Death Note

Death Note is on of my personal favorite. The first time when I heard Death Note I was with a friend, but she didn't explained the story very well to me so I was confused. But then I gave it a shot and I loved it. When I got the real idea of Death Note I was minded blowed. I love this anime so much. ~STORY~ The story was well planned and very unique. I liked everything. The only problem I had was the parts when a few people started talking about political stuff which bored me. But I know it was part of the story so it was okay. Overall I loved the story plot. 10/10 ~ART/ANIMATION~ Death Note has one of the best art/animation I had ever seen. I give a lot of credit to the animators, they did an amazing job. Everything was beautifully animated. 10/10 ~SOUND~ I loved the Death Note OST. Especially the second opening, the song is one of my personal favorites. The music gives a lot of feeling to every scene. From an average day to a very dramatic insane moment. The dub was well done also the sub. So you don't have to worry if the dub is horrible because it's not. 10/10 ~CHARACTER~ Evert character was pretty good for their role. The only problem I had was that some characters were forgetful. But the bottom line is I liked every character, even Misa. Yes I think Misa is a great character and she is adorable. With Light I think he is insane, which is a good thing. And L is the best characters out of all of them in my opinion, I kind of developed a small crush on him. 10/10 ~ENJOYMENT~ I enjoyed Death Note a lot that I would re-watch it again and again. I would definitely recommend it to people. I loved everything of Death Note, except one part which I'm not telling because I would be spoiling a part of the show. Over all you should go and watch Death Note.

When the Devil rebelled against God, he was cast out of Heaven and made to suffer in Hell. When Adam and Eve ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, they, too, were cast out of paradise and exiled into a life that ultimately culminates with death. Though ostensibly dissimilar, the sins of man and the Devil are, in fact, the same: they desired to put themselves on the level of God, and for that they were punished. In many ways, this is the basis of the Faustian archetype. A man desires to become God only to find himself destroyed by the story's end. If you think back to all the characters from all the media you've consumed who have had god complexes, you'll find that few, if any, turn out to have a happy ending. I'm reminded in particular of Marlowe's "Doctor Faustus" -- the story of a brilliant man who sold his soul to become god on earth only to find himself dragged to hell at the story's end. The Faustian archetype is not an antiquated one, however. I like to think that Paul Thomas Anderson's "There Will Be Blood" is, in many ways, a Faustian tale. I also like to think that "Death Note" follows a similar Faustian vein. Now after walking the horse around the barn about five times, I arrive at "Death Note" -- one of the most popular works of anime ever made (according to myanimelist right now, actually, the *most* popular anime ever made). Spanning 37 episodes, "Death Note" tells the story of Light Yagami, an exceptionally intelligent Japanese high school student who one day stumbles across a notebook that claims to possess the power to kill anyone whose name is written in its pages. Light takes up this newfound power with tremendous gusto, swearing to eliminate the wicked, build a better world, and proclaim himself the god of this new world. With countless soon dead, an urban legend soon crops up around the unknown perpetrator as authorities and civilians alike bequeath him the title "Kira." Now, I've never been a big fan of magical realism. The premise is rather fantastical, to say the least, and the megalomaniacal Light doesn't seem like the sort of guy you'd sympathize with -- though as the story progressed I did grow to pity him. Despite this, however, "Death Note" succeeds by way of its meticulous, masterful plotting and the staggering battle of wits between its two main characters -- Light, who I've already mentioned, and L, a genius detective working to catch Kira. Seeing the two of them duke it out as they consider, reconsider, devise, revise, and enact their schemes is a thrill to watch. A solid cast of supporting characters accompanies them, but the real ticket in town is this battle of two cerebral gods. Without them, this story falls apart, and they're both so masterfully crafted that they make sure this never happens. And as much as I hate to admit it, Light is by far one of the most brilliantly conceived characters I've ever encountered. I loathe him, despise him, sympathize with him, and pity him in equal measure. His boundless intelligence and astonishing charisma would elicit the support of many, but the power of the Death Note brings upon a descent into sociopathy that is by turns tragic and infuriating. For a man who aspires to be God, he really seems to encompass only one side of the essence of God. How does that old verse go? "The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away?" If God exists, He is, in many ways, both creator and destroyer -- the one who gave birth to this world and so will take it to death. Indeed, God often seems like a rather contradictory figure -- creator and destroyer, an arbiter of both justice and mercy, light and dark, kind and cruel. Light, however, captures only one side of that dichotomy: he never creates, he rarely shows mercy, his very name belies his true nature, and he develops so little regard for human life that the mere suggestion of kindness from him is laughable. And yet, one can't help but wonder what he would have been like without the Death Note's corrosive influence. Hence my introduction with the Faustian stuff. A man who wants to become god slowly corrupted by his own ambition. His tragedy is a compelling one, and it's a tremendous testament to the writing that I can't call him outright "evil" -- merely misguided and so corrupted. Overall, it's a tremendous work that has earned its popularity. I can't go into any further detail regarding Light's character and my thoughts on "Death Note" without spoiling anything, so I'll refrain from writing anything further. That being said, if you haven't seen "Death Note," I would advise that you do so immediately. Chances are, you'll enjoy it; even if you don't, it's one of those things that just shouldn't be missed given its notoriety. You'll more likely fall under the former than the latter, though.

