiguous Gender: It's not entirely clear if Bepo is male or female.
- Expy: of Armonia from the original manga and anime.
- Gold Makes Everything Shiny: Has golden skin.
- Mr. Exposition: Gives the Kira Task Force additional information regarding the Death Notes.
Light's son
Light's son, introduced very fleetingly in Death Note: Light Up the New World. Very little is known about him.
- All There in the Manual: Most of what we know about him comes from supplementary materials. According to the tie-in novelization for the film, he was an abusive, controlling and threatening individual, who treated Mikami, his foster father, as a slave.
- Asshole Victim: Probably one of the least sympathetic Death Note users.
- Creepy Child: A nine-year-old boy who's gleefully killing criminals and may well have killed his own foster father had said foster father not intervened.
- Mysterious Past: We never do find out who his mother was, but it definitely isn't Misa.
- No Name Given: We never do learn his true name. All that's shown on-screen is two characters from his name, the 神 from "Yagami" and 光, the latter of which can be read as "Hikaru," "Hikari," "Akira," "Teru" note and "Mitsu" among other potential readings. He's only ever referred to in the novelization as "Light's son" and "the boy."
- Troubling Unchildlike Behavior: How else to describe a boy who's not even ten and is maliciously killing criminals? It says something that Mikami felt it necessary to get him out of the picture, and not for villainous reasons.