For the longest time, many believed Light picked out the name Kira in Death Note for Killer in Katakana. Some would also understand that Kira means to shine and twinkle in Japanese, so Tsugumi Ohba essentially played with Light’s own name to announce himself as a killer. The impression left by the character is that of one who wreaks havoc in the blindness of his own ambitions.

Light Yagami | Credit: Madhouse

Every ambition isn’t good, and all that glitters isn’t gold. Light has always symbolized power and what can be done when the right people or the wrong people get it. He sees himself as God, an adjudicator in a world where law and justice have failed many. With the Death Note’s power, he becomes the judge himself and the rest does not seem to matter thereafter.

Death Note: You Either Die a Hero

Kira means to shine and glitter,...