WMG / L And Light

Light has a Freudian Excuse.

Mikami was bullied at school, after all. We never knew anything about Light's childhood. Where does all this hatred he feels towards bad people come from? Where does his arrogance come from? Is he depressed? None of these questions were answered and it seems that all that hatred and arrogance could be the product of some traumatic event that he witnessed during his childhood, perhaps school bullying.

L had supernatural powers.

L possessed some mind-reading powers and could also predict future, he just needed to focus on something and if this something is human he read his mind (but couldn't see with his eyes), or if it is event or idea he saw near future in third person perspective. However he was smart enough to maintain cover so the problem was not to find who committed crimes, but how to tell others without being suspicious. He could tell that Light is Kira from the very beginning, but had to start investigation to draw no uncontrollable or unwanted attention to himself. However he couldn't read shinigami's minds and probably knew that, this explains his freakout when he learned that shinigamis are real.

And yes, he heard all Light's internal monologues but needed irresistible evidence or Light's personal public confession to arrest him, and also it was hard for him to accept Death Note as Light's weapon. While Light was losing to L all the time L missed exact moment Light set events leading to his death in motion but all he could do by that time is to call someone from Wammy's house as his substitute.In the Wammy's House kids with such abilities were gathered, or normal orphans were infused with such powers and than their development observed. Stronger skills lead to subjects matured much slower.

Near also had such powers, but probably not fully awakened or just a bit weaker than L's, however he was much less subtle with their demonstration because he was less experienced in using them, much less known in the world and had full support of his team, while L was all the time under suspicion by members of Taskforce, despite being stronger. Mello, on the other hand, was much weaker than L, but probably was smarter than Near himself and so was with him almost on par.This also evens balance of power, making Light's struggle look much more impressive. Sorry for my English

Once Light lost his memories L knew he was doomed

Up until Light lost his memories L only cared about figuring out the mechanics of the Death Note as a way to find out Kira's identity. But once his only suspect basically became someone else L realized he had no choice but to figure out how Kira kills. During the Yotsuba arc he never tries to use the Yotsuba group to find Kira and insists on finding out how they kill because he rightly believes he already knows who Kira is. However, when they finally catch Higuchi his attention is only on the Shinigami and the Death Note. He doesn't even try to keep an eye on Light because he doesn't know how easily he could've derailed Light's plan. At that point L probably thinks that Light has a fool proof mechanism for becoming Kira so there's no point in trying to catch him. So L isn't even trying to catch Light he's gathering information so someone else can. Even his final plan to test the 13 day rule could've been a Xanatos/Thanatos gambit where if he didn't die then he chipped away at Light's alibi. And even if he did then there was a chance the timing of his death would cause the task force to suspect Light. While the task force didn't catch this the information L gathered was key to Near and Mello's victory.

L was born with the Shinigami eyes.

Yes, just like Beyond Birthday. They could be brothers or something. That's why L knew Light was Kira from the very beginning—because he saw no numbers above his head. However he couldn't arrest him just based on that. How would he explain it to the police (and Light's father)? So he had to find the physical evidence in order to substantiate his "hunch."

• But if the lack of evidence is solely based on the supernatural aspect of this, then shouldn't he just reveal this to the police when Death Note and shinigamis become involved in the investigation?
  • They learned about Death Notes and Shinigami but they didn't know how the Shinigami eyes worked, and L was probably ashamed of them, considering what happened to B. He was afraid that if he told anyone about them that they would think he was crazy, or worse a Kira. Remember how paranoid L is and how manipulative Light is and how the investigators want to take Light's side because he's the Chief's son. If L revealed his powers Light might twist it so L became a suspect in his own investigation.

L is slightly fat.

There's no way that someone can eat that many sweets and get away with it. L isn't too fat, but he has a layer of fat that he doesn't want anyone to know about. That's why he avoids tight clothing and spends his time hunched over.

• I eat like L, plus copious amounts of fast food and soda, and I am thin. L just has a high metabolism.
  • I binge eat, and I weigh 96 lbs. Trust me, L just has an insane metabolism.
    • No, the reason L is so thin is because he burns calories by thinking.

L is on crystal methamphetamine.

He eats insane amounts of sugary foods, and is still really thin. Saying he has an insanely high metabolism is a bit of a stretch. And when you factor in the fact that he never sleeps...yeah. And he says that he burns the calories with his brain activity, yeah right.

• Technically he would have an insanely high metabolism.
• He may also be using any legal or illegal substance that would increase his metabolism. Claiming one can get away with eating anything if you use your head could be a reference to a deep understanding of biochemistry and exercise science to the point where he determined the perfect combination of drugs and suppliments that he was willing to use, as well as times of day and understanding of his own metabolic cycle and how to manipulate it through adjusted sleep patterns, psychosomatic control over his own bodily functions, knowing how to trigger different states via physical stimulation to trick his body into using up specific nutrients without storing them as well as getting most additional fats and carbs to pass through his system too fast to be fully digested.

Light is stuck in a time loop.

In the last episode he sees his past self. Though more likely than not symbolic for the sake of WMG let's say that when Ryuk said Light couldn't go to heaven or hell that meant that he was stuck in an eternal "Groundhog Day" Loop of those past six years.

Light is Doctor Horrible. [1]

"The world is a mess and I just need to rule it!"

• ...and L is Captain Hammer, Misa is Penny, and Ryuk is Bad Horse...

L is really Lelouch Lamperouge.

Filling in the blanks of L's Dark and Troubled Mysterious Past.When Lelouch was very young he runs afoul of someone with a teleporting Geass and he lands in an Alternate Universe where the Britannian Empire never existed. He's found by inventor Quillsh Wammy who creates the necessary Applied Phlebotinum to get him home but Lelouch never forgets about that kindly old man or that other world where the people are free.Flash forward about ten years later after Lelouch goes through with the Zero Requiem plan.Through someone else's Geass power or some other Applied Phlebotinum he's brought back to life, though he doesn't want to be. Fearing that this will undo what he sought to achieve he escapes into that alternate world he discovered when he was young and reunites with Quillsh Wammy, where he takes on a new identity as the Great Detective L. But he's still very depressed and wants to die. So, he never goes out, his hair grows long and he wears the clothes of a commoner. He spends all his time solving cases and since he has horrific nightmares from the war he tries to avoid sleeping, and begins eating massive amounts of sweets as a nervous habit. He takes on the Kira case partly out of a desire to stop him before he can create an Evil Empire just like Britannia but also out a subconscious hope that Kira will grant his wish.This is why L zeroes in on Light immediately, he recognizes a kindred soul, a Machiavellian bastard just like him or his family.

• Or maybe because Light reminds him of Suzaku and Rolo.

L's real name was Elle.

He was too embarrassed as a child, so he got a name change to something cool-sounding. The reason the Death Note takes it as his "real name"? It was close enough.

'L' was born Elle, a woman.

What is the most perfect way to hide your identity? Change your gender! Seriously.

• If someone was trying to find out who he is, they would find out about a little girl named Elle Lawliet who had disappeared, not L Lawliet.
• If there were any childhood photos, no one would have presumed them of him as it would've been a small female in the picture.
• Some of his eccentricities could be pointed to female habits. L doesn't seem to be the type for bras and if he had a large chest on a small growing body, it could hurt his back, giving him a slouch. Similarly with his sitting posture, he might have gotten painful period cramps and curled up like that which developed into a habit.

L is a girl.

See above Guess. She could just have a deeper voice... maybe (as per another Guess) from being a former smoker or something... That's why she wears baggy clothes-to hide her true gender.

• Rule63: [2]

The entire series was a hypothetical exercise for L.

• L heard about the Death Note through the Taro incident in the pilot. He immediately began to worry about the possibility of a Death Note murderer, and set up a hypothetical situation to prepare. He began in the worst case scenario: He had no knowledge of the Death Note and it had come into the hands of his only intellectual equal. From that base, he began thinking about what events would happen and how he would deal with them. When he got bored, he threw in new elements like Misa and Rem. Eventually his hypothetical Kira outwitted him, and continued the simulation with his students.
  • Trust me, that makes me feel so much better.

Death Note is just a Strategy RPG video game that Light is playing and the different ending of the manga, movie, and anime are the result of his Save Scumming.

Light developed the game himself and the personalities of the enemies are based off his good friends L, Mello, and Near to annoy them. Light tries playing his game and the first time... Fail. Tries again... Epic Fail. Third time... "I can totally make it this, time I have a Phoenix down!" *Tries to outrun the cops as health bar reaches zero* "Aw shit!" And L is there at the end of the anime to tell him he needs to stop fooling around—they have orphans to bake cookies for and besides, it's Matt's turn to use the Xbox-he wants to play Grand Theft Auto and is under no illusions that the cops won't shoot this time.

L is a robot!!

Rem didn't want to kill L, but did so inadvertently by killing Watari. L gave instructions to Watari to delete all data when he died, correct? It's because L is a robot. L needed someone to guide him at all times, and Watari was that person. When Watari pressed the delete button, it stopped L from functioning, which killed him as well.

• But if he's a robot, then how come Misa can see his name and lifespan with the shinigami eyes?
  • Possibly either a lookalike, or the person whom the robot was based upon.
    • A lookalike with the exact same skills and knowledge as the robot?
  • Hey, even if L is a robot, he's still a person. And not even robots last forever. (The warranty runs out sometime.) So he does have a lifespan, and it can be detected. And he does have a name. Hey, L is a more fitting name for a robot than for a human, isn't it?
    • He's a Cylon and he ressurected.
  • He was a very convincing robot built by the REAL L who definitely has the intelligence to design a robot in his own likeness that can fool even the Shinigami eyes. I bet even now, the real L is sitting back at home in his comfy little apartment somewhere, eating all the cake, surfing on the net and reading over everything we're reading. In fact, he's secretly signed on as a troper, just so he can monitor what we say and then edit our responses to make sure that if we ever do get too close to the truth, he can remove it immediately. In fact, he's already changing things as we type. He's invited a secret code called "troper speak" where everything is explained in ridiculous lines that otherwise make no sense in the context its used in, like Lampshading. Only those of us tropers smart enough bother to decipher this code continue to try expose the truth of Robot L and his master.
    • All of the above is ridiculous. I, I mean L, would never do any of that. The idea of that is absurd!
    • So.... Actually a Doombot? (OMG L is Doctor Doom!)

L's biological parents were fans of Slayers

They named him after their favorite character, L-sama.

Light is gay or asexual.

First of all, Misa was throwing herself all over him from the second they met, and he didn't seem to care. Later, she began wearing the most fetishistic things imaginable when they're alone; again, he doesn't give a fuck. He's never shown any interest in women beyond their usefulness to his plans (Misa and Takada for their willingness to follow him completely, the girl he took to Spaceland, etc.). He even said something to the effect that all the girls in his school want him, but he only sees it as a way to help in his plans. All this is understandable after he obtains the Death Note; all he wants then is world domination. But one would think that, being so popular, he would have had a girlfriend before he found it. And then there's all the things implied between him and L...