When I first heard of Death Note I honestly didn't think I was going to like it. But I can honestly say it is an amazing anime. In fact it's probably one of favorites. The plot is great, and there are so many unexpected twists and turns in the anime. It's got an over all dark atmosphere but if you ask me there are a few funny moments in there too. Not to mention the graphics are great. I highly recommend this to anyone no matter what your tastes in anime are.

Oh the great Death note what hasn't been said about this anime?... To be honest Death Note in my opinion its everything people said and more. The story starts out simple, but later you will have to pay a lot of attention to details as things become much more complicated and a bit harder to follow. That might be a problem for some people, but like a said if you really pay attention you'll be a lot more interested in this characters and get familiar with them. Personally, I found it to be really interesting the way the story unfold, and came to an end. The Art and Sound in Death Note its beautiful and dark really following the concept of the anime and giving this characters a perfect atmosphere. I really like the way the drawing from this characters was and how the attention to details was on both the characters and environments. The sound of Death note its made of Heavy Metal for both the openings and endings and ambient noises as background music. The music fits very well and give the anime a sense of sorrow and bleakness. The Characters in Death Note are very interesting themselves, but mostly you'll be focusing on two characters Light Yagami AKA Kira and (L) both are very interesting characters, but I happen to like (L) more as a character. I found (L) to be very smart and kind of funny at times in a very sarcastic way. Also, he was a very determent guy who always came with great ideas and He wasn't afraid to face Kira himself. Light Yagami on the other hand was pretty much everything that (L) was and more. While (L) had a very lonely personality; Light was also a very lonely guy, but he was also very successful with chicks. I also like to add that I really hated Light, but for all the right reasons. He was using everyone around him and he didn't care about anyone. His sole purpose was to become the god of the new world he will create, and everyone who opposed will suffer the consequences. For all those reasons I hated this character, but in the way he did things made it all that much interesting. I have to say I did enjoy this series a lot and most of this enjoyment came from the well crafted dialogue. Yes, there was also some action here and there, but what made this anime was its excellent and intelligent dialogue. Overall, if there is anything wrong I can say about the show its probably the fact that there was a few episodes that weren't as good around the middle of the show, but that is a very minor complaint and nothing to take away from the experience. I also thought of that perfect world Light try to create and how wrong it will be because no matter how you try to change the world it will never be perfect. One example will be Religion and how each Religion wants to create this perfect world of peace, but there has been a lot of wrong with Religion as they have created a lot of wars, and also you see how each of then criticize each other even if they followed the same god.Good and Evil will always exist and corruption its something that will always exist, we see it in: Politics, Religion, Wars, TV, on the Streets its everywhere. I know I deviate from this review on this last paragraph but I wanted to compare real life experience with the concept of this anime. In conclusion, I really enjoyed this show and by the end of it I was very satisfied with what it has offered me and the way it concluded. We humans can make this a better world, but we can never change the nature of every individual.

