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Tuesday Otaku Debate: Shinigami standoff
by God Len, 06/11/2008
Tuesday Otaku Debate: Shinigami standoff photo

The holy day of Japanator is upon us, because its time once again for another Tuesday Otaku Debate. Last week we had the spring season of 2008 cute girl showdown between Nunnally of Code Geass and Ranka of Macross Frontier. Ranka easily takes the win this time around. Sigue says it best:

“Nunnally hasn't completed high school, nor is she attending classes. Ranka is currently attending a high-class high school while balancing her new career. Ranka cooks and cleans, whereas Nunnally is blind and paralyzed. This means she wouldn't be much good in bed, either. Nunnally's father is a psychotic dictator. Ranka's brother seems scary at first, but we all agree he's a pretty cool guy. As far as brothers go, would you feel comfortable being with someone who has an obvious thing for her big brother? Didn't think so. Things are tipping in Ranka's favor, but the most important issue has yet to come up: Who would win in a fight, one-on-one? Well, seeing as how Nunnally can't see or move, never mind defend herself... Yeah.”

Nunnally: 10

Ranka: 23

Join us in the afterlife for this week’s debate.

Shinigami literally translates to “death god” or some other combination of those words. In anime shinigami are used a lot as a storytelling devise to spice up ordinarily dull characters. For this debate, we will argue which shinigami are the best shinigami. Will you vote for Bleach’s sword wielding shinigami, Death Note’s notebook wielding shinigami, Soul Eater’s human weapons wielding shinigami, or Full Moon o Sagashite’s weird hat wielding shinigami. Though this debate isn’t only focused on those shows, but any who posses these wonderful death gods.





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Legacy comments:

Red Baylon

Soul Eater for being unique and actually being creative.
 
Red Baylon

I feel like somebodys gonna rag on me for on how i worded my previous comment. I meant Soul Eater being unique as in actually making the weapon into a character even more so than in bleach. I said creative in making the characters have more depth than making the usual archetypes.
 
Initial M

lol, i got what you meant redzie!

Gotta go with Death Note here, innovative way to look at the role of a shinigami.

The pen IS mightier than the sword!

 
MoonStorm

Death Note shinigami are the true gods of death. They need not be even near you to kill. They can just look from their own world and strike you down with nothing more then a pen a paper. They have no rime or reason but to their own selfish ends. bleach and soul eater shinigami try to correct or protect the world of the living this dose not make the god of death.
 
PSIq

Hm, I like Soul Eater, think I'll go for them they deserve a win.
 
Setsuna

Soul Eater

 
Ace0fClub5

Death Note shinigami. Things are far more interesting with rules and boundaries.
Im not saying that just slicing and dicing someone with a sword isnt fun. But it makes for a better story when you complicate things.
 
Mr Nox

If I'm not mistaken, there is only ONE shinigami in Soul Eater, the one that has that strange voice and appears in a mirror. All the other characters are weapon masters and weapons.

I don't really like Soul Eater, but I thought the music you hear in episode 8 when Stein and Death Scythe enter the church (ending when Shinigami says "tanonda yo, Stein-kun) was just BADASS !!

Anyway, I vote for Bleach, the anime where Shinigami are sexy.
 
Bob Muir

Death Note. No other series gives me the impression that they are literally near-all-powerful gods of death, the master of every person's ultimate fate. Plus, gods of death should like as dark as possible, and everything else just looks too tame to possibly be a shinigami.

Oh, and of course, the shinigami in Bleach are actually soul reapers and not actual gods, so there's that too.
 
silverblackcat

Deathnote, I agree with MoonStorm and Necros on this.
 
darkcyder

I'd have to say Death Note since they can kill any of the other shinigami in a heartbeat...

Ha... U C wut I did thar? >_>

But then again Bleach shinigami are souls and not actually livng beings, so how would that work?...

Oh well, DN shinigamis FTW.
 
Zeouterlimits

Bleach or Death Note Shinigami ...
I think I'll go with Bleach. From Aizen to Urahara, their Shinigame knock the pants off Ryuk {and co&}.
 
KoKoO Psy

Soul Eater, i like the whole setup it has going.
 
gokumonster

Soul Eater wins my vote.
 
Horatio Caine

The Dead Demon Consuming Seal from Naruto.
 
ChapelofChaos

deathscythe-kun wins
 
Cheesus

Man, another hard choice.
Let's see.. I'll go with Ryuk and his gang because they really seem like they do Shinigami-stuff.
 
nilcam

I'll have to go with Bleach for this debate. I love the concept of shinigami that live by a samurai-like code and talk to their weapons. Also, they'll fight anyone or anything.
 
Chicken008

The Death Note Shinigami, the rules in the series make them really interesting. Plus they look creepy and evil.
 
Kitsune

I don't know what they're supposed to be in Monochrome Factor, but I'm going to go with the transformation version of that guy. I don't remember what his name is, but not the pervert guy. You know who I mean.
 