• Although he did spend most of his time studying for exams to get into Touou.
• Then there's his selection of Teru Mikami, who's fanatically devoted to him AND bears more than a passing resemblance to L.
• "Yagami" backwards is "I'm a gay." Make of that what you will.
  • "Yagami" is his 'surname', so that wouldn't be relevant unless his whole family is gay.
    • Light's mother and sister do show more interest in Light's girlfriends than he does. His father does spend a lot of time (days, even weeks) away from home with his all-male team of investigators (the live action movies add a token female).
• Maybe "Light" is short for "Light in his Loafers"...
  • 2:35, "You can't blame us for thinking it."
• Look at an above statement about the Yaoi Note. I believe that helps explain for this section too.
• No mention of Light's apathetic staring at porn to appear normal to the cameras, L, and the police? He specifically buys said porn for this purpose, highly implying that he did not have it to begin with... He even tells Ryuk all this with a bored, almost "kill me now" face... What 17/18-year-old teenager doesn't have some form of porn? Even Light should have attempted experimentation...
• Looks like this one is canon. In How To Read 13 the author states that "Light is incapable of loving any woman." Though whether that's because he's gay, asexual, or too much of a sociopath to care is left up to the reader's interpretation. However in that same paragraph it also states that Light is not totally lacking in empathy like a sociopath because he genuinely cares about his family and humanity as a whole. So that leaves us with options 1 or 2...
• Light is Death Note Sexual.
• The whole Death Note thing isn't real, but Light is a young aspiring detective college student who ends up working under L, a world-renowned detective, but the Kira/Death Note/Shinigami thing, all of that stuff is just a fantasy he created wherein his mentor and crush would see him as dangerous and naughty, and end up chasing after Light, while thinking he was chasing after criminals off in the world. One clue is that Light seems uniquely fascinated by L's idiosyncratic behavior; Light is from a straight-laced, boring cop family, so any deviant behavior would be shocking enough to really turn him on. However, in real life, L is so worked up in solving various real-life crimes that he barely notices Light. So Light imagines a whole story of a tragic sort of star-crossed romance between them, complete with a Romeo and Juliet-like ending, with his lover dying in his arms

Light is not asexual or gay, but would only be interested in a specific kind of woman.

Specifically, a quiet, stoic woman as smart as Light himself who would understand his motives and aid him according to her own accord (without having to be manipulated). She would have to truly believe that Light deserves to be the criminal-purging God of the New World and agree to be his permanent Dragon for when he's too busy. In other words, a Distaff Counterpart of himself who wouldn't try to overthrow him. Neither Misa nor Takada fit the bill (both of them obeyed him out of blind love rather than true understanding of his motives). Even then, the relationship would probably be non-sexual, and Light's priority would still be himself. Alternatively...

Light is in love with HIMSELF.

Wouldn't surprise me.

Light is some kind of incubus.

Well he just seems to draw in the ladies (and the guys) without actively trying and he doesn't seem at all interested in sex himself.

Light realizes what a bland and uninteresting character he is, and sets out to kill anyone more interesting.

• Once Light gets the Death Note, he goes on a murderous rampage. But then there are characters like his dad, Ray Penber, Ray's fiance Naomi, L, and, well, everyone else. His only course of action is to kill off anyone that could be more interesting than him so he can be the most interesting person in the world. Unfortunately, that didn't work, because he's still less interesting than Naomi.

The real reason L challenges Light is because of fandom rivalry.

Because Light is a Bishōnen bad boy who has a personality beyond being "mysterious" and that just won't do! Being "mysterious" is L's whole shtick- so very mysterious, and dark, and brooding and mysterious. Yeah, that's L's real plan-to attract scores of fangirls with his troubled brooding and the way he eats sweets.

Light is genuinely working for Justice, and L and co. are servants of evil.

As The Good Book Says, John 3:19-20: This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of Light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the Light, and will not come into the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. Therefore, by seeking to capture and stop Light, L. and company are the real evildoers.

• You are Light, aren't you.
  • That's impossible. Completely ridiculous. I'll need a full name and some photo ID, please...
    • Feel free to ignore the fact that the entire Christian doctrine is based on forgiveness, of course. And the whole "love your neighbor as yourself" commandment, or the whole "Jesus dining with sinners," shtick, or the "forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us."
    • Then what explains the "Eternal punishment" schtick in the bible?
    • Some interpretations play salvation and forgiveness as a limited time offer, and since all are evil, those who don't take the offer are "permitted" to suffer forever, it's what would have naturally happened anyway.
    • Then what happened to "God forgives all" like Jesus used to preach?
• Also, Lucifer literally means "bringer of Light". Make of that what you want.
  • Lucifer IS Light. Can't say it's just a mere coincidence. Actually, the whole "Kira" thing is for Light/Lucifer to create a whole world where he has taken all of God's children and has become God over them. What better way to piss the big maker in the clouds off? The arguments below go into better detail for further explanation.

BLASPHEMOUS

Light is the Antichrist.

His name is written with the kanji for "moon," and thus the pronunciation of his name is simply a way to deceive us. And let's not forget who, in The Bible, the "Lightbringer" was, and who tried to place himself Above the Most High.

• If Light is the Antichrist, L might be Christ.

BLASPHEMOUS!!!!!

• Satan/The Devil/Lucifer is NOT THE SAME AS THE ANTICHRIST.
  • True, but the argument can be made that Light is The Dragon, aka Satan/Lucifer/The Devil, and that Kira, his identity, is The Beast. Light brought forth Kira, in a ways, and the people of the world began praying to him - or rather to Kira. Rather than two separate beings, if one considers that the Dragon and Beast are two halves of one being, then the idea that Light, or rather Kira, is the Antichrist begins to make sense. The Beast or antichrist is also a metaphor for a One World Order, and Kira did put the world into a One World Order through fear and mercilessness, contrary to "Love thy neighbour". It also helps that Misa can be seen as the Whore of Babylon - a pop idol who worships Kira and is beloved by the Japanese public at large. It also fits in with the Book of Revelations that just as Satan seems on the verge of victory, he is stopped and abruptly struck down (as is the case with the final confrontation with Near). These ideas make this theory very tangible indeed - in fact, it's very possible that Ohba was intentionally using the Book of Revelations as a slight influence and running motif throughout the work.
    • Or perhaps L is Lucifer, incarnate on Earth to prevent Light from making him look bad? Light does have a fitting name and god complex, but he's brash and shows off far too much. Lucifer/Satan/The Devil works through a complex network of channels in nearly all modern depictions, preferring to stay behind the scenes unless necessary. He would never have killed Lind L. Tailor upon first sight, as such an action would call entirely too much attention to him and greatly compromise his security. Moreover, being from another realm, I'd think a fallen angel would have quite a few bizarre habits. The only question, then, is what happened to Old Lou after being beaten by a wannabe fanboy.
  • If Light's the Dragon, and Kira's the Beast, then who's the False Prophet?
    • Kiyomi Takada.
    • The argument can also be made that Light passing on the Death Note and status of Kira to Mikami was symbolically identical to The Dragon raising the Beast from the sea and granting him domain of the world.
  • The moon isn't an evil spirit in Japanese tradition plus the moon isn't even evil in our society. This is a cultural thing that you've misinterpreted. The moon surname and Light first name represent his own inner struggle.
    • True, the moon has nothing to do with Light being the Antichrist. But he is saying that a kangi that reads "moon" is pronounced "Light" when it shouldn't be — he only appears to be Light, but really isn't; thus, he is deceitful, a false Light, and the Antichrist.

L is a body-snatching monster.

The Wammy's House's true purpose is to provide new bodies for L. The best and smartest of L's "heirs" becomes the body L will possess in case he dies. This explains why so many of Near's mannerisms are similar to L's: L just forced poor Near's original soul out and replaced him!

• The only problem with this version is Near's markedly different investigation style from L.
  • No problem; there's nothing in the original WMG to suggest that the host bodies gathered at Wammy House aren't brilliant detectives in their own right; clearly, each time L body-hops he gains a portion of their abilities, maybe some mannerisms and some trace personality elements from the new host. This has the added benefit of making each regeneration a better detective than the last.
    • Heresy! The added mannerisms slightly decrease from L's later regenerations; no one is better than L. Ever.''
    • Near has the same dilated pupils as L, but only after he begins to pursue kira. Obviously these are some sort of Red Right Hand, indicating "L" is possesing the character. The reason L's pupil's contract as he dies, as opposed to dilating like a normal person, is that Monster!L is leaving his body.

L poisoned Light, making him less intelligent in the second half

Think about it. Light seems like he drops 40 points of IQ between the L and Near arcs, taking a bunch of stupid risks in the latter. Given how smart L is, he would know that, if Watari died, then it would prove Light was Kira, but then L wouldn't have time to implicate him. So, he developed an elaborate booby trap when the computer systems were installed, setting up the core computer systems that would most likely be taken by Light when he left to release poison gas over a long period of time. Given that Light would be working with the computers almost constantly, the poison would degrade his facilities of reason. By being non-lethal, L would avoid killing any innocent members of the anti-Kira group. The gradual dosage would prevent Light from noticing and minimize the effects on the other members. This also has a nice dramatic structure, since the second part can be seen as a two-part plan by L - reduce Light's intelligence considerably and then, when he's been sufficiently softened up, send in the two people most likely to be able to take him down.

• Light made stupid mistakes before, such as the one mistake that told L that 'Kira' was in Japan to begin with, or killing the Federal agent when simply lying low would have sufficed.
• Light also seems to drop several IQ points whenever it comes to Ethics.
• Light is a lot smarter in the "second half" of the manga. They cut out a lot of his deductions in the anime (for example, when he understands simply from a couple of words that the president of the U.S is being blackmailed.) But he still makes a lot more mistakes than before. The L of the anime is a lot better with brain damaging poisons than the L of the manga.
• Or he's just as smart, but making mistakes because he's slowly GOING FREAKIN INSANE.
• Victory disease [3] likely also played a role as it involves complacency and arrogance due to past victories.
  • This is actually more or less confirmed in the story. After killing L, Light believed that he was invincible, and he underestimated the skill of Near and Mello until it was to late to do anything about them.
  • THAT's why L keeps trying to force his cake on him! And here I thought he was just being friendly!
    • Honestly the first thing I thought of when I read that was this: "Oh I could throw you in the lake, or feed you poisoned birthday cake... I can't decide whether you should live or die..."

L and his successors were "shields"

All of the cases they "solved" were solved by Ryuga Hideki. Furthermore, L using Ryuga Hideki's name was a failed attempt to get Kira to kill Ryuga. Ryuga had information about L that would lead to his demise, which is why L was protecting Ryuga rather then fulfilling his lifelong dream of building the world's largest sugar cube city.

• And that was where L was in the second half of the series. Faked his death to run off and go complete that dream of his. Hey! Look out the window! I think I can just see a bit of a sugar white building being finished off in the distance.

L had a crush on Naomi Misora.

Because, c'mon, that hug at the end of the novel. Plus, a lot of his dialogue in the phone conversations seem like he's trying to impress her and is completely clueless to how annoying she finds him. After she kicks him and he finds out she has a boyfriend, the bad experience causes him to pretty much give up on relationships and become the basement-dwelling Covert Pervert we know today.

Yagami Light really is named Raito.

The letter "L" is hard to say in Japanese, for some reason. Light is Japanese. So, for once, maybe that crude Japanese approximation of his name is his actual name? Okay, that's way out there, but it's been theorized before.

• Except that it's clear Soichiro speaks English, if not fluently, then at least very well. It's just that his and Light's Japanese voice actors weren't as good as the characters are supposed to be.

