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Near (Death Note)
Encyclopedia
, universally referred to by the mononym , is a fictional character
who is one of the main antagonist
s in the manga
series Death Note
, and is a supporting protagonist
in the film L: Change the World
. Near is the younger of the two successors of L
who was investigating both the methods and identity of Kira, the in-universe name given to the mysterious serial killer who murdered criminals by means of the eponymous Death Note. He becomes the leader of the SPK (Special Provision for Kira), an organization that looks into the Kira case and, in the end, succeeds in uncovering Kira's identity. He is voiced by Noriko Hidaka
in the Japanese anime, and Cathy Weseluck
in the English dub.
, England
. Of the successors, Near is more level-headed, calmly assessing the situation, while the other, Mello
, is more emotional and quicker to act. Much like L, Near shows various odd behaviors during his normal life. He is usually seen hunched over rather than sitting. He also constantly plays with various toys, which he uses in his theories, as well as idly twirling or stroking strands of his hair. He shows a great respect for L, basing much of how he solves crime on L's methods, even to the point where he only takes cases that he is interested in rather than trying to pursue justice. The Kira case- as a case L died trying to solve- naturally becomes his first one. Near uses the Wedding text font "N" and "L" to represent himself and the fake L, respectively. In the aftermath, he used Old English MT font "L" like the original L did.
Sometime after L's death, he works for the United States
under the SPK (Special Provision for Kira) team that is established to investigate Kira without the help of the new "L" Light Yagami
. After already catching Light offguard by revealing the fact that he knows the original L is dead and unnerving him by reminding him of his former nemesis when they communicate, he soon manages to deduce that Light, posing as L, is actually Kira. After dismissing the outright capture or killing of Light as disrespectful to L's memory, he finds that Teru Mikami is Kira's proxy. Distracted momentarily by Mello, who kidnaps Kira's TV spokesperson Kiyomi Takada before being killed by her using a Death Note fragment, Near is able to switch Mikami's Death Note with a forged one, allowing him to set up a final confrontation that leaves Light exposed. Near admits that neither he nor Mello could have surpassed L alone, but have managed to do so by working inadvertently together. He rejects all of Light's ideals as a god of the new world who kills for the greater good and refers to the Death Note as "the worst murder weapon in all of history". Ryuk
kills Light with his own Death Note soon after as a Death Note owner must eventually be killed by the Shinigami
possessing them and with Light in prison he reasons he will be unable to satisfy his interest any further. Near then himself takes L's alias, keeping on the surviving members of the SPK as his subordinates with Roger, the head of Wammy's House, acting as the new Watari. In the epilogue of the manga, he is shown eating a bar of chocolate, as he pursues a new case, possibly in memory of Mello.
, writer of Death Note said that he introduced Near and Mello together as L individually could not defeat Kira. Ohba felt that introducing one character individually would produce a "repeat" of the struggle between Light and L, so he instead wanted a story involving three combatants fighting each other. Ohba said that he let Obata create the character designs and asked him to make both characters look "a little "L-ish"". Ohba said that he "wavered" in their ages and considered making the characters the sons of L. Ohba added that he did not initially develop their personalities as he wanted to "reveal" them through their actions.
Ohba said that he gave Near a hobby of playing with toys and stacking "things" as a development from L's hobby of stacking sugar cubes and little food cups. Ohba included the match and the dice towers in his thumbnails. Ohba said that he thought about Obata encountering difficulty in drawing the dice towers and felt surprised when he saw the dice towers in the final work.
The given name
"Nate" comes from the word "natural" and "River" is to symbolize that Near's talents flow from L. Therefore Near is the natural successor to L. The name is "supposed" to show that Near is a "natural genius blessed from above".
Takeshi Obata
, artist of Death Note, said that, since Ohba wanted to "include a little L" in Near and Mello, he tried to keep "the weirdness and the panda eyes". Obata added that since L was an important character he felt that he made Near and Mello look too much like L. He described the character designs as "a major struggle". Obata said that, when he first heard about Near and Mello, he assumed that Near and Mello would join as a team and work together, so he envisioned the two as twins when he created the character designs. Obata stated that he originally thought about creating Near as "a bit more mature mentally". Obata said that he created a "cooler looking version of L" design and considered using a younger version of that design. Another design Obata created for L included a "really innocent and cheerful character" and he felt that the design could work for Near; he said that he "quickly abandoned" the idea.
Obata said that when he first saw Near he "didn't even know what the heck he was wearing". He said that "it was tough" drawing Near's clothes as he did not understand the assembly of his clothes. Obata said that he settled for pajamas
and "things got a lot easier".
