by forwardslash

I have elsewhere called Light 'hubristic' and said he made mistakes. So I am obliged to explain what he did wrong and how he could do better.

While Light starts scheming and taking serious risks as early as the arrival of the FBI team in Japan, he has fundamentally already screwed up. L should never have gotten that close to Light. The Death Note kills flawlessly without forensic trace and over arbitrary distances; Death Note is almost a thought-experiment - given the perfect murder weapon, how can you screw up anyway?