The Light Yagami who became Kira isn't the real Light Yagami

The real Light Yagami was a mild-mannered high school student, top of his class, who accidentally discovered the Death Note. He used it twice. After realizing that he had killed two people, he snapped, replacing his real personality with the one that would go on to become Kira.

• Also, the old Light Yagami would have become Gundam.
• This is was made obvious when Light temporarily desnapped and became a morally upright young man. For a while.
• Mja, surely a normal person's actions would be more among the lines of this:
  1) Go hide in a corner for a couple of hours.
  2) Destroy the note book
  3) ?????
  4) PROFIT!
  3) Live on the rest of their life in extreme guilt.
  • Even before Light was Kira, he was never normal. And if he destroyed that notebook, he would find an identical one a few days later. Death Notes regenerate. A couple of regenerated death notes later, he would definitely snap. We just saw the last cycle.
    • That makes for an amusing image- After several creative attempts at destroying it and some severe Sanity Slippage later... "Gah! Back again!!! * snaps, insane Kira laugh* ...Oh well might as well use it to become God."
    • What? No, they don't. The destruction of Death Notes occurs in the series itself.
  • Light's actions come pretty close to "normal" or at least what a "normal" protagonist would do in said situation:
  1) Cry / dry heave in alleyway.
  2) Consider destroying the notebook.
  3) Rationalize actions, "I was doing the world a service, killing them" decides that if he's damned anyway for using the Notebook (remember he was prepared for some kind of punishment when Ryuk appears), he might as well take out as many bad guys as possible.
  4) When no punishment is forthcoming... he's come too far to stop now, comes to believe own bullshit... I'M GOD!!! (Also have to keep the Shinigami entertained)
  • That isn't Light Yagami. The Death Note he was given was in fact the ninth Millenia item from the Yu-Gi-Oh series that got lost and wound up in Death Note. After using it twice, the real Light realised that there was another presence in the book that was trying to possess him. He thought to get rid of it, however the dark presence from the Millenia Death Note heard this thought and decided to speed things up and possessed Light. This whole series, we only ever saw Yami Light - who was doing everything in accordance to...the APPLE'S plans! Yes, the apples secretly release a special chemical when consumed, which actually contains highly advanced nanobots that can alter an person's mind into communicating their plans of World Domination for them, they just need the perfect specimen to eat them enough to get the complete message, and this is where Ryuk comes in. So while he's controlling Yami Light on behalf of the apples, Yami Light is keeping the real Light surpassed in depths of his subconscious, allowing him to witness all the horrilbe things he's forcing him to do. So at the end, when Light goes into the breakdown it's really Light finally having enough with being controlled, and trying to get out to tell someone that he's being controlled, however Yami Light wasn't giving up so easily. Cue the breakdown.

L hallucinates everything after he sees the second Kira video

The case was real up to a certain point. Then he snaps, which is shown by his overreaction to the mention of 'shinigami' in the second Kira's video, because he hadn't gotten enough sleep.

Light is insane, and the whole series is a hallucination on his part

L dies halfway through it, so it can't be L's hallucination.

• Of course, you could take into consideration several of the other WMGs here, giving reason to how he could have played out how the encounter would happen in his mind the entire time, even his own death, and Near taking over the investigation.

Light has a complete mental breakdown partly through the series.

Either after spending a few weeks in solitary confinement, or the instant he gets his death note back. He's certainly under enough stress to have a breakdown. And the universe suddenly starts bending over backwards to bail him out. Rem kills herself and L to resolve a situation that would work out much better if she sold Light out and cutting a deal for Misa; then, even though the only thing keeping Light from conviction is a lack of solid evidence, everyone suddenly refuses to believe that he could be Kira no matter what he does. He gets his own cult, and girls are fighting over him... Granted, it all eventually falls apart on him, but these things always do.

• Light shifts out of reality right when he gets the Death Note back. He yelled "Just as planned" at the top of his lungs, which in reality led to his capture.

Light was controlling Penber's actions via Death Note on the train

So Raye Penber's kills count as kills for Light.

• This is even mentioned in the show / manga that he had written what would happen in the Note beforehand:

"Raye Penber Heart attack

Passes in front of the "CAFEEL" coffee shop in Shinjuku station underground at 3:00 P.M. on December 27, 2003, carrying his laptop computer, and boards a train on the Yamanote line. Dies three seconds after getting off the train." (Vol. 2 pg 44 of the manga)

L has Asperger's Syndrome.

L is pretty much an Asperger's poster boy. He has poor social skills and no friends (he even admits that Light was his first friend ever); he is extremely intelligent; he can't seem to sit still without doing something with his hands (all that obsessive sugar-cube stacking); he has an otherworldly way of looking at things; and he doesn't seem to realize he's bothering people, Misa especially.

• Although with Misa it doesn't count. Essentially everyone other than Light and Rem bothers Misa. Suppose you can add Light's family as exceptions too, but considering they're Light's family, she's just trying to get on their good sides to impress Light and hope for their consent to get with Light. Besides, she really saw L as a love rival, because Light was giving him nearly all his attention, and Misa wanted that attention on her.
• This troper has Asperger's, and totally agrees with this theory.
• Consider also how he shows a few other traits of it; first, there's a couple of scenes where he exhibits a few symptoms of pica (remember how he peeled a banana with his teeth?), or the way he just seems to be totally detached from others. When I say detached, look at how others react to him, and he really doesn't seem to mind that everyone considers him weird, if he even notices at all. Plus, there are moments when I act like a female version of L myself.

Everything that happened in the series was imagined by Light

The Death Note was made as a prank by a random student. When Light wrote the name of the first guy in, he was gunned down by police rather than having a heart attack. Light, disillusioned by the crime in the world, desperately wished to believe he could make a difference; the stress of being number one in everything rendered him unstable. As for the second guy, Light killed him himself using his sports skills and then ran off to avoid retribution; his mind made up a false memory of using the Note. The criminals that he wrote in the following week did not die, but he believed they did. He finally began to hallucinate Ryuk after a week of believing himself to be a murderer.

The investigation of the so-called Kira was imagined by Light and was his inner conscience protesting the killing of criminals. That side of him would be manifested as L, who is essentially exactly like Light in terms of intelligence and skill, but unwilling to conform to societal norms to represent the stress that came with being always perfect.

Misa was already a famous model before Light found the Note; Light only imagined having a relationship with her as part of his repressed sexuality. L, Light's subconscious "good" side, weakened as Light's "evil" side grew stronger and eventually died. Light was put into a coma as part of a failed suicide attempt when the police began suspecting him of killing the gang member.

At the end, when he is killed, it is his moral subconscious, resurrected as Near, rejecting the world he's constructed for himself. He is not sent into nothingness, but the world he lived in is. He spent those eight years in the coma and is now just waking up.

A number of different versions in the fine details of this theory are equally valid, so it is probably not 100% right.

• Sounds like a better version of Paranoia Agent.

The entire series is young justice-driven Light-kun’s coma nightmare.

The end of the series is actually the beginning. He's betrayed by people he thought were his friends and trusted- they tell him something fun is going down at this old abandoned warehouse. But it wasn't Near (a figment of his imagination) that arranged things, but it was Sudou the Jerk Jock and his cronies come to give the poor nerdy high school student a beatdown and worse. He is rendered comatose, and in his dreams to counteract those feeling of powerlessness he dreams up a scenario where he’s given total control thanks to Shinigami powers and is a dark avenger of justice...

• L is his conscience another facet of his own personality that recognizes that he has gone off track somewhere...
• In his breakdown at the end of the series he begins to realize that this isn't real and not what really happened...

In the Movieverse, L was in love with F.

Which is why he writes his own name in the Death Note right after he finds out about F's death.

L is a werewolf.

Okay. Where do I start?...

• He constantly sits oddly, in a style that looks like the way a dog sits on their haunches.
• He is shown with constantly dialated pupils.
• He has shaggy hair.
• He has naturally pure black hair.
• He constantly hunches over on himself, which could be reminicent of some interpretations of werewolves (gestalt form).
• He has an oral fixation.
• He looks more and more like he has issues the later on with his eyes. Look at when he's first introduced compaired to the chain incident.
• The issue is that he has more bags under his eyes later, and his eyes are shown wider and wider.
• He also seems to not sweat (tennis mach, anyone?), he was only shown breathing heavily. This follows, considering actual wolves and dogs can only sweat on their paws. Considering he was in his usual outfit, while Light was in a t-shirt and shorts and he was sweating all over the place.
• This would also explain why L doesn't freak out when he sees Rem. He is already a supposed fictional being, so the presence of a Shinigami doesn't come as much of a shock to him.
• Except (and I'll poke a hole in my own theory) he freaked out at the mention of shinigami in the anime version. (His screaming while holding his hands up in the air thing.) In the manga, he just fell, so the anime version makes me laugh. Maybe he'd be a werewolf in the manga and not the anime?
• So we've got Simon Yagami, Misa Renard, Aeonear, and now... Corn-L?
• If L isn't entirely human, that opens a lot of questions about how the Death Note works on him. Maybe he can recover from death (although that would be more like a zombie).
  • A zombie werewolf?
  • Maybe he's an abomination a werewolf-vampire crossbreed. L is pale and doesn't like going outside. Maybe he's slightly adverse to sunlight.
    • Or maybe he sparkles.

L is a vampire.

See above. He's thin, pale, dislikes going outside preferring to be the Voice with an Internet Connection and is never seen eating "real food." It also explains why he's insanely wealthy-being immortal he could have saved up for centuries.

Light is a werewolf.

• Werewolf Theme Naming: "Moon Night-God" anyone?
• Whenever Light gets really angry he's suddenly sporting Expressive Hair and fangs (see when L pwns him right after the Entrance Ceremony, the last two episodes, and that deleted funeral scene... where he barks like dog at L's grave.) But Light being Light he has mastered his powers and Our Werewolves Are Different. (Also it is necessary since when he goes out walking at night the moon is always full.) That's why he's so good at hiding his true nature, he has learned to blend in with the sheep- he is able to keep a calm facade most of the time though he does have some serious rage issues-see his Villainous Breakdowns. ("Dammit, he got me! Rawr!")
• It also explains his cavalier attitude to any punishment he may receive for using the notebook-he's already mastered one Curse he should be able to handle a simple notebook, right?
  • That's why Light has a perfect body and has amazing athletic prowess when it is implied he spends all his time studying and snacking on potato chips.
  • It's also why Light gets a Rasputinian Death, shooting a werewolf with regular bullets generally just pisses it off.

Light is a Kitsune.

He looks nothing like the rest of his family so he's possibly a fox-changeling. Let's see—a Japanese kid with foxy red-brown hair. He's cunning, clever, and manipulative and The Vamp. Also L might be a Tanuki since he has those Creepy Shadowed Under Eyes...

L deliberately manipulated Aizawa into leaving the Kira task force.

L suspected something was up when Light started vehemently proclaiming his innocence, and evidence in support of that claim came up at a convenient time. He deduced the possibility that Light had given up "Kira's power" and his memories of being Kira, as part of The Plan to prove his innocence and ultimately kill L. L knew he needed a backup in the event that he was killed, and when the third Kira's threats meant that the Japanese police would no longer support the task force, he saw his chance. Knowing that Aizawa was the one with the most to lose if he quit his job, and had been distrustful of L and disturbed by his methods for quite some time, he subtly pressed Aizawa into strongly considering whether he was willing to see the investigation through to the end, no matter what. When it became evident that he would, L covertly signalled to Watari to "innocently" remind L of the fund he had set up to support the families of the task force members in the event that they were coerced into leaving the police, bringing Aizawa to the conclusion that L had withheld the information to test his resolve, and resentful of such manipulation would leave the task force.