Obha said that Near "becomes less likeable" as the story advances, citing Near's plan to take the notebook at an earlier point in the story. Ohba said that a negative reaction originated from the loss of L and "the difference in their attitudes" and that people may have viewed Near as "a cheat". Ohba added that Near's "cheeky behavior", intended to "reinforce his childishness", had been construed as "annoying".
In the final chapter Near brings finger puppets to the Yellow Box Warehouse. Obata said that Near first bought the Kira finger puppet and drew on it with a magic marker. Obata then said that Near must have created the other puppets afterwards. Obata views Near as not liking L much so Obata had Near depict L as "ugly", and that Near "worked hard" on Mello's puppet as Near "liked Mello".
Obata said he enjoyed drawing Near and that Near is also one of his favorite and his least favorite characters, considering him to be the smartest character in the manga "because he cheats".
When asked about which character was most similar to himself, Ohba indicated Near and "maybe Light". Regarding Near, Ohba said that he does not leave his house often.
Obata added that the designs for the characters became switched at the design phase; the final Mello had Near's design and vice-versa. Obata said that when he created a depiction of the designs his editor wrote the wrong names accompanying the designs; then when Obata received approval he could not say that the labels were incorrect. Obata said that, for him, Near was "more evil". He felt that "it's better" that the switch occurred.
Obata stated that as he drew Near the concept of his immaturity became "stronger and stronger" as he believes that such traits are best revealed "gradually". Obata cited the fact that in the beginning Near's sole toy consisted of darts
.
He felt he could express "negative" parts of Near with the puppets. Ohba added that one could see "his dark side in his kind of puppets he used".
In L: Change the World
, L gives a talented Thai
boy with a gift for calculations the name "Near." L hopes for the boy, the sole survivor of a Thai village ravaged with a deadly disease, to succeed him as L, knowing that the rules of the Death Note will kill the experienced detective within a short period of time. Near does not speak much in the movie (during the movie, he only says numbers and letters) and when he does he speaks only in English. Like many of the characters during the transition from animation to live action, Near is portrayed with black hair instead of white hair as seen in the anime. Near is portrayed by Narushi Fukuda in the film and voice by Michael Strusievici in the English Dub. For some unknown reasons, even though L was shown giving him the name of "Near", he was listed as "BOY" in the credits.
based on the film, Near is described as being the original Near as he appeared in the original Death Note series. However, due to the plot in which Kira
killing L is absent, the requirement of an immediate nominee as successor is not necessary. As a result, the eight-year old Near is claimed to be working on a different case involving the prevention of World War III
since this the timeskip present in the original series is absent.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
who is one of the main antagonist
Antagonist
An antagonist is a character, group of characters, or institution, that represents the opposition against which the protagonist must contend...
s in the manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
series Death Note
Death Note
is a manga created by writer Tsugumi Ohba and manga artist Takeshi Obata. The main character is Light Yagami, a high school student who discovers a supernatural notebook, the "Death Note", dropped on Earth by a god of death, or a shinigami, named Ryuk...
, and is a supporting protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
in the film L: Change the World
L: Change the WorLd
is a 2008 Japanese film that is a spin-off to the Death Note film series. Although the film is inspired by the manga Death Note that was written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata, it follows an original storyline...
. Near is the younger of the two successors of L
L (Death Note)
, widely known by the letter , is a fictional character in the manga series Death Note by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata. Considered the world's greatest detective, he lives in secrecy...
who was investigating both the methods and identity of Kira, the in-universe name given to the mysterious serial killer who murdered criminals by means of the eponymous Death Note. He becomes the leader of the SPK (Special Provision for Kira), an organization that looks into the Kira case and, in the end, succeeds in uncovering Kira's identity. He is voiced by Noriko Hidaka
Noriko Hidaka
, real name , maiden name is a seiyū, or voice actor. Hidaka is most known for the roles of Mikage Matsunaga , Minami Asakura , Akane Tendo , Satsuki Kusakabe , Near , Seta Sōjirō , Jean , Kikyo , and Noriko Takaya .Hidaka...
in the Japanese anime, and Cathy Weseluck
Cathy Weseluck
Cathy Weseluck is a Canadian voice actress who frequently works with Ocean Productions in Vancouver, British Columbia. She is known with providing the voice for characters in various anime series such as Mirai Yashima , Dorothy Catalonia and Catherine Bloom , Near , Shampoo , Kagome's mother , Misa...
in the English dub.
Character
In Death Note, Near is the younger of L's two possible successors raised in Wammy's House, Watari's orphanage for gifted children, in WinchesterWinchester
Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Of the successors, Near is more level-headed, calmly assessing the situation, while the other, Mello
Mello (Death Note)
, universally referred to by the mononym , is one of the main antagonists in the manga and anime series Death Note.-Character:Mello is the older of L's two potential successors raised in Wammy's House, Watari's orphanage for gifted children, in Winchester, England, United Kingdom...
