[ichijin]

Mello wasnt a L wannabe... Near was, thats a reason why i kinda liked Mello more than Near...

[Lawliet1330]

I like L best of all because he knows how far he should go, and just how much he could push the law.

I don't like Near because he is self righteous and will never push the law.

Mello is cool because, even though he relies on his emotions, he makes sure to do things his own way, instead of copying any particular style. I almost cried when him and Matt died in the manga... *Matt wasn't in the anime long enough... dammit*

[animeluvr]

L is better

[Blue]

L is epic, near is noob, Mello likes chocolate.

[Zim...]

L definitely

[ichigo1212]

L hes awesome

[madara144]

i agree

[Kalil]

I like L a lot better.
There's just something about Near that's... I don't know.
There's just something I don't like about him.

[Temari]

L of course.
Read through all the replies, everyone likes L. :)

[Digitalis83]

Near and L are definitely similar in their composure and methodology in tackling cases or dealing with a problems. However, there are some differences in their characteristics and mannerisms that sometimes change the way they think.

Here's my opinion, and personally, I think L has a much more logical approach to most of the things he does. He tends to analyze scenarios and possibilities to make sure he is in fact correct. Whereas Near is much more stubborn and tends to stick to first scenario much more and does not really see outside the box. This shows Near's inexperience because of his dogmatic personality which could only be absolved over time. And because of this inexperience he is rather careless and usually would end up making mistakes, if not for L's work.

L had much more experience than Near seeing as that he was older and dealt with many cases, whereas Near was just the new kid around the block. L was widely known as more of detective solving ridiculously difficult cases and from most of these cases he built a great amount of experience, this is why he would question himself about every possibility. In the unlikely scenario that he would be wrong, at least it would not effect him. Near on the other hand was lucky enough to receive the information gathered by L and literally used his hypothesis to get a starting ground on the case.

Moreover, in the storyline, Near would be worthless if he was not able to catch Kira, after studying every aspect of the case for approximately three years. And from seeing the anime, Near was barely able to make out alive. Put it this way, If Near were to head off against Kira first, he would not be able to get his mind around Light. He tends to miss the big picture and focuses solely on who is what. Due to this, he would not be able to discern around facts such as the two Kira's as easily. Near's a rookie compared to L, and L being at a much more advanced level.

With more cases and longer span of time, Near does indeed show the potential to out perform L in the long run but as it stands now Near is still inferior to L.