Death Gods or also called Shinigami or Reapers, are the personification of Death itself who rule over the souls of the departed or sometimes be the harbingers of death itself. While Death Gods in-fiction have been portrayed as a malevolent force of nature due to the fact that they can be evil gods who use their power to cause death as well as being humanity's natural fear of death, Death Gods can also be benevolent harbingers or personifications who use their powers to maintain the balance of souls from any who seek to disrupt that balance. Death Gods can be at times in some media be the protectors of life using their powers to protect the innocent from any who would try to harm them. Death Gods that are on the side of good are portrayed as a necesity because they are needed to maintain the cycle of life and death from collapsing. Overall, benevolent Death Gods in fiction represent humanity's understanding of the importance and its acceptance of death. When heroic Death Gods ultimately must take a soul, they tend to appear in a soft and gentle form to comfort the deceased soul and the scene tends to be sad, but reassuring, giving the audience or reader the sense that while death can be sad, it's nothing to be afraid of.