Ryuk's Human Observation Journal

"The Shinigami Ryuk was a big troublemaker in the human world. Now we present to you a special collection of what might have been his strange notes. The following pages contain original bonus material and other extras. This data was very seriously researched. Supposedly."

- Death Note 13: How to Read (p. 201, How to Play)

Ryuk's Human Observation Journal, also referred to as Ryuk's Notebook, is a series of notes taken by Ryuk during his time in the human world.

Includes

 * Observational notes for Light Yagami, L, Misa Amane, Mello, and Near
 * Which character are you? quiz
 * Creator comments
 * Death Note four-panel comics
 * Pilot chapter

Observational Notes
Ryuk's observational notes include humorous, detailed notes on each of the characters and various subjects in which they seem to be interested, including Light's image of the New World, notes on L's diet and the ways in which he eats, Misa's Pure Love Memorial, featuring a diary detailing her love for Light and her competition with other females for his affection (this diary apparently "really pisses [him] off"), a list of Mello's hardships, and a list of Near's toys.

Character Quiz
A quiz written by "Professor Ryuk" including "relatively accurate character type diagnoses," which can be used to diagnose oneself based on different character types.

Questions
1. If you picked up a Death Note you…
 * Would use it ⇒ Go to 2
 * Would not use it ⇒ Go to 4
 * Would not pick it up ⇒ Go to 5

2. What do you think of Shinigami?
 * Scary ⇒ Go to 3
 * Cute ⇒ Go to 5
 * Reminds you of yourself ⇒ Go to 6

3. Which would you belong to?
 * Japanese Task Force ⇒ Go to 5
 * SPK ⇒ Go to 7
 * Shinigami realm ⇒ Go to 8

4. Whom do you like from the following?
 * Rester ⇒ Go to 5
 * Halle ⇒ Go to 6
 * Gevanni ⇒ Go to 10

5. Are you hiding things from your family?
 * Yes ⇒ Go to 9
 * No ⇒ Go to 12
 * They already know ⇒ Go to 13

6. Do you have a close friend of the opposite sex?
 * … ⇒ Go to 7
 * A few ⇒ Go to 8
 * A lot ⇒ Go to 10

7.How do you usually spend your weekends?
 * Hanging out with friends ⇒ Go to 9
 * Lounging around alone ⇒ Go to 11
 * Not leaving your room ⇒ Go to 12

8. Which would you want to be haunted by?
 * Nu ⇒ Go to 9
 * Midora ⇒ Go to 10
 * Sidoh ⇒ Go to 11

9. What are you proud of?
 * Your devilish mind ⇒ Type A
 * Your wild imagination ⇒ Type B
 * Your heart of gold ⇒ Go to 13

10. Are you cute?
 * Of course ⇒ Type C
 * Somewhat ⇒ Go to 11
 * Actually, quite ugly ⇒ Go to 12

11. What's your future dream?
 * An adorable bride ⇒ Type D
 * To become famous ⇒ Type E
 * Be as happy as possible ⇒ Go to 12

12. Are you smart?
 * Very much so ⇒ Type F
 * No, but I study hard ⇒ Type G
 * Pretty average ⇒ Go to 13

13. What do your friends usually call you?
 * Reliable ⇒ Type H
 * Strange ⇒ Type I
 * A good person ⇒ Type J

"Don't cry no matter which one you end up as."

- Rem (Death Note 13: How to Read [p. 213, How to Play])

Type A: Light Yagami - A dangerous mind.
You're abnormally intelligent, a positive person who will sacrifice anything to achieve your vision! You'd have lived a good life if you didn't pick up the Death Note. Probably.

Type B: L - Try not to lie so much.
Your creative skills surpass that of an ordinary person, but you also have a knack for telling lies. That's why it's hard for people to tell if the shocking reasoning you're giving is true or not.

Type C: Misa Amane - Try to listen to others more.
You're a charming and attractive person with the ability to attract others regardless of gender. However, it's unclear whether this is really true or whether other people are just suckers.