, is more emotional and quicker to act. Much like L, Near shows various odd behaviors during his normal life. He is usually seen hunched over rather than sitting. He also constantly plays with various toys, which he uses in his theories, as well as idly twirling or stroking strands of his hair. He shows a great respect for L, basing much of how he solves crime on L's methods, even to the point where he only takes cases that he is interested in rather than trying to pursue justice. The Kira case- as a case L died trying to solve- naturally becomes his first one. Near uses the Wedding text font "N" and "L" to represent himself and the fake L, respectively. In the aftermath, he used Old English MT font "L" like the original L did.
Sometime after L's death, he works for the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
under the SPK (Special Provision for Kira) team that is established to investigate Kira without the help of the new "L" Light Yagami
Light Yagami
, also known as is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the manga and anime series Death Note. He is an extremely intelligent, athletic, popular, but bored young man who finds the Death Note dropped by the Shinigami Ryuk by sheer chance...
. After already catching Light offguard by revealing the fact that he knows the original L is dead and unnerving him by reminding him of his former nemesis when they communicate, he soon manages to deduce that Light, posing as L, is actually Kira. After dismissing the outright capture or killing of Light as disrespectful to L's memory, he finds that Teru Mikami is Kira's proxy. Distracted momentarily by Mello, who kidnaps Kira's TV spokesperson Kiyomi Takada before being killed by her using a Death Note fragment, Near is able to switch Mikami's Death Note with a forged one, allowing him to set up a final confrontation that leaves Light exposed. Near admits that neither he nor Mello could have surpassed L alone, but have managed to do so by working inadvertently together. He rejects all of Light's ideals as a god of the new world who kills for the greater good and refers to the Death Note as "the worst murder weapon in all of history". Ryuk
Ryuk (Death Note)
is a fictional character of anime and manga series Death Note created by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata. In the series, he is a Shinigami bored with the activities of the Shinigami Realm, so he decides to obtain a second Death Note and drop it in the human world for someone to find, hoping to...
kills Light with his own Death Note soon after as a Death Note owner must eventually be killed by the Shinigami
Shinigami (Death Note)
In the manga and anime series Death Note, are a race of extra-dimensional beings who survive by killing humans to extend their own lives. Shinigami in this series are not responsible for every death that occurs; people will eventually die regardless of whether or not the Shinigami pay attention to...
possessing them and with Light in prison he reasons he will be unable to satisfy his interest any further. Near then himself takes L's alias, keeping on the surviving members of the SPK as his subordinates with Roger, the head of Wammy's House, acting as the new Watari. In the epilogue of the manga, he is shown eating a bar of chocolate, as he pursues a new case, possibly in memory of Mello.
Conception and development of Near
Tsugumi OhbaTsugumi Ohba
is a writer best known for the manga Death Note. His real identity is a closely guarded secret. As stated by the profile placed at the beginning of each Death Note manga, Ohba collects teacups and develops manga plots while holding his knees on a chair, similar to a habit of L, one of the main...
, writer of Death Note said that he introduced Near and Mello together as L individually could not defeat Kira. Ohba felt that introducing one character individually would produce a "repeat" of the struggle between Light and L, so he instead wanted a story involving three combatants fighting each other. Ohba said that he let Obata create the character designs and asked him to make both characters look "a little "L-ish"". Ohba said that he "wavered" in their ages and considered making the characters the sons of L. Ohba added that he did not initially develop their personalities as he wanted to "reveal" them through their actions.
Ohba said that he gave Near a hobby of playing with toys and stacking "things" as a development from L's hobby of stacking sugar cubes and little food cups. Ohba included the match and the dice towers in his thumbnails. Ohba said that he thought about Obata encountering difficulty in drawing the dice towers and felt surprised when he saw the dice towers in the final work.
The given name
Given name
A given name, in Western contexts often referred to as a first name, is a personal name that specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially in a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name...
"Nate" comes from the word "natural" and "River" is to symbolize that Near's talents flow from L. Therefore Near is the natural successor to L. The name is "supposed" to show that Near is a "natural genius blessed from above".
Takeshi Obata
Takeshi Obata
is a Japanese manga artist. He works as the artist in collaboration with a writer. He has also mentored several manga artists, including Kentaro Yabuki of Black Cat fame, Nobuhiro Watsuki of Rurouni Kenshin and Busou Renkin, and Yusuke Murata of Eyeshield 21.He originally became noticed in 1985...