This would mean Aizawa, a competent investigator, would not be around Light for the months he was unable to remember that he was Kira. L deduced that if Light should kill him and take over the task force, that Aizawa would return to the task force (if he had not already), and thus the task force would include someone most inclined to consider the possibilty that Light was Kira, having not been around him during his temporary "innocence". This would provide L's successor with a clear insight to the workings of the task force, and a vital weapon to use against Light. L may even have left instructions for Near that Aizawa was the surest bet for defeating Kira.

Forget Light, L was the true mastermind, with an incredibly subtle plan that transcended his own death and went Exactly as Planned.

High school super-genius Light Yagami is really Kira!

Think about it! From the very first transmission L ever made, we know that Kira is in Japan! And Light Yagami is one of the smartest students in all of Japan, more than capable of staying one step ahead of the detectives pursuing Kira! Also, his father works for the police, giving Light tons of access to sensitive information about the criminals he kills!

• But he's such a nice guy! I mean, I've seen some crazy wild mass guesses but come on.
  • No, it makes sense! Clearly him working with the police force on this case is part of some manner of incredibly overly-complicated plot to throw off suspicion!
    • That's ridiculous. Next you'll be trying to tell me that Bruce Wayne is Batman!
    • That millionaire playboy? He's too busy partying and managing the affairs of the Wayne foundation!
    • Why does the above troper think Alfred is friends with Batman?
    • And Shinichi Kudo is Conan Edogawa!
    • What next, Clark Kent, Superman? Don't make me laugh, kid, Kira is that pesky kid that always spoils our team's plan! And Pikachu is his Shinigami!
    • But...Clark Kent wears glasses!
• Guys, this is serious WMG. I don't want anymore of these crackpot theories about Light Yagami being Kira. Everyone knows that guy is way too busy flirting with girls and studying for College Entrance Exams! Obviously, there's just no way HE could be Kira.
• No, its true. I have proof, and I'll be posting it on the inter
  • It seems here that the above troper died of a heart attack.
• It's just as well, because I've got a different theory. Light is L. I mean, think about it, "Light", "L", right? Except, and here's the crazy part, I think there's actually more than one L. See, the first L died when Ligh
  • The above troper didn't die of a heart attack, but was actually abducted by Candle Jack was has been wor
    • Working with Kira this entire time. It all makes sense now. If Kira could not see your face due to you always having it covered (handy if you're a female coming from a society that doesn't allow you to show ANY part of your body) Candie Jack can not only kidnap you if you say his name, but will kidnap anyone who attempts to say Kira's real name, because all Candie Jack needs is for you to say either name for him to kidnap you. It's Fridge Brilliance!

Light is, initially, Agnostic

• He grew up in a household, first of all, that doesn't stress religious practice much outside the typical Japanese ones, which are par for course for everyone in his neighbourhood.
• Being agnostic means that he doesn't believe in God, nor does he believe that there is definitely no God, only that there could be if there was the right evidence for it. Plus, only an agnostic could go onto call themselves a god, as a Theist already believes in a Higher Power, and Atheists reject God completely. In other words, Light is in the right amount of ambiguity on this point to accept his calling as the god Kira.
  • So, how many times does he say in the series that It looks like there's a god on my side, and it isn't a God of Death.? In other words, this could constitute proof.
• On an additional, he may be a little closer to the Humanitarian way of thinking (no, not THAT one) in that people are essentially good, but there are some who really aren't. Humanitarians, essentially, believe in People. Plus, ever noticed how everything bad that happens is, in his eyes, to do with people? The World is Rotten because of what people have done. Kira is a god because he, as a person, decided to make the difference, setting himself apart. It's a good piece of Fridge Brilliance when you think about it.

L becomes aware of his fictionality.

The reason L freaks out when he admits the existence of Shinigami is that in his mind, he comes up with an abstruse proof of the impossibility of Shinigami and the natural conclusion that he is a fictional character in a fictional universe. Despite his mental fortitude and natural intelligence, there's only so much a sleep-deprived youth can take.

L was not actually murdered; he died of natural causes

Rem kills Watari via death note, then dies immediately thereafter. The only reason L dies is because of a NATURAL heart attack brought about by his incredibly poor nutrition. The timing of his death is merely coincidence. Thus, Kira did not actually defeat L.

• This assumes that Kira didn't have this in mind and therefore subtly manipulate L into eating more and more candy in place of actual food while they were chained together, wearing him down to the point where he dies of malnutrition.

Light died exactly when he was supposed to according to his number, & went just as planned... by fate.

Think about it - Misa was set to die on Year X, Day X, Hour X, Minute X, Second X. By a murderer. And this was the end of her life as predetermined by her number. This death wasn't because of a disease, accident, old age, or anything else - it was a death caused by another sentient being; therefore, the entire idea of "free will" in the Death Note world is a load of bunk, and everyone except the Shinigami are subject to a law of fate and predetermination! Ryuk even said that he knew when Light was going to die, and with some glee at that; combine this with the fact that he said he would be the one to right Light's name in the Death Note when things got boring for him. While this seems like just a threat on Ryuk's part, perhaps Ryuk forsaw Light's death entirely beforehand, and therefore knew that Light would die exactly when he did, and by Ryuk's hands - it wasn't a threat, it was a prophetic message which couldn't be avoided by a human. Taking this into account, then, everything Light did, L did, Near, Misa, and everyone else did was predetermined from the moment that Light picked up the Death Note. Perhaps Light's death number was different before taking the Death Note, but thanks to Ryuk's meddling (because, as was stated before, the Shinigami are outside the realm of fate - or those that do not interfere in human affairs, at least), and dropping of the Note, Light's number was changed to reflect the exact moment Ryuk wrote his name in the notebook.

• "The use of the Death Note in the human world sometimes affects other human’s lives or shortens their original life-span, even though their names are not actually written in the Death Note itself. In these cases, no matter the cause, the god of death sees only the original life-span and not the shortened life-span", this rule proves this WMG wrong.

L is Shinichi Kudo

You know it's true. Shinichi after turning 10 and starting a new life under the name Conan Edogawa, never managed to go back to his old self, and just grew up as Conan, later becoming L.

Light is really Loki.

See above. Please notice me daddy! I'll kill all the evil people for you! That'll make you love me!

• Both have God Complexes, both want to bring the world to its knees, both are really smart Consummate Liars, both no doubt grew up hearing stories about monsters only to discover that they ARE that monster (for Loki - frost giants, Light - killers), both take it very badly and attempt to kill off all the other monsters.

On the topic of Reused Character Designs Ral from the manga Ral Grad is actually Light and L (and Ryuk's) son.

Visually he resembles all three [4] and personality wise he's a real fast learner, Axe-Crazy, idealistic, hyperactive, and a total pervert.

Light is adopted.

...He looks nothing like the rest of his family.

• Actually, that would explain a lot... So Darth Vader is Light's father?
  • Wait... Luke means Light in bastardized Latin. Luke Skywalker. Light Yagami (Night God). Holy crap!
  • Light is adopted and he has a brother or two...
  • It makes sense-he's the Odd Name Out. You've got Souichiro, Sachiko, Sayu... and Light.
• Also Souichiro does seem to favor Sayu at point (specifically the scene in the hospital where Souichiro can claim to L that he is only sure that SAYU not LIGHT wasn't Kira) and, not to mention, Light could do anything with how smart he is, perhaps he wants to be greater than his (adoptive) Dad because he wants to be seen as worthy.
  • This leads to his OCD, perfectionism and eventual god complex when he gets the Death Note.
  • Light is a child of rape or kidnapping. Either that or he dyes his hair.

Light was adopted... from the Wammy's House.

• Discuss.
  • And Light really was L's "first ever friend."
    • In fanfic form: [5]

Light was adopted from Wammy's House and he has a brother... Matt.

Clothes and Fanon hair-dye aside they look very similar.

• Count on Cousin Gevanni as well.

Light is A from Wammy's House.

Maybe A as in Asahi. He's a genius and he's about the right age. That means he survived his suicide attempt (perhaps he was saved by a suicidal Shinigami) but he had such severe mental trauma that he somehow got Easy Amnesia from it. So L or Wammy adopted him out to a nice normal family far, far away on the other side of the planet in an attempt to Give Him a Normal Life without any stress... and holy shit did it go wrong...

• That's why Light is so creeped out upon meeting L! It's not just because L looks creepy but also because Light has Repressed Memories involving Beyond Birthday... (the jam... GET IT OFF!!! Sorry, what were you saying?)
• In-universe L is the world's greatest detective, well-known by the police agencies of the world (save for Matsuda) and yet when L challenges Kira on live TV Light's first response is "Who's that?" You'd think that Light who wants to be a detective one day would have studied up on who's who in the field unless he so completely blocked out the trauma or after leaving Wammy's House Wammy intentionally gave him Laser-Guided Amnesia so that he no longer remembers ANYTHING to do with L...
• A is said to be very good at math. Light bonds with his little sister by doing her math homework for her. Also Light seems rather depressed in the first episode before finding the notebook.
• More evidence that Light attended Wammy's House- in the manga he easily pulls all-nighters without letting on to anyone that he is tired. Also he has a food obsession with the barbequed potato chips.
• This is also why L suspects Light so quickly-after all Backup went nuts so it stands to reason that A would too. It also explains why L takes a direct approach when confronting his Kira suspect-he's testing him, trying to see how much he remembers.
• Am I the only one who wants to see a fanfic of this concept?

If Light was adopted then "Light Yagami" isn't his real name.

So he survived the ending, Ryuk wrote down "Light Yagami" in the notebook to help him fake his death. He was just sleeping there at the ending. You see thanks to spending time with L and being forced into chronic sleep deprivation he's developed narcolepsy or something.

• However, considering that the Death Note only works on people older than 3 years old, that could be the cut-off point for when a name is set as the one that will kill you via the Death Note. If Light was given one name at birth, but then adopt between the age of 0 and 2 years and given a different one before his 3rd birthday - Light Yagami - which is used from that point on, Light Yagami becomes the default.

Light is a Bastard Bastard.

Soichiro isn't Light's biological father. It would explain why Light looks nothing like him in an anime, why Soichiro seems to favor Sayu, and why Light and his father seem to have somewhat strained relationship even before Light comes under suspicion of being Kira.

Following above guesses Light would have become a killer anyway even if he hadn't picked up the notebook because he is host to a Dark Passenger.

Light Yagami looks nothing like the rest of his family with his (red-)brown hair but he does kind of look like Dexter. They could be (half-)brothers. Dexter, The Ice Truck Killer and Light could share the same vicious bastard of a biological father. The mother was a Japanese woman and, after Light was concieved, she returned to Japan and either dies after giving birh or abandons the child and, like Dexter, Light is adopted by a police officer but that's where the similarities end. Light is very much "an unchecked version" because unlike Dexter who had Harry and the Code, Light was raised so sheltered and made to adhere to such strict morals that he can't cope with the very idea of evil in the world or himself in any terms other than Kill It with Fire!!!!!111 (or rather heart attacks). However since Light didn't have the same trigger as Dexter of sitting for days in his mother's blood. it took some extra encouragement to trigger his Dark Passanger. Notably when Light forsakes the Death Note during the Yotsuba arc he lacks the same evil and cunning that he has when he uses it. Something similar happens to Dexter when he, for a time loses his Passanger in the Dexter book series.

