Death Note

No spoilers... This show has a great starting foothold. The mixing between mythical fantasy world of god of death and police detective story line is brilliant, just works brilliantly. But as the story grows the details on how things work out gets blurry and un logical character decision making happens more and more often But overall very enjoyable despite the weak finish, and oddly i am hoping there is a death note 2

I have to say two things turned me off. First is the idiot reviewer on the front page who feels the need to use 70% of his review(even titled it "Eat Your Heart Out Naruto"-really subtle) to bash Naruto like some insecure 12 year old spoiled brat fan boy. Pathetic. The second was that it sounded like some Gothic action anime from others. However when I finally saw it I thought, meh, okay. However as it went on I got more and more drawn in.

The plot is simple enough to start:successful and brilliant student Light stumbles upon the Death Note, which will kill anyone who's name he writes down provided it's their real name and he knows his face. He experiments with it and sees that it's real. He plays with the other rules all the while killing other criminals and meeting up with the shinigami who wrote the death note. The deaths of these criminals does not go unnoticed as the renound and mysterious detective El is trying to discover who Light, under the name Kira, is. Whoever finds the other's identity first will win in this power struggle.

Like I said, the first episode is interesting enough. The story however develops and becomes better and more complex as it goes on. The moral ambiguity of the anime gives it a unique feel among others of it's kind. I was shocked to see a show like this under Shounen jump which usually host anime that combine strong actions scenes with a complex plot and character development. What we have here instead is an anime that dosen't have adrenaline pumping action scenes advancing the plot(not that there's anything wrong with that, in fact I enjoy that as well) but the proverbial chess game between Light and the police as Light becomes well aware the police are after him as he does everything possible to hide himself all the while continuing to do away with criminals at his whim.

Ryuk, the shinigami who follows Light, actually provies some of the comic relief of the show believe it or not. He's not over the top goofy by any means however if there's any laughs to be derived, it's usually from him.

Even if you're not a fan of Shounen Jump anime, you should give Death Note a try. It easily rivals the majority of thriller films. It is well worth your time.

I will be short, the series is a gem: character buildup, screenwriting, tension, drama, art, cinematography, everything. Truly captivating story...

...until (without spoiling it) the main story arc ends quite anticlimactically and new subplot begins with new characters in the primal focus. The latter half takes away a hint of brilliance from rest of the story.

Still I would recommend it!

This is anime at its best. I'm fairly new to the world of anime, but I have to say from what I've seen that Death Note goes above and beyond your typical run-of-the-mill action based anime. Whereas a lot of anime strategically relies on action packed battles and fights, Death Note is a refreshing change of pace. It's slick, clever, and witty with the eccentric "L" heading the investigation. It's a constant game of cat and mouse as the lead investigator and the suspected "Kira" or "Killer" always seem to be one step ahead of one another. The two brilliant minds constantly outwit each other. The plot is complex but easily laid out for you and the story is remarkably intelligent and inventive. All the while you're watching you think, "Wow, this can't possibly get any deeper," but each new episode proves you wrong. What I like the most is that this is very, very complex material but it's flawlessly and easily presented so each new development in the case comes as an excited shock.

This is great stuff and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who might be looking for a change of pace in anime. It's not for everyone, of course since it's more of an intellectual thriller and not so much an action fantasy, but anyone who can appreciate the mental challenge of following along with this suspenseful battle of wits will be in heaven with Death Note.

Death Note was a stellar TV Show and on its way to being one of my favorite animated TV Shows. With its incredible concept, interesting villainous protagonists and an antithesis to the protagonist that complimented his genius perfectly. The formula was great with the exception of episodes 18-22 which features our protagonists cunning on a boring way that leads to a lackluster payoff. After this however. Episodes 23, 24 and 25 are phenomenal works of art. This is where the series goes from Incredible to incredibly mediocre. With the exception of the last 3 episodes of the show, there is no right for any of the episodes after episode 25 to exist. The show went from having me completely invested to it feeling like a chore to finish, which is a shame because of how great the last 3 episodes actually were. They introduce new antagonists that are literally the exact same thing as the last one we had, except much worse and no fun at all to watch. I was frustrated with these new characters and their placement in the show. In my opinion Death Note should have ended at episode 25 then it would have been a nearly perfect anime.