I asked someone for a great psychological anime like Serial Experiments Lain and this was there first recommendation. The series is very enjoyable but have some tranquillizers or beer on hand because the suspense never lets up. The first half of the series (L's Arc) is masterfully done. L's Arc definately deserves all 10's. I felt it was on par with a Robert Ludlum novel (not the movies). The constant intellectual attacks and re-posts were very believable and had me in astonishment the whole time. The characters are all developed very well; there are characters to love and characters to hate. The story is well developed and thought out as well. The ending arc of the series was really not on the same level. The new characters are not developed well (hence the 7). The intellect was diluted down into a lot of "I knew you'd do that, so I did this"... "Well I knew you'd do that in response to what I did, so I did this"... I can only take so much of that before I ached for the strong foundations that were given earlier in the series (hence the 7 in story). Even though the traps didn't have as strong of supporting evidence the suspense was still there. But I really wish that L's Arc either continued to the end or that the ending arc was comparable to L... even though the new characters admit they are not as intelligent as L; that doesn't mean the storyline's depth and complexity should slack off as well. The art is great and what you've come to expect from anime. Music is great and the opening sequence of the first half is awesome. However, the opening sequence of the second half is a bit to much Death Metal for my liking. I enjoyed this anime very much but I thought the last Arc and ending could have been much better given the artful execution of the earlier storyline.

Death Note, it's been 20 years since the anime was made. As always with popular anime, I wasn't interested in watching it at first, but since I was running out of manga to read, I reached for this work. The manga surprised me in the end and after reading it I quite liked it, which unfortunately I can't say about the anime. I quickly went through the reviews here on MAL and apparently everyone only knows the anime, which is why they praise it to the heavens as a masterpiece. I'm disappointed with the anime, since I dare say that up to 30% of the overall plot from the manga is simply omitted or changed. The manga has a huge amount of both dialogues and monologues and MADHOUSE cut most of them out and it's no wonder when the ep. are less than 23 min long. so it's understandable that everything won't fit in there. Another thing I didn't like was the anime canon/manga ep. although there weren't many of them (ep. 1,25-26,37), but overall it spoils the key moments in the plot. I will also agree that the second half is actually unnecessary, since light is just putting on a show, catching kira. That part is less interesting and I felt the same way about the manga, but it was interesting what the author would come up with to keep the plot from ending. The drawing/animation didn't interest me that much, to be disappointed, but the OST surprised me and I heard a few songs there that I wouldn't even guess came from DN, such as the L theme, the OP/ED didn't blow me away. So for me, the anime is a big disappointment, despite the fact that it had a "proper" ending. Personally, I strongly recommend reading the manga first. If I hadn't read it, I would have definitely reacted the same way as everyone else and I thought that since it has such high ratings, they made a point of it.

This is my first review here. Before L’s death, this was one of the greatest mind games ever, two geniuses constantly analyzing, doubting, and outsmarting each other. Even with nothing but inner monologues, it remained incredibly gripping without needing much action. But after L’s death, the series lost its perfect balance. The characters who replaced him just weren’t as compelling, Light felt like his intelligence was nerfed, and the pacing shifted toward politics, making it less emotionally engaging. The ending was still powerful, but not as good as the manga’s version. Even so, for me, Death Note remains one of the most brilliant psychological battles ever written.

After a certain event occurs roughly halfway through the story, the anime loses all its steam. Before this event, the anime would have easily been an 8 or 9, but the story just... flops after it. Almost everyone who has watched the anime knows what I'm referring to by "this event", which just goes to show how it ruined the second half of the show. Even the first half, the "best part" of the show, would still be overhyped just by itself. Overall, I would say that while some people may like this anime, I personally wasn't one of them. It's worth a watch, but if you get put off by the aforementioned "event" halfway through the story, I would recommend ditching the show.