• That would be an interesting family reunion: they'd be all affable in their charming personas (and they could trade fashion tips on those awesome shirts: Hawaiian vs. the male model catalogue) and then try to kill each other when they figure out their true colors. Light would probably run rings around Dexter as the Chess Master but on the whole he is a Non-Action Big Bad and Dexter would more than likely win in any physical confrontation.

L is also a host to a Dark Passenger.

L is known to have a Dark And Troubled Mysterious Past so maybe Wammy found L early enough that he could prevent him from becoming a Serial Killer and trained him to control his urges to become a detective instead, and L's many weird quirks are manifestations of his suppressed violent urges. Maybe that's what Wammy's house does: Mello and Near also have some sociopathic tendencies and B could be a less then successful outcome of that program. Like Dexter and Doakes Light and L share an almost psychic connection often thinking the exact same thing, like their Passengers are communicating with each other.

Dexter is an AU counterpart of Light Yagami.

They're both serial killers who kill killers.

• Addendum: Their standards are very different. Light kills to create what he would consider the perfect world, and he thinks of himself as the incarnation of justice. Dexter's only reason is his urge, and he is far from being proud of it. Dexter EXPLICITLY limits his targets to those who have committed murder. Light's target are not only murderers, but also petty criminals and eventually everyone he considers a "burden to society". Light is pride and presumption incarnate; Dexter probably isn't.
  • Also, Dexter generally rules out killing people who served their sentences. Light kills dozens of people already behind bars.
  • Not really. While their attitudes are incredibly different, Dexter doesn't seem to be ashamed by his Dark Passenger, but rather burdened by it, as he constantly had to make sure his killings are kept a secret, and he basically just wants to be accepted. Light doesn't kill that petty criminals (he kills rapists and robbers, not shoplifters; it’s his successor who is more extreme), and Dexter has killed some people in self-defence and one child molester. Also, Dexter kills people who've served for too short a period of time and are well-aware of that; Light might be following the same reasoning, judging by the Japanese judicial system to give appallingly low sentences for rape and murder in comparison to Western countries.
• Dexter most certainly isn't, when anyone tries to give him some kind of Not So Different speech or anything of the sort he simply agrees. He even tells Miguel "You're all just unchecked versions of myself. The only difference is I know I'm a monster." (Paraphrased)
• While Light and Dexter share many similarities (both are Serial Killer Killers that come from police families, have a Morality Pet sister, a traumatized fake girlfriend/wife, and are very good at hiding their gruesome hobbies Dexter is almost an anti-Light:
  • Light thinks he's a God, Dexter thinks he's a monster.
  • Light becomes a monster because he was such a Wide-Eyed Idealist to begin with. Dexter is more cynical and finds youthful idealism dangerous.
  • Dexter believes the world would probably be better off without him (not that he's in any hurry to make the world "better off"). Light thinks he's doing the world a favor and feels entitled to rule it.
  • Dexter is a killer in the traditional sense-he gets intimate with his targets and carves them up. Light is a Non-Action Guy (and considering all that happens in the series, it wouldn't be surprising if he even had a phobia of guns and violence like Dex has an ironic phobia of blood.) Light commits mass murderer using magical means—he kills from the comfort of his room by writing names in a notebook. There is no sense of immediacy, no blood, no struggle. His targets are dehumanized and the act of taking so many lives would likely have all the psychological impact of a kid playing video games—look, I killed over 10,000 evil Mooks—aren't I grand?
  • Dexter sees killing as playtime, Light claims it's a great burden / sacrifice on his part (though, like Dexter he seems to get an almost sexual enjoyment out of killing.)
  • Light likes to plan out his next move 20 steps ahead and while Dexter carefully plans out his kills he tends to do things more on the fly.
  • Dexter is very witty in his Inner Monologues, Light doesn't have much of a sense of humor.
  • As noted on the Dexter WMG page Light's understanding of morals is somewhat similar to Miguel Prado's.

Light has a cousin named Ichigo

Because how many auburn-haired Japanese families do you know? (Only like in every anime...)

Some more of Light's relatives train digital monsters.

Tai and Hikari Yagami. And they both have brown hair...

• Maybe Hikari is the reincarnation of Light? They're both messiah type characters, with strong ideas of what's right and wrong. And what exactly is Hikari's crest? Why, it's the Crest of Light! Like Light, she's got some weird connection to darkness, despite them being good-light-people - With Light it's the Death Note, with Hikari, it's the Dark Ocean/Sea of Darkness. Of course, they're different in the way that while Hikari has a case of Big Brother Worship, Light (obviously) does not. (Though, Sayu does, but maybe not to the same extent.) Heh. So, how long before Hikari becomes the new Digimon Kaiser/Emperor/God of the Digital World, believing that, "This digital world is rotten, and those who are making it rot deserve to be deleted!" ... Or maybe they are relatives, and Light has found a worthy successor to Kira's legacy in Hikari? Either way, it's probably not going to make Light very happy to find out that there's a second world he's going to have to cleanse. Poor, poor, Light.
  • Not to mention that Hikari is a Japanese word for Light...
  • I imagine if the Yagami siblings knew about their cousin Kira they would freak out wanting nothing to do with him. Kari feels connected in some way to him in some way, she has like Light has depression and she’s getting visions of Ryuk and Kira saying they could help her. Freaking out she tells her mom and soon gets a therapist to help her out instead. She later learns of the Death Note (a product made by evil Digimon) and learns how to get rid of it. Her brother has something in common with Kira, he’s gay, Kari gives him a hug and teaches him how to destroy Death Note’s. Eventually every chosen child knows of the Death Note and works towards destroying them… Tai also gets a boyfriend and Kari lives a happy life being single.

Light is Ryuk's son

Ryuk impregnated Sachiko Yagami, and Light is half-Shinigami. Ryuk didn't drop the DN randomly, he wanted Light to follow in Dad's footsteps.

• He has his father's eyes...
  • Really, check out the strong family resemblance (spoilers): [6]
  • ...following this soap opera revelation, Beyond is his half-brother from Ryuk getting it on with L's mother. [7]
  • Believe it or not there is a bit of canon evidence to support this cracked out theory-Ryuk tells Light he'd make "a worthy Shinigami" and tells him he's So Proud of You at his graduation ceremony.

No, Aizen is Light's biological father.

Just as planned. [8]

• Aizen can even be seen in the first episode of the anime disguised as Light's English teacher.

Light's physiology is subtly different to a normal human's.

Okay, trying to explain this. At one point, Light eats a scrap of deathnote to dispose of evidence. Deathnotes are made of a substance not found on earth. Normally, an organism's tolerance to a substance is roughly proportional to its occurence where the organism evolved. (Which is why we're rather dependent on some common substances such as water, and sickened by many rarer ones, like radium.)

• This observation and theory lends support to the "Death Note owners become Shinigami inhabiting human bodies" and / or "Light is Ryuk's Son" theories.
• Maybe they skipped the part where Light had to be rushed to the hospital to get his stomach pumped. Because if it's not toxic one could make use of the unlimited pages to survive when stranded in the wilderness or cure world hunger or something...
  • Just because something isn't toxic doesn't mean it's food. People can eat regular paper with no ill effects, but they'll still waste away and die if they're not getting proper nutrients, even if their stomachs are full of delicious notebooks.

Light was Dead All Along.

He was dead from the moment he picked up the notebook, he just never noticed (nor did anyone else.) That would explain his Lack of Empathy and apparent lack of sex drive. As to why it affected Light in this way and not the other Kiras well, he had the dull eyed look even before he picked it up. As stated in an above tin-foil hat theory maybe Light is part-Shinigami.

L isn't outsmarting his food...

He's bulimic. You can't just wish your food away. The amount of food he eats is easily comparable to a binge, yet he's impossibly skinny. It could start easily too: a very young L is stressed out on a case, has no healthy coping mechanism (you can't tell me he would've), eats too much, feels too sick to focus, so sticks his finger down his throat so he can focus on the case instead of his stomachache. Repeat ad infinitum. He cottons on to this, of course, but by this time he's well and truly entrenched and he refuses to go to therapy because that would require trusting people. He might have fought it, but then came the Kira case with way too much stress for him to deal with without the food-based coping mechanism. (When he and Light are chained together, he positions them within chain's length of the bathroom, waits for Light to fall asleep, and then makes himself throw up. If anyone could keep an eye on someone while intentionally making themselves ill, it would be him.)

• Now THAT would make for some angsty fan fic.
  • It's been done.
    • If done well, I demand links.
    • [9]
• Still, HTR 13 has a comprehensive list of everything that we've ever seen enter L's stomach. His tendency is to have the sweet in front of him, take a bite or two of it, and promptly forget about it in favor of talking. If anyone's bulimic, it's Mello. He's got the personality for it.
• To an extent he may be able to "wish it away" through a superhuman level of control over his bodily functions via thoughts much like monks who can alter their body temperature through meditation.
• He may also use drugs to boost his metabolism or laxatives to rush food through his system before he can fully digest it.
  • No wonder he is so skinny and has no muscle.
  • Also might explain why he is incapable of sitting like a normal human being.
    • If L was bulimic he could have had an irregular heart rhythm which [10] would make his heart dodgy anyway.
• And the bananas. Towards the end of his arc L starts eating bananas because he's really worried about his potassium levels.
• I can't imagine Watari encouraging this.

Light's Not Quite Dead

You see, after he went to Mu, the Shinigami became scared that he'd gain dominion over the Nothing After and use its power to get revenge on reality, so they made him corporeal and sent him to the alternate timeline of the Code Geass series. Light drops out of the sky and crash lands in the cart, as seen during Code Geass' credits. Lelouch and Light have a Magnificent Bastard Chessmaster contest which results in a tie, causing both to agree to join forces to take over the world. And it was awesome. And FABULOUS once Suzaku joined the party.

Light apparently became less intelligent because he was over-exerting his brain.

This is related to the poison gas theory above. What if the brain-power required to maintain all those plans as well as his good grades, was just beyond him, so that he ended up repeatedly straining his brain? The damage from this could have sped up the 'natural decline' in his intelligence.

• Intelligence does not work that way. Emotional stress, however, does. Especially if said emotions go ignored and unvented for five years straight.
  • So, if only Misa has been a little (lot?) more determinated to get laid with Light, we would have had a different ending? I mean, Light considers masturbation as a waste of time - he buys pornography just in case someone put espionage cams in his room, and shows no interest in the several women that would jump to his bone. He failed his plan because needed to... ehm... relax a little?
• There is also a theory that those who relinquish and regain a death note suffer psychological/neurological damage from losing and regaining their memories of the note. This would explain why Light seems to become less intelligent. And of course, Misa has lost her memory of the note not once, but twice.

L survived

This might be an anime-only thing, but...

Normally when a person dies, his/her pupils dilate. L's pupils, however, contract. Unless they were going for a Psycho homage, I can't see this as anything other than a major neon sign pointing out the fact that he's a big ol' faker (if it's just a case of artistic license, why did they make such a point of focusing on those shiny grey irises?).