Type D: Naomi Misora - You probably won't live happily.
You are blessed with good looks, personality, intelligence, and other traits. However, payback for these blessings will undoubtedly visit you in the future. You may even have your fate trifled with and be sacrificed.

Type E: Mello - Stop doing bad things.
You have an innocent heart but you occasionally bully people to get what you want. Although you're a bit naïve, that innocent bullying may eventually reach criminal levels.

Type F: Near - Try to learn to walk on your own two feet.
Because you're overly sensitive, you've cut off ties with the outside world. You're the type to become the topic of conversation. In addition, you can't sleep unless your feet are in contact with the floor… You're so inactive it's worrisome.

Type G: Teru Mikami - Try and think on your own for once.
Backed by your beliefs, you're someone with a strong sense of purpose and action. The only problem is if you fall under the influence of a false idol. If that happens, you'll likely go insane.

Type H: Takuo Shibuimaru - Put some thought into your future.
You're a very sensual person who spends your days searching for pleasure. It's fine to have fun now, but you're too scared to think about where you'll be ten years from now. You're quite naïve.

Type I: Ryuk - You're not even human.
You're beyond human, with a strange but charming personality. You're a lot like the writer of this chart. In other words, a half-assed kind of guy.

Type J: Soichiro Yagami - Good going, you're the only one with common sense in this series!
A sense of justice, love toward your family, consideration for your friends… you're bursting with charm. And you're the only upright person on this chart. But I should mention here that you won't get along with any other character types. If you're not careful, you'll be taken advantage of!

"Gah! What a bunch of losers…"

- Sidoh (Death Note 13: How to Read [p. 214, How to Play])

Four-panel comics
The four-panel comics are humorous Death Note comics that were serialized in magazines like Akamaru Jump. The characters show a far less serious attitude than they do in the main series. Light makes many quips and his seriousness often makes him the butt of jokes. L acts like a fool, as if he were "born to be mocked," and Misa is "one of the two heroines of our story". Her "sexiness … has received a power boost compared to the main series." Ryuk seems to be the most similar to "his series version."

Subjects of the comic include hypothetical situations such as "what if the world was at peace." Another is Light and Ryuzaki pondering over what color Misa's underclothing is, though Ryuzaki ends up asking Misa what color her socks are instead. There is a debate over which character performed the best "trick" in the series. Light proposes Ryuk's "upside-down body twist trick," Matsuda says his fall off of an apartment balcony should take the prize, Soichiro suggests Ryuzaki's ability to tie a cherry stem into a knot in his mouth, and L nominates Misa's panty shot, despite Misa pointing out that it wasn't even a trick. Light ends up becoming the butt of the joke when everyone points out that he has yet to do anything impressive. In another comic Light unsuccessfully tries to get Ryuk to try different foods. A comic detailing an event which supposedly occurred over the four-year gap where Misa gives up ownership of her Death Note because she can't stand Ryuk anymore, Light saving Ryuzaki from falling off a cliff by pulling on their handcuff, pulling Ryuzaki up to safety and saying that no one can call him uncreative after that. Finally, there is one panel with two empty chairs and a caption from Demegawa of Sakura TV pointing out this was not a trick, and that Ryuk and Rem were "currently engaged in an intense debate" regarding the matter.

Pilot chapter
Information on the characters Ryuk and Taro Kagami are given early in the section, and at the end of the section is the original pilot chapter. For more information on the pilot chapter, go to its page.

Trivia

 * Several times throughout How to Read, the "human calendar" is mentioned. Ryuk writes down the year in his notebook as a skull, suggesting that this could possibly be the "Shinigami calendar," and the differentiation between it and the human one.
 * Ryuk writes down his class as letters looking very similar to those of the Greek alphabet, "ΛγςϜ" (lamda upsilon digamma sigma), making it almost look like the name of some sort of fraternity.