I started off really liking the anime, with the cognitive back and forth between Light and L being the highlight. The rules of the Death Note serve as a game constraint pretty much like an elaborate game of Mafia. But when Light somehow loses his advantage of being invisible from investigation and became the most likely suspect, the anime starts to lose its charm. L's infinite resources, including technology, authority (to imprison without trial and whatnot) and manpower. The second portion (I refuse to call this a 'half' simply because of how short it and rushed it was) was a bit of a let down. Near and Mello were simply not as interesting and many of their feats are bullshit. They should have gotten a fresher start trying to investigate Kira but they immediately picked up from where original L left off. Didn't like the heavy metal but to each their own. Other characters were shallow and akin to two-dimensional beings in a three-dimensional world. My review is plagued by the rushed second half which was more vivid due to the recency effect. Really interesting premise but the writing became lazy later on. Worth watching but not rewatching.

Before reading this, I would want to let you know I'm not an English native speaker, so you may find some mistakes in this review. If you do, please let me know. STORY: 9 Death Note has a really good plot base. You write people's name on a notebook, they die. Easy. The story goes on perfectly. It has is amount of drama, though you sometimes giggle. It will always keep you watching. Until here, it deserves a 10. But there is a failiure in here: The last 12 episodes. From chapter 25 to almost the end of the anime is quite boring. That's why I give it a 9. ART: 7 Though the charachers' clothes design isn't bad, the art in general isn't outstanding. It has some great points, like using the redish colours for Light Yagami and the blueish for L. SOUND: 10 Music in this anime is amazing. It has the perfect theme for every moment. I usually hear them while I'm studying or doing whatever, actually. Masterpieces. CHARACTER: 10 You'll maybe fall in love with some character. I did. The characters are brilliantly made. The inteligence of the two principal characters is astonishing, and Ryuk the shinigami is quite the icing on the cake. I hated Matsuda, though. ENJOYMENT: 9 As I've already said in the story part, until the episode 25 it was perfect. Then, the enjoyment decreased. OVERALL: 9 Death Note is my favourite anime of all time, maybe because it was the first one I saw. I've watched it eight times. I love it. I recommend it to every single person in the globe. Thanks for reading!

*This is a spoilerfree review* Death Note is one of the absolute best thriller/suspense anime I have watched to date. The story is so well written that you will never be able to stay a step ahead which is often possible in less thought out plots, and as you think you know what the next move will be, it will take you somewhere completely different and keep you on the edge of your seat. As for the characters the only thing I can say is that they truly are amazingly balanced and so, oh so intriguing. It is not everyday you find an anime where you honestly do not know if you are on the good or the bad side right up until the very end. In my opinion a great anime that needs to be given a shot by everyone! *doki doki*

Where to even begin with this anime.. Death Note is by far one of the most well known and loved shows in the entire anime community, and there isn't many people that would disagree with that statement. The series gets you hooked from the very beginning, which is something that, surprisingly, not a lot of anime (in my opinion) can do. First of all, the two main protagonists in Death Note are by far the best characterized and well made characters ever made in anime, EVER. Two geniuses, one an anti-hero and one a detective, make up one of the most dynamic and interesting rivalries I've ever seen. The animation and art style is extremely unique and is pretty damn good considering it came out all the way back in 2006; there's truly nothing like it. The story keeps you interested all the way through it's 37 episodes, even after a huge twist in the middle that damn near rips your heart out. It's practically impossible to stop watching since this anime does psychological thriller SO WELL. It has such an amazing soundtrack to fit with the theme and the setting the show gives off, and is just really the cherry on top of the cake. Overall, this anime is a MUST SEE, especially if you are someone just getting into anime. Now, I do not believe there is any perfect show, so that's pretty much why I didn't give this thing all 10s across the board, but this is a legendary series that almost anyone can watch and enjoy. 9/10.