• Might be tough considering his pulse was checked by at least two task force members and HE WAS BURIED.
  • There are plenty of drugs that when injested can simulate a stopped heart. It's not like anyone's going to be clamouring for an autopsy on an obvious Kira victim. And we don't know that he was buried; we know that a coffin with something around his weight inside it was buried.
    • The coffin was probably filled with all those vegetables L kept hiding under his bed to avoid being forced to eat "healthier". What better way to dispose of unwanted greens?
    • Which is why I have a theory about L and the fact that he really didn't die. I seriously don't think he died, now that I really consider things.

Columbo is L's Maternal Grandfather

Traits they share: Limited Wardrobe, mysterious backgrounds, Hyper-Awareness, And Another Thing... ... they're both detectives. Since Lamarck Was Right all of this implies that L and Columbo are related. Since Lawliet isn't an Italian name, Columbo's daughter must have married a non-Italian. This, of course, begs for the prequel story in which L learns from the master.

• Columbo also suggested L's name after the initialism of their esteemed ancestor Linnaeus.
• To further back up your theory, Word of God has admitted Italian in L's heritage.
• L also previously solved a case in Los Angeles, the same city Columbo is from in the series, although it could just be a coincidence since Los Angeles proper alone is the second largest city in the United States.

During the Potato Chip sequence, Light choked to death.

The rest of the series was a hallucination that occurred in the seconds before his death. He started acting crazy at the end of the series because his brain had lost too much oxygen flow and was starting to lose coherency. His heart attack was how he perceived his own death. He wouldn't accept that he had been taken down by a snack food.

• I love you.
  • In fanfic form.

Light is also a fan of Hideki Ryuuga the pop star.

He dresses like him and uses the same cheesy romantic quotes when trying to impress Takada.

L is Raito's reincarnation!

Maybe Raito, when taken to "Nothingness", tried to find a way out, and he was given a way out? The only way for him to go to heaven or hell was - to stop himself in his madness.It'll explain all of the Gambit Pileups that were made in the first half. Also, this will explain, why L wasn't really satisfied with his results. And why he still suspiced Raito, even if he couldn't be the murderer. And why he predicted every Raito's move (remember those "fights", that they had?)Think about it.

• ...that would add a disturbing new element to the Slash Fic.
• So is he just a Raito in purgatory?
  • This may or not be related but on top of the having the same thoughts / thought patterns, Lawliet would actually be pronounced Low-Light (or Ro-Raito when written in Japanese).

L became a shinigami after he died

Let me try to explain this in the least confusing way possible. First of all, let's say lifespan is like energy. It cannot be created or destroyed, only transfered between people or changed to another form. When a human's name is written in a Death Note, all of their lifespan is transfered to the writer and changed to form that only those who have already died can use. This is why shinigami gain lifespan when they write a human's name in a Death Note and other humans don't, at least at first. They gain lifespan only usable in the afterlife, so when the Death Note user dies, he becomes a shinigami when the hidden lifespan becomes active. This is why the shinigami possessing the human is obligated to kill said human before they die, to steal their current and hidden lifespan, preventing them from becoming a shinigami to avoid the possibility of an over population of shinigami.

Now, when Rem killed L with her Death Note, she didn't gain his lifespan because she had already died from killing Watari. L's lifespan didn't have anywhere to go, and had already been transformed by Rem's Note so it stayed with him and became usable to him as a shinigami.However, even after becoming a shinigami, he couldn't kill Light due to rule XXXIV. And, in the anime, when Light was finally defeated by Mello and Near and dies, L goes down to witness Light's death, his reasons for doing so are debatable.

• Rem didn't die because she wrote Watari's name, she died because of L. Remember, it was L saying that second Kira would go to prison or even would get death sentence. That's why Rem decided to kill both of them, she killed Watari first because she wouldn't have enough time if she wrote L's name first, you know, she'd be busy dying. And L couldn't really be there, witnessing Light's death as a shinigami because "The god of death must not stay in the human world without a particular reason. Conditions to stay in the human world are as follows: 1. When the god of death’s Death Note is handed to a human. 2. Essentially, finding a human to pass on the Death Note should be done from the world of the gods of death, but if it is within 82 hours this may also be done in the human world. 3. When a god of death stalks an individual with an intention to kill them, as long as it is within 82 hours of haunting them, the god of death may stay in the human world.", 1 and 2 are almost 100% impossible (it's very hard to get second DN, and shinigami can't drop his own DN to the human world), and while 3 might make sense, who would L be stalking? Not even mentioning that even if it's possible for a human to become shinigami, they don't remember their previous lives. I think L watching Light dying was used as a symbolism, just like L saying that he hears bells minutes (hours?) before his death. It just means that Light was close to dying and the line between two worlds (the human world and MU/afterlife/shinigami realm/whatever) was starting to become blurry.

At one time, L had possession of a Death Note

He couldn't control his curiosity and killed one or two people to test the note out. Unlike Light, however, his conscience got the better of him. Filled with horror at what he had done, he renounced ownership of the note and lost all of his memories. His strange eyes, diet of sweets, bizarre habits and overwhelming fear of Shinigami are the reactions of his Lizard brain to the stress of the murders he committed. His memories of the note are gone, but his desensitization remains, which is why he's willing to take extreme measures to get the job done.

• Why would L have a lizard brain?
  • http://www.crystalinks.com/reptilianbrain.html
    • Hmm. Remember the first few episodes where the police aren't even sure if the deaths of criminals are murders or not? L is sure - and this would explain why. He has no memories of using the deathnote, but his subconscious mind has vague wisps of memories regarding its powers. So he's positive that someone is killing criminals - even if he doesn't have all the concrete details/evidence.

The Death Notes are intelligent

They're not "of this world" because they're a bizarre kind of organism (like a Shinigami maybe). The shinigami's pens have a special interface with the organism. The notes are actually intelligent, and are the real gods.

• But our pens work just fine on them.

L has mysophobia

In other words, he's afraid of germs. Am I really the first one to think this? The way he holds things alone is a very big clue that leads to this: It's always with as little actual contact with the surface as possible. He keeps his feet on chairs because they tend to be cleaner than floors. He doesn't wear shoes because feet sweat a lot more like that, feeling very germy. His lack of social skills is a manifestation of his inability to get close to people for fear of what germs they carry.

• That doesn't make much sense. L doesn't wash himself very much, chews his nail, the idea of being chained doesn't gross him out.... Can someone be afraid of germs but not at all keen on hygiene?
  • Howard Hughes, anyone?

L's unique way of holding things is to avoid leaving his fingerprints and other evidence lying around because that could lead to his enemies discovering his identity.

• Then why does he hold everything by the tips of his fingers? It would be more likely for him to be deliberately leaving his fingerprints everywhere as a sign to prove he was actually there.
• Someone made a fanfic explaining he has the tips of his fingers burned with some type of chemical (like some crimanals do ) so he won't leave fingerprints (and yes it is possible to remove fingerprints...my mom lacks some fingerprints since she more or less rubbed them off from working on her arts and crafts projects )

L is an ex-smoker.

Bear with me here. The gigantic amounts of candy are a subsitute for cigarettes. The original plan was to cut down on candy after a while. It didn't go so well.

Combine this with the bulimia guess above, and you can get some...interesting fanfic.

"Lind L. Tailor" is the real L

Of course, Lind L. Tailor isn't his real name. The man we think of as L, L Lawliet, was L's bumbling sidekick. "Lind" was so brilliant a detective he had completely deduced everything about Kira, from how he kills, to the existance of Shinigama, to the fact he is Light Yagami. Had he not died, he would have explained all this. Unfortunately, he happened to die of an aortic embolism exactly forty seconds after Light wrote his name in the Death Note. Panicking, his sidekick took over, making up a crazy story about "Lind" being a convict. Everything "L" discovers up until his own death is actually taken from some notes "Lind" wrote on the case, which were regrettably incomplete.

L is a collector of the world's greatest criminal masterminds.

That's why he only takes on cases he's personally interested in and it is straight out stated that he's shielding Aiber and Wedy from prosecution since they are useful to him. Hence why approaching Kira with the expectation that he would confess all if he gets to know him well enough and would want to work for him makes perfect sense. Why wouldn't he want the honor of becoming part of his collection?

• Two more Kiras and you'll have the whole set!

Light isn't actually that bright.

Oh, more clever than most people, and definitely than much of the task force, certainly. But throughout the series, his entire career is built on a series of one mistake after the next, many of which are caused by his egotistical Pride, beginning with Lind L. Tailor and ending with "Well, Near, it looks like I've won."

Most of Light's victories come about either because he knows the rules of the Death Note better than his adversary, or he just got lucky. Every direct play between him and L end in L utterly dominating the field, such as, again, Lind L. Tailor, or the bait and switch with Misa's cellphone.

Lind L. Tailor is the most obvious point. That was a terrible mistake made out of pride and anger.

Light talked himself up quite a bit about how clever it was that he was letting his enemy know about how he's a member of the police force, in a terrible plan to try and alienate L from them. This did not work at all. The most it did was narrow down the members of the force working with L, narrowing the field of officers Light could be getting information from.

He was able to find the spycams through no fault of his own, because he managed to talk Ryuk into doing it instead. Light's first case of "Victory solely because of supernatural elements no one else knows about".

He was able to kill Raye Penber solely through the advantage of the Death Note (which was in itself a mistake given the attention it drew), but even after his cleverly devising a way to muddy the waters as to which FBI agent Kira was being investigated by, he still wound up giving a helpful clue to L and identifying him. How? Because he just had to stop and gloat on the train, allowing L to deduce that Raye, desperately reaching for him in his final moments, was looking right at Kira.

He stumbled upon Naomi Misora purely by luck. He did cleverly manage to get her real name from her, which allowed him to kill her, and then had to stop and gloat again. What would have happened if she'd married Raye and gotten her ID change? The Death Note would have failed to kill her, and Light would have been apprehended right then and there; even if he'd managed to persuade away his gloating, the question of why he was pretending to be a member of the investigation would be extremely condemning in L's eyes.

He managed to keep a good poker face when L ambushed him at the college; there is no denying that Light is a very good actor, but that doesn't make him a very good Chessmaster.

When the crisis with the second Kira came up, he managed to hook up with Misa. Not because of his own cleverness in outmaneuvering L; L thwarted his hopes of using the investigation's message to her, and it was Misa that came up with the plan to meet at Aoyama. Light put in plenty of planning to go meet her, which only called attention to him from L, something that would come back repeatedly later on down the road. It was because of Misa, her Shinigami Eyes, and an understanding of a mechanic Light didn't know, that they were able to find each other. It had nothing to do with Light; Misa did all the brainwork.

When he devised the plan to kill L, it was thwarted by L's cellphone bait and switch, that so completely defeated Light that he was forced to come up with the Memory Gambit.

The Memory Gambit Gambit Roulette itself has more than a few holes in it. It was Rem that made it work. Light wins the Memory Gambit on account of supernatural forces no one else can use. Again.

And then he killed L. Only, no, he really didn't. Rem killed L, and that was something that was going to happen one way or another. The moment Rem stepped onto the field, the game became unwinnable for L, because unlike Ryuk, she was willing to act against him. There was nothing he could do short of giving full amnesty to Light and Misa, that would not result in Rem killing him. Light wins solely because of supernatural forces that no one else can control. Again.