, artist of Death Note, said that, since Ohba wanted to "include a little L" in Near and Mello, he tried to keep "the weirdness and the panda eyes". Obata added that since L was an important character he felt that he made Near and Mello look too much like L. He described the character designs as "a major struggle". Obata said that, when he first heard about Near and Mello, he assumed that Near and Mello would join as a team and work together, so he envisioned the two as twins when he created the character designs. Obata stated that he originally thought about creating Near as "a bit more mature mentally". Obata said that he created a "cooler looking version of L" design and considered using a younger version of that design. Another design Obata created for L included a "really innocent and cheerful character" and he felt that the design could work for Near; he said that he "quickly abandoned" the idea.
Obata said that when he first saw Near he "didn't even know what the heck he was wearing". He said that "it was tough" drawing Near's clothes as he did not understand the assembly of his clothes. Obata said that he settled for pajamas
Pajamas
Pajamas, also spelled pyjamas , can refer to several related types of clothing. The original paijama are loose, lightweight trousers fitted with drawstring waistbands and worn in South and West Asia by both sexes...
and "things got a lot easier".
Obha said that Near "becomes less likeable" as the story advances, citing Near's plan to take the notebook at an earlier point in the story. Ohba said that a negative reaction originated from the loss of L and "the difference in their attitudes" and that people may have viewed Near as "a cheat". Ohba added that Near's "cheeky behavior", intended to "reinforce his childishness", had been construed as "annoying".
In the final chapter Near brings finger puppets to the Yellow Box Warehouse. Obata said that Near first bought the Kira finger puppet and drew on it with a magic marker. Obata then said that Near must have created the other puppets afterwards. Obata views Near as not liking L much so Obata had Near depict L as "ugly", and that Near "worked hard" on Mello's puppet as Near "liked Mello".
Obata said he enjoyed drawing Near and that Near is also one of his favorite and his least favorite characters, considering him to be the smartest character in the manga "because he cheats".
When asked about which character was most similar to himself, Ohba indicated Near and "maybe Light". Regarding Near, Ohba said that he does not leave his house often.
Obata added that the designs for the characters became switched at the design phase; the final Mello had Near's design and vice-versa. Obata said that when he created a depiction of the designs his editor wrote the wrong names accompanying the designs; then when Obata received approval he could not say that the labels were incorrect. Obata said that, for him, Near was "more evil". He felt that "it's better" that the switch occurred.
Obata stated that as he drew Near the concept of his immaturity became "stronger and stronger" as he believes that such traits are best revealed "gradually". Obata cited the fact that in the beginning Near's sole toy consisted of darts
Darts
Darts is a form of throwing game where darts are thrown at a circular target fixed to a wall. Though various boards and games have been used in the past, the term "darts" usually now refers to a standardised game involving a specific board design and set of rules...
.
He felt he could express "negative" parts of Near with the puppets. Ohba added that one could see "his dark side in his kind of puppets he used".
L: Change the WorLd
L: Change the WorLd
is a 2008 Japanese film that is a spin-off to the Death Note film series. Although the film is inspired by the manga Death Note that was written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata, it follows an original storyline...
, L gives a talented Thai
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
boy with a gift for calculations the name "Near." L hopes for the boy, the sole survivor of a Thai village ravaged with a deadly disease, to succeed him as L, knowing that the rules of the Death Note will kill the experienced detective within a short period of time. Near does not speak much in the movie (during the movie, he only says numbers and letters) and when he does he speaks only in English. Like many of the characters during the transition from animation to live action, Near is portrayed with black hair instead of white hair as seen in the anime. Near is portrayed by Narushi Fukuda in the film and voice by Michael Strusievici in the English Dub. For some unknown reasons, even though L was shown giving him the name of "Near", he was listed as "BOY" in the credits.
Novel
In L: Change the WorLd novelL: Change the WorLd
is a 2008 Japanese film that is a spin-off to the Death Note film series. Although the film is inspired by the manga Death Note that was written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata, it follows an original storyline...
based on the film, Near is described as being the original Near as he appeared in the original Death Note series. However, due to the plot in which Kira
Light Yagami
, also known as is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the manga and anime series Death Note. He is an extremely intelligent, athletic, popular, but bored young man who finds the Death Note dropped by the Shinigami Ryuk by sheer chance...
killing L is absent, the requirement of an immediate nominee as successor is not necessary. As a result, the eight-year old Near is claimed to be working on a different case involving the prevention of World War III
World War III
World War III denotes a successor to World War II that would be on a global scale, with common speculation that it would be likely nuclear and devastating in nature....
since this the timeskip present in the original series is absent.
See also
- List of Death Note characters