Death Note definitely deserves all the praise it gets. I don't think it's overhyped at all. Albeit, the premise is a tad bit unrealistic. But that didn't prevent me from enjoying the anime. It's not like the show prides itself off it's realism. It's about a notebook that kills people, for fuck's sake. I respect the writers immensely, because they acknowledge that the premise is unrealistic. And by simply doing that, they turn a totally bullshit scenario into something more familiar. They use total fiction to invite more thought provoking and realistic ideas. So even though the literal plot might be a bit void of realism, it still manages to be filled with tropes that are intimate to real life. What I'm trying to say, is that by using a ridiculous premise (a notebook that kills people) and equally ridiculous characters (a 17-year-old genius who wants to play god), the show's plot eventually tells us, that in the end, no matter how good your intentions originally were, you're still just a bad person doing bad things. Through all this, this very unrealistic anime presents itself as an examination of the very realistic idea of human morality and what makes us "good" people. It's truly a deep anime, so much so that its meaning can be debated for hours. That's why I think Death Note is not overhyped at all. Underneath its shallow, cheap action-y surface, Death Note raises questions of ourselves and humanity's strive for god-like control. Philosophical nonsense aside, it does have its flaws in the conventional department. The soundtrack can sometimes be distracting. The animation style is sort of show-y, and sometimes I wished for a bit more subtlety. And the voice actor for Light sometimes put an odd emphasis on phrases for absolutely no reason, which was distracting (especially during dramatic scenes). And in later episodes, I began to question the quality of the plot arc we were going through, and what purpose it had to the whole story. Overall: What I can say for sure, is that it was a really enjoyable ride. I mean, what else can you expect from an anime staple?

Short introduction of me :D Hello,I will be trying to make this review as shortest possible and with almost no spoilers.This is for people who are doubting should they watch anime or not Short preview: Light Yagami is a highschool student,who wishes to change the world. He gets an opportunity when a Death Note falls from the sky which got dropped by Ryuk a shinigami. (Death Note is textbook who created shinigami or death god in english.If you write someone's name they will die.But it's not that easy you have to know the face and the name and last name of the person that you want to kill.Those are basics of the death note) Light Yagami starts killing criminals that are usually reported on TV.His allias was Kira (kill) .Government decided that they need to get involved and they did by hiring an private investigator L.This was tricky because Light's Father was working for the police and was involved in the case The story goes on with battles against Light and L and after new rivals come in. characters~( Important Ones) Light Yagami~ Light Yagami looks like a normal high school student,well that is at the first look.He posses the powerful Death Note that he uses to kill criminals.He is psycho,but he thinks he is a god.He is very intelligent using every one he knows for his own purpose . He is basically an actual badass . His changes from "normal highschool student" to psycho can be seen troughout the anime. L(Lewis) ~ Lewis or allias L is a private investigator hired by government to find and arrest infamous Kira . He as same as Light Yagami is very intelligent on level same as Light Yagami.L likes to eat sweets,but never gets fat.Unlike Light Yagami Lewis is not a psycho instead he is a famous investigator who solved a lots of crimes for his age. Ryuk the shinigami(Death God)~Ryuk is one that dropped the death note into our world.By Light Yagami picking it up he now follows the owner of death note.He likes apples and says "Humans are really interesting".Ryuk can exchange eyes with the humans.Shinigami's eyes will give human ability to see age and name of the person he is looking at,but there is a downside.Human that took the eyes must give half of his lifespan to the shinigami. Misa Amane~ Misa Amane is and Light Yagamis lover,even tough Light Yagami doesn't love her he uses her as a tool.Misa Aname would do anything for Yagame LightI In some kind of yandereish way.She is not yandere,all dough if Light Yagami said to kill someone she would do it.She has the second deat hnote.

