Light Yagami as a character

[ahill1]

Nowadays I think he's just a hollow character. There's nothing special in him...

 

[Papasmurf]

He became a villain by chapter 2, not very interesting beyond just being clever.

 

[ahill1]

Agreed. He didn't even have a grey area in regards to making the matter of winning a meaningful thing other than just him wanting to win in a logical way.... He could have some nuances but yeah he was written as a charismatic in the sense he's pretty smart and collected and cold at the same times, but there weren't many nuances... I used to overrate him

 

[Yoshi]

Light suffered the worst form of character regression I’ve ever seen in a Shonen protagonist.

 

[Kyo]

Light's conviction and rivalry with L made him special, and DN had no interest in being a character study of any kind. It's like calling Sherlock Holmes a hollow character. Go check out some DN knockoffs and it becomes more apparent why Light stands out.

 

[ahill1]

Light's conviction and rivalry with L made him special, and DN had no interest in being a character study of any kind. It's like calling Sherlock Holmes a hollow character. Go check out some DN knockoffs and it becomes more apparent why Light stands out.

I'm not saying the show intended to make Light Yagami as a "good" character. They wanted to make him a character that people would be drawn in a certain way, so rather, a more high-engagement character ... since the feeling of tension between a duel of genius attracts only a very specific niche if there's no appeal in the characters --- it's almost always (quite obviously lulz) more interesting to readers in general, that are not just interested in smart thinking by just two geniuses, to be enjoying that high thinking being done by those characters, hence, the need for their appeal.

I didn't quite phrase it as good character, what I said in regards to hollow character in the end fits well with what you mentioned ---- special, (but as I noticed, the need for something unique of their own for engagement) --- be it his perfectionism, his denialism over being wrong and still showing, right after, a more cool headed way to deal with that, dealing with pressure (but not much explored)... his life as a bored student that is sick of the world, a trait that draws many in... I say hollow, since to me especially, a more in depth take helps to create even more consideration for the character and thus, a more will to read regardless of wanting to see the battle of wits in its tiny details. And that being hollow applies because to me specifically (for many too), I can't get that hype from characters that seem hollow in the sense of lacking that deeper exploration --- which may not be seen as hollow traits for others --- but that which, again, revolves around the main topic of whether he was hollow. Go read Kingdom and you'll see how exploring characters more works very well in the hype for strategic battles --- well, for some at least, for you maybe it doesn't.