Light DID manage to kill Rem (or manipulate Rem into killing herself for Misa), which, while impressive, was also incredibly stupid. Rem would have been a powerful ally, having a more extensive knowledge of the Death Note and its rules than Ryuk possesses, and just generally being a Shinigami who is willing to help Light and Misa's cause, for all that it entails. The final confrontation would have gone completely differently if Light could have had Rem there, instead of Mikami.

There's been a lot of talk about how Light suddenly got stupid for the end of the series, making horrible mistakes that one troper or another wouldn't have made in his shoes. But This Troper proposes that Light didn't just suddenly get bad at playing the game; he was never really that good to begin with.

• An important fact to remember- Light is 17 at the start of the series (and he doesn't mature all that much (or at all) in the next five years considering he already thinks he's perfect.) Impulsiveness and poor decision making kind of goes with the territory... (there's a reason he's red to L's blue) remember that's what got him into this mess in the first place (Word of God: one has to be "foolish in order to use the death note"). He's a brilliant (and flawed) 17 year old kid with a God Complex... it's impressive he managed as well as he did...
  • Says it all really.
  • More food for thought- sometimes the most scatterbrained, disorganized, paranoid WRECKS of people make the best planners because they're over-compensating in order to just function... everything is neat and in its place, and every eventuality and contingency is thought up, over-analyzed, scheduled, and accounted for...

L is a Luthor.

His full name is actually Lawliet Luthor. In Smallville, at least, Lionel has fathered quite a few children other than Lex and put them up for adoption, it's quite possible that L was one of them, and was taken to Whammy's House. His incredible intelligence and obsession with defeating his opponent are pretty common among Luthors, after all.

Light becoming a shinigami is actually a punishment

So he's a shinigami now, he can take over the world as Kira. But then the his empire will crumble as they always. He'll probably try again. And again. Until he becomes bored as well.

L's real name is El.

El Mariachi and he returns from the dead as a vengeful gun-toting ghost to kick ass.

• Oh my god, yes!

Alternatively L is Kryptonian.

Kal-el, Jor-el, H'el, etc. He's got a "Something-el" name which he just abbreviates to "L" in "Earth language."

Light reincarnated as the wolf Kiba from Wolf's Rain.

The Actor Rule, and he "can't go to Heaven or Hell..."

L has an enourmous tapeworm in his stomach

• Which is why he can eat so much unhealthy and calorie-loaded stuff while still having an (almost) unhealthy low weight.

Light is an avatar for the Dark Prescence.

Light (or Kira) is an incarnation of Randall Flagg.

The good man, the dark man, the man in black... Also, that means he's not dead. He has many names in many worlds...

Light is Friend.

The virus is really a bluff, and what else is that the Book of Prophecy is a Death Note in disguised.

L is tripping on acid.

Seriously! The dilated pupils, the sugar cubes...

L sits that way because he has nerve damage from sitting and working too long.

There is an actual condition where it becomes painful to sit normally.

Light looked up to L as a kid.

Assume the following statement is true: Light wants to be a detective when he grows up. So his chief role models would be Daddy and, since Light always shoots to be the best, L who would just be gaining prominence as the World's Greatest Detective when Light was old enough to think about such things. This adds another layer to Light's extreme reaction during the Lind L. Tailor incident- It's Personal he was just rejected by his idol and "If I Can't Have You…..."

• I always thought that L kind of saw Light as a little brother...of sorts.

Light and L were sleeping together.

No wait, hear me out! That chain isn't nearly long enough for them to have separate beds! Of course L being an insomniac they wouldn't sleep together very well...

• That's What She Said.

L considered the possiblity that Light is able to read minds.

He started considering it when Light began saying exactly what he was thinking, which is why even though he actually thought Light was definitely Kira (the numbers he said were made up), he would still use those percentages in his inner monologues.

During the Yotsuba arc L and Light wore custom-designed velcro shirts that they could put on or take off without undoing the handcuffs.

Otherwise it defeats the pretense er... purpose of keeping Light chained 24/7.

Light is a member of the Assassin's Creed Brotherhood.

• Well he's got the white hoodie for one...

Whether or not Light becomes a Shinigami, he'll take over the afterlife.

Come on. He got bored with everyday life; he'd get even more bored with nothingness/the Shinigami realm. Cue The Plan! He then fishes L out (possibly Near, Mello and Matt too) because he needs allies to take on the Shinigami, and they agree because anything would top The Nothing After Death. They then all band together to create a proper afterlife, with a new Heaven and a Hell and a Purgatory, and run The Plan against each other to determine who ends up where. Eventually, all the geniuses do in fact collaborate to create their perfect world, and balance it out. (They've got eternity to get it right, after all.)

This exists because it's not impossible per say and because I'm an idealist, and want to have some kind of redemption or happy ending for these people somehow. Besides, Rule of Cool and (if we have one) Rule of Heartwarming - just picture the reconciliation with his father, the crossovers, the peace they could reach, the other solutions boredom could take... plus an eternity of five-way super-planning How is that not awesome?

• Seconded... Like A Badass Out of Mu / The Shinigami Realm!
• Thirded! I imagine that Light would rule the Heaven, Near would be the ruler over Hell (Don't deny it!) and that Matt and Mello would look after those in Purgatory. L would probably take on some Grim Reaper type role. Also, as a bonus, the Shinigami realm, now ruled by Shinigami!B and his trusty friend A, is used for those who don't belong in Heaven, Hell, or Purgatory, where they become slaves and/or Shinigami.
• Heh, well, there's this alternate ending... Light can see the silver-lining in even a And I Must Scream situation.

L Did touch Misa's butt.

Angry L Fangirls in five...

L faked his death

He struck a deal with Rem. Rem was already fed up with Light Yagami, and L suspected the whole "13 days" rule was a load of bull. So he discussed a plan with her wherein he could fake his and Watari's deaths to fool Kira. So, he decided to either A)have Rem write his name in the Death Note so that he'd have a non-fatal heart attack and die in 10-20 years, or B)take drugs allowing him to slow his heart rate almost to nothing, thereby appearing to be dead. He'd go into hiding, and let his successors catch Kira as a test.

L's identity was kept hidden even pre-series because...

He's the last surviving orphan of a family coming from Innsmouth, Massachusetts. He has the look—the bulging eyes, white-grey skin, his hunched over walk and occasional Primal Stance which means he’s not completely human so the Death Note didn't work on him. He's still alive, he's immortal, he faked his death and is in fact chilin' at the bottom of the ocean...

• There is a fic out there with this very idea - by Sashocirrione, no less. This is really just for the adults!

L is a wizard and he spent some time in Azkaban.

While he was still attending school at Hogwarts he was sent away for a crime he didn't commit. He managed to escape and clear his name however the corrupt bureaucrats stripped him of most of his magic and memories afterwards. L is later found by Quillsh Wammy who takes him in and trains him to be the Great Detective L. Though L has gaps in his memory he does remember how a Miscarriage of Justice screwed him over and he hates injustice with a passion. He has enough magic left to Detect Evil and knows immediately that Light is Kira.

• So L is Sirius Black...

Light Yagami has the powers of Haruhi Suzumiya

Like Haruhi, Light is unaware of his powers. Wishing for a way to cleanse the world of scum and villainy, he subconsciously created the Death Note, as well as Shinigamis.

L became Ulquiorra.

Just look at them side by side. I rest my case.

Light is a descendant of Miyako Toudaiji.

Most of her life, Miyako appears to be an Amateur Sleuth who wants to make the world a better place. However, the thing is she's distant to almost everyone except Maron. She secretly despises of what the world has become: rotten. Her world is already perfect, if it wasn't for the demons that Jeanne fought against keeps on ruining it. The most likely evidence of this is when she is possessed by Fin into killing Jeanne in episode 43. Somehow, despite of defeating her possession, there is still remnants of it to infect the Yagami bloodline. This is why Light has become the Villain Protagonist that he is. He has somehow manages to control the urges of Miyako's possession until he found the Death Note, giving into to these urges.

L is an abuse victim.

Yeah, this idea has been done... A LOT but it would explain a lot of L's behaviors: The Aloner, Extreme Doormat who Hates Being Touched and considers no one to be a friend. It also explains why L thinks of himself as a monster-not only because he must deal with the moral greyness that comes with his profession but because he has internalized the abuse. This also explains why he would want to bury his Dark and Troubled Mysterious Past even before meeting Kira.

• Before meeting Watari L was abused by his parents or guardians who loathed the "ugly child" and was terrified by how smart he was. Watari rescues him and takes him in at Wammy's House where L receives Training from Hell to become the World’s Greatest Detective. But as grueling as the competition got with the other contenders for the title he was happy there-he had found a place where he was safe and he could use his massive intellect in a productive way. Watari rewards L's good behavior with sweets and it's something L never grows out of.
• Then just as L is adjusting to his new life along comes "Mr. Aggressive Top" Beyond Birthday who must surpass L in every way. You wonder why the guy has trust issues.

Before finding the notebook Light was suicidally depressed.

Yeah, this one's been done too [11], [12] but it fits. Suicidal people sometimes resemble really bored people and he might have felt alienated being so scary smart he can't really relate to the people around him. Light sees the world around him as "rotten" and for all his genius he feels useless to fix it and doesn't really perk up until after he's found what he thinks is his "purpose." It also explains why he's so drawn to the Death Note, his fascination with Shinigami, and then why he keeps risking more and more-it's out of a subconscious deathwish. The only other time he seems truly happy is during the Yotsuba arc when he's relinquished his memories because then he also has a purpose- to catch Kira and Clear His Name and since he is always in L's company he isn't lonely and bored anymore.

• Apparently eating too many potato chips can make you depressed too [13]

After the events of the series Light moved to Castlevania.

See here: [14]. He took Misa along with him. And then Near, upon discovering that Kira is still alive, follows them, wearing glasses as a clever disguise.

Light was actually raised in 511 Kinderheim

Light is an evil genius just like Johan Liebert from Monster thus it would be no surprise to me if they both knew each other at an early age. However, Johan is much smarter than Light.

L is a descendant of Detective Meguro.

Let's see the results. Highly eccentric detective? Check. Obsessed of finding his target? Check. Being a genius? Check. Constantly making some gestures? Check.

L will grow up to be Inspector Runge.

They are both highly eccentric detectives, both quickly become obsessed with finding their target (L with Kira, Runge with Dr. Tenma), both are (In Runge's case, supposedly) at the top of their field, both are basically geniuses, L is constantly doing something with his hands while Runge is doing the typing thing.

• Except Monster takes place way before Death Note. So unless L preformed time travel, probably not.
  • Or unless he's a Time Lord. But that's a whole other page...
    • AND he's learned how to be a great detective without sacrificing his posture.
  • These things are not supposed to make sense. It's actually the serious guesses that are missing the point.
• Alternatively, L is Runge's illegitimate child.
  • Wouldn't Runge's unnamed grandson be about L's age by the time the events of Death Note come about?
    • No, L's 25. The grandson would be about 12. If anything, the grandson is Near.
• It's just that Inspector Runge and L both have the anime version of Asperger's Syndrome.

Ryuk lied about Mu, Light and L got reincarnated (perhaps backwards) as Watson and Sherlock Holmes respectively.