death note is a show that is often compared to a game of cat and mouse, except you never know who is the cat or mouse at any one time which leads to a rather gripping show and honestly would be worth scores of 9 or 10... however, there is on MASSIVE problem that many fans simply overlook or maybe they are just blinded by episodes 1-25 because after that the show, which is standing proudly on the peak of anime greatness, comes crashing down into the abyss. this is the problem i have with people giving this show 9 and 10 because episodes 26-37 are just torture, no spoilers but they really ruin things in episode 25. because of these 12 episodes iv awarded a score of 7/10 for the story because 1-25 is AMAZING but this review includes those cursed 12 episodes so.... tough. the animation is nothing spectacular, it what i would call average honestly however this show dose not require impressive visuals so this isn't really important. no complaints from me really so i give it a score of 7/10 the sound is one of the high points of the anime, i LOVE the first into. its amazing, there are some other tracks scattered throughout the anime which were not bad ether. id recommend dub over sub however be ready to pull your hair out whenever misa misa is around. 8/10 oh the characters... how i am torn on this one. we will start with the good: L is one of my favorite characters of all time, he's on my top 10 list on my profile, he is amazing ... saying anymore will release a bubble of rage from inside me for spoiler filled reasons so we wont go into that here. Ryuk is an awesome addition and helps make light bearable for a while and even manages to make him a good interesting character at the start till he lost it. rem is kind of interesting however NOTHING can make misa bearable, trust me. ok now we are going to start with the bad: light is one of the most unlikable, psychotic and delusional main protagonists iv ever seen. he has the ability to make some situation dull with his constantly frowning face and average appearance. his personality is non existent all that left is a unlikable psychopath with genius level intelligence which is his only saving grace. i think my opinion is a very rare one so you may want to judge him for yourself. misa is unbearable, dumb, blind and infuriating she is probably in my top 5 most hated characters of all time list. cant stand her. nate and mihael are trying to fill a gap they couldn't hope to fill in a million years and nate only really does anything HUGE via luck!!! they are just bad. with all this in mind i give it a 6/10 because there are a lot of character i didn't mention and they were all ether good or ok. like i said at the start episodes 1-25 were superb!!! light was a good interesting protagonist until episode 26 were he becomes unbearable as well as the introductions of nate and mihael who are just bad. but episodes 1-25 are so good that i grant it an overall score of 7/10 and a recommendation to ONLY watch episodes 1-25 otherwise you will be cursed with the same anger as i am cursed with.

Death Note Review By: John Fragglepuss Evans Death Note is a popular anime and it is easy to see why. It is a quality show that has plenty of character development, a complex storyline, good animation, a quality soundtrack, and a realistic setting combined with supernatural aspects. The show involves a lot of death so the immense popularity does somewhat surprise me, but then again, Attack on Titan is one of the most popular anime out there, and it involves just as much death and maturity. As previously mentioned, there are a lot of positives to the show. The characters and their development make you feel strongly toward them, whether it is love or hate. The Shinigami in the show are interesting and enjoyable to watch. The line between good and evil is difficult to see at times in this anime. Who is the hero and who is the villain? I found myself asking that question repeatedly throughout the series. You might enjoy this if: You want a unique story that will have you hooked from the first episode. This is not just a quality anime, but a quality show of any type. You might not like it if: You do not have the patience for a 37 episode series. Note to the Viewer: Be prepared to pause before and after the commercial breaks. They show the rules of the Death Note.

Death Note is a complete masterpiece. All the way through. Some of the people out there say only episode 1-25 are the good ones. (Insert spoiler here) After that, people begin to lose interest in the show. But, I am one of those people who went all the way through the anime, and never lost interest. Why do I think Death Note is so good? Death Note has an incredible story to begin with. I'm not going to explain the story, considering you should already know it. The soundtrack in Death Note is amazing! You should listen to it when you have the chance. Or just watch the episodes again and listen to the amazing background music. Death Note is incredibly enjoyable if you are interested in supernatural, psychological anime. I, for one, am one of those who are interested in psychological, supernatural anime. I will watch others, but I'm most interested in those ones. I haven't watched much anime, but I began my journey of anime not long ago. Death Note's characters are all, uh... I don't know. Light Yagami, for one is the anti-hero of the story. Some call him a crazy sonuvabitch, but I call him the anti-hero. Light is bored out of his mind, so what does he do? Kill all them criminals. Badass, if you ask me. Now, in anime, the one thing I admire most is the badassery of the characters. Now, before any further information... I don't know if badassery is even a word. Ryuk is one of those characters who are just awesome and you don't really know why. Misa is pretty annoying, but lovable... I think. Or likeable. One of them. L is probably the best character in the entire series, Matsuda, the others, I don't really care about the rest of the task force. But, I have to admit, Aizawa is pretty cool. Now, enough chitter-chat, thus ending my review. This is my review, I haven't really wrote a review for an anime yet, but this is my review. Overall, I think I'd probably give this a 10/10 outstanding, wonderful, marvelous anime. Now keep calm, grab a death note, and kill some criminals! ~ Deusen Moose