Wedge Jaeger

Bleach, if only because their fights are more epic
 
Amerowolf

I've always been fond of the designs of some of the Bleach Captains, then again Death Note has some interesting ones as well.

Bleach.
 
Heero Yuy

My vote goes to Duo Maxwell. He was the god of death long before any of these were thoughts in their creators heads. Plus he's got a mecha Grim Reaper.... that instantly should give him +20 on all the rest of them.

lol

but if it comes down to a hair vote between bleach, death note, or soul eater, I vote Death Note. Otherwise I'm sticking with my personal vote.
 
Reibooi

I say Bleach. The soul Reapers are just bad ass sure the Shinigami from death note don't need to be there to kill you but i think its that much scarier to see the person with crazy powers that's about to kill you. Kinda like how the grim reaper appears in front of the people who's time has come.
 
giapet

I vote for Risky from Risky Safety. Cutest shinigami ever!
 
Brakah

I vote Bleach. I doubt the shinigami from Death Note could kill Kenpachi Zaraki since he doesn't seem to have a name.
 
Heero Yuy

I have a gut feeling God Len is going to say something or facepalm at my earlier comment...
 
The dark prince

The shinigami in Death Note have boring life's, while in Soul Eater they live in a fun world with interesting people. I shall have to choose Soul Eater.

 
God Len

Facepalm @ heero

Noin!!
 
Hei

I have to agree with the dark prince here. Death Note Shinigami look interesting, but that's about all they have going for them- there wouldn't even be a show without all those crazy humans mucking about.

Soul Eater. Hands down.
 
Gatoh

Ryuk pwns them all with his laughter.
Death Note for me!
 
Heero Yuy

But....but.... Noin wasn't a god of death...

Even if she was by far the coolest character of the show...

(Gotta like the Len, he never disappoints)
 
Diadda

Most powerful, Death Note would win... but I enjoy the variety of the Bleach cast more.

So my vote is non-filler Bleach.
 
abune

Soul Eater because Shinigami-sama was once badass (:
 
Shinsune

In effectiveness, Deathnote, but I would vote Black Star from Soul Eater. I'd hear him coming a mile away also, Tsubaki is hawt!
 
pathogen

Soul Eater for renewing my tired otaku heart.
 
Sigue

Soul Eater because I don't like Bleach or Death Note.
 
mattousai

Umm... Death Note shinigami were mostly lazy. Soul Eater has one weird shinigami. Bleach has a bunch, and most of 'em kick ass. So, my vote is:

The shinigami from the end of Mononoke Hime :D
 
Euphemia

Soul Eater's Shinigami sama because anyone who reminds me of the Millennium Earl, is made of pure win in my book. >w<

 
screwedazn

Omg this cannot be Soul Eater, the idea of a death god is totally shifted.

Has to be Death Note, that plays look and seems like a real Shinigami. Bleach is cool yea but still its like a title all the do is fight each other and some other factors.

Based on actual shinigami role i go with Death Note.
 
Phyraks

Omg, this may be the hardest debate topic I've seen since I've been coming to this site. Death Note, Bleach, and Soul Eater are easily some of my most favorite anime series and now you're making me pick between them.

Well as others have said it has to be Death Note simply because they're the only true "Death Gods" imo. Not to mention easily the most effective and believable.
 
Bankai9

In honor of the Bleach movie I am watching tomorrow night at the Hoffman theater in Alexandria I vote BLEACH. Cause the shinigami don't just fight hollows all day they do guide "plus" souls to the "other side" like a good death god should do. People forget that that is also the second funtion they are supposed to carry out.
 
madninja

I will go for Bleach even though all of the shows are awesome, I can actually sometimes believe that if Death Gods existed it would have a system like Bleach.

 
Splee84

i would go with soul eater because its fun and new...to anime.
 
Jak Cadden

Soul has epic teeth. Maka looks like a puppy! Shinigami-sama is awesome.

Soul Eater.
 
king3vbo

Death Note, because the all powerful Shinigami also dont give a shit
 
Zanduar

Well seeing how you all voted, I'm voting Bleach.
 
nenyanko

I think Death Note has the most powerful Shinigami, but their lives are rather boring.

At least Soul Eater keeps things more interesting, naturally :>

Bleach is kind of tired out in my opinion.
 
neko_cam

Death Note - I loved the presentation of the Shinigami. Unfortunately this vote is cast without seeing much of the other titles already mentioned.
 
Pangloss

I love all three, and I'm on an especially strong Soul Eater kick right now, but I'm gonna have to go with Death Note. Because those death gods actually, you know, kill people. And I'm pretty sure that there hasn't been any epic potato chip eating in Bleach or Soul Eater yet.
 
mega324386

Soul Eater - For 2 reasons. A. Shinigami-sama, Death himself, is one of the most humor filled and non-threatening (But mostly funny) Death's I have seen since the Death in Terry Pratchett's books. B. Weapon Meisters wielding other people as weapons, great idea, reminds me of the legend of the singing sword.
 
God Len

voting is over, TIE GAME
 


  

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