• But wouldn't Light be Moriarty?
  • Maybe B is Moriarty?
• Let me explain,people are always saying that if things had been different they could have been friends.So this time they are,their Tragic Bromance has a happy ending,fans of them as a platonic friends and Yaoi Fangirls alike go home happy.Everyone wins and Watari is Mycroft and Naomi is Irene Adler.
  • I, Prime Evil, have been waiting to pull this one out for a long time: L is Sherlock. The timeframes need a little stretching, but, since Death Note never really gives a specific year, you could very easily slot it into the year or so in which Sherlock is "dead" after his fall from the building at the end of Series 2.

L has diabetes.

Come on you can't eat that much sugar without consequence! That would also explain why L doesn't wear socks-because he doesn't want to restrict the blood flow to his feet.

L is Batman.

Watari is Alfred, Mr. Yagami is Comissioner Gordon, The pink angel crepe van is the batmobile, Near is Robin, Mello is Azrael, Wedy is Catwoman, Aiber is the Penguin, Misa is Harley Quinn, Rem is Poison Ivy, Beyond is the Riddler, Ryuk is the Joker and Light/Kira is Ra's Al Ghul, Mikami is Harvey Dent/Two-Face?

All of L's habits are a result of extreme insomnia.

L suffers from insomnia, but doesn't want to take any drugs because he's worried they'll mess with his brain. As a result, he develops another system to deal with it. He consumes a large amount of sugar to keep himself alert, because he'll end up exhausted and unable to sleep otherwise. He sits the way he does because it burns more calories and requires more effort, keeping him awake and working. When he does eventually crash, he is exhausted to the point he has a greater chance of falling asleep.

L is a professional Internet Troll.

L's methods are more conductive to being a professional Internet Troll than to being an internationally renowned detective. He remains anonymous, hiding away his true name and face behind a simple icon. L introduces himself by tempting Kira into killing someone on TV and then taunting him. U mad bro?Of course Kira himself is also an expert troll scientist so that makes L and Kira's battle an epic flame war with the fate of the world hanging in the balance.

• U mad, Kira?

Light has an eating disorder.

Though much is made about L's eating habits just as disturbing is Light's LACK of eating habits.

• The official stats list Light as 5'8, 119 lbs. Made worse—the official stats were mistranslated and Light is meant to be 5'10. That's like 70 pounds underweight: [15]
• In the manga Light casually mentions that he lost 10lbs in his first week of acting as Kira.
• Dinner with the Yagami family:
  Light (eats two bites) I'm done.
  Sayu: What, already?
• Light firmly declines L's offer of cake.
• In the manga, despite being popular at school, Light eats lunch alone. Which could be a means to hide his eating habits from his friends.
• And finally, binge eating: "I'll take a potato chip… AND EAT IT!"

L is the Hentai King.

In the manga it's mentioned that L has an army of peepers and perverts at his disposal. An army he clearly raised from his home country of Pervertland.

L told Light he could become the next L as a clue for Near and Mello.

Near uses the fact that Light is L to help him come to the conclusion that he is Kira. L knew Near would do this, that Light would head up the investigation and that Light would act ineffectually, and used this as a clue for his successors.

L is nicer than Light because L eats sweets.

According to Cracked.com sweet people eat sweets and potato chips are Obviously Evil.

• Even though L is still kind of a jerk.

Light's God complex is a defense mechanism.

Light was brought up with a very black and white worldview, with the author describing him as pure and attributing that same purity for the depth of his fall. Now, Light's god complex has often been attributed to his excessive hubris and his need to compete and be the best, but it's also quite likely that its true root is Light's mental defense against his crimes. Just to note, the first man that Light kills — the man holding the preschool hostage — doesn't really cause him to freak out at all — he's shocked, yes, but remains composed. Now, this might be because he didn't really believe the Death Note had worked, but when one compares it to his second murder, there's distinct differences. For one, Light saw the second murder occur right in front of him. Additionally, in the manga, Light explicitly killed someone who didn't deserve the death penalty and acknowledges it. Light almost throws up and stares at his hands at the realization that he's killed two people but it's only when he recognizes that his second victim didn't deserve death that he begins to look at the Death Note as a means of cleaning the world up.

In part, this explains why Light fell so hard for L's trap. He just blows the guy off when L's decoy talks about how he is going to catch Light, but as soon as Tailor says that Kira is evil, Light loses it and starts proclaiming his righteousness and then springs the trap before giving his first insane laugh of the series. The reason L's trick worked so well was because L unknowingly struck at Light's very core. Light has to be right — has to be God — because if he's not, then he's evil; he's a murderer. And Light can't live with himself if that is the case. Only two entities have the right to decide who lives and who dies — the courts (empowered by the will of the people) and God. Given that Light can't delude himself into believing he's the former, he latches onto the latter as a lifeline.

Later on in the series, once Light has lost his memories, he continues to deny to himself that he can be Kira because although Kira's ideals match with his own, he doesn't believe he would ever choose to kill anyone for those ideals. And that's exactly the problem — Light never really "chose" to use the Death Note with a full understanding of what it would mean. Unlike Misa, Higuchi, Mikami, and Takada, there was no one to explain to Light that the Death Note was real and show him its power before he tried it out. So by the time he had fully understood its power, he'd already killed people. He was trapped. And thus, for his own sanity, it was paramount that he be God so that he would still be "right" and could still be a "good person." So when Ryuk says that Light will be the only bad person left, Light truly doesn't understand. Because he can't function in a world where he's not on the right side of justice. And if that means he has to tell himself that he's God, then so be it. He'll never be swayed from his path because to believe otherwise would be the destruction of his entire world and decimate his sense of self and self-worth.

Light challenges L and tries to rule the world because he's afraid of Ryuk.

Throughout the series we're reminded that Ryuk is in the human world to alleviate boredom, and that he will write Light's name in his note in the end. Light only boldly challenges L because of this...he knows if Ryuk gets bored of him, that's it for him. That's why he launches these crazy schemes, in order to keep things interesting all the time. The entire series is basically a show for Ryuk. As long as he's entertained, he won't kill Light.

Light is a Disturbed1.

You can see it in his eyes. Also a lot of Disturbed songs could to pertain to Light/Kira.

L actually doesn't have Asperger's.

Think about it. L has been shown to easily predict people's actions and reactions. He is perfectly comfortable putting himself in social situations, he just doesn't conform to them. His skills don't just lie in detective work, he is extremely skilled in tennis of all things. He lies because he knows he can get away with it. Yes, he is eccentric, but he can afford to be at his level. He still could, of course, but the evidence can also be explained away. I have Asperger's, and I know a lot of neurotypicals who'd love to dress like L if they could. But they have society to impress, and L doesn't.

• He could be predicting stuff just off his intelligence alone. Some aspies can handle themselves socially if they use their brains rather than intuition like everyone else. Also L obviously has a keen interest in detective work; so he most likely studied human behaviour and psychology to help with figuring out what people could be thinking based on facial expressions, body language etc. Also aspies can be much more social if it's related to something they're interested in, so of coarse L would be more keen for a chat if it's related to the Kira case.

Light was adopted.

Light's intellect goes far above anyone else's in his family, his appearance doesn't match theirs at all, and whatever strange disorder he has probably doesn't run in the family. Light was simply such a bright and well-adjusted boy that his parents didn't want to ruin his life by revealing to him that he was an unwanted child.

L was already aware of the existence of Shinigami (and to a lesser extent, Death Notes).

Before taking on the Kira case, L had already believed (or knew) that there were grim reapers who had the power to remotely kill humans, using magical killer notebooks that can be given to mortals. However he didn't admit this knowledge at first, because he knew it would be dismissed as superstition, and also because even he didn't fully understand it.

Nevertheless, when he first heard about the Kira murders, he knew that it had to be something of a supernatural nature, which is what interested him to investigate. When he read the word "Shinigami", he realized that his fears were confirmed, which caused him to panic and break his otherwise stoic demeanor.

L and BB are related to Jeff the Killer.

L is the elvish god

L's name in Japanese Katakana is spelled エル, which would be romanized to "Eru". According to Tolkien's lore, the God of Middle-earth is called "Eru Ilúvatar".

Drama!Light isn't any less intelligent than Canon!Light.

For one thing he's still a master strategist and is able to pull off many of the same feats as canon Light. However due to childhood trauma and the complicated relationship he has with his father he has serious self-esteem issues and is Obfuscating Stupidity—he might have deliberately sabotaged his grades in order to avoid having his father force him to join the police. Even so, Souichiro's main complaint about Light is that he's lazy, not unintelligent. Even Drama!L believes in him!

L has low blood sugar

Which explains his sugar addiction and why he was not effected when touching two people with the disease that does not act as quickly in people with low blood sugar meaning he simply died before the condition could take effect inside him fully

Light does not hate women,

He has just always been around women who only like him for his looks , and never really seemed to like him beyond that he is apprehensive about a relationship . (seriously he may have women flocking to him, but that seems to be mostly because they want eye candy .)

L and Naomi Misora are related.

Maybe even twins , think about it...they both are scarily intelligent , both have dark gray eyes , are very pale , have pure black hair that turns blue in certain scenes and also have similar chins and noses...yes their birthdays and ages are differient... but if Naomi was adopted, her adoptive family migh have not known her true age , or her true birthdate , or even if she is Ls older sister that does not cause a wrinkle in things in the least as L seems to think fondly of her well she is said to have found him annoying.... sounds like siblings to me , with the older one finding the younger to be a pest but the younger idolizing their elder sibling .

Light is Satan

Think about it a little. Lucifer means "light-bringer". Light's alias, "Asahi", means "morning sun" or "morning star", both of which are alternate names for Satan. Also, Light's hair turns red in some scenes, which counts as evidence because Satan is frequently associated with the color red. Light is also portrayed as handsome. Satan is also portrayed as frequently taking the form of a handsome young man. Also, both of them see themselves as a god. It's kind of scary, actually.

If Light had remained without his memories, he and L would have found the entertainment they needed with each other

All ho yay aside ..think about it Light is bored and basically takes up the death note as a drug to keep himself entertained, and L only takes cases that interest him, but if they both had an 'outlet' AKA someone of equel smarts to talk to and bounce thoughts off of, they could be better people as a whole, L could start taking on just normal murder/robbery/rape/etc. cases, not just the "interesting" ones to see if he or Light could solve it quicker, as a game for them to play, with all the cold cases and just normal everyday crimes, it would keep an almost constant flow of 'entertainment' for the two of them, Plus it would benefit the world even better than Light thought Kira would (since crime went right back up after Light/Kira died )

Even if they never mentioned or acted on it, there was some kind of attraction between these two.

Because there is SO much Ho Yay between them it's not even funny.

Even if Mikami had not killed him, L would have died anyway...from massive internal bleeding

Note that this is a theory for the TV Drama, and look at how many times Light knees L in the guts and tosses him around, L is even left a shaking mess on the ground and sounds like he is struggling to speak, him getting some wind back during Light's rant at him does not mean anything, as internal bleeding does not cause instant death, so it would still go in the "can't kill anyone if they are so and so seconds away from dying anyway".

Death Note is about Scientology

L = Xenu

Light = L. Ron Hubbard

Death Note = E-meter

L is constantly performing intelligence-enhancing yoga

He sits in the same position nearly all the time. Sure, he moves sometimes, he's not a complete faqeer or yogi, but he also doesn't eat anything of substance – no proteins or fats – so he might have been doing the starving thing if he hadn't needed sugar and caffeine to keep his brain high-performing. He even says that sitting normally would reduce his reasoning ability by forty percent, which likely isn't the whole story, but seems too specific to be a complete lie.

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