Death Note is one of those anime's where your on the bad guy's side or anti- hero's side throughout the whole show and everything the protagonist does just blows your mind and leaves you hungry wanting more of Death Note. The Main character Light Yagami is one of my favourite characters in any anime and he shows why with his intelligence and his ability to have things go his way. (Like Lelouch without the geass) The art style is dark and fits perfectly with the whole dark thriller atmosphere the show gives off and leaves you wanting to be the "god of the new world." There was never a dull moment with Death Note, each episode leaves you with wanting to watch more episodes it just kept you hooked and it never disappointed....... well except the ending. The ending was alright and I don't want to spoil it but its an ending I didn't want, other then that if you are looking for an anime to watch you gotta watch Death Note is a must see anime.

Discussion: I'll start off by saying Death Note is among the most exciting television to watch. The confrontations between the characters are absolutely exhilarating. Even by their very first confrontation in the second episode, you can see that the two lead characters, Yagami Light and "L", are genius, devious, and at least partially insane. Yagami Light, who works under the public alias "Kira" to punish criminals with the Death Note, and "L", a world-renowned detective who has solved several cases previously deemed impossible, close in on each others true identities at an even pace throughout the series - a race that means death to the loser. The competition keeps you on the edge of your seat in anticipation of the next time they clash. It is a battle between genii with absolute ideals and the determination to realize them. The winner determines the fate of the world and neither will back down until the other is dead. As a psychological thriller, there is nothing that tops Death Note - it is a 37 episode duel that will completely blow your mind. And that's where I get to my main complaint for the show: that it is only a 37 episode duel. As a viewer, I took little away from this show beyond "That was freaking epic." The characters were interesting in how they used their skills, knowledge, and resources to battle each other in the open world; however, very few characters compelled me to care about anything other than their elusive goals of 'changing the world'. Most problematically, the protagonist is absolutely impossible for me to empathize with. Of course, I was compelled to want Yagami Light to overcome obstacles for the sake of the show's continuation, but his lack of emotion and unsurmountable ego make him unlikeable, if not detestable. Other characters in the show besides Yagami Light, his primary opponent, and his 'love interest', seemed only to exist for the sake of furthering the plot. Although I wanted to empathize with many of the minor characters, they were never shown in scenes which did not relate ultimately to the duel between Yagami Light and L. Although the plot of the story is amazing, and it is clear that a lot of effort went into developing it, its disregard for the stories of characters besides Light and L, and the unpalatableness of the former, killed a lot of its character value. The most interesting characters by far are the detectives working against Light. The trio headed by L, later followed by Near and Mello, are given a good deal of attention by the story. I personally found Mello to be the most interesting of the three, because unlike the other two, he appeared to be driven at least partially by emotion. His motives are not bound by his opinion on the fate of the world as much as L and Near, and his personality is more compelling because it isn't made up entirely of righteous logic. As for Near, there isn't much to say, other than that he has awesome hair. His character growth is extremely stunted by the fact that he is an inferior L - this was explicitly stated in the show. In most respects, he and L are basically the same person, except L has a more interesting relationship with the actual Kira. I honestly am not sure why it was necessary to bring Near into the show. L himself is an interesting enough character. His brilliance and creativity matches, if it doesn't exceed, Yagami Light's, and every scene with the two of them present is filled with tension. He is one of the first to become suspicious of Light, and as they begin to know each other in-person (under pseudonyms), he becomes very attached to the idea that Light is Kira. I found this interesting because it seemed to imply that L wanted Light to be the one person that could rival his intelligence, and there is definitely a rivalry appreciation between the two of them. Although L has no motives other than catching Kira, and "because it's his job" isn't a very compelling motive on its own, his interest in the case, which continuously grows with personal investment, makes his character more dynamic