What is Blanc et Noir, the Death Note art book?
Blanc et Noir appeared in 2006, the year the manga ended, and it was built as a luxury object rather than a standard mook: large format pages, heavy stock and a presentation that treats Obata's color work, the tankobon covers, the Jump color pages and spreads, and specially commissioned pieces, as gallery plates. The title, French for black and white, names the series' moral palette and Obata's own ink first reputation, which the book complicates by showing how much of Death Note's power was in his color.
The contents are the visual record of the series in one volume: Light and L's key illustrations, the shinigami designs, the fashion editorial style group pieces, and rough and process material that shows Obata constructing his realistic style. For readers who only know the manga's black and white pages, Blanc et Noir is the missing half of the art, and it is the publication most often cited when the series' art is discussed as design rather than as storytelling.
VIZ Media published the English edition in 2008 in a matching deluxe spirit, and the two editions are the comparison: Japanese original with its obi and print registration, English edition with translated commentary and captions. Both are oversized and both punish careless shelving; condition on this book means corners, because large art books live or die by them.
Obata's art book career frames the volume: Blanc et Noir stands with his later collections gathering work from Hikaru no Go, Bakuman and his illustration career generally, and Death Note collectors treat it as the third pillar beside the twelve volumes and How to Read. It is also the book through which Obata's Death Note work enters the art book market this library documents across many series.
Buying notes are practical: verify the edition and printing, check for the slipcase or outer packaging elements where the edition carries them, and inspect the fold and plate pages under light, because oversized color books show foxing and spine stress earlier than tankobon do. A clean Blanc et Noir is the centerpiece object of a Death Note shelf.