than anyone else in the show. Beyond L and Mello, very few characters are compelling at all. Among them, the chief of the police force stands out thanks to his interesting relationship with Yagami Light. Though his motives throughout the entire show are somewhat confusing. Mostly it seems that he remains diligent on catching the real Kira because he doesn't want to believe they are actually Light. Matsuda is an curious character because he isn't entirely sure of how he feels about Kira's methods, but he nonetheless continues to pursue him out of duty. Matsuda is also one of the only dynamic characters. Perhaps the biggest qualm I have about characters in this show is that with the exception of Misora Naomi, there are almost no strong female characters. Misora joins the search for Kira out of personal vendetta, and I thought her arc was among the most interesting in the story. However, Death Note has a tendency to mitigate plots which are not directly related to the battle between L and Light. Although she could have been a very intriguing character, her presence is reduced to a plot device by the need to focus the story on Kira and the investigator trio. This segues directly to my next criticism: this show is ridiculously sexist. And I don't mean in the passive anti-feminist way; it isn't that there is an absence of strong female characters, it's that major female characters are not given any motives which are not based on impulsive emotionality. The most notable female character, Misa, could have been very interesting. After Kira eliminates the criminals who murdered her parents, Misa begins to seek the actual Kira. What's off about her character is that after meeting Yagami Light, she instantly falls hopelessly in love with him. There's almost no sense to it, because Light shows no emotion at all and has nothing to offer (other than being Kira). No one can pretend to understand how love works, but I can say with certainty that it's not the way Death Note makes it out. Love at first sight is possible, but the way it's written for Misa is absurdly disempowering and unrealistic. Her earnesty is at least interesting in the contrast it sets with the rest of the show, but that's only because all most characters are nearly completely in control of their emotions. What I find most problematic is that her disposition to emotion is cast as a weakness which basically can't be helped because she's a woman. On some level, it's even set as comic relief, which bothers me further. In a show where the excitement is built off of many characters being extremely sharp and logical, why is it that the one major female character is being made fun for lacking such rational abilities? The writing is consciously sexist, and that detracts from my enjoyment of it. Misa could have been a much more intriguing character if she was given some power over her own emotions. All of this could add up to at least a decent score for characters in the show if there was just one more element: a sympathetic protagonist. But the fact is that I have no emotional attachment to Yagami Light. Perhaps that's biased partially because of my opinion on the death penalty, and not everyone will share the exact same detachment from him as I do; however, I think it was an oversight in the writing that there was no one worth rooting for if you weren't a follower of Kira. Rooting for the investigator trio could have been made more of an option, but the show isn't told told from their perspective as often and the writing encourages you to root for Yagami Light much more frequently. However, it wouldn't be fair to say I disliked Light only because of his ideals. Personality goes beyond beliefs, and what really matters is who the person is. And Yagami Light is a complete dick. He has absolutely no regard for anyone else's emotions or life and is self-righteous to the point of self-deification. He manipulates and uses …

A never before seen, amazing anime. Truly a masterpiece. What can I say - the best and most honest thing that I can do for this anime is to give it a perfect score. And to write a fantastic review (as fantastic as I can). I mean, the story is unbelievable, like nothing you have ever imagined. It takes us to a place where anything can happen. The plot twists change every time and keep us hooked from the first minute. The art is so swift and smooth and has great quality of expressions that have been amazingly drawn. The songs are just great, simply well suited just for this anime and the background music is made to make us come to the edges of our seats with anticipation. We feel the same way the characters feel and it connects us with everything that happens in the scene.The characters are fantastic. I love L. The struggles, problems they have and how they face them are very different to each character. I enjoyed it to the fullest and am watching it again. Don't miss out on this anime. Trust me, you won't regret it. It's a brilliant anime. One